The Tufts Daily - Monday, November 19, 2018

New major, student club offers students peer-led experiential education in growing field of data science see FEATURES / PAGE 3

MEN’S SOCCER

Tufts advances to Final Four with win over Montclair State

Minhaj continues to grow into familiar late night format, humor with ‘Patriot Act’ see ARTS&LIVING / PAGE 5

SEE SPORTS / BACK PAGE

THE

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T HE T UFTS DAILY

VOLUME LXXVI, ISSUE 49

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Monday, November 19, 2018

MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.

Dining workers, students rally to support union contract negotiations

Consortium of Studies in Race, Colonialism, and Diaspora to gain departmental status

by Shantel Bartolome Assistant News Editor

MEREDITH LONG / THE TUFTS DAILY

Tufts dining worker Lucson Aime speaks at a rally in support of a fair union contract in front of Ballou Hall on Nov. 16.

by Ryan Shaffer Staff Writer

Over 100 students and workers gathered Friday afternoon in support of the dining workers’ union, UNITE HERE Local 26, which is in negotiations for a contract with the university administration. Speakers at the rally called for shorter working hours, affordable health care, job security and fair treatment in the workplace. Demonstrators included students, dining workers, teaching faculty and union representatives.

According to Tufts Dining Action Coalition’s (TDAC) Facebook event, the rally was organized due to a feeling that negotiations over the contract were moving too slowly and that the administration was not willing to guarantee basic items.

Negotiations between the union bargaining committee and the administration began in August, four months after the workers voted to unionize. Since then, there have been seven meetings totaling nearly 30 hours of bargaining, according to Trisha O’Brien, who identified herself as the union negotiator, and Jesse Ryan, a sophomore and organizer for TDAC. The rally assembled outside of DewickMacPhie Dining Center around 3:30 p.m.

Demonstrators brought signs that carried messages of unity and gratitude such as “We support dining workers,” “Thank you for feeding us” and “Unbreakable.”

After being addressed briefly by Edwin Jain, a senior and organizer for TDAC, the crowd began marching north on Latin Way toward Ballou Hall. The demonstra-

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tors turned west on Professors Row before turning north again on Packard Avenue.

Tufts University Police Department blocked traffic at intersections while marchers passed through. The march ended in front of the north entrance of Ballou Hall.

Members of the Tufts dining workers’ union led the crowd in chants, which included “What do we want? Contracts. When do we want it? Now,” and “No discrimination.

We’re a union nation.”

The path and structure of the march were reflective of a rally that occurred on Apr. 3 in support of the dining workers’ unionization. According to TDAC member Andrew Jefferies, however, Friday’s rally served a different purpose.

“It’s a slightly different messaging,” Jefferies, a senior, said. “In April, it was like: ‘We are the workers, we organize, please recognize us.’ Now it’s ‘Listen to us, we’re not asking for anything unreasonable.’”

According to Ryan, the rally in April was mostly led by student organizers, while dining workers planned and led Friday’s rally. “[At] last year’s rally, we had 10 to 15 workers there, but this year, there [are] going to be 90 to 100 workers,” Ryan said in an interview before the rally.

O’Brien said workers played a larger role this time because they were more confident after the 127–19 vote in favor of unionization on Apr. 24. She also noted that workers feared retaliation from managers and bosses if they publicly supported the organization effort in April. see DINING RALLY, page 2

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The Consortium of Studies in Race, Colonialism, and Diaspora (RCD) will become a recognized department, having received approval from the Board of Trustees during their Nov. 2 and Nov. 3 meetings, according to Secretary of the Corporation Paul Tringale. This is the largest change to RCD since its formation as an interdisciplinary consortium in summer 2014.

Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences James Glaser said that the department is set to be fully operational for the upcoming academic year.

Provost and Senior Vice President ad interim Deborah Kochevar said that forming a department out of RCD was a natural development for the consortium.

“Stabilizing [RCD] and being sure they have what they need to thrive struck me as an important priority,” she said. “The next step was to become a department and to be able to then have some vision and ability operationally to think about what faculty do we need.”

According to Kochevar, RCD Director Kris Manjapra will serve as the new department’s inaugural chair.

Manjapra, who is also an associate professor of history, said that being a consortium did not allow for the same benefits that full departments enjoyed.

In particular, Manjapra said RCD currently doesn’t have control over course offerings as a consortium, mainly offering cross-listed courses taught by other existing departments.

“We don’t have control over our curriculum — we’re basically a recipient of the goodwill of the departments where the faculty are actually located,” Manjapra said.

Manjapra said that this resulted in less-defined curricula and more variation between offerings.

“Department status allows us to be more curricularly strategic,” Manjapra said. “We would be able to coordinate our curriculum much better and to develop a more consistent and durable set of classes over time that would benefit our students — our majors and our minors.”

Director of Africana Studies H. Adlai Murdoch said that the change will alleviate current instability, adding that he thinks the RCD will play a more active role in synthesizing academic crossovers.

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“The only way it seemed that we could stem the tide is to take control of our future or destiny, so to speak, by being able to therefore offer courses on our own,” Murdoch, who is also a professor of Francophone studies, said. “We expect to be able to flesh out things, like curricular offerings, that might establish interdisciplinary links within a number of those programs within the RCD, and have faculty that might be able to offer courses that might bridge fields between, say, for example, American Studies and Colonialism Studies, or Africana Studies and Latino Studies.”

Manjapra said the soon-to-be department has faced troubles with faculty departures, noting last year’s loss of faculty of color, many of whom were affiliated with the RCD, which reduced academic support and mentorship opportunities for students.

“I think students who have taken RCD classes or who are RCD majors or minors, they would probably tell you that they have noticed a lot of departures of faculty in the past. Especially in the past two years, they have noticed that the RCD is somewhat unstable in terms of its curriculum,” he said. “There are courses that come in, courses that come out, and that has to do with the loss of faculty. In fact, we’ve lost about 50 classes from the RCD curriculum over the past two years, and that affects our students.”

Kochevar also noted the departures and their impact on the RCD. “RCD had several faculty that were part of their group — they were a consortium — so when faculty left, not only the home department felt it, but RCD felt that departure too.”

Manjapra said that according RCD departmental status would provide better support for faculty.

“We have, at Tufts, had a number of new hires of faculty who work in RCD themes or in the RCD set of programs, but in order to cultivate those young faculty members to mentor them and to retain them, over time, we do need something more [than] what we [had as a consortium].”

Manjapra said that only departments at Tufts can hire faculty, explaining that the RCD would be able to replenish staff openings caused by departures and retirements, and develop and grow going forward as a department.

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

see RCD, page 2

FUN & GAMES.........................8 OPINION.....................................9 SPORTS............................ BACK

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Department status will address RCD’s staffing issues RCD

continued from page 1 “To hire faculty means that you are able to build over time; you are able to think about new kinds of tracks, new kinds of programs,” Manjapra said.

But not being a department was not the only obstacle that the RCD faced in shoring up faculty hires, especially in tenure-track or tenured positions. Glaser said that budget constraints in the School of Arts and Sciences may also pose a challenge to RCD’s process toward expanding its staff.

“Faculty lines are harder to come by right now because of our fiscal situation,” he said, “But my colleagues in the RCD understand this and are working with us to devise a plan to get them

to where they need to be in terms of their size and we’re dedicated to getting to that.”

The RCD’s push for departmental status has received approval by the provost, president and Board of Trustees, Glaser said. They now look toward hiring new faculty and implementing administrative systems before becoming fully operational this summer, Glaser said, in preparation for the 2019–20 academic year.

Glaser praised the RCD for fostering innovative academic approaches.

“One of the things that I have observed is that the RCD itself and the faculty who comprise it are … among our most exciting scholars and teachers — they are very eager to work together in areas

that you often don’t see faculty working together, and they’ve generated a lot of energy both among the faculty and with students,” he said.

Even as a consortium, the RCD has had an outsize academic and social experience at Tufts, according to Tiara Bhatacharya, a senior studying international literary and visual studies.

“I think that a lot of the RCD faculty and the courses that they teach have been really critical in cementing the political consciousness that a lot of Tufts students who have taken classes in the RCD … have,” Bhatacharya said. “I think one particularly important thing they give is this intellectual space to find a language to describe our own personal experiences.”

Wilson Wong, an American studies major, echoed Bhatacharya’s sentiment.

“It’s [RCD] where I’ve been able to think most critically about my own identity and how I navigate the world,” Wong, a senior, said.

Manjapra said that the RCD’s transition into becoming a department will improve upon Tufts’ mission of diversity and inclusion.

“It is one of the strategic aims of the university to develop enhanced cultural competency in this area called diversity and inclusion,” he said. “The whole reason why RCD was established four years ago was in response to the problem of not sufficient diversity in terms of the Tufts curriculum.”

Dining workers call for better working conditions, benefits in contract DINING RALLY

continued from page 1 “A lot of the staff were scared last time,” O’Brien said in an interview after the rally.

“They were afraid to speak.”

In front of Ballou Hall, a lineup of speakers that included workers, students and faculty addressed the crowd. They listed the dining workers’ demands such as shorter working hours, affordable health care, and giving fulltime benefits to temporary workers.

In an interview with the Daily after the rally, Vincenza Navarra, a dining worker, said that working long shifts strains her family. Navarra explained that the union is pushing the administration to shorten work schedules to avoid such strain.

“We need a contract now so that we can have a better life for our families. We need less hours,” Navarra said. “We need respect, too.”

During the rally, workers said that they experience harassment and verbal abuse from managers, which has had a negative impact on the working environment.

O’Brien said that the working conditions differ greatly from when she joined Tufts Dining Services 30 years ago.

According to O’Brien, the change is attributed to the conduct of the Dining Services managers and to understaffing, which has led to longer working hours and a strenuous working environment. She said

that Dining Services has not done enough to address the issue since she and other workers raised the issue with Dining Services management, as well as the university administration.

“In the past five or six years, they don’t care about staffing. We are so understaffed — it’s ridiculous,” O’Brien said in an interview.

Another issue raised by the demonstrators was the status of temporary workers.

Temporary workers are not considered full-time staff and do not receive benefits like health care, vacation days and personal days, according to O’Brien. She said that there are over 40 temporary workers employed by Dining Services, some of whom have worked for Dining Services for more than a decade.

Tina Lavanga, a worker at Hotung Café, addressed the crowd on behalf of temporary workers. According to Lavanga, some temporary workers work 40 or more hours per week. She said that she began working for Tufts Dining eight years ago and that she enjoys its friendly atmosphere but that she needs to have job security. Lavanga explained that every August, she waits for a letter to come in the mail that invites her to return to work.

“I want to work for Tufts as a permanent part-time worker,” Lavanga said. “For my

co-workers [who] work 40 hours or more …

I want them to be permanent employees.”

Lavanga said that because temporary workers do the same work as permanent employees, they should receive the same benefits and treatment. Policies regarding temporary workers affect a large fraction of the dining staff. Between one-fourth and one-third of dining workers have temporary working status, according to Mike Kramer, a union representative.

Other speakers at the event included students and faculty who spoke in support of the dining workers’ union. Students shared personal stories and thanked the dining workers, vowing to “support [dining workers] them for as long as [the students] are here.”

First-year student Fiona Davis-Walsh said she attended the rally to push the university to adopt a fair contract.

“The dining workers are an integral part of our community,” she said. “We owe it to them to show up and pressure the administration.”

Rabbi Jordan Braunig, director of the Initiative for Innovative Community Building at the Granoff Family Hillel Center and parttime lecturer in Judaic Studies, addressed the crowd on behalf of Tufts’ faculty. He said supporting the dining workers’ union was a way to encourage community at Tufts.

“For community to be real, it has to encompass everyone,” Braunig said. “That means the custodial staff, the faculty, the adjunct faculty, facilities — it means everyone that puts their life and their labor into [Tufts].”

To Grazia DiFabio, a dining worker, a fair union contract means holding managers accountable and ensuring higher wages and shorter working hours.

“Management needs to be professional,” DiFabio said. “A fair contract means a fair schedule, a living wage and the ability to put family first.”

Tufts’ Executive Director of Public Relations Patrick Collins told the Daily in an email that progress is being made during union negotiations.

“The university and the union began in-person negotiations in August and have initially focused on a number of important issues such as training, safety, job postings and work assignments,” Collins said. “We continue to make progress and appreciate the engagement of all parties at the bargaining table.

Negotiations for a first contract involving a new bargaining unit such as the dining services employees’ union often take a good deal of time. We are hopeful that we will be able to reach agreement as soon as possible.”

“What I’ve seen in the past three years is that Tufts takes a lot of steps to grow its student population but then doesn’t do a lot to mitigate the effects of the students that are already on campus,” she said.

The body widely supported the final resolution, though senators were uneasy with some of the original resolution’s finer details. Of particular concern was the question of location. TCU Senate held an internal debate over whether or not to demand that the residence hall be built on campus to avoid further gentrifying the Medford/Somerville area.

After the discussion and some brief alterations to the resolution, the body voted on the resolution, passing it unanimously.

TCU Parliamentarian Sharif Hamidi, a sophomore, then introduced a series of future resolutions that, in accordance with Senate bylaws, will be voted on in two weeks by the Senate body. The respective resolutions demand that the university reach gender parity in leadership, propose a “roadmap” for the future of campus dining, call for a full divestment from fossil fuels and call for the “unwavering support” of Senior Lecturer Thomas Abowd. They will be voted on at the Dec. 2 meeting.

TCU Treasurer Izzy Ma, a sophomore, then took the floor to introduce a supple-

mentary funding request. The body voted to approve a $1,270 request from Roots x SWAT to fund its event.

Next, Rapfogel, a senior, updated the body on the Turkey Shuttle, which will transport students heading home for Thanksgiving break to both South Station and Boston Logan International Airport.

He said that it will be running on Tuesday at 2 p.m., 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., and on Wednesday at 6 a.m., 8 a.m. and 10 a.m..

Tickets are available online.

Rapfogel also said that applications for the Elections Commission will be released soon, and that the Senate will meet in the future to discuss.

The Senate then moved attention to Chen for various updates. She encouraged members of the body and the greater Tufts community to donate to the Swipe it Forward program. She stressed that many individuals have an abundance of swipes, and as the semester nears closer to its end, any students who can donate to the cause should do so.

Lastly, Chen and Rapfogel gave a presentation to the body on the Student Leadership Stipends initiative, a TCUfunded initiative to supplement student leaders contributing to groups who would otherwise not be able to conduct the crucial work they do.

TCU Senate voted last year to allocate $10,000 for the initiative to make student leadership positions successful and give individuals the ability to continue their work.

Applications for the Student Leadership Stipends were sent to clubs on Nov. 16, in an email to TCU-recognized student organizations from Director for Campus Life Joe Golia. There will be an information session on Nov. 29 in Braker 001 to discuss further, and the deadline to apply will be on Dec. 10, according to Rapfogel.

Lastly, the body discussed a future funding initiative intended to set aside grants and assistance in planning events for students seeking to host events at Tufts.

Several senators who worked to create the initiative, which will be presented to the Allocations Board on Nov. 28, are hoping their funding request will provide a channel for students hoping to host events and activities for members of their community.

Students who are not affiliated with a campus group will also be able to request funding, according to Class of 2022 Senator Tim Leong, one of the senators pushing the initiative.

“I think part of the point is to have students that are not necessarily part of a club, to have the chance to have this money and to put on a cool event that they had the idea for,” Leong said.

TCU Senate calls on administration to prioritize housing, build new dorm

by Noah Richter

Assistant News Editor

Tufts Community Union (TCU) senators stepped into the ongoing housing debate Sunday night, unanimously passing a resolution that calls upon the university to build a new, “high-capacity” dorm at the body’s regular Sunday night meeting in the Sophia Gordon Multipurpose Room.

The resolution sets a series progress benchmarks for the as-of-yet-unplanned dorm, notably that construction must begin within the next five years. It was written

by Vice President Adam Rapfogel, TCU President Jacqueline Chen, Trustee Representatives sophomore Connor Goggins and senior Noah Weinflash, and Class of 2019 Senators Jonah O’Mara Schwartz and Shane Woolley, and Class of 2021 Senators Griffen Saul and Sarah Wiener.

O’Mara Schwartz told the body that the university has done little to demonstrate progress on a new dorm. “[Tufts] haven’t taken active steps to proceed and start the process of building a high-capacity dorm,” he said.

Chen, a senior, said that Tufts has done little to fix the housing shortage. She said that recent actions taken by the university have only made the problem worse.

Monday, November 19, 2018

Features

Students interested in data science find community on campus with new major, club

by Jacob Fried

tuftsdaily.com

Quinn Pham Human

Motivation

C

Assistant Features Editor

This fall, 250 first-years began the next step in their educational careers here at the Tufts School of Engineering, according to the Office of Institutional Research. The Class of 2022 is unique as it is the first cohort of Tufts engineers who have the new major in data science available to them from their first year at Tufts. According to an April 3 Daily article, this new program was approved by the Board of Trustees last February and first became available to students this fall.

Ryan Weinstein declared a major in data science this August. Weinstein, a sophomore, described data science as the collection and analysis of large data sets in order to make decisions and solve problems. He mentioned machine learning as a part of data science, which he said involves gathering data and using an algorithm to make a decision with that data.

Weinstein initially declared a major in human factors engineering last year, but he decided to switch to data science this year after getting advice from his peers.

“When I talked to upperclassmen in the [human factors engineering] major, they said that they felt unprepared to get jobs from it and that it was better suited as a minor to supplement something. I figured data science is also something I’m interested in so it would be a good major,” he said. “I’m still considering a minor in human factors to supplement it.”

Weinstein said that since the major is new this year and many first-year engineers have yet to declare a major, he thinks that the program is currently small but sees a lot of opportunities and areas for growth in this new major.

“I only know four or five people in the major right now. But there’s a lot of [firstyears] who will be declaring it, I think … it will be a popular major because it’s a growing field,” Weinstein said.

Weinstein also participates in the TAMID Group at Tufts’ newly-established TAMIDKeyrus Data Science Program, founded by junior Barry Eom. Weinstein said that this new group within TAMID at Tufts, a club for business-minded students interested in the Israeli economy, brings together students interested in data science — regardless of their majors.

Eom, who is majoring in computer science, founded the new data science group when he realized there was not a huge concentration on data science here or at other college campuses.

“A lot of college campuses around the U.S. right now don’t have the opportunities for students to explore data science, and that’s because the relative newness of this field. I saw this at Tufts. I saw this at a lot of other college campuses,” Eom said. “So I was essentially met with 3 options: first one being taking online courses on my own and waiting to take those classes at Tufts; second … being creating a small book club here … and third one — which was quite ambitious — was to create a national data science organization that could be spread to other college campuses as well, and that’s where TAMID comes in.”

Eom, who had been involved with the Tufts chapter of TAMID since its inception, realized that he could use TAMID’s resources and network to provide data science opportunities at Tufts and nationally. For a while, this was just an idea. But when Eom met representatives from Keyrus, an international

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JULIA MCDOWELL / THE TUFTS DAILY

Junior Barry Eom, founder of the data science program in the Tufts chapter of TAMID Group, poses for a portrait in the Science and Engineering Center on Nov. 15. data services firm, at a Tufts career fair, he began to form a partnership that would help launch the new data science program within TAMID at Tufts.

“I personally wanted some mentorship, some resources and help creating this group because … I had no experience in data science. Keyrus, on the other hand, was trying to increase their [brand name] on college campuses, so I realized this was a perfect combination,” he said.

After pitching the idea to Keyrus a few times, the company decided they wanted to go ahead with the program. Over the summer, Eom and employees at Keyrus developed the education curriculum, in addition to deciding on the structure of the group, before officially starting on campus this fall.

The TAMID-Keyrus Data Science Program has had a rather successful start, according to Eom. “The part that surprised me the most was the number of applications we got and the number of strong applicants who were interested in joining the program. I think it really speaks volumes when a new organization that no one’s ever heard of gets an insane amount of applications [in] its first semester,” Eom said.

Eom said that so far, the group has had weekly peer-led workshops, each covering a different data science topic, including decision trees, random forests and support vector machines. While many members of the group do not have extensive experience with data science, Eom said they all share a passion for learning, taking the initiative to read up on the topics ahead of leading the workshops.

Abigail Miller, a first-year who participates in the TAMID-Keyrus Data Science Program, said she has enjoyed the program and was initially drawn to it due to her interest in computer science and data analysis.

“It’s a lot of new material for me. As a [firstyear], it’s kind of a stretch, especially because there are people who have a lot more coding skills than I have. But it’s definitely a great way to learn, and next semester we’re going to be working with companies to work on projects so that’s something you can’t get inside the classroom — that’s incredible,” she said.

For next semester, Eom said that members will work on data science projects in partnership with Vistaprint, a company that offers customized physical and digital marketing products. Eom hopes to partner with more local and Israeli startups in the future, even as peer-led workshops remain a consistent presence within the club.

“I think education is going to be a perpetual thing. The field of data science is very new but very big and very much growing. So I think realistically even spending a full year on education won’t suffice. I’d love people to just keep on learning, so next semester I think it’ll look like a continuation of education with the data science projects,” Eom said.

According to Eom, TAMID at Tufts is currently the only TAMID chapter to have a data science program.

“TAMID has [46] chapters across the U.S., so there’s a pretty big opportunity to scale up.

I think there’s a lot of opportunity there, so I’m really excited about that,” he said.

Miller said TAMID has provided a good data science community on campus. She thought it was a good way to meet students of other class years as well as to get involved in data science outside of the new major. She plans on majoring in either applied mathematics or computer science, but she would consider majoring in data science if it was offered in the School of Arts and Sciences. see DATA SCIENCE, page 5

all me idealistic, but, for me, passion is the primary motivator when I’m considering my future career.

It started when I received a LinkedIn notification — yes, LinkedIn. One of my acquaintances had shared a post about how you should not pursue your career based on your passions but instead based on what makes you uncomfortable. I skimmed through the attached article, where the argument turned out to be that you should always look for new challenges but, of course, do work in a field that you enjoy. After reading the article, I felt a bit cheated. I was thinking something along the lines of pursuing a career in cheese-making or beekeeping because I have trypophobia — holes make me deeply uncomfortable. Another option would be surveillance, because I watched a video on China’s hyper-surveillance and “social credit” system, and that also made me uncomfortable.

The bottom line, according to the article, is that you should continuously push yourself to do things outside your comfort zone if you want to be successful. Instead of doing things that make you feel uncomfortable, I think of it as doing things that make you feel challenged. The difference is that when you finish something challenging, you feel like you’ve accomplished something big and overcome a hurdle within your own mind.

When you finish something uncomfortable, you feel relieved, but the constant loop of discomfort will cause you to eventually reject the reward. I suppose I lean toward the more positive connotation of a challenge rather than something uncomfortable, because I am mainly motivated by rewards.

Depending on which article you read, there are either four or six different ways people are motivated. A Fast Company article says people are either motivated by creativity, curiosity, monetary gain or fear.

Another article talks about six theories of motivation: evolutionary instinct, external rewards, internal drive, arousal, cognitive reasoning and expectancy. Yet another article discusses how individuals suffering from antisocial personality disorder are motivated purely by reward, disregarding consequences, because the dopamine center of their brain that gives good reward feelings is overactive.

So I think to myself as I sit in a corner of Tisch frowning at a LinkedIn article: What actually motivates me in life? I am pursuing two majors that are barely related to each other because I simply enjoy studying both and couldn’t choose, so I guess passion is a major motivator. I also chose those two majors — and make a lot of other life decisions — because I am good at those things, so in a way, anticipation of success is another motivator. I started my newest computer science assignment the day it was released because I got a crappy grade on my most recent project (which counted for double), so maybe fear also plays a part.

Now that we’ve arrived at this time of the semester where Thanksgiving break masks the nightmare that is finals, I find it more pressing than ever to reconsider what exactly I am doing with my life and why. Or is this tactic only procrastination in disguise? Can the stress of procrastination be a form of motivation in itself?

Quinn Pham is a sophomore studying international relations. Quinn can be reached at quinn.pham@tufts.edu.

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Monday, November 19, 2018

ARTS&LIVING TV REVIEW

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Evan Zigmond Out on the Town

With ‘Patriot Act,’ Hasan Minhaj tries his hand at Boston Symphony late night television Orchestra

VIA IMDB

A promotional poster for Hasan Minhaj’s ‘Patriot Act’ is pictured.

by Daniel Klain Staff Writer

In this era of post-peak television, the late night/sketch comedy television market has become quite oversaturated, like most other television genres. There’s Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert, James Corden and Seth Meyers, all competing for our attention every night. That’s not to mention the shows that put a topical political or pop-cultural spin on late night television — like “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” (2014–), “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah” (2015–), “Full Frontal with Samantha Bee” (2016–) or Busy Phillips’ new variety show “Busy Tonight.” Now, Hasan Minhaj, formerly of “The Daily Show,” is throwing his hat into the ring.

Whether or not he deserves the audience’s attention is another question altogether.

With episodes released every Sunday on Netflix, “Patriot Act” is structurally very similar to “Last Week Tonight.” Each week, the show spends most of its roughly 25-minute run time focused on a single issue, such as Amazon’s retail dominance or the lawsuit against Harvard University on affirmative action. Like Oliver, who is also an alum of “The Daily Show,” Minhaj’s monologue is supported by an incredible amount of research and supplemented with pop culture humor and metaphors to put the absurdity of the issue in perspective. It’s an impressive feat to have relevant jokes that do not feel dated by the time the episodes are released. Given the rapidity with which we pass through pop culture and how quickly national conversations come and go, even Oliver — whose Emmy Awards sleep soundly on his shelf at night — can have references that feel a week or two too late.

Most in common with Oliver’s show is the ‘takedown’ style of “Patriot Act.”

Each week, Minhaj is able to show the corrupt nature of our highest geopolitical and economic institutions. In the wake of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi’s death, for example, Minhaj not only attacked Mohammed bin Salman but also reminded the viewer that many sectors of the United States are financially tied to Saudi Arabia and therefore responsible for bin Salman’s behavior. While the format can feel derivative at times, “Patriot Act” works hard to show audiences they care about highlighting the issues they discuss.

Most of the evidence Minhaj cites in his monologues is clearly displayed behind him, lit up by a dozen LED screens; this is where the similarities to “Last Week Tonight” and all other late night shows end and “Patriot Act” truly comes into its own. This allows viewers to not tire of hearing Minhaj speak, because it feels as though the screens are doing the work of the monologue, showing the viewer just how appalling the situation is with captivating visuals.

On top of that, Minhaj stays standing throughout the entire episode, allowing him to form a more casual relationship with his studio audience. Often, Minhaj continues a joke if it lands or responds to the audience if it receives gasps. This also allows his onstage presence to be a little more dynamic, and the camera consequently reflects that with a number of differently angled shots.

What many appreciate most about Minhaj is the approach he takes in some of his exposés. For instance, in the beginning of the episode on Amazon, Minhaj opens by admitting that he, too, struggles with balancing his morals against convenience. “I am way more lazy than I am woke,” Minhaj said. “I deleted Uber … and then I landed in Vancouver and I was like ‘Dammit they don’t have Lyft here.’”

Minhaj recognizes the grip Amazon has on our daily lives and sees the gray area in the conflict.

The most important emotion “Patriot Act” makes its viewers feel is anxiety, not only for our increasingly doomed world but also for the future of the show itself.

If late night talk shows have taught us anything, it’s that they require patience.

“Patriot Act” is not up to the quality of “Last Week Tonight” or able to reach the nostalgically high bar of “The Daily Show” in its prime, but it is still enjoyable in its own right. Both of those shows took time to grow into what they have become, and Minhaj has plenty of time to find his footing. If you have free time on a Sunday night and want to learn something new about modern America while having a good laugh, “Patriot Act” may be a good choice. But once it finds its voice a little more, it could become a great one.

New data science club sees enthusiastic involvement from across student body DATA SCIENCE

continued from page 3 “I wish the data science major was in [the School of Arts and Sciences] because I don’t want to transfer to the School of Engineering, but otherwise I would consider it,” she said.

However, Miller still hopes to take data science-related courses during her time at Tufts.

“I would love to take those classes, but with all the requirements, I’m going to have to see.

If it can fulfill some of my major requirements, that would be great. And then if I have extra time, those would be the classes that I would definitely take with my extra time,” Miller said.

Weinstein also said he is excited about this growing community on campus for those

interested in data science. He said he has met many students who are not data science majors but who joined TAMID because they think data science is a beneficial skill to have.

He personally thinks it’s valuable for people in every field. As for being one of the first students at Tufts to major in data science, he said that makes him feel pretty special.

A

few weekends ago, a good friend of mine was kind enough to invite me to the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO).

While I was delighted to go, I initially hesitated to write about it for this column. One of my goals with “Out on the Town” is for my wonderful readers to be able to take part in whatever I’m up to from week to week. I was worried that the BSO would be expensive and that the auditorium would be filled wall-to-wall with squares. Despite these initial concerns, the Boston Symphony Orchestra turned out to be an affordable and accessible experience, one that I absolutely recommend.

There are two ways of getting to Symphony Hall via public transport, each with their own benefits. One option involves taking the Red Line to Park Street, transferring to the E train on the Green Line headed outbound and getting off after five stops at Symphony. The exit to the station is right in front of Symphony Hall, so this is an easy and cost-effective way to get there. The other option involves taking the Red Line to Harvard Square and catching the 1 bus toward Dudley. The bus drives down Massachusetts Avenue, crosses the Charles River and drops off passengers in front of Symphony Hall.

The latter option costs a little extra, but the bus makes its way across the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge, so one can observe the Charles River and the skylines of both Cambridge and Boston.

Once I got to Symphony Hall, my friend and I presented our tickets to the ushers at the front. My bag was briefly searched, but I was allowed inside with it (big win for bag enthusiasts everywhere). We headed to our seats, where I was able to really soak in the concert hall. The interior is breathtaking. The walls are a gold color and three chandeliers provide lighting.

Patrons sit in front of the orchestra on the ground floor or in one of the two balcony levels. After a little bit of waiting, Andris Nelsons emerged from backstage to conduct Mahler’s Symphony No. 2.

The quality of the music was frankly nuts, with each individual part blending perfectly into the whole. Two soloists sat in front of the orchestra, waiting patiently to sing their parts in the final movement. Nelsons was quite the performative conductor; it was entertaining to watch him wave his arms with such spirit, such finesse. From beginning to end, the Boston Symphony Orchestra delivered in terms of entertaining its listeners. After the fifth and final movement, the audience gave Nelsons and the orchestra what must have been a three-minute standing ovation. It was a marvelous experience.

Fortunately for Tufts students, there exist multiple ticket deals to ease the financial burden of an expensive show. For those who want to see just one show, ticket prices go as low as $20 for people under 40. For those who would like to attend more frequently, there is a “BSO College Card” option that gives students access to a limited season pass for just $25.

Evan Zigmond is a sophomore studying music. Evan can be reached at Evan.Zigmond@tufts.edu

6

THE TUFTS DAILY | Arts & Living | Monday, November 19, 2018

tuftsdaily.com

ALBUM REVIEW

Little Mix preaches self love, sisterhood on ‘LM5’

VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Little Mix performs on ‘The Get Weird Tour’ in 2016.

by Abby Schmidt Staff Writer

The news broke on Nov. 9: British girl group Little Mix has parted ways with Simon Cowell’s Syco record label just days before the release of their fifth album. For members Jesy Nelson, Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Jade Thirlwall and Perrie Edwards, who — like boy band One Direction — had formed a group on Cowell’s show “The X Factor” (2004–), this marks a huge shift in their careers.

The split was blamed on a conflict over writing credits, but it exposed the four women’s deeper concerns about their lack of creative control and sexism in the music industry.

Thirlwall made headlines last week when she alleged that record executives told Little Mix members to “go and flirt with all those important men” at a radio event in the U.S. She also decried the marginalization of members’ creative input. “One producer told us we shouldn’t be writing, we should just be given songs. We realized we, as women, have to work ten times as hard, which is really bloody annoying, because we do write songs,” she said.

In another interview, Edwards summed up the band’s journey. “When we started out it was almost like, ‘This is your lane, stay in your lane. You’re the faces and the name,’” she said. “We definitely speak our mind now. If we don’t like it, we always say it.”

And say it they do. “LM5,” Little Mix’s fifth studio album, is a declaration of defiance against misogyny. The LP — which features songwriting credits from all members, especially Thirlwall and Pinnock, who are credited as writers on more than half of the track list — centers themes of feminism and empowerment. They set the tone with intro “The

National Manthem,” singing a warning to men who dare cross them in their signature tight four-part harmony. Clubworthy track “Joan of Arc” depicts the exhilaration of going out dancing while single. The lyrics exude self-confidence: “Fan of myself, I’m stannin’ myself/I love me so much I put my hands on myself,” Leigh-Anne repeats as a mantra over a thumping bass line. On the deliciously fun “Wasabi,” which blends punk with 2000’s R&B surprisingly well, Little Mix gives the finger to critics.

“You know I love the way you talk about me/Look at how far it got me/You make up shit to write about me/I fold it up like origami,” Jesy taunts.

A highlight of the album is “Strip,” an ode to body positivity. In the half-whispered, spoken word chorus, the members celebrate themselves: “Jiggle all this weight, yeah, you know I love all of this/Finally love me naked, sexiest when I’m confident.” With a verse from rapper Sharaya J and a minimalist beat, “Strip” is perhaps the farthest the album veers sonically from the playful pop that Little Mix is known for.

The music video, too, makes a bold statement. The band invites a squad of inspiring female-identifying activists, writers and artists to join them in a celebration of all types of bodies. In a particularly striking image, Nelson, Pinnock, Thirlwall and Edwards appear nude, with insults they’ve received written all over their bodies, staring defiantly at the camera.

Of course, being a twenty-something woman is not all girls’ nights out and blinding confidence. “LM5” also touches on the hardships that come with the package. On first listen, lead single “Woman Like Me” sounds like another girl power dance anthem, with a roaring pre-chorus and a feature from

Nicki Minaj. But beneath the bluster lies a hint of insecurity, as the members acknowledge how defying gender roles invites backlash from society. Jade sings, “My momma always said, ‘Girl, you’re trouble’ and/And now I wonder, could you fall for a woman like me?” The tender “Told You So” switches gears, delivering a sweet promise of sisterhood. “We can put the kettle on/ Talk ’bout how he’s not the one/I told you/But, I’m never gonna say I told you so,” Little Mix sings, describing the near-universal experience of comforting a girlfriend about a guy even when he was a bad idea all along. The best lyrics are found on bonus track “Woman’s World,” which moves beyond proclamations of confidence to directly address the systemic disadvantages women face. “If you never shouted to be heard/You ain’t lived in a woman’s

world,” the chorus declares. The message, combined with a showcase of the band’s powerhouse vocals, makes this song a standout.

Of course, an album as long as “LM5” — 18 tracks on the deluxe edition — is bound to have some misses. “American Boy” and “Monster in Me” are uninspiring filler tracks, and the bizarre “Love a Girl Right” — with a dated guitar riff and lyrics about “livin’ la vida loca” — feels out of place. “Motivate,” though sexy with a catchy hook, contradicts the album’s feminist message with lines like “When he’s with me, bitches hate me.” But despite a few blips, “LM5” is Little Mix’s most thematically and sonically cohesive album yet. Only time will tell what their career looks like post-Simon Cowell, but this album proves that Nelson, Pinnock, Thirlwall and Edwards are at their best when they speak their minds.

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Monday, November 19, 2018

Opinion CARTOON

9 tuftsdaily.com

Anita Ramaswamy Anita’s Angle

The midterms, in moderation

D

BY MARIA FONG

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emocrat Kyrsten Sinema won a Senate seat in Arizona this week, a traditionally Republican stronghold. She is the first Democrat to win an Arizona U.S. Senate seat in 30 years, the first female to ever win one and will be the first openly bisexual senator in the country. Sinema’s political evolution has been fascinating to watch — she started her career as a Green Party activist, received criticism from her Republican opponent for wearing a pink tutu to a war protest in 2003 and once identified herself, albeit facetiously, as a “Prada socialist.”

But after 14 years as an elected official, she has amassed one of the most conservative voting records in her party, voting with President Trump’s position 62.2 percent of the time as the representative for Arizona’s 9th Congressional District. On the surface, this seems counterintuitive. But when you examine some of Sinema’s key voting breaks with her party, there are often understandable explanations.

In March, Sinema helped pass the omnibus spending bill supported by more Republicans than Democrats, which limited the potential loss of hundreds of millions of dollars for Arizona public schools by allowing them to draw upon money from the state’s 108-year old land trust fund. Her other votes have been more controversial with Democrats, such as her support for a bill that included $1.6 billion in funding for a border wall.

While it is indeed true that Sinema is no longer a progressive, I believe she is the Democrat that Arizona needs right now.

Democrats in Arizona recognize the practical boundaries restraining us from becoming too ideologically driven. Honestly, we just don’t have that privilege. In a blue state, one can take for granted that a call for ideological purity or for candidates to vocally espouse socialism will not materially interfere with daily life. For those in traditionally red states, the tradeoff of losing an election is simply too large to risk gratuitously. Winning matters at the policy level because there are immediate impacts to marginalized groups. That being said, candidates who run much further to the left, such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, present new ideas and challenge the status quo. They are incredibly important to liberal causes. In places like Arizona, though, change tends to happen more gradually, and moderate candidates are most able to secure wins for the Democrats.

Both types of candidates play an important role in maintaining competitive election processes, but it is important to consider these candidates on a regional level, with a holistic understanding of their locales. On the national level, they are already building coalitions to get things done: The bipartisan and historically centrist House Problem Solvers Caucus may attempt to partner with other Democrats to seek concessions from Nancy Pelosi that would streamline the legislative process for bipartisan legislation, in exchange for voting to support her re-election.

Those who seek to resist always have to make a decision about whether to support a full rejection of the status quo or to accept frustratingly incremental change. But maybe it’s not always black and white. We need people like Ocasio-Cortez and Sinema on the left.

There is a specific time and place for their strategies, and Democrats should recognize the merits of both approaches.

Anita Ramaswamy is a senior studying political science. Anita can be reached at anita.ramaswamy@tufts.edu.

10

THE TUFTS DAILY | Sports | Monday, November 19, 2018

tuftsdaily.com

THANKSGIVING FEATURE

Sam Weidner Weidner’s Words

Jumbos Give Back, Part 1: Athletes brighten The Norway way children’s lives through bonds of friendship

M

oney has invaded American youth sports more and more in recent years. According to a recent report by the Aspen Institute, youth sports have grown into a $17 billion industry. This money, however, hasn’t led to an increase in youth sports participation — rather, the opposite. Participation in youth baseball, basketball, football and soccer has declined since 2008.

As expensive travel teams and clubs have spread to all sports in the United States, one’s financial means have become more of a factor in their ability to participate and succeed in sports. There exists plenty of motivation for parents to push their kids to succeed in sports as well, as billions of dollars in athletic scholarships are given out by colleges and universities around the country to the most talented high school athletes every year.

While there have always been the so-called “country club” sports associated with wealth and privilege such as tennis and golf, sports like basketball and football previously were seen as equalizers — models of the American meritocracy. The influx of money in these sports has changed that narrative. Parents with greater means can pay to enroll their children in private lessons and expensive travel teams, as well as afford the luxury of time to bring kids to distant practices and competitions, leaving less-privileged children behind.

This has all happened under the guise of increasing competitiveness, supposedly part of a pursuit of athletic excellence culminating in national pride. However, other countries have found success employing a different method.

In Norway, for example, an atmosphere of competitiveness is actually discouraged. Youth sports leagues are not allowed to keep score until the kids are 13 years old. According to Tore Ovrebo, director of elite sports for the Norwegian Olympic Committee, Norway places an emphasis on fun and friendship in its athletic atmosphere, from the youth sports level all the way up to the Olympics. On top of that, the Norwegian state subsidizes sports programs, directing large sums toward youth sports, which remove some of the financial burden on the parents of the kids who play.

This approach runs counter to what happens in the U.S., yet Norway is one of the most successful countries in the history of the Winter Olympics, winning a record 39 medals in 2018. Some of this success are probably due to the Norway’s cold and snowy climate, but they are clearly doing something right in the way they train their athletes.

As far as subsidizing youth sports, it seems like it would be hard to employ that model in the United States, where so many other institutions are already underfunded.

Norway funnels money into youth sports from its national lottery, but the U.S. already uses its own state lottery revenue to fund education, environmental protections and public transit.

There is something to be said for changing the culture of competition that exists in youth sports. By removing some of the private money and privilege associated with sports, more opportunities would open up for children of all backgrounds, hopefully creating at least one space of meritocracy that the U.S. has always claimed, but failed, to be.

Sam Weidner is a junior studying mathematics. He can be reached at samuel. weidner@tufts.edu.

COURTESY DAN DEWING

Tufts football players Dan Dewing, Tom Dell’Erario and Dan MacDonald pose with the team’s draftee, Zack Cummings, at the Team IMPACT Gala on May 9.

by Yuan Jun Chee and Arlo Moore-Bloom Executive Sports Editor and Sports Editor

It is easy to lose sight of the things that matter in life in the small bubble of competitive collegiate sports. Preseasons and postseasons sandwich some of the best times in college for Tufts athletes, but even so, the athletic community continues to give back in ways that make a difference in people’s lives year round.

Team IMPACT is a program aimed at connecting children battling serious illnesses with college athletes to help form precious relationships between them. Since its founding in 2011, various Tufts teams have been involved with the program, including the football team, the men’s and women’s soccer, basketball and lacrosse teams, as well as the baseball and softball teams.

According to Team IMPACT co-founder Jay Calnan (E ’87), it was Tufts’ early support for the organization that allows it to thrive today, in the shape of the 1,600 kids drafted into different colleges in every state in the continental United States. It’s all the more heartwarming that five of Team IMPACT’s Board of Directors attended Tufts, including Dan Kraft (LA ’87).

For both Calnan and Kraft, both former Tufts athletes, the decision to create Team IMPACT was a personal and simple one.

Calnan grew up with a younger brother with medical issues, while Kraft’s family has been heavily involved in philanthropy. Both Calnan and Kraft knew that Tufts’ emphasis on civic engagement cemented Team IMPACT’s place in the school’s community.

“Tufts does a really good job in recruiting athletes who have an understanding of how important academics are on campus but also a strong understanding of empathy and how important it is to engage in the community,” Calnan said. “The leadership of [Director of Athletics] John Morris, [Associate Athletic Director] John Casey and all the coaches that we’re working with … look for the right fit for student-athletes that involves excelling in the classroom, on the field and excelling in the community, and that empathy is something that I understand is a part of the recruiting process.”

Coach Martha Whiting, whose women’s soccer team was one of the first to support the Team IMPACT program, said that Team IMPACT has grown substantially during her time at Tufts.

“Our first draft day was literally at a summer league game in July where 10 of our girls were playing, and we had a cake and we met Joli [Vega] and her family. It was really

sweet,” Whiting said. “It’s grown into our last draft day [with Emily Matarese last year]: It was in the film room, we had a letter of intent, we had a NCAA background [and] we had a big table, so the way and the amount that it has grown in that short amount of time is really amazing.”

The football team’s ‘draftee’ is 16-yearold Zack Cummings from Saugus, Mass., who is fighting acute lymphoblastic lymphoma. For senior offensive lineman Dan Dewing, Cummings’ draft day was his favorite memory of Team IMPACT. According to Dewing, coach Jay Civetti had the players put up a picture in their locker at the beginning of the year about something that they were grateful for, and for Dewing, the choice of picture was obvious.

“Coach Civetti believes that you can’t be ungrateful and happy at the same time,” Dewing said. “The picture I have up there is the day of the draft. We went down to Gillette [Stadium], we had our football kickoff at Gillette and we drafted Zack. The news cameras were there, a few former Pats and cheerleaders were there. They brought [Zack] up and met [Patriots chairman and CEO] Robert Kraft, showed him Tom Brady’s Super Bowl ring. The kid’s face was glowing the whole day, it was unbelievable.”

Both Dewing and senior quarterback and co-captain Ryan McDonald said that they make it a point to head to Cummings’ house to catch “Thursday Night Football” with him. McDonald added that Cummings brings positive energy and fighting spirit to the team.

“One of my favorite memories hands down has to be one Thursday night walking in — I had a little bit of a limp because I was hurting from the game the week before and he’s like ‘Hey man are you okay, I noticed you’re limping’,” McDonald said. “I was like, ‘Yeah just gotta get past it, we’re tough guys.’

He goes to me, ‘You’re so tough’, and I say to him, ‘Zach, you’re one of the toughest guys I’ve ever met, and I gain my strength from you so never change.’ That’s just his caring mentality is awesome to be around all the time. I would say hands down that he cares more about Tufts football than he cares about himself.”

Whiting also said that it is the players, rather than the coaching staff, who take the lead on planning activities with their Team IMPACT teammates. The women’s soccer team usually plays Duck Duck Goose, tiedyes shirts, watches movies or picks out stickers with their teammate. Senior goalkeeper Emily Bowers said taking part in

these activities have been important for her development as an athlete.

“It’s provided perspective,” Bowers said. “We play soccer because we love it.

Having an impact player on our team opens your eyes to the fact that life’s bigger. There are people outside of soccer, and you’re not going to be exposed to them at Tufts unless you’re a part of those programs. It’s been a really cool Tufts experience, and I’m really glad soccer is part of it, too. It’s been cool for her to know us athletes, too. It brings a lightness to soccer I wouldn’t have found otherwise.”

Civetti said that the program has helped shaped the hearts and minds of the young athletes.

“I think most of the people look at it from the outside and say, ‘What a great thing for that young person and their families,’” Civetti said. “But the truth of the matter is our players and coaches, and the university gets a lot out of it too, whether it’s learning about humility, learning about just the general human condition and being there for people in times of need and in times of sorrow and times of joy. I think it’s a tremendous and really special organization that allows people to truly be able to feel grateful for what they have and remind us how lucky we are, how grateful we should be for what we have.”

Athletes’ participation in the program also benefits families. Kraft, himself a father of three children, said the proudest legacy of the program was the impact it has left on the children and their parents.

“As parents, you want to see your kids happy and part of something that makes them feel good and feel part of a community,” Kraft said. “When you have a kid that’s been dealt the unlucky card, these kids can’t participate for the most part in those extracurricular activities because a) they just can’t physically … do it or b) they’re going for treatments and their schedules are just thrown so off. What this really does is that it gives parents a chance to see their kids laugh and smile again and be part of a team, part of a group [and gives] role models and mentors [to] these kids, as well, who they look up to … as friends.”

Another significant program that Tufts athletes have been involved in for a period of time now is the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay (BBBSMB) program. The program pairs athletes with a little ‘brother’ or ‘sister’ in a local elementary school and athletes visit them to hang out with their see JUMBOS GIVE BACK, page 11

Sports

Mentorship programs highlight Jumbos’ role in community JUMBOS GIVE BACK

continued from page 10 little brother or sister once a week. While the Leonard Carmichael Society at Tufts has a partnership with the organization, Tufts athletics also has its own relationship with the organization.

According to Casey, Tufts’ relationship with the organization started around 2013, when it looked for support as it grew into East Cambridge. Upon hearing what the organization stood for, Casey and his team were on board.

“We had two guys, Max Freccia [LA ’14] and Christian Sbily [LA ’14], who led the charge on that one for us and they both took a lot of initiative, and we wound up having 10 of our guys do it that first year,” Casey said. “They came back and told the rest of their teammates how awesome it was … Consistently, we’ve had 10 to 12 guys every year do it, and now the program has expanded into Medford with many programs jumping in.”

Other Tufts programs that are involved in BBBSMB include the Tufts women’s basketball program. Given Tufts athletics’ growing commitment to the program,

BBBSMB launched a new program with the Columbus Elementary School in 2016 on top of its other partnership with Peabody Elementary School.

Junior guard/forward and co-captain Erica DeCandido, whose ‘little’ attends Columbus Elementary School, said that she usually goes down to the school for an hour on Friday mornings with the rest of her teammates and spends time with her at recess or in the computer lab.

“I think that being a student-athlete, you kind of get hooked into basketball and school all the time, so it’s kind of a nice break, too — it’s refreshing,” DeCandido said. “My little actually doesn’t really like sports and she likes more artsy things and being on the computer, so it’s kind of like a good break from everything, you realize how other people are and how other people live.”

Senior guard and co-captain Jac Knapp said that about 10 members of her team are involved with the program and that her love for helping children inspires her to give back.

“I absolutely love kids — just being there for them and giving them someone they can look up to and someone to talk [to] if they

don’t necessarily feel comfortable going to their family members,” Knapp said. “I kind of see it as helping them out by being a friend for them. It’s a nice break from college and basketball and a crazy life here to get to go … to an elementary school and spend time with your little brother and sister.”

Knapp said the program helped her become a better person for her ‘little.’

“It’s helped me be able to take situations I’ve dealt with growing up and provide that advice to my little sister and put it in a way that they understand,” Knapp said. “It is kind of nice to take experiences that you’ve had when you were younger and relate to them whatever it may be.”

Both Team IMPACT and BBBSMB have grown to have greater importance in the Tufts athletics community. And as this Thanksgiving season comes along, it’s perhaps an important reminder to be grateful for the important things in life — however ‘little.’

Editor’s note: This is the first part of a twopart story. Part 2 will be published in print, and the full story will be available online, on Nov. 28.

Tufts falls to Middlebury in fourth title game appearance FIELD HOCKEY

continued from back the season. Nicholas’ second goal of the game left Tufts down two scores with just 11 minutes to play in the title game.

The Jumbos fought hard to find a way back into the game in the waning minutes of their season, winning a pair of penalty corners and generating all four of their second-half shots. Despite a few promising chances, Middlebury senior goalkeeper and co-captain was forced into just one save in the final stretch. With under two minutes left, Tufts pulled first-year

11

Monday, November 19, 2018 | Sports | THE TUFTS DAILY

goalkeeper Andie Stallman to put an extra attacking player on the field, but the team was unable to cut into Middlebury’s lead.

The Panthers claimed their third NCAA title in four years, shutting out the Jumbos for the second time in the 2018 season.

“I’m incredibly proud of the whole team,” Mattera said. “I think that we had such excellent leaders in Gigi Tutoni and [senior midfielder and co-captain] Fallon Shaughnessy and just a great team dynamic this year. Everyone bought in, everyone understood that they were such a valuable part of the team.”

WEEKEND SCORES FIELD HOCKEY (19–3) vs. Johns Hopkins (NCAA SF) vs. Middlebury (NCAA final)

3–1 0–2

MEN’S SOCCER (16–0–3) Amherst (NCAA Round of 16) Montclair State (NCAA QF)

3–0 4–0

MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY NCAA Championship

25th of 32

WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY NCAA Championship

12th of 32

MEN’S BASKETBALL (2–0) vs. St. Joseph’s (Maine) at Roger Williams at Roger Williams

88–83 88–84

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL (2–0) vs. Springfield at Middlebury vs. Lasell at Middlebury

89–51 90–30

ICE HOCKEY (0–2) Trinity Wesleyan

0–3 0–1

MEN’S SQUASH (2–0) vs. Wesleyan at Harvard vs. Colby at Harvard

8–1 5–4

Tufts finished the year with a 19–3 record, with both NESCAC and NCAA runner-up honors to boot. The team’s appearance in the national title game was its fourth, following its victory in 2012 and losses in 2008 and 2016. While the Jumbos will graduate six seniors this year, they are confident in their prospects for the future, due to a host of rising talent.

“We had four [first-years] starting this year, so I’m pretty excited about what the future will bring,” Mattera said. “Now that they’ve had a taste of it … I see really good things for the future.”

Middlebury

Both teams created offensive chances in the opening minutes of the second half, with Tufts senior defender and co-captain Sterling Weatherbie ripping two shots from distance and Rojas having a shot blocked. The breakthrough eventually came in the 57th minute, when the Jumbos executed an exquisite passing sequence in the final third to give Rojas an open shooting lane to the goal. Tasker played a through ball to first-year defender Ian Daly on the left wing who dribbled the ball up quickly. He found Van Brewer, who had the vision to find Rojas to his right.

The Amherst defenders were unable to adjust their back line to cover Rojas, and he fired a shot that hit the inside of the right post and ricocheted in.

“You’re never going to break an Amherst team quickly — they’re too good,” Shapiro said. “And they demonstrated great quality and perseverance, but eventually some of our stronger qualities helped us take control of the game, and once we got the first goal, I thought we were in pretty good standing.”

The two goals that followed were less indicative of Tufts’ offensive prowess and more so mistakes by Amherst.

After a throw-in on the right wing, Enge’s shot was blocked by Amherst’s first-year goalkeeper Bernie White, but first-year midfielder Zachary Seigelstein was there to collect the rebound, which he volleyed into the goal. Then, with under three minutes remaining, the Jumbos sealed the win for good. As the Mammoths pushed forward to try and get themselves back

into the game, they were left exposed at the back. Tufts counterattacked swiftly, but a pass toward senior midfielder/forward Jarod Glover looked to have been just overhit. White could not corral the ball, leaving Glover with a simple tap-in to send the crowd home happy.

Mieth explained that defeating a tough opponent such as Amherst required focus throughout the game.

“Coach had said before the game that focus and composure was how we were going to match their intensity,” Mieth said. “I felt like in the back I was kind of mother hen — my ‘spidey’ senses were always tingling … keeping our guys organized, highly communicating with them all the time.”

With the Thanksgiving weekend approaching, the Jumbos will have to wait nearly two weeks before they travel to Greensboro, N.C. Despite the break, Shapiro is still confident in the team’s ability to prepare for the semifinal matchup.

“We tell [the players] to go home for Thanksgiving and eat a bunch of turkey and enjoy themselves, but make sure they stay fit and stay involved,” Shapiro said. “We’ll get a bunch of film on our opponents and give [the players] some opportunity to start watching them. And then we’ll still have a week to prepare when they get back.”

The No. 2 Jumbos will face the No. 9 Rochester Yellowjackets, who upset the No. 1 Messiah Falcons in the Elite Eight, on Dec. 1. If victorious, Tufts will play in the title game on Dec. 2 against either Calvin or Chicago.

WOMEN’S SQUASH (2–0) vs. Wesleyan at Harvard vs. Colby at Harvard

9–0 8–1

MEN’S SWIMMING Middlebury

168–89

WOMEN’S SWIMMING 167–116

Tufts seeks third title in five years MEN'S SOCCER

continued from back something we felt we could exploit,” Rojas said. “It’s a testament to coach [ Josh] Shapiro and our assistant coaches for letting us know how to break them down effectively by getting the ball wide and into the huge areas between the center backs and the wing backs, and I think we did that well today.”

In the 20th minute, sophomore midfielder Travis Van Brewer added Tufts’ third goal of the day off a loose ball from a throw in on the left flank, effectively sealing the team’s passage to the Final Four. According to Shapiro, the Red Hawks’ 3–5–2 formation allowed the Jumbos, playing in a 4–3–3, to work the balls down the flanks and then cut back into the middle. The Jumbos capitalized on this weakness in the 33rd minute to solidify their lead, allowing sophomore defender/ midfielder Derek Enge to notch the fourth and final score of the day.

“We felt we could exploit those areas out of midfield, and frankly, the guys did an unbelievable job,” Shapiro said.

“I thought we were as sharp as we’ve been, especially on the break. It was a great job executing a game plan that we got right today.”

Tufts generated several opportunities in the second half but did not ultimately extend its lead. Montclair State managed to generate a little bit more offensive momentum but could not create any solid opportunities, despite efforts by first-year midfielder Michael Knapp and junior forward Jose Huerta.

Shapiro explained that he had hoped his team would continue its offensive dominance into the second half, even with its significant halftime lead.

“We wanted to score, we wanted to kill it off, but we didn’t do that,” Shapiro said. “We weren’t as good offensively in the second half, but we still sustained really well. We conceded some possession but didn’t really concede any quality chances.

We were able to do that with 24 different guys playing today, which is an awesome reflection on the quality of our depth.”

Overall, the Jumbos outshot the Red Hawks 21–12. Senior goalkeeper and co-captain Conner Mieth contributed a solid performance in goal for the Jumbos, collecting five saves before being swapped for sophomore goalkeeper Will Harned on the 70th minute.

On Saturday, Tufts scored three second-half goals to down NESCAC rival Amherst to advance to the Elite Eight.

Both teams pressed hard in the first half, but neither managed to gain significant periods of possession. The Mammoths were able to prevent the Jumbos from winning any corners until the 37th minute, when the Jumbos earned four corners in under four minutes. Amherst was awarded numerous free kicks in the first half of the game, creating potentially dangerous scenarios in Tufts’ end of the field. But a combination of bad deliveries and solid marking by the Jumbos prevented the visitors from capitalizing on their opportunities.

12 tuftsdaily.com

Sports

Monday, November 19, 2018

Men’s soccer advances to Final Four after dominant wins over Amherst, Montclair State

COURTESY EVAN SAYLES

Tufts’ junior midfielder Brett Rojas defends the ball in the team’s 4–0 Elite Eight win over Montclair State on Nov. 18.

by Maddie Payne, Arlo Moore-Bloom and Jake Freudberg Tufts Daily Sports Staff

Tufts heads to the Final Four of the NCAA Div. III tournament after hosting Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games this weekend. The Jumbos (16– 0–3) defeated the Amherst Mammoths (14–5–1) 3–0 Saturday, before rolling through the Montclair State Red Hawks (18–2–4) in a 4–0 romp Sunday, scoring all of its goals in the first half. Tufts will be seeking its third national championship in five years at the Final Four.

Tufts’ dominant NCAA tournament performance has silenced any doubters of its preseason No. 5 national ranking.

The team rampaged to a 9–0 start to the season, its best since 1994, and is still undefeated.

One of the Jumbos’ biggest goals was to increase their offensive output after failing to score in the NCAA tournament last year and — excluding a 10–0 thrashing in the regular season — posting a measly average of 1.9 goals per game. The 2017 team’s strength was in its defense, highlighted by its 0.09 average goals against throughout the season.

As of this weekend, the team’s averages have improved over last season’s showing, averaging 2.16 goals per game and 0.45 average goals against.

In Sunday’s Elite Eight matchup against the Red Hawks, the Jumbos jumped out to a quick start in the first half, piling on four goals in 33 minutes. In the eighth minute, junior midfielder Brett Rojas stole the ball from Montclair State in its defensive third and played a through ball to junior forward Joe Braun, who tucked a low shot under helpless senior goalkeeper and co-captain Mike Saalfrank. Eight

minutes later, Rojas earned his second assist of the day: After slipping and almost losing possession, Rojas recovered and worked the ball over to junior midfielder/forward Gavin Tasker, whose shot deflected off Saalfrank and rolled into the back of the net.

Rojas said that pregame preparation allowed the offense to exploit some of Montclair State’s weaknesses.

“Being able to play [Braun] against the center back and our wingers oneon-one throughout the game was

the late game 4–2 to set-up a mouthwatering all-NESCAC final.

The Panthers were a thorn in the Jumbos’ side all season, handing them their only two losses before the NCAA tournament: one in the regular season and one in the NESCAC title game. On a neutral site in Manheim, Pa. and with the match moved indoors due to weather concerns, all bets were off.

On the field’s fast AstroTurf, which fits their playing style well, the Jumbos got off to a quick start, controlling possession and keeping the ball in the Panthers’ end. Tufts’ pressure culminated in the team’s winning the first penalty corner of the game in the eighth minute, but the Middlebury defense was able to hold its own and turn away the attack.

Middlebury soon generated its first opportunity through a penalty corner, and one was all it needed. Middlebury junior midfielder Marissa Baker’s shot was blocked 13 minutes in, but sophomore defender Erin Nicholas knocked the ball into the goal from a tight angle on the right side.

The goal did not change the complexion of the game, however, as possession and momentum remained in the Jumbos’ favor.

Tufts racked up seven penalty corners in the first half, but the Middlebury defense held strong on each occasion. Despite the Jumbos’ lopsided advantage in shots (8–3), the Panthers went into halftime up a score thanks to Nicholas’ strike.

“I thought we really dominated the first half in terms of shots and corners, and we

just couldn’t finish on our corners,” coach Tina Mattera said. “I think [Middlebury has] a really strong defensive corner unit, and we were having trouble getting the ball in and getting shots on cage.”

The Panthers made the right adjustments at halftime, gaining control of possession in the second half. The Jumbos were unable to get off a shot in the first 20 minutes of the half, prompting a timeout from Mattera.

The timeout did not prove fruitful, however, as Tufts could not shift the tide in its favor. Four minutes later, Nicholas cemented the Panthers’ lead with a diving sweep shot from the left side into the right corner of the net for her 17th goal of

Field hockey falls 2–0 in national championship game

by Ryan Eggers Sports Editor

After 19 wins, a NESCAC championship game appearance and a dominant run through the NCAA tournament, Tufts fell just short of a national championship, losing 2–0 in the title game to a familiar foe, Middlebury.

The stage was set on Saturday, when Tufts ousted Johns Hopkins in a convincing 3–1 victory. The Jumbos struck first through sophomore midfielder Beth Krikorian and added a pair of goals in the second half from junior forward Rachel Hamilton and senior forward and co-captain Gigi Tutoni. Tutoni’s goal was the 31st of her career, tying her for fifth in program history. Meanwhile, on the other side of the bracket, Middlebury put away Rowan in

see MEN'S SOCCER, page 11

see FIELD HOCKEY, page 11