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THE KNOX STUDENT

Cover by Addison Steinbach

Nightlife at Knox College

The Reality of Racial Diversity at Knox

Health Start-Up Offers Unique Medical Opportunities Abroad

Title IX at Knox: A Brief History

“Abolition for All Time” Humanities Lab Will Be

Inaugurated On Knox College’s Campus

Alum-owned Minecraft server looking for a fresh start

Gizmo Fish and Chips Review

Comics

Photos

Staff

Playlist The Knox Student Spring 2023 1

Nightlife at Knox College

by Savannah Butcher (she/her) Staff Writer

Nightlife. Maybe it’s the reason you went to college. Maybe it’s something that terrifies you. Maybe you party every weekend and reading this formally written article makes you cringe. Whatever mindset you are bringing into this piece, there is no doubt nightlife is an integral part of Knox College.

Enrollment was 1,095 at the beginning of fall term 2022. Emily DiBenedetto, a 2022 Knox graduate, reflects on Knox’s small size affecting nightlife.

“In bigger schools, people are going out every single weekend and you can always find a group to go with. This is not the case at Knox,” DiBenedetto said. “Sometimes there is just a dead weekend, which is so bonkers to me because I feel like at other colleges there is always going to be a place to go. Sometimes you have to suck it up and stay home unless you want to go drink by yourself.”

DiBenedetto is a former member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority on campus. Although the student population is relatively small, there are numerous Greek Life chapters active at Knox. Knox College Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) is comprised of

Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) is comprised of four sororities and five fraternities.

“Greek Life [at Knox] is not as big as other schools and I think FSL having an overbearing presence on campus sometimes contributes to drinking culture because there is a drinking culture within Greek Life in general in this country,” said DiBenedetto, “Even though we clearly have a big drinking culture and there are problems with FSL that need to be solved [immediately], I think not having an overbearing FSL presence causes Knox to not have a crazy binge drinking culture.”

DiBenedetto spoke about her experience with drinking less as a member of the sorority than before they joined.

“I think I drank more before I joined Pi Phi than after. Before joining I drank every single weekend; I got so drunk all the time,” DiBenedetto said. “Once I joined I didn’t party as much as I used to because I was trying to focus on my grades. Instead of going out partying I would hang out with my sisters and have a movie night.”

Photo by Addison Steinbach

On the other hand, The Interfraternity Council (IFC) of Knox College has been under scrutiny recently following a controversial registered party near the end of winter term 2023.

The registered party, titled ‘Delusions,’ was held on March 3, 2023 at Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE). At the party, a wall of messages from an anonymous social media platform ‘YikYak’ were featured, and included sexual assault alligations against TKE members along with general slander against the fraternity. There were allegedly high schoolers, alcohol, and a fight at the ‘Delusions’ party.

The new president of TKE, sophomore Dakota Robinson, reported that TKE cannot host people for now, as they are on probation.

“The Interfraternity Council (IFC) of Knox College is now really looking for ways to improve the safety and coordination of the parties thrown on campus,” Robinson said. “There’s a good chance they could have a representative to be at a party as a person people could go up to if they don’t feel like going up to specific fraternity members.”

Robinson reported a number of targeted acts towards TKE members committed at night since the protests, including two of his friends’ cars being keyed and TKE’s house being egged multiple times.

When asked about his current nightlife, Robinson said he spends many nights in meetings with FSL advisors.

“We just transferred positions and I’ve been picking up the slack as president [of TKE]. [As for] our own lives at night, we just really chilled out a lot. I’ve been trying to find ways to take accountability. I spend a lot of my nights meeting with advisors, getting advice on how I should run things, improving ourselves and the organization,” Robinson said.

With controversy surrounding FSL on campus –specifically TKE – some students feel the need for other campus organizations to fill the gap and host nighttime events. Some students are looking to cultural houses on campus to lead this movement. Junior Alyssa Stringer notes that she has been to parties at cultural houses attended by FSL members that have been positive experiences.

“I was at a party at a cultural house that happened very shortly after the [TKE] protests where a group of [Phi Gamma Deltas] walked in and everyone was looking around suspiciously. The people who lived in the house pulled them aside and gave them the run down on [house expectations]. They were fine, and it was a good time,” Stringer said.

This harmony between Knox fraternities and nonfraternity participants is not a given. DiBenedetto said they have some friends that, “will walk out of bars if they see a big group of TKE boys because they don’t want to be around them with low inhibitions.”

Stringer feels that since the frats slowed down in the nightlife scene there is a deficit of hosts for Knox nightlife, and is hopeful change is underway.

“I know some of the cultural theme houses have some plans for big parties at the end of this term, I’m hoping that they fill the gap on campus. I’ve never been to a party at a cultural house and felt icked out like I have at some other places,” Stringer said. “I think it’s because they really do care and they keep an eye on people who are there.”

Stringer, Robinson, and DiBenedetto all cited Cherry Street Brewing Company (Cherry) in Galesburg as one of the most prominent off-campus nightlife scenes. Cherry– only a four minute walk from campus– is located on the same block as three other bars, The Bar 65, Monkey Business, and Duffy’s. The Vault– a six minute walk from campus– was also mentioned.

“I started going out to the bars in Galesburg after COVID. Since a lot of people turned 21 over COVID, once places started to open up people started to go to the bars more and Cherry Street got bonkers. It was insane, especially after the mask mandates [were] lifted.” DiBenedetto said.

Cherry appears to have gained its popularity with Knox’s student body with its accessible location, ease of entry, and fun atmosphere.

“People go to Cherry all the time and it’s really easy to sneak in, or at least it used to be,” DiBenedetto said. “Now they have security in the front and back entrances so there aren’t as many underclassmen as there were when I was an underclassmen.”

Despite the prices being steep for some Knox students, Cherry has attracted many night owls from the college.

“The music: mid, the drinks: too expensive for where we are, but am I still going to go and spend $30? Yes, I am,” DiBenedetto said.

Of course, partying off campus presents its own set of safety concerns.

“[Safety in Galesburg] is a little questionable sometimes. The “Townies”—a nickname for Galesburg residents—are a little questionable too, I saw someone scream at a car the other day,” Robinson said.

For some members of marginalized groups, leaving campus can be especially nerve-racking.

“I think that often straight Knox students feel more comfortable going out and partying at night in spaces that are just filled with other Knox students, especially bars at night.” DiBenedetto said.

DiBenedetto believes that Knox’s queer community members face their own set of challenges when seeking safe nightlife events.

“Sometimes [Galesburg is] just not a place where queer people feel safe to go out and party and be in an intoxicated state,” DiBenedetto said. “I know many queer students who wouldn’t be caught dead going out and partying because they just don’t feel safe…I think that if you’re already a marginalized person being drunk in public is scary.”

“I do miss the off campus parties. There were some really fun ones last year. I don’t love the dynamic of only going to parties if you know someone that invited you,” Stringer said.

DiBenedetto also mentions the plethora of choices available to Knox students at night that don’t involve substances.

“There is a sober nightlife available to [Knox students]. I think that we are really lucky that there are a lot of groups that meet at night and there’s things that UB does like Casino Night in Taylor Lounge,” DiBenedetto said, “There’s a lot of fun shit to do at night that doesn’t involve substances which I think is really cool. Even as someone who loves to party, I will sometimes choose to not go out and to go to someone’s play or concert.”

Stringer believes Knox is in a period of transition from a pre-COVID identity described as quirky, doit-yourself oriented, and an organization that didn’t lean into frats and athletics as much.

“I think Knox is in an era of finding herself again. A lot of the people that were here pre-COVID are gone or leaving and the upperclassmen are people who came in during COVID and only know of preCOVID Knox through stories or visits,” Stringer said. “Knox had a very solidified identity and now we’re getting a bunch of different people all at once which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but it feels a little discontinuous from the idea I had of Knox prior to COVID versus the fresh meat coming in.”

Photo by Addison Steinbach

The Reality of Racial Diversity at Knox Are Students of Color Thriving?

by Areesha Saif (she/her) Staff Writer

Students of color at Knox such as sophomore Precious Odejimi, are determined to continue to advocate for themselves and make sure their voices are heard.

“We are here to stay,” Oedjimi said, referring to the March 6th protest, which allowed for conversations surrounding race relations at Knox College to resurface as students of color stepped forward to highlight how conversations around sexual assault are incomplete without discussing how racial identities impact victims of sexual assault on campus.

Up to 80 students collectively stormed the faculty meeting going on in Alumni Hall to protest the prevalence of sexual assault culture at Knox. The conversation then expanded to address the intersection of race and nationality, which impacts many survivors of sexual assault and students at Knox. Knox prides itself as “one of the 50 most diverse campuses in America,” as 33% of students at Knox are people of color or people with diverse racial backgrounds and 19% of students are international students, according to the official website. The protest led some students of color to question whether the college truly supported the experiences of students with diverse racial backgrounds.

“I talked about sexual assault. That was the first thing that came out of my mouth. But I have to talk about my blackness too. ABLE (Allied Blacks for Liberty and Equality) was dealing with our own personal things a weekend before and we never got people standing up and going to campus life for us. At Knox when talking about sexual assault the perpetrator is likely to be white and male. Why is it that in the Title IX Office we don’t have anyone of color? How much more comfortable would I feel to

report my sexual assault if I had someone look like me?” President of ABLE and senior Isaiah Simon, said.

Simon spoke in reference to the weekend of February 25th when a Campus Safety officer allegedly stormed ABLE house at 12:30 a.m to shut down the Mardi Gras party which was held to commemorate Black History Month, due to noise complaints. When students reminded him that the registered party was meant to be shut down at 1 a.m, he left. He returned a short while later pointing flashlights at the students and allegedly threatening to call ‘COP’.

“In terms of the party, we are seeking justice. Investigations are being made around Campus Safety as well as why we were shut down and why certain groups have more privilege in getting things approved and not being shut down, as compared to other groups,” Simon said.

“I talked about sexual assault. That was the first thing that came out of my mouth. But I have to talk about my blackness too.

Some students such as Odejimi and student from Ghana sophomore Agnes Azalimah felt that events such as those that transpired at the ABLE party were a part of a larger problem of lack of support for students from diverse backgrounds. They felt that lack of inclusion of students of color, especially from African countries, has been evident even before the incident at ABLE, and is

manifested in their daily experiences.

Students like Odejimi, who is an international student from Nigeria, said she felt that Knox used African students as “diversity pawns,” during Black History Month, by posting about ABLE and

Harambee on their Instagram, but not directing resources to support these clubs.

“Diversity means many things, and diversity in one direction is not diversity,” Odejimi said.

Azalimah discussed how the International Fair (I-Fair), the annual week-long series of events to commemorate international students and their culture, drew her to come to Knox. However, she recalled being disappointed when she realized that I-fair was not open to including all communities.

“Knox’s idea is I-Fair, waving flags, showing a big community of different flags. The thing is that there is no inclusion at Knox. We have maybe 50+ flags but are we really inclusive? Part of that includes having more people who look like us. You would have to work harder for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) if you don’t recruit more people. They do not come to African countries to attract African students to Knox,” Azalimah said.

Simon, Odejimi and Azalimah all said they felt that inclusion can be brought about by supporting cultural clubs on campus, who strengthen the voices of people of color and allow them spaces to express their identities safely and comfortably. Being leaders and members of cultural clubs, they feel that not enough resources are being directed towards empowering these spaces led by students of color. Students such as Simon also said they felt that the lack of support for their diverse identities fundamentally threatened Knox’s values of diversity, equity and inclusion for these students of color.

“We students have to ask where is our money going to. We have to ask that question. If cultural clubs are maintaining students, creating safety, creating space for DEI, then my question is why isn’t our money going to these cultural houses?” Simon said.

Simon, Odejimi and Azalimah said they felt that cultural clubs are particularly important to fund because they are important to foster the community of culturally and racially diverse students, who do not have similar spaces elsewhere on campus.

“Cultural clubs open up the avenue to have uncomfortable conversations, but people don’t want to feel that so they don’t show up. ABLE,

Agnes Azalimah and Precious Odejimi at I-Fair. Photo Courtesy

Movimiento Estudiantil Chicanx de Aztlan (MECHA), Lo Nuestro, and Harambee show up for each other,” said Odejimi.

Cultural clubs have been particularly important for students of color because they have allowed them to form communities that help them navigate their unique identities, and advocate for themselves. Senior Manny Pino Oviedo emphasized on how the community of people of color show up for each other.

“Me and Isaiah have been here for a while and community has a generational impact. I have all these experiences: I’ve been a part of this and that and what are pieces of information or traditions that I can pass down and model the moment when the time calls for it.” Oviedo said, referring to a photo of theirs with Simon and junior Valeria Aguilar, from the protest of March 6th.

At the protest, Simon, Oviedo, Aguilar, Odejimi and Azalimah all showed up to express their discontent at the culture of sexual assault, but they felt the conversation was incomplete without talking about how their race and intersectional identities influenced their experiences. However, as they entered the faculty meeting, several of them felt discomfort and noticed microaggressions that further uncovered deep-rooted systemic issues such as institutional racism.

“Something that enraged me passionately was when Isaiah and Manny went to the faculty meeting at Trustees for the protest, they were asked what they were doing there as if they didn’t belong there,” Aguilar said.

Simon reported feeling like some voices were being heard more than others, which proved to Simon that the needs of POC are not prioritized the way

Isaiah Simon, Valeria Aguilar and Manny Pino Oviedo at the March 6th protest. Photo by TKS Staff

they should be, especially because POC have to navigate the burden of racism alone, when cultural clubs are not being adequately funded.

“I watched (people’s) body language change. I do feel like certain voices, when we talk about the nuance of racism and race, white voices were heard more than POC’s. When my white peers would talk at a higher octave, it wouldn’t be seen as aggressive, but when I did that it was like I was trying to endanger someone,” Simon added.

Even within a space such as the protest where students of color came out to advocate for themselves, Odejimi, Simon, Aguilar and Pino Oviedo all reported facing microaggressions, which made them feel unheard in comparison to their white peers.

“I was called another black girl’s name, but didn’t correct at the moment as we were trying to present a united front,” Odejimi said.

Nevertheless, the protest offered some hope to students of color that real change can transpire. Students such as Oviedo looked positively at the impact it generated and the ways in which it empowered students of color to express their issues out loud before the administration. Despite the progress, some students of color such as Oedjimi feel that there is still little action being taken to address their concerns and provide support along the true lines of Knox’s values of diversity.

“I am a realistic person. How can I feel hopeful if someone on my floor has confederate flags in their room? If people are not willing to change their POV, it feels like throwing out noise into an empty space.” Odejimi said, when asked about her hopes regarding the future of students of color on campus.

The lack of hope reflects the burden of being a person of color who is involved in activism on campus. But even beyond Knox’s campus, Simon was positive that Simon’s actions were motivating black people to be hopeful of the future and feel seen in Galesburg.

“There was a student in Galesburg and he told me, ‘I love when I see you walk on campus,’ and I was like why, and he was like, ‘you’re actually showing me that I can go to college and be happy.’ He can have joy. He can enter white spaces and be happy,” Simon said, when talking about the importance of directing joy at creating change.

“I am a realistic person. How can I feel hopeful if someone on my floor has confederate flags in their room? If people are not willing to change their POV, it feels like throwing out noise into an empty space.”

Many students of color at Knox all feel the need for their voices to be heard and for the community to unite to unlearn its biases so it can create a healthy and welcoming culture that is true to the meaning of DEI.

“Knox is an institution of learning, it should also be an institution of unlearning. Actively listen and then work to change. You shouldn’t be ashamed of learning new things. Everyone is born racist because of the world we are born in,” Aguilar said.

Health Start-Up Offers Unique Medical Opportunities Abroad

Knox Student Shadows Doctors in Italy

by Yuchen Wang (he/him) Staff Writer

Doctors in Italy is a health start-up launched by Bocconi University, one of the most prestigious economics universities in Europe. Its mission is to internationalize health care, making it more accessible through technology and more multicultural through education. In line with its mission, the Doctors in Italy fellowship program was launched in 2018.

The program aims to provide future medical professionals with international experiences and help them to prepare for their future careers in a world that has become increasingly borderless. Students will complete rotations at different hospitals tailored to specific specializations. The fellowship also immerses students in Italian culture by providing field trips to different cities.

Senior Maureen Schmid took advantage of this opportunity by participating in the shadowing program of the start-up. She had heard about this project from the pre-health advisor.

“I wanted to be a doctor, and I wanted to study abroad. But it has never worked out because of my pre-med schedule, and I didn’t want to take a term off and be away from my friends. So this program fits perfectly with my goals,” Schmid said.

The program takes about three weeks, with Monday to Thursday filled with eight hours of shadowing. For Schmid’s program, they spent two weeks at a hospital in Milan, and a week in a clinic. Specialties were rotated every two days, and Schmid was able to gain insights into a wide variety of fields, including Cardiology, OBGYN, and

Logo of the Doctors in Italy Fellowship Program

Cardiac-Rehabilitation. Fridays were usually filled with recreational activities, such as field trips and group dinners.

Schmid outlined a few challenges she had to confront.

“There was obviously a language barrier. Some doctors spoke broken English, while others spoke none. So they have to communicate to us through nurses who did. Also shopping in Italy was hard because a lot of them didn’t speak English.” Schmid said.

But according to Schmid, not all the differences in shadowing were negative.

“I was able to be more hands-on than my experiences of shadowing in the US. They were much more open to letting us watch surgery. The patients were very welcoming, and asked a lot of questions and were excited to have us there,” Schmid said.

It was among these differences that Schmid found the highlight of this experience.

“My favorite part was when we were in Neonatal and OB GYN. I got to see fifteen c-sections in total, and stayed a total of an extra six hours just to see it. My most favorite part was when a doctor handed a baby that just came out to me. I was the second person to hold it in the world.” Schmid said.

When asked to recap her experience, Schmid was excited to share her praises for this lifechanging project. Most importantly, she wanted to advise other Knox students who are interested in shadowing to do the same.

“Definitely apply to this program. The application was easy and the interview was welcoming. Before this, I was never abroad. So I learned a lot of independence and about myself. It made me even more sure that medicine is what I want to do.”

Schmid in front of the Colosseum. Photo Courtesy Schmid holding a baby that has just been born. Photo Courtesy

Title IX At Knox: A Brief History

A series of investigative articles into the history of Title IX at Knox College

by Jenna Schweikert (she/they) Section Editor

In 2014 alone, Knox College ranked fourth in the nation for reports of rape on campus. According to the Annual Security Report, there were 10 cases per 1,000 students. The Annual Security report is mandated by the U.S. Department of Education for the strengthening of campus safety.

In the first article of this series, we briefly covered some notable Title IX history at Knox College and reviewed the processes for resolving intimate violence under Title IX. While recent events on campus have revived the conversation about sexual assault on campus, the question of how prevalent assault is remains.

A Brief History

Knox College has a history of various issues with Title IX and sexual assault, beginning in 2008 and continuing throughthe present year.

In the spring of 2008, Students Against Sexism in Society submitted a paper titled “Grievances and Demands in Regards to Sexual assault on Campus” to the college administration. The paper lists a number of demands that the submitting members felt would improve safety and awareness of sexual assault.

One member, Megan Gamble ‘08, wrote her senior research project on the Grievance Procedures (GP)

Photo by Addison Steinbach

at Knox and her proposed amendments to the grievance process.

The grievance procedures, which were not fully revised until 2015, involved a grievance panel to investigate allegations of discrimination and harassment, including sexual harassment and sexual misconduct. This grievance panel used a trial-like process to evaluate such cases.

“A few years ago [SASS] formed a subcommittee to reevaluate the GP and determine what we thought needed to be changed about to processes,” Gamble said in the history section of the paper. “Our group felt the same way that I feel now—the GP needs to change.”

Despite this, the grievance panel process remained through the 2012-2013 academic year.

In the 2013-2014 academic year, students spoke out continually about sexual assault and the Title IX process.

In November 2013, at the end of the fall term, five sexual assaults and one attempted sexual assault were reported to Knox.

Two of the reported sexual assaults occurred before the start of the 2013-2014 academic year, when they were reported. The earliest reportedly occurred in November of 2010, and the attempted sexual assault occurred in October 2012.

In April of 2014, president of the college at the time, Teresa Amott, emailed the campus to notify students that the U.S Dept. of Education Office of Civil Rights had opened an investigation into Knox College in response to an allegation of sexual discrimination regarding a complaint of sexual misconduct in the fall of 2013.

In May of 2015 the student whose complaint was being investigated was quoted under a pseudonym in a TKS article. In the article, she said she was hurt more by the grievance process than her accuser, in which the school neglected to follow up and receive her statement after she came forward, and instead wrote up a statement for her that she found incomplete.

Knox was among 55 other colleges being investigated for Title IX violations at the time.

Several years later, in 2020, the @anontestimonies Instagram account, which has since been removed, spread the stories of survivors of sexual assault at Knox, and resulted in a lengthy controversy surrounding the fraternity Sigma Chi. The fraternity, despite recommendations from several working groups of students to disband, has since recruited new members in the 2023 formal recruitment cycle.

Controversy arose again in 2023 after a Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE) party, titled “Delusions,” featured a wall of YikYaks, many of which referenced the accusations of sexual assault against several TKE members.

In response, students staged a protest, which interrupted the monthly faculty meeting for students to voice their concerns and opposition to the lack of response from administration.

According to the most recent Annual Security Report, which reviews 2019 through 2021, there were 4 reported cases of rape in 2019, 4 in 2020, and 1 in 2021. Of these reported offenses, only some occurred in student housing: all 4 in 2019, 2 in 2020, but none in 2021.

In 2019, almost one in four undergraduate women experienced sexual assault or sexual misconduct at 33 major universities. Although Knox has a smaller student population than those universities, it is no exception to these statistics.

If you or someone you know is a survivor of sexual assault, you can reach out for assistance. Knox College Counseling Services is available at 309341-7492. If you feel that you have been mistreated during your Title IX process, students are allowed to file a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights.

“Abolition for All Time” Humanities Lab Will Be Inaugurated On Knox College’s Campus

by Julia Maron (she/her) Staff Writer

Knox College will gain a new humanities laboratory that will benefit research acknowledging past issues and promoting a better future.

In January 2022, Knox College was awarded the Abolition for All Time grant from the Andrew Mellon Foundation to support the establishment of the new “Abolition for All Time” Humanities Lab on campus.

The project, which will be located on the first floor of the Seymour Library, includes the involvement of Provost and Dean of the College Michael A. Schneider, Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs Danielle S. Fatkin, and the Digital Humanities Postdoctoral Fellow Jennifer Andrella. The plan for the lab’s reform on its physical space includes bringing in digital scanners, televisions and a 3D printer in order to make the humanities more digital, technological and creative.

According to its website, Knox College “Abolition for All Time” Humanities Lab, the lab has the goal of providing student researchers the opportunity to step forward against social injustice. In the lab, students will be examining the theme of “abolition,” involving both the past legacy and concern for the future of the College.

“The goal is for this space to be able to host entire classes and teams that are part of the lab to do a variety of creative and innovative projects. So I would say the goals of the lab are that all of the

teams and faculty, along with students working with the lab, are exploring more deeply this concept of abolition, both as it relates to the college’s founding by abolitionists and what that means today,” Andrella said.

The lab already has ongoing projects developed with the classes Spanish 220, Anthropology and Sociology 276, Environmental Studies 101 and Educational Studies 315/316. In SPAN220, or Spanish for Healthcare, instructed by Dr. Robin Ragan, students are developing a digital mapping project that is charting a variety of farms, clinics and other agricultural companies across the Midwest that make use of migrant labor for profit.

The working conditions of these places are being investigated for violations or citations, which, Andrella said, are “the real issues surrounding migrant labor in those places.”

In ANSO 276, taught by Jonah Rubin, students are building data visualizations based on statistics exploring human rights and humanitarianism and placing them on the platform Microsoft Sway, with the goal of making the information into an accessible public format.

In Environmental Studies 101, instructed by Katherine A. Adelsberger, students are creating projects regarding studies of lead exposures as an environmental health hazard. From that data the participants are creating maps and charts in order

order to better visualize the impact of lead poisoning and/or exposure on people’s health.

In Educational Studies 315/316, or Teaching Science/ Social Studies in Elementary School, taught by Jennifer McCarthy Foubert, students are building a collaborative class website that showcases digital versions of journey boxes. The idea is to allow younger students to investigate the historical objects inside the boxes and answer a discussion question that comes along each item.

“You know, history and social studies education is kind of under threat right now in many places throughout the United States. So having a space that can be a resource for teachers and accessible by anyone just brings a lot of value to that project,” Andrella said.

Each of the four classes has a research assistant to support the projects. First-year Kyra Kellogg, the research assistant for the Elementary Social Studies class, spoke about her role and experiences and mentioned a new project being developed by the lab assistants.

“I went in last Friday to do a workshop with them on how to build WordPress websites and just kind of being that connection between the lab and the classes we’re working with. I would like to mention that right now, the lab assistants are doing a research project on Knox’s founding and the role of religion in our identity as an abolitionist institution,” said Kellogg.

As for the future of Knox, Kellogg speculates that professors who like to give creative projects instead of traditional assignments may benefit from the humanities lab’s resources.

“A lot of professors in the past few years have been moving away from traditional essay assignments more to Unassays or any sort of creative project, and the Abolition Lab is a really cool resource for doing any type of more creative digital humanities work,” Kellogg said.

Every term, the projects created by the students will be posted by Andrella under the Lab Projects page on the website. Andrella also announced that once some projects are complete, a project launch event will be held in the laboratory’s physical space and will be open to all students on campus.

“And so part of launching a project and making it go public. Sometimes the classes have what’s called a project launch event, and sometimes we have those events in the lab. (...) So in a project launch event, the students are gathered around at each TV screen and they give just like little lightning talk presentations about the work that they did all term,” Andrella said. “It’s open to anybody on campus, so anybody can stop in during the event and see all of the hard work that the students did.”

The humanities lab has plans to be inaugurated within Fall 2023. In the meantime, Andrella encourages students to reach out to discuss ideas or digital projects:

“My door is always open and I’m always available by email (jandrella@knox.edu). My office is up on the second floor. I also hang out in the lab space a lot. So if students have ideas or they just want to talk through things, whether that’s related to abolition or related to digital projects, I am always available for those conversations and showing everyone, students and faculty, what’s out there and helping them make their project come to life.”

Alum-owned Minecraft server looking for a fresh start

An exploration of the history and potential future of Knoxcraft. Current

and

past players discuss their experience with the Minecraft server spanning from 2019 to today.

by Ro Ivaniszek (they/them) Section Editor

Have you heard of Knoxcraft? If you are an underclassman, the answer is probably no. The popularity of this Knox-based Minecraft server has dwindled over the years. The current owner, alum Maggie Garrett (‘22), is worried that the cost of running the server is not justified by the current user base.

“I would love someone else to take it on at this point. If anyone is interested in that, please let me know,” Garrett said in a voice call through Discord.

Garrett is not the original owner of Knoxcraft. The server has a surprisingly rich history. Noam Florsheim started the server in 2018. They discussed their experience via Discord messages:

“I started a server with just my [Living-Learning Community] suite, and decided to open it up to the school at large to make more friends. If I was gonna be paying for server hosting, might as well get the most players out of it. I was in printmaking and graphic design classes and had a lot of fun postering for it. It was wild how many people showed up when I did,” Florsheim said.

It was at this time that Garrett joined the server. By the end of freshman year, they ended up taking ownership of the server address.

“By spring, Minecraft sort of took over my life,” Florsheim said. “Academia was a struggle, a sort of chicken-egg situation. I ended up dropping out at the end of freshman year, but love that Knoxcraft lives on.”

A town on the current server. Image courtesy of user sundragonra.

While Florsheim moved on, running the server became a great leadership opportunity for Garrett. They made decisions regarding server management, plug-ins and moderation. They built upon the community started by Florsheim and created a warm and welcoming environment for other players.

“We’ve had some very minor issues with spam, but people are very compliant working with me to get rid of the problems, [we] solve everything pretty quickly,” Garrett said.

Junior Abigail King is a casual player on the server. She met with me in the Gizmo to discuss her experiences.

“It’s a very collective server. One of the first things we did [after the last server reset] was we found a village right by spawn, and everything that everyone built was very much for the community,” King said. Another server player is alum Iris Berto (‘22). They are a close friend of Garrett, and have been involved with the server since 2020. They are representative of a number of alumni who have stayed engaged with the server since their graduations.

“I got onto Knoxcraft during quaran-term, when we were all at home,” Berto said. “I’m not really a gamer. But hey, ‘all my friends are there and they’re having adventures and they’re hanging out and we’re all quarantined’, so it’s a good way to do stuff with your friends.”

Even the original creator of the server occasionally returns to his old stomping grounds. “‘l’ll pop on every couple months or so to see what people have made,” Florsheim said.

Despite the current players, and remaining alumni, the average usage on the server is pretty low. According to Garrett, the peak was 30 players at the birthday party they threw on the server. Those who are involved in the server, however, have plenty of fun with each other.

Garrett recounted the last moments of the server before it was reset to a new seed:

“Five minutes before the reset, I gave everyone god mode. You could see everyone in the server immediately levitating into the air, which was extremely beautiful. And then, it was like pure Hellfire raining down. Complete destruction of all the structures, TNT everywhere. Ridiculous lag.”

Having built up such a wonderful community, Garrett and the other players only hope that the server can continue to survive, and perhaps have a resurgence of interest. Garrett hopes to either pass off management of the server to someone else, or at least curate a large enough player-base to make the cost worth it. They currently pay approximately $100 every six months to keep it running.

They have other ideas for the future of the server, too:

“I also know that within the CS department, some professors are aware of the server’s existence. I think it’d be really cool to have it be a part of studies in some way, like an opportunity for exploring how online gameplay works. I would love to see it integrated with academics more at Knox.”

The server is completely open to the public at knoxcraft.serverminer.com

A build on the server. Image Courtesy of user sundragonra. Final moments before a server reset. Image Courtesy of Maggie Garrett.

Gizmo Fish and Chips Review

What Should Good Fish Smell Like?

by Areesha Saif (she/her) Staff Writer

If I could smell the food I wanted to order before I ordered it, I would have been saved.

On March 30th, the Student Senate announced the introduction of two new menu items at the Gizmo: fish and chips and grilled cheese.

I only eat Halal food, and fish is almost always Halal. Therefore, I have tried my fair share of fish in Galesburg, such as the fish sandwiches at Culvers, McDonalds, Masa, and 156 East Bar and Grill. Currently, I can only eat two of the menu items at the Gizmo: a decent halal chicken sandwich or a dry beef burger. I was excited when I heard that they were introducing one of my favorite dishes. I was initially disappointed because it came without a sauce, as fish and chips usually come with a tartar sauce that complements the different flavors and textures of the dish. However, I satisfied myself by grabbing enough ranch to hopefully still enjoy one

enjoy one of my favorite meals. At my first bite, I liked the crispy skin, which I felt was well seasoned. To my surprise, there was a pungent smell coming from the fish, which repulsed me and made me unable to finish the whole fish. Though I tried to force myself to not waste it. The fish itself also tasted as if it was old, which is difficult to explain, but has a rather foul taste.

I have heard from some of my friends that seafood is meant to be a little smelly and perhaps I am just a picky eater. However, I believe I have tried enough fish and chips to know what is good and what is unpleasant. My experiences with fish at the Caf in the past have not been pleasant either. The fish tastes old at times and other times tastes fine but leaves me with a very angry stomach. Perhaps you would have to try the fish and chips for yourself to decide if it’s my taste buds at fault or Bon Appetit just needs to get better and fresher fish.