Benicio del Toro finally has a franchise to call his own.

Unlikely as it may seem, the highly acclaimed 2015 thriller “Sicario” has spawned a sequel, focused this time around on del Toro’s ruthless hitman from the first film. Despite lacking some of the original’s key elements, such as director Denis Villeneuve and star Emily Blunt, “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” manages to go even deeper into its world for another outstanding film.

After a series of suicide bombings rocks the United States, the CIA begins to suspect ISIS is smuggling operatives into the country through the Mexican cartels. Agent Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) enlists the help of hitman Alejandro Gillick (Benicio del Toro) to start a war between the cartels to disrupt the perceived influx of bombers.

It’s hard to tell what “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” is getting at in its opening moments. The film seems to crawl along, with a fair amount of intrigue about the cartels but far too many scenes set ingovernment offices and boardrooms. Brolin and del Toro are a treat to watch, giving depth to two characters who practically live in the moral grey area. They don’t, however, shake the feeling that the story is ill-timed, exploiting xenophobic fears of undocumented immigrants and people of the Islamic faith.

However, writer Taylor Sheridan is doing this on purpose, because it comes to light that Graver’s intel was wrong, leaving him tasked with erasing all proof of American involvement, including ordering Gillick to murder Isabella Reyes (Isabela Moner), the daughter of a cartel leader and a witness to their crimes. Gillick refuses, and now both he and Reyes are being hunted by Graves. This is where the film firmly finds it footing.

While there’s a lot of violence in “Sicario: Day of the Soldado”, this is not an action movie. Instead, director Stefano Sollima and cinematographer Dariusz Wolszki go for a pseudo-documentary style that’s meant to make viewers uncomfortable rather than titillate them. An opening supermarket bombing and a third-act desert standoff are downright difficult to watch.

Brutality permeates this film in visuals and narrative. Sheridan wisely splinters his narrative across his two leads, examining the corruption of the government through Graves and the effect that violence can have on a man through Gillick. By avoiding all the assassin cliches, Gillick represents a fragility that we don’t see in these sorts of movies, as well as a sense of consequence. He is the monster that the violence of the cartels has created, and Graves doesn’t seem to realize that his own violence could create another monster.

Although the impact of this world on the adults is compelling in and of itself, the impact of these conflicts on children is what will stay with most viewers. From the perspective of not only Isabela but also young aspiring hitman Miguel (newcomer Elijah Rodriguez), we see how psychologically affecting these intense conflicts can be.

What makes “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” great is that it refuses to give an answer to any of these questions. Instead, it asks the audience to ponder them, making a sequel that, while rough around the edges, is more than worthy of the “Sicario” name.

•  
• “Sicario: Day of the Soldado”
• Runtime: 122 minutes
• MPAA Rating: R
• Score: 4/5

Summer can feel a long way from a vacation for some college students. Between internships, jobs, summer classes and various exams, it is hard to find a moment that is not related to the future.

When we have a free moment, it’s easy to get lost in the flights of fancy that tickle the mind such as TV and streaming sites, but an interesting alternative for a break is a book.

Literature is an extremely magical entity when syllabi and coursework aren’t dictating the reading list. Free reading takes on a different form from reading for class that can provide wisdom, entertainment, humanity and knowledge beyond the classroom.

The Quad spoke with professors about pieces of literature ranging from books to plays that they have found inspiring and have offered them insight to the world or otherwise changed their lives. Instead of binging “The Office” in between going to the beach or working at the office, maybe give some of their suggestions a shot this summer.

Michael Colacurcio, distinguished professor of English

After stepping inside of Colacurcio’s office, it’s apparent that he is well-read.

The professor has been teaching at UCLA for more than three decades, and books are scattered all throughout his office in the Humanities Building. It seemed like books were everywhere – not only in his office, but also in his mind. Among his many novel suggestions were “Miss Ravenel’s Conversion from Secession to Loyalty” by John William De Forest, “The Damnation of Theron Ware” by Harold Frederic and “A Modern Instance” by William Dean Howells.

Colacurcio said his book suggestions deal with many issues that are still relevant today, like questioning institutions such as religion and marriage. For example, in “A Modern Instance,” the characters Bartley Hubbard and Marcia Gaylord separate in a time when divorce was extremely taboo. The two are seemingly in love at first, but drift apart due to capitalistic greed.

It’s important to realize that American literature goes beyond such canonical works as “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” and “The Scarlet Letter,” Colacurcio said. Great writers like Mark Twain had contemporaries, like Howells and De Forest, that are just as worthy of a read, even if they don’t make it into a professor’s syllabus, he said.

“The problem with reading is that it is easy to read what is most reader-friendly. It tends to be most modern literature that deals with problems of today in the language we use now,” Colacurcio said. “If you go back, you find the issues are slightly different, but sometimes our issues are disguised issues of the past.”

Richard Yarborough, professor of English and African American studies

Yarborough’s office sits deep within the corridors of the Humanities Building. Here, he has made a home for himself and his shelves of African American literature. As I gazed at his book shelves, I noticed many books that were dear to my heart like “The Color Purple” and “The Bluest Eye,” which deal with issues faced by black people in America.

I was a bit surprised when he talked mostly about science fiction, movies and graphic novels.

Yarborough said his love for reading began with science fiction. His suggestions are a bit more author-centric, focusing on the works of Samuel R. Delany, Theodore Sturgeon and Philip K. Dick.

Yarborough first read Delany, a black science fiction writer, when he was a child. Works such as “Nova” and “Babel-17″ made a particularly strong impression on him because reading them was the first time he encountered an author that shared his interests and looked like him. From that moment on, he was hooked on reading.

“People need to read – almost anything,” said Yarborough. “You have a lot of freedom. Identify your taste. Identify what you need reading to do. Continue to read.”

Claire McEachern, professor of English

McEachern said she finds the most compelling pieces of literature to be those that elicit a melancholy response.

Sitting on her couch, McEachern talked about “Everyman” by Carol Ann Duffy, an adaptation of the play “The Summoning of Everyman.” She said the play left her in tears when she saw it in London because it raises existential questions, such as how to love and what matters most in life.

McEachern also suggested that students read “Paradise Lost” by John Milton. She has taught the book in her class for years, but she said she believes it goes beyond a classic piece of literature. She added that it is hard to talk about the book in class without tearing up because the author, despite personal struggles such as blindness, created a well-known piece of literature that has stood the test of time.

She has read the book many times, but she discovers a new perspective depending on her place in life every time she reads it.

“Don’t sell your books back to the bookstore,” McEachern said. “Books are going to change as you change.”

A Fulton County judge issued a temporary injunction on Friday blocking the expansion of Atlanta Public Schools (APS) boundaries, which was part of Emory’s annexation into Atlanta. Prior to the injunction, school district boundaries were set to change on July 1.

DeKalb County School District (DCSD) sued Atlanta on June 5 to invalidate Emory’s annexation into the city. The annexation would cost the DCSD about $2.5 million in property tax revenue because APS was set to take over the annexed area. DCSD alleged in its lawsuit that Atlanta City Council violated the city’s charter because it publicly read the proposed legislation only once after changing which school district would have jurisdiction in the annexed area. The Atlanta City Charter requires that proposed legislation be publicly read twice before voting.

“The injunction means that DCSD students in the annexation area will continue to attend DCSD schools, and not be forced to enroll in the neighboring school system,” a DCSD press release reads.

Finding that there is a substantial likelihood that Atlanta City Council improperly passed the annexation ordinance, the judge prohibited APS from expanding its borders to include the Emory annexation area.

“When material or substantive changes are made to the title of an ordinance between its first and second readings, the prophylactic functions of [the procedure to pass legislation] can be vindicated only by requiring that the amended or substituted title itself be read twice,” the injunction reads.

DCSD Superintendent Steve Green said he was satisfied with the temporary injunction.

“We are pleased the Court took the appropriate step to protect the children of our school system from unnecessary encroachment,” Green said in a June 29 press release. “We strongly encourage all parties to return to the table in a spirit of cooperation regarding the Emory annexation.”

APS and the City of Atlanta did not immediately respond to the Wheel’s request for comment.

The post Judge Temporarily Blocks Atlanta Public Schools Expansion appeared first on The Emory Wheel.

Speaking to when he heard about the revelation in 1978 that black men who were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints would receive the priesthood, Darius Gray said, “I couldn’t believe it when it was first told me … when it was confirmed I was excited beyond belief.”

This year, the LDS church celebrated the 40th anniversary of former President Spencer W. Kimball’s revelation, which has prompted members to ask whether the church has achieved racial equality and what barriers black members still confront in finding acceptance and community in the faith.

To facilitate dialogue around the issue, the University of Utah’s Tanner Humanities Center organized “Black, White and Mormon II: A Conference on Race in the LDS Church Since the 1978 Revelation” from June 29 to June 30 at the Salt Lake City Public Library. The symposium was put together in collaboration with Paul Reeve — the College of Humanities’ first Mormon studies professor appointed last year. It is a continuation of a conference that the center hosted in 2015 surrounding race in the LDS church.

Gray’s “A 54-Year Journey Toward Racial Equality in the Mormon Church” was the keynote and this year’s Sterling M. McMurrin Lecture on Religion and Culture. Darius Gray served from 1997 to 2003 as the president of the Genesis Group of the LDS church, a branch established by church leadership in 1971 to support African-American members, of which he is also a founding member.

When Gray was asked by Tanner Humanities Center Director Robert Goldberg to speak on race in the church, he said he responded in an email, “Hello Bob, Yes, yes, yes, I accept!” But as he researched the historic and current treatment of many black members of the faith, Gray said his enthusiasm diminished.

As he worked on his speech, Gray was also writing an article for the church’s Ensign, an official periodical magazine with faith-promoting content. The piece first appeared on the church’s blog in April.

“Some have felt the sting of being considered ‘the other’ or ‘the lesser,’” Gray wrote. “It seems to me that such attitudes have increased in the world around us in recent years, perhaps due in part to the vitriolic language that has come to permeate political speech in various nations around the globe. Nothing could be further from the teachings of Jesus Christ than for any human being to think of himself or herself as somehow superior to another human being based upon race, sex, nationality, ethnic origins, economic circumstances, or other characteristics.

In the address, Gray recounted anecdotes shared with him by black members who have experienced many forms and degrees of racism in recent years. He then reviewed faith-based literature which showed dark views on race held by church members in years past.

“Seventy’s Course in Theology,” a series of five books written by former Quorum of the Seventy President Brigham H. Roberts beginning in 1907, included the author’s beliefs on phrenology — the study of skull size, which was falsely linked to intelligence and used as a scientific justification for racism.

“That the Negro is markedly inferior to the Caucasian is proved both craniologically and by six thousand years of planet-wide experimentation; and the comingling of inferior with superior must lower the higher,” the book read.

Another cited example of historic racism in the church was an 1868 article in the Juvenile Instructor, a periodical for young members of the faith which later became an official church publication in 1901. It read, “Next in order stands the Negro race, the lowest in intelligence and the most barbarous of all the children of men.”

Gray said words like these poisoned the church with racism, and black members are still suffering the consequences today. Looking at the church’s history, Gray said, “We stand convicted for our lack of charity and Christ-centered love.”

When it comes to policies of the church, like blacks being banned from receiving the priesthood and entering the temple, Gray said only one video sequence published by the church has attributed the ban to God. While he believes that the policy is one that came from men, he said he has no intention of belittling or demeaning church leaders past or present.

“[They were] trying their best to do their best, and I don’t condemn them,” Gray said. “I wish they were more in tune with the spirit of God than they were.”

On June 1, nearly one month before Gray’s speech, the church held the “Be One” celebration to commemorate the revelation that lifted the priesthood ban. Gray said the event, one where LDS church President Russell M. Nelson condemned “walls of segregation,” renewed his hopes for the future.

“We cannot focus on the past,” Gray said. “We need to let the past teach us so we can move to the future.”

On Saturday, June 30, the conference was filled with community and academic panels from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. This session opened with Paul Reeve’s unveiling of his database, “A Century of Black Mormons.” The database is a collection of information about every black member of the LDS church between 1830 and 1930, including biographies, baptisms and confirmations, and is available for free online.

“I have been excited about this for a very long time,” Reeve said. “In the months leading up to the 2012 presidential election between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, a few media outlets reinforced the public perception that Mormons were predominantly white … Jimmy Kimmel asked on Jimmy Kimmel Live, ‘Are there black Mormons? I find that hard to believe.’ A new digital industry project, a Century of Black Mormons, is designed to not only answer such questions, but to historicize them.”

According to Reeve, until now, no scholar had attempted to name and number black Mormons in the early 19th and 20th centuries, allowing for “historical amnesia to dominate one of the nation’s homegrown religions.”

The panels that followed Reeve’s announcement discussed black Mormons from the early days of the church up until now.

Four panels focused on racial inequity, violence and whiteness in both the United States and the LDS church, racial issues in the church since the 1978 policy change, young black members’ experience growing up in an age without such a ban, and the intersection of church and community, as in situations like police brutality and national anthem protests. The conference closed with a “Cultural Celebration with Marj Desius,” a pop singer who is well known for her song covers and parodies in Spanish, Haitian Creole and French.

e.anderson@dailyutahchronicle.com

@emilyreanderson

j.mumford@dailyutahchronicle.com

@jacqmumford

The post Tanner Humanities Center Hosts Conference on Race in the LDS Church appeared first on Daily Utah Chronicle.

Six Greek organizations have sued USC, claiming its deferred rush policy violates students’ constitutional rights.

The lawsuit was filed in response to a policy announced by Vice President for Student Affairs Ainsley Carry last September.

The policy, which will take full effect Fall 2018, prevents incoming freshmen from rushing during their first semester at the University. Students must complete at least 12 units at USC and maintain a 2.5 minimum GPA prior to joining a fraternity or sorority. 

Carry stated that other universities have implemented similar protocol to allow students to acclimate to campus life.

“[Freshman year] is the toughest year of the transition to college life as students experience the most social and academic challenges,” Carry wrote.

The Sigma Chi, Beta Theta Pi, Theta Xi and Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternities are listed on the lawsuit, as well as the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. Law firm Kirkland & Ellis will represent the six in their case against USC.

The lawsuit alleges that prohibiting freshmen from participating in Greek life during their first semester is a form of discrimination against students and Greek organizations.

“The sorority or fraternity the student joins can begin the process of instilling core values that will allow the student to become a valued and valuable member of the campus community and society at large,” the lawsuit stated.

The post Fraternities and sororities take deferred rush policy to court appeared first on Daily Trojan.

Civilians peacefully protest at First Ward Park in Uptown Charlotte on Friday night as part of the nationwide Families Belong Together march. Civilians protest in backlash of ICE and President Trump’s new policies concerning immigrant family separation and child detention camps.

Photos by Pooja Pasupula.

BOYTOY comes of age at Make-Out Room

Tony Accosta /Staff

The Make-Out Room is a dark, narrow space. A spiderweb of tinsel and deer heads and jewelry hangs from the ceiling. And when BOYTOY played June 26, the sound didn’t echo, but rather reflected back in from the street, making the concert an insular and enveloping experience.

BOYTOY’s rough-around-the-edges riffs and blazing rhythm section made its songs shine even without preparation or a large stage. In between songs, lead singer and guitarist Saara Untracht-Oakner admitted that the band had arrived in San Francisco less than an hour before its performance.

The steady trio of Untracht-Oakner, Chase Noelle and Glenn Van Dyke, along with a touring bassist, launched right into the show. The show was high-energy, ramping up quickly into number after number of passionate rock outbursts.

The brightly lit stage illuminated the energy pouring out from the band. The show lights were tinged blue and green, washing across the musicians and creeping up the back wall. Bright spotlights collected in the corner and didn’t creep into the rest of the bar, which was dark despite the red candles flickering at every table.

BOYTOY’s sound on its recent record Night Leaf pairs elements of ‘60s surf rock rhythms with biting, distorted ‘90s grunge riffs. Where these elements evoked sunset strolls before, here they were cranked up to develop the songs into explosive jams. At its show, the band discarded the chill melodies and warm beachy instrumentation for a blazing run through a series of high-energy rock numbers. The concert was song after song of frantic passion for the audience to both take in and take part in.

Onstage, the visuals were simple, and the members spoke only briefly to each other or the audience between numbers. Instead, the group put the music at the forefront of its show, the members exhibiting their technical abilities and letting their instruments talk. They presented a messy-but-confident sound, executing solos and expanding on the concise pop structures of their recorded songs. The rhythm section laid down a solid base at the start of each track, over which Untracht-Oakner and Noelle layered piercing, hooky guitars.

The highlight of the set was the one-two punch of “Static Age” and “NY Rip Off” at the show’s midpoint. The first drew in the audience through its bouncing bassline and angular guitar riff before completely entrancing the crowd with its distorted, far-reaching chorus hook. In “NY Rip Off,” the band quickly pivoted the bouncing energy of the drums into passionately chanted vocals. Just as the energy of the song was ready to drop off, a searing guitar solo filled with screeching feedback prolonged its run.

Above all else, the band promoted an explosive energy. Though the members clearly played well together, the solos were where they shined. They focused on dramatic transitions, jarring guitar solos, shouted vocals and built-up tension to perform their music. The added live flourishes brought more energy, heightening the audience connection and keeping the concert fresh.

The last song of the night, “Pretty One,” was a great example of the dynamics that BOYTOY harnesses over its songs and shows. The band started at a crawl, building up speed as the song progressed. The lead guitar line repeated itself and then built on itself in small variations, heightening the tension.

This tension was palpable, released only when Untracht-Oakner broke through the wall of noise with her vocals, “Hey there, pretty one, be my friend.” For the next verse, the band worked into even more of a flurry before the next vocal release, driving the song forward with each repetition.

The version of BOYTOY that performed was closer to the sound of the band on its earlier, rougher releases. Yet the careful pop rhythms on Night Leaf showed complexity in the band’s songwriting, with the cranked-up concert versions providing a satisfying, frantic expansion. The band perfectly balanced these two different moods, allowing for a concert experience that was completely unexpected but completely exciting throughout.

Contact Patrick Tehaney at ptehaney@dailycal.org. Tweet him at @patricktehaney.

The Daily Californian

According to the University of Utah’s Office for Global Engagement, 687 students studied abroad in 42 countries during the 2016-2017 academic year. The Learning Abroad office connects students to programs that vary in duration, location and field of study. Students can study in London for six weeks with the “The London Eye: The City as Performance” program, or they can live in Tuscany for a semester with the “Architecture, Design, and Planning” program or countless others. Study abroad programs offer the advantages of getting credit for traveling, having well-defined goals for what students will learn and taking much of the burden of logistical planning off of individual students. I loved my own Spanish language intensive study abroad in Spain because it let me finish two advanced language courses, helped me explore Spanish culture through planned group outings and gave me a place to live in Spain for six weeks.

If you are considering studying abroad, allow me to give you one piece of advice: make time to travel by yourself. Depending on how long your program is and whether it is faculty-led, this could be somewhat difficult. The trouble is worth it, however, because the greatest benefits of studying abroad do not come in the form of class credits or even improved language skills. The moments of introspection and self-knowledge that come from traveling in an unfamiliar place by yourself will have a far longer lasting impact. I remember a lot of my classes in Spain because they were right up my alley, but I have more vivid memories of walking by myself into the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona and crying in awe. Though there were hundreds of people there with me, I had no friends, classmates or family there to question why I was crying. With no one to explain it to, I could look around and sob with joy without feeling the need to stifle my reaction. That intense moment of recognizing my own smallness in the face of such intense beauty helped me redefine my relationship to the natural world and art. It would not have been the same if I was on a class trip with defined goals of learning about the architectural structure and symbolism of the building. Traveling by myself without an educational agenda created an organic space where I could learn about myself and my relationship with the world.

That all sounds very hippy and happy-go-lucky. Traveling alone can be hard and it is a significant financial investment. Not everyone will have a life-changing experience, and that is okay. The important thing is to go outside your comfort zone and put yourself in an unstructured environment where you can learn about yourself. Traveling alone is a great way to do that. If you have the opportunity to build individual travel time into a study abroad program, take advantage of it. There’s nothing better than experiencing some heavy-duty introspection while getting class credit.

letters@chronicle.utah.com

@TheChrony

The post Discover Yourself Abroad appeared first on Daily Utah Chronicle.

Just three nights ago, the Eugene Emeralds lost to the Everett AquaSox thanks to the new extra innings rule, where a runner is placed on second base to start the inning. Monday night, things were eerily similar.

The Emeralds lost to the AquaSox 7-4 in 10 innings thanks to a mix of walking too many batters, stranding base runners and the dreaded extra innings rule.

“You try to get them that confidence back, and that conviction in the stuff that they have to get them back in the zone,” manager Steven Lerud said.

Despite the game getting off to a good start with two runs in the first inning, it quickly turned sour when starting pitcher Jose Albertos, the No. 4 prospect in the Cubs organization, walked the first five batters of the second inning on 21 pitches, which led to four runs. All four runners that scored reached base via walks. Albertos now has a 12.27 ERA.

“We just got to keep on him and try to get some confidence back with him and get him back in the strike zone,” Lerud said. “He just loses it for a little bit there and it just kind of snowballs on him… It might be a little bit of road for him but we’re not going to quit on him.”

Walks have plagued the Emeralds all season. Although they average 1.86 walks when they win, they allow a staggering 4.1 walks in losses.

The bullpen on the other hand was spectacular up until extra innings. Yan De La Cruz went four innings, pitching to contact and forcing nine ground outs. Jake Steffens took the next three, allowing one hit and getting the Ems’ only two strikeouts of the game. Casey Ryan shut down Everett in the ninth, but was unable to keep the game tied in extras, allowing three runs, one of which was the free runner.

Offensively, Cubs No. 9 prospect, Nelson Velazquez, had a terrific game, going 2-5 with a two-run home run and a game-tying double in the ninth inning. The other run came in the sixth on a Tyler Durna single.

One player missing from the lineup was Cubs first round pick, shortstop Nico Hoerner, who is day-to-day after jamming his finger Sunday.

The Ems will play the final game of the homestand tomorrow, but will be playing with a different name. As part of the Copa de la Diversion campaign, embracing and celebrating the Latino community, the Emeralds will be known as “Los Monarcas” and wear special jerseys. There will also be fireworks postgame.

“The goal of this season-long project was to create a more inclusive environment at PK Park, and the third of July is simply another fantastic evening to strengthen the cause,” said Emeralds General Manager Allan Benavides in a press release. “We hope that fans will continue to embrace Los Monarcas de Eugene and appreciate the touching symbolism behind the uniforms our players will wear for the night.”

Follow Maverick Pallack on Twitter @mavpallack

The post Walks, runners left on base and extra inning rule help AquaSox down Emeralds 7-4 appeared first on Emerald Media.

On June 21, Stand Up for Graduate Student Employees and the University finalized an agreement outlining the terms for holding an election on graduate student unionization after nearly a year of negotiations.

The pre-election agreement paves the way for the University’s voluntary recognition of a union if graduate students vote in favor of one in an election overseen by the American Arbitration Association. Other universities, such as Georgetown University and Cornell, have also chosen the AAA to oversee their elections. The Brown agreement also stipulates “formal election procedures, voter eligibility guidelines and a dispute resolution mechanism,” according to a joint statement by SUGSE and the University.

Babak Hemmatian GS, a negotiator for SUGSE, said the organization would have preferred “stronger assurances” that the University would respect the outcome of the election, but felt satisfied that the election would be free from interference from the anti-union National Labor Relations Board. “The agreement is the best that could be achieved,” he said.

Provost Richard Locke P’18 said the University was happy that the agreement would “permit what we’ve always wanted, which was to have an open and fair fact-based discussion among grad students in the community on whether or not unionization is in their self-interest.”

Discussions with the University administration and the Let Us Vote Rally in April, among other SUGSE activities, led up to the agreement, though there were delays in receiving some drafts, Hemmatian said.

Locke added that there were never any major difficulties in negotiating the agreement. “We were in convergence probably over 90 percent of the time,” he said.

There was a setback in negotiations when the agreement went to the external legal counsels of the University and the American Federation of Teachers, but this was resolved when SUGSE and the University resumed direct negotiations with each other, Locke said.

“This agreement shows, by all the parties, an interest in making sure that the representational form of democracy … is respected,” said William Herbert, executive director of the National Center for the Study of Collective Bargaining in Higher Education and the Professions. This contrasts with situations at universities such as Columbia, where the administration is not respecting graduate students’ vote to unionize, he added.

Herbert added that the agreement’s sections on unionization forums, the creation of a Union-Management Committee and mediation before arbitration set “the stage for a long-term positive relationship” among all parties.

The agreement also includes master’s students in the bargaining unit — the group of people a union represents. SUGSE previously claimed the University was excluding master’s students, raising the issue during its Let Us Vote Rally.

But Locke said the lack of inclusion of master’s students in the bargaining unit was “a made-up issue,” adding that the rally had no influence on the final agreement. Only one draft from the external legal counsel had excluded master’s students, he said. “The University was always of the position that it was master’s and PhD students who were employed as (research assistants) and (teaching assistants) who would be in the bargaining unit,” he added.

SUGSE and the AFT have until April 15, 2019 to file an election petition. But if the NLRB reverses its 2016 decision stating that graduate students may unionize, the agreement will terminate, according to the pre-election agreement.

Hemmatian said SUGSE would have preferred the election to be unaffected by any future NLRB ruling, but it was one of the conditions set by the administration for reaching an agreement.

Historically, in cases such as New York University, universities have voluntarily recognized unions regardless of the NLRB ruling or law of the land, Herbert said. “The University has a choice to allow for a process regardless of whatever the NLRB does,” he added.

It is unlikely that the NLRB will overrule the 2016 decision between now and this fall, Hemmatian said. “We’re hoping that the election will happen in the fall, barring any unfortunate circumstances,” he added.