Vol. 97 Iss. 27

THE TEMPLE NEWS

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

PAGE 1

STUDENT

COULD THERE BE A STUDENT TRUSTEE? Read more on Page 6

NEWS, PAGE 4 Several at-large candidates for Philadelphia’s City Council are Temple alumni. @TheTempleNews

VOL 97 // ISSUE 27 APRIL 16, 2019 temple-news.com @thetemplenews

OPINION, PAGE 8 An international student wrote an essay about dealing with a relative’s death while an ocean away.

FEATURES, PAGE 14 Who will claim the Iron Throne? Students tuned in for the final season premiere of “Game of Thrones.”

SPORTS, PAGE 23 Football hasn’t committed to a starting quarterback, after a strong showing at spring practices.

NEWS PAGE 2

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

THE TEMPLE NEWS A watchdog for the Temple University community since 1921.

Gillian McGoldrick Editor in Chief Kelly Brennan Managing Editor Julie Christie Digital Managing Editor Evan Easterling Chief Copy Editor Greta Anderson News Editor Grace Shallow Investigations Editor Will Bleier Deputy City Editor Jayna Schaffer Opinion Editor Laura Smythe Features Editor Zari Tarazona Deputy Features Editor Michaela Althouse Deputy Features Editor Michael Zingrone Co-Sports Editor Sam Neumann Co-Sports Editor Claire Wolters Intersection Editor Maria Ribeiro Director of Engagement Siani Colon Asst. Director of Engagement Dylan Long Co-Photography Editor Luke Smith Co-Photography Editor Madison Seitchik Web Editor Co-Multimedia Editor Jared Giovan Co-Multimedia Editor Ian Walker Visuals Editor Claire Halloran Design Editor

The Temple News is an editorially independent weekly publication serving the Temple University community.

Unsigned editorial content represents the opinion of The Temple News.

Adjacent commentary is reflective of their authors, not The Temple News.

Visit us online at temple-news.com.

Send submissions to letters@temple-news.com.

The Temple News is located at: Student Center, Room 243 1755 N. 13th St. Philadelphia, PA 19122

Phuong Tran Advertising Manager Kelsey McGill Advertising Manager Daniel Magras Business Manager

ON THE COVER CLAIRE HALLORAN / THE TEMPLE NEWS

CORRECTIONS Accuracy is our business, so when a mistake is made, we’ll correct it as soon as possible. Anyone with inquiries about content in this newspaper can contact Editor in Chief Gillian McGoldrick at editor@temple-news.com or 215-204-6736.

News Desk 215.204.7419 news@temple-news.com

HEALTH

Inclusive care added to Dental school program

The Kornberg School of Dentistry will teach its students how to better treat people with disabilities.

BY MEGAN MILLIGAN For The Temple News

T

he Kornberg School of Dentistry is expanding its efforts to teach dental students how to accommodate people with disabilities.

The Kornberg School and Penn Dental Medicine began an Inclusive Dental program at the end of March to teach practicing dentists and students how to treat people with disabilities. The program partners with AmeriHealth Caritas, a Philadelphia-based health care management company that helps low-income people and people with chronic illnesses.

Dental care providers who are enrolled in the AmeriHealth program will be given up to a 10 percent reimbursement by the health care provider for all dental services, said Amid Ismail, dean of the Kornberg School.

The program’s goal is to make community-based dental care more accessible for people with disabilities. This dental care brings services to patients, rather than providing care in an office setting, and is designed for people who are homebound or have other barriers to accessing care, said Mark Wolff, dean of Penn Dental Medicine.

“Disabilities can occur throughout the lifetime,” Wolff said. “Persons with disabilities require a special care and an understanding of how to best accommodate them.”

Melissa Young, a senior journalism major, suffers from a form of muscular dystrophy called Spinal Muscular Atrophy, which limits her movement. Young uses a wheelchair and said a dentist that could come to her would be more accommodating.

“It is hard to go to dentist offices because all of the ones in my area have stairs,” Young said. “It’s also hard because a dentist has to be willing to treat me in my chair, since I can’t get out myself.”

Kornberg and Penn Dental School also trained practicing dentists at a twoday program on March 29 and 30 to “Practice without Pressure,” which is a concept created by Practice Without Pressure Pike Peak, a Delaware-based dental practice that specializes in treating people who feel uncomfortable at the dentist.

“Prevention is key,” Ismail said.

“Instead of waiting for someone in six months to have a significant tooth decay and it reaches the nerve of the tooth then they have to be put to sleep to treat them, this breaks the cycle.”

It will offer lectures to dental students on identify a range of disabilities, provide preventive care, discuss longterm treatment options and communicate with parents and those who care for people with disabilities.

“It’s about desensitizing a patient so they can sit in a dental chair,” Ismail said.

“For a patient with attention deficit [disorder, for example], they should be in a quiet room with a limited amount of [tools] coming out of a dental chair that normally scare people.”

The training program will be helpful for knowing how to treat patients who need additional care, said Stephanie Tran, 26, a fourth-year dental student at Kornberg, who said she’s worked with patients who have autism spectrum disorder.

“There are varied characteristics of autism where they can be over stimulated or under stimulated and more resistant to change,” Tran said. “You just have to adapt and express what you need to get done in that treatment.” megan.milligan@temple.edu @MegnMilligan

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NEWS PAGE 4

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

POLITICS

Race for City Council at-large has ties to Temple

Ogbonna “Paul” Hagins, anoth- Goldstein, a Jewish immigrant who left Another candidate with Temple ties At least five of the 36 candidates for City Council’s at-large er Democratic at-large candidate who Soviet Ukraine as a child, is running in is Drew Murray, a 2002 MBA alumnus, brands himself as “Philly Green Man” the Republican primary for an at-large who’s also running in the Republican candidates are Temple alumni.

BY HAL CONTE Political Beat Reporter The packed race to claim Philadelphia’s seven at-large council seats includes multiple candidates with ties to Temple University.

Of the 29 Democrats and seven Republicans running in the primary elections, at least five are Temple alumni.

The top five candidates with the most primary votes in each party on May 21 will proceed to the general election on Nov. 5.

Derek Green, who has held an atlarge seat since 2016 and is running for reelection in May’s Democratic primary, backs reforming the 10-year tax abatement, which waives property taxes for new residential and commercial construction and improvements. Green is also calling to remove tax exemptions for local universities, like Temple, which do not have to pay property taxes under Pennsylvania law because of their nonprofit statuses.

“Where large institutions exist, they need to pay their fair share,” said Green, a 1998 Beasley School of Law alumnus.

“We definitely need to change [the tax abatement], but it’s brought a lot of money into the community.”

because of his environmental focus, said his education experience in the School District of Philadelphia and at Temple highlights the longtime inadequacies of the city’s public education system.

Hagins attended Temple as a College of Liberal Arts student from 1984-86, but did not graduate, he said. Though he was considered a high-performing student at his public high school, he claims, this was still equivalent to a middle school education when compared to student performance at other schools.

Hagins ended up working as a teacher at the Murrell Dobbins Career and Technical Education High School on Lehigh Avenue near 22nd Street and is now retired. If elected to City Council, he wants to improve the school system’s training for students to go into green technology and STEM careers.

Hagins sees himself at odds with the city’s Democratic establishment.

“We need to be understanding of the citizens of the city,” Hagins added. “For me, it’s about taking care of the least of us, not the government version of the ‘Verizon Friends and Family plan,’ the idea [that] if you’re not part of the club, you don’t get anything.”

These left-leaning ideas will be challenged by Irina Goldstein, a 2007 journalism and advertising alumna.

City Council seat.

Goldstein, who worked in the pharmaceutical industry and heads two businesses, is a staunch opponent of big government, which includes council’s spending, which she considers wasteful.

Goldstein said the tax abatement as one piece of legislation she likes from the city’s leaders, and said it’s been a contributor to Philadelphia’s wealth in the past 20 years. She also supports local universities’ and institutions’ growth, which she sees as a result of city tax breaks.

“I’ve been on [Temple’s] campus recently, and thanks to development, it’s become super beautiful,” Goldstein said.

While many community members in the area near Main Campus see Temple’s expansion as a contributor to gentrification, which pushes longtime residents out of the neighborhood, Goldstein thinks it could be positive for the area.

“We need to stop vilifying the building industry,” she said.

Goldstein’s plan to improve schools involves auditing the current system and dramatically revisioning K-12 curricula.

“In Pennsylvania, the level of education is complete nonsense,” she said.

“Children are not taught for careers. ...By sixth or seventh grade, I want kids to learn to code.”

primary. Murray is pushing for universal pre-K education and more funding for schools. He is “absolutely in favor” of the tax abatement, arguing it has brought more jobs into the city.

Since graduating, Murray has headed up local community and residents’ organizations, like the Logan Square Neighborhood Association. He has criticized District Attorney Larry Krasner’s progressive policies, which attempt to reduce the use of the death penalty, plea bargains and back non-cash bail for some crimes.

Gentrification “done correctly, can be helpful,” Murray said.

“It can fill empty lots overflowing with trash,” he added. “Oftentimes, people are pushed out of their homes, though, and that’s an issue that should be addressed.”

Murray believes he can be one of the top two vote-getters, not just in the Republican primary, but in the City Council race overall, he said.

“I bring with me the perspective of a neighborhood organization leader,” he added. “I will take the success I had to the council.” hal.conte@temple.edu

Are you the next Editor in Chief of The Temple News?

Are you the next Templar Editor?

The Temple News, Temple University’s award-winning student newspaper, and Templar are looking for an editor in chief for the 2019-20 academic year.

A good candidate should demonstrate strong leadership ability and proven managerial skills with prior media experience. A candidate's experience in the business, editorial and design aspects of newspaper/yearbook publishing will be a factor in the selection of the editor.

Candidates should submit a completed application, two letters of recommendation, a current resume and a number of relevant work samples to John Di Carlo, Student Media Managing Director, in Room 243 of the Howard Gittis Student Center. Please send an email to john.dicarlo@temple.edu to obtain an application.

Finalists for the position will be interviewed and selected by the Temple University Publications Board.

Applications for The Temple News and Templar are due Friday, April 19.

News Desk 215.204.7419 news@temple-news.com

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NEWS PAGE 5

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

COMMUNITY

Loan program will fund residents’ home repairs The city’s Restore, Repair, Renew higher income threshold than other city program will offer 10-year loans programs.

“There’s a whole body of research of up to $25,000 for middle- and out there about how quality homes aflow-income residents.

BY SAMEET MANN For The Temple News Some North Philadelphia residents, especially elderly people and people with disabilities, are in need of home repairs to increase their homes’ longevity and accessibility.

Sharde Bindes, who lives on 16th Street near Montgomery Avenue, has seen the challenges people with disabilities and seniors face when neighbors do not make repairs and homes become inaccessible to them, something the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority hopes to offset with a program that offers low-interest loans to both low- and middle-income residents for home repairs.

“I know there are a lot of elderly people who have problems getting in and out of their homes,” said Bindes, whose grandmother was recently diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and was not able to walk up or down the stairs of her home.

“It would be more accessible for them if they want to visit their loved ones because a lot of people can’t walk up so many steps,” she added.

Nearly 75 percent of low- to middle-income homeowners who applied for home improvement loans in the Philadelphia area between 2015 and 2017 were denied, according to a report by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. This surpasses both Wilmington, Delaware, and Camden, New Jersey’s, home repair loan denial rates by more than 15 points.

The redevelopment authority introduced the Restore, Repair, Renew program in March, partnering with three nonprofits, Clarifi, the Philadelphia Council for Community Advancement and the Public Health Management Corporation. It is also partnering with two lenders to assist eligible residents obtain 10-year loans of up to about $25,000, which are available to residents with a @TheTempleNews

fect the stability of blocks in neighborhoods,” said Gregory Heller, the executive director of the redevelopment authority. “There’s the potential that you get enough homeowners within a concentrated area, you could start to have an impact on blocks and neighborhoods.”

The time it takes for residents to receive loans depends on homeowners’ eligibility, Heller said. Those who apply are required to have credit scores above 580 and homeowner’s insurance, and be up to date on taxes and public utilities or enrolled in a payment plan with the city.

The program’s lenders will offer eligible homeowners 10-year loans ranging from $2,500 to $24,999 at a 3 percent fixed interest rate.

Like other areas of the city, North Philadelphia has a substantial amount of low- to middle-income homeowners, including people with disabilities and seniors, who could use the program to improve their quality of life, Heller added.

Adrienne Patterson, 56, who has owned her home on Gratz Street near Berks for 19 years, needs to add railings to her stairway and bathroom to make it easier for her to move around without risking falling, she said. Patterson has physical distress, making it difficult for her to complete daily tasks in her home, she said.

The Restore, Repair, Renew program could provide the funds Patterson needs to alter her bathtub to make it more accessible.

“The problem would be that most of [my neighbors and I] don’t have home savings for repairs,” she said. “...whether we just don’t think about it or wait until it happens” She has yet to apply for the program and said a lack of funding and knowledge of the program are the main reasons she hasn’t taken steps to enroll.

“I don’t know what direction to go,” she added.

SAMEET MANN / THE TEMPLE NEWS Residents can apply for the Restore, Repair, Renew program if they meet certain low- or middle-income criteria.

Restore, Repair, Renew is a vital part of the city’s goal to “support equitable growth and inclusive neighborhoods,” said City Council President Darrell Clarke, who represents the 5th District, which encompasses Main Campus, in a press release.

“People’s ability to maintain their homes and age in place helps keep neighborhoods stable and primed for investment,” Clarke said in the release.

Ieasha Howard, who lives on 15th Street near Diamond, said that she has seen senior citizens deal with safety concerns.

“The steps sometimes [are] cracked, like the pavements,” Howard said.

“They’re not really suitable for senior citizens when they walk with their canes, because they walk and then they trip.”

Many people in her neighborhood, especially senior citizens, lack the funding to make these repairs, she added.

For nearly three decades, PRA’s nonprofit sister agency, the Philadelphia

Housing Development Corporation, administered the Basic Systems Repair Program the which provides low-income homeowners with grants to meet “essential repair needs,” Heller said.

Many residents were not eligible for the program because they were above the income threshold, Heller said, which is more than $60,000 higher than Restore, Repair, Renew’s threshold for a four-person household. The Basic Systems Repair Program also has less flexibility about what residents can use the funds for because it’s a grant, not a loan, said PRA’s Public Information Officer Jamila Davis.

“These middle neighborhoods are really important to invest in because they could improve and they could decline,” Heller said. “The decisions we make today and how we invest in them will determine the fate and the outcome of these neighborhoods in the future.” sameet.mann@temple.edu

News Desk 215.204.7419 news@temple-news.com

NEWS PAGE 6

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

ON THE COVER

Student voting seat would be a challenge to create

SYDNEY SCHAEFER / FILE PHOTO The Board of Trustees met in Sullivan Hall on October 10, 2017. Now, Temple Student Government is advocating for a Temple student to join the Board as a voting member.

Board Chairman Patrick O’Connor said the university would need to change its bylaws to establish the position.

BY GRACE SHALLOW Investigations Editor Board of Trustees Chairman Patrick O’Connor said he is “not opposed to the concept” of adding a student voting seat to the Board, but it would require the university to change its internal structure.

BecomingTU, the executive team elected to lead Temple Student Government during the 2019-20 academic year, has hopes to establish a position on the Board for a non-TSG student. But to give this student a seat at the table, the university would have to change its bylaws and expand the size of the Board.

Francesca Capozzi, the student body president-elect, said the team is willing

News Desk 215.204.7419 news@temple-news.com

to put in the required work to establish the seat. But there would be logistical hurdles, O’Connor said.

“Me, my team and students believe this is kind of vital in building this trust because we want to ensure that the administration is not just hearing our voices, students’ voices, but using them,” Capozzi said.

Capozzi did not approach anyone on the Board about the platform point before TSG elections, which began in mid-March and ended on April 4 when BecomingTU won, she said. As the director of university pride and traditions for the current IgniteTU administration, Capozzi worked with administrators and attended public Board meetings.

The student body president sits on the Board as a non-voting member, along with the president of the Faculty Senate.

“They’re making decisions in these meetings that do affect us as students,

but we don’t even have a say in what they’re doing,” Capozzi added.

THE PROPOSAL

While TSG’s student body president has been afforded a non-voting seat on the Board for about five years, Capozzi said it’s key that a student, separate from TSG, that can vote on Board decisions.

Gadi Zimmerman, the current student body president, said the non-voting seat allowed him to advocate to the Board on issues like food and housing insecurity.

Zimmerman and other TSG representatives also attend the Board’s public committee meetings, he said. The Board has 14 standing committees, including the Academic Affairs, Student Life and Diversity and Budget & Finance committees.

“In the public sessions with the entire Board, I’m able to give a summary of what student government is doing

and what the student body is doing in general,” Zimmerman added. “It’s a great opportunity for the public, but especially the Board of Trustees, to understand what students are doing on campus.”

BecomingTU is not the first executive team to suggest establishing a student seat on the Board, Zimmerman said. When it was campaigning, IgniteTU’s platform stated his administration wanted to create a non-TSG student liaison who would communicate student concerns to the Board.

While sitting in committee and Board meetings this year, Zimmerman realized it’d be more beneficial for a student to have a voting seat, he said, but his administration did not have the time to research and propose the idea while managing other initiatives like its Campus Hunger Awareness Week in Fall 2018.

It’s unlikely that as student body president, he would’ve been able to simultaneously serve as a student trustee, Zimmerman added.

“You really want to make sure that the student that does want to apply for that voting seat has enough time that they can devote every second other than classes and extracurriculars into that voting seat,” he said.

The position should be filled by a non-TSG student who can bring an outside perspective to Board discussions, Capozzi said, though her administration would stay in contact with the student to relay the concerns they hear as TSG’s Executive Branch. BecomingTU also hopes to retain the non-voting seat on the Board for the student body president.

“Temple Student Government directors and everyone that’s a part of Temple Student Government is pretty involved with a lot of administrators and whatnot, and just having that outside student perspective that isn’t influenced by administrators or previous knowledge could be valuable to students because they’re bringing raw student

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NEWS PAGE 7

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

thoughts and views into those meetings,” Capozzi said.

BecomingTU discussed establishing the seat on the Board during both executive team debates of the TSG 2019-20 election season. During the first debate, Capozzi pointed out that O’Connor’s tenure as chairman is ending in July and said this time of transition is the best to institute change. Trustee Mitchell Morgan will take over as chairman on Aug. 1, and O’Connor will remain a trustee.

But this leadership change wouldn’t affect the feasibility of establishing a voting student seat, said Anne Nadol, the vice president and secretary of the Board.

“It doesn’t matter who the chairman is,” she said. “It’s still a change of the bylaws. It still requires a vote of the full Board.”

ESTABLISHING THE SEAT

The Board is currently comprised of 33 voting members. At capacity, there are 36, 12 of whom are appointed by Pennsylvania’s governor, Senate president pro tempore and House speaker.

The remaining 24 appointees are nominated by the Board’s Committee on Trustee Affairs and elected by a majority vote from the Board, and are typically successful alumni who are significant donors to the university.

Elected trustees serve four-year terms, which are renewed by a nomination from the Committee on Trustee Affairs and vote by the Board, minus the trustee who’s up for renewal.

Any person can submit an application to the secretary’s office for the Committee on Trustee Affairs to consider be elected to the Board, Nadol wrote in an email to The Temple News.

There are no current vacancies for elected trustees. Dennis Alter, who resigned from the Board last month, was appointed by the Commonwealth and will be replaced by another state appointee. The university does not control who the state selects and applications are not accepted for those seats, Nadol added.

In 1971, Alan Cohen, a 1972 College of Liberal Arts alumnus, sat on the Board for one year as the university’s first student trustee on an interim basis. Former

@TheTempleNews

Governor Milton Shapp appointed Cohen to the Board as one of the Commonwealth’s 12 appointees.

O’Connor, who did not attend Temple but was awarded an honorary degree in 2013, would not support a student voting seat unless the Board simultaneously creates one for a faculty member, he said, because the university’s faculty have been “railing that for years.”

“I’m not going to solve one problem to create another,” O’Connor said.

If the majority of the Board agreed with O’Connor, establishing these two seats would require the university to change its bylaws, allowing 38 Board seats instead of 36, Nadol said. Bylaw changes are submitted to the Committee on Trustee Affairs, forwarded to the full Board for a vote and passed if the majority is in favor.

The Board typically votes on changes to bylaws and elects new trustees at its annual meeting in October, she added.

free debate without incrimination so we reach the best result.”

“As much as I would like everyone to be in the room and see, it doesn’t work that way at any university, and it would be a mistake,” he added. “Because what would happen during executive session is people wouldn’t talk if they knew people were breaching it.”

It is common for private university boards to have closed-door executive sessions, but some schools do allow a student trustee. Penn State, for example, annually elects a student to its Board of Trustees.

If a student became a trustee, O’Connor said, they wouldn’t be able to broadcast conversations held during closeddoor meetings out of a “duty of loyalty” to Temple. It’s not stated in university bylaws that trustees are unable to relay what is said during executive sessions,

Nadol said, but it’s implied.

If elected, a student trustee would also need to consider the university as a whole, not just student concerns, as other trustees do, O’Connor said.

Considering these requirements, it would still be valuable to start working toward creating the position, Capozzi said. A non-TSG student on the Board would be a tangible way to bring student concerns’ into the room with trustees, she added.

“A lot of students don’t even know who the Board of Trustees are, what they do,” she added. “It’s important for them to know what’s going on because this is affecting them. It’s affecting their university.” grace.shallow@temple.edu @Grace_Shallow

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DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF A TRUSTEE

At the Board’s public meetings, trustees formally vote on topics like the university’s academics and finances.

There is never debate among trustees when they are voting during these meetings.

During its public session last month, the Board quickly approved increases to meal plans and housing costs. Each public meeting, however, is preceded by a private executive session, when trustees deliberate and determine their decisions, O’Connor said.

The Board would build trust if a student participated in these closed-door meetings, Capozzi said.

But to O’Connor, the privacy of executive sessions is necessary to maintain the Board’s “efficacy” and the trustees’ ability to make decisions on behalf of the university.

“One can’t run out of an executive session, by definition, where a lot of interesting things are said in the public debate[sic] that would not be said in the public arena,” O’Connor said. “That’s how all universities work. We’re not unique in executive session. It allows for News Desk 215.204.7419 news@temple-news.com

OPINION TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

PAGE 8 EDITORIAL

Be the public university

President Richard Englert often touts Temple University as the “public university of Philadelphia.”

And it’s true, it serves the public: nearly 70 percent of Temple students are Pennsylvania residents, and it is one of the top recipients of Pell Grants. But it’s not a public university until the Board of Trustees starts acting like it, by respecting that public dollars require public oversight.

Every few months, the Board hosts a public meeting. Trustees quickly rattle off dozens of agenda items that involve spending millions of dollars on facility improvements or changes to tuition. For every agenda item announced, a chorus of “Ayes” follows from the trustees on the 36-member Board who showed up.

There is never public discussion, no debate. And that’s on purpose: All the real decisions are made behind closed doors in the executive session that precedes the public meeting. These closeddoor meetings are to maintain the “efficacy” of the Board and trustees’ ability to speak freely, Chairman Patrick O’Connor told The Temple News this week.

Temple’s selective application of its “public” university label allows it and the other state-related universities in Pennsylvania to use loopholes to keep the public in the dark.

We’d like to remind the Temple community of one of the prestigious recognitions our university received two years ago due to its lack of transparency: Temple was named a finalist for The Golden Padlock Award.

The Golden Padlock is awarded to the most secretive, publicly funded institutions in the United States by Investigative letters@temple-news.com

Reporters and Editors, an organization that supports investigative journalism around the world.

Temple was up against stiff competition in 2017 — including Scott Pruitt, the former head of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Even though the state doles out hundreds of millions of dollars to state-related schools, they don’t have to follow the same transparency standards that regular Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education schools do. For example, Temple’s Board is technically allowed to hold private meetings in “executive session” — something that never happens at real public universities.

At the other state-related schools like Penn State, leaders abused this lack of transparency to hide details of Jerry Sandusky’s years of sexual abuse of children and the school’s role in the scandal’s cover-up.

It’s because of this that the Editorial Board believes at the very least, the Board of Trustees should open its executive sessions to the public.

While we absolutely favor Temple Student Government’s proposal to add a voting, nonTSG member to the Board, we recognize that adding a student to vote on the Board won’t do much to sway opinion. It also won’t fix the persisting problem of no oversight or transparency from the Board, because the trustees would expect the student member to maintain an unspoken rule of keeping deliberation hidden from anyone not behind that closed door.

Temple cannot sell itself as a “public” university, while blocking the public from the most important decisions made on campus.

THE ESSAYIST

The cost of living abroad

A student writes about the death of a relative while she’s miles away.

BY PAVLINA CERNA International Columnist

B

ecause of the high cost of plane tickets, I visit home very sporadically — typically every two years.

Last summer, after spending an amazing month with my relatives in the Czech Republic, it was time to say goodbye again.

As always, my last steps on Czech soil led me to a house I am very fond of, where I spent most of my happiest childhood moments. My grandma was born in that house and has always lived there with her older sister, my aunt.

After our routine complaints about the political situation in our country and the weather that messed up the harvest in the backyard and did not allow our cherry tree to bloom to its full potential, we could not delay my departure with conversation any longer.

My family is filled with loving people, but of very little physical affection. Long-lasting goodbyes deserve special treatment though. I gave a quick hug to my mom and let my grandma squeeze me affectionately.

My aunt had always been very formal; naturally, I tried to shake hands with her like usual.

This time though, with tears in her eyes, she pulled me into a tight hug and kissed me.

I smiled because I thought that our warm farewells were rubbing off on her.

But what I did not know was that my aunt was saying the ultimate goodbye. She knew she’d never see me again.

Three months later, while I was back in the United States, I woke up to a message from my grandma saying that my aunt passed away. I stared at the message in disbelief. That couldn’t be. That had to be some sort of mistake.

I didn’t even know she was sick. No one did. She didn’t tell anyone.

My aunt spent the last week of her life in a hospital, and only then did she reveal to her closest family members just how bad the situation was.

Even then, I still didn’t know. The news did not reach me on this side of the world until it

was too late.

That morning, I didn’t cry. I just stared at the ceiling. The only thing I wished for at that moment was to jump over the Atlantic Ocean to be there for my grandma, who lost not only her sister but also her closest friend.

But I couldn’t afford to fly home.

The cost of living abroad becomes infinitely expensive during such a bereavement. Technology falls short. Words transmitted through social media cannot make up for physical presence.

As long as I am on this side of the ocean, it feels almost unreal. Sometimes I forget that the next time we talk about politics in the backyard of my grandma’s house, I won’t hear my aunt’s choked laughter. I won’t see her curious eyes fixated on me while I tell stories about America.

“What a life beyond the big puddle you have,” she used to say.

My beloved house will not be the same to me.

Because of living abroad, I have missed various happenings: my brother’s 18th birthday and graduation ball, the past six Christmases, my dad’s 50th birthday and countless important family milestones in between. It’s the additional cost I unwillingly, but knowingly, signed up for.

Losing people I love takes an emotional toll I didn’t agree to pay.

Although I wasn’t able to say my goodbye — and how would I? — I am glad my aunt did for me. For whatever reason, she wanted to battle her sickness alone. It was her decision, and I have to respect that.

I have so many happy memories with both my grandma and my aunt. Without grandchildren of her own, my aunt was always there for my brother and I, watching out for us and giving us treats when no one was looking.

Probably without even realizing it, my aunt taught me something very important — I should hug the ones I love as often as I have a chance and tell them how much they mean to me. I should write to the people I care for more and make sure they know I care.

I’ll never know when I’ll lose the privilege, especially while I’m an ocean away. pavlina.cerna@temple.edu

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OPINION PAGE 9

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

FEMINISM

Black hole photo: A step for women in STEM Katie Bouman captured the first image of a black hole, and we should all be proud of her.

On Wednesday, Katie Bouman, a 29-year-old postdoctoral researcher at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, captured the first image of a supermassive black hole.

Before this, scientists could only imagine what this phenomenon of space looked like.

But as a result of this astrophysics CHRISTINA MITCHELL breakthrough, we HEALTH COLUMNIST can finally see the image of an orange ring surrounding a black chasm.

It wasn’t as simple as aiming a camera at the sky and snapping a photo with perfect timing. Bouman was a member of a team of 200 researchers working on this groundbreaking discovery, but it was her algorithm that finally produced the image.

Due to the extreme distance and compactness of black holes, we believed it was impossible to photograph one before Bouman proved us wrong.

This is a giant leap for science, but also for women in STEM careers. Bouman has overcome every obstacle and systematic barrier and challenged every preconceived notion that women don’t belong in the STEM field. Merely 50 years ago, it was unheard of for women to study or work in STEM. Due to lack of encouragement and sometimes even teasing in school, young women often turn away from pursuing careers in science, Business Insider reported in 2013. I hope Bouman inspires some young girls out to believe they can study whatever they want to study.

The 2016 movie “Hidden Figures” follows some of the first Black female scientists to work for NASA during the 1960s. The women faced discrimination

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COURTESY / EHT Collaboration

and prejudice from their white, male counterparts.

The film concludes with Katherine Johnson, a mathematician, calculating the trajectory for Project Mercury, a difficult task no man on the team could accomplish. I can imagine Johnson, who is now 100 years old, smiling about Bouman’s scientific breakthrough.

Bouman’s image is now circulating all over the internet and media outlets.

Everyone tweeting Bouman’s photo should give her credit, but I’m still not seeing her name posted often enough.

“Women do hold up half the sky, after all,” said Rebecca Michaels, a Temple University photography professor.

“Movements such as the #MeToo movement are making women visible in a world where women have been unacknowledged, and women such as Bouman deserve to be seen and heard.”

Bouman’s work shattered the glass ceiling into a million pieces.

Bouman will become an assistant professor of computing and mathematical sciences at the California Institute of Technology in Fall 2019.

In a country where only 11.1 percent of physicists and astronomers, 35.2 percent of chemists and 29 percent of the entire science and engineering workforce are women, according to the National Science Board, Bouman makes me proud to be a biology major and a woman in STEM. Kripa Agarwal, a sophomore biology major on a premedical track, is impressed by Bouman’s achievement.

“As a first generation immigrant and a woman pursuing dentistry, I know firsthand how we are sadly overlooked even though we are just as capable as men, if not even more capable,” Agarwal said. “This isn’t anything surprising that a woman did this...it’s only recently that the spotlight is being put on women.”

By allowing us to take a glimpse of

this paradox for the first time, Bouman has made history; she revealed the truth of the universe, which sometimes we must see to believe.

“Human nature wants the truth, and photography changed the worldview of how we think of images,” said Martha Madigan, a photography professor and experienced sunprinter, an artist who creates a photo with sunlight instead of a camera. “Once you had the photo you had the truth. This photo is an inventive concept of a black hole, but in minds of human beings it proves something.”

To Bouman, thank you for providing this “proof.” As more and more women pursue STEM careers, I can’t wait to hear about the next “impossible” breakthrough made by a woman.

So let’s keep sharing Bouman’s photo, but let’s not leave her name out of it.

Draw attention to this pioneer. christina.mitchell@temple.edu

letters@temple-news.com

OPINION PAGE 10

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

MUSIC

Hip-hop: A tool that belongs in the classroom

Lyricists, like Kendrick Lamar and guage that all my students speak, regardTupac Shakur, should be studied less of socioeconomic class or identity, it’s academically arrogant and antithetiin schools.

As a fan of hip-hop music and an aspiring English teacher, I cannot help but notice the substantive, poetic nature of rap.

Packed with symbolism, allegory, metaphor, personification and more, hip-hop albums like Nas’ “Illmatic,” Tupac Shakur’s “Me TYLER PEREZ LGBTQ COLUMNIST Against the World” and Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly” combine poetic techniques with introspective social commentary.

Hip-hop is as substantive as other forms of literature, and it’s time school curricula reflect that.

Studying hip-hop in English classes as a form of performance poetry and in social studies classes as social commentary can provide educators with an exciting, nontraditional form of teaching that will truly engage their students.

America’s youth is no stranger to hip-hop. R&B and hip-hop surpassed rock as the most dominant music genre in 2017. The genres also had seven of the top 10 most-consumed albums that year, according to a 2018 report by the Nielsen Company, a data analytics company.

Hip-hop is currently the “zeitgeist,” or defining spirit, of our generation.

Because most students relate to or have encountered the culture and popularity of hip-hop music, they are more likely to engage with it in classes. Analyzing the lyrics of Chance the Rapper’s “No Problem” would be much more exciting than looking at most decades-old couplets.

Aaron X. Smith, an Africology and African American Studies professor, agrees. He teaches classes on the history and significance of Tupac Shakur, Black popular music, hip-hop and Black social and political thought.

“If I know that there’s a common lanletters@temple-news.com

cal to the notion of educating people to not tap into that common language but rather to choose a new language that seems to marginalize most of the class,” Smith said. “That common language is hip-hop.”

Hip-hop presents the opportunity for complex commentary. The canon of famous literature includes predominantly white, heterosexual male authors.

These “great” works have problematic themes, like incest in Sophocles’ “Oedipus Rex” and pedophilia in Vladimir Nabokov’s “Lolita.”

Hip-hop is an anthology of Black social and political thought, something students should study.

Lamar’s “The Blacker the Berry” provides a look at the intersection of Black pride, police brutality, self-loathing, mass incarceration and gang violence.

That song and many more provide multidimensional points about real-world issues and could spark a class discussion on a multitude of topics.

Rap songs contain poetic devices like simile, metaphor, anaphora, allusion, allegory and most obviously, rhyme.

The English lesson doesn’t end there, as hip-hop introduces students to a far larger vocabulary than their usual work of literature. Most rappers have a far greater vocabulary than the iconic playwright William Shakespeare himself, the Washington Post reported in 2014.

And African American Vernacular English is in most hip-hop songs, which helps students understand cultural differences in linguistics.

Lauris Bropleh, a sophomore human development and community engagement major with a concentration in community-based education, raps to express herself.

“I learn through that lens,” Bropleh said. “For history classes, it would have been beneficial if I could have expressed myself through rap. In one of my classes

here, I was able to write my response assignments in the form of a rap, and being able to express myself that way helped me learn a lot better.”

Reddit users are speculating Kendrick Lamar’s Pulitzer Prize-winning album “DAMN” may be included in the English International Baccalaureate curriculum starting next year.

Temple itself is fairly ahead of the curve too, for its course “Tupac Shakur and the Hip-Hop Revolution.” The class, taught by Smith, places hip-hop in its rightful academic place.

Hip-hop is an exciting and unconventional way to engage the entire class.

Our society has neglected the importance of hip-hop artists in the larger picture of American literature. We’ve deprived students of a vital resource because we have stereotyped rappers and academics ADVERTISEMENT

as inherently opposite of one another.

To continue to exclude hip-hop from English and social studies classrooms presents us with a frankly racist, classist and ignorant concept of academia.

“These rappers are giving children their first introduction to certain figures and certain concepts and even certain words,” Smith said. “I hadn’t even heard the word ‘reciprocity’ until Ms. Lauryn Hill said it in a song.”

I hope hip-hop begins getting the recognition from educators it deserves.

And if teachers need some guidance before introducing the genres into their classrooms, Smith and Bropleh both said Tupac, Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole are the best choices for a starting curriculum. tyler.perez@temple.edu

temple-news.com

OPINION PAGE 11

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

POLITICS

Leave personal attacks out of political debate Attacking candidates over their McConnell’s case, if he has some issues personal lives or appearances is walking due to childhood polio, it’s completely unrelated.” unnecessary and malicious.

Twitter can be a mean place, but it got especially nasty earlier this month when Democratic strategist Adam Parkhomenko tweeted a video of Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell falling and struggling to get back up at a campaign rally.

KARLY MATTHEWS POLITICS COLUMNIST Parkhomenko, who worked as a national field director for the Democratic National Committee in 2016, posted the video with the caption, “Yesterday I posted this new found footage of Mitch McConnell standing up for America.

368,000 views overnight. Mitch McConnell does not want you to let this video get up to 1,000,000 views.”

But the tweet soon garnered quite a few replies, calling the attack too malicious and suggesting Parkhomenko delete it. After all, McConnell had polio as a child, which causes muscle weakness, explaining his trouble standing up.

Politicians are often attacked not just for their beliefs or platforms, but also for their personal lives and even physical appearances or disabilities. It’s even worse when these attacks come from political leaders onto other elected officials and candidates, setting a poor example of political discourse.

This happens on both sides of the aisle and in every level of government, and it’s not helping the political climate in this country.

Kevin Arceneaux, a Temple University political science professor, said personal attacks should be avoided if they are irrelevant to the ability to serve in an elected position.

“Unless someone’s personal feelings are germane to the issue at hand, it’s not appropriate,” Arceneaux said. “In Mitch @TheTempleNews

Having a physical disability is not a disqualifier for holding a seat in the Senate, but opponents have used the video as if it proves something about the majority leader and his competency. Political debate should be about substance, and making irrelevant jabs at the person only succeeds at cheapening political debate.

Matt Abruzzo, a sophomore film and media arts major and the treasurer of Temple College Republicans, said Americans have shifted their focus from political platforms to the people behind them.

“Over the course of American politics,…we’ve stopped believing more in causes and more in people, so our public figures are becoming more and more important as [people],” Abruzzo said. “In the United States, you vote for the person first and party second, so I think that kind of opens it up to personal attacks.”

But personal attacks have always been a fixture of American politics.

In 1800, when Thomas Jefferson and John Adams ran for president against each other, Federalists suggested that Jefferson was an atheist, while Republicans branded Adams as a wannabe monarch planning a family dynasty, according to the University of Virginia’s Miller Center, which specializes in political history.

Candidates open themselves up to criticism. But Jefferson’s religious beliefs had nothing to do with his ability to govern. On the other hand, if Adams truly wanted to be the first American monarch, that could be a concern to voters.

It’s important to sift out the information that fails to influence a person’s politics. Nobody is perfect, and criticizing someone for things irrelevant to their leadership qualities or political platform is unproductive and dirty.

Leading up to the 2016 Presidential Election, both sides flung vicious attacks against their opposition.

Hillary Clinton questioned Donald Trump’s temperament, and Trump

CLAIRE HALLORAN / THE TEMPLE NEWS

spared no punches when he created the nickname “Crooked Hillary.”

Most of the harsh insults were actually relevant to the ability to serve, but some bled over into personal attacks.

Trump called Clinton’s marriage into question and even invited women who accused her husband of sexual misconduct to a debate.

When Clinton spoke in New York, she said Trump and half his supporters belong in a “basket of deplorables.”

Chris Smith, a junior political science major and the president of Temple College Republicans, does not advocate for personal attacks in politics. But he admits it can be a tough distinction.

“The line between a personal attack and somebody’s policy [position] can get blurred, so it’s hard to determine that line,” Smith said.

When the line is crossed though, it is pretty obvious.

During the 2018 midterms elections here in Pennsylvania, United States Sen. Bob Casey released a video featuring a mom with twin girls who were diagnosed with cancer. The mother said Lou Barletta’s position on health care would have left her children without treatment.

Barletta, Casey’s opponent, said he

had told Casey that his grandson, a twin, was diagnosed with cancer. Casey had every right to criticize his opponent’s policy, but the video seemed all too similar to Barletta’s family situation. The advertisement just hit too close to home.

Politics can be inherently personal because policy affects people. When debating policy, Arceneaux said, policy and personality can be indifferentiable.

“It’s very difficult when you’re disagreeing with someone over substance not to blend that into them as a person and there being something wrong with them,” Arceneaux said.

If you start a conversation with the assumption that a candidate is inherently evil, there is no point in conversing.

Believing instead that a policy is evil or discussing a candidate’s leadership abilities can lead to an interesting exchange of ideas and possibly finding some common ground.

Politics has always been and will continue to be ugly. But we can avoid attacks that aren’t germane to one’s ability to govern, like sharing a video of a 77-year-old man struggling to stand up on his own. karly.matthews@temple.edu

letters@temple-news.com

FEATURES

PAGE 12

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

RESEARCH

Student researches sustainability of public transit

EMMA PADNER / THE TEMPLE NEWS Electrical engineering Ph.D. student Kaitlyn Sitch uses a simulation program to research how microgrids can make transportation more sustainable.

Ph.D. student Kaitlyn Sitch is search it could be something that will using city bus routes in her work never see the light of day, but with this, it is something that other cities are imon microgrids.

BY EMMA PADNER City Life Beat Reporter

I

nspired by the practicality of transportation research and the impact it can have on a city’s sustainability, Kaitlyn Sitch enrolled in Temple University’s electrical engineering Ph.D. program.

Her adviser, electrical and computer engineering professor Liang Du, then introduced her to the idea of microgrids and how they can assist hybrid-electric public transportation.

“Sometimes when you’re doing refeatures@temple-news.com

plementing,” Sitch said. “A microgrid system, even though it’s not necessarily implemented in Philadelphia, maybe it will be somewhere else, or something similar.”

Microgrids work with local energy and can generate power on their own.

Sitch has researched them since November and will present her findings at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Transportation Electrification Conference and Expo in Michigan from June 19-21. The event aims to help the transportation industry transition from standard vehicles to more sustain-

able options.

Other cities that are moving toward hybrid-electric bus fleets that charge the buses in the time it takes passengers to board and depart, Sitch said. But this creates peaks in the energy because the buses have limited charging time.

Sitch is researching how to alleviate that peak to make power more constant over a long period of time, so transportation companies can better predict how much energy they will need, she said.

A microgrid is similar to a converter, meaning it controls the battery that charges a bus and helps “convert” between different types of power, she said.

For her research, Sitch is using SEPTA’s bus routes to determine how long each stop is and how much time each bus would have to charge while people are getting on and off the bus.

SEPTA is working on an Energy Action Plan that entails making 90 percent of its buses hybrid-electric by 2021. Using the bus data from SEPTA is the practical aspect of Sitch’s research, but the rest is mostly theoretical, she said.

“It’s not something that would be implemented with that right now, but maybe eventually this might be something that’s feasible,” Sitch added. “Now, I think some utility companies are looking at working with microgrids, too, so it would in the future, just maybe not with this Energy Action Plan that they’re doing right now.”

Last summer, SEPTA received a $1.5 million Federal Transit Administration grant to purchase 10 new electric buses. The buses are part of the company’s pilot program to evaluate electrical technology’s performance in the city.

Second-year electrical engineering Ph.D. student Dongsen Sun is assisting Sitch in her research. Sun has previously worked with microgrids and has experience with power electronics, she said.

Sun helps Sitch set up the simulation

module and assists with developing the control screen if problems arise.

“Sometimes, we will have a discussion on the simulation itself and what’s the issue we have or what’s the next step of the project,” Sun added.

Cost and Philadelphia’s current infrastructure are concerns for converting the city’s bus services into a hybrid-electric or fully electric bus fleet, Du said.

“Everyone wants electrical vehicles, but our current infrastructure can’t support it because it’s too old,” Du said.

“We’re already one of the worst major cities in the states where we have energy burden, which means on average the low-income [residents] have to take... their income to pay for energy and upgrading the construction they’re not able to pay for it.”

Philadelphians’ median household income is $39,759, and 58 percent of the population earns less than $50,000, putting 25.7 percent of the population below the poverty line.

Du hopes Sitch’s research can help Philadelphia begin to move toward a more electric fleet.

“I hope that this research can land a viable plan in terms of the technology and in terms of the economic part...that can support this smooth transit from our current complications into a more electrified [vehicles],” he added.

Sitch anticipates working on the research for at least a year and plans to use it to write her thesis.

She hopes her work can help inform public transportation plans, she added. “[I hope] this research would help to make the buses and everything even more sustainable,” she said. “At that point, there would be less emissions. I guess the hope would be it would make everything more sustainable.” emma.padner@temple.edu @emmapadner

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FEATURES PAGE 13

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

TECHNOLOGY

App will use VR to help students seeking housing A 2017 chemistry alumnus codeveloped Adulthood to make the housing selection process easier for students.

BY MICHELE MENDEZ For The Temple News It took Kyle Jordan a month of touring apartments, talking to landlords and finding potential roommates to find off-campus housing.

“It wasn’t an easy process at all,” said Jordan, a 2017 chemistry alumnus who currently teaches chemistry at Gratz Prep Middle School in Nicetown.

When his friend Diamond Ross, a 2017 St. John’s University business marketing alumna, approached him with an app idea to help college students find apartments, Jordan saw it as an opportunity to make the renting process smoother for students.

Adulthood is an app that allows students to see their potential space in real time by using virtual reality to offer 360-degree views of their potential home.

“Adulthood explains how you feel when you move out on your own and when you’re out of your parents’ home and out of the campus atmosphere,” Ross said.

The app will work as a resource for students to find off-campus housing because some schools may not offer resources to help students, Ross added.

Eventually, she wants the app to offer emergency shelter options, so even if students can’t afford housing, they can find emergency shelter locations near campus.

“Our main goal is to eliminate and decrease student homelessness,” Ross said. “You should not have to live in your car while pursuing a higher education.”

While in college, Ross obtained housing by working as a resident assis-

@TheTempleNews

tant. But some of her friends weren’t so lucky because they couldn’t find housing, she said.

“It’s very difficult, to say the least,” Ross said. “A lot of my friends actually became homeless.”

Ross and Jordan have been filming apartments with a 360-degree camera to create the images. They are considering developing their own virtual reality software or partnering with another company to help landlords convert their standard phone images to 360-degree visualizations.

Adulthood is meant to save students time apartment hunting by allowing them to take tours virtually rather than in person, Ross said. The app is still in development, but a prototype is available online. The official app is expected to launch within a year.

“Virtual reality is going to be taking over soon, and we want college students to be a part of the whole process,” Jordan said.

Jewel Thomas, a freshman political science and economics major, is looking for apartments near Main Campus for next year. The process has been very time consuming, she said.

“Looking for apartments that fit my needs, in my price range, at the location I want makes the process kind of difficult,” Thomas added.

Ross and Jordan have so far funded the project themselves, but will spend the summer looking for investors and launching a crowdfunding page. The app also allows students to filter for their preferences and will soon include a feature to help students find potential roommates.

Once someone has picked a place, they’ll be able to message their landlords through a direct messaging system, receive information about their leasing agreement and pay and split rent with their roommates.

ERIK COOMBS / THE TEMPLE NEWS Kyle Jordan, a 2017 chemistry alumnus, wears an Adulthood app shirt and hat at the Student Center on Monday. Jordan is a founder of the housing app.

“It will make it easier on each side, as there won’t have to be much interaction due to the fact that everybody has a busy schedule and no one likes to receive money in their hand,” Ross said.

Julia Prevost, a junior media studies and production major, has had trouble contacting her landlord and rental company concerning maintenance issues and often has to go in person because they won’t answer her messages, she said.

Since launching their prototype in February, Ross and Jordan have received messages from landlords and rental companies asking how to list properties on the app.

Jordan Kinsler, an independent landlord in Philadelphia, said he would be interested in using the app because of its convenience. Being a millennial himself, Kinsler understands college students are busy, he added, and thinks viewing an apartment virtually from a 360-degree angle would save landlords

and potential renters a lot of time.

“In the world that we’re evolving to, everything is about convenience and how fast it can be done,” Kinsler said. “[The app] is perfect for today’s age, especially if you’re trying to target college students for your rental property.”

Students across the country have also reached out about the app’s launch date, Jordan said. They found out about it through Adulthood’s social media profiles.

Currently, the app focuses on major Philadelphia universities, like Drexel University and Temple, but is branching out to other colleges like the University of South Florida.

“I graduated from Temple, and just to get [the app] started there would mean a lot to me,” Jordan said. michele.mendez@temple.edu

features@temple-news.com

FEATURES PAGE 14

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

ENTERTAINMENT

Winter is finally here for ‘Game of Thrones’ fans is the arrival of the Night King and his each one has their own journey and their The hit HBO drama series about what happens next.”

The anticipation for the last six army of White Walkers, formerly-hu- own story and at the end, it almost ties returned for its eighth and final episodes, in which viewers will find man ice creatures. up together,” he said. season Sunday night.

BY BIBIANA CORREA Trend Beat Reporter Will the Night King and White Walkers conquer the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros? What will happen with Khaleesi and Jon Snow?

Most importantly, who will claim the Iron Throne?

The eighth season of HBO’s “Game of Thrones” premiered Sunday night, beginning the process of answering fans’ questions leftover from the seventh season. Many Temple University students tuned in to watch the first episode and have been fans throughout their time at Temple. Some students even gathered at their friends’ apartments for watch parties.

Sophomore musical theater major Joy Pringle-Bato hosted a watch party for the premiere and is excited to see the series wrap up.

“It feels great to be surrounded by people who enjoy a show as much as you do,” she said. “Plus, after, we can all cry together or laugh together and talk

out who, if anyone, will sit on the Iron Throne, has built for almost two years since the seventh season’s end.

“Game of Thrones,” based on author George R.R. Martin’s best-selling book series “A Song of Ice and Fire,” debuted in April 2011. The award-winning series became the network’s most popular show over “The Sopranos” in 2014, the Hollywood Reporter reported.

The previous season averaged about 30.6 million viewers per episode, Vulture reported.

Throughout the series, viewers have watched the characters scheme, fight and kill each other throughout the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. The separate storylines are joining together in the final season, and fans like Risa Iatesta are eager to see how it will end.

“There’s going to be a lot of drama, a lot of violence, possibly romance, and it’s going to be the perfect, most amazing way to end the most incredible television show of all time,” said Iatesta, a freshman international business and Spanish major.

Another storyline coming to a close

“I want to see not only if they’ll be able to survive the White Walkers, but also who’s going to take the throne because there are so many crazy people who have some sort of logistical claim to it,” said Caleb Okoh-Aihe, a sophomore computer science major.

The series has won 47 Emmy Awards in several categories, including Outstanding Drama Series in 2018.

Sophomore economics major Nate Wooding enjoys the unexpectedness of the show because it defies many television tropes like the stereotypical happy ending.

“They kind of don’t follow the patterns that you see in a lot of big television shows,” Wooding said. “In ‘Game of Thrones,’ the writers aren’t really afraid to just do bold things, like kill off a lot of characters.”

Senior accounting major Ory Goldenshtein heard about the show after the sixth season premiered in 2016. As a fan of high fantasy, a subgenre of fantasy with an epic nature, he was immediately interested.

“There are so many characters and

JESSYE STOREY Senior advertising major

VOICES

Who do you hope takes the Iron Throne in “Game of Thrones” and why?

features@temple-news.com

I want to see Tyrion. He’s the smartest character.

OLIVIA GREGONIS Freshman graphic and interactive design major

Khaleesi, just because her arc over the show has been pretty crazy and impressive and because it would be cool to see a woman. ...Also she’s sick with the dragons.”

Okoh-Aihe, like several other student viewers, has a theory for who will end up taking the Iron Throne.

Okoh-Aihe hopes it’ll be lead character Arya Stark, and believes viewers will see her in her prime this season, he said.

“She’s a Stark, so she has some sort of royal claim to it,” Okoh-Aihe added.

“Plus the whole development that she’s gone through from being beaten down to coming back up again, she seems fit for the throne.”

Arya Stark, played by actress Maisie Williams, has been on her own for most of the series after her father Ned Stark was executed in the first season. She has murdered several people who wronged her family throughout the series.

Goldenshtein has his own choice for who he wants on the throne — but he’s not entirely sure it’s correct.

“I really think it could be anyone,” he said. “Something tells me it could be someone I’m not thinking of just because some directors don’t like going in the directed route.” bibiana.correa@temple.edu

JAKE BEVENOUR Senior marketing major

Probably Tyrion and Sansa, [who are] still technically married. …I had read that theory, and I was like, ‘That is what’s going to happen.’

MANISH SURYAPALAM Sophomore biochemistry major Jon Snow, just because he’s pretty much suffered a lot throughout the seasons. …I’ve always just seen him as the honorable character. temple-news.com

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

FEATURES PAGE 15

LIVE IN PHILLY

Sakura Sunday celebration blooms in Fairmount Park

LUCAS SMITH / THE TEMPLE NEWS

The annual Subaru Cherry Blossom Festival’s nine days of festivities concluded at the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center on Sunday. Attendees celebrated Japanese culture under the blooming Japanese cherry trees and cherry blossoms, also called sakura.

The festival’s main stage entertained visitors with Japanese music and dance performances to celebrate Sakura Sunday, its final event. Two other stages hosted various other events, from martial arts demonstrations to arts and crafts. Pet owners paraded their pets around, competing to win the title of the “prettiest pet in pink.”

“I loved the drummers,” said Nicole Gambardello, 22, of Riverside, New Jersey. “Their performances were amazing.”

Many came dressed in traditional Japanese clothing or cosplayed as anime characters. Some sat beneath the sakura, watching as the trees’ pink leaves fluttered to the ground.

“I love sitting underneath the blossoms when the wind blows and it falls on you,” said Korissa Belville, 22, of Germantown. “It’s just a really great atmosphere because there’s so many friendly people.” @TheTempleNews

features@temple-news.com

FEATURES PAGE 16

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

ALUMNI

Financial literacy nonprofit to aid Philadelphians The organization will provide ships, like offering mortgage payment free financial planning services extensions, he added.

McDevitt hopes to promote finanto low-income city residents.

BY MADISON KARAS Campus Beat Reporter When studying data on Philadelphia’s poverty, Thomas McDevitt noticed a lack of local programs promoting economic success and financial education.

“When I looked around and started talking to people and I started drilling down into exact ZIP codes, it really blew my mind as to how deep the poverty is here in Philadelphia,” said McDevitt, a certified financial planner and chartered financial analyst.

The 2002 MBA alumnus decided to take matters into his own hands and founded Philly Financial Planning!, a financial literacy organization that helps low-income Philadelphians. The nonprofit will launch in September and aims to close the city’s wealth gap.

The financial planning and literacy services will be orchestrated by volunteer financial planners. This includes tax experts, legal counselors and financial analysts from organizations like the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, a nonprofit standards-setting organization for financial planners.

In 2017, Philadelphia ranked as the poorest of the nation’s 10 most populous cities with a 25.7 percent poverty rate.

U.S. Census Bureau data indicates the national average poverty rate for 2017 was 12.3 percent.

“A lot of the wealth, inequality, and a lot of the poverty here in Philadelphia extends from one generation to the next,” McDevitt said.

Many government programs and nonprofits only provide “band-aid,” short-term solutions to financial hard-

features@temple-news.com

cial education by providing free coaching services, where financial experts advise people on stocks and investments, and professional financial planners to families and young people with economic hardships to help them build assets and savings, he said.

Elisha Lowe uses McDevitt’s coaching services, invested in the startup because she wants to see education on financial literacy topics, like investment and the stock market, made accessible to Philadelphians, she said.

“It’s not just for old white guys,” Lowe said. “This is everybody’s market, and we’re all consumers, so why not benefit from it? Once people learn how to make money, no one can take that away from you. You can lose everything, but as long as you have those basic skills, you can retain it.”

McDevitt also wants to make financial literacy and education more fun through initiatives like Eagle’s Nest, a program modeled similarly to the popular ABC reality show “Shark Tank.” The nonprofit will help young entrepreneurs create business plans and give them a platform to present their pitches to local investors.

McDevitt also plans to create a citywide stock market challenge, where community members can predict the best performing stock of a market quarter to win a cash prize.

“There’s a lot of people out there that don’t get to learn about financial planning concepts in a school,” said Bill Kline, a 2012 strategic management Ph.D. alumnus and McDevitt’s former business partner.

In 2007, Kline co-founded McDevitt & Kline LLC, a professional continuing education company. He is excited to see

McDevitt take their mission to the next step with Philly Financial Planning!

“If you can start educating people on the skill side of things, then you can make sure that they’re not making bad decisions and that they’re maximizing or optimizing their situation,” Kline added.

McDevitt is finding local community organizations to partner with for his nonprofit. In the long run, he hopes its educational model can be duplicated to serve other high poverty cities with wide wealth gaps like Baltimore, which has

about a 22 percent poverty rate, and Detroit, which has about a 34 percent poverty rate, according to Census Reporter.

“Things have to change,” McDevitt said. “You can’t have so much wealth concentrated in the hands of so few people, while so many people are struggling just to get by and actually living in deep poverty.” madison.karas@temple.edu @madraekaras

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TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

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LENT LAST SUPPER GOOD FRIDAY HOLY SATURDAY LAMB BUNNY EGGS

PEEPS JELLYBEANS LILY PASTEL PURPLE MOVEABLE FEAST

Down:

radio station

1. Director of Jazz Studies at Boyer and artistic director of the Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia

Across:

2. Jazz and R&B saxophonist depicted in a mural at Broad and Diamond streets 3. Jazz singer nicknamed “Lady Day” 4. Trumpeter known for his distinctive bent-bell trumpet 5. Neo soul singer who starred in the HBO show “The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” 9. Temple-owned classical and jazz

6. Saxophonist known for “Giant Steps” and “A Love Supreme” 7. Jazz club and restaurant on Broad and Mt. Vernon streets 8. “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” bandleader and recipient of Philadelphia’s Benny Golson Award 10. Bar on Oxford Street near Broad that has hosted performers like Patti LaBelle and John Coltrane 11. Jazz club on Sansom Street near 15th

Answers from Tuesday, April 9: 1. Allen Iverson, 2. The Process, 3. Charles Barkley, 4. Nationals, 5. Wilt Chamberlain, 6. Ben Simmons, 7. Moses Malone, 8. Jimmy Butler, 9. Joel Embiid, 10. Blue Coats, 11. Brett Brown, 12.

Julius Erving

@TheTempleNews

features@temple-news.com

INTERSECTION PAGE 18

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

THE ESSAYIST

Running into red lights as a woman sportswriter

KAITLYN GROSS / THE TEMPLE NEWS

The women’s basketball beat the game and player interviews, and my reporter writes about the sexism feelings of anxiety did not subside until I she’s experienced while writing was back in my room.

The next week, I found myself in a for The Temple News.

BY MAURA RAZANAUSKAS For The Temple News I was sitting in the front seat of the soccer beat writer’s car as we drove to the Ambler Campus, chatting casually with him while trying to mask the butterflies in my stomach.

The butterflies were partly due to the fact that I was en route to covering my first game for The Temple News and partly due to the fact that we had just run through a red light.

The nerves remained throughout

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nearly identical situation, complete with another red light debacle. However, this time, I was in the backseat, as another new sportswriter had volunteered to cover the game.

I listened in on the conversation between the two guys, noting a theme in topics: hometown, major, life at Temple.

The same things we had talked about the week before. Then, my ears perked up. The beat writer was mentioning a sportswriting opportunity to the new writer.

My frustration with the situation

wasn’t immediate, but after thinking about the interactions I had experienced, I came to the conclusion that this wasn’t fair. I wondered why the beat writer had not mentioned this opportunity to me even though I was a new writer with a passion for sports, just like this other guy.

This feeling of being passed over for a man despite possessing similar credentials continued throughout my four years of writing for the sports section of the Temple News.

Sportswriting seemed like a natural activity for me because it combined two things I love: sports and writing. I have been engaged in the world of sports for as long as I can remember. I started playing soccer when I was 6 years old and played nearly everything, from lacrosse to flag football to cross country and even basketball for the limited period of my life when I was tall for my age.

My two brothers also played sports, and in the summers, the three of us would play outside until the sun went down. The orange traffic cones in our backyard acted as goal posts, bases, hurdles and first-down markers.

When I wasn’t playing sports, I was probably watching them. Our TV was on from 1 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. every Sunday of the NFL season and for every Penguins game of the NHL playoffs.

My passion for and submersion into the world of sports helped me learn about the games, rules, positions, players and nuances of the sports.

Despite my knowledge and background, as a female covering sports, I have not always been taken seriously.

It feels as though there is an underlying assumption that I do not know or understand even basic information.

While attending a women’s basketball game with a male writer, there was a scuffle under the basket on the other end of the court and the ref called a techni-

cal foul. I could not tell if there had been a specific action that led to the call, so I asked the writer what he saw.

Instead of answering my question, he explained that a technical foul had been called and then began to define it.

While my counterpart did not blatantly degrade me, it was frustrating that he assumed I did not understand the foul called.

The patronizing remarks that made me feel upset were not always intended to hurt. While excitedly preparing to cover my first Temple football game, I asked an editor what might be appropriate attire. He told me that he wasn’t sure, as he is not a “women’s fashion magazine.” While I believe the comment was meant in jest, it was hard for me to understand why it was OK for him to say that.

I know that my shy and sensitive disposition has affected my reactions to some of the interactions enumerated.

And if these incidents had been isolated, I may have synthesized my experience differently. However, these were patterns, and because of these events, I felt frustrated.

But also because of these events, I have grown in many ways. I am more confident in my work and in my ability.

I have confidence that, moving forward, when I am in a male-dominated environment, I will make sure my voice is heard. I will be assertive and fight for the opportunities I deserve.

And so my plea to sportswriters, particularly males, is to treat women in sports as your equals and offer that exciting sports writing job to all writers, regardless of your perception of their level of interest or sports knowledge. Oh, and for the love of God, stop at red lights. maura.razanauskas@temple.edu @CaptainAMAURAca

temple-news.com

INTERSECTION PAGE 19

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

FEMINISM

Women find strength, empowerment in CrossFit CrossFit gyms are notoriously exThe club will meet at 5:30 p.m on Of the 100 members who have at the IBC. This could be intimidating to pensive — topping $150 a month com- Thursday outside Pearson Hall for ansigned up for a new CrossFit some women, he added.

“I don’t personally get intimidated, pared to other gyms with rates of $10- other run to the Philadelphia Museum club, about 90 are women.

BY NATHANIEL GRIESBAUM For The Temple News The Temple University CrossFit Club kicked off its first official meeting this Thursday by running from Main Campus to the top of the steps at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The club follows CrossFit-style workouts like weightlifting, cardio and gymnastics and will officially start crossfit training in Fall 2019. So far, about 100 members have signed up for the club and

Usually, when I tell men I can lift more than them, they give me a look like, ‘Yeah, right.’

Then they see me do it and think it’s pretty cool.

LIZZY PIERSON

CROSSFIT CLUB PRESIDENT

about 90 of them are women.

The women-dominated group seeks to empower women and debunk stereotypes of women in fitness, said Lizy Pierson, a sophomore public health major and the club’s president.

“I know that the issue with a lot of my friends is that they walk into the gyms on campus and it’s just a man cave,” Pierson added.

The Student Training and Recreation Center and the IBC Student Recreation Center can have more than 100 people in there at a time, most of which are men, said Robert Rera, a senior public health major and building supervisor

@TheTempleNews

but I know a lot of my friends will walk into STAR and then just walk out,” Pierson said. “We want to create a community where people are not intimated to go to the gym and feel good about themselves and working out.”

The women-led club hopes to tear down stereotypes that women only do cardiovascular exercises and group fitness classes, said Eileen Armani, a sophomore nursing major and the club’s secretary.

Hearing gender stereotypes at the gym, like snide remarks that women are not as athletic as men, can have a negative effect on a woman’s athletic performance, according to a 2014 study in the journal Psychology of Sport and Exercise. When gender differences were not discussed, the study found that men and women performed equally.

“Usually, when I tell men I can lift more than them, they give me a look like, ‘Yeah, right,’” Pierson said. “Then they see me do it and think it’s pretty cool.”

As a sport, CrossFit focuses on improving performance more than looks and considers all members “athletes” rather than categorizing them in groups by gender, weight or age, according to BoxRox, a competitive fitness magazine for people who do CrossFit. Both Pierson and Armani are active members at CrossFit Fairmount, where Armani was named the gym’s April Athlete of the Month.

They are in conversations with the owners at CrossFit Fairmount about using the space to train in the fall and are currently figuring out schedules and the cost of a student discount, Pierson said.

20, according to Investopedia, a news outlet focusing on financial concepts. So the club is advocating for as cheap a price as possible, Pierson added.

“They’re definitely working with us,” she said of the owner and coaches at CrossFit Fairmount. “They’re super excited as well. But at the same time, they’re running a business.”

of Art. “It really is a community,” Armani said. “Any accomplishment, no matter how big or how small, everyone celebrates it.” nate.griesbaum@temple.edu

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INTERSECTION PAGE 20

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

FEMINISM

BecomingTU breaks into male-dominated admin The historic ticket will have to advocate for students to Temple’s male-dominated administration.

BY ALESIA BANI For The Temple News Earlier this month, students at Temple University made university history by electing BecomingTU — an all-women campaign — as the 2019-20 Temple Student Government.

“Why do I need a white male to speak for a Black woman when there’s a Black woman who can speak for herself?” asked Calyx Clarkson, a senior theater major and BecomingTU’s director of operations.

TSG has had a woman president in the past, including law and business alumna Nadine Mompremier in 200809 and early education alumna Natalie Ramos-Castillo in 2010-11. But this will be the first time the top-three spots are led by all women.

On Temple’s administrative level, current president Richard Englert and nine of the university’s former 10 presidents have been men. Ann Weaver Hart, who served from 2006-12, was Temple’s first and only woman president to date.

Out of the 14 deans that serve Temple’s 17 schools and colleges, only two deans are women — in the Tyler School of Art and the College of Public Health. Additionally, of the university’s 33 current trustees, only six are women.

“In order to uplift other women you need to be willing to make the jump,” said Katherine Desrochers, a junior political science and strategic communication major and BecomingTU’s director of communication. “Our campaign is a testament to that.”

The executive team-elect faced scrutiny during the campaign they believe their male counterparts would not have faced, Clarkson said.

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CLAUDIA SALVATO / FILE PHOTO Incoming TSG Vice President of services Laryssa Banks (left to right), President Francesca Capozzi and Vice President of external affairs Kaya Jones participate in the final TSG executive debate in the Student Center on April 1.

Several students approached campaign members to say their logo was “too cutesy,” its social media was “too girly” and its campaign video “looked like a sorority video,” said Marissa Martini, a senior secondary education and English major and BecomingTU’s chief strategist.

“There were a lot of things said to us that I don’t think would have been said to a campaign with men in it,” Martini added, “Even just one man.”

Clarkson believes the reason women aren’t participating at the same rate as men in politics is because of intimidation, she said.

Running for TSG as an all-women campaign was at times scary because the members had to be vulnerable to comments and criticism from outsiders, said Kaya Jones, a junior political science and journalism major and the vice pres-

ident-elect of external affairs for BecomingTU. “They thought their comments could break us down and that we weren’t strong enough to handle it,” Jones said. “[They thought] our emotions would get the best of us, as people think women’s emotions do, but we only took those in stride.”

“As an all-female campaign, we have to be flawless,” Desrochers said. “If we’re not, then they’re going to come at us 10 times harder. ...We definitely saw that.”

This sexism is apparent at every level of government. In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton was questioned about the impact her menstrual cycle would have on her leadership. A man from Pennsylvania questioned this in a letter to the editor of the Williamsport Sun-Gazette, New York Magazine’s The Cut reported.

Responding to these sorts of criticism or attacks can be difficult, Martini said.

“There’s no ‘sweet spot’ between being vulnerable and being tough,” Martini added. “You’re either too sweet, too lenient, too much of a pushover, or you’re too tough.”

Likewise, campaign members felt that some students doubted three women could represent the needs of students and were concerned people asked: “Do you think you can lead this school as three women?”

“The answer to that, every time, was ‘Yes,” said Francesca Capozzi, student body president-elect. alesiabani1@temple.edu

temple-news.com

SPORTS PAGE 21

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

TRACK & FIELD

Denmark native finds comfort in second season

After finding her place in the 1,500-meter race in four minutes, to achieve goals she sets for herself to be runner but having one year under her belt helped her see how good she can be,” America in her second year, her 20.29 seconds, breaking her previous more successful. personal best by eight seconds.

Gottlieb After achieving a personal record at Joyce said. “As a team, we get motivated performance has improved.

BY DONOVAN HUGEL Track and Field Beat Reporter Helene Gottlieb feels like she’s running with more confidence than she had last season.

The sophomore mid-distance runner, who is from Hoersholm, Denmark, struggled to get comfortable in her first year living in both a big city and America, she said.

Now in her second year, Gottlieb has adjusted and is beginning to reach her potential, cross country and track and field assistant coach James Snyder said.

“Everything was new,” Gottlieb said.

“I didn’t really know what was going on around me. I kind of just had the mindset that I was just going to do my best, and I was satisfied with that.”

Now, with this new-found confidence, Gottlieb is finding success on the track. Gottlieb last competed at the Raleigh Relays on March 29, where she ran CONTINUED FROM PAGE 24 STREAK

important. We decided to go for them and practice at 200 percent.”

Coach Steve Mauro hopes Temple’s recent success will give it momentum ahead of the conference championships held on Thursday to Sunday.

Temple started the streak by beating Hofstra University, 7-0, on March 21. The Owls earned conference wins against East Carolina and Tulsa in the fourth and sixth matches of the streak.

Tulsa (14-11, 2-3 The American) was ranked 47th in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings at the time of its match with Temple on April 7.

“Tulsa is always a top team in the country every year,” Mauro said. “To go on the road and be able to beat Tulsa was a huge accomplishment for our team. @TTN_Sports @TheTempleNews

won the 800 at the Charlotte 49er Classic on March 16 with a time of 2:08.51.

At the American Athletic Conference indoor championships in February, Gottlieb had two top-three finishes. In the mile race, she placed in third with a time of 4:51.38 and earned a second-place finish by running the 800-meter race in 2:08.39 minutes.

Snyder believes most of her success has stemmed from her just being more comfortable in Philadelphia.

“Having that chance to move through her freshman year and gain the experience necessary made it a lot easier for her this year,” Snyder added. “Nothing’s brand new anymore. She’s familiar with Philadelphia. She’s familiar with the trails where we train. She’s just in a more comfortable situation overall.”

Gottlieb was complacent when it came to her performance last season, she said. She thinks she could have pushed herself harder to earn better results.

This season, Gottlieb made it a priority

her last meet, Gottlieb wants to set a personal record in the 800-meter race and earn a medal at the American Athletic Conference outdoor championship on May 10 to May 12, she said.

At the beginning of her freshman year, Gottlieb wasn’t running as fast as she wanted to during the cross country season, she said. But as winter and spring track approached, Gottlieb improved and eventually posted a school record in the 800-meter dash at the outdoor conference championships in May 2018.

Gottlieb credited her teammates and the coaching staff for sticking by her and helping to guide her through her ups and downs last year.

Michelle Joyce, a sophomore distance runner and Gottlieb’s roommate, has had a big impact on Gottlieb’s adjustment, Snyder said.

The two helped one another adjust to college their freshman year and quickly became friends, Joyce said. “[Gottlieb] has always been a great

by our teammates’ success. We want everyone to do good so we push and motivate each other every day in training. To see her running like this now motivates everyone.”

Junior mid-distance runner Millie Howard, who is from England, also helped Gottlieb last year by sharing similar experiences from her first year in America, Gottlieb said.

“We’re very supportive of each other in general on our team,” Gottlieb added. “[Howard] was really good at teaching me everything that she had experienced during her freshman year and helped guide me for the future. We also just really push each other and celebrate each other’s success.”

Gottlieb will run in the Larry Ellis Invitational in Princeton, New Jersey, on Saturday before competing in the Penn Relays on April 25 to 27.

We know if we can beat Tulsa, we can compete with anyone in the country.”

Winning the doubles point has been key during the winning streak, Caceres Casas said. After their loss to Penn, the Owls stressed the importance of the doubles point, which they lost against Penn.

Temple has only lost one doubles point since the Penn match. In their match against Tulsa, the Owls won the doubles point, which was the deciding factor in a 4-3 win.

Caceres Casas and sophomore Mark Wallner are ranked No. 71 in the ITA’s top-90 doubles pairs released on April 9. Caceres Casas and Wallner are 15-3 and have lost only once since the Penn match.

Senior Uladzimir Dorash and junior Paolo Cucalon also have double-digit wins. Dorash and Cucalon are 12-3 and

have not lost since the Penn match.

“We’re winning way more doubles points this year,” Wallner said. “That’s what makes the biggest difference because you can see how many matches we lost 4-3 and how many we won 4-3. It was always the doubles point that was deciding.”

The Owls’ other conference win came against Connecticut, 7-0, on March 9. Temple’s only conference loss came against Memphis (11-12, 2-4 The American). The Owls lost to Memphis, 5-2, but Caceres Casas and junior Francisco Bohorquez did not compete in the match.

Temple could have been undefeated in conference play if its full roster was healthy against Memphis, Mauro said.

“It was unfortunate we lost to Memphis,” Mauro said. “Memphis is also a very good team. If we had [Caceres Ca-

sas and Bohorquez], we might have been able to beat them.”

The Owls could face nationally ranked competition during the conference tournament, which is played in Lake Nona, Florida.

The American has three top-50 teams — No. 32 Central Florida, No. 42 Tulane and No. 44 South Florida.

Though The American has multiple ranked teams, Mauro believes the Owls’ win streak will help the team get a favorable seeding in the conference tournament.

“The conference is very strong,” Mauro said. “It’s one of the top conferences in the country. I’m really happy with the guys’ effort. Hopefully, we can keep the momentum going.”

donovan.hugel@temple.edu @donohugel

alex.mcginley@temple.edu @mcginley_alex

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SPORTS PAGE 23

TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

FOOTBALL

Dual-threat quarterback impresses new coach Coach Rod Carey has not said who will be the Owls’ qurterback next year, leaving room for change in the position.

BY SAM NEUMANN Co-Sports Editor Despite leading Temple University football to 7-3 record in 10 starts last season, Anthony Russo isn’t guaranteed to be the Owls’ starting quarterback this year.

Russo, a redshirt junior, practiced as a first-stringer during spring camp, which ended with Saturday’s Cherry and White Fan Fest.

But first-year coach Rod Carey has not yet named him the starter because redshirt-sophomore quarterback Todd Centeio impressed him during spring practices.

“Right now, Russo has earned the extra reps,” Carey said on Saturday. “But that doesn’t mean in no way shape or form that [Centeio] can’t change that narrative through his play.”

Centeio offers versatility as a mobile quarterback. Last season, under former coach Geoff Collins, he had 82 yards rushing and one rushing touchdown on 20 carries. Collins and former offensive coordinator Dave Patenaude used Centeio in trick plays and special offensive packages to give him playing time last year.

Last season, Centeio played in 12 games and completed 12-of-18 passing attempts for 149 yards and two touchdowns. His longest passing attempt of the season was on a fake punt 36-yard touchdown to redshirt-junior wide receiver Freddie Johnson in a win against the University of Maryland on Sept. 15, 2018.

Centeio, however, has been working on his pocket passing this spring to be more well-rounded. Centeio received extra snaps during the scrimmage portion of Saturday’s practice after Russo left with a right thumb injury. He com@TTN_Sports @TheTempleNews

COLLEEN CLAGGETT / THE TEMPLE NEWS Redshirt-sophomore quarterback Todd Centeio throws a pass during Temple’s Cherry and White Fan Fest at the Temple Sports Complex on Saturday.

pleted throws from both inside and outside the pocket while showcasing his ability to make plays on the run.

This spring, Centeio has more power behind his throws, especially on the run, redshirt-junior tight end Kenny Yeboah said.

On Saturday, Centeio scrambled to his right and delivered a strong throw to Yeboah along the sideline during the Owls’ 11-on-11 practice session.

“Since I got here, I’ve proved people wrong,” Centeio said. “I don’t feel I am just a runner. I feel I have that perfect blend of throwing and running.”

The Owls’ coaches are pleased with Centeio’s development after his performance in spring practices, Carey said.

Centeio took time to adjust to the new playbook and practice style.

Everything started to click for him about a two weeks ago, he said after the Owls’ practice on April 9.

“I feel like I broke through maybe a week ago and everything feels even [better] and I am out there making plays, having fun and doing what I do,” Centeio said.

“It’s a confidence thing, just having confidence knowing that I can actually be explosive and make a bunch of plays,” Centeio added.

Both Centeio and Russo improved their play throughout spring practices, Carey said. Carey noted Russo has earned first-string reps this spring for amassing 2,563 passing yards and 14 passing touchdowns last season, but he believes Centeio is making “great strides” “I like the way the quarterbacks have progressed,” Carey added. “They’ve really made jump, really [Centeio] and Russo. I think there’s good quarterback play going on there.”

While Centeio’s athletic ability gives the Owls the ability to utilize him at sev-

eral positions, quarterbacks coach Craig Harmon has explicitly said that Centeio is a quarterback.

“Obviously [Centeio] has a dynamic where he can run the ball,” Harmon said.

“But he is a quarterback.”

It is too early to determine if Carey and Temple’s coaches will design plays specifically meant for Centeio, Harmon said.

Yeboah likes how Centeio and Russo are able to complement one another with their playing styles.

“I love seeing [Centeio] running around out there, throwing the ball,” Yeboah said. “It’s just nice to see him and Russo. They’re both different playing styles, so it’s definitely nice to have two different quarterbacks with two different playing styles.” sam.neumann@temple.edu @SamNeu_

sports@temple-news.com

SPORTS TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2019

PAGE 24

MEN’S TENNIS

TEAM MEETING SPARKS

WINNING STREAK

The Owls have won eight straight matches with one to go before the conference tournament.

BY ALEX McGINLEY For The Temple News

A

fter Temple University men’s tennis lost to Penn on March 17, the players had a meeting. Even though the Owls lost only, 4-3, the players still felt it was necessary to regroup.

The players believed they should have beaten Penn. As they reflected on their loss, they set a challenge for themselves: work harder to make sure they win close matches against conference

opponents.

Since the meeting, the Owls (13-6, 3-1 American Athletic Conference) have won eight consecutive matches. Temple could enter this week’s conference tournament on a nine-match win streak if it beats Eastern Florida State College on Tuesday.

“We decided to change our mentality and the attitude in practice,” senior Alberto Caceres Casas said. “Since that day, victories came.”

“The attitude was really good,” Caceres Casas added. “We just needed to work harder because it was a close match. We knew that we would have two conference matches that were more

STREAK | PAGE 21

DYLAN LONG / THE TEMPLE NEWS Junior Paolo Cucalon celebrates during Temple’s 7-0 win against Lehigh University on March 24 at the Student Pavilion.

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