February 7, 2018 Issue by On the Record News (Formerly the Ryersonian)

AGO wait times cause headaches page 3

Concussions rattle women’s hockey page 9

yersonian R WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2018

ryersonian.ca Volume 72 Number 14

Produced by the Ryerson School of Journalism

Sharps disposal pilot program divides students TREVOR HEWITT

saying the program will encourage more people using needles for drug use to do so on campus. “Are you going to be comfortable going into a bathroom and seeing people shoot up drugs?” wrote Lior Yoffe. “Are you going to be interested in going to a school that says that drug use is acceptable on its premises? That is what this program is implying.” Ryerson announced the pilot program on Jan 29. It was put in place not just to create a safe containers for needles to be disposed in, but to protect community members, either students or janitorial staff, from potentially getting pricked by a needle while handling garbage.

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SAMANTHA CUMERLATO | RYERSONIAN

O’Keefe House closing After 55 years, O’Keefe House will shut down as a student residence this fall. Read more at ryersonian.ca What’s online Check out ryersonian.ca to read about how Amazon is getting caught up in the mystery of the RSU’s anonymous packages, and what part-time lecturers voted to do last Friday.

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A pilot program to add safe needle disposal sites on campus is creating controversy, with students heavily polarized over whether or not it is a good idea. After a post was made in a Ryerson Facebook group detailing the pilot program, which will see 18 bathrooms across campus outfitted with safe disposal boxes , the post received over 150 replies. “If people are going to use drugs, they’ll use them whether there is a disposal or not,” wrote Emily Duffy, a fourth-year social work student. “Disposals keep everyone safer, from making sure there aren’t sharps lying around to ensuring that a custodian won’t get poked by one when they’re changing the garbage.” But other students disagreed,

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page 5 Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Career fair criticized MIRIAM VALDES-CARLETTI RYERSONIAN

Some students in the Faculty of Communication and Design (FCAD) say they aren’t provided with as many career opportunities as those in other faculties at Ryerson. The career centre at Ryerson hosts an annual New Grad Career Fair with the University of Toronto. However, recruiters at the fair are more often based in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) or business fields. Rachel Barreca, the manager of campus engagement, said that there are a variety of factors that went into recruiting companies for the fair. “The way that recruiting works, depending on the sector and industry, there are different levels of budgets that are available to people in those industries to recruit new people,” she said. The cost of a company attending a career fair at Ryerson starts at $150 for smaller startups and can go up to $750 for larger companies. “Budgets are dwindling, and so (is) the ability for a company to spend lots of money (at a career fair). (The cost) really starts to add up,” she said. “There has to be a return on investment and (they have) be able to afford it in the first place.” Barreca said frequent comments she recieves are that “our needs aren’t getting met” or “your career fair is very STEM and business heavy.” It isn’t as though the Career Centre isn’t trying to do the concerns, rather, it is doing things differently through small events, she added. In November 2017, it hosted FCAD career cafe, a weekly networking event where students

could ask industry professionals questions over coffee and snacks. However, some students felt like it wasn’t of much help. Taylor Stone, a fourth-year professional communication student, attended the event earlier this year. She said that even when there are general events, they’re not specific enough for every person there, considering FCAD has nine different schools. “I don’t think I’ve had as much opportunities as I should have, especially compared to other faculties,” Stone said. “A lot of opportunities I’ve had have come from student group involvement, not necessarily the university.” The Ted Rogers School of Management (TRSM) has its own Business Career Hub where students pay an annual fee for the services. The hub also markets to specific programs in business, which Stone said could be helpful for students in FCAD. While the New Grad Career Fair is advertised to all students at Ryerson, there are students who feel that the employers who attend are mainly in the STEM or business fields. Alexander Rondeau, who graduated from photography studies in June 2017, said that when he attended the fair last year, the most relevant employer for creative fields was a storefront manager at Benjamin Moore Paints. When asked what program he was graduating from and he replied a bachelor of fine arts in photography, the recruiter ended the conversation. “FCAD is largely what makes Ryerson so unique, and I think the extra help of more inclusive employers at the New Grad Career Fair is a great way to launch FCAD students into a career,” Rondeau said.

Wellness Centre finally open

ASHLEY PUCH | RYERSONIAN

Surfaces with the most germs on the subway, ranked from most to least Relative Light Units (RLUs).

Germs in the subway ASHLEY PUCH RYERSONIAN

With almost 1.7 million riders a day, it’s no surprise that the TTC is covered in germs. But, what exactly is the dirtiest spot on the subway? CleanSlate UV, a Toronto company that specializes in sanitation technology, took it upon themselves to swab for germs on common locations that riders come in contact with on the subway. By using ATP technology, which measures how many microorganisms are present on a surface, they were able to see how dirty a surface was, measured in Relative Light Units (RLUs). The higher the RLU number, the dirtier the surface. The tests were conducted on four different subway trains travelling between St. George and Union stations and the kiosks at St. George and Queen’s Park. Surfaces that were swabbed included the subway poles, both red rubber and metal, the upper rails, the Presto refill screens, the monthly pass screen and the pull-down handles. Results showed that the dirtiest spot on the train was the

red rubber located on the poles – 1467 RLUs per swab. According to the test, the “cleanest” spot for a rider to hold is the solid pull-down handle. But, all surfaces swabbed were still far higher than the standard of clean. “We have janitors in stations cleaning throughout the day,” said Stuart Green, a representative for the TTC, over email. “Trains are cleaned of litter at the end of line when they reach terminal points. Then overnight, they get a more thorough clean.” When fourth-year business management student Jonathan Da Costa saw the results of CleanSlate UV’s swabbing, he said he wasn’t surprised at how many germs were present. “I think about it but then it’s like, how much do these germs impact me?” said Da Costa. “I’ve been riding (the subway) for so long and I only get sick ever so often. “But, maybe it’s something I should look at more.” Alicia Martinez, a second-year early childhood studies student, said that she takes precautions when it comes to germs on her commute. “I wash my hands as soon as I get off. I go do it right away because it’s kind of gross,”

said Martinez. “It’s the first thing I think about. I would recommend hand sanitizer a lot.” CleanSlate UV said that riders shouldn’t avoid holding on when riding the TTC, especially as the micro-organisms found are often harmless. However, harmful bacteria, such as staphylococcus aureus, E. coli and viruses such as the flu, could also be found on these surfaces. They suggest riders use prevetive measures such as gloves or hand sanitizer to help avoid contact with germs. “I don’t know how expensive it would be, but it’d be cool if they had (hand sanitizer) within the subway, whether it would be just a little pump installed on the wall or a disposable wipe,” Da Costa said. “Then as you get on or off, you could just wipe your hands with a little sanitizer, which would be nice.” However, these hand sanitizer stations don’t look like something the TTC will have any time soon. “We do not have a broader germ reduction strategy for customers,” said Green in an email when asked about measures to prevent the spread of germs being implemented in the stations.

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Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Wait times disappoint students Students frustrated over virtual lineups to buy tickets to Infinity Mirrors exhibit KATHLEEN FRANCISCO RYERSONIAN

When fourth-year English student Justine Fajardo finished her last exam of the semester back in December, she rushed home, making it just in time for the members only pre-sale of the Infinity Mirrors exhibit coming to the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) from March 3 to May 27. Since she was already a member, she thought there wouldn’t be a problem securing the tickets. “I was really pumped. I was like, ‘OK, after my exam I’m going to get tickets, this is going to be great. This is going to be how I celebrate after finishing my exams,’” Fajardo said. Little did she know she would have to wait almost nine hours. After the AGO announced it would be one of the four major museums in North America to feature the well-known exhibit by Yayoi Kusama, a huge buzz on social media began across the city. This caused hundreds of thousands of people wanting to buy tickets to see the exhibit themselves. “We knew right away when planning for the show that we wouldn’t be able to meet all of the demand,” said Herman Lo, AGO’s director of visitor experience. “We don’t have the space on-site to line everyone up and especially in the winter, it’s just not conducive.” With all the high expectations, they wanted to make the ticket purchasing as convenient and easy as possible, so they ended up opting for an online queuing system, Lo said. Since there was no option to line up for physical tickets, everyone had no choice but to go online and wait for hours. Fajardo was one of the students who experienced long wait times for tickets, but was still lucky enough to get them. For many, luck was not on their side. Regardless of how long

COURTESY AGO

One of the rooms at the Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors exhibit, which will be at the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) from March 3 to May 27.

they waited, they left the virtual line empty handed. “The numbers are just beyond everything,” Lo said. “We had 60,000 people at one point at the highest peak of the queue, that was just crazy.” Second-year journalism student Catherine Abes first heard about the exhibit almost a year ago, and has been waiting for it ever since. Since she and her friends do not have an AGO membership, they had to wait for the general public tickets that went on sale from Jan. 16-19. She was one of the students who was on the queue for the entire four days, but was not able to purchase tickets due to the high volume of users on the website. “When I got to 13,000th, I was so convinced that I was going to get it,” Abes said. But every time she slowly

moved up the queue, she said she felt as though it was a lost cause. “I was trying to be hopeful about it, but I knew logically there had to be a really big fluke for me to get tickets,” she added. Third-year nursing student Camille Chavez had a similar experience. She tried purchasing tickets for three days, but was unsuccessful. “I never got an email because I was always 19,000th out of how many,” Chavez said. “It’s frustrating because you’ll be put at the very end of the line, and then someone could be put at No. 1.” She also said it’s disappointing knowing she put in the time and effort but did not get anything out of it. “I kind of figured that after the first few days. I knew in the back of my mind, it’s not going to happen for me,” she said. “Even on the

very last day, I still tried for two hours in the morning and I was crushed. It’s like you’re waiting for this one thing to happen, and it just never comes.” After the first round of tickets went on sale to the public, Lo said they are still looking at ways to improve communications and make it clearer for people trying to purchase tickets to understand the whole process of the online queue. He said they’re also looking into ways to increase capacity and extra viewing times. “We’re going to be continuously looking at these options, especially once the show opens. We have the reality of how it operates,” Lo said. “Because it is a touring show, unfortunately, we won’t be able to extend the closing date, but within that closing date, there’s hours that we’re going to be

looking at, and exploring to see if we can open up additional time slots.” Even though both Abes and Chavez failed to purchase tickets, they are still thinking of testing their luck once again when the next round of tickets are available to the public on March 6. “I’m going to try. I might as well. I like the idea (that) I could be the lucky one to get it,” Abes said. “That would be exciting.” Compared to other blockbuster exhibits from the past, Lo said Infinity Mirrors is unprecedented in terms of the demands for tickets for a show that has not opened yet. More than 100,000 tickets have been issued. “This is definitely a first for the AGO,” he said. @kathleencisco

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Wednesday, February 7, 2018

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MENTAL HEALTH

Are you happy enough? Classes on boosting students’ happiness are taking off at universities ADRIANA PARENTE RYERSONIAN

If you are a student, you understand what it means to be stressed. With the never-ending load of schoolwork, debt, and expectations, sometimes we forget to take care of our mental health. How do students keep up with happiness while under all this stress? Students at Yale University might have the answer. Psychology and the Good Life is a new course offered at Yale University, with happiness as the main focus of study. Course code PSYC 157 enrols Yale students in a twice-a-week lecture on how to lead a happier and more satisfying life. According to the New York Times, 1,182 students have enrolled in the course, which is roughly 25 per cent of undergraduate students at Yale. This makes PSYC 157 the most popular class in the Ivy League school’s history. The course focuses on positive psychology, behavioural change, and how to live by these lessons in real life. Just like every other class, students will be required to take quizzes, complete a midterm exam and a final assessment, which is a personal self-improvement project. “I would love a class where we can talk about something so simple yet so hard to achieve for some people today,” said Aman Saimbhee, fourth-year human resource student at Ryerson. “I would definitely enrol in a course like that because as kids, we never learn about happiness. Instead, happiness was more focused on achieving academic

goals.” According to Michelle Dionne, department chair of psychology, there is a similar course called personal growth and positive psychology at Ryerson. It is offered as a liberal studies course aimed at non-psychology students. “Psychology has so much to say on these topics that we have not just one course, but several,” said Dionne. “In addition to our positive psychology course, we have courses on adjustment, stress and coping; death, dying and bereavement; behaviour modification, and a course all about sleep.” Dionne said these courses are

quite popular at Ryerson as well. Why the classes intrigue students is something to question. Does the high enrolment mean students are seeking more help? Or does it mean less, with these students just needing a less serious class to balance out their schedule? A 2013 report by the Yale College Council found that more than half of undergraduates sought mental health care from the university during their time there. Similarly, Ontario Canada Reference Group did a survey to measure Ontario college and university students’ mental health.

The survey found that 65 per cent of students experience anxiety, 49 per cent are depressed, and 13 per cent have considered suicide. On top of the courses offered at Ryerson, student affairs introduced a program, ThriveRU, in 2017. This program approaches student wellness by focusing on the balance between academic success and a healthy lifestyle. “I do think that credit courses that focus on well-being and happiness are very popular and provide a wonderful context for students to build essential skill sets that they need to thrive as

students and beyond,” said Diana Brecher, scholar-in-residence for ThriveRU. ThriveRU has about 4,000 students that are a part of this training program, which has four onehour sessions spread out over four weeks. “The ThriveRU program is a non-credit course, in contrast (to Yale), and are completely voluntary on the part of students,” said Brecher. ThriveRU is not considered an elective for any program yet. @adriparente

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Wednesday, February 7, 2018

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Wellness Centre gets rolling SWIKAR OLI RYERSONIAN

The Ryerson Students’ Union (RSU) Wellness Centre celebrated its grand opening on Feb. 5. Among the day’s festivities were a bike-powered smoothie maker, a snack bar, and the TV show Friends streaming on a flat screen. The goal of the centre will be to offer the university community a space for services to relieve stress. Various campus groups focusing on mental and spiritual well-being will support students out of the centre, said RSU president Susanne Nyaga. The space will allow Ryerson’s chaplaincy associations to provide faith-based counselling, and for the student health assistance and resilience program to have more space for its morning peer-support groups. The lobby of the Wellness Centre has a lounge area and an office desk, with the back having a small office for private counselling. The space will also soon be getting

books and bean bags, Nyaga said. Non-profit organizations will come into the centre and offer workshops, Nyaga said. Students can make their own recommendations for the space that the RSU will address in a town hall, she added. Other plans include Netflix marathons on Friday and meditations on Monday. Politics and governance student Jessica Ketwaroo-Green said she will be running programming as the Wellness Centre’s co-ordinator. As the centre’s sole employee, she said she would like to explore the possibility of allowing students to have more access to different types of wellness activity consisting of “physical activities, more spiritual based and more natural therapies.” “We’re going to be collaborating with the chess club to do like a chess destressor. The Musicians@ Ryerson want to do music therapy,” she said. Helene Freitag, who is in thirdyear chemical engineering, was one of the students who trickled

into the event. She grabbed some snacks and settled in front of the big TV. “There hasn’t been a space like this available, and there are times I feel like I could have really benefited from a place like this,” Freitag said. The centre is slated to be open Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the Student Campus Centre’s basement.

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A view inside the Wellness Centre with couches and a TV streaming Netflix for any student to drop in.

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Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Features yersonian

All pain is real pain, period ADRIANA PARENTE RYERSONIAN

A woman’s world is filled with different areas of shame, one being associated with periods and vaginal health. Yes, I said period and vaginal health in one sentence; I think we can handle it. If not, it might be because you are a boy and were excused from health class when the teacher turned to the page about periods. Or you watch too many tampon commercials of women swimming and playing tennis with a smile on her face and no sign of pain. Nicole Tinker was in Grade 8, around the age of 13, when she first got her period. Or at least, that is when she says she thinks she got it. “I can’t pinpoint exactly when it was because I had irregular periods,” she says. “It wasn’t until I started birth control in high school where I started getting more regular periods.” The fourth-year fashion communications student says her period holds many memories of severe pain and a heavy flow. “In school, they don’t teach you about what periods should look and feel like, so I assumed it was normal,” says Tinker. A normal menstrual cycle occurs every 21 to 25 days and can last up to one week. Some women experience a light or heavy flow and have a painful or pain-free experience. It is common to have cramps, but some women get them worse than others. Dr. Yoav Brill, an obstetrician and gynecologist in Toronto, says that if a woman is experiencing discomfort in any way, it is important to be evaluated by a doctor. That is what Tinker did for seven years. When Tinker realized that her monthly

ritual of being crunched over to relieve period pain in her soaked overnight pads during the day was not normal, she did what any millennial would do: a Google search to learn what exactly could be wrong with her body. She says she saw something about endometriosis and got her family doctor to refer her to a young women’s gynecologist. Endometriosis is the growth of tissue; similar to the kind that lines a woman’s uterus, but elsewhere in the body. It grows commonly in the woman’s abdominal area; however, it can also reach to the lungs, bowels and brain. Once a month, menstrual blood from the uterus flows out of the body through the vagina; however, the blood and tissue from

endometriosis has no way of leaving the body. Brill says five to 10 per cent of the general female population has endometriosis. After consuming over six brands of birth control to regulate her period and relieve her pain — none that worked — visiting three family doctors and one specialist who had a six-month waitlist, Tinker says she was finally being heard and her health was being dealt with. “My old family doctor would just brush off my pain and tell me that it’s normal and to try a different pill.” Birth control is essentially a mini pill bursting estrogen into the body, and Brill says it could make endometriosis progress and develop more growth tissue in the woman’s body.

R yers

Tinker was unofficially diagn January 2017, but endometriosis does up on ultrasounds. The only way to b to have a laparoscopy and have the biopsy the tissue. She had her surgery 1, meaning she was then officially diag “It’s crazy to think that I was actual young to be diagnosed,” says Tinke women don’t get diagnosed until the their thirties or older.” Brill says that most women won’t ev they suffer with endometriosis, or when they are much older and infertile they think the pain they are experie normal. “Around the time I was un diagnosed, I was also diagnose depression,” says Tinker. “My doctor wa surprised because you can only imag your mental health would be affecte can’t walk for more than 15 minutes having a flare up.” Although she says she had supportiv and friends, she couldn’t help but feel a “It got to the point where I was missin every social event I was invited to beca curled up in bed with a heating pad.” Tinker isn’t the only one who feels from endometriosis. Ryerson graduate Good says she has had issues with he and vaginal health since 2010. “It absolutely frustrates me that bec problem isn’t life-threatening, they take forever to talk to me,” says Go frustrated that when my period is too I have to tell my work I have a stom because they wouldn’t believe me wh have period pain.” In December 2015, she says he changed drastically to an extremely he for two days with severe pain. Not lik period pain, but she says this pain w whole abdominal area and bowels. “I went to the Ryerson doctor said that it sounded like endometri referred me to a gynecologist and a h specialist,” says Good. Her referral appo didn’t happen until May 2016, but th appointment was in September that ye She says she did multiple ultrasound find nothing, and again, the doctors s to put her back on birth control. Brill says it is a lifelong battle for th have to deal with endometriosis, and i gynaecology issue, but a chronic pelvic

Every so often, it hits me that I’ll have this chronic pain for the rest of my life. — Nicole Tinker

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Features

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“There is no way to get rid of endometriosis,” says Brill, adding that treating endometriosis is a combination of medicine and surgery. “I was put on Visanne, a progestin medication for endometriosis, as well as had a hormonal IUD (intrauterine device) put in. Being put on two hormonal medications at the same time messed with my body and I had my IUD removed, although my doctor protested taking it out,” Tinker says. “I’ve also been going to pelvic physiotherapy every week for the last five months and an osteopath monthly.” Although she is getting a hold on her health, it is difficult to go to all the required appointments because they are with separate specialists in different locations. Brill says that there is a need for a centre dedicated to women with endometriosis so that they have all the resources they need in one place. This means space that includes a team of doctors, surgeons, nurses, physiotherapists and more. He says Ontario does not offer an excellence centre for women; however, B.C. Women’s Hospital & Health Centre does. As of now, Tinker no longer has a period. She says it stopped in February of last year, something many women express jealousy

about. “I would gladly have a period every month if it meant I didn’t have to go through years of pain,” says Tinker. “It doesn’t bother me that I no longer have a period, it bothers me more that I had to artificially stop my period using hormones and medication because my body wasn’t having it. It’s crazy how your body can react negatively to something that is natural.” After a long year of pain and appointments, Tinker says she finally got to the point where her endometriosis doesn’t bother her as much. “There is no cure. Every so often, it hits me that I’ll have this chronic pain for the rest of my life. But now I’ve figured out how to deal with it, so I can put it in the back of my mind,” says Tinker. “I’m scared about the future…but I’ve learned not to dwell on things that haven’t happened yet.” @adriparente

Left photo: Adriana Parente Above Photo: Adriana Parente Photo Illustration: Augustine Ng Infographic: Adriana Parente

Wednesday, February 7, 2018

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R yersonian

Arts & Life

Cuban history reimagined In a new documentary, one Ryerson alumnus presents a different image of Cuba SAMUEL STAPLES RYERSONIAN

In A Su Propio Ritmo (At Its Own Rhythm), Toronto artist Jorge Ayala explores the documentary heritage of Cuba through his own documentary film. In his artwork, Ayala, a Ryerson alumnus who holds a graduate degree in documentary media and a bachelor’s degree in new media, explores themes of memory, identity and migration in Latin American cinema. In A Su Propio Ritmo, Ayala focuses on the material created by Cuba’s Noticiero, or Latin American newsreel. The Noticiero, which launched in 1960 during times of great social change in the country, was produced weekly by the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Arts & Industry (ICAIC) until its demise in 1990. While the newsreel documented the revolutionary movements of Cuba and the rest of Latin America, these tapes were never seen outside of the country. This meant that Western media told the story of the Cuban Revolution, shaping the public opinion in their own way. “(The Noticiero) were producing an excellent output of films, but because of distribution policies and the embargo, no one could see them,” Ayala says. In 2012, the newsreels’ original negatives were restored and digitized, and included as part of UNESCO’s Memory of the World program. This agreement

provided access to the long-neglected newsreels and for the first time they were up for global consumption. A Su Propio Ritmo is an offspring of the research Ayala completed during his thesis — research that saw him travelling extensively to Cuba throughout his two years working on the project. Ayala has long been fascinated by Cuba and the country’s unique history as one of the

last Communist countries in the world, from 1959 to today. “They were a closed society for a long time, and all these images were produced at a time when Cuba was very closed to the world, so very few people had the opportunity to view them,” he says. The title, A Su Propio Ritmo, came from an interview Ayala conducted in Cuba with historian and critic Joel del Río. Ayala asked

RTA grads’ film explores consent ryersonian.ca Wednesday, February 7, 2018 del Río why Cuba would start a newsreel in 1960 when newsreels were dying in the ’50s and television was taking over. “He said that with the revolution, Cuba started marching at its own rhythm and doing things their own way,” Ayala says. “They didn’t care what people were doing around the world.” The film, shot entirely in black and white, seems far removed from the cliché images we so often see representing Cuba, such as Havana’s colourful buildings and old cars. One of Ayala’s main intentions with the film was to present a different image of Cuba — that of the Cubans themselves. There was film production in Cuba prior to the revolution, but it was mostly created by American, Mexican and Argentinian companies, ones that often portrayed Cuba as a sort of tropical paradise. When Cubans started their own film institute, they were trying to reclaim their image and document the many changes that were happening in the country.

The Noticiero came to document times of change and times of revolution, which saw Cuba starting to liberate itself from foreign powers and reshape the iconography of its revolution around the world. With A Su Propio Ritmo, Ayala has created a testament to the beauty of the Latin American newsreel. One he hopes will present a different side of Cuba and honour the Noticiero’s filmmakers. According to Paul Roth, director of the Ryerson Image Centre (RIC), “What Ayala has done (with A Su Propio Ritmo) is look at old Cuban newsreels and how their meaning has shifted over time, and that’s something that’s quite unique to photography — what might mean one thing can mean something completely different 30, 40, 60 years later. It becomes history and offers new meanings to the viewer.” A Su Propio Ritmo can be viewed until April 8 at the RIC, located at 33 Gould St.

COURTESY JORGE AYALA

R yersonian

Sports

Read more sports coverage online ryersonian.ca Wednesday, February 7, 2018

ANDERS MARSHALL | RYERSONIAN

14 wins, nine concussions Head injuries have devastated the Rams women’s hockey team this season ADRIANA PARENTE RYERSONIAN

This season has been a hit for the Ryerson women’s hockey team. The team has won 14 games and sent 30 per cent of its roster to the treatment room with concussions. On Saturday, Rams captain Ailish Forfar went down with 25 seconds left to play in the game after a collision with a Laurentian player. Forfar was taken off the ice and transported to a nearby hospital for precautionary reasons. The day before sustaining her injury, Ryerson Rams announced Forfar’s seasonal success, breaking the program record for the most points (22) and goals (11) scored in a single season. Rams spokesperson, Andrea Elliott, said the Rams medical staff have evaluated Forfar as suffering from “an

upper body injury,” with no further details confirmed by the team. Two separate sources have confirmed to the Ryersonian that nine players have suffered concussions this season. In addition to the nine concussions this season, former Rams goaltender Ally Sarna has arguably had it the worst in recent memory. Returning to the ice just before Halloween 2016, Sarna had her head in the game. It wasn’t long before a shot from the slot rang off Sarna’s helmet. “If you ask any goalie how it feels to get hit in the head, it never feels good but, more often than not, you end up being fine,” said Sarna. Despite a constant ringing in her head and having a hard time focusing, Sarna continued to play. “I remember sitting in my room between periods convincing

myself that I was OK and that it was just a routine shot to the head,” she said. With two minutes left in the game, Sarna realized something was wrong. “The next thing that I can clearly remember was not being able to tell the two teams apart,” she said. “I had no clue what was going on.” That was her fifth and final concussion playing hockey. She hasn’t stepped on the ice since. Rams goaltender, Sydney Authier, who currently is in recovery for a concussion of her own, was there with Sarna when she got off the ice that day. She said she remembers having to strip Sarna from her uniform and gear. Sarna vomited shortly afterwards. Authier understands what she was going through. “This is the worst one I’ve had

in my career,” Authier said of her own concussion. “I think each time they get a little worse. This one is just dragging on,” she said. Authier said her coach and sports therapist urged her to seek help outside of the locker room, and she has seen a counsellor. She has been recovering with the Rams’ medical team, exercising daily on a stationary bike to monitor her symptoms as her heart rate increases. “Being out of your sport is tough, it takes a toll on your mental health,” said Authier. She said she misses being a part of the jokes in the dressing room and the feeling of being on the ice. “I have seen people have to retire from their career young, and I don’t want to see that for myself,” said Authier. One of those young retirees is Sarna.

After a recovery process spanning seven months, Sarna said she sat down with her family, coaches, and doctors to discuss her future with hockey. Returning to the game as a goalie wasn’t an option. “Everyone around me saw my quality of life decrease with this concussion, and no one — including myself — was willing to see me risk everything and go through it again.” Sarna returned to the team for her senior year as a goaltending coach. As for Authier, after four weeks recovering from her second concussion, she returned to practice on Tuesday. @Adriparente

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Editorial

Read more Opinions online ryersonian.ca Wednesday, February 7, 2018

EDITORIAL

Campus food costs too much For a university that has a total enrolment of over 32,000 students, Ryerson is not doing a good job catering to all types of hungry stomachs. From the Student Learning Centre (SLC) to Kerr Hall, Rogers Communications Centre (RCC), and even all the way down to the Ted Rogers School of Management, there will never be a campus Tim Hortons without a line. Are we forgetting about our campus eateries? Nope. We know they exist, but they will never be our first choice. Oakham House, Ryerson Eats (ILLC Dining Hall, Pitman Dining Hall, Hub Cafe) and the Ram in the Rye are just steps away from our lecture halls, yet students would often rather make the mission across Dundas to the Toronto Eaton Centre’s Urban Eatery to refuel. The biggest problem with our campus dining options is the dent it leaves in our wallets. What makes the Ram Burger worth $5 more than an Original at McDonald’s? As semesters switched over from fall to winter, so did the Ram in the Rye menu. Without any clear indication given, pints are up 25 cents and the sandwiches hiked 50 cents. As students who struggle to hold jobs, pay for necessities (such as commuting, tuition, textbooks and living), while also feeding ourselves so we can make it to class and hand in our assignments on time, we do not have extra quarters jiggling around in our pockets to spend freely. We think that food should be an easily accessible resource for all, and our school should help keep our gears running, as opposed to making us contemplate whether we should skip lunch today. Campus food locations

and the student-run Ram in the Rye could take a lesson from the newly opened Yonge Street Warehouse. At this restaurant, every menu item is $5, all day, every day. Although the RU Eats menus have halal, vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options, their dishes are still not worth it unless it is part of your residence meal plan. Just within discussions at our masthead, the majority agree that the dishes are expensive, with there being smarter ways to invest our hard-earned money into food and snacks. This is why groups like “Free Food Locator at Ryerson University” on Facebook exist, and are growing so quickly. Over 4,000 student-members are coming together to create a community based off the shared need for food to survive, while also not going broke to get it. All across campus, students are posting photos to the group with locations where trays of sandwiches, boxes of pizza or snacks like coffee and donuts from seminars or finished events, can be picked up at no cost. Groups like this are thriving because we all understand how both important and expensive food tends to be. Ryerson and the student-operated food services should be offering students discounted food options without the inconvenience of having to sit down and order, or walk so far from campus. With an upper-scale education should also come an upper-scale, healthy diet. Or so we wish… if only we had all the funds in the world to live lavishly. For now, restaurants such as Tim Hortons, McDonald’s and Yonge Street Warehouse can take all of our money because they have got the affordable, convenient, quick, and yummy dishes down pat.

CHELSEA LECCE | RYERSONIAN

OPINION

Our campus pub is slacking ANNA CIANNI RYERSONIAN

I recently went to the Ram in the Rye for a meal, but could’ve left in an ambulance. The recipe for the meal I ordered was revamped, and no one told me. In the best interest of the Ryerson community, and to hold the Ram in the Rye to a respectable standard, I investigated the issue of menu mislabelling, false advertising, and failing to inform customers of recipe changes that could be deadly for students with severe food allergies. I went to the pub and ordered the Ram Salad, which was listed to have: iceberg lettuce, cucumber, tomato, red onion, black olive, and mini potatoes tossed with

balsamic vinaigrette and topped with a hard-boiled egg. When the salad arrived, I dug in. I soon realized it was not the leafy-green mix I had ordered. Only after I asked about it, the waiter told me that the menu had been revamped over the winter break and that this salad, while still called the Ram Salad, instead contained: tender mixed greens tossed with toasted seeds, dried fruit, sliced apple and cider vinaigrette. I was given an outdated menu to order from, and was not told about the recipe change upon ordering. If I had been deathly allergic to any of the new ingredients, it would have been too late. Old menus are still being circulated among new (nearly identical) ones. Students who might have been ordering the Ram Salad last semester, could find themselves in the hospital due to the carelessness of the management and staff, There’s an unacceptable lack of communication between staff and customers, especially since it could mean the difference between life and death. This draws on a larger problem of failing to address dietary restrictions and allergies when a menu

changes. Unfortunately, this is not the first time the Ram in the Rye has put the health of students in jeopardy. Rocco Zoccoli, a graduate of Ryerson, is allergic to onions. He had ordered poutine from the pub many times before, without any issues. Once, it came dressed in mushrooms and onions. Turns out the pub had changed the recipe for their poutine and did not inform their customers. Zoccoli couldn’t eat it and has been wary of the pub’s menu ever since. “I don’t think it’s fair that they can switch the menu so freely without considering dietary restrictions,” he said. “Especially without making a note on the menu for a very commonly ordered product.” I hope that telling my story will result in clearer communication between Ram in the Rye management, staff, and customers, as well as better practices for updating or changing their menu in the future. Until then, for your own survival, maybe choose a different spot to dine on campus. @ anna_cianni13

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