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Vol. XCIV No. 18

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A student voice of Saint Louis University since 1919

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Solemn gathering in memory of the slain By SARAH MALLICK Staff Writer Three Muslim-American students at UNC-Chapel Hill were killed execution style, in their apartment complex, on Feb. 11. Neighbor Craig Hicks shot the students over an argument that police reports and media say stemmed from a parking dispute, but others are calling it a hate crime. There is speculation that the three victims were targeted because of their appearance and religion. Deah Barakat and Yusor and Razan Abu-Salha have been described as compassionate, beautiful, and brilliant people. Barakat was a second-year dental student at UNC-Chapel Hill, who formed a non-profit; Project Refugee Smiles is dedicated to providing dental care to Syrian refugees and their children. He helped raise money to aid those most in need and fixed their smiles. Thanks to his efforts, those children will have a better quality of life. Yusor Abu-Salha married Barakat in December, and planned to study dentistry at UNC. Her sister, Razan Abu-Salha, was a creative artist who majored in architecture and environmental design. They were both honor students and dedicated to community service. See “Vigil” on Page 4

Ryan Quinn / Photo Editor

Invisible Boyfriend, Girlfriend: The SLU origins of popular apps By TIM WILHELM News Editor

For Tyler Sondag, a marketing strategist in the John Cook School of Business’s Center for Entrepreneurship, an invisible creation has reaped very visible rewards and visible amounts of attention. The “Invisible Boyfriend” and “Invisible Girlfriend” apps, which he developed with a team during St. Louis Startup Weekend in 2013, have garnered significant media attention since their inception. During Startup Weekend, ideas are pitched Friday night and teams are formed; participants work all day Saturday developing their ideas, and present them on Sunday. First, second and third place winners are then announced. Invisible Girlfriend came in first place at the 2013 Startup Weekend. Widespread media coverage ensued, with articles in St. Louis Business Journal, Riverfront Times, TIME and Mashable. Sondag woke up one morning to see his face on the front page of Buzzfeed. Comedy Central, NPR, Queen Latifah and Conan O’Brien also featured the app team. Only two weeks prior to speaking to the UNews, the team appeared on “The Today Show”. The apps allow users to choose the appearance, name, age, hometown and personality of their invisible boyfriend or girlfriend. Sondag initially entered the world of apps while still studying at SLU. “My freshman year I got the nickname “So Much Swag” on Facebook and…six and a half years later, that’s still my middle name [on Facebook].

Around sophomore year people started asking me how much “swag” I had, because people started knowing me by this nickname, and I couldn’t find a way to tell them how much “swag” I had. Then people started answering for me and saying ‘so much.’ And I said, well, there’s got to be a way that you can quantify how much “swag” somebody has—and I was joking, of course—but I came up with this idea at the time. It’s when the iPhone was just becoming popular, [and] when Twitter started to become pretty successful, and you had apps…I mean, everybody was doing apps at the time. Apps were very trendy, apps were very hot, and I started pitching this idea. That’s one of the fundamental pieces of entrepreneurship: if you have an idea, you start telling people about it, and that’s exactly what I did. Eventually I pitched to the right person, and the right person ended up giving me the money I needed to start the company. So I did an app called “Swagulator”…it calculated how much “swag” you had based on how you answered questions. That was really what got my foot in the door, especially in the tech world.” From this beginning, Sondag embarked on a study of what he calls the “ecosystem” of entrepreneurship. “I love solving problems, and I love solving quirky, goofy things,” he said. “And that’s exactly what “Invisible Girlfriend” is, you know? Not everybody uses it, not every-

See “App” on Page 4

Provost search continues By KATHERINE KELLIHER Associate Arts Editor

An open forum for the third provost candidate, Darrell Radson, Ph.D., was held in the BSC on Tuesday, Feb. 17. Members of the Saint Louis University community including faculty, students and staff questioned Radson on a variety of topics, including diversity, adjunct faculty and strategic planning. Radson began the forum with a general overview of his past experience, credentials and vision for the provost position. If accepted, he plans to establish a solid culture of lay leadership. He placed a strong emphasis on the importance of developing a community of ideas. That, he said, is the only way

innovation is going to happen. Radson quickly summed up SLU’s current status: “New president. New spirit. New outlook.” He described the position of provost as a type of leadership position responsible for the growth of the people, as well as the community. A heavy emphasis on establishing a culture of trust was mentioned throughout his speech. Radson earned his Ph.D. in Industrial and Operations Engineering from the University of Michigan. He stated that knowledge in industrial engineering helped him observe how things can improve. He is familiar with the importance of a Jesuit education. He previously worked as associate dean at

John Carroll University, a Jesuit institution in Cleveland, Ohio. It was in that position with a Jesuit institution when he realized his admiration for building a community of ideas and support. Radson acknowledged that he is proud of his experience with a wide variety of institutions – large, small, private, public – and as a variety of position – faculty member, associate dean and dean. “I think it is important for a provost to understand the challenges of all positions,” Radson said. Radson also made a connection between his experience as a business dean and how that training can contribute to a provost position. With a desire to establish more multidisciplinary

and collaborative programs throughout SLU, Radson described his appreciation for project-based learning opportunities and how they are important for students. Specific to his plans for interacting with SLU students, if elected as provost, he hopes to establish student advisory committees and work in relation with the Student Government Association. Radson spent the remaining time of the forum answering various questions. One question asked for Radson’s view on how to ensure diversity amongst staff and the student body. He responded that studies show

See “Provost” on Page 4

Ryan Quinn / Photo Editor

Open forum: Darrell Radson is the third in a series of visiting candidates for the position of provost.


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