September 26, 2019 Volume 101 Number 06 THE DUQUESNE DUKE www.duqsm.com PROUDLY SERVING OUR CAMPUS SINCE 1925 Gender Neutral Fashion Show impeded by university Ollie Gratzinger The statement went on to say editor-in-chief that “the posters advertising the event generated numerous Last year’s poster for the Gender complaints from a variety of stu- Neutral Fashion Show, cohosted dents, faculty and alumni.” by the Gender Forum and De- As of press time, the university partment of Women and Gender did not respond to inquiries re- Studies (WGS), featured a male- garding the character of the com- presenting runway model sport- plaints or how many were received, ing a dress. but Greg Barnhisel said he’d heard The event was well attended from well-informed sources that and favorably received, accord- they came from the top. ing to Gender Forum President “I heard that some of these Emma Shirey. complaints originated from out- It wasn’t until 11 months lat- side the university, even with the er — and while the organization office of the bishop and Bishop was preparing for this year’s Zubick himself. Also with do- event — that higher administra- nors,” said Barnhisel, who has tion officials in the university been the chair of the English reported that due to complaints department at Duquesne for the they had received about the 2018 last six years, and the director of posters, they would require that freshman writing for 10 years be- this year’s show refrain from us- fore that. “It is not appropriate for ing gender neutral language and the office of the diocese and donors photographs like the one on last to have any say in what is funda- year’s flyer. WGS faculty mem- mentally an academic program.” bers and Gender Forum partici- Multiple sources corroborated pants alike fear this will render this statement off the record, but the show’s message moot. the Diocese of Pittsburgh did not “It blindsided all of us,” Shirey respond to requests for comment said. “No one had said anything by press time. about it being problematic.” Barnhisel said there was a lot The club was, however, aware of discussion about the event in of several posters that had been higher administration, though taken down or damaged by stu- none of it was conveyed to facul- dents in the weeks leading up to ty members. The Gender Forum the event last year. was not notified of any issues Nevertheless, Laura Engel, a with this year’s fashion show professor in the department and until a month before it was set who spoke at the academic panel to happen either, according to which preceded the fashion show, Shirey. When they were informed said it was the best-attended in early September, they were not WGS event she’d been to. given a reason why. Barnhisel “It was really lovely,” she said. said that faculty members, too, The issue of Duquesne’s Cath- were initially left in the dark. olic mission was raised in an offi- Engel, a professor of 18th- cial statement signed by Kristine century literature, theatre and Blair, dean of McAnulty College, gender studies, said she was con- and Darlene Weaver, associate fused when she heard from her provost for academic affairs, sent colleagues that the event was fac- in response to Duke inquiries. ing so much backlash. “No matter what group seeks to “The runway walk was people use university resources for pro- wearing clothes that you would gramming, Duquesne University see people wearing every day. has consistently required that This was not a costume show; it show respect for the Catholic this was a show about people religious identity of the institu- just walking and saying hello tion,” the statement said. “Fac- and being appreciated for how ulty, staff and students share in they wanted to present them- Duquesne University’s Catholic selves,” she said. “It was really Courtesy of Gender Forum and Spiritan mission, and there- one of those special moments at fore have a common responsi- Duquesne.” This was the flyer used last year as promotional material for the Gender Neutral Fashion Show. The bility to develop programs and Engel explained that gender university allegedly received complaints about the image displayed on the poster. As of Sept. 25 the events that foster academic rigor WGS department was informed that there were issues with the terminology used, primarily the phrase and align with our core values.” see GENDER — page 3 “gender neutral.” opinions features sports a & e Follow us on... Sino-African Katie Westbrook Women’s Soccer Cambodian relations skyrocket 5k and dog walk and Football grab Rock Band wins China initiates Play explores The 18th year of new-wave Fall sports teams tragedy through a memorial race colonialism off to hot start music @theduquesneduke PAGE 4 PAGE 6 PAGE 7 PAGE 9 2 THEDUQUESNEDUKE POLICE briefs SGA releases budget, strategic plan to The Duke Hallie Lauer spent,” said Megginson. To do that, SGA voted to cut ar- It’s the first week of fall, and the news editor crimes didn’t end with summer. eas of spending that did not direct- Duquesne’s Student Government ly influence the student body. In On Sept. 18, Duquesne Police Association (SGA) released their 2019, SGA had budgeted $1,350 for were contacted to report dam- fiscal year 2020 budget and strate- the Faculty Appreciation breakfast. age to a vehicle that was parked gic plan to The Duke. This year, they budgeted zero. in the Locust Garage extension. This budget compares last year’s “Obviously the faculty knows we budget in all areas of SGA spending. appreciate them,” Megginson said. On Sept. 19, a report was made Organizations at the university “I couldn’t justify spending [the concerning damage to an unat- have seen an overall budget cut. money] not on students.” tended vehicle in Forbes Ga- For fiscal year 2020, the SGA’s total They also cut back on areas like rage. budget is $63,658, which is down Executive Contingency and Senate 13.9% from last year according to Contingency. These areas are mon- Also on Sept. 19, while RAs in SGA President Charlie Megginson. ey budgeted for the Exec board and St. Ann Hall were doing rounds, The budget pitch for this year was the Senate to spend without prior the odor of marijuana was titled “Doing More With Less,” as a authorization. detected. An administrative nod to the cuts, but also a promise Areas where they increased search was conducted and sev- to the students. spending are tabling events and eral valves of marijuana vape “This cut is significant to us, be- town hall meetings, both of which oils were discovered. cause we have one of the smaller are designed for student engage- budgets on campus,” Megginson ment, as well as the Night of Lights. On Sept. 21, a Duquesne student said. “We had to figure out where we “Night of Lights is our biggest was found to be intoxicated and could effectively spend what we had philanthropic event,” Megginson in possession of a fake ID. They left on students. I’m really excited said. “We want to go big with that.” received a non-traffic citation about this budget because we can In 2019, SGA budgeted about information courtesy of SGA for the false identification and engage with students and do just as $2,500 for the event; this year Some items have been consolidated on the graph for clarity. were also referred to the Office good a job or better with less money.” they raised that to $4,500 —an of Student Conduct. Megginson along with SGA Ex- 80% increase. $6,000 over budget. This year we price of the Loop Bus, while the Of- ecutive Vice President of Finance However, the biggest part of the accurately budgeted for that ex- fice of Student Life pays the other Josh Rodes, looked at the bud- SGA budget still goes to the Loop Bus. pense,” Megginson said as an ex- two-thirds. JOKE CORNER! get from the last five years “to “Previously, that was bud- planation for the $6,000 increase The idea of “doing more with see where money could be better geted incorrectly. They budgeted in the Loop Bus price. $30,000 and then reported going SGA pays only one-third of the see SGA — page 3 Q: What did the cannibal’s wife do when her husband came home an hour Mary Pappert School launches new program late for dinner? Kellen Stepler a public lecture and seminar series pert Center for Performance and unique talents and aspirations for A: She gave him the staff writer that will run through the 2019- Innovation. their career, to instill excellence cold shoulder. 2020 academic year. Other events scheduled include and professionalism with a foun- To be the best, you have to learn The IEMMA Experience began “Composing for Film,” with Hol- dational and ethical core and to from the best. Friday, Sept. 20, with voice actor lywood composer Michael An- provide the entertainment industry And now, Duquesne’s Mary Pap- Jeff Bergman. Bergman, one of the dreas, a gaming creation seminar with visionary leaders and profes- pert School of Music has launched voices of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and more. sionals for the field. a new program to provide students and the original Gus the Ground- In the “Composing for Film” Kikta notes that not only does with valuable resources and hands- hog, shared his experiences in the event, Andreas will mentor student the program align with Duquesne’s on experiences to learn more about School of Music’s PNC Recital Hall.