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Sunrise
No full textScannedXVI712SabaH is a Bosnian-language weekly newspaper that was published in the United States between December 1997 and October 2014. It was founded in Astoria, NY. In 2006, publishing was relocated to St. Louis, MO, but the newspaper continued its national distribution. A typical issue contains about 50 pages and features bold headlines and many photos, with articles from both Bosnia- and US-based contributors. SabaH was established to help Bosnian immigrants deal with life in their new home and keep them informed of events in their war-torn country. Its name translates to 'sunrise', symbolizing the arrival of a new generation of Bosnian immigrants in the US.Click on the blue Maximize button in the top right corner of each image to browse the pages of an issue. This project was made possible by a generous donation from Susan Powers of St. Louis, MO. Digitization is ongoing
Sunrise
No full textScannedIII153SabaH is a Bosnian-language weekly newspaper that was published in the United States between December 1997 and October 2014. It was founded in Astoria, NY. In 2006, publishing was relocated to St. Louis, MO, but the newspaper continued its national distribution. A typical issue contains about 50 pages and features bold headlines and many photos, with articles from both Bosnia- and US-based contributors. SabaH was established to help Bosnian immigrants deal with life in their new home and keep them informed of events in their war-torn country. Its name translates to 'sunrise', symbolizing the arrival of a new generation of Bosnian immigrants in the US.Click on the blue Maximize button in the top right corner of each image to browse the pages of an issue. This project was made possible by a generous donation from Susan Powers of St. Louis, MO. Digitization is ongoing
Sunrise
No full textScannedIII150SabaH is a Bosnian-language weekly newspaper that was published in the United States between December 1997 and October 2014. It was founded in Astoria, NY. In 2006, publishing was relocated to St. Louis, MO, but the newspaper continued its national distribution. A typical issue contains about 50 pages and features bold headlines and many photos, with articles from both Bosnia- and US-based contributors. SabaH was established to help Bosnian immigrants deal with life in their new home and keep them informed of events in their war-torn country. Its name translates to 'sunrise', symbolizing the arrival of a new generation of Bosnian immigrants in the US.Click on the blue Maximize button in the top right corner of each image to browse the pages of an issue. This project was made possible by a generous donation from Susan Powers of St. Louis, MO. Digitization is ongoing
Sunrise
No full textScannedIII147SabaH is a Bosnian-language weekly newspaper that was published in the United States between December 1997 and October 2014. It was founded in Astoria, NY. In 2006, publishing was relocated to St. Louis, MO, but the newspaper continued its national distribution. A typical issue contains about 50 pages and features bold headlines and many photos, with articles from both Bosnia- and US-based contributors. SabaH was established to help Bosnian immigrants deal with life in their new home and keep them informed of events in their war-torn country. Its name translates to 'sunrise', symbolizing the arrival of a new generation of Bosnian immigrants in the US.Click on the blue Maximize button in the top right corner of each image to browse the pages of an issue. This project was made possible by a generous donation from Susan Powers of St. Louis, MO. Digitization is ongoing
Sunrise
No full textScannedIV159SabaH is a Bosnian-language weekly newspaper that was published in the United States between December 1997 and October 2014. It was founded in Astoria, NY. In 2006, publishing was relocated to St. Louis, MO, but the newspaper continued its national distribution. A typical issue contains about 50 pages and features bold headlines and many photos, with articles from both Bosnia- and US-based contributors. SabaH was established to help Bosnian immigrants deal with life in their new home and keep them informed of events in their war-torn country. Its name translates to 'sunrise', symbolizing the arrival of a new generation of Bosnian immigrants in the US.Click on the blue Maximize button in the top right corner of each image to browse the pages of an issue. This project was made possible by a generous donation from Susan Powers of St. Louis, MO. Digitization is ongoing
University News - Volume 102, Issue 003 (December, 2023)
No full text24 pages.Vol. CII No. 3
DEC. 2023
SLU’s Pet Portraits!
Full Story on Page 13
Body Images:
How Society Changes
What’s in the Mirror
Full Story on Page 22
300 Protesters Gather
for Palestine Protest
Story on Page 2 Photos on Page 3
Some Jewish Students
at SLU Feel Isolated
Full Story on Page 4
AI Art is No Evil
Boogeyman,
But a Tool
Full Story on Page 20
News 02
OWEN HERDRICK, LAUREN HUTCHENS & ULAA KUZIEZ
Senior Writer, News Editors
Around 300 protestors gathered at the Saint
Louis University Clock Tower in support of
Palestine, demanding the university call for
a ceasefire and cut ties with Boeing, a local
manufacturer of weapons used by Israel against
the Gaza Strip.
Speakers’ comments on Wednesday ranged from
the condemnation of Israel’s military campaign to
criticism of SLU’s “complacency.”
Ahead of the protest, seven student groups from
SLU, WashU, SIUE and UMSL sent a joint letter
to each university’s respective leader, urging
them to publicly condemn Israel’s actions and
calling on them to hold “students and employees
accountable for Islamaphobic and racist actions.”
“As institutions of higher education, our
universities must act as a pillar of truth for the
communities they serve, providing nuanced and
informed perspectives,” their letter read.
The protest was organized by Occupy SLU, a new
student organization that reclaims the name and
the legacy of the 2014 Occupy SLU movement,
organizers said.
“We’re gonna continue to protest, we’re gonna
continue to fight this institution that claims to be
pro-life,” said Mexican-American student Julian
Garcia, one of the organization’s founders.
With hate crimes on the rise across the country,
junior Nadia Abusoud said the SLU administration
should prioritize the safety of Palestinian
students. She pointed to the shooting of three
Palestinian college students in Vermont this
month, saying neutral university stances do little
to combat tense political climates.
“We want more universities in the St. Louis
region to take responsibility and release messages
regarding their Palestinian and their Muslim
students,” Abusoud said.
Abusoud, who co-organized the protest, added
that she welcomes a statement that condemns
antisemitism while emphasizing that pro-
Palestinian speech is not hateful.
Two students who spoke with the University
News said they have tried to directly reach SLU
president Dr. Fred Pestello to urge him to take a
“humanitarian stance.”
Gabriel De Castilhos, a Brazilian graduate
student, emailed Pestello about his “passive,
problem-avoidant” stance. Castilhos did not
receive a response.
“I urge SLU to take the humanitarian stance and
avoid the easy way out of only ‘against Hamas.’
Take a true stance and stand WITH Palestine,” De
Castilhos’ email read.
Ahlam Jaber, a Lebanese Ph.D. student in the
English department, attempted to meet with the
president but instead had a conversation with his
representative, Kasi Williamson.
“I told the president’s office this, and I’ll say
it again: while I understand the desire to be as
politically and socially conscientious, and he’s in
a certain position where he needs to think about
various relationships that he has, that email, in
particular, was essentially a nothing email,” Jaber
said, referencing an email Pestello sent to the
campus community on Oct. 13.
Williamson encouraged Jaber to use campus
resources as safe spaces, but Jaber said the
university’s neutral public stance prevents
students from feeling safe and supported.
“How are students going to feel safe to even
go to those spaces? Your Muslim students, your
Jewish students or Arab students, how are they
going to feel safe going into those spaces at the
university that has not set the precedent of truth?”
Jaber said.
Jaber acknowledged how multiple buildings and
pieces of land align with SLU’s historical tendency
to be complacent and reside on the wrong side of
history. She made references to the origin of Pius
Library’s name and the enslaved people who built
the campus.
“How many times do we want to take a stance
that doesn’t do right by the people that are
oppressed, how many times?” said Jaber.
Students marched on Laclede and West Pine,
stopping briefly outside Pius Library for speeches
that mentioned the University’s academic
partnership with Boeing.
Emma Hukeljic, a junior at the Richard A.
Chaifetz Business School, told the University
News that if SLU does not cut ties with Boeing, the
students should.
“It’s important for us to be educated on the topic
and for those students to make a decision for
themselves not to go for their internships, or work
in the Boeing Institute in the school,” Hukeljic
said.
The joint student letter cited Boeing’s role
in the rising death toll in Gaza. “While Boeing
manufactures instruments of genocide in
our backyards, our universities hold Boeing
recruitment events on our campuses, invest our
endowments in Boeing, and encourage Boeing
to take advantage of our students’ and faculty’s
research,” the letter said.
Controversy arose when a student, self-describing
as Indian, took the podium during
an open-mic period of the protest and falsely
mistranslated verses from the Quran. He was
kicked off the mic by organizers and promptly
ushered away by DPS.
Later, Palestinian students claimed he and others
yelled “terrorist” at them, and was again guided
away by DPS officers. While officers say counter-protests
are lawful, agitation is not. Lieutenant
Joshua Johnson said there is “likely no crime
violation,” but the student will be reported to the
Office of Student Responsibility and Community
Standards.
About a dozen officers were present Wednesday
night, blocking entrances to buildings like Pius
Library. Melinda Heikkinen, Assistant Vice
President of the Department of Public Safety, told
protest organizers she supports their right of free
speech, but requested that they not enter and
disrupt any buildings.
Heikkinen also told organizers that anyone
wearing “military-style” clothing and “head
coverings” would be asked to change or leave. She
said this is to ensure other students don’t feel
“fearful.”
Protest organizers like Abusoud said this is a
“double standard.” “ROTC kids wear that, we’re
not removing them. It’s so incredibly angering,”
Abusoud said.
Some passersby flipped off protesters as they
marched down West Pine. DPS intervened
immediately after the protesters returned it.
Conversely, as protesters marched along Grand
Ave., some cars honked in support.
Student organizers like Garcia, said they hope
to meet with the President’s office in the coming
weeks.
Students promised a week of action at college
campuses in the St. Louis area starting Monday,
Dec. 4. “We will keep fighting until every one of us
is free,” students wrote in the letter.
Hundreds Gather to
Support Palestine
Demanding University
Action
news 03
(Own Herdrick/ The University News)
Ahmad Saleh, a student at the University of Missou-ri-
St. Louis, holds a sign as he marches in support
of “We wanna end this occupation,” Saleh said.
“We wanna end the genocide that is happening in
Palestine.”
(Shah Shamsipour/ The University News)
Sophomore Nader Badwan holds a Palestinian flag as he leads a group of protestors onto
the sidewalk of Laclede Ave. on Nov. 29.
(Sana’a Abouantoun/ The University News)
(Sana’a Abouantoun/ The University News)
(Shah Shamsipour/ The University News)
News Some Jewish Students 04
at SLU Feel Isolated,
Unwelcome
Following Hamas’ attack on Israel and the ensuing war
on the Gaza Strip, Jewish and Palestinian students alike
continue to mourn those they have lost. The war has
devastated not only Gaza, but also the lives of many
of those with ties to the region. On American college
campuses, the conflict may feel far away, but the discourse
has come home.
Some SLU Jewish students report that they feel
increasingly isolated from the community that is meant to
support them.
In interviews with the University News, Jewish students
at SLU reported items being thrown at them as well as
frequent exclamations about the war being directed at
those who are visually identifiable as Jewish.
All students who spoke to the University News called for
a statement from the University that explicitly condemns
antisemitism and acknowledges the fear that Jewish
students have been feeling.
An undergraduate student in the Doisy College of
Health Sciences, who requested to remain anonymous
citing safety concerns, reflected upon their experiences
as a practicing and visually identifiable Jewish person on
campus. They said that while their immediate community
has been understanding and supportive, they felt as
though the university has been failing, citing a lack of
direct communication from faculty and staff.
“I think that the school as a whole does not support us.
I think that the people who actually interact with Jews do,
but there are so few Jews here that it’s become diluted,” the
student said. “The school does not care about us.”
Anthony Chaboude, a Jewish SLU undergraduate
student, said he feels those in his immediate
community have largely abandoned him as a result of
the war, explaining that many around him do not see
discrimination against Jewish people as a serious problem.
“If I’m being honest, personally, I feel very drained. I feel
like people I thought I knew, my friends, don’t support
me. They talk down to me, like I’m the ignorant one. Like
the Jewish experiences, being discriminated against as
a Jew, does not matter right now, because of the whole
Israel-Palestine conflict,” Chaboude said.
As hate crimes rise across the United States, including
antisemitic threats at Cornell University and attacks at
Tulane, as well as Islamophobic attacks in Vermont, some
Jewish students are concerned about their safety
As of Nov. 29, there have been no reported hate crimes
reported on campus, according to Melinda Heikkinen,
Assistant Vice President of the Department of Public
Safety.
“We have increased the visibility of DPS staff and
are always on the lookout for anything that could be
considered a bias incident or a hate crime,” Heikkinen
said.
“I also stay in close contact with local, state and federal
officials to stay abreast of any activity that could impact
our campus. All of us in DPS are very aware of the impact
current world events having on our campus community
and are always prepared to support those who may need
us.”
President Fred Pestello sent an email on Oct. 13
reflecting on the violence and extending sympathy to
both Israeli and Palestinian students. Jewish students the
University News spoke with said they felt this was not
enough.
A senior Jewish student in the Chaifetz Business School
said that the delay between the attacks on Israel and the
President’s comments left them feeling lost and ignored.
They explained that, in the days following the attack, their
peers felt betrayed by a faculty that was silent on the issue.
“The timing is pretty questionable. I think students
probably deserve an explanation as to why [President]
Pestello waited some five or six days after the attack to
make a comment,” the senior said. “Students, many of
whom felt afraid for their own safety, probably would have
really needed some more dialogue earlier.”
In regards to these concerns, a university statement
sent to the University News by SLU spokesman Clayton
Berry referenced the explanation contained in the Oct. 13
email, which said that Pestello had “paused and reflected
at length to discern what [he] might offer in a message to
you.”
The statement went on to condemn hate and prejudice
on SLU’s campus and provide recommendations for
resources that are available to students.
“Antisemitism, Islamophobia or any form of religious
bigotry have no place at SLU. The University strongly
condemns discrimination or harassment that targets
religious, ethnic or other identities. If a student has
experienced or witnessed bias, discrimination or
harassment, we urge them to immediately contact the
University’s Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity.
SLU has a clear and supportive process to investigate and
respond to any incident that’s reported,” Berry wrote in
the statement.
The only group for Jewish students at SLU, the
Jewish Student Association, has recently undergone a
political schism that is primarily centered on political
disagreements and differences on the appropriateness of
dialogues about the war.
A graduate student who is involved in JSA said that the
schism has eclipsed a much-needed support system. A
smaller, informal community within the JSA has formed
to provide support for those mourning and encourage
discussion.
“[Students feel] isolated. Students feel really let down;
students feel like they don’t have any access to support,”
the graduate student said.
In the midst of turmoil in the student group, some
Jewish students also feel disconnected from the university
avenues that they say are supposed to be available to
support them.
Susanne Chawszczewski, Director of Campus Ministries,
said that the Campus Ministry staff are available as
resources to students who need support and are also there
to direct students toward other university resources such
as the Counseling Center. She said, “In times of crisis,
both individual and global, we are always available to
listen to, support and be available to students.”
Chawszczewski also reports that Campus Ministries has
met with “individual and small groups of Jewish students”
to provide support in the past several weeks. They also
provided logistical support for the prayer vigil that was
held on Oct.18 to mourn the victims of the conflict, both
Israeli and Palestinian.
However, some Jewish students feel as though the
university could, and should be doing more.
Students say that subtle and blatant antisemitism and
ignorance of Jewish students on campus did not begin
with the war, but instead has constituted an ongoing
experience.
A Jewish graduate student in the College of Arts &
Sciences explained that SLU Academic Calendar does
not mark some Jewish holidays correctly and that this, in
the past, has caused issues communicating with some of
their professors about time off and extensions. Further,
they explained that the lack of Kosher dining options on
campus, which they noted are present at smaller schools
like Maryville University, presents a large deterrent for
Jewish students considering applying to SLU.
The graduate student also remarked upon previous,
more direct, antisemitism they said they faced before Oct.
7.They claimed that, during a conversation on the Israel-
Palestine conflict that another student initiated, they were
asked, “Why do you care about their lives? Are you a Jew?”
As the war nears its third month and tensions continue
to rise, Jewish students say the University as a whole must
reflect upon its attitude toward its Jewish population.
An undergraduate student in the Chaifetz Business
School said that antisemitism should concern everyone,
not just Jewish people. Citing an understanding of the
history of prejudice against people of the Jewish diaspora,
they explained that antisemitism is also the first step
toward a larger swelling of hate.
“The thing about antisemitism is that it starts with
Jewish people, but it never ends with Jewish people. When
Jewish people are the victims of hate or prejudice, it’s
often the first step before other minorities and vulnerable
populations are targeted themselves,” the Chaifetz student
said.
Students acknowledge that the university has a
commitment to remaining impartial, and do not expect
the university to align with their political beliefs. The
Chaifetz student expressed a sentiment shared by their
peers: “There should be nothing controversial or political
about condemning anti-semitism or prejudice.”
If you or someone you know has been a victim of a hate
crime, reach out to DPS at 314-977-3000. The University
also provides limited, complimentary counseling. To
contact, call 314-977-8255.
GRANT BELLCHAMBER
Senior Writer
news 05
Latine Community Members Claim they Feel
Underrepresented Post Hispanic Heritage Month
After Hispanic Heritage Month, which ran from Sept.
15 to Oct. 15, many students have criticized Saint Louis
University’s lack of recognition and effort.
There were only two events celebrating the month,
none of which the University or DICE directly organized.
Latino students and faculty say the lack of school-sponsored
celebratory events is disappointing.
Latinos make up 10% of the undergraduate student
body. They stand as the second largest minority group at
SLU according to the 2023 SLU profile, which is around
1,300 students.
According to Katherine Knuckles from the Office of
Institutional Research, if you remove the students from
the Madrid campus from the percentage, it drops down
to 8.7% for undergraduates.
On Sept. 15, OASIS hosted the Hispanic and Latinx
Heritage Month Kick-Off event, with funding provided
by the Cross Cultural Center, in the Center for Global
Citizenship (CGC). The event had a variety of foods, a
presentation discussing Hispanic and Latinx cultures and
games. The event drew 54 attendees.
The School of Medicine was the only other group to
recognize Hispanic Heritage Month. On Sept. 15, they
hosted a brief event at the Learning Resource Center
Auditorium with a few panelists and food sampling.
Puerto Rican student Markos Wester-Rivera, a
senior majoring in Political Science, vocalized his
disappointment in the lack of acknowledgment by
emailing the Division of Diversity and Innovative
Community Engagement (DICE).
The email included four other students who felt similarly.
In the email, Wester-Rivera wrote that “as a Latino
student”, he “hoped with a new VP of DICE there would
be more of an effort to acknowledge the presence and
achievement of the Latino community.”
He also said that he found it difficult to be a Latino on
campus due to the lack of acknowledgment and efforts by
staff.
“I will note that the folks over at the CCC have done an
amazing job on their part, however, that has been more
of a background role supporting groups like Oasis or
hosting events like ATLAS week,” Wester-River wrote in
the email.
To conclude his message, he pointed out how there
wasn’t an email or event on SLU’s part regarding Hispanic
Heritage Month as a whole.
He has since received no response from DICE.
Wester-Rivera said that the lack of recognition made
him feel, “ignored, like SLU doesn’t care.”
“It’s frustrating when any sort of community or sense
of belonging on campus has to be made by ourselves. Yet,
that is DICE’s entire campaign and what they say they
do,” Wester-Rivera said.
Wester-Rivera is the Senior Advisor for OASIS and
said that as a student group, they can only do so much.
He said he would like to see at least an email and a SLU
organized event acknowledging Hispanic Heritage Month
that isn’t faculty or student-led.
“There was one event MLK scholars put on last year, it
was a panel of Latine leaders on campus, but guess who
put that on? Me,” Wester-Rivera said. “You want us to
thrive, but don’t even acknowledge our existence.”
Senior Pedro Valadez, a Mexican-American, a Political
Science major and Spanish minor, said he typically only
sees discussions hosted by Spanish professors in the
Spanish department.
“I mean, it makes you feel invisible. There’s already not
a lot of us on campus,” said Valadez.
Valadez said he wishes SLU reached out to the
Latino community more, checked in on them and
made sure they are adjusting properly. He also said
the Latino community would benefit more from more
representation on campus, similar to how they put up
signs for Black Jesuits for Black Catholic History Month.
According to Valadez, there was only one instance that
he remembered in which signs of famous Latinos were
put up, which was in McGannon Hall.
“No one goes in that building. It’s an old decrepit
building and it’s literally in a random hallway. No one’s
gonna see that,” said Valadez. “Maybe try to put it more
out there where people can read it.”
Valadez suggested West Pine as a good place to put
up signs since many sororities, fraternities, and other
informative messages sponsored by groups go along West
Pine to allow for maximum viewing.
“I feel like they try so hard to get you here and then
after your first year, they’re like ‘oh, we’re here for you’,
and then just disappear,” said Valadez. “I got no help. This
is why I feel some people drop out, because you feel like
you have your whole support system freshman year and
then next thing you know, it’s gone.”
A 2023 graduation and retention report found that
SLU’s dropout rate is at 30%, or 802 students who did not
complete their degree.
Valadez said that he wants SLU to be a place for his
younger siblings, but that he worries that if they came,
they would have no support and nowhere to go where
they feel accepted.
“I want my siblings to be able to go here and not feel
like they have no place to go,” said Valadez.
According to the research provided by Knuckles, in
2023, only 3% of faculty members identified as Latino,
or around 81 faculty members. SLU has lost four Latino
faculty members since last year, but have held a steady 3%
for the past four years.
This number includes, but is not limited to,
instructional faculty, adjunct faculty, clinical faculty and
both full-time and part-time faculty.
As one of a handful of Latino faculty members at SLU,
Dr. Onésimo (Ness) Sándoval, a Mexican-American and
sociology professor, believes that Latino events should
not only be led by student groups like Oasis.
“It shouldn’t just be Oasis, right, it’s not their
responsibility,” Sándoval said. “They should be invited
to the table to have a say in setting the agenda, but
the university should be intentional saying this is an
important month for our students, many of our students.”
Sándoval said he did not receive
University News - Volume 102, Issue 001 (September, 2023)
No full text24 pages.Graduate Students bound for SLU
Denied Entry, Barred for Five Years
Full Story on Page 2 and 3
(Photo Courtesy of Sarah Conroy)
“The Culture:” A Resounding Tribute to Hip-Hop
and its Artistic Ephemera
Page 7
Student Tenants Raise Concerns about
the Coronado
Page 5
Vol. CII No. 1
SepT. 2023
News 02
Graduate Students bound for SLU
Denied Entry, Barred for Five Years
LAUREN HUTCHENS
News Editor
Twenty-one graduate students from India –
approximately 15 meant to attend Saint Louis
University – were denied entry after being stopped
by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
for visa-related issues despite completing all of
the regular visa formalities. The students are now
barred from traveling outside the country for
five years, their visas are canceled, they have lost
nearly 16,000.
The officer did not believe her. He questioned
whether she was truly going to St. Louis as a student
or to illegally work. They examined her I-20 form,
which proves legal enrollment in a program of
study in the U.S., and they continued to ask her
more questions about why she chose SLU.
As she continued to answer his questions, officers
accused her of lying. Finally, she was asked to
return to the waiting room.
“After the entire conversation they had told us
‘you people come here to just work, not study’,”
said Ramakrishna. “Even though we had the entire
proof… like our admit letter, our I-20’s, we had even
bought a house to scale up for accommodation and
showed the lease agreement stating that we will be
staying here and paying money for it.”
Still, the officer continued to insist she and the
other students were coming to illegally work.
Shortly after, Srinivas was called into the office
and asked the same questions.
Srinivas also talked about the scholarship he had
received of 1,000. He shared his dreams of becoming a pilot
and how SLU has a good aviation program.
“He’s like, ‘So you’re telling me that St. Louis is
the only university in the entire universe which
offers this service?’” said Srinivas. He continued to
explain that no, he had applied to other schools as
well, but this was his top choice.
This was when the officer asked for his phone.
“I was just shocked at this moment. Like a phone,
why would he ask for my phone?” said Srinivas.
He was asked to unlock the phone and login to his
WhatsApp, Instagram and other communication
apps. The officer told him that he must only
communicate the truth, and any lies would be used
against him.
Srinivas was handed a slip of paper stating
officers were permitted to check his phone, laptop
and any documents they have – and that they have
to comply.
Afterward, he was asked to wait in a different
room as they searched his phone.
He said that inside this room he could see out
into the original waiting room but they could not
see into his room. The same things were happening
to other students who were there too – they were
called in, sent out and had their phones taken away
as well, Srinivas said.
After waiting for about half an hour to an hour, he
was called back in.
“While sitting there,” said Srinivas, “He was
staring at me. Like whenever I would look at him
randomly he was always staring at me. You know?
Like these big intimidating stares.”
Srinivas said he felt hope for a moment, despite
the intimidation, as he had noticed other students
getting their passports handed back to them with a
white piece of paper.
“He puts a sheet of paper in front of me, which
states that they feel I am not a legitimate student
trying to enter the U.S. and that they feel the
(Photo courtesy of Manisha Ramakrishna)
news 03
LAUREN HUTCHENS
News Editor
the documents I have are not legal proof,” he said.
The Formal Interrogation
He then faced an interrogation interview.
“When I saw that, I was fully and completely
shocked, like I’m literally not able to feel anything
in my body. I’m like what? Is this even real?” said
Srinivas after seeing that he may be barred for five
years.
When he asked what was happening, the officer
told him that he was the one asking questions, not
Srinivas.
Srinivas was asked to raise his right hand and
repeat, “Whatever I speak shall be the truth, and
only be the truth. I shall not lie with any sort of
forms.”
In addition to questions about his personal life, the
officer then began to ask about a consultancy group
chat they have on their WhatsApp called Educates
IDP. IDP is an education consultancy group in India
that guides students with their studies abroad,
including admission and visa process.
The officer began to ask about the group chat,
specifically about a document shared in the chat
of possible questions that could be asked during a
visa interview. Srinivas explained to The University
News that he wanted to be well-prepared.
“And then he’s like, ‘Do you know it’s against
immigration law to be coached for any interviews?’”
said Srinivas. Except, the questions provided by
IDP were available on many other platforms such
as Google, Quora, YouTube or articles published
by students sharing their experiences. Bahan
confirmed they provide similar questions for their
international students as well before they come.
They began to question him again as to why he
hadn’t paid the university fees.
He told the officer that he paid a $200 installment
deposit, but the officer stated that he could not
accept this.
Then the officer asked him to leave the room, but
when Srinivas pleaded to talk with them more, they
began to threaten him with force or a citation.
The couple believes that the officers did not find
their interview and documents satisfactory enough.
Ramakrishna pulled out a large file of documents
during a virtual interview. “We have this entire file,”
she said. “All of these are documents which we had
carried to the U.S., though he didn’t even care to
check one of these documents and he stated that we
are not just students.”
After he returned to the waiting room, they
waited for about four or five hours more before
Ramakrishna was called back into the office.
Ramakrishna stated her experience was similar.
She had to raise her right hand and pledge to not
lie. Her questions were the same as Srinivas, but
something different happened – they ruined
her bachelor’s degree certificate.
She said that the officer was curious to
see what the certificate looked like in her
country.. Once he gave it back to her, upon
request, it was folded in half. This can ruin
the credibility of the document.
Later in the interview, the officer asked for
her I-20, again.
“I told him I already gave him my I-20,” said
Ramakrishna. “He said, ‘I lost it, give me another
one’, so that’s how careless they were.”
Luckily, she came prepared and had another
photo copy in her file, but the officer lost the signed
original she had.
She said the officer also questioned why she had a
LinkedIn account.
“I was literally surprised, why was he linking
my LinkedIn account to my immigration?” said
Ramakrishna.
Before sending her back to the waiting room,
Ramakrishna asked if he planned on sending them
back to India – he replied yes.
She asked the officer to inform her parents, since
he had confiscated her phone. Ramakrishna said it
had been a long time since she had contacted her
parents, and felt that her parents should know what
was happening. She even asked for a single phone
call with them, to which the officer replied, ‘no’.
She said the officer told her he would message her
mom for her on WhatsApp, but she later found that
he never did.
She went back to sit with Srinivas, and they waited
for about three hours before being called again. This
time, with even worse news – their visas had been
canceled and they were barred from the country for
five years.
“We were literally so shocked. We started sobbing
so badly,” said Ramakrishna. “It was, I guess, a
nightmare for us.”
After they heard the news, they went back to the
waiting room. Later, Ramakrishna was called back
alone.
Her body and belongings were searched before
being moved to a small cubicle cell where she would
be held with one other roommate, still without a
phone.
In the cell, there was an open toilet with no handle
to flush. If she wanted to flush, she would have to
ask a guard from the outside to do so for her. Above
the toilet was a camera as well, she said.
“We had to sleep on the floor with a very small
thin mattress, like a baby-sized mattress, and they
had given a very thin aluminum foil type like paper-thin,
to cover us in the cold,” said Ramakrishna.
With minimal resources, she explained they had
no access to food or water until much later.
“You are not provided with any food or water, or
any kind of basic human needs,” said Ramakrishna.
Later on, Srinivas was the last to be called back to
the office. He noted that the time at this point was
about 3:30 a.m.
The officers took his biometrics and DNA with a
swab of his cheek.
When the officers explained the situation to
Srinivas, he pleaded with them to make a change.
“Then I requested to him to please reduce
it, like I begged them, because it was the
last hope I had to change their mindset.”
The officers told him to save his energy
and not waste their time. He was then asked to sign
off on three statements.
The statements: one declaring he spoke the truth,
the second to admit he broke the immigration law
and the last was an agreement to a five-year ban.
According to Srinivas, the officer then said, “I
should give you a lifetime ban for being coached
for an interview. Be happy that I’m not giving you a
lifetime ban.”
He was then given five seconds to sign, and if he
didn’t, the officer would give him a lifetime ban.
“He forced me to sign it basically,” said Srinivas.
“We didn’t want to sign. We only wanted to sign for
the first one.”
Once he had signed, the officer led him down a
narrow hallway where he could see all the cells.
That is when he saw Manisha’s bag, and realized
she wasn’t sent on a flight back to India right away.
He was taken to a room where eight men were.
Before he was allowed into the room, the officer
frisked his body and removed some laces, jewelry
and anything potentially sharp.
The men in the room were all eating food when
he entered the room. He asked the officer for food,
and this was the first time he had eaten or drank
anything in about 26 hours.
In the room, there were only five beds, a table,
chair and a sofa.
“So I had no other option but to sleep on the
cold floor and I had to cover myself with like a
manufactured or thin aluminum foil. It is as thin as
a gift wrapping paper that when I rotated it with my
hand or just if I poke it there will be a hole in it.”
For Ramakrishna, after she had been in her cell for
many hours, she reached out to one of the officers
outside the cell. She asked the officer if she could
speak to their senior officer. Around 1 a.m. during
their shift change, the senior officer followed up
and came to her cell.
“I literally went on my knees, like I kneeled down
in front of him, saying ‘could you please rethink this
case’,” said Ramakrishna. “Because it is literally our
dream.
The officer told her to get an immigration lawyer
to challenge the barment in court. He also said that
he would re-check their papers the following day
before he signed them, but the following day they
heard no updates on their case.
READ MORE...
News Student Political 04
Groups Gear Up for
2024 Election
GRANT BELLCHAMBER
Staff Writer
University in Washington DC.
Diaz asked the candidates how they plan to
calm fears that the Republican Party does not
care about the threat of climate change and was,
in quick succession, rephrased by the moderators
and almost unilaterally ignored and avoided by
the candidates.
Vivek Ramaswamy, a right-wing upstart who
jettisoned his closest horses (Doug Burgum and
Tim Scott) with a flurry of jabs and sentiment-loaded
statements during the debate, did answer,
however, and provided an outright refusal of
the merit of these fears. This almost certainly
constituted an appeal to the larger Republican
base, but it raises an important question for
politically-minded college students on both sides
of the aisle.
What role will students play in the 2024
elections?
While this singular question may not provide
any real insight into the campaign strategies of
these candidates, its significance lies in the fact
that college students and recent graduates possess
major potential for vote-activation.
According to the Washington Post, college
students voted at record rates in the 2020 election.
Yet, this time around, Democrats are struggling to
rally excitement around an incumbent nicknamed
Sleepy, and Republicans have entrenched
themselves in increasingly unpopular issues,
especially among the younger demographic.
Alexandra Leung, the President of the SLU
College Republicans, was in attendance at the
GOP debate in Milwaukee. She was impressed by
the rhetoric of candidates such as Ramaswamy
and Haley, but she feels as though many of
the primary candidates are currently lacking a
strategy for engaging young voters.
“The Republican party, they have to try to
connect to us [students] more, because there’s a
large gap… While the Democrats do a great job at
dominating social media platforms and relating
to younger audiences, the Republican Party does
not at all,” Leung saidWhile it may seem that
there is little ground to be gained for Republicans
in the college-aged demographic, the recent
“Monitoring the Future” study, a survey on the
political alignment of young people conducted
since the 70s, found that 12th grade boys are now
almost twice as likely to identify themselves as
conservative-leaning.
Furthermore, the SLU College Republicans’
membership doubled with the induction of
the Class of 2027, Leung said. Although she
was initially surprised by the turnout, she
began asking what had brought them into the
organization.
“What they told me is that they came to St.
Louis University looking for a Catholic, Jesuit
education, and a lot of conservative Republican
values follow… Roman Catholic values.”
On the other hand, the SLU College Democrats
briefly went defunct during the last academic
year. While Leung attributes this increase to an
alignment of interest with incoming students
from Catholic high schools, Charles Preiss, Vice
President of the College Democrats, explains it
differently.
As a multi-year observer of the two
organizations, Priess has seen sharp decreases
in engagement through the pandemic and
believes the disparity between the organizations’
rebounding periods comes down to a matter of
function.
“The College Republicans do better than us
because they primarily function as a social club
for conservatives on campus to talk about politics
without being ostracized,” Preiss said. “So they
just sort of provide that outlet”
Whatever the underlying reason is, the tides of
direct partisan involvement on campus have been
shifting, and, with the looming election, these
phenomena could possibly serve as indicators of
a larger shift in the politics of the college-aged
demographic.
Both organizations have events in the works to
increase membership and voter engagement.
Gavin Bena, Secretary of the College Democrats,
has been actively communicating with politicians
for potential events. He described the College
Democrats’ focus on political action.
“There’s a signature gathering for abortion
[policies] going around right now. The main way
any sort of progressive policy gets passed through
Missouri… it’s not through the legislature. So
[we’re] just supporting the party in its efforts to
stop the extreme rightward tilt in Missouri that’s
been happening for the past decade.”
Alexandra Leung, on the College Republicans’
future plans, said, “Coming up, we have watch
parties for the election where we’re going
to watch the debate, and then talk about it
afterwards. And then during our meetings, we
also talk about… presidential candidates, what we
think of them, how they’re doing so far, [etc.]”
Additionally, The College Democrats have
plans to canvas possible swing districts within
St. Louis, with a focus on West County, while
the College Republicans plan to continue their
weekly meetings with a focus on discussing the
happenings of the primary.
Preiss, when prompted to envision an ideal
SLU political ecosystem, said he hopes for more
productive political conversations.
“I want more dialogue between the College
Dems and Republicans… I just want more
discussion between us that’s not vitriol,” Priess
said.
The run-up to the 2024 presidential election
is well underway, and SLU political organizations
are busy preparing themselves for an anticipated
tumultuous election cycle.
Halfway through the first GOP debate on
Aug. 23, moderators Brett Baier and Martha
MacCallum, both long-standing Fox News pundits,
invited Alexander Diaz, a student at Catholic
(Andrea Porter / The University News)
newsStudent Tenants Raise 05
Concerns about the CoronadoW
MARIYA YASINOVSKA
Copy Editor
The Coronado Place and Towers website claims
to be “SLU ‘s best source for attractive apartment
homes” but current student residents have a
different story to tell, as does the inside of the
building.
The Coronado is one of the cheapest and closest
housing options near Saint Louis University’s
campus. According to current and former residents,
the building has serious safety and sanitation
concerns.
The University News spoke to six students
residing in the Coronado who relayed their
poor living conditions. The students’ names are
not identified due to their ongoing issues with
Coronado management and staff. The University
News also spoke to three former residents who all
had serious complaints about their time renting.
“Living here in the summer felt like literal hell,”
a current SLU tenant said about the Coronado’s
unreliable AC.
From the outside, the Coronado looks grand, with
tall columns and intricate designs. The building
used to be a hotel, and the exterior looks incredibly
impressive. However, the inside tells a different
story.
Trash and odor problems
The building residents have had to deal with a
slew of maintenance and safety-related issues in
recent years.
Coronado’s trash disposal system requires
residents to leave their waste in the hallways to
be picked up. This has led to a heavy trash smell
lingering in the hallways.
SLU junior Sarah Fatzinger, 20, lived in the
Coronado during her sophomore year, from
August 2022 to July 2023. During this time, she
experienced various issues with management
related to the trash smell, mold and heating and
cooling that were left unresolved.
“There would constantly be trash spilled all up
and down the hallways,” Fatzinger said.“They
never cleaned the hallways or entryways, so
the floors were disgusting and if people spilled
anything, it would be there for weeks.”
The carpets are filled with mysterious stains, and
sometimes trash is left in the hallways for days at
a time, causing not only a foul stench but insect
infestations. A current tenant, who requested to
stay anonymous, said that over the summer she
saw a trash bag containing mag
University News - Volume 101, Issue 005 (March 31, 2023)
No full text24 pages.VOL. CI No. 5 / March 31st, 2023 UTHE UNIVERSITY NEWS
Highlighting Women Writers p. 06
Lana Del Rey Album Review p. 09
Women in Sports [Photo Feature] p. 12-13
Women’s Basketball Makes History p. 16
New Women’s Basketball Coach p. 17
Women’s
history
month
cover design by diana jakovcevic
02 News
T onight, the Saint Louis
University pep band starts
small. Micro crescendos
dot their pieces, lifting
the audience up and
setting them back down in
anticipation of something
big. Then the real rise comes with the
baritones setting a steady foundation,
leading into the saxophones, trumpets
and electric basses, each building
the classic rock and pop tunes to a
pinnacle moment. Silence reigns and
the audience is left swaying at the top.
The only sound comes from the thump
of the basketball across the court. The
ball rolls around the hoop, and just
as it falls into the net, the horns and
trumpets cut through the tension with
their final note. The crowd roars as SLU
wins the game.
The pep band at SLU is an ever-entertaining
group, always providing
upbeat energy to elicit cheers
and inspire the crowd. However,
there seems to be a cord of tension
surrounding the pep band students
recently. On Dec. 31, 2022, Austin
Turner, the director of SLU’s pep band
for the last eight years, resigned in
protest of “heavy strain” placed on
the group.
In his resignation letter, Turner
provided context about the
relationship between the Athletics
Department and pep band over the
past several years. He spoke directly
to the current students and alumni in
pep band, apologizing for the burden
placed on them. Turner could not be
reached for further comment.
“Over the past several years the
relationship between Athletics and
the Band has been tenuous at best and
communication has been poorer than
usual this season,” he wrote in the
letter.
Specifically, Turner said there have
been increased demands for the pep
band to perform at pep rallies, parades,
volleyball games and more with little
time to prepare the students and
alumni for the spontaneous events.
Amy Mosmon, a SLU alumni who
has been playing with the pep band
since 2008, said there had been no
major issues until the last few years.
Originally, she said pep band was a
mental health reprieve for students
to play their beloved instrument
while getting advice
from other students
and alumni. But with
stricter schedules, pep
band was given less
playing times and the
Athletics Department
increasingly dictated
what they could and
could not play, Mosmon
said.
“In fact, if the Athletics
Department did not
like what we were
playing, they would play
prerecorded music over
us. Sometimes, they
would not even mic us,”
Mosmon said.
Mosmon claims
that in the event of a
poor basketball game,
the Athletics Department would seek
someone to hold accountable, often
directing the blame towards them,
citing that they failed to make the game
enjoyable enough. This accusation, as
per Mosmon, was also leveled at Cheer
and Dance, although their directors
were unavailable for comment.
Mosmon said she has always “bled
blue.” Unfortunately, the workload of
pep band is just too much, she said.
“It takes a lot of sacrifice to be part
of pep band now. Especially with work
and family, and then to be asked to just
stand there…it is not worth the effort
and I do not trust how long current
changes will last,” Mosmon said.
In an email chain to the Athletics
Department following Turner’s
resignation, other alumni expressed
sentiments similar to Mosmon’s. One
such alumnus listed several grievances
against the Athletics Department such
as budget cuts, short notices and lack
of respect, before saying they could no
longer volunteer with a department
that “willfully disregards the mental
well-being of students.”
The University News spoke with
students in the pep band who confirmed
the changes that the Athletics
Department was pushing the former
director, Turner, to make. Steven Lum,
a junior three-semester pep band
member, said the band directors are
perpetually under a lot of stress since
there is a lack of advertising. Compared
to cheer and dance, pep band’s social
media accounts have a much smaller
reach. Moreover, it is not mandatory for
students to go to basketball games and
attendance is often small. This made
getting together a group of students
to play for spontaneous requests even
harder, Lum said.
“The pep band director got a lot of
last minute requests within 48 hours.
This was just not possible as students
have exams. The requests were too
short notice,” Lum said.
Another alumnus, who did not wish
to speak with The University News,
wrote in the email thread that they quit
volunteering with the pep band and
questioned the Athletics Department’s
judgements and lack of effort in
fostering a secure and constructive
environment for the students of pep
band.
Janet Oberle, Deputy Director of SLU
Athletics, said there are mental health
resources given to pep band students
through Athletics.
“There is someone from the University
Counseling Center who physically
has hours in Chaifetz twice a week.
This is UCC’s way of helping athletes
specifically,” Oberle said.
Oberle declined to comment on the
other concerns or resignations.
The Athletic Department’s
unresponsive behavior and attitude
may have contributed to the strain
that resulted in a wave of resignations.
However, it might also be a symptom of
an underlying issue – a lack of funding,
faculty and overall interest in Saint
Louis University’s music department.
Margaret Cotner, a junior who has
been playing with the pep band since
SLU pep band director resigns due to ‘heavy
strain,’ points to decline of Music Department
By KAVYA HARISH
Staff Writer
(Photo courtesy of Anna Rogers)
her freshman year, spoke about her
experience coming from a high school
where over a third of the graduating
class was involved in some kind of
music group to a college where there is
only one band with less than 40 people.
“My high school had a lot of funding
and support for music. Everyone knew
everyone in music. In fact, if you were
not part of a musical group, it was
like what are you doing? How are you
enriching yourself if not with music and
arts?” Cotner states.
Today, the pep band has approximately
40 members made up of alumni and
students, with some sections having no
instruments.
“There is one trumpet, one french
horn…something is missing here. These
are fairly common instruments and we
are begging students who play them to
join,” Cotner said.
There is something amiss about
the music department’s low audition
turnout for certain instruments
typically played in pep bands. The heart
of the issue comes down to the fact
that there is no incentive for students
to join the pep band, and since most
students in the band are pre-med or
pre-health, they are not likely to adjust
their schedules without one.
In December 2022, SLU revoked the
MUSC-3470 Pep Band course. In other
words, the pep band exists outside of
Athletics, but students cannot enroll
in the course for the Fine Art credit
requirement. Seemingly, the only
incentive students now have to join
pep band is their own love for music,
Cotner said. Yet, for the majority of the
student body who are at SLU to enrich
their professional background, they will
devote their time to clubs and classes
that fill that role.
Revoking course credit is not the first
time incentives to the band have been
stripped. There used to be a 250 is little compared to other
college’s pep and marching bands. In
2019, through private funding, every
member of the Ohio State marching
band received at least a 3,000
scholarship. The scant funding Athletics
has given to the band combined with
a zero-credit class speaks to SLU’s
underappreciation of music and arts
enrichment, Cotner said.
“It makes me want to pull my hair out
that there is no advertising, no push, no
scholarship to get students to join pep
band. All these schools have advertising
because it is healthy for students to do
music. But SLU is giving money to other
departments and letting the music
department slip away,” Cotner states.
It appears that the decline of the
pep band is indicative of SLU’s apathy
toward their music and arts programs.
The pep band is supposed to provide
a sense of community and inclusivity,
Mosmon said. Previously, it served
as a safe haven for students who may
have previously felt like outsiders
and allowed them to embrace their
love for music. In other words, it lets
students be “fun nerds.” However, with
fewer members it becomes difficult to
maintain this environment and meet
these expectations, Mosmon said.
According to Cotner, under the
new interim pep band director, Sarah
Silverberg, pep band students have
been given a new sense of hope
after a tumultuous winter. She said
Silverberg has spent the beginning
of the spring semester attempting to
make connections between Athletics
and students so they can be better
supported.
Additionally, Cotner said, Silverberg
has been able to initiate talks with
Athletics to address if the band can
update equipment, merchandise and
music.
Mosmon stated that Sarah is a lively
and enthusiastic person. However,
Mosmon expresses concerns that the
Athletics Department may cause her
some stress.
“I hope that the Athletics Department
does not burn her out,” Mosmon said.
The University News reached out
to Silverberg but she did not wish to
comment.
It is clear, however, that new jackets,
set music and easier accessibility to
counselors will not solve the pep bands
problems that are indicative of a larger
issue at hand. According to Cotner,
SLU’s music program is crumbling and
the only way to address the concern is
to incentivize students to not only join
pep band, but also enroll in other music
classes. Musical enrichment is key to
alleviating students’ mental health
stress and emphasis desperately needs
to be placed on it, said Cotner.
Perhaps by doing so, the pep band
can once again become a sanctuary for
students.
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News 03
EXCERPT FROM AUSTIN TURNER’S
RESIGNATION LETTER:
04 NEWS
arquis Govan is not
new to politics. Born
and raised in St. Louis,
he became involved in
activism in his early teens
after witnessing inequity
and unfair policing
practices in his community. As the 2023-
24 Student Government Association
President-elect, he hopes to bring his
experiences and passions to the Saint
Louis University campus.
A sophomore social work and sociology
student, Govan is SGA’s current VP of
Diversity and Inclusion.
SGA strives to create a space for
students to participate in representative
student government by providing
an open forum to student opinions
concerning the affairs of the University.
Presidential elections for SGA were held
on March 1 and 2 between Junior Brooke
Kenworthy and Sophomore Marquis
Govan.
sga president-elect
Marquis Govan
talks plans for slu
“At SLU, you feel either really
connected or really disconnected. I felt
very disconnected when I first started
at SLU. What helped combat this was
people making an effort to include
me and grant me the experience that
I deserved. With my new position as
SGA President, I hope to do the same,”
Govan said.
The SGA President is responsible for
overseeing student activity events and
planning, policy support from faculty
and students, allocation of funding
and resources, serving as a bridge for
communication between University
staff and the student body, and most
importantly, responding to issues
that are posed to members of the SLU
community.
The main driving factor for running
for this position, Govan said, was his
vision of organizing students on the
fundamentals of accessibility and
inclusion.
“Seeing people not have any resources,
including myself at times, made me
realize how many students don’t
understand people like myself exist. I
want to give a voice to those who are
marginalized and ignored,” Govan said.
Throughout his campaign, Govan
prioritized a concept he referred
to as “radical love, community and
inclusion.”
“What does radical love even mean?
Radical love to me means that people’s
spirits are being comforted. It means
that people with dietary restrictions
have sufficient food to eat on campus.
It means transgender and non-binary
students feel comfortable being their
true selves on campus. It means
students with disabilities are able to
navigate around campus. It means
Black and Brown students feel safe,”
he said. “When you talk about living
in a radical community, it needs to be
built on these fundamentals of love.
Students must feel as if they are being
invested in, not just surviving. Not
everyone is in a ‘Roll Bills’ mentality
here, because of the inequities they
experience daily.”
To help students feel more at home
at SLU, Govan said he believes a culture
shift is beyond necessary, as it will
create a more inclusive environment.
“A lot of people from marginalized
communities come here and feel like
they don’t fit in. Breaking barriers is key
here,” Govan said. “I do believe a good
place to start is by providing students
with livable dorms, though. Especially
for students with disabilities, dietary
restrictions or those who are trans.”
The importance for breaking barriers,
he noted, is that it requires the holistic
embracement of people as individuals.
What is stopping SLU from achieving
this, he said, is a missing piece of
compassion and understanding from
students and faculty.
“We have lots of potential to build a
culture that is inclusive and accepting.
We already have resources, but
sometimes people don’t feel like they are
real. At times, they appear almost forced
and performative. In order to shift this,
there needs to be more sincerity, but I
cannot be the only one implementing
it. This needs to be a collective shift,”
Govan said.
Govan emphasized that everything is
interconnected and different issues that
people may exhibit have more overlap
than one would expect.
“Everything is multifaceted, which is
why I approach things the way that I
do. When I am talking about one issue,
I am talking about multiple. This is why
I will prioritize partnerships with RAs,
RHA, Rainbow Alliance and Disability
Services.”
He said he intends to encourage
conversations about these topics by
organizing his SGA presidency outside
of the conventional view.
“By making the dialogue about
both me and you, we are both taking
responsibility. My primary goal is to
discuss those who aren’t physically
present at the [presidential] meetings,
and while I am outside of these meetings,
I intend to include people in the dialogue
who weren’t a part of them,” Govan said.
As he steps into his new role, he said
his most important message for our
community was his promise to listen.
M
By STASIA HANONICK
Copy Editor
“Seeing people not
have any resources,
including myself
at times, made me
realize how many
students don’t
understand people
like myself exist. I
want to give a voice
to those who
are marginalized
and ignored.”
“I exist to
serve the SLU
population.
I am accessible.
If anyone has a
problem,
please reach
out to me.”
(Photo courtesy of AAMC )
News 05
F or over 25 years at
various institutions,
Rochelle D. Smith
strived to utilize
diversity, equity and
inclusion work to help
the most marginalized
achieve the dream versions of
themselves. Now as Saint Louis
University’s second Vice President
of the Division of Diversity and
Innovative Community Engagement
(DICE), she aims to do the same .
“Students are at the very core of
why I come to work every day, of why
I do the work I do…So everything that
I do is tethered really to the belonging
and the advancement of students who
entrust us as an institution with their
young lives [and] their young minds,”
Smith said.
During her time in college,
opportunities were not as accessible
to her as they are today. Popularly
given to Black women during their
youth, she was given choices to be a
teacher or a nurse.
“I really [didn’t] want to be a nurse.
I went to what was supposed to be
an academic advising office, or the
precursor to that because we really
didn’t have anything like that, and
nobody was there,” Smith said.
Despite feeling upset, she realized
her passion and calling was to ensure
that other students don’t get the same
shut door on their faces.
“If ever I have a chance to help a
student or anybody really feel more
confident or figure out their vocation
or their career, especially in medicine
I’m going to do it somehow, some way
in my life, I’m going to do that,” she
decided that day.
Her pivotal professional milestone
was when she witnessed data
discrepancies during her initial years
working as an administrator at the
Student Educational Services at
Washington University in St. Louis.
The department worked to help
students from low-income, first-generation
backgrounds pursue their
desired careers.
As Smith observed data on students
pursuing fields in STEM, she
discovered that a majority of those
students were struggling to pass the
gatekeeping courses of chemistry,
biology, physics and calculus. It
did not sit right with her to know
this information and do nothing,
primarily because she saw herself in
the shoes of these students. Upon
getting in contact with those who
were addressing the issue,committees
and grants started to take place as
proactive measures striving to turn
the statistics around.Fast forward
three years, the percentage of
incoming freshmen wanting to go
into medicine went from four to 40
percent, as per Smith. As a diversity
practitioner, she was passionate about
changing the landscape of STEM from
being “woefully underrepresented”,
to getting the underrepresented
students to the front of the classroom.
With experience working with
marginalized students trying to make
it in the STEM fields, Smith saw a
pattern in their applications. She
advised students applying for college,
graduate or professional programs
to not “just talk about
what the school can do
for you, but talk about
what you’ll bring to the
school.” She adds that a
lot of students don’t do that because
they think, “oh, the school wants to
hear about how great the school is,”
when in reality, schools want to know
how great applicants are.
“We want students to feel celebrated
and feel as if somebody cared enough
to know them by name and by story,”
she says, quoting her mentor at
WashU, Dr. Jim Macleod. “We want to
know students by name and by story,
and that’s ultimately at the end of the
day at the core of what we do.”
At SLU, Smith is passionate about
addressing the needs of students from
underrepresented backgrounds in the
United States and overseas. When
asked about the DICE’s diversity plan
of ensuring students from different
racial, ethnic, religious and national
backgrounds feel included on SLU’s
campus, Smith commented that
her unit defines diversity broadly
and acknowledges that everybody
has a story. DICE wants to base its
work on the different cultures and
backgrounds that “adds to the fabric
of our institution.”
DICE is working on a project called
Home Plate with Dr. Frances Pestello
as its ambassador. The program
aims at inviting students from all
historically excluded backgrounds,
of which include low-income, first-generation,
Black students, brown
students, international students,
and share a meal with faculty and
staff in their homes so that there
is an exchange of “culture, mores,
stories and backgrounds [to] sort of
cross-pollinate.” The program will be
launched Fall of 2023, representing
SLU and DICE’s addressing of the
marginalization of existence in a
pretty large campus.
Smith’s nomination to the job, she
said, was a moment of honor for her.
Her late husband, Jonathan C. Smith,
was SLU’s first vice president for
this position. She succeeds professor
Amber Johnson of the Department of
Communication, who served as the
interim Vice President of DICE since
August 2021.
“I was just happy to be considered
for the role,” reveals Smith. She adds
that President Pestello and Provost
Lewis were gracious and offered her
all the resources she needed as part of
the onboarding process.
She has years of personal and
professional experience in making it
into influential spaces and jobs with
her Master’s degree even when at
times she said she felt intimidated by
those who held advanced degrees. She
wants young women of color to have
courage, dream and act on it. She
asks them to “do it and don’t care…
because the thing that you’re a master
of is being you… a
Sunrise
No full textScannedXVII797SabaH is a Bosnian-language weekly newspaper that was published in the United States between December 1997 and October 2014. It was founded in Astoria, NY. In 2006, publishing was relocated to St. Louis, MO, but the newspaper continued its national distribution. A typical issue contains about 50 pages and features bold headlines and many photos, with articles from both Bosnia- and US-based contributors. SabaH was established to help Bosnian immigrants deal with life in their new home and keep them informed of events in their war-torn country. Its name translates to 'sunrise', symbolizing the arrival of a new generation of Bosnian immigrants in the US.Click on the blue Maximize button in the top right corner of each image to browse the pages of an issue. This project was made possible by a generous donation from Susan Powers of St. Louis, MO. Digitization is ongoing
Sunrise
No full textScannedXI503SabaH is a Bosnian-language weekly newspaper that was published in the United States between December 1997 and October 2014. It was founded in Astoria, NY. In 2006, publishing was relocated to St. Louis, MO, but the newspaper continued its national distribution. A typical issue contains about 50 pages and features bold headlines and many photos, with articles from both Bosnia- and US-based contributors. SabaH was established to help Bosnian immigrants deal with life in their new home and keep them informed of events in their war-torn country. Its name translates to 'sunrise', symbolizing the arrival of a new generation of Bosnian immigrants in the US.Click on the blue Maximize button in the top right corner of each image to browse the pages of an issue. This project was made possible by a generous donation from Susan Powers of St. Louis, MO. Digitization is ongoing