The Tufts Daily - September 26, 2017

Tufts cross country puts up mixed results at Purple Valley Invitational see SPORTS / BACK

TUFTS SQUASH

New coach Joe Raho brings player-focused approach

No flash, no problem see ARTS&LIVING / PAGE 3

SEE SPORTS / BACK PAGE

THE

VOLUME LXXIV, ISSUE 13

INDEPENDENT

STUDENT

N E W S PA P E R

OF

TUFTS

UNIVERSITY

E S T. 1 9 8 0

T HE T UFTS DAILY tuftsdaily.com

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.

Julián Cancino hired as new Latino Center director

by Minna Trinh

Assistant News Editor

ETHAN CHAN / THE TUFTS DAILY ARCHIVES

Tufts Latino and LGBT Centers celebrate the start of Latino Heritage Month with hispanic cuisine and festivities on Oct. 7, 2013.

Tufts has hired Julián Cancino as the next Latino Center director. Cancino began his role at Tufts on Sept. 12.

The hiring concludes a summer-long, nationwide search to replace former Latino Center Director Rubén Stern, according to Dean of Student Affairs Mary Pat McMahon.

Stern retired from the center in July after 24 years at Tufts.

Cancino emphasized that he hopes to make the Latino Center a space on campus for students with multiple, overlapping identities.

“I want the center to be a home away from home — a safe space for the Latino, Latina and Latinx community,” Cancino said. “I want to bring an intersectional approach to race, to ethnicity, nationality and sexual orientation, and gender to student services at Tufts.”

McMahon said that Cancino is able to handle the unique demands of the Latino Center director role.

“One of the responsibilities in the center director position is to think about programs and [student involvement]. We also need leadership presence in the space … Julián clearly has that ability,” McMahon said.

Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences James Glaser and Dean of the School of Engineering Jianmin Qu explained the hiring process in a Sept. 13 letter to the editor.

“Over the summer, a search committee conducted a thorough national search to identify the most talented and committed candidates for this important leadership role; Latino Center peer leaders and two Group of Six directors sat on the committee itself,” they wrote.

“Of the 74 candidates who applied, eight had phone interviews with the see CANCINO, page 2

Applejam deals with repercussions of curfew infraction

EVAN SAYLES / THE TUFTS DAILY ARCHIVES

Applejam Productions, a student group that works to bring live musical acts to campus, ran into trouble with TUPD when their March 31 Mykki Blanco concert ran over time. Pictured: A member of the post-wave band Future Punx.

by Natasha Mayor News Editor

Applejam Productions, a student group that works to bring live musical acts to campus, has had to deal with increased administrative oversight since their March 31 Mykki Blanco concert ran over time, according to current President of Applejam Katyla Malison.

The Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) entered the Crane Room, the show’s venue, after the concert extended past its midnight curfew.

Upon entering, TUPD discovered the event

Please recycle this newspaper

Partly Cloudy 83 / 64

/thetuftsdaily

was over capacity and found alcohol present, according to Director of the Office for Campus Life Joe Golia.

“We got no noise complaints or anything,” Malison, a senior, said. “[TUPD] came in because we had been in the Crane Room past curfew, and they shut down the set.” She noted the event ran over curfew because Blanco arrived late due to unforeseen delays.

After the incident, Golia said Applejam leadership met with the Office for Campus Life and Judicial Affairs. Applejam was required to have a police detail for Spring

For breaking news, our content archive and exclusive content, visit tuftsdaily.com @tuftsdaily

tuftsdaily

tuftsdaily

Thing, their last show of the year, which cost the group $300, Malison said.

Malison said Applejam was also required to submit a risk management plan to Director of Community Standards Kevin Kraft.

Golia said after the Mykki Blanco incident, shows have gone better for Applejam.

“Everything went fine for that show, and then they were told that coming back, starting this year, they would have to regroup and look into things like capacity and making sure there was no alcohol at the show,” he said. “At the first show, they were required to have a TUPD officer, but at no cost to them.”

Applejam held a concert on Sept. 9 in the Crane Room. Golia added he was optimistic about lifting the sanctions on Applejam in the near future.

“As long as they’re abiding by the guidelines, we’re suggesting that they don’t need a TUPD officer regularly,” he said.

Golia said there have been a smattering of similar incidents with Applejam throughout the years he has been at Tufts, but he has not had to deal with any major infractions in recent history.

Malison lamented the fact that Applejam does not have a suitable space in which to host events. Malison said the actual capacity of the Crane Room is unclear, and even at its highest potential capacity, is not large enough to accommodate the crowds shows usually draw.

“There are two placards in the Crane Room: one that says it has a capacity of 75, one that says it has a capacity of 90, and when I contacted the fire marshal

Contact Us P.O. Box 53018, Medford, MA 02155 617 627 3090 FAX 617 627 3910 daily@tuftsdaily.com

and he did the calculations, he said the capacity is actually 49 people,” she said.

Golia said he has suggested venues such as Barnum 008 and Hotung Café for Applejam use, but the group has not felt that those spaces would be appropriate for their needs.

“I know they don’t want to be in a classroom,” Golia said. “They’re looking for that quiet, out of the way, darker space. I get that, but we have what we have.”

Malison argued that in comparison to parties hosted at fraternities, Applejam events are tame and more heavily sanctioned.

“Applejam shows seem to me like really safe spaces,” Malison said. “ The main focus of the event is not drinking. It’s listening to music and people sharing art, so we’re pretty disappointed in the way that it’s been.”

Malison added that no one has required medical treatment or ambulance transportation from an Applejam event.

Lucy Maguire, interim vice president of Applejam, said the group’s concerts offer a unique social experience.

“It offers a safe space for students to listen to music and not the mainstream path of what is typical at Tufts,” Maguire, a sophomore, said.

Malison said she hopes that the disciplinary sanctions will not distract from Applejam’s goal, which is to bring small bands to Tufts, and consequently support artists trying to find success in the music industry.

“I really hope all the stuff that’s going on isn’t going to stop Applejam from being what it has always been, which is an alternative space where people can share really great music,” Malison said.

NEWS............................................1 ARTS & LIVING.......................3 COMICS.......................................5

OPINION.....................................6 SPORTS............................ BACK

2

THE TUFTS DAILY | News | Tuesday, September 26, 2017

THE TUFTS DAILY Gil Jacobson Editor-in-Chief

EDITORIAL Eddie Samuels Joe Walsh Managing Editors Zachary Hertz Catherine Perloff Ariel Barbieri-Aghib Emily Burke Aneurin Canham-Clyne Daniel Caron Melissa Kain Anar Kansara Robert Katz Arin Kerstein Liam Knox Sophie Lehrenbaum Elie Levine Natasha Mayor Jesse Najarro Daniel Nelson Seohyun Shim Emma Steiner Hannah Uebele Juliana Furgala Minna Trinh Simran Lala Nina Joung Costa Angelakis Emma Damokosh Elie Levine Jessie Newman Sean Ong Emma Rosenthal Grace Yuh Michael Shames Fina Short Hermes Suen Cassidy Olsen John Gallagher Alison Epstein Justin Krakoff Libby Langsner Setenay Mufti Eran Sabaner Antonio Bertolino Tommy Gillespie Jack Ronan Arman Smigielski Maria Fong Shannon Geary Lydia Ra Rebecca Tang Miranda Chavez Hannah Kahn Sarah Nechamkin Madeleine Schwartz Maddie Payne Yuan Jun Chee Liam Finnegan Phillip Goldberg Savannah Mastrangelo Brad Schussel Sam Weidner Sam Weitzman Caleb Symons Liam Knox Angelie Xiong Ray Bernoff Lilia Kang Ben Kim Rachael Meyer Vintus Okwonko Zachary Sebek Alexis Serino Seohyun Shim Sitong Zhang Ana Sophia Acosta Olivia Ireland Rifat Ralfi Salhon Ezgi Yazici

Associate Editor Executive News Editor News Editors

Assistant News Editors Executive Features Editor Features Editors

Cancino hopes to empower students as new Latino Center director CANCINO

continued from page 1 search committee. Four were then offered campus visits, and two of these candidates elected to come to campus for a full day interview process.”

Cancino said he was an undocumented student during his college career, and this experience can inform his role as Latino Center director, especially as students protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) programs currently face an uncertain future.

“Being undocumented is an identity and an experience that has shaped the way I see the world. When you have nothing left, opportunities open up,” Cancino said. “If DACA is taken away,

[we will still] have ourselves, our community and our allies.”

K. Martinez, the director of the Women’s Center, sat on the search committee involved with Cancino’s hiring and said Cancino’s background will make him a particularly useful resource to students.

“I feel like Cancino is very committed to getting to know students… he can be someone [the students] can talk to,” they said. “He brings a lot of energy and perspectives … he doesn’t come from a higher end background … [so] he will bring his authenticity to this work.”

Cancino said one of his goals is to empower students to create change.

“I want to hear from the students … at the same time, I want to give a sense of

direction to the students to make change through leadership,” he said.

McMahon said Cancino was distinguished by his leadership style.

“One of the things that stood out … was his tremendous ability to work collaboratively with student leaders, with change makers and campus planners, and to just think about ways to pull enough Latinx students and ways to introduce dialogue and support in their circle,” she said.

McMahon also emphasized that while the search committee spoke with many qualified candidates, Cancino was a great fit for the position.

“I feel that we are very, very fortunate to have [Cancino] come to Tufts.

We had extraordinary candidates in this process,” she said.

Executive Arts Editor Arts Editors

Department of Community Health launches Alumni Mentorship Program

Assistant Arts Editors

by Daniel Weinstein

Assistant Features Editors

Executive Opinion Editor Cartoonists

Editorialists

Executive Sports Editor Sports Editors

Assistant Sports Editor Investigative Editor Executive Photo Editor Staff Photographers

Executive Video Editor Staff Videographers

PRODUCTION Evan Sayles

Production Director Ellah Nzikoba Alice Yoon Betty Cao Connor Dale Julie Doten Kenia French Maygen Kerner Madison Lewis Clair Li Nasrin Lin Olivia Markowitz Aidan Menchaca Isabella Montoya Julie Murray Steven Schwab Seohyun Shim Emily Thompson Sebastian Torrente Astrid Weng Ezgi Yazici Astrid Weng Peter Lam Allie Merolla Rifat Ralfi Salhon Belinda Xian Mary Carroll Liora Silkes Norrie Beach Caroline Bollinger Alison Epstein Madhulika Gupta Anna Hirshman Tess Jacobson Melissa Kain Sophie Lehrenbaum David Levitsky Katie Martensen Ali Mintz Jack Ronan Arielle Sigel Netai Schwartz Alexis Serino Anahita Sethi Nihaal Shah Seohyun Shim Hannah Wells Jiayu Xu Vanessa Zighelboim Deepanshu Utkarsh Rachael Meyer Alexis Serino Asli Akova Anna Hirshman Mitch Navetta Seohyun Shim Ercan Sen Sitong Echo Zhang

tuftsdaily.com

Executive Layout Editors Layout Editors

Executive Graphics Editor Graphics Editors

Executive Copy Editors

Contributing Writer

The Department of Community Health is launching the Community Health Alumni Mentorship Program (CHAMP) this semester, a new initiative that will match current undergraduate juniors and seniors with community health alumni, according to Department of Community Health Chair Jennifer Allen and Department Administrator Yolanta Kovalko.

Students will be matched with alumni mentors in their respective fields for two to six hours per month over a 7-month period, Allen and Kovalko said.

The job of mentors is to ensure that their mentees set development goals, build the confidence to reach those goals and expand their networks, according to a program document. In addition, the program will invite expert speakers to help further guide mentees.

Allen and Kovalko are actively working to get the program on its feet.

Although CHAMP seeks to help guide current undergraduates, it was alumni interest that inspired the program, Allen said.

“It’s part of our overall effort to reconnect our alumni, for it’s been incredible how many have reached out to us,” Allen said.

Out of the over 1,200 alumni that the department reached out to, 130 offered to participate, Kovalko said. Despite 100 of those alumni being non-local, the CHAMP program is determined to connect students with them regardless of distance, she added.

“We have so many who want to mentor and we don’t want to lose them. We would be so happy to have their expertise and gifts, and we’re using other strategies such as online platforms to make sure they connect with students even if they’re not local,” Allen said.

ANGELIE XIONG / THE TUFTS DAILY

Students take notes during the opening symposium at the Human Health Hack on Feb. 5, 2016. The Department of Community Health is launching a new mentorship initiative this year that will match current undergraduate juniors and seniors with community health alumni.

Allen said while the program is current“Mentors get a lot more out of it than ly unfunded, the department hopes to find mentees. I recommend that, at one point sources of investment in the future. in their lives, everyone should be a menOlivia Schultes, a senior majoring in tor,” Kovalko said. community health, said the unique, interThe vision for the CHAMP prodisciplinary nature of the community health gram taps in on a new trend in educaprogram results in dedicated alumni. tion, Kovalko said.

“People who do community health “It’s interesting that maybe five or six years are typically very passionate about it, ago the buzzword was ‘network.’ But today, I possibly because of the interdisciplinary think the buzzword is ‘mentor,’” she said nature of the department,” Schultes said.

The CHAMP program comes as the “As such, alumni are really into being community health department is growalumni from the program. It makes total ing, Allen said. sense that they would mentor, and I think “We’re growing by leaps and bounds,” it will be a very positive and informative she said. “There’s an incredible student experience.” demand, we’ve been hiring new faculAllen and Kovalko said alumni may benefit ty, we’re expanding our research; it’s an more from the program than students. incredibly exciting time.”

Copy Editors

POLICE BRIEFS: WEEK OF 9/26

Executive Online Editor Executive Social Media Editors Social Media Editors

Assistant Social Media Editors

BUSINESS

Rayane Haddar

Executive Business Director Hannah Wells Receivables Manager

No roast for the wicked On Sept. 18 at 11:51 a.m., the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) received a report of a fire alarm at the ATO of Massachusetts house (134 Professors Row). TUPD and the Somerville Fire Department arrived at the scene and discovered overcooked food in the microwave. The Somerville Fire Department cleared the scene and reset the alarm.

At 7:18 p.m. that night, another fire alarm went off in the Hillside Apartments again because of burnt food. TUPD officers and Medford Fire Department responded.

TUPD officers arrived at Hallowell Hall with the Medford Fire Department

after a fire alarm went off at 6:55 a.m. on Sept. 23. When the TUPD officers asked the students in the area what had happened they were told that no one knew why the suite filled with smoke. After checking the area, TUPD found a frying pan on the stove. It was put in the sink and the alarm reset. The area also had to be vented because of the large amount of smoke in the suite. No one admitted to burning the food.

Rhymes with orange (doorhinge) On Sept. 20 someone scratched the name “Trump” on a dorm room door in Houston Hall. A student reported the damage to TUPD on Sept. 22 at 1:35

p.m. TUPD officers contacted facilities to fix the door and remove the name. The Office of Residential Life and Learning and the Office of Equal Opportunity were also informed of the incident.

Money walks A student reported on Sept. 23 at 3:12 p.m. that their wallet was missing and had likely been stolen. The student did not know where the wallet was taken but had discovered its absence on Friday after attending multiple classes in different buildings throughout the week. The wallet has not yet been found.

by Juliana Furgala

ARTS&LIVING

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

‘The Great Glaspy’ wows at The Sinclair

Dialing into mental health with music

by Ryan Eggers

Contributing Writer

H JARED ROSEN / THE TUFTS DAILY

Riding off the waves of her debut success “Emotions and Math” (2016), Margaret Glaspy and her three-piece band rocked The Sinclair in Cambridge last Thursday. play when hearing her softly express how she is “a little rock on a big mountain” during her performance of “Somebody to Anybody” (2016) with no backing instrumentation. But of course, when it was time to be a badass, Glaspy didn’t shy away from shredding her guitar and jamming along with her bassist and drummer, which was always met with happy applause.

Twice throughout the night, she took the mic to speak rather than sing. The first time, she gave a monologue of love and caring to the victims of the recent tragedies involving the hurricanes that have devastated the Caribbean and some parts of the Americas.

She proudly noted that $1 out of each ticket sold for the show will be donated directly to the Center for Disaster Philanthropy.

The second monologue was much more lighthearted, as she reminisced on the songs she was forced to listen to because of her sister in their shared room growing up. She noted artists and groups such as Lauryn Hill, No

Doubt, Beck and Weezer as formative in her childhood musical experience. While mentioning Weezer, she made sure to emphasize that she was a “Pinkerton” (1996) girl, before surprising the crowd with a cover of “Across the Sea” from the classic album.

She spent some time towards the end of the show playing some new songs, presumably from an upcoming project. The songs, while fresh and original, definitely maintained the “Glaspy” feel to them, and the crowd was just as engaged as they were with songs they knew every note of.

To finish off the night, Glaspy spent some time with just her guitar, serenading the crowd sans her backing band. With her final bow, the crowd was satisfied with a show that displayed the best elements of rock, folk and indie from all of its performers. Glaspy has since embarked on the rest of her fall tour, but given this wave of success she has been riding on, she’ll probably find her way back to the Massachusetts Bay very soon.

TUFTS LIVING

Five places on campus for Instagram-worthy portraits

by Seohyun Shim News Editor

Whether it’s for your LinkedIn profile to land a job or your Tinder profile to score a match, you always need some versatile portraits on hand. For those looking for cool backgrounds for their headshots, here is a list of five places that will provide an interesting look and color to boost your chance of getting that Instagram-worthy photo.

Academic Quad The Academic Quad provides multiple structures and buildings you can use. For starters, definitely take a photograph with the Jumbo statue as you should have when you first arrived on campus. After that, you can get some classic shots with a brick wall backdrop at pretty much any building on the Academic Quad. If you want something different in terms of color, try taking one in front of Barnum Hall. Its gray wall will bring your photograph a sense of calm, mature confidence.

President’s Lawn The President’s Lawn is full of opportunities when it comes to portrait shooting. Stand in front of Ballou Hall, lean against its pillar or sit with your friends on the lawn for that BFF group shot. You can also choose to sit on

tuftsdaily.com

Nikki Margaretos Is This Thing On?

CONCERT REVIEW

Riding off the waves of her debut success “Emotions and Math” (2016), Margaret Glaspy and her three-piece band rocked The Sinclair in Cambridge last Thursday, packed from the floor to the mezzanine with fans of the indiefolk songwriter. Within her set, which lasted about an hour and a half, she ventured into the popular and obscure off her latest album while experimenting with some new material and sprinkling in some covers as well.

It would be remiss to go without mentioning the sounds that filled the venue before her appearance on stage. Sidney Gish, a local talent currently studying at Northeastern, made the crowd laugh and dance with her quirky lyrics about college life. With her fun guitar licks and strong vocals, she held the growing crowd’s attention throughout her opening performance. Soon after, Simon Okely, better known by his stage name Slow Dancer, enchanted The Sinclair with his smooth, groovy and soulful cuts from his two albums “Surrender” (2014) and “In a Mood” (2017).

He noted that this was his first time in Boston and was “falling in love” with the city in the few short hours he had been there.

At around 10:30 p.m., Glaspy took the warmed up stage and set it on fire, wasting no time before playing popular singles such as the eponymous “Emotions and Math” (2016).

Her voice, sometimes delivered softly and sweetly, and other times delivered with her famous raw rasp, was consistently met with high praise from the crowd. The cheers only got louder as the night went on.

While her voice is what captures the most immediate attention from the crowd, as the night went on she demonstrated an array of talents, a big one being her heartfelt and honest lyricism. Reading her powerful lines on the internet is always a good time, but there is another dynamic that comes into

3

SEOHYUN SHIM / THE TUFTS DAILY

First-year Jiyoon Chon poses for a portrait by Barnum Hall on Sept. 25. one of many benches on the lawn or stand next to a tree. If you are looking for something special for you and your loved one, then take a photo beneath Bowen gate, which will provide a setting for the perfect couple photo.

Tisch Library We’ve all been to the Tisch roof, and it is definitely somewhere all Jumbos stop by to

see how beautiful Boston is. Now it’s time to use the scenery to your advantage. Take a portrait using Boston or the large Tufts sign on the lower rooftop as a backdrop.

You could also enter the library for some pictures of you studying or walking through the bookshelves in the stacks. Alternatively, see PHOTOS, page 4

ey everyone! It’s only week four of the semester, but you may already be starting to feel overwhelmed — I know I am. In this vein, today’s topic is a little more solemn from a lesser known rapper, Logic. When I think of Logic, I associate him with the genre of hip hop that boys in my middle school would pirate off the internet. But recently, the Beverly Hills-based artist is making waves in the music industry. While you may not be familiar with him, you may have heard his song “1-800-273-8255” (2017), which features newcomers Alessia Cara and Khalid, on the radio this summer.

My first thought when reading the title on the Spotify charts was, “Wow, what a mouthful.” But a closer look at the song, which is titled after the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, identifies an artist taking a leap for pop music by taking on such a serious topic.

From a marketing perspective, the song appears to defy the more traditional rules of pop — it’s not an upbeat sing-along, the chorus doesn’t have defining or identifying lyrics and the title isn’t remotely easy to say. Despite this, “1-800-273-8255” scored the third spot on the latest Billboard Hot 100. So far, the track has racked up over 250 million plays on Spotify, which more than triples his second most popular song. All this exposure has lead to tangible results — after the all-star trio performed at the 2017 VMAs, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline reported a 50-percent increase in calls that night.

In an interview with Genius, a crowdsourced lyric annotation service, Logic explained the inspiration for 1-800-2738255. He recounts his experiences with fans who have found profound meaning in his work, proclaiming often that it has saved their lives. Inspired by his own struggle with anxiety, Logic’s latest album “Everybody” (2017), is intended for exactly that titular audience. After seeing that his music had inspired his fans to overcome their own obstacles, Logic decided to actively create music for his listeners.

To play devil’s advocate, I was initially a little turned off by the simplicity of his lyrics like, “I don’t wanna be alive,” and “You don’t gotta die.” I thought, isn’t this trivializing such a complex issue? As a Tufts student, I believe we have tremendous privilege to have a community that at least attempts to tackle these extremely mature conversations. But sometimes I think we need to take a step back and realize that for many, discussing topics of suicide and homosexuality might not be commonplace. Logic’s music video features the dynamic story of a teenager struggling to express his sexuality to his friends, coaches and family.

If you or someone you know is experiencing any mental hardship, no matter how small it may seem, the most important first step is to understand the resources and support that are available. Sometimes friends and family aren’t enough, so never be afraid to reach out for assistance. Tufts Counseling and Mental Health Services (CMHS) offers free counseling sessions for all undergraduate students. If you would prefer to seek alternative services, CMHS can help connect you with outside resources.

Nikki Margaretos is a senior majoring in economics. Nikki can be reached at nikoletta.margaretos@tufts.edu

4

THE TUFTS DAILY | Arts & Living | Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Kristen Moran Failing Big

tuftsdaily.com

Make your headshots shine on Tufts’ campus

Trust me, I’m a trustee (rep.)

L

ast week’s column ended on a high note, with hope for the future. As someone with nothing left to lose, putting myself out there can only set me up for success. My Year of Why Not is just beginning, and it’s already a rollercoaster.

After not being elected to Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate last semester, I was remiss to be burned again by the same organization, but, embracing the freedom I’ve found in failure, I decided to apply for the position of trustee representative. I downloaded the document, opened it and almost immediately closed it.

What experience had prepared me, a random 19-year-old, to offer my opinion on a board of billionaires? Why am I, a privileged white woman from Connecticut, qualified to represent the undergraduate student body of 5,508, coming from a plethora of backgrounds? It was overwhelming and intimidating and took me two days to complete. The hardest part, though, was the interview that followed. I had 15 minutes in front of the TCU Senate to convince them of something I wasn’t even sure of myself: that I was the best person for this position.

I spent the two hours before my interview rehearsing answers to possible questions in my mirror and jotting down disorganized notes; had my roommate walked in, I would have looked like a conspiracy theorist trying to prove that Kristen Moran is actually a well-rounded, educated student with a lot to offer.

Watching my reflection recall high school experiences with faculty in an attempt to show that I could interact with billionaires, I felt silly. Why was I applying for a position that I so obviously wouldn’t get? Wouldn’t it be better to not put myself in the inevitable path of rejection? I considered withdrawing my application three times in the hours leading up to the interview, but, embracing my new philosophy of Why Not, I never went through with it.

I arrived five minutes early as directed and stood by the steps outside Sophia Gordon Hall. I did the superhero pose from Grey’s Anatomy for 10 minutes. I was finally called in, and unfortunately I can’t tell you what happened. Not because I signed a non-disclosure agreement, but because I’m pretty sure I blacked out. The only clear memory I have is being asked about my experience with roadblocks and thinking “I’m literally writing a column about that,” though I did resist the urge to give myself a shoutout.

At 11:34 p.m. that night, I got an email: “Congratulations…” I didn’t finish reading. I had shacked up in my friends’ Wren suite so that I wouldn’t have to face the rejection alone, but instead I had a group of people to witness a display of excitement usually limited to cartoon characters.

For those reading this to hear about rejection, don’t worry. The next night, I went to bed with the words “Unfortunately, due to the large number of applicants…” echoing in my head, thanks to 180 Degrees Consulting.

Success isn’t binary; despite my TCU Senate achievement, I will continue to Fail Big, but maybe now I’ll have a community to help me through it.

Kristen Moran is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major. Kristen can be reached at kristen.moran@tufts.edu.

BEN KIM, SEOHYUN SHIM, RACHEL HARTMAN / THE TUFTS DAILY

Left to right: Cyrus Mahini, Kofi Asante and Khuyen Bui, the organizers of Voices on the Hill, pose for a photo on the President’s Lawn on April 24.

Sophomore Zeynep Lir poses for a portrait on the TIsch Library roof on Sept. 25.

Erin Kelly, new director for Peace and Justice Studies, poses for a portrait on Eaton marble steps on Sept. 25.

PHOTOS

continued from page 3 have someone stay on the roof and take a picture of you standing in front of the library entrance; if the timing is right, you will be able to capture an interesting image of your shadow stretching from your feet.

Eaton Hall/Memorial Steps Looking to get a professional portrait for your LinkedIn profile? Put on your business attire and try taking pictures on the marble steps. Find a spot in the center of the steps for symmetry, or lean against the pillar for a relaxed and nonchalant look. Are you done?

Of course not. Walk down to the Memorial Steps for some more shots

Aidekman Arts Center/ Granoff Music Center Aidekman Arts Center is generally well lit, so the area is relatively bright, even after sundown.

Indoors, get some photos of yourself browsing the art at the Koppelman ALEXIS SERINO / THE TUFTS DAILY Family Gallery or Sophomore Andres Almanza poses for a portrait in the Art Gallery use the interesting of the Aidekman Arts Center on Sept. 25. geometry of a cubist sculpture as a back-drop. If you’re someone shoot photographs of you a musician, walk into Granoff Music performing on the stage or rehearsing Center with your instrument and have in one of the practice rooms.

Hazard Mitigation Lunch Forum 12:15-1:15 PM Wednesday, September 27 Terrace Room, Paige Hall Pizza will be served.

Over the past several weeks, several institutions of higher education have been impacted by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. Come contribute to Tufts’ own plan to prepare for future disasters and adapt to the impacts of climate change. Learn about hazard mitigation strategies that have been identified to make each Tufts campus more resilient to disaster and provide input on how the university can best ensure its resilience in the years and decades to come.

þ~áÛ

What is hazard mitigation?

Hazard mitigation is defined as any sustained action taken to reduce or eliminate the long-term risk to life and property from hazard events. It is an on-going process that occurs before, during, and after disasters and serves to break the cycle of damage and repair in hazardous areas.

5

Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | Comics | THE TUFTS DAILY

tuftsdaily.com

Comics

LATE NIGHT AT THE DAILY Eddie: “I don’t usually get freaked out by food, but kombucha does it.”

Comics

SUDOKU

GARFIELD

BY JIM DAVIS

NON SEQUITUR

BY WILEY MILLER

Difficulty Level: Choosing the correct bottle of kombucha.

LINDA C. BLACK ASTROLOGY

Monday’s Solution

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

Watch your words. Maintain your own integrity. This is not a good time to learn things the hard way.

Sometimes silence is the best policy.

FOR RELEASE SEPTEMBER 26, 2017

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Sales pitch 6 Outback birds 10 Sunup 14 Café lure 15 Clickable webpage word 16 Home to billions 17 Grass shortener 18 Apart from that 19 Slightly wet 20 Julie Andrews’ “The Sound of Music” role 23 Risk, e.g.

24 Healthful berry 25 Jimmy Fallon hosts it 31 “Homeland” spy org.

32 Taxi 33 Nebraska city 34 “Apocalypse Now” setting, familiarly 35 Gathering for fans of graphic novels, anime, etc.

38 Delivery vehicle 39 Painting need 41 Microwave 42 Valuable rock 43 Avengers member with a patriotic shield 48 Tolstoy’s Karenina 49 Dutch cheese 50 9/26/1957 Broadway debut featuring the consecutive songs found at the start of 20Across, the middle of 25Across and the end of 43-Across 55 With 50-Down, tightrope walker’s place 56 Oscar winner Kazan 57 Aquafina rival 59 Craving 60 Accelerates, with “up” 61 Foolish 62 Military meal 63 Cafeteria carrier 64 V-formation fliers

By Peter Gordon

DOWN 1 “Casablanca” pianist 2 Formal school dance 3 Corn Belt state 4 Rise into view 5 Cattleman’s rope 6 Late morning hr.

7 Venus de __ 8 Disentangle 9 Quick drawing 10 Arp’s art movement 11 Right away, in a memo 12 Namby-pamby person 13 Midday snooze 21 Gas brand that had a torch in its logo 22 Florida’s Boca __ 25 Pageant winner’s crown 26 Exaggerate, as a stage role 27 Spanish island in the Mediterranean 28 Devastation that’s wreaked 29 Scarlett of Tara 30 Decrease in intensity

9/26/17

Monday’s Solution Monday’s Puzzle Solved

©2017 Tribune Content Agency, LLC

31 “Closing Bell” channel 35 Repetitive shout at a protest 36 Required little effort 37 Newspaper opinion pieces 40 Secret supplies 44 Add to text, as a missing letter 45 Carpenter, at times

9/26/17

46 Suitable for all ages, filmwise 47 Apple software for creating videos 50 See 55-Across 51 Omelet ingredients 52 Prima donna 53 Ready for picking 54 Toy dog’s barks 55 Play a kazoo 58 TV’s “Science Guy”

6 tuftsdaily.com

Opinion EDITORIAL

Bridging Differences fails to bridge the real gaps in the Tufts community This fall, the Office of the Provost launched the Bridging Differences Initiative, aimed to promote constructive dialogue within the Tufts community on a variety of difficult issues. “Many members of our community are effective at engaging across lines of difference, but we believe that all of us can do better,” University President Anthony Monaco and Provost and Senior Vice President David Harris wrote in an email announcing the launch of a task force of students, faculty and staff members dedicated to tackling political polarization on campus.

While the administration’s acknowledgment of campus division and the effort to combat it is commendable, Bridging Differences ultimately provides little opportunity for the real improvement of on-campus life for students.

Liberal arts college campuses are almost always hotbeds of liberal values.

Couple that with the fact that Tufts is located in the Greater Boston area, and it should be no surprise that the political climate on campus appears to lean heavily left. Existing student groups like CIVIC already work toward the goal of fostering more discourse among those with different ideologies, but are limited by a key issue; only those who see dialogue with the ‘other side’ as valuable are likely to show up to their meetings or have a dialogue with others in the first place.

While the problem of political division exists throughout the country right now, what is more immediately pressing for Tufts students is their dwindling sense of community. With the recent controversy surrounding Greek life and the exclusivity of on-campus groups like The Rez and Tufts Dance Collective, Tufts has become increasingly fragmented. Whereas bygone traditions like the Naked Quad Run brought students from across campus together, now more than ever, Tufts students need something to create a sense of campus-wide community. Instead of working toward political unity on campus, the administration would do better to help restore Tufts’ social unity. Importantly, by restoring social unity, healthier political discourse will follow.

While engaging across the political divide is undoubtedly important, if the administration wishes to fully tackle the increasing tribalism and polarization of U.S. democracy, it must also address its causes. As Bill Bishop argues in his landmark book “The Big Sort: Why the Clustering of Like-Minded America Is Tearing Us Apart” (2008), ideological clustering into like-minded communities has created greater polarization in America. Living in an ideologically homogenous community, he finds, leads to people becoming both more extreme and more certain in their

beliefs. This bigger cause of U.S. polarization is also reflected in the fragmentation of Tufts’ social scene.

This is where the administration can and should step in. Without a central space for nightlife on campus, the social scene is rife with cliques. With the lack of large on-campus events, it’s difficult for students to meet others with dissimilar views within a non-confrontational setting. It’s easy to curse out someone you don’t know over Facebook and much harder when you have a social connection with them. One recommendation we have is establishing an on-campus pub, as it once existed at Tufts. A shared nightlife space could bring together athletes, wilder-kids and activists alike.

The administration should also help by reinstating past events and traditions, or implementing new ones.

Though the administration has often responded to controversies surrounding events like Senior Pub Night by cancelling them altogether, it could instead work to run them in a more safe and controlled manner or create other events to fill the social vacuum caused by their absence.

There certainly are many differences on campus. But when we work to heal social divides, overcoming political differences will soon follow. This is the bridge we really need to cross.

CARTOON

by Rebecca Tang The Tufts Daily is a nonprofit, independent newspaper, published Monday through Friday during the academic year, and distributed free to the Tufts community.

The content of letters, advertisements, signed columns, cartoons and graphics does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Tufts Daily editorial board.

EDITORIALS Editorials represent the position of The Tufts Daily. Individual editors are not necessarily responsible for, or in agreement with, the policies and editorials of The Tufts Daily.

OP-EDS The Op-Ed section of The Tufts Daily, an open forum for campus editorial commentary, is printed Monday through Thursday. The Daily welcomes submissions from all members of the Tufts community; the opinions expressed in the Op-Ed section do not necessarily represent the opinions of the Daily itself.

Opinion articles on campus, national and international issues should be 600 to 1,200 words in length and submitted to opinion@tuftsdaily.com. The editors reserve the right to edit letters for clarity, space and length. All material is subject to editorial discretion and is not guaranteed to appear in the Daily. Authors must submit their telephone numbers and day-of availability for editing questions.

ADVERTISING All advertising copy is subject to the approval of the Editor-in-Chief, Executive Board and Executive Business Director.

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Shantel Bartolome and Conor Friedmann Bored & Confused

Where is Mike Pence?

S

ince Trump has become president, he has bombarded the American people with tweet after tweet, threatening everything from an end to hea lth care access to nuclear war.

Through all this, we have seen the rise and fall of Sean Spicer and our very own Anthony Scaramucci. We have seen the public humiliation of Senator Mitch McConnell and Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Even Reince Priebus has fallen, replaced by General John F. Kelly as White House Chief of Staff. The entirety of Trump’s White House has grown notorious. All, but Vice President Mike Pence.

Where has Mike Pence been? What has he been doing? Does he actually do anything?

Is he even the vice president? Harry Truman, the 34th vice president of the United States, once said, “Look at all the Vice Presidents in history. Where are they? They were about as useful as a cow’s fifth teat.” Let’s see if President Truman was right.

As the second most powerful person in the country, one would think it’d be difficult to disappear. Yet, Mike Pence has done just that. In May, he had lunch with Turkish President Erdogan. In July, while the Republican healthcare debacle unfolded, Pence held a listening session with small-business owners in Cleveland, Ohio. Otherwise, Pence has been absent from the public eye, and from potentially reputation-crushing actions. Through each of Trump’s gaffes, Pence has acted as if everything was normal. Through Charlottesville, North Korean exchanges and now the battle between Trump and the NFL, Pence has managed to remain blissfully and purposefully ignorant.

Doing so has allowed him to hold onto his reputation and become dissociated with the chaos in Trump’s White House.

In a turn of events this week, Mike Pence publicly appeared on Fox & Friends to talk about the Graham-Cassidy health care bill.

Pence explained he can’t guarantee anything. When asked whether the bill would cover pre-existing conditions, he responded, “Thomas Jefferson said ‘Government that governs least governs best…'” The question people ought to ask is: Who do you think will be more responsive to the health care needs in your community? Your governor and your state legislature or a congressman and a president in a far-off nation’s capital?” Pence promises nothing, deflecting responsibility of healthcare coverage to the states. Still, a public statement is a major step for Pence, even if his Thomas Jefferson quote is really from Henry David Thoreau.

Mike Pence exudes boring. He is the classic, old and white conservative dad from middle America. Through this lens, we discover that Pence may simply be doing what he does best: sitting in the background. Pete Seat, an official with the Indiana Republican Party, said, “[Pence] understands … his job is to be a loyal soldier.” Pence has remained loyal to Trump by neither opposing nor supporting his policies. Ultimately, complacency is the same as outright support.

Hopefully, Pence will rise to surpass the standard of being nobody. Or not. It probably doesn’t matter anyway.

Shantel Bartolome is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major. Shantel can be reached at natasha.bartolome@tufts. edu. Conor Friedmann is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major. Conor can be reached at conor.friedmann@tufts.edu.

Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | Sports | THE TUFTS DAILY

Sports

7

Jumbo squash looks to improve NESCAC ranking with new coach SQUASH

continued from back “I always thought I was going to play professional sports,” Raho said. “But as you get older and older and you realize that there are a ton of really good players and not just from the U.S., if you’re not in the top 100 or 200 players in the world you’re really not making it. But I always knew I loved playing and being around this sport.”

As a result, even during his time at culinary school, Raho was taking classes at night and coaching girls squash at Greenwich Academy.

After cooking for several years, Raho went to Brown and became the assistant squash coach for the university.

He credits his experience at Greenwich Academy as inspiring his full time move to coaching.

“The girls there were really talented and passionate,” he said. “And I had some really good coaches who really cared about me and squash, so passing on my knowledge to younger people got me excited.”

At Brown, Raho began to fine-tune his coaching skills.

“One year went by, then two, then three and you learn how to work better,” Raho said. “You learn how to run a drill more cleanly, about what each player specifically needs, whether you need to be harder on a player or give one more support… and once I was digging more and more into coaching I wanted more responsibility and that’s why I was so interested in taking this job.”

Both players and the administration seem extremely pleased with Raho’s arrival now that the selection process has concluded.

“I think we ended up choosing [Raho] because he was such a great squash player himself and he’s done a great job at Brown,” senior John Patrick said. “He seems really focused and has a good game plan for what he wants to get out of us individually and get out of the team.”

Sophomore Claire Davidson agreed with Patrick’s assessment.

“I think he’s just a nice, fresh face and a nice change for our program… we had a really good season last year and we’re really excited about having a new face leading us,” she said.

Even though he is not permitted by NCAA regulations to begin training with the

teams until Nov. 1, Raho has already thought of ways to get familiar with the Jumbos.

“The idea is to get on court with everyone individually at least once,” he said. “That one one-on-one is for them to say ‘this is what I’m struggling with,’ and I can say now I know your game really well because I’ll have spent two or three hours with you individually and we had team practice that night all together, too.”

Attention to detail and individualized care is a hallmark of Raho’s style.

“I’m trying to accentuate someone’s best characteristics,” Raho said. “I of course want to teach new things but let’s look at what you can do innately and make that cleaner and more efficient.”

This manner of coaching is exciting for the players as well.

“I know [Raho] has been meeting with all the new people and the returners talking about our goals for the year and what we each want to work on,” Patrick said. “He’s trying to get to know us better and I think he’s doing a good job.”

The personalized approach is also vital to players who might need advice during their future matches.

“I think it’s really important for a coach to know his players and he’s already set up days that he can play with each of us,” Davidson said. “If you don’t know your players individually I don’t think you can give them valuable advice during matches.”

The team’s goals for the season also align well with Raho’s plans.

“We want to increase our NESCAC ranking,” Patrick said. “Last year we started the season by upsetting Colby and it was a big deal, so it would be nice to finish ahead of Colby, Amherst and Wesleyan, three teams we’ve been close to in the past year.”

Raho echoed the sentiment.

“The goal overall is to compete fairly and compete with sportsmanship, but it would be really cool to beat Colby and Bowdoin and Amherst, very excellent, legitimate teams,” he said. “I would love for us to pick up a few more NESCAC wins and keep moving up the rankings gradually.”

In charge of both the women and men’s squads, coach Raho will have his hands full once squash season kicks into gear. No stranger to hard work or collegiate athletics, Raho seems well equipped to lead the Jumbos to new heights.

New runners demonstrate potential at Williams meet MEN'S & WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY

continued from back Junior Natalie Bettez led Tufts with a time of 22:43.1 to earn a seventh place overall finish. Bettez was followed by senior tri-captain Brittany Bowman, who was the 17th runner across the finish line with a time of 23:07.7.

The women’s team also saw great promise from their young runners, with first-years Carly Curcuru, Alexandra Wolf and Sara Mitchell all finishing among the Jumbos’ top 10. Curcuru

was the top first-year finisher with a time of 24:10.1 and a 49th-place overall finish.

“This was the first 6k race for all of the freshmen,” said Bowman. “As a freshman, it is nerve wracking to have your first 6k be at Williams — a hilly course — on a hot day with lots of competitive athletes. They all did a good job of working through that.”

The women’s mid-distance runners finished second of 27 teams in the five-kilometer race, losing only to

Williams. Sophomore Rhemi Toth was Tufts’ top runner in this event, finishing in a time of 21:07.6 to place 11th overall.

Members of the women’s team echoed similar frustration with the day’s conditions that the men’s team expressed.

“The conditions prevented us from doing our best. It was really hot and the fact that it was such a crowded race made it hard to get out there and do our best,” junior Livvy Barnett, who finished ninth for the Jumbos, said.

Barnett explained that the team has potential to be much more competitive in the coming races.

“Our place [seventh] does not reflect how deep our team is in my opinion,” Barnett said. “It was also our first [six-kilometer race] of the season, so it was tricky to work with that mentally especially with pacing and finishing the race.”

Both the men’s and women’s teams look to capitalize on the potential that they demonstrated this weekend in the upcoming All New England Championship on Oct. 7.

Sports

8 tuftsdaily.com

New coach Joe Raho brings new perspective to Tufts squash

by Ryan Albanesi

RACHAEL MEYER / THE TUFTS DAILY

Tufts’ new squash coach Joseph Raho poses for a portrait at the squash courts in the Steve Tisch Sports and Fitness Center on Sept. 25. there and I gained so much just from being there and being on that team.”

Out of college, Raho worked as a paralegal before his interest in cooking created another deviation in his life path.

“When I was a paralegal I couldn’t make myself a good meal, and I felt like maybe I was into cooking more than some other people,” Raho said. “When I was 25, I went to culinary school.”

Raho credits his parents for allowing him to pursue his passion for cooking, always remaining supportive as he tried to figure out what he wanted to do for the rest of his life.

“My parents often told me I could do anything I wanted… they were really supportive of me [and] told me to pursue my passions,

and the things I had loved most in the world were sports and food,” Raho said.

With two Italian parents, Raho became extremely interested in how to present meals in unique ways and how to tell stories through food. Eventually, however, he realized cooking was not to be his lifelong career.

“It was just a really cool experience to learn about, but I said ‘basically I probably don’t want to do this forever,’” Raho said. “So I dug deeper, and my parents stayed supportive and I committed myself to coaching.”

Clearly, his path to coaching was neither linear nor direct, and Raho admits his dreams didn’t always point in that direction. see SQUASH, page 7

MEN'S & WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY

First-year runners show promise for Tufts cross country at Purple Valley Classic

by Delaney Tantillo Contributing Writer

Both the men’s and women’s cross country teams traveled to Williamstown, Mass. to compete in the Purple Valley Classic, hosted

by Williams College, over the weekend.

On the men’s side, Tufts entered runners in both the eight-kilometer and five-kilometer races. In the eight-kilometer race, the Jumbos collectively finished 10th of 26 teams. Among a field of 324 runners, junior Brian Reaney was the first Jumbo to cross the finish line in a time of 27:22.1, earning a 40th place finish. Junior Christian Swenson was not far behind with a time of 27:29.4 (good for 48th overall).

First-year Patrick Nero had a strong showing in his collegiate debut. Nero finished third among Tufts runners and 53rd overall with a time of 27:38.6. Another stand out first-year performance came from Peter Horvath, who was the Jumbos’ sixth-place finisher (and 98th overall) with a time of 28:13.

A number of Tufts’ mid-distance runners — athletes who are on the cross country roster but focus mainly on track and field events — ran in the five-kilometer race. In this event, Tufts placed third out of six teams.

Senior Tom DePalma ran an impressive time of 16:46.6 to finish first for Tufts and fifth overall. DePalma was followed by sophomores Matthew McDermott and Dylan McEniry, who finished in the top 30 with times of 17:46.5 and 17:50, respectively.

The Purple Valley Invitational was the Jumbos’ first official meet of the season, as their Sept. 16 race at Bates was a tempo run, according to Reaney. Saturday’s warm and

Arlo Moore-Bloom The Equalizer

Is MLS anticompetitive?

M

Contributing Writer

When Tufts squash returns to the courts this winter season, the Jumbos will compete with a new coach guiding the way. Bringing passion, ingenuity and a readily apparent sense of excitement to the sport, Joe Raho is eager to both join in on and help generate a brandnew era of men’s and women’s squash at Tufts.

After former coach Joe McManus’ departure, a selection process involving both administrators and players chose Raho based largely on his past successes. As a player, Raho played on the U.S Junior National team as well as collegiately at the University of Pennsylvania.

As a coach, he most recently worked as the assistant coach at Brown University.

Raho satisfied his passion for the game as a player before discovering his love for coaching. Raho’s parents met playing squash and both played competitively, so squash was engrained into his DNA from birth.

Growing up in Westchester, N.Y., he was ranked by the age of 16 as one of the top 10 juniors in his age bracket. Later, in the under 19 age bracket, he was again ranked in the top 10 when he was chosen as one of a group of eight to represent the United States in the World Junior Squash Championships in Pakistan.

Raho went on to play at the Div. I level in college, where he describes being on the squash team as an integral part of his life at the University of Pennsylvania.

“I was captain of the team my senior year and we were good… I absolutely loved it,” Raho said. “It was just a huge part of my life

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

sunny conditions made competing on an already difficult course even more challenging.

“The course has a giant hill in the middle of it as well as some other rolling hills, so it is kind of a slower course,” Reaney said.

Such conditions prevented several Jumbos from having the EVAN SAYLES / THE TUFTS DAILY race that they Sophomore Rhemi Toth, runs at the Conn.

College Cross Country might have hoped Invitational at Harkness Memorial State Park on Oct. 15, 2016. for.

However, strong showings from first-year runners in the by the end of the season,” Greenberg said. eight-kilometer race and DePalma’s impres- “Across the board, not everyone had their sive five-kilometer performance provide the best day. I think that the first-years who ran team with ample reasons to be optimistic in the [eight-kilometer race] as well as the about the remainder of the season. mid-distance guys who ran in the [five-kiSenior co-captain Josh Greenberg, who lometer race] both stood out as extremely was unable to run this weekend due to inju- promising.” ry, acknowledged that the Jumbos did not Members of the women’s team also have their best showing but expressed positiv- competed in two events at the Purple Valley ity going forward.

Classic: the six-kilometer and five-kilometer “It was a big race against a number races. In the former event, the Jumbos placed of rival NESCAC schools like Amherst, seventh out of 26 teams. In a field of 286 runMiddlebury, Williams and Hamilton. There ners, Tufts faced some of the most difficult were also some other top teams from the competition they will see this season.

Atlantic region there, so it was our first shot competing against some of the top see MEN'S & WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY, teams in the nation that we hope to beat page 7

ajor League Soccer (MLS) commissioner Don Garber in 2014 announced that he wanted the league “to become one of the top leagues in the world by 2022.” It was an ambitious goal in 2014, and in 2017, the MLS still appears far off the mark.

Ironically, the very structure of the MLS conflicts with this short term goal.

Back in the 1970s, the North American Soccer League (NASL) attempted to grow into a global soccer superpower. It had an open market that allowed owners to pump big money into their teams, spending lucratively on players like Pelé and Franz Beckenbauer. However, the teams quickly ran out of money when enough revenue did not materialize. MLS, seeking to avoid this catastrophe, adopted a single-entity model whereby the league – and not individual teams – centrally owns all of its franchises, players, stadium deals and TV rights.

In some ways, the single-entity model is working: MLS is marginally getting better year to year. Average game attendance, the salary cap and the median player salary have all gradually increased, but all at a slow pace. In terms of becoming a top league in five years, the MLS business model instead seems to favor slow, consistent progress.

Yet there are various areas where the single-entity model is failing. Every time a commentator calls an MLS team a club, they are misspeaking. Soccer clubs like Manchester United or Juventus are owned privately and have full autonomy over their teams, while MLS teams are franchises owned by the MLS itself.

Because of this single-entity system, the success and growth of the MLS surely helps every team, but the success of another franchise also helps every other franchise. This creates an anti-competitive market that inherently stunts growth.

Take for example MLS’ introduction of Targeted Allocation Money, which grants teams extra money to attract and retain players from foreign leagues. Instituted in 2015, many believe that this additional funding mechanism was invented so that the LA Galaxy could sign Mexican midfielder Jonathan dos Santos, an internationally recognized player who could help drive revenue. Since that revenue actually goes to the MLS — and thus all the other MLS teams — could any other franchise owner truly be upset? The Galaxy just improved its chances for success, but at the same time, all MLS teams benefitted.

Therein lies the crux of the problem: The MLS structure conflicts with franchise owners’ desire to act in their own best interest.

When other teams benefit from one’s success, where does the incentive to succeed go? Why try and get ahead when you can piggyback on other teams’ success?

It’s clear that the current MLS setup was created to ensure the survival of the league.

It provides a safety net for teams and consolidates power so MLS teams can compete to sign players in a competitive global soccer market. This system may work for mediocrity, but if the MLS wants to be a top league, it won’t in its current form. Many believe it will take the institution of promotion and relegation — the topic of my next column — to truly grow the sport, which would shake-up the MLS to its very core.

Arlo Moore-Bloom is a first-year who has not yet declared a major. Arlo can be reached at arlo.moore_bloom@tufts.edu.