March 7, 2024 |
Volume 128 | Issue 23
From classes to clubs to faculty associations, diverse groups exist in nearly every element of the university. This diversity edition offers a glimpse in to some of the unique experiences and perspectives that make up Wichita State’s campus and community.
The word “diversity” is a multifaceted concept that seems to pack on more and more baggage each day, but what does it actually mean?
Our staff faced this same question as we began planning for this diversity edition in late January. Who do we cover in this issue? What do we mean by “diversity” when we throw out ideas for profiles or news stories during a brainstorming session?
We’re not here to define what diversity should mean to you or spout out a dictionary entry. Instead, we are putting out this issue to attempt to show a snapshot of the vast backgrounds and various experiences and perspectives that make up Wichita State’s campus.
With Wichita State being the “most diverse” university in Kansas, we want to analyze what diversity really means for students, faculty, staff and the community. We want “diversity” to be more than just a marketing tactic for prospective students; this idea is a collective one, made up of countless people, stories and experiences.
From the first brainstorming session to putting the last touches on the pages, we were careful to offer more ways of collaboration and cooperation from each member of our 40-plus person staff.
This can nowhere be seen clearer than on the front cover of this edition, which is the sum of the work of six unique illustrators and designers to create a cohesive image and highlight various stories within the issue.
When thinking about a front cover, we struggled to find a word or two that could do the work and stories within these pages justice. Ultimately, our staff thought the word “identity” gave enough of an idea about the pages to come without pigeonholing our community.
The Sunflower’s efforts to promote and cover diversity do not start and end with this edition. Our staff continuously seeks ways to represent the culture and complexity of our campus, and we always welcome feedback, which readers can give in various ways, from sharing a story idea on our website to stopping by our newsroom in person. We also welcome and encourage letters to the editor, which can be sent to editor@thesunflower.com at any time. While this 14-page newspaper certainly does not and can not reflect all the different people on our campus, we hope that these various spotlights can help to begin to etch a broader image of what diversity on campus looks like.
From plastic tubs and engraved wooden chests, Aaron Valentine unpacks the precious pieces of regalia passed down by his ancestors — soft leather moccasins, intricately beaded bandoliers and a heart-shaped neckerchief buckle. Every once and a while, Valentine will haul these containers to campus for the viewing and educational pleasure of Wichita State students.
When Aaron can’t transport his traditional clothing, like when Chelsea Redger-Marquardt’s class traveled to the Grand Canyon, he instead shares a treasure trove of knowledge, taught to him through years of cultural retellings and countless hours of research.
MISSION
The
OSAGE NATION
For as long as he can remember, Valentine has been surrounded by Osage and American customs and traditions.
“I always thought, when I was little, that everyone … would go to their own respective places and do the same thing,” Valentine said. “It wasn’t until middle school, you start like sharing your summer plans with others, and people are like, ‘What do you mean you’re going to go dance?’”
Valentine is a member of the Osage, or Wazhazhe, nation. The ancestral territory of the Osage spans across the Midwest, from Oklahoma to Ohio. The current-day Osage reservation sits just along the northern border of Oklahoma, roughly a two-hour drive from
Wichita.
Within this territory, four Osage towns, or districts, call the region home: Pawhuska, Hominy, Fairfax and Gray Horse.
Every year, Valentine and his immediate family travel to their district, Pawhuska, to participate in In-lon-schka, a month-long ceremonial gathering of singing, drumming and dancing. During In-lon-schka, Osage men participate in traditional dances, like the Southern Straight, twice a day — once in the afternoon and once at night.
As a member of the Osage Nation, Valentine annually dons his traditional ensemble to participate
in In-lon-schka. Most, if not all, of the elements of his regalia have been passed down for generations. These inherited items are invaluable to Osage tribal members, who are often honored to represent their heritage and culture. “It’s things that you can’t really put a price on,” Valentine said. “We’d never sell it or give it away because it’s something that ties us not only to our Osage culture but also ties us to one of our ancestors.”
In In-lon-schka ceremonies, dancers make their way counterclockwise around the drum. To go around the drum in the regalia of an ancestor is to honor them while carrying on their legacy.
SEE VALENTINE, PAGE 7
my own opinion, we all have our different experiences, of course, that shapes the way we think … I think just being in a situation or place that makes you think outside of the box makes you think differently.”
SAWYER KIRKLAND Freshman
“I would say diversity is probably just having a wide variety of people with different backgrounds and experiences all contributing to a group or project.”
TAYLOR WALLACE Senior
“Usually when I think of diversity, (it’s) not only just the difference, but accepting the differences. I tend to think of a cohesive unit, but yet everything in that unit is different.”
Data gathered from Wichita State University’s spring census, divided by origin. | Illustration by Cameryn Davis / The Sunflower
Emma Siddarth, an international student from India, said coming to Wichita with the opportunity to work in engineering was “always a dream to me.”
Siddarth, who graduated from Wichita State with a master’s in industrial engineering in the fall, has been attempting to stay in America post-graduation, but due to federal laws that regulate international students, she risks deportation if she is unable to secure employment in the engineering field within the next month.
“I’ve been looking for this for so long,” Siddarth said. “And right now, if I don’t submit anything in the next 30 days, it’s like everything’s over for me.”
NO JOB
International students can apply for optional practical training (OPT) after graduation, which allows them to seek employment in the United States for an extra year or three years after graduation if in a science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) field.
While in an OPT period, students are allowed a cumulative 90 days without a 20-hour-a-week
job in their field. After those 90 days, students have a 60-day period to enroll at another university or leave the United States.
Siddarth said she has applied for around 400-500 positions since November but has already been rejected from more than 300 of them. She said many of the companies gave standard rejection messages, with some saying they can’t take on international students.
“I went through three rounds of interviews,” Siddarth said. “They said they’re going to take me in, and finally they said, ‘Sorry, we can’t.’ So I don’t understand.”
Anil Mahapatro, the associate dean of undergraduate and graduate programs in the College of Engineering, said bigger companies in all fields generally give hiring preference to domestic students over international students if they are equally qualified; however, he said all students have opportunities if they have strong academic and practical experience.
“As long as you have value to offer to an organization, there are enough companies that hire international students,” Mahapatro said.
‘SORRY, WE CAN’T TAKE YOU IN’
Of all universities in America,
Wichita State had the 91st-most students on STEM OPT authorizations in 2022. Nationwide, nearly 200,000 students are in the OPT program.
Mahapatro said it’s easier to land a job on OPT today than when he received his doctoral degree in 2002. He said in the post-9/11 landscape, people were “anti-immigrant, anti-international student,” but he still landed a job through networking.
“I really took a lot of time to meet people at conferences and other things,” Mahapatro said. “So in my case, I had a job offer lined up before I actually graduated.”
Siddarth said she was the secretary for an industrial and systems engineers organization at Wichita State and participated in resume seminars, but employers still consistently turn her away.
“Whenever there was a career fair for the engineers or specific branches … everyone ended up saying that, ‘Sorry, we can’t take you in because we only are looking for residents of (the) United States,’” Siddarth said.
Wichita State’s College of Engineering placed 47th nationally in the U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-24 rankings.
Mahapatro said the quality education Wichita State provides, alongside practical engineering
programs and support systems for international students, puts Wichita State international student alumni in a good position to find jobs.
“I haven’t seen a whole lot of international students packing their bags and going back because they couldn’t meet that deadline and find something,” Mahapatro said. “I came here and had a dream and saw that the U.S. provided that opportunity … that dream is still alive, and they still have all the opportunity that the U.S. has to offer to them.”
Siddarth doesn’t blame Wichita State for her lack of employment and appreciates the educational opportunity provided by the university. Still, she said she wished there was more support in the application process.
“The professors, they have connections to most of the companies over here,” Siddarth said. “And they mostly work in some of the companies, so I don’t see a reason why not if they can come out and help us.”
‘YOU’RE CRUSHING ALL OF OUR DREAMS’
Mahapatro advised international students to have patience and hope in the application process, which can often be lengthy.
“I applied to probably about some 80 positions before I got my first position,” Mahapatro said.
“And I have spoken to students who apply to 20 and got rejected, so I would say, have a positive outlook, use every interviewing opportunity or every application has a way to improve themselves. Because as you go through the interview process, you are getting better and better.”
Siddarth worries that if she is deported back to India, she will be unable to pay off the financial debt of attending Wichita State.
“The only thing we can do is restart,” Siddarth said. “If you can keep a survey to all the international students, they’ll literally tell you that if they do go back to India, or any other place that they came from, they’ll literally be in debt.”
With two credit cards maxed out and time running out to find employment, Siddarth said that if she is deported, she’ll regret the time she spent in America.
“We all have a dream to come over here,” Siddarth said. “Learn new things, interact with this culture and maybe focus on something and get our dreams true. So if you don’t do that in just 90 days, you’re getting deported back, and it’s just like you’re crushing all of our dreams.”
shelbyd306@gmail.com
For low-income Wichita State students or those without easy access to transportation, food deserts can pose a serious problem. To help combat food deserts, the Shocker Support Locker has aimed to address food insecurity for over seven years.
Food deserts are areas where someone lives without access to a grocery store or healthy produce and food options within a one-mile radius or a 10-mile radius for rural communities.
According to kansashealth.org, over 30% of Kansas counties are considered food deserts, including the area where Wichita State’s campus resides. In Wichita, 44 square miles of the city are considered food deserts.
Bethany Hollingsworth, a senior social work major and Shocker Support Locker student assistant, said food insecurity can have detrimental effects on every aspect of a student’s life.
“It can affect getting to class, getting good grades, and your involvement in extracurriculars,” Hollingsworth said.
Wichita State’s solution to food insecurity began when the Student Government Association sent a survey to students in 2015, which reported that 56% of WSU students knew at least one to three students dealing with food insecurity. The survey also reported that 50% of
students, including 67% of international students, had skipped a meal due to being unable to afford to eat.
In response to the survey, the Shocker Support Locker began operation in February 2016. The locker resides in Grace Wilkie Hall but will be moved to the Shocker Success Center upon the building’s completion, which is planned for this summer.
The locker, operated by SGA and Student Engagement, Advocacy & Leadership (SEAL), aims to be accessible for students and faculty. According to Caitlin Nolen, SEAL’s student advocacy coordinator, students can grab 15 items a week.
“Say someone needs more items; we’re really accommodating with that,” Nolen said. “And if they just send us an email or come to the office, we’re able to make those accommodations for them.”
Some accommodations include helping students access dining dollars, food stamps, and other food-providing resources. For accommodations, students can reach out to the locker’s student staff members, Nolen and the SEAL office, or the WSU CARE Team.
The Shocker Support Locker also includes more than the average resources one may expect at a local food pantry, according to Nolen.
“We have food, canned and fresh produce, hygiene and laundry products, school supplies,
and we also have baby products,” Nolen said.
Through their work, Shocker Support Locker staffers hope to end the stigma around seeking help for food insecurity.
“I’d rather students have the food and resources they need to (and) not have to worry about when their next meal is going to be or when they can do laundry again,” Gabriel Fonseca, interim executive director for SEAL, said. “We’ve done a lot of work to make that space feel welcoming.”
When the locker moves to the Shocker Success Center, SEAL representatives hope to create a space that feels like a grocery store to make students more comfortable. They also hope to increase resources and hours of operation.
The Shocker Support Locker is open Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The SEAL team shared recommendations for students who live off-campus and can’t often access the support locker, as well as those who deal with food insecurity when home during the summer.
Fonseca recommended using local food pantries and discussing food insecurity with local officials.
“I would even encourage folks to get involved in city conversations and making sure that if it’s impacting you and the space that you live in, you’re engaging with
your local elected officials who are working on those projects,” Fonseca said.
SEAL also recommends students check with the local Kansas Food Bank. The food bank provides food and resources and posts locations for local food pantries or soup kitchens, including locations statewide.
HOW TO HELP
For those wishing to aid the Shocker Support Locker’s fight to bridge the gap left by food deserts, there are multiple ways to get involved, including advocacy, volunteering with the Shocker Support Locker and donating.
Those interested in volunteering can email Nolen at
caitlin.nolen@wichita.edu or sign up on ShockerSync.
Money donations can be made online through the WSU Foundation’s website, and food donations can be taken to the locker or SGA. Food must be new and unopened. Students can also donate food to the Shocker Support Locker to pay off parking tickets
“Whether
The African American Faculty and Staff Association (AAFSA) has existed at Wichita State since the 1980s, but after the COVID-19 pandemic and university-wide staff retention issues, the group is restructuring to better represent itself on campus.
The association was established to represent and support Black faculty, staff, students and alumni at the university level.
Derrick Veasey, director of the Upward Bound Math Science program at Wichita State, serves as president of the association. He is planning a retreat in April for the association members to discuss and refine the organization’s direction and goals.
“I wanted this group to have a retreat so we can relaunch our focus and our vision,” Veasey said. “I want to know what everyone’s vision is.”
The association works to provide a scholarship opportunity for WSU students every year. It fundraises money through events and mixers, and the university matches its contributions, allowing the group to provide larger scholarship sums for students.
While the group caters to the needs of Black staff and students, it values overall diversity at the university.
“It (the scholarship) isn’t just for African American students,” Karen Wright, the assistant director of TRIO services and academic adviser, said.
The group has had issues with communication and collaboration within Wichita State due to the university’s size and the division of college operations.
“There’s not a lot of collaboration from colleges — for example, College of Health Professions, Engineering, (and) Education,” Wright said.
“We’ve reached out on several occasions at different times during different years to reach out and collaborate.”
AAFSA would also like more representation during orientation, where many incoming high school students decide whether Wichita State is the place for them.
“Some of the students are looking for, ‘Did I make the right decision? Do I stay here? Do I leave?’” Wright said. “We’re not included to sit at the table.”
In addition to a presence at orientation, the group wants to rebuild and strengthen partnerships and communication with student organizations such as the Black Student Union and the National Pan-Hellenic Council.
“It’s easy to feel isolated — especially if you are the one and the only in your area,” Valerie Thompson, AAFSA treasurer and assistant professor in leadership
Black Student Union leaders aim to instill feelings of safety and community in its members.
“We’re just trying to create a safe space for African American students and identifying student allies here on campus,” Aubany Russell, president of BSU, said.
BSU also has multiple community and unity initiatives — one of which is the BSU families.
The 11 members of the executive cabinet divide the BSU members among themselves and serve as a team lead of their “family.” BSU families eat dinner and hang out together.
Black Student Union’s theme in February was educational and professional development. The organization’s “Securing the Job” series includes workshops on resume building, creating LinkedIn profiles and interview tips.
Russell said the goal is to prepare students for a campuswide career fair BSU hopes to host.
The workshops will also prepare members for the annual Big 12 Conference on Black Student Government. The event, running from Feb. 29 through March 2, was the 47th annual conference.
This year’s theme, “The Great Expression: Unearthing our roots and owning our truths” encompasses three main points:
self-love, African/slave history, and tributes to the diaspora.
In addition to participating in workshops, attendees listened to keynote speakers like Sheena Howard and Melissa Proctor.
“They speak to the Black experience within professional development,” Russell said.
Howard is an author, filmmaker and scholar. She has published “The Encyclopedia of Black Comics,” as well as several comic books. She was the editor of “Why Wakanda Matters: What Black Panther Reveals About Psychology, Identity, and Communication.” Proctor is the executive vice president and chief marketing officer of NBA’s Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena.
Black Student Union has also provided various resources.
In 2022, former BSU president Omarian Brantley used his money to provide Black hair care products in Shocker Hall, which he stored in the Black Excellence
Floor he created. These developments left when Brantley graduated, but BSU members said they still try to generate opportunities for support and connection through its events and professional development opportunities.
BSU also partnered with Lambda Pi Upsilon, a Latinaoriented sorority chapter at WSU, to plan an event called “Check Your Privilege.”
The event on March 20 will highlight the “intersectionalities that we all play a part in,” according to Russell. Participants will respond to questions surrounding one’s identity and life challenges, such as, “Who is a first-generation student?”
“All of us deal with these things in our own ways,” Russell said. “Just because you think that they’re privileged in a sense and that further ahead of you — in reality that may not be the case.”
More information about BSU can be found on ShockerSync.
and psychology education, said. “I know I am, and I know a lot of us are.”
The lack of university representation also impacts Black staff. At the AAFSA’s February meeting, new member Chukwunenye Nweke said he had worked at the university as a mental health counselor for three years before hearing about the organization.
“If you were looking at this university, and you saw no (Black) staff and didn’t know about this organization, you would go, ‘Wow, am I gonna fit in?’” Wilma MooreBlack said.
Moore-Black the AAFSA historian, retired Elliott School director and former KAKE reporter, said the pandemic heavily affected AAFSA. The group also lost important members during this time.
“If you lose a president, if you lose a treasurer and the secretary — those three key roles … that’s
your money handling, that’s your memberships in a limbo,” MooreBlack said.
But due to the executive board members’ work and dedication, Moore-Black said the group is healing, growing and here to stay.
One topic frequently on the group’s agenda is how to retain students and faculty of color at the university.
“That’s the magic question. We’d like to have more answers for ourselves,” Moore-Black said.
AAFSA is open and willing to have more conversations and collaborate with the WSU community.
“If anyone is interested in being a part of our group, we are open arms for you to come and join,” Veasey said.
The African American Faculty and Staff Association meets monthly at the Rhatigan Student Center. For more information, contact Veasey at derrick.veasey@ wichita.edu.
Aubany Russell, a junior mechanical engineering major, said she’s “arguably, too involved.”
Russell is president of the Black Student Union (BSU), is in a sorority, interns at the National Institute for Aviation Research, serves as a chairperson in the Student Government Association, and more.
Despite the many roles she fills on campus, Russell said she’s learned to balance it all.
“Burnout is very real,” she said. “But taking the time for myself and knowing myself and prioritizing what it is that I need to prioritize helps me sort of get out of that head space.”
Russell entered her leadership role in BSU as a fundraising and events coordinator last year. She’s been closely involved with everything the group does and carries that experience into her new position.
Tamia Trotter, a junior nursing major, was a fundraising and events coordinator with Russell. Trotter said that she and Russell organized events, including game nights and a pool party, with the goal of creating a feeling of community among the members.
“I think it just helped BSU flourish,” she said.
For the last two years, BSU has set a theme of “community and unity” as a way to guide its goals and programs. Russell said she and the organization are doing so by
making students feel welcome and highlighting BSU’s other initiatives like BSU “families.”
“Families” are smaller groups of members that have events together organized by a member of the executive team.
“It's kind of just a way to have those interpersonal connections within BSU,” Russell said.
The importance of community is something that Russell knows well — something she said she has a hard time finding in her academic life.
“It’s subtle things, like being the only Black woman in my class, not necessarily being able to connect with any of my peers or when it comes to partner work, having to work alone, just really having to depend on yourself in those spaces,” she said.
“It’s taxing at times, but I think it comes down to just being confident in yourself and in those spaces.”
To build confidence in professional spaces, BSU also holds professional development events.
“Recently, we’ve delved into our ‘securing the job’ series,” Russell said.
The series included a resume workshop and mock interviews, as well as weekly study halls. Russell said she’s hoping to end the series by hosting a job fair.
Russell said she cherishes every minute of everything she’s been involved in.
“I'm grateful for all the opportunities that I've been given and all the people that I've met.”
Katie Dakan has always been drawn to reading memoirs — and now she gets to edit them.
Dakan, a Wichita State graduate, works as an editor on contract for Quiet Storms Services, a Wichita-based hybrid publishing company. She got her first chance to edit a memoir in 2021, the same year she earned her degree in integrated marketing communications.
“Being Wichita Women” is described as a “collaborative anthology” featuring over 30 local women’s stories exploring trauma, adversity, resilience and healing.
Danielle Ramirez, the owner of Quiet Storms Services who compiled the anthology, had wanted a student editor to give them greater “exposure.” Ramirez said Dakan serving as editor was “a dream come true.”
“We needed somebody who had really strong editing skills but could also work with people in a gentle enough way to respect the journey that they’ve been on, but also to honor their own voice and their writing,” Ramirez said. “She was the person that did that for us.”
Dakan said she intentionally adopted that mindset — not wanting “to do too much” but still guiding the authors to tell their stories effectively. She met with each author and gave suggestions.
“These weren’t easy stories to share by any means, so (the fact) that everyone trusted me with that … it was a very impactful experience,” Dakan said.
“Being Wichita Women,”
published in June 2022, also features a story by Dakan, which is titled, “Just Keep Rolling: My Silly Little Disability Pride Story.” Ramirez asked Dakan if she would contribute to the anthology after reading the writing sample Dakan had submitted with her editor application. That writing sample had initially been homework written for Dakan’s honors class. The personal narrative detailed her experience as a disabled college
student during the COVID-19 pandemic and how she connected with disability advocates and other people with disabilities through a virtual event.
“I think it was important to my journey to talk to people and hear from people and work with people who … are trying to fight for the same things that I would want,” Dakan, who has distal spinal muscular atrophy, said. “I think maybe, too, the pandemic lit something inside of me … that experience of
seeing primarily disabled people affected and left out from society.”
While Dakan admitted she hasn’t read her story in “Being Wichita Women” since finishing it, she said it told her story of growing up with a disability, one that she handled with humor.
“(It’s) a perspective on disability that — it’s not tragedy,” Dakan said. “It’s like, people just out here, living their best lives (and) growing.” When Ramirez started Quiet
Storm Services, she said Dakan was “at the top of my list of editors” to continue working with based on “her relationship skills with authors.”
“She’s got something about her that draws people towards her,” Ramirez said.
Dakan has recently edited two memoirs for Quiet Storm Services. She said it’s exciting to see Ramirez’s publishing company taking off, and she has enjoyed its specific emphasis on memoirs.
“I love helping people tell their own stories,” Dakan said. “I think that’s a cool part of it because with fiction, it’s a different story, but if it’s a memoir, it’s their story, and it’s personal and important to them.”
Dakan has also previously contributed to a blog geared toward young people with disabilities, which she said might’ve helped her deal with internalized ableism as a teenager while on her journey of acceptance. While the platform took a hiatus, she said it is starting up again, and she hopes to do more work for it.
“I was excited to even to start being even a small part of creating media about topics I would’ve wanted to see,” Dakan said.
In the meantime, Dakan said she has been happy with the balance between her day job and her freelance editing work and still strives for the editing approach she used in “Being Wichita Woman.”
“I want them (writers) to end up with a product that they’re proud of and that reflects their voice but also tells the story the way the story deserves to be told,” Dakan said.
Mystic Ross has been writing ever since she could. After creating her first story at 6 years old about a rabbit using construction paper and markers, Ross knew she’d continue telling stories for the rest of her life.
“My mom was the source of my creative spark,” Ross said. “When I was younger, she used to create stories … and she would encourage me to do so. My earliest memory was me trying to recite ‘Three Little Pigs,’ and she was like, ‘That story’s already been made. I want something that you created.’”
Growing up at a predominantly Black Catholic school, Ross became exposed to poetry through Maya Angelou and Langston Hughes. Ross had always aspired to be a writer, and seeing two Black poets inspired her from a young age.
“It just made me really happy to know that there were other Black people, people that looked like me, that were succeeding in poetry, in
their careers,” Ross said. “And by me reading them, knowing their views and feelings along with their experiences at the time as well really inspires the topics that I usually write about.”
Through her poetry, Ross explores love, feelings, mental health and the complexities of the human experience. Ross finds she’ll often use her writing as an outlet to vent frustrations.
“Writing has just been such a huge part of my growth as a human, being able to identify my emotions and things,” Ross said. “When I take my thoughts and feelings and turn them into my poems, my art, it heals me.”
Ross stood in front of a crowd reading her poetry for the first time in 2018 at an open-mic event. Nerves swept over her, but with two poems sitting in her notes app, adrenaline hit, and she was able to break out of her shell and introduce herself and her art to the community.
“When I was able to start reciting, it felt like second nature,”
Ross said.
After her first performance, Ross was inspired to write and perform more than ever before. Finding the Wichita poetry community relatively small, with infrequent shows and readings attended mainly by regulars, Ross hoped to widen that audience and create a space for everyone to experience poetry.
“I think it’s very important that poetry gets spread into the community because you never know who can relate to your struggles,” Ross said. “People can find comfort in the words. People can find hope in the words … and just a lot of inspiration for themselves as well.”
In March 2023, Ross began hosting poetry events to perform her work and give other poets a space to do so.
While hosting shows at MONIKAHOUSE, she received a list of other poets in the community and reached out to Robinson Ensz, a lecturer at Wichita State. Ensz said he could immediately tell Ross was “the person who
should be running” the poetry readings.
“Mystic has a really wonderful aspect to the way that she approaches poetry and the way that she approaches community and brings those two things in line where she’s striving to make a space for her own outlet, but also provide a safe outlet for others in the community,” Ensz said. After Ross receives her bachelor’s degree in creative writing, she plans on joining a master’s of fine
arts program and pursuing a career as an English professor. Ross has always wanted to teach and said she had an epiphany at one of her poetry readings that she was meant to teach writing.
“I want to be able to help other students find their voice in writing and give them enough confidence to be able to just keep writing,” Ross said.
Ross’ next poetry reading, Mystic’s Mic, is set to take place at 7 p.m. on April 12 at The Donut Whole.
‘I’m cute or whateva’: Theater major channels sewing, drag skills in stage performancesBY COURTNEY BROWN newsprojects@thesunflower.com
From splits to somersaults to flips, Seferino Ramirez Jr. designs his performance as a drag queen in more ways than one. Long before he steps onto the stage, he has choreographed his routine and handmade all of his costumes.
Ramirez, a theater major at Wichita State, was born in California and before moving to Mexico, where his parents are from. He lived there for the first few years of his life before moving to Kansas, where he designed costumes for his high school theater program.
EARLY YEARS
Ramirez’s initial interest in clothing design came from watching “Project Runway.” He started sketching designs — though he admits he can’t draw — and taught himself how to sew by hand. As a freshman at Garden City High School, he took a class to learn how to sew on the machine and then continued exploring more techniques on his own.
“The stuff I would learn from school, I would take it and apply it,” Ramirez said.
His first opportunity to design costumes came after he was “thrown into” his high school’s performance of “In the Heights” due to a lack of performers.
“I was like, ‘I don’t know how to sing,’ and they were like, ‘Sure you can,’ and then they heard me sing and were like, ‘Oh,’” Ramirez said.
So Ramirez got the chance to help the theater program in a different way — he made a longtailed mouse costume for “Alice in Wonderland.”
“It really impressed them, and
I impressed myself. I didn’t know I could make something like that,” Ramirez said.
Throughout high school, he continued designing costumes for the theater program. By his senior year, he even designed multiple costumes, including a full, pink ballgown for Ariel in “The Little Mermaid,” a favorite movie of his.
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Ramirez carried his passion for costume design into his art program at Garden City Community College. He started designing more personal projects, and though the school lacked a theater program, the art program allowed him to sew instead of draw, even encouraging him to take fabric scraps for his designs.
“Now they have a theater program, and I hope they don’t realize that I took all their fabric,” Ramirez said. “The good ones, at least.”
While at Garden City Community College, Ramirez was president of the college’s equivalent to Wichita State’s Spectrum: LGBTQ & Allies, a book club and Student Government.
While at a pride event in Garden City, Ramirez met drag performers from Wichita. One of his pieces was on display at an art exhibit, which sparked interest from the performers. He exchanged social media information with them, which would later earn him opportunities in design and drag.
Once Ramirez moved to Wichita in September, he reached out to Dynasty, one of the drag queens he had met, and asked if she would be his drag mother. She invited him to audition after he sent her a video of his talent show performance.
The audition was not without
its mishaps — his wig fell off — but it earned the praise of his drag mother.
“(She said) ‘You do splits, you do tricks, you do really good, and they’re getting mad,’ and I’m like, ‘Well, let them be mad, I’m cute or whateva,’” Ramirez said. Ramirez now performs at XY Bar under the drag name Sapphie, donning his own creations while doing flips, stunts and tricks. The theater major said he used to teach quinceañera dances, and he practiced round offs and other stunts from a young age.
Kelly Bonnell, an education major and close friend of Ramirez’s, regularly attends Ramirez’s performance at XY and calls him a “natural-born performer.”
“It’s a powerful stage performance,” Bonnell said. “My girlfriend and I go and watch him, and he always gives our table a little special extra attention because, you know, we’re his people.”
He even made a costume for Dynasty for a pageant competition, working right up until the performance, but Ramirez says he works well under pressure. His costume earned the “Creative Showcase” award in the pageant.
“(I) made a whole hat 30 minutes before the pageant. I was hot-gluing things, I was like, ‘We’re going get this done,’” Ramirez said. “So that helped get my name out there because I got reached out by a couple of drag queens, my (drag) aunties and my cousins.”
Ramirez also performed in the winter drag show at Wichita State, hosted by Spectrum. To match the holiday theme, he designed three outfits: a ball gown for Christmas, a bunny bodysuit for Easter and a heart-themed costume for Valentine’s Day.
“It was really good crowd,” Ramirez said. “I was told by many people that I was their favorite of the night.”
Aside from performing drag, Wichita State marks Ramirez’s entry into a collegiate theater program. He performed in the spring production of “Peter and the Starcatcher,” where his experience with quick costume changes came in handy for one scene.
“I’m pretty self-reliant, and I think the crew is really happy about it because they have all these other people to take care of,” Ramirez said.
While Ramirez enjoyed the theater production, he looked forward to more regularly performing in drag again, going straight from helping break down the set to performing at XY on Sunday.
Outside of classes, drag performances and theater, Ramirez designs outfits for family, friends and co-workers. His 8-year-old sister has worn handmade Star Butterfly and Sailor Moon costumes, and last Halloween, one friend wore his rendition of the pink-and-white checkered dress from the “Barbie” movie, which Bonnell said looked “legit.”
“Sewing is kind of a hard concept that not a lot of people have mastered or take interest with our age,” Bonnell said. “It’s interesting that he makes all of these things by hand. It shows how passionate he is, and talented, really.”’
After graduation, Ramirez hopes to become a theater teacher. In the short term, he plans to perform in Wichita State’s upcoming talent show and spring drag show.
With a passion for engineering and robotics, Dimitri Seneviratne has embraced a unique pre-med path.
Seneviratne is a senior studying product design and manufacturing engineering and has recently taken on the pre-med track.
“I want to pursue medicine because I’ve always been fascinated with the human body in general and the condition of humans as well,” Seneviratne said. “But I’d never really thought that was the job for me. I couldn’t see myself in a hospital.”
After visiting his home country Sri Lanka last summer, he noticed the impact of political instability on medicine and living conditions.
“I hated seeing that my family, my cousins, my friends couldn’t trust the doctors they went to; they couldn’t trust the medicine they were taking,” he said.
This experience led to his interest in the medical field.
“I realized that the issue, while a lot more drastic over there, is still apparent here in Wichita and all over the world,” Seneviratne said. “I wanted to have a small part, if anything, to try and alleviate that issue.”
Senevirante’s blend of disciplines includes a passion for robotics. He has worked on various creative projects — like a 3D-printed Iron Man suit.
“I put a missile launcher in there and accidentally set a field on fire, but the firemen were really nice about it,” he said.
His other work consists of “a flame thrower watch, a Thor hammer only I could lift, a Captain America shield, and a whole host of other things that probably put me on a list in the CIA.”
Seneviratne has also gained experience in robotics at Wichita State, which he calls the “king of opportunity” for college experiences. He has built a diverse background while working at the National Institute of Aviation Research and exploring medical opportunities.
“I’ve been able to work in a real professional environment with other professionals … and I can learn from their skill sets,” Seneviratne said. “I get to work with robotics and technology that I have never seen before — the world has never seen before — and we get to make groundbreaking research and pursue things that will genuinely benefit the industry as a whole.”
Seneviratne also serves as president of the Student Ambassador Society, which
works with the admissions office. The society helps the university through productive outreach programs to prospective students locally and nationally. As president of the group, Seneviratne tries to keep an open mind.
“It’s very easy when you’ve come to college, no matter where you go, to get very tunnel-visioned and focus only on your major and only interact with people in your discipline,” he said. “But the cool thing about Student Ambassador Society is that it brings together people from all over the college.”
Last fall, Seneviratne
BY AVERY GATHRIGHT averygathright@outlook.com
Yuki To moved to the United States from Vietnam when she was 7 years old. Now, she studies health science at Wichita State and uses her cultural background to help others as a medical and legal interpreter.
Growing up, To primarily used Vietnamese to communicate with her parents. She realized the importance of interpreters once she started at a medical clinic after high school, where she worked with mainly Vietnamese patients.
“I actually learned throughout the experience that I'm a very privileged person because I am bilingual,” To said. “Being able to communicate small things like ‘I need this’ or ‘I'm hurting.’ Those things are very, very important. I feel that I want to use the privilege I have as a bilingual individual to be able to help other people.”
To currently works as an interpreter for CJS Translation Services, where her hours vary from week to week as she chooses appointments that fit her schedule.
“I think the balance between working as a medical interpreter, court interpreter and a student is very flexible,” To said. “Anyone who is bilingual and wants to continue to hone into their second language can continue to do so, and that can really help you be able to help your community later on.”
When interpreting, To represents both the physician and the patient.
“You do not (add) any input. You only interpret what the patient says,” To said. “(Interpreters) try to minimize our presence as much as possible by being on the side and just acting as a communication strategy.”
Sometimes, interpreters may come across a word that they don’t know or can’t translate exactly. To said she likes to make note of words she doesn’t understand during appointments so she can practice and remember them later.
“One thing that's important is that you try your best to explain,” To said. “Another important factor is that if you do have a mistake, it is really important that you address that to the physician or the lawyer … It's really important as a medical interpreter to be able to accurately interpret as much as possible, but also reflect on your mistakes.”
Although she must minimize her presence while interpreting, To enjoys connecting with people she meets on the job.
founded the Sri Lankan Cultural Association at WSU. It is a community for both international and local Sri Lankan students. The association assists students in acclimating to life in Wichita.
“One of the cool things we get to do with them is help other incoming students find food, housing, transportation and give them general advice so … they can find a home away from home,” Seneviratne said.
Seneviratne plans on attending medical school after graduation. He hopes to utilize both disciplines of engineering and medicine in his career.
“My favorite part of the job is meeting different types of people,” To said. “It's really cool to see the diverse Vietnamese population and community and how much representation of the Vietnamese community we have in Wichita.”
To plans to be a physician and thinks interpreting has helped prepare her for the future.
“Working as a medical interpreter really makes me see the impact of communication and how important it is for us to continue to increase patient education,” To said. “Being there as an interpreter, I give them the ability to actually fully express how they feel … I think that made me realize how important my job is.”
VALENTINE FROM PAGE 2
The passed-down items are also significant in keeping the memories, or spirits, of passed loved ones alive.
“When you go around that drum, it’s carrying that person with you,” Valentine said. “It’s a great honor to be able to get something from someone because it shows you they care for you. And it shows a lot about what they think about you at the same time.”
When these items no longer fit or must be stored away for preservation, Valentine says that a member of the Osage community skilled in traditional bead, leather or yarn work can craft new regalia items. After outgrowing a set of streamers, a prominent element of Osage attire, Valentine enlisted the help of his grandmother to craft his own set.
“And so (like) a lot of things, they take a lot of time to make … it generally tends to eat up a lot of your time,” Valentine said. “She’s like, ‘I’ll help you do it, but you’re going to do the majority of it and sit down and do the hard stuff.’”
Learning words and phrases isn’t the only way Valentine works to keep his, and other native cultures, alive and known. As an employee of the Cohen Honors College, Valentine has been called upon to speak on Native American cultures in several classes, including Kevin Harrison’s
“Black Lives Matter and Other Marginalized Perspectives” and Redger-Marquardt’s “Parks, People and Place: Exploring Our National Parks.”
“I did a little bit of co-facilitation on how indigenous voices within Zion (National Park), kind of related to the Paiute … and how showing people that Native Americans and First Nations cultures and things like that are still very prevalent,” Valentine said. “It’s not something that’s a thing of the past,” Valentine said.
National parks have historically been established without regard for Native American peoples, who often inhabited and used the land for survival and spiritual purposes. Valentine often discusses with students the conflicting elements of how those parks are “revered for being natural wonders,” but those who inhabited the land before were considered anything but.
“If that didn’t fit in with the European way of how people viewed how nature should be, they’re (Native American peoples) basically removed for it,” Valentine said.
Valentine is also an active co-facilitator in the Honors College’s BILL’S Trip, a servicelearning experience that takes students to national parks nationwide to learn about leadership, stewardship and partnership. In January, Valentine accompanied Redger-Marquardt and 30 honors students to the Grand Canyon, where Valentine was instrumental in planning and teaching students about the native cultures of the area.
From handling the contracts
for the charter buses to learning about and speaking on the tribes originally native to national parks, Redger-Marquardt said Valentine has “just ran with it,” putting his all into every aspect of the program.
She said that Valentine’s insight helps students appreciate and be respectful of these lands that others used to call home.
“We could have you read about it … or we could have you learn from someone that is such a fantastic representative of the Osage Nation and learn that in real-time,” Redger-Marquardt said.
At a broader scale, Valentine hopes his perspective and teaching will help students build critical thinking skills and establish open conversations when making impactful decisions.
“It’s important to kind of have this dialogue between the two to really get to a solution that’s … not just beneficial for one side or the other,” Valentine said.
Valentine will graduate this May with a master’s degree in engineering management. When he walks to accept his diploma, he’ll proudly display his Osage Nation cord and wear some of his great-grandfather’s ribbon work. While he doesn’t know yet what he’ll pursue professionally, he hopes to use his Native American culture to promote unity and acceptance.
“It’s not like we’re living a completely different life,” Valentine said. “So while there’s certain aspects that may be completely different from how you live it regionally, we kind of live similar.”
Traditional Osage regalia is made up of several parts, many of which are handmade and passed down from generation to generation.
MOCCASINS
• These slip-in shoes are typically made of leather and are adorned with beadwork or ribbonwork.
• Members of Osage Nation will typically have a few pairs of moccasins, depending on the foot sizes of their ancestors.
LEGGINGS
• Traditional leggings are made of broadcloth, decorated with ribbon work, or buckskin.
GARTERS
• These ribboned accessories sit below the knee and are tied around each calf of the dancer.
BELLS
• Sleigh bells add both movement and sound to traditional dance ceremonies.
TAIL
• The tail is worn around the wearer’s waist and falls to their feet.
• Tails are made specific to the height of the wearer.
• “It’s always different for someone, so those are really hard to get passed down if you’re not the same size as someone,” Valentine said.
STREAMERS
• Streamers are worn on the sides of the hips, stretching from the hip to the mid-calf.
• These accessories are typically made out of the same material as the garters.
• While some prefer to go shirtless, Valentine’s family wears shirts or vests of broadcloth or cotton, decorated with ribbon work.
BELT
• Traditional belts are made of leather, with beaded embellishments or metal or silver conches.
• Bandoliers are worn typically only if
the Osage member is wearing a shirt.
• Two bandoliers make up each set of regalia. One is wrapped across the body from the right shoulder to the left hip, and the other is draped over the left shoulder to the right hip.
• This accessory is usually made from animal bones and beads.
• Taffeta ribbons decorate silver armbands, which go around each arm of the dancer.
• The armbands are designed to dangle ribbon or beadwork along the back of the arm.
• Otter draggers are major elements of Osage attire and Southern Straight dancing.
• This cape is fastened around the neck and falls to the wearer’s feet.
• As the name suggests, the otter dragger is made out of otter pelt, and is often personalized with different beadwork and rosettes that “tie to who they are.”
• They can also be adorned with eagle feathers.
• The choker’s primary purpose is to cover the area around the neck where the otter dragger is tied.
• This piece of jewelry is made out of bone and bead, the same material the bandoliers are made out of.
• Satin-like scarves sit below the choker and are fastened with a scarf slide, which is typically made out of silver or beadwork.
• The headdress is the final piece of the ensemble. The headdress, or roach, is typically made out of horse or porcupine hair.
• Eagle feathers are then affixed onto the headdress.
After dressing in their traditional regalia, dancers and attendees don their blankets, grab their fans, sticks or hand mirrors and are seated in the arbor, the seating area surrounding the drum.
Wichita State student reflects on being legally homeless during high schoolBY MELANIE RIVERA-CORTEZ sports@thesunflower.com
Many students idealize the concept of moving out one day, spreading their wings and taking the world by storm. For Wichita State freshman Wren Callstrom, moving out his senior year of high school was nothing like that.
The summer before his senior year, Callstrom had brought concerns to his parents about not wanting to attend their church anymore. His parents responded by taking away his car and charging him rent.
“As a senior in high school that was working like 25 hours a week, it took all my income,” Callstrom said.
Callstrom said he could not financially stay with his parents and even asked to move out. The day after they declined his request, he moved out.
“They cared enough to tell me not to go, but if I stayed, they wouldn’t listen to anything I had to say at all,” Callstrom said.
Callstrom came out to his family as a transgender man during his junior year of high school but said that his parents were not accepting because of their religious beliefs. He said his parents were decent caregivers but let their religious beliefs dictate his life.
“The reason I left was because I literally felt like I was going to die if
I stayed there, like, I wouldn’t leave my room, and I locked myself up in there,” Callstrom said. Callstrom was in accelerated programs in high school but because of his situation, he felt he missed out on essential experiences that high school has to offer.
Callstrom said he talked to a social worker at his high school, who connected him with the resources he needed to survive.
“Most people don’t know the technicalities of how you qualify for being legally homeless. It was scary because there was a month where I was almost going to be on the streets,” Callstrom said.
Through the McKinneyVento Homeless Assistance Act, a federal law created to support the enrollment and education of homeless students, Callstrom was able to get his tuition covered, as well as medical and dental assistance.
“I was almost homeless, but they basically qualified (me) because my housing was unstable; it qualified me as legally a homeless person,” Callstrom said. He said all the belongings that he took from his parent’s house were stored in different locations because he did not know where he could put them. His art teacher caught wind of Callstrom’s situation and offered him a drawer in her classroom to store his
medicine.
“The feeling of not having all your stuff together is not a good feeling,” he said. “I didn’t have all my stuff in one place until this last August when I moved into my (former) apartment.”
He said his best friend parent’s put him in contact with an older lesbian couple who took him in.
“Out of the kindness of their heart, (they) offered for me to stay. Otherwise, I don’t know where I would have been or where I would be now,” Callstrom said.
Unfortunately, tragedy wasn’t far behind him. Callstrom was hit by a drunk driver in April 2023, which left him in a coma for six days. He woke up to see his father in the hospital room. Confused by the events, he moved back in with his parents from June to the end of July until he got an apartment.
Callstrom said he now lives in a house; a large part of the money that helps him secure a stable living situation came from the accident.
He said he hopes his journey will help other students understand that there are resources for those who live in unstable conditions.
“The only way that I wasn’t homeless was that I went out and talked to people and ask(ed) questions and ask(ed) for resources and support,” Callstrom said. “A lot of people our age are scared to ask, but the worst people can say is no.”
a child.
I first realized I was different in kindergarten, though the reality of it didn’t hit until second grade.
Growing up, there was always a subtle thought that I was different from my white grandparents, but it was never a big deal to me, I loved them, and they loved me. That’s what mattered in my little mind.
One of my earliest experiences is one I don’t remember but was told about when I got older. I was about 4 and ran out into the street to greet my great-grandmother. Not paying attention, I was almost hit by a car. The woman in the car got out and started screaming at my aunt and grandma about how they “need to control their halfbreed niglet.”
Thinking about it today, I can still hear the anger in my grandma’s voice, as if it only happened yesterday for her. Despite my not remembering it firsthand, I can still feel the pang of hurt that someone would react like that to
It wasn’t until I got into school that my eyes opened, and I saw the different races around me. I noticed that there weren’t very many people who looked like me, but I tried to not let it bother me.
The unbothered energy I tried to keep didn’t last long, as my classmates soon became openly hurtful. I heard many snide comments about how nappy my hair was, how oily it felt to the touch. I was bombarded with questions about why I couldn’t go swimming without heavy preparations for my hair and why I cared so much about dirt getting into it. No one around me understood that it wasn’t as easy to wash my hair as it was theirs. They didn’t know or care that it took me hours to do my hair, between washing and styling.
A true moment of hurt came when someone who I thought was my friend spit in my hair and then threw sand at me, getting into the curly mess on my head.
Hearing these comments and dealing with these actions, I retreated into my mind, where I thought nothing could hurt me. But my own thoughts were traitorous as I kept hearing and seeing
those things on repeat.
Even those with “good” intentions were harmful in their actions. One of my grandparents’ friends constantly rubbed my hair for good luck, and I never realized until I was older that I hated that, and it felt dehumanizing.
By late elementary school, I finally realized that race was real and that a lot of people around me let it lead their lives. It was then that the thoughts that I was too white to be part of the Black community and too Black to fully fit into the white community started to plague me. I was left floating aimlessly, with no real identity to hold me down.
I cried and asked several times why I was this way, why I couldn’t just be white or Black, why I had to be some sort of middle ground. People in the Black community told me that I could only celebrate half of Black History Month or only say half of the n-word. I laughed at these comments but deep down, they really hurt.
I felt alienated from the Black community. Because the majority of the family I saw regularly was white, I felt myself conforming and losing an essential part of my
identity, a part that stayed buried for years. I forcibly alienated myself in an attempt to keep myself from getting hurt.
I permanently straightened my hair and kept it that way for the better part of six years, almost irreparably ruining my natural curls. But straightening my hair was my way of conforming to the white side in a desperate hope that I would fit in and not be different.
But no matter how straight my hair was, my skin was still brown, and I was still the literal Black sheep in my family. Whenever we were in public, looks and stares followed us around as if the public couldn’t fathom that my grandparents were actually my family. Several times I was asked if I was adopted “because there’s no way a white family can give birth to someone with brown skin.” The idea of being biracial was foreign to so many people.
It wasn’t until I graduated high school that I felt fully confident reconnecting to my Black identity.
My paternal grandmother helped me tremendously in reconnecting with this part of myself. She taught me about where our family came from, using inclusive
language. The impact of hearing “our family” is something that I cannot describe after years of alienating myself. She taught me about our family religion, sending me gifts upon gifts of the things I missed out on over the years.
After growing my hair back out in a healthy manner, I decided that I wanted to go through the process of locing my hair; I felt it would help me feel further connected to my heritage.
Since I’ve been in college, I’ve learned so much more about my culture, even writing a full research paper on my family’s religion, the Yoruba faith of Nigeria.
But no matter how much I learn and reconnect myself to the lost part of my identity, I still carry those years of shame, hurt and isolation. The years of “light-hearted ribbing” have stuck with me. Every once in a while, I still hear that little voice telling me that I don’t fit in, that I’m too white to be Black and too Black to be white. But I’ve learned to tune that voice out because I’m not just Black or white; I’m both. I carry both cultures with me, and there’s no shame in that. It just took some time for me to learn that.
With diversity month on the horizon, the spotlight turns to the voices that collectively shape our world and various communities. As we celebrate a kaleidoscope of identities, it is important to recognize the powerful influence of music and the positivity it has brought, specifically how music has positively influenced the queer community over the decades.
LIL NAS X
In his groundbreaking musical journey, Lil Nas X, a chart-topping artist, has left an incredible mark on the queer community with his iconic song, “Montero.” The lyrics of the track delve into the realms of love and lust with a partner in the world of Montero, which is also his legal name. Lil Nas X creates an evocative narrative that resonates with many members of the LGBTQ+.
The music video is vibrant and visually stunning, set in a whimsical land where Lil Nas X embarks on an adventure that
eventually leads him into the fiery pits of hell and taking over the throne. He has a few interactions with different beings (that are definitely not PG-13) but that give power in self-expression.
Inspiration for the track can be traced back to the 2017 film “Call Me by Your Name,” starring Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer. Lil Nas X revealed in a video on Genius’ YouTube series that the film left a profound impact on him. He liked the idea of calling someone by your own name as an act of romance and love, a sentiment that fueled the creative process behind “Montero.”
The lyrics, “You live in the dark boy, I cannot pretend,” reference a man he fell in love with who was not yet out as gay. The lines were a “double entendre” because he felt that the man he loved was living in the dark and unhappy because he was living “in the closet.”
Lil Nas X not only crafted a sensational music piece, but additionally sparked conversations within the queer community about love, identity and the courage to embrace one’s true self.
Currently, the artist is known for constantly creating controversial content. Not only
being sued by Nike, he was and continues to be labeled as a Satanist. The ending of the “Montero” music video is certainly fueling these comments. The singer is pole dancing down to hell where he gives Satan a lap dance. He ends the video after killing him and stealing his crown, crowning himself the ruler of the underworld.
A viral comment on X (formerly known as Twitter) circulated that said, “Rosa Parks didn’t sit on the front of the bus so Lil Nas X could have sex with Satan in a music video.”
To that, Lil Nas X had a short, lowercased response.
“i spent my entire teenage years hating myself because of the shit y’all preached would happen to me because i was gay,” Lil Nas X said on X. “so i hope u are mad, stay mad, feel the same anger you teach us to have towards ourselves.”
SOPHIE
SOPHIE, the death of the Scottish-born artist in 2021, will forever be remembered for her positive impact on the queer community. In a captivating blend of flashing lights and dynamic stage performances, SOPHIE reshaped the landscape of pop
music. She utilized dazzling visuals and innovative electronic elements.
The artist’s impact was profound as she rescued the history of queer artists in electronic dance music. From deeply cathartic to celebratory expressions of queer identity, she broadened conversations within the LGBTQ+ community. She originally remained anonymous and voiceless with her music, but later came out to the world as a transgender woman. The release of “It’s Okay to Cry” in 2017 marked a significant point in her career as it featured her own vocals. The release of the track also led to her not only embarking on a new musical adventure, but additionally asserting her narrative.
In 2019, SOPHIE said, “Initially, I was quite alright with letting the music speak for itself. But then the problem is, people start filling in the gaps for you.” She opened the debut album, “Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides,” which explored a spectrum of lyrical themes such as identity and yearning. SOPHIE’s legacy is a testament to her groundbreaking contributions to music, the queer
community and her embrace of her identity within that community.
HAYLEY KIYOKO
Hayley Kiyoko has carved out a unique space to showcase her talent in the electropop and music world. She serves a resonating voice for the queer community. She stepped into the spotlight as a child actor and currently stands as a prominent creator in the LGBTQ+ community.
Her musical odyssey took a turn with her breakout single, “Girls Like Girls.” It was released in 2015 as part of her EP “The Side of Paradise.” Her journey of self-discovery and identity intertwined with her music. Her sexuality became a driving force in her music.
Her catalog includes hits like “Cliff’s Edge,” “Sleepover,” “Curious” and “Feelings.” The LGTBQ+ community was taken by the musical storm as they listened to songs with themes of acceptance and equality. Her lyrics dive into the intricacies of lesbian love and experiences that give powerful inspiration to listeners.
Full story available at thesunflower.com
When thinking of influential figures in the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King Jr. probably comes to mind. Malcolm X, too, but to a lesser extent. Because, from what we’ve been taught, Malcolm X actually slowed the progress, right?
But not really. Although Martin Luther King Jr. was the face of the movement for many, both his ideas and Malcolm X’s influenced the other’s before practically converging.
While King Jr. is known for his pacifism, Malcolm X is often summed up in one belief: for Black Americans to defend themselves against white people “by any means necessary.” This controversial belief easily pushed him past the level of digestible activism for white people, a behavior that is repeated time and time again. For many white liberals, racial sympathy only goes so far.
As much as white people have been able to learn from Martin Luther King Jr., we have much to learn from Malcolm X as well, particularly in instances where peace has proven time and time again to be ineffective.
King Jr. was the face of the Black rights movement that white people could get behind, but Malcolm X was a strong proponent of self-advocacy within the Black community. The right to vote and exist was an easier plight for white people to advocate for as opposed to Malcolm X’s idea of Black self-reliance. When have we seen that in recent years?
Rather than integration, Malcolm X believed in separation and wholeheartedly disagreed with Martin Luther King Jr. The two’s conflicting views mirrored those of pacifist Booker T. Washington and Black economic separatist W.E.B. Du Bois.
Washington famously proposed the Atlanta Compromise in 1895, in which he proposed that African Americans focus on achieving economic milestones as opposed to political freedoms. Through economic growth, he said, equality could be achieved, and bargaining for civil rights would be counterproductive.
Conversely, Du Bois said that African Americans needed to educate themselves. He saw no merit in a compromise, theorizing that ceasing demands for rights further established the notion of Black people as “second-class citizens.” His efforts led to the creation of the
NAACP, where he served as director of publicity. Their conflict steepened until 1903, when Du Bois criticized Washington’s approach in “The Souls of Black Folk” after they each released an article making their case. Du Bois died in Ghana as a naturalized citizen, a practice emphasized in pan-Africanism, one day before King Jr.’s March on Washington in August of 1963.
Similarly to the perception of King Jr. and Malcolm X, white people favored the ideas of Washington and found Du Bois to be too radical. Unlike Washington and Du Bois, though, Malcolm X invited King Jr. to collaborate numerous times throughout his activism.
After King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington in 1963, Malcolm X said, “Who ever heard of angry revolutionists all harmonizing ‘We Shall Overcome’ … while tripping and swaying along arm-in-arm with the very people they were supposed to be angrily revolting against?”
As Malcolm X said in a 1963 speech at the University of California, Berkeley, the integration of Black and white people only caused more segregation: “When you tried to integrate the white community in search of better housing, the whites there fled to the suburbs. And the community that you thought would be integrated soon deteriorated into another allBlack slum.”
Malcolm X attributed the idea of Black separation to Elijah Muhammad, leader of the Nation of Islam (also known as the LostFound Nation of Islam or Black Muslims). Muhammad believed that Black people were Allah’s chosen people and should live separately from America in a nation guided by Islam. His ideas gained traction after he referred to white people as “blue-eyed devils.”
After Malcolm X’s acceptance into the Nation of Islam, he dropped his original slave surname in favor of “X,” a radical move even by today’s standards. He served as minister of Mosque No. 7 in Harlem and then as the national spokesman for the organization.
Peniel Joseph, author of “The Sword and the Shield: The Revolutionary Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.,” found that both King Jr. and Malcolm X served different roles in the struggle for civil rights. “Malcolm is Black America’s prosecuting attorney. He’s prosecuting white America for a series of crimes against Black humanity that date back to racial
slavery,” Joseph said. “Dr. King is Black America’s defense attorney — but he’s very interesting: He defends both sides of the color line.”
Whereas King Jr. assured Black people that white people were not the enemy, Malcolm X said the exact opposite. He vouched that the only way Black people would ever be free was to return to Africa. He said that the struggle for freedom in African nations was inextricably tied to the freedom of African Americans.
Though the common narrative pits the two activists as opposing forces in the long fight for Black rights, King Jr.’s wife, Coretta Scott King, found their relationship much more nuanced.
“I think they respected each other. Martin had the greatest respect for Malcolm and he agreed with him … in terms of the feeling of racial pride and the fact that Black people should believe in themselves and see themselves as lovable and beautiful,” Coretta said.
”The fact that Martin had had a strong feeling of connectedness to Africa and so did Malcolm.”
Though pan-Africanism was central to Malcolm X’s views, King Jr. vouched for similar ideals as well. King Jr. embraced his African heritage and urged listeners to return to the African nations and assist in the development of their freedoms.
Malcolm X was firm on his beliefs but shifted to a new approach after a transformative trip to Saudi Arabia. After visiting Mecca in 1964, a pilgrimage many Muslims take throughout life, Malcolm X returned with a new name, El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, and founded the Organization of Afro-American Unity in June.
The group had a moderate new ideology that identified racism as the “enemy of justice” instead of the white race. The organization pushed for Black people to become politically active, something Martin Luther King Jr. advocated for as well.
This more moderate view gained popularity among the nonviolent movement, specifically the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). However, even the SNCC soon shifted from strict nonviolence to an overall movement of Black power following outrage at the slow rate of change in government. The “Nonviolent” was replaced with “National” in 1968.
As the SNCC shifted toward Black self-reliance, white members left in hoards. The organization ceased to exist by 1973. Even more liberal white people at the time had a limit when it came to the self-determination of Black Americans.
For many white people, a peaceful protest was already crossing a line,
Martin had the greatest respect for Malcolm and he agreed with him … in terms of the feeling of racial pride and the fact that Black people should believe in themselves and see themselves as lovable and beautiful.
CORETTA SCOTT KINGAuthor, activist, wife of Martin Luther King Jr.
mirroring the response to Black Lives Matter’s protests in 2020.
Throughout his life in nonviolence, King Jr. was protected by armed guards on many occasions, notably after his home was firebombed following the bus boycott. King Jr.’s adviser Bayard Rustin told him it was hypocritical to preach nonviolence if he wanted armed guards to fight against racial terror. So while King Jr. was a follower of Mahatma Gandhi and preached peace above all, he, too, had forms of self-defense — self-defense that Malcolm X preached.
Although the idea of peaceful coexistence between Black and white Americans sounds nice, wasn’t Malcolm X’s vision of integration closer to the truth? Despite his peaceful view, King Jr. endured an attempted assassination in 1958, his home being firebombed in 1956, and even being arrested in 1963 for his involvement in nonviolent protests.
Malcolm X’s relations with the Nation of Islam were far from peaceful as well. He was suspended from the group in December 1963 after he claimed that President John F. Kennedy’s assassination was “the chickens coming home to roost.”
Tensions heightened after Malcolm X called out leader Muhammad for his sexual relations with minors until he announced his leave in March 1964. Malcolm X was threatened by members multiple times before ultimately being assassinated on Feb. 21, 1965. His death marked one of many turning points in the Civil Rights Movement, affecting far beyond his organizations.
“After Malcolm’s assassination, one of the biggest ironies and transformations is that King becomes Black America’s prosecuting attorney,” Peniel Joseph said.
King Jr. was ultimately assassinated on April 4, 1968, causing President Lyndon B. Johnson to declare a national day of mourning amidst huge urban riots.
“If the two had lived, I am sure that at some point they would have come closer together and would have been a very strong force in the total struggle for liberation and self-determination of Black people in our society,” Coretta said in 1988.
Although the figures differed in their approaches, each made huge contributions to the civil rights movement and individually helped the self-determination of Black Americans.
“Like anybody, I would like to live a long life,” King Jr. famously said shortly before his death.
“Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will … I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we, as a people, will get to the promised land.”
By ignoring the merit in Malcolm X’s ideologies, we are ignoring an integral part of American history and crucial influencers in a time that continues to shape current culture. Civil rights were not gained in this country through law-abiding pacifists alone.
When looking at the events of the era, it’s easy to compare current affairs, from global politics to corners of the Internet. Black Americans, fearing for their lives, protested the streets of America in 2020 — some peaceful, some not. And history doesn’t repeat itself but it certainly rhymes, with many white people struggling to come to terms with the mass organization of Black Americans fighting against police brutality. Conversely, some white people took the lead in these protests, speaking over Black voices.
In 2020 leading up to now, I’ve heard from countless white friends and family that “peaceful protests are fine, but violence is where I draw the line.”
Of course, no one wants violence of any kind — not Washington T. Booker, not W.E.B. Du Bois, not me, and hopefully not you, either. But why is there the need for us to draw a line? Surely a line was crossed when George Floyd was murdered by police? Was a line crossed when Malcolm X was assassinated before he could even reach his 40th birthday? What about when 14-year-old Emmett Till was kidnapped, tortured and lynched for a crime he did not commit?
As a white person, I’m not going to understand the struggles of being a Black person in America. I can and should be sympathetic, but racism will never be something I experience. America has come a long way, but I want to recommend every white person, myself included, to look inward and find the extent of our activism, and then push it further.
As we survey the current state of the world around us, Malcolm X’s radicalism is a constant reminder that we still have steps to take to reach the “promised land.” And it starts within us.
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In a significantly shorter student fees process than last year, the Student Fees Commission voted to allocate more money to student support services.
After three-and-a-half hours of deliberations, the Student Fees Commission voted on a recommendation of 1.9% increase to student fees for the next academic year. This person would equate to $7.78 per semester.
This comes after last year’s commission spent over six hours in deliberations and spent an additional two hours deliberating when they were reconvened.
The groups up for funding reallocations this year were Cultural Ambassadors Program, debate club, Disability Support Services, Multicultural Student Mentoring Program, the Ulrich Museum, the Child Development Center, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, the Office of Student Accommodations and Testing, the Rhatigan Student Center, and four different scholarship and grant program.
Each student support service is required to go in front of the commission every three years in order to secure a portion of the student fees.
The debate club, Historically Underrepresented Student Grants, and NonTraditional Student Scholarship all received less than their initial request.
After an attempt to use Student Government Association’s Special Projects and Capital Fund for funding repairs and to decrease the RSC’s allocation by over $200,000, the Student Fees Commission voted to fully fund the Rhatigan at $2.7 million.
The RSC was first funded by student fees when it was built in 1959 and continues to be funded by a portion of student fees every year.
The commission initially had reservations about funding the full amount because they were focused on maintenance requests listed in the RSC’s budget. The roof maintenance and other repairs are not a part of the RSC budget, but instead will need to be approved by the RSC Board of Directors to come out of their own capital fund.
Devin Moore, at-large commissioner, attempted to move to ask the Student Senate to use part of their Special Projects and Capital Fund to fund the roof repairs in the Rhatigan. This would require that someone write a bill that outlines a certain amount from the Special Projects and Capital Fund be given to the RSC for these repairs. It would then have to be passed by the Senate in order for the RSC to receive those funds.
Additionally, if the commission saved student
fee money by taking it away from the RSC, Gabriel Fonseca, SGA adviser, said that future student governments would “be on the hook” for that.
Fonseca said that the commission “cannot and should not gamble anything that you cannot eventually control.”
As the committee went into recess before the second round of allocations, Teri Hall, vice president for student affairs, approached Sophie Martins, student body vice president, and emphasized the importance of funding the RSC more money by saying that people will lose their jobs and that operations will change if the RSC does not receive its full request.
At the beginning of the session following this recess, Matthew Phan, an engineering commissioner, made a motion to allocate the RSC’s full request.
“I was concerned that, by cutting into the operations, we would have to cut into the hours and jobs in the RSC could be impacted by this,” Phan said. “This would negatively impact all the students that come through the RSC, and it’s one of the bigger employers that we have on our campus.”
Martins backed this sentiment, saying that the commission was “honing in” on the maintenance portion of the RSC’s request. She said giving them the full amount would be “getting them to even for what they have to pay for.”
The full RSC funding request of $2.7 million passed unanimously.
After hearings were complete on Tuesday, Kevin Saal, director of athletics, came before the commission to speak about the athletic department and how it plans on spending its student fee dollars allocated by the university.
The department is receiving a $5.3 million increase from the university, according to Saal’s presentation.
The department currently receives 20% of all student fees. With the increase from the university, it will be a 17% increase for students.
The Student Fees Committee is not in charge of allocating any amount to the athletic department and only gave feedback to Saal.
“At the end of the day, we truly believe that we are here to serve our students and our student athletes, specifically within athletics,” Saal said. “Our mission is very specific: we are here to develop young people and programs.”
Saal gave a nearly identical presentation to this body as he had to the Kansas Board of Regents, the public, the Faculty Senate and the Student Senate about the state of the athletic department and improvements they were looking to make.
He emphasized the Shocker Way, a set of tenets that Saal said are “the way (the athletic department) lives and breathes.”
When talking about how much exposure the athletic department gives the university, Saal cited a 2014 study from Wichita State’s department of sport management about how much media coverage for the university increased after men’s basketball’s 2013 Final Four run.
The study estimated that the exposure generated by print, broadcast and digital avenues would generate over $555 million in value.
After Saal’s presentation, a number of commissioners brought up concerns about how much the athletic department truly serves students.
Jia Wen Wang, student body treasurer, asked Saal about how he would justify the fee increase to the student body when they don’t see the direct effects of that money.
After Saal emphasized how student fee money is used internally, Wang rephrased her question to ask what the athletic departments provides “for students that are not athletes on this campus, other than exposure.”
“It provides some campus life, some events to go to,” Saal said. “I think it provides overall value to the university. I think it provides value from an alumni, donor, community, season ticket holder engagement perspective.”
Iris Okere, student body president, asked commissioners via Martins to reach out to her with their own opinions, whether positive or negative, regarding the student fee allocation increase to athletics.
CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER DECREASE
In what Hall said is an effort to take the burden off of student fees, the Child Development Center (CDC) requested and received a $50,000 cut to their student fees allocation.
Jillian Hoefer, director of the CDC, said the CDC would like to “stay stagnant” in their budget but that the center can manage with a decrease.
The Child Development Center has historically funded both student jobs and their “sliding scale fee,” which provides a discount to students taking at least six credit hours and provides a further discount to students based on the expected family contribution.
In addition to the initial decrease, the commission voted to decrease CDC’s allocation by $50,000 each fiscal year starting next year until they are up for review again.
These allocations will go to the Student Senate for approval in April and will need approval from the university and the Kansas Board of Regents before they go into effect.
Sophomore forward Daniela
Last summer, Daniela Abies was invited into new women’s basketball head coach Terry Nooner’s office to talk about her role on the team in the upcoming season.
Coming off of a freshman year where she played only 10 minutes a game, Nooner told Abies that he believed she could average a double-double in the 2023-24 season.
“I remember when I told her, her mouth kind of dropped, her eyes got kind of big,” Nooner said. “It was probably more so because she didn’t get as much playing time and she felt she should have gotten last year.”
Abies didn’t quite average a double-double this season, but she came exceptionally close, with a team-high 12.9 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. Abies got a double-double in 10 games, including three in a row against Memphis, Tulsa and The University of Alabama at Birmingham in January.
Abies has the second-most rebounds in the American
Athletic Conference with 267 and ranks 14th in points with 373.
Abies said when she was stuck on the bench for much of last year’s season, the leaders on the team told her to keep working hard.
“Seniors used to tell me last year, ‘Just be patient, your time will come,’” Abies said. “So now I’m having the time to play almost 30 minutes per game. So it’s just the chance that coach Nooner is giving me. I’m really grateful for this.”
Nooner said Abies is vital to the team on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.
“Offensively … we don’t go up possession without her touching the ball,” Nooner said. “We play through her on each possession, so she’s a major part of everything we do across the board.”
Abies, who stands 6 feet tall, isn’t the tallest player on the roster. Nooner said her rebounding ability is less about height, and more about her “natural neck for reading shots.”
“I think she’s naturally gifted in just her ability,” Nooner said. “She’s a quick leaper and the way
she gets up off the floor, even though she’s not tall in height, I think her reach, may be … 6-(feet)-3 or 6-(feet)-4. So she has these super long arms and she just knows she’s strong, so she just knows how to go up and get rebounds.”
Abies said she tries to stay physical on the court.
“My mentality when I’m on the court is you have got to be strong and be physical, and don’t let them make you look like you’re not strong,” Abies said.
Abies also has mental toughness. She suffered a concussion near the end of the Feb. 17 game against Tulsa, but immediately wanted to re-enter the game.
“When I got hit in the Tulsa game, I fainted for like five seconds, and I was like, ‘I need to get back because we need to win the game,’” Abies said.
Nooner said Abies’ desire to fight through injury shows up in practice as well.
“Even in drills, it’s times where I had to pull her out … because she wants to go so hard,” Nooner said. “She just loves to play the game of basketball, and she wants
to be a great player. She has bigtime goals for herself.”
Abies said confidence is a huge part of her improvement this year, especially in post scoring.
“I’m still working on some movements that I need to keep developing,” Abies said. “It’s just the little things that I used to do, but I didn’t have a chance to do last year.”
Abies said she wants to work on her passing and average more assists next year. Nooner said she draws attention from the defense in the form of double teams, which she breaks with her passing ability.
“She’s a willing passer and she’s a very unselfish player,” Nooner said. “So once she gets two people on her, that means we’ve got to have somebody wide open, which I think is why our 3-point percentages improved.”
Off the court, Nooner said Abies is also loved in the locker room.
“She plays so hard and is so aggressive and she’s so relentless, but off the court, she’s funny,” Nooner said. “She has jokes, and we love just hearing her speak.”
Freshman softball pitcher Chloe Barber makes her presence known on the mound early in the seasonBYMELANIE RIVERA-CORTEZ sports@thesunflower.com
Before the start of the season, many fans might not have paid attention to Chloe Barber, but with two starting appearances at the Razorback Invitational, the freshman right-handed pitcher has made a name for herself.
At the Razorback Invitational, she appeared in three games and made two starts, where she managed to strike out 33 hitters in 15 innings. She tied the single-game school record with 15 strikeouts against Arkansas on Feb. 23. Within 48 hours, she proceeded to break that school record with 16 strikeouts against Illinois State.
As a first-year player, Barber did not think she would get many opportunities, but getting on to the pitch helped build her confidence.
“To be able to capitalize on those (opportunities) was huge for building confidence … because it helped me realize if I truly throw every pitch with full intention, I can be really good,” Barber said. Senior outfielder Addison Barnard, who was recovering from injury in the fall, was surprised when Barber went from pitching 63-65 mph to 68-69 mph.
“She’s a big presence in the circle, and then all of a sudden,
she was hitting 68-69, we were all like, ‘Okay, we’ve never really had this,” Barnard said. Barber said she has done better than her initial expectations because of the tough schedule. Six new schools were added to the American Athletic Conference.
“I think the tough schedule right away was huge to help me, really just be like, ‘Alright, I gotta mature quick,’ and just be able to give my best every day,” Barber said. “We didn’t really have a break in our non-conference schedule, so my big thing was just like each opportunity I get, I’m going to do the best I can.”
Head coach Kristi Bredbenner said Barber is still maturing.
“She’s still a ways off from really being her best version, and that’s exciting for us,” Bredbenner said. “She’s thrown in some big games and done well at times and then had her struggles this past weekend.”
Bredbenner said the coaching staff and team try to provide support and confidence to the young pitcher.
“She’s a competitor, and she wants to win … I think young pitchers that have seen a lot of success can also really wear failure in a big way,” Bredbenner said. Barber said veteran pitchers on the team often give Barber advice
Going into her final semester at Wichita State University, Natsumi Kurahashi already has plans ahead of her. Kurahashi is from Toyota, Japan, and is a redshirt senior on the women’s tennis team.
“After I graduate, I’m planning to go back to Japan,” Kurahashi said. “I already got a job, so I’ll go back and work in Japan.”
Kurahashi said she has a job lined up as an agent, and her roles include finding jobs for individuals or finding employees who would fit the company.
“The company I am going to is a little bit like a start-up company … it’s a little bit new, and it’s going to be a little busy as well,” Kurahashi said. “I’ve been playing tennis for like 18 years now … but I don’t really know the different side (of tennis) … I’m planning to learn about the business side.”
Kurahashi said her ultimate goal is to come back to tennis for coaching and to make tennis one of Japan’s major sports. “I don’t know how to do it right now,” Kurahashi said. “So, I really want to figure it out … and then try to make it real.”
Tennis has impacted the life of Kurahashi in many ways. She said she was a shy, introverted person before picking up the sport. As she continued competing, she said she began to make friends and connections with her teammates and opponents on the court.
“Not only in my city, but outside of my city, like now it’s even outside of Japan,” Kurahashi said.
In her senior season, Kurahashi has become a vocal leader on the court for Wichita State.
When deciding to attend Wichita State, Kurahashi said she felt comfortable here.
“I had a choice of another school, which was in Las Vegas … but I felt a little bit uncomfortable … a little bit scared as well,” Kurahashi said. “I feel more safe (at Wichita State). The people here are really nice to me.”
Kurahashi said that the positive atmosphere and comfort she feels in Wichita have been reasons for her staying at the university.
when she has bad pitches, telling her not to let the highs get too high or the lows too low.
“Sometimes, if I have a couple (of) bad pitches, I start to get down on myself in the bullpens, and that really helps me,” Barber said. Bredbenner said the best advice she can give Barber is to not let the pressure get to her because every day is a new opportunity to spin the ball.
Barber said strikeouts and big plays help
As her final season as a Shocker winds down, Kurahashi said her goal for the team is to make it to the NCAA Tournament.
“I’ve been here five years, and it was always my biggest goal,” Kurahashi said. “I feel like this year, we have a chance to make it through as a team, so I’m really excited.”
Sept. 16. |
Softball falls to No. 4 Oklahoma State in extra innings
BY OWEN PROTHRO owenprothro@gmail.comWichita State’s softball team went into extra innings on the road against No. 4 Oklahoma State University and lost by a narrow margin, 4-3. The loss drops the Shockers’ record to 9-6 on the season.
Sophomore Alex Aguilar started for Wichita State on the mound and pitched 5.1 innings, giving up one run on three hits and striking out one batter.
Freshman Chloe Barber pitched 2.1 innings, earning five strikeouts but gave up three runs on five hits. Barber’s record dropped to 4-2 on the season.
Neither team could get much going offensively until Oklahoma State scored a run in the bottom of the 5th inning.
Trailing by one in the top of the sixth inning, the Shockers went on a one-out rally as redshirt senior Lainee Brown and freshman Mila Seaton each hit RBIs on fielder’s choices, making the score 2-1.
To end the rally, redshirt senior Bailey Urban crossed home plate after freshman Sophie Johnson got walked in an eightpitch at-bat to extend the lead, 3-1. The Cowgirls’ freshman Rosie Davis tied the game in the bottom of the sixth inning after she hit a two-RBI triple.
The Shockers sent the game into an extra eighth inning, where Davis sent Wichita State home with its loss on an RBI single in the bottom half of the inning. Urban and Brown both went 2-4 in the ballgame, Brown earning her eighth RBI of the season.
Wichita State will begin its conference play in a series against Florida Atlantic University from Friday, March 8 to Sunday, March 10 at Wilkins Stadium. The first pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday.
Wichita State baseball’s late offensive firepower was not enough to take the team to a victory on the road against the University of Oklahoma on Tuesday. With the 5-3 loss snapping a five-game win streak. The Shockers’ defense and pitching were shaky as two unearned runs were allowed and Wichita State walked seven Sooners batters. Oklahoma went on to score four runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings to open up a 4-0 lead.
The Shockers found three more hits before junior Derek Williams cranked a two-run home run in the sixth inning, giving Wichita State its first runs of the game, 4-2.
Oklahoma’s sophomore Easton Carmichael answered in the seventh as he hit a solo home run, earning his third RBI of the ballgame and extending the Sooner lead, 5-2
Wichita State will return to Eck Stadium for its series against Long Beach State on Friday, March 8 to Sunday, March 10. The first pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Friday.
Graduate student forward Dalen Ridgal was the only senior celebrated in Charles Koch Arena for the Wichita State men’s basketball game against Rice. After a tight first half, the Shockers ran away in the second half for the win, 87-66.
Head coach Paul Mills said losing on senior night was not an option.
“I told the players there are some non-negotiables in regards to basketball, and one of them is you always win on senior night,” Mills said.
The Shockers improved to 5-12 in the American Athletic Conference and 13-17 overall. The Owls dropped to 5-11 in conference play and 11-18 overall.
In a repeat of last Wednesday’s game against the University of Alabama-Birmingham, Wichita State created a large lead, but unlike last game, the Shockers were able to hold on for the win.
Rice put three on the board to
start the game, and Wichita State responded with two 3-pointers from redshirt junior guard Colby Rogers and Ridgnal in the opening two minutes.
After a lot of back and forth, Wichita State turned the ball over three straight times to tie it at 24 halfway through the first half.
With seven seconds left in the first half and the game tied at 39, Rogers made a 3-pointer to send the Shockers into halftime leading, 42-39. No team led by more than five points during the first period.
At the start of the second half, Wichita State made a 15-6 run to grab its largest lead, 57-45. In the run, junior guard Harlond Beverly scored eight points and Rogers added five. A layup from Ridgnal forced a Rice timeout.
Beverly said the run was possible because the shots were open and ready to take.
“Our shots were very open because we were willing to pass the ball; we did a good job of knocking down shots that (were)
open,” Beverly said. Rice called another timeout after the lead jumped to 15 on a junior forward Kenny Pohto layup, 65-50, with just under 10 minutes left in the second half. The Shockers’ offense managed to create a 21-point lead off a Beverly 3-pointer. Rice would not respond until a 3-pointer from Rice’s Travis Evee but would fall short.
Wichita State created an 8-0 run with a 3-pointer and two free throws from Beverly and three from Rogers to further the lead, 77-53. Beverly received a pass off a rebound and completed a perfectly executed 2-on-1 fast break with Ronnie DeGray III, who finished the layup with a foul to make it 84-58 with less than five minutes left. By that time, Rice could not recover. In the final minute of the game, freshman guard Joy Ighovodja passed the ball to redshirt freshman guard Trevor McBride to make an open three-pointer that
made the home crowd go wild.
Wichita State finished the game with a season-high 14 made 3-point shots, with 63.6% accuracy, also a season-best.
Rogers led the Shockers with 25 points and went 7 of 9 from beyond the arc. Beverly followed suit, adding 23 points and went 3/3 at the 3-point line. On his senior night, Ridgnal scored 11 points and went 3/3 in 3-pointers in the first half.
Mills said growth happens behind closed doors, not in front of the crowd.
“I think these guys have kind of embraced and understood the things that need to get done in order (to) allow that to happen,” Mills said. “These guys have played the part of ‘How do we get better,’ (during) this entire process.”
Up next, Wichita State will play its final game of the regular season, traveling to New Orleans to face off against Tulane on Friday, March 8. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m.
The Wichita State women’s basketball team finished the regular season with a fiercely fought game on Tuesday evening against the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The Shockers returned from a 16-point deficit to close the season with a win, 68-65.
WSU finished 9-21 overall and 5-13 in the American Athletic Conference. UAB ends at 9-9 in the AAC.
The Shockers began the game with a 4-0 lead but lost it after a 5-0 run from UAB in the last four minutes of the second quarter.
UAB would run out to a 27-11 lead in the second quarter.
Sophomore forward Daniela Abies and redshirt sophomore Jayla Murray combined for eight points in the last 49 seconds of the second quarter, but the Shockers went into halftime behind, 33-25.
The eight-point lead was narrowed as Wichita State shot 50% in the third quarter.
The Shockers fell behind after a 9-0 run from UAB, and it was a battle as WSU played to catch up.
A 3-pointer from freshman guard Salese Blow at the end of the third quarter cut the deficit
to one, 61-60, with 2:25 left on the clock. After the teams traded the lead back and forth, Abies scored a layup to give the Shockers the lead, 66-65, with 24 seconds left. On their trip up the floor, UAB missed a layup and a jumper. Blow hit both free throws to expand the lead to three points. With less than 10 seconds left, UAB missed a 3-pointer, collected the offensive board and missed one final shot to end the game.
The game against UBA gave WSU 16 points off turnovers and 36 points in the paint. The two teams tied three times over the
four quarters.
Abies led all players with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Blow added 14 points, and senior guard Ambah Kowcun was the other double-digit scorer with 11. The Shockers shot 46% from the field as a team, its best mark since January.
Up next, both teams prepare for the American Athletic Conference tournament. Wichita State, the 13th seed in the tournament, will face off against 12th-seeded Florida Atlantic in a first-round game on Saturday, March 9. Tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m.
The School of Performing Art Theatre put on “Peter and the Starcatcher,” which follows a young orphan and his friends on a distant island.
Attend a cardio dance class at the YMCA on Wichita State’s campus, and you’ll experience a workout set to pop music, which Ashley Thompson describes as “the next closest thing to ‘Just Dance.’”
Thompson, a senior math major, started attending the Zumba class her freshman year. At the time, it was held in a small studio room. Now with nearly 50 people in attendance most nights, the class has had to transition to a gym in the YMCA.
“This year, and in the past six months, it has really picked up,” she said. Thompson said she found workout classes intimidating at first but now loves it so much that she doesn’t mind going alone.
“I think it’s something that tricks you into not even feeling like you’re working out at all,” Thompson said.
One of the newer participants is
Shama Syed, a freshman computer engineering major. Syed said she was looking for a fun way to exercise when she was recommended the Zumba class.
“When I came here, I was really intimidated because I have no experience in dancing,” she said. “But after my first class, I didn’t feel confident, but I felt comfortable dancing.”
She’s also encouraged friends to start going with her, including Tipika Pandey, a freshman business administration major.
“Shama introduced us to this class, and at first, we were concerned about how people will think about us,” she said, referring to her group of friends.
“But we got used to it, and we enjoy it a lot.”
Pandey said that she thinks a major draw for the class is the positive attitude of the instructor, Charis Weldon. Weldon has been leading similar classes for over eight years. Weldon said her favorite part about
instructing is getting to know the students who attend her classes.
“I love just watching the students grow, whether that’s physically, mentally or self-confidence,” she said. The instructor said she knows firsthand the importance of selfconfidence while working out.
“In college, I went to my first Zumba class, and it was the first time I’d ever liked working out or really ever went to the gym consistently,” she said.
“When I came back from college, I started going to the Andover (YMCA location), and I would try to hide in the back. I was the biggest girl in the room, so I thought I could try to hide. But then my confidence grew and I kept moving to the front. I loved class; I went all the time.”
Weldon’s instructors noticed her enthusiasm and encouraged her to start teaching. She said she resisted the idea initially, still unsure of herself, but eventually gave it a try and has been teaching ever since.
BY TRINITY RAMM managing@thesunflower.com
Tom Tanguma said his identity has always been a little “complicated.”
Growing up with a white mom in the Midwest, Tanguma said he always felt like “a white suburban kid,” but that people always saw him as a Latino person.
“Even from a young age, I was experiencing a lot of blatant racism, which was really weird because I thought of myself as white for the longest time,” Tanguma said. “Then on top of that, once I started coming to terms with my queerness when I was younger, that was also really complicated.”
Tanguma, a senior creative writing and English literature major, identifies as Latino-American and non-binary; he prefers he/they pronouns. In their experience, Tanguma has found it easier to fit into queer spaces over Latino ones. He said that a big barrier to this was his cultural upbringing.
“Not that Latino people do not welcome me or anything like that, but it’s just harder for me to necessarily have the same understanding of their experiences because, again, I was raised very white suburban,” Tanguma said. “So I basically grew up like a lower middle class white kid, even though I’m brown as hell.”
As Tanguma learned to navigate the intricacies of their identity, they found comfort in queer spaces around Wichita like The Center in downtown Wichita, a “home” for Wichita’s LGBTQ+ community, according to the organization’s website. Tanguma also mentioned places like Rain Bistro & Lounge and XY Bar.
Tanguma said that with society becoming more accepting of queer communities, “almost any space can become a queer space if you just have enough queer people in it.”
Currently, Tanguma is a bartender at J’s Lounge, a queer bar on Central Avenue. Tanguma hears tales of the gay Wichita of old from his patrons. They often talk about the Fantasy Complex, which Tanguma
Almost any space can become a queer space if you just have enough queer people in it.
described as “the original big, big gay club on the southside.”
“People told me all the time that they used to go to that club, and you had to go in pairs,” Tanguma said. “You had to go with other people because people would wait outside the club to try to harass you or attack you. It’s fascinating to hear those stories because that is so far removed from the type of homophobia I have experienced.”
As an English and creative writing major, Tanguma takes inspiration from both life and media around him to craft character-driven literary fiction.
He said that both the professors and students in the program have been helpful in improving his writing by developing the setting and story around his characters.
Tanguma and Nancy Preston, a senior creative writing major, first met in an introduction to creative writing class over Zoom in fall 2020.
Tanguma, at 29 years old, said that he and Preston both enjoy each other’s writing, especially as people who are “slightly older than the average student.” They said that their writing can sometimes shock younger students.
“We tend to write like slightly older people,” Tanguma said. “One of my stories specifically had references to both masturbation and drug use and people were very like, ‘Oh, my God,’ like clutching their pearls. And she was ‘No, this is great. I love this.’”
Margaret Dawe, an associate professor of creative writing, first met Tanguma over Zoom in the same intro to creative writing class. In a time where blacked-out screens and golden thumbs up acted as the only engagement most professors got out of a Zoom class, Dawe said Tanguma “stood
out” because “he always showed up.”
“His writing immediately stood out as he’s wonderful with such genuine details that make a world, that convince a reader that this is someone telling the truth about those little things that we look for when we read poems and fiction,” Dawe said.
Dawe said that “there’s probably a novel” in Tanguma that would be about their experiences in Wichita.
“I think there’s one there that probably no one else has written, and which people might be surprised that someone in Wichita would tell a story like I bet he’s going to be able to tell,” Dawe said.
Preston said that class acted as “a sanctuary” from her day-to-day life as a health care worker and that “Tom was a huge part” of that class being a safe space.
“He’s one of the best friends that I’ve made through the program,” Preston said. “He is one of those people where when I look back when I’m old, I’m going to be so grateful and appreciate that (friendship) even more.”
In the fall, Tanguma is set to begin a master’s of fine arts in creative writing at Wichita State. Preston said when Tanguma was first accepted, he texted her to see if Preston had received her own decision.
“I felt such genuine joy and pride in him because he is so deserving, but it’s also so touching that, in his moment of celebration, he reached out to me to see if I was accepted,” Preston said. “I told him that one of the biggest regrets if I don’t get into the program is the FOMO of not having that experience with him, and that’s genuine.”
In going through the MFA program on campus, Tanguma hopes to hone his skills as a writer and push himself outside of their comfort zone.
“I can really start refining and developing my style to be something that’s both obviously publishable — because I want to make money at some point — but also something that is unique and entertaining for people to digest as well too,” Tanguma said. “Because (there is) nothing sadder than a creative person that can’t put out something good.”
DIVERSE WOMEN’S SUMMIT
THURSDAY, MARCH 7
8 a.m. - 8 p.m. | Rhatigan Student Center PUSHING THROUGH PERFECTIONISM MINI-SERIES
THURSDAY, MARCH 7
2 - 3 p.m. | Ablah Library
ULRICH ARTIST WORKSHOP: BRONZE POURING WITH BARRY BADGETT
THURSDAY, MARCH 7
5:30 - 7 p.m. | Ulrich Museum
GRADUATE PROGRAMS IN BUSINESS OPEN HOUSE THURSDAY, MARCH 7
6 - 8 p.m. | Woolsey Hall
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY LECTURE
THURSDAY, MARCH 7
7 - 8:30 p.m. | Rhatigan Student Center
DIVERSE WOMEN’S SUMMIT FRIDAY, MARCH 8
8 a.m. - 1 p.m. | Rhatigan Student Center
FOOD BANK FRIDAY
FRIDAY, MARCH 8
10 a.m. - Noon | Kansas Food Bank
INFLUENTIAL WOMEN IN LITERATURE FRIDAY, MARCH 8
3 - 5 p.m. | Rhatigan Student Center
GRADUATE STUDENT SOCIAL FRIDAY, MARCH 8
5:30 - 7 p.m. | Rhatigan Student Center
SHOCKER GAMING CLUB: SMASH BROS TOURNAMENT FRIDAY, MARCH 8
6:30 - 10 p.m. | Heskett Center
WSU SCHOOL OF MUSIC UNDERGRADUATE MUSIC MAJOR AUDITION DAY
SATURDAY, MARCH 9
8 a.m. - Noon | Duerksen Fine Arts Center
NO CLASSES - SPRING BREAK
MONDAY, MARCH 11 - SUNDAY, MARCH 17
Wichita State University
WSU SCHOOL OF MUSIC
NAFTZGER YOUNG ARTIST AUDITIONS FINALS RECITAL
SUNDAY, MARCH 17
1 p.m. | Wiedemann Hall
TREE OF HOPE
MONDAY, MARCH 18
11 a.m. - 2 p.m. | Ablah Library
OPENING RECEPTION: TO DUST
MONDAY, MARCH 18
5 - 8 p.m. | McKnight Art Center
HEALTH PROFESSIONS
CAREER FAIR
TUESDAY, MARCH 19
11 a.m. - 1 p.m. | Rhatigan Student Center
SAVVY SCHOLAR WORKSHOP: MASTERING IMPACTFUL
RESEARCH POSTER DESIGNS
TUESDAY, MARCH 19 3 - 4 p.m. | Ablah Library
DANCING DOCENTS WITH MINA
ESTRADA WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20 10 - 11:30 a.m. | Ulrich Museum
CLASH BUILD CASH
THURSDAY, MARCH 21 Noon - 5 p.m. | John Bardo Center
HAVE AN EVENT YOU WOULD LIKE LISTED?
CONTACT THE ARTS EDITOR: arts@thesunflower.com
CONTACT THE NEWS EDITOR: news@thesunflower.com
