VOLUME 55, ISSUE 4
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OCTOBER 10, 2019
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WWW.MERAMECMONTAGE.COM
PHOTO by SYED ALI
ASSESSING ACCESSIBILITY ON CAMPUS Access Office, Faculty evaluate accessibility for meramec students MARY WILSON opinions editor
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ccording to the National Center for Education Statistics, during the 2015-2016 school year, 19 percent of undergraduates identified as having a disability. Such students are covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act, signed into law in July 1990, and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Under Section 504 and the ADA, all programs of post-secondary educational institutions must be accessible to students with disabilities. Disabilities can include learning disabilities, such as dyslexia or ADHD, students with chronic medical conditions, students who have mental health disabilities, students with physical limitations and more. “(Disabilities are] the one club that you can join at any point in your life. Planned or unplanned, it can happen,” said Matthew Sullivan, PhD, director of the Access Office at St. Louis Community College at Meramec. According to the St. Louis Community College website, the Access Office is “committed to providing all students an equitable and accessible environment in all learning opportunities, programs, resources and facilities.” “There’s some students who won’t completely have the opportunity to showcase what they know, unless it’s in a more distraction free environment,” said John Messmer, professor of political science at Meramec. “I think my classes are typical of other college classes. We (professors) take pride in our subject matter so we want to convey as much information as we can. At times, that can mean we go pretty fast. It can mean
that the information can be sometimes very intimidating. I think that’s for everybody. But for some students with genuine learning disabilities, it can be even more of a burden and even more intimidating. And so of one of the most common accommodations…is the note taking service.” Sullivan said there is a baseline of expectations for students with disabilities. “When I look at the ADA, in the field, it’s considered the floor, not the ceiling,” said Sullivan. “It sets the baseline of expectations, but there’s no reason that we can’t continue to work and move forward so we’re exceeding the baseline. It creates a society that’s more open and welcoming to all individuals, regardless of race, ability, background, beliefs: it was a law to design inclusivity.” The Access Office at STLCC-Meramec works closely with faculty to ensure accommodations are made for students with disabilities. “In my opinion, the Access Office does an excellent job in working with faculty,” said Messmer. According to Pamela Garvey, professor in the English department at Meramec, there are concerns both on and off Meramec’s campus. “I had a student several years ago, when we had some really bad ice storms. The sidewalks
were not adequately shoveled or de-iced for him, so he ended up missing so many classes that he sent an email to me and his other instructors saying ‘I’m just going to withdraw.’ And that was really disheartening to me. That’s beyond our campus,” said Garvey. As far as concerns on Meramec’s campus, Garvey listed the Communications North building. “The women’s restroom is on the 2nd floor and the men’s is on the 1st floor. If you’re a student in a wheelchair, that elevator is
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Disability is a way of life. it’s an identity. it’s natural in a good way.
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MATTHEW SULLIVAN, ACCESS OFFICE
slow. If you’re on a Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule with 10 minutes between classes and you need to use the bathroom and get to your class and they’re on different floors, it makes you late for class,” she said.’ “I think on a campus level…. accessibility to things such as restrooms, we need to think about things like that. I think we always need to make sure that when the weather’s bad, we’re thinking about students who could be
harmed, if for example, everything’s not clear and dry and safe. And I think our crew does a great job. But what we need to remember is that when literally thousands of people are coming through, they trek things in… The crew is doing a great job, but maybe we need more of them. I sometimes worry that we’re a little understaffed. I have no criticism of how hard they’re working. I just wonder what we could do to make sure we have enough people to stay on top of those things so it’s safe for all students to come to campus, and all employees who have that need,” said Garvey. Both Messmer and Garvey mentioned the Access Office as a great resource for students. “I use the Access Office when I have concerns, to help me out. I recommend students do the same thing, even if they’re not registered with them, if they think they should be I think they should talk to them,” Garvey said. Garvey highlighted the need for more faculty training, too. “We (faculty) do a lot of online training for employees for things like-legal things. What is sexual harassment, what is title nine, all that stuff’s great. It might not be bad if we were to go a little bit deeper into how we can best help all students succeed. We cover the basics, we cover what’s legally required. And that’s good. I wonder if it might not be bad to have some kind of training, workshops, people who have more knowledge on how to best serve students in the classroom when they come to us and say, ‘I have anxiety.’ Or they come to STORY CONTINUED ON P. 2
Library renovations pg. 2
Brighton Beach Memoirs pg. 5
WEIGHT TRAINING pg. 8
Serving the St. Louis Community College - Meramec community since 1964 • ACP Award Recipient
2 NEWS
October 10, 2019
ACCESSIBILITY:
CONTINUED FROM P. 1 us and they have ADHD. Things like that, and how to best deal with it,” said Garvey. Sullivan said faculty support is essential. “The desire (of faculty) to support is there,” Sullivan said. “They (faculty) want to be able to support and educate students in their classrooms; that’s why they’re faculty. So I can say yes…being in October now, there is professional development and training. The goal is making sure that’s (professional development) available on a more consistent basis.” Sullivan brought up Disability Awareness Month, held in October. Events on Meramec’s campus include a scavenger hunt for famous people with disabilities and a presentation about service dogs for individuals with disabilities, as well as an Access Office Open House, held on October 24. Dennis Dill, Senior Manager of HVAC and Maintenance, said via email that “The College is in compliance with ADA requirements. Special needs are addressed on a per person basis. Areas undergoing major renovation or new construction have enhanced accessibility provided….The College has been, and will continue to be, diligent in their efforts to remain in compliance with current ADA standards.” “Disability is a way of life. It’s an identity. It’s natural. There’s no escaping it. In a good way,” said Sullivan. “I’m very thankful that America, though we have a long way to go, we are one of the most progressive nations in the world is fascinating. In 20 years, we will be in a very different place than where we are now. The ADA is only 29 years old. It’s very new in regards to some of the major legislation that exists in our government. So the more we build and the more we grow, the better it becomes.”
PHOTO BY SYED ALI LIBRARY GETS A MAKEOVER: This fall semester Meramec’s library got a facelift. The library is now equipped with new desks, couches and chairs. Library manager Rodger Thomas said that these changes were made with the student experience in mind. “We just wanted to make it more comfortable and inviting for the students,” said Thomas. Two large couches now sit in the middle of the floor space, and higher topped desks replace the round wooden desk that were there before. “The lounge seating is of course just to make it more relaxing and more inviting to the students,” said Thomas. “It’s meant to invite the students to come spend time in the library.” More changes that will further bring light and life into the library are also on the horizon, said Thomas. - By Bri Heaney
NEWS 3
October 10, 2019
STLCC RELEASES 2019 SECURITY AND FIRE SAFETY REPORT
POLICE CAPTAIN ENCOURAGES STUDENTS, STAFF TO PLAY ACTIVE ROLE IN CRIME REPORTING BRI HEANEY NEWS EDITOR
S
aint Louis Community College recently published its 2019 Security and Fire Safety Report. This report details the crimes and incidents reported that are associated with the college. Due to the Clery Act, all universities and colleges are required to publish such reports by Oct. 1. The security report is a statistical record of all recorded incidents from the three previous school years. STLCC’s Police Captain Benjamin Talley was a major part in capturing and compiling this year’s Security and Fire Safety Report. The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act was enacted in 1990, four years after the rape and murder of Jeanne Clery in her dorm on the campus. The university she attended, Lehigh University, did not make known what had happened to the surrounding community after the incident. The college was found to have and unreported history of violent crimes in a lawsuit filed by Jeanne’s parents. Thirty eight violent crimes ensued on campus in the three years prior to Jeanne Clery’s rape and murder. “The campus at that time did not inform their community of the issue,” said Talley. “This was a watershed moment for colleges and universities.” The Clery Act formed to start mandating universities to provide statistical information to college students, potential college students, their families and the community as to what occurs in a college or university setting to ensure transparency, said Talley. The federally-mandated legislation requires colleges to share in the report any incident that is categorized in its catalog, even if the incident was not reported to the police. “Let’s say the dean of students says that you told her that your car was stolen but you did not report it to the police,”
MERAMEC CAMPUS
BENJAMIN TALLEY STLCC POLICE CAPTAIN
said Talley. “We would have to take a statistic on that incident, even if we did not thoroughly investigate it, even though it did not involve the police.” Talley said this is often sensitive to sexual offenses in which victims do not report the offense to the police. “We understand more than ever now that victims sometimes don’t want to go forward with the law enforcement or criminal justice system. It’s [the security report] purely statistical,” he said. Talley said that it’s important to remember that while it is Public Safety’s job to track and compile incidents, it is the community’s responsibility as a whole to ensure the accuracy of the report. He also said that it is detrimental
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The 2019 Security and Fire Safety Report is now available at https://www.stlcc. edu/docs/policies-and-procedures/2019-Annual-Security-Report.pdf. that when incidents occur that they are then reported to a school official. “It’s important to stress that the Clery Act is not a police officer only thing,” said Talley. “[And] it is not a public safely one thing. It’s a holistic thing. It’s a community thing.” He said that it’s the responsibility of not one person or department to make sure that the crime report is accurate. In terms of holding the school accountable for providing these statistics, Talley said this is done in the form of fines. Ultimately, if a university or college does not comply, they could be stripped from being able to
IT’S OUR DUTY TO REPORT INCIDENTS. IT’S YOUR RIGHT TO BE INFORMED.
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benjamin talley
EDITORS
STAFF
JACOB POLITTE ONLINE EDITOR
EVE COHEN
STAFF WRITER/PHOTO
BRI HEANEY NEWS EDITOR
ISABELLE WILLIAMS
STAFF WRITER
OLIVER PULCHER ART & LIFE EDITOR
HARLAN MCCARTHY
STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
MARY WILSON OPINIONS EDITOR ASHLEY BIUNDO PRODUCTION MANAGER SYED ALI PHOTO EDITOR
Shannon Philpott-Sanders Faculty Adviser
receive Title IV funding. “[The] Clery Act is specific in how we report things and what we report so that the statistics are uniform on a national level,” said Talley. The only crimes that are reported if there is an actual arrest are alcohol related crimes, drug related crimes and weapon-related offenses. “That’s not because other things don’t happen but that’s because that’s what they ask us to report,” said Talley. “Now as to why they came up with those three things, I have no idea.” Talley encourages students and staff to play an active role in not only being aware of crime statistics but reporting incidents as they occur. “It’s our duty to report incidents,” said Talley. “It’s your right to be informed.”
THE MONTAGE
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4 ART & LIFE STUDENTS WEIGH-IN
BAILEY BAILEY
“I think it’s a very serious issue that we are not addressing properly. I think mental illness is very prevalent in the student body, and it goes untalked about a lot. I am a personal sufferer and a lot of my friends have been through some hard times. I feel like the student body, we’re all there for each other, but it’s something that we need to have more conversation on.”
October 10, 2019
“Do you think mental illness and mental health are pressing issues to the student body?”
“I think that this comes down to student safety overall. Health issues. If a student has little access to resources, a lot of their time is going to be spent trying to secure safety for themselves and for their families and making money to pay bills to take care of themselves. If TRAVIS you can’t come WIGGINS to school with a clear mind and a rested body, you’re not going to be performing your best. If your mental health is lacking, then your work is going to be lacking and you’re going to learn less.”
LORI BARNES
“I think mental health can be an issue for the student body, because it affects a lot of students. That can affect how they do their work in school and how they pay attention or are able to do certain things when it comes to school. So I think it’s important to talk about those kinds of things and manage mental health.”
MARY WILSON OPINIONS editor SYED ALI PHOTO EDITOR
PHOTO by Mikki Philippe
AT
MERAMEC
The Music Program at Meramec offers courses and ensembles for all students. Classes are available for general education credit and the Associate in Arts degree with a concentration in Music to prepare for transfer into a Bachelor of Music program. ** SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE **
COURSES
MUS 101,102,201,202 MUS 103 MUS 113 MUS 114 MUS 115,116 MUS 121,122,221,222 MUS 128 MUS 130 MUS 138,139,216 MUS 141,142,241,242 MUS 150 MUS 152 MUS 154 MUS 211,212
Music Theory I,II,III,IV Basic Music History of Jazz Music Appreciation Class Voice I,II Class Piano I,II,III,IV History of Rock Music Beginning Guitar Jazz Improvisation I,II,III Applied Music (Lessons) I,II,III,IV Fundamentals of Music Technology Audio Engineering Music Recording with ProTools I Music History I,II
Interested in performing in an ensemble? All Meramec students may participate. No audition is required! MUS131, 132 and 134 are CORE42 performance courses!
ENSEMBLES
Music 131 – Concert Choir Music 132 – Orchestra Music 134 – Symphonic Band Music 138 – Jazz Improvisation All ensembles hold a seat/part assignment hearing during the first rehearsal. Members of the Concert Choir may audition for the Chamber Singers.
For more information, contact Music at Meramec Dr. Jerry Myers, Program Coordinator, gmyers34@stlcc.edu, (314) 984-7638
PHOTO by syed ali Students from the Black Student Engagement and Empowerment Club greet students registering to vote on Oct. 2 in the Library.
Considering transfer? compare colleges across the u.s. at upcoming national college fair EVE COHEN STAFF WRITER Students planning to transfer to a 4-year college or university at some point, can learn more about their opportunities at the upcoming national college fair, hosted Oct. 20 from 1 to 4 p.m. at St. Louis University’s Simon Recreation Center, located at 3639 Laclede Avenue. Although a college fair does not give one the exclusive with a brief peek at the dynamics of a specific college campus that a campus tour does, it does however allow for a comparison of resources and programs across multiple academic institutions. This can give a student a greater understanding for what resources may be available on campuses, though not necessarily widely publicized. Approximately more than 300 colleges and universities, representing states throughout the U.S. will be present at the exhibition booths. Admission reps will also be available, providing informational brochures and other materials. To guide students, the National College Fairs website has provided a series of printable checklists that can help students evaluate what questions and concerns are most relevant when considering transfer. Simply go to the website, www.nacacfairs.org, scroll to the top, select the Learn tab, and under the Prep tab, select the Ask the Admission Office Checklist Series. For more information, e-mail collegefairs@nacacnet.org or call 703-836-2222, ext. 14.
ART & LIFE 5
October 10, 2019
REVIEW: Brighton Beach Memoirs
Late 1930s Brooklyn Makes Its Way to The Meramec Story oliver pulcher art and life editor
H
ave you ever wondered what it may have been like to live in a typical, great-depression era polish-jewish Brooklyn family? Then “Brighton Beach Memoirs,” the most recent production to grace Meramec’s stage from Oct.2-6, was the play for you. What starts off as a seemingly mundane play about family like during the great depression, quickly becomes a production which captures attention with heavy dialogue and surprisingly relatable issues faced by the characters
within. The most interesting part of this play is the endless amounts of layers that seem to take place within one household. Throughout the play the large, well puttogether stage manages to give the viewer both endless things to pay attention to while simultaneously softly directing the audience’s attention back to whichever family dilemma is currently being sorted through in the household. The layers don’t stop here either, the production also manages to showcase an astounding array of emotions and
characteristics of the characters. Actors who we as students may recognize if we saw them in the halls of our school fade into their characters incredibly well. Evan Turek, who played Uncle Jack in Brighton Beach Memoirs, said, “I think the biggest challenge was remembering that the audience can’t believe me if I can’t believe myself. I had to believe I was this 40-year old, male, jewish, head of the family archetype. This was one of the first roles I started to feel confident in. I had to allow myself to lean into it and do the role justice.”
TOP LEFT: Jack Jerome (Evan Turek) tells the family about a letter he has just received stating that their family left Poland. BOTTOM LEFT: Nora Morton (Susannah Burch) and Laurie Morton (Sienna DeSuza) agree that if they make money that they will save it and not spend it. MIDDLE: Nora Morton tells Kate Jerome (Tamila Vulakh) and Blanche Morton (Grace Raisch) about a great opportunity she just encountered. A man wants her to audition to become a Broadway star. Nora’s mother, Blanche, is not so thrilled about the idea of her 16-year-old daughter becoming a Broadway star and not finishing school. TOP RIGHT: Eugene Morris Jerome (Owen Farra) narrates about how his life is horrible and tells the audience about his family during the beginning of the play Brighton Beach Memoirs. BOTTOM RIGHT: Nora Morton tells Eugene Morris Jerome, Kate Jerome, and Blanche Morton about a Broadway career opportunity. Laurie asks her mother, Blanche, if she can take the career opportunity only to be let down, because she’s 16 and her mother wants her to finish school.
Overall, this production really manages to utilize all of its various resources both on and off stage to really pull in viewers and hold their attention for the duration of the production’s runtime. After about five minutes of dialogue, the play really feels like it stops being a production on stage, and it really becomes more of an involved experience that audience members have been tied into, instead of just being viewers. Brighton Beach really managed to imprint itself in the memory of its viewers.
PHOTOS by AMANDA HARRIS
STUDENTS HAVE MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR ‘FUN IN THE QUAD’ New Club Looking to Kick Off Fun Activities for All Students oliver pulcher art & life editor
A
t the most recent Student Governance Council meeting on Sept. 24, a new club was voted into existence. The club, designated as “Fun In The Quad Club,”\ was created by Club President Paulie Mills. Fun in The Quad Club is a student club dedicated to gathering students together in Meramec’s library quad with the goal of encouraging community amongst the student body, according to Mills.
The club does this by organizing various campus wide game/sporting events. Originally the club started as a small hacky sack circle in front of Meramec’s library. This later developed into two six person circles in the quad. Upon seeing this, Club President Paulie Mills, got the idea to start a student club dedicated to maintaining the sort of environment that the hack circles created. “Originally, it started with my teacher; he’s a really big fan of hacky sack. And I always wanted to play some games in the quad like what we did in the beginning of the semester. It seemed like everyone was having fun and I felt like if we did that more often it would be a lot more fun
and it just became a thing after that,” said Mills. Outside of the regular hacky sack circles that sparked the clubs founding, other club activities include games such as frisbee, kickball, and pick up games of football and soccer. Mills also said that once the colder months hit and club events can no longer be held in the quad, the club will attempt to move its activities inside into the gym. Currently the club has no formal meeting times as it needs more members, however once the club acquires more members, a formal meeting will be held once a month in order to determine which activities the club will choose to host and participate in.
! r e f s n a r T r u o Plan Y souri–St. Louis is
University of M
Join the Team Meetings every Tuesday at 4 PM in SC 220A (Student Center)
Office hours for STLCC Meramec students: Advising Center–Clark Hall MONDAY–TUESDAY Contact Christy Hummel for an appointment: askchristy@umsl.edu or 314-984-7512 WEDNESDAY–FRIDAY Contact Teri Furlow for an appointment: furlowt@umsl.edu or 314-984-7512
Did you know UMSL offers bachelor’s degree completion programs at STLCC?
CHOOSE
Business Administration at STLCC–South County Elementary Education at STLCC–Meramec For more information, contact Teri Furlow, furlowt@umsl.edu
Serious education. Serious value.SM
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Begin your degree at St. Louis Community College ... finish at Webster University! Why Webster? Student-centered. Small class sizes, personalized learning experiences, and dedicated faculty and staff support your success. Choose from more than 100 programs. Learn from our distinguished faculty in a field you are passionate about. Ease of transfer. Complete your associate degree or CORE 42 curriculum and transfer seamlessly to Webster to focus on your major and finish your bachelor’s degree. Transfer scholarships. Webster offers generous scholarships and many other financial aid options to make earning your bachelor’s degree at a private university affordable. Phi Theta Kappa Honor Roll school. Recognition from PTK for the third consecutive year for our support of community college students. Global network. Webster has an extensive network of locations around the world, providing unique and exciting study abroad opportunities.
Learn more. webster.edu/transfer • 314-246-7800 EC-3477 Web U_Meramec_1010.indd 1
9/23/19 1:44 PM
OPINIONS 7
October 10, 2019
OKAY FOR NOW: MY FIGHT WITH OCD OCD IS DEBILITATING, BUT THERE IS HOPE. MARY WILSON OPINIONS EDITOR
M
y name is Mary Wilson. I’m 21 years old. I am the Opinions Editor for The Montage, and I have been diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder since I was 8. For this year’s OCD Awareness Week, I am dedicated to doing my part to smash stigma and break barriers to people receiving effective treatment and support. Medlineplus.gov defines Obsessive Compulsive Disorder as follows: “a mental disorder in which people have unwanted and repeated thoughts, feelings, ideas, sensations (obsessions) and behaviors that drive them to do something over and over (compulsions.) Often the person carries out the behaviors to get rid of the obsessive thoughts. But this only provides short-term relief. Not doing the obsessive rituals can cause great anxiety and distress.” Throughout my life, my OCD has ruined friendships, made dating and romantic relationships impossible, put stress on family relationships, burdened my parents, stunted my emotional growth, forced me to reduce my course load and take a semester off to receive intensive treatment at a residential facility, contributed to depression, and made me feel completely, totally hopeless and alone. I’m terrified to release this article. What will people think of me? Sure, I’ve written about OCD before, but that was different; I didn’t go into any real details, and I glossed over the hard parts. Skipping over the hard parts makes for bad journalism. Last semester, I couldn’t even write, one of my biggest joys in life. My OCD
manifested as perfectionism, so I wrote and rewrote and deleted and edited and rewrote and got frustrated, until I stopped writing altogether. While I still wrote for The Montage, the quality and quantity of my articles decreased, and what I did manage to churn out took me days of incredible anxiety and frustration. I knew I had to get better when writing a paragraph could take me hours. For me, the anxiety OCD causes feels like it’s clawing open my chest from the inside. It feels like all the oxygen has been sucked from the air. It feels like I’m drowning in slow motion in six inches of water. It feels like I’m being stabbed over and over, and the only way to make the stabbing stop is to do the compulsion. The way to break the OCD cycle seems obvious: don’t do the compulsions. That’s the point of Exposure and Response Prevention, the gold-standard treatment for OCD. In ERP, therapists work with patients to gradually trigger their OCD, then sit with the anxiety and uncertainty until the anxiety comes down naturally. Over time, the trigger stops causing anxiety. Patients have to willingly confront the most uncomfortable feelings imaginable, and sit with those feelings, until they’re not distressing anymore. I’ve done this work before, sometimes doing more than 60 hours of therapy a week in various programs. And it works. I’m living proof that ERP works, that OCD is treatable and that it’s possible, through hard work and dedication, to lead a fulfilling life. When my OCD was at its worst, when I was 15, I couldn’t see a future for myself. I assumed I would die by my own hand. The fact that I’m alive at 21—and thriving—now is something that 15-year-old Mary would never have
Graphic by MARY WILSON believed. So this OCD Awareness Week, October 9-13, I’m going to celebrate. My OCD will
likely relapse in the future. But right now, I’m okay. I’m doing well. And that’s not nothing.
Monster No More: Singular “They” Is O-K! LEADING DICTIONARY DECLARES GENDER-NEUTRAL PRONOUNS ARE IN. Remy xa staff writer
F
or the last hundred years or so, a monster has been lurking in the dark corners of every English classroom. It lingers in texts unprepared to hold it. It is the bane of professors everywhere. This brooding four-letter beast has existed in the English language since the mid 14th century. It dwells in the minds and mouths of all who have ever deigned the idea of using one word in the place of another word. The poet Shakespeare, in his hubris, believed he could contain this semiotic horror within his plays. For this egregious sin, we now continually study the troubadour’s plays in every American high school. With each passing day, people speak the name of this monstrosity, a travesty upon the grammatical system, whether they are aware of it or not. Today we may rejoice for it is my pleasure to announce that the singular usage of the pronoun “they” is a condemned symbol no more. That’s right, fearful citizens. This September, the premiere denotative body of the English language, Merriam-
Webster’s Dictionary, has declared that we humble speakers of the English language are now free to use “they” to refer to a single person of unspecified gender as we please. The English language gods have also declared that we may use “they” to refer to a person with a nonbinary gender identity. Our little monster has grown from being the bane of English professors internationally and ascended into the hallowed ranks of lexical preservation. What a relief. Readers may recall MerriamWebster’s Dictionary from its propensity for appearing unannounced in the introductions of college essays everywhere, and perhaps justly so: this dictionary is on the forefront for recognizing how culture changes and shapes our language. This year’s print release will include the new singular usage of “they” in its incoming freshman class, joining other newly immortalized words like “deep state”, “pickleball”, and “dad joke”. Merriam-Webster follows in the example of most other style guides—including the Associated Press, the MLA style manual, and the APA style manual—in accepting
the usage of “they” as an indefinite singular pronoun. These changes are bold steps toward recognizing and normalizing the gender identities of all members of this diverse and expanding world. What does it mean to recognize the existence of a singular, indefinite, gender-neutral pronoun? First, we must recognize that English is an inherently gendered language. Gender is a set of cultural expressions and roles, traditionally categorized as masculine or feminine. The social construct which views gender as either man or woman, with no expression between or beyond, is the gender binary. Being nonbinary describes an individual who identifies as neither a man or a woman. The pronoun “they” can be used to recognize these individuals who may not align with the pronouns of “he” or “she.” Using this genderless singular ponoun, English speakers can now avoid making assumptions about people whose gender they don’t know. Language itself is becoming more fluid and intuitive for today’s world.
Look at it this way: Before this change, simple sentences like “Ask your siblings what they would like on the pizza” and “If Chadwick Boseman or Carly Rae Jepsen appeared at my apartment with a bucket of puppies, I would invite them inside and begin weeping openly” would have been deemed “ungrammatical”. Now, there are no semantic boogeymen to hide from! Having a generic “they” pronoun is useful for everyone, not just nonbinary people. This change in grammar reflects the evolution of our language, a bounty each of us can relish in. Go ahead, do away with those clumsy repeated “he or she” sentence constructions. Text a friend, “hey, our uber’s here, let’s go meet them downstairs”—I won’t tell. Santa will just have to use another grammatical faux pas to deem you naughty this year. Just don’t do something silly, like imply that the name of Mary Shelley’s monster is Frankenstein. You just might be visited by the true monster lurking inside English classrooms this Halloween: a shameless pedant.
8 SPORTS
October 10, 2019
Weight Training: ‘EVERYONE can do it’ Benefits of taking a physical education CLASS ASHLEY BIUNDO PRODUCTION MANAGER Weight training is offered in both fall and spring semesters at STLCC-Meramec. Shelly Ethridge teaches the class on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11-11:50 a.m. Weight training has a lot of benefits for all ages and she loves watching her students exceed their goals, said Ethridge. ”I personally enjoy seeing the transformation of the students in my class,” she said. “Most students have personal goals at the beginning of my class, and when their goals are reached by the end of the semester, it is gratifying. I thoroughly enjoy the interaction I have with my students.”
WHO BENEFITS?
HOW BENEFICIAL?
“Everyone who has a skeletal muscular system can benefit from a regular weight lifting program. Weight training is an efficient form of exercise to develop and maintain your skeletal muscular system,” Ethridge said. “Though your goals and training programs will change as you progress through life, weight training is a valuable lifetime activity that you should continue. Everyone should participate in some form of regular weight training.”
“This class is beneficial for everyone, whether you are a novice or experienced in Weight Training. We utilize free weights to develop strength, size, endurance, and flexibility of major muscle groups,” said Ethridge. “Weight Training class is an activity course that will help you to maintain fitness, reduce body fat, and reduce the risk and rate of injury and diseases. “
LEFT: Student Chinh Lung does a shoulder press. MIDDLE LEFT: Student Ben Hayes works on leg presses during class. MIDDLE RIGHT: Student Brooke Nardoni performs leg curls. RIGHT: Student Hannah Schultz works on butterflies during Weight Training class.
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8-week classes start 6 times a year for an accelerated path to your degree.
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