Wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster became the second USC player selected in the 2017 NFL Draft on Friday, as the Pittsburgh Steelers took last season’s leading Trojan pass catcher in the second round — No. 62 overall.

The Long Beach, Calif. native recorded 3,092 receiving yards in three seasons at USC, seventh-most in program history. Smith-Schuster became the first Trojan wideout drafted since Nelson Agholor went No. 20 overall to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2015.

Smith-Schuster announced his arrival at USC as a true freshman in 2014. Smith-Schuster — back then simply JuJu Smith — reeled in four catches for 123 yards in his collegiate debut against Fresno State, and he would go on to finish the season with 714 yards and five touchdowns through the air, which were both second most on the team.

He followed that season up by almost doubling his aerial output as a sophomore. Bearing a new name, Smith-Schuster racked up 1,454 receiving yards — the seventh-highest single-season total in USC history — en route to first-team All Pac-12 honors. He closed the book on his Trojan career with a 914-yard year in his junior season, making a key late catch against Penn State in USC’s late Rose Bowl rally. His 10 touchdown catches made up almost a third of the Trojans’ total last year.

Smith-Schuster went 44 picks after former teammate Adoree’ Jackson was selected No. 18 overall in the first round on Thursday. The 6-foot-2, 216-pound receiver will join Antonio Brown, Martavis Bryant, Sammie Coates and Eli Rogers on the Steelers’ crowded receiver corps.

The post JuJu Smith-Schuster drafted by Steelers in second round appeared first on Daily Trojan.

The University of Utah announced Friday that CEO of University of Utah Health and Dean of the U’s School of Medicine Vivian Lee has resigned.

“On behalf of the entire leadership at the University of Utah, I want to express my gratitude for Dr. Lee’s extraordinary achievements and the courage and commitment she has shown over the past six years,” said U President David Pershing in a statement.

Pershing said that Lee will remain at the U as a tenured professor of radiology.

The decision comes after the U’s reinstatement of Mary Beckerle as CEO of Huntsman Cancer Institute. Lee was involved in the choice to dismiss Beckerle on April 17.

The U has yet to provide an answer as to why Beckerle was fired. Susan Sheehan, President and COO of Huntsman Cancer Foundation, told multiple media outlets she believes that an inaccurate written analysis of the institute’s ability to attract grants from the National Institutes of Health is one of the reasons.

In an email to University of Utah Health employees, Lee said, “Taking account of the events of the last two weeks, I believe the best interests of the University are now served by the decision I am taking today.”

On Tuesday, the chairs of all of the departments within the school of medicine published a letter in support of Lee. The letter emphasized Lee’s success in her position and expressed their opinion on accusations against Lee regarding Beckerle’s dismissal.

“This is a critical moment. It is bigger than any one of us and it will have implications for our university and health system for years—maybe decades—to come,” said the letter. “If we let the commentary and mis-characterizations of the past week go unchecked, our institution, reputation, and leadership will be damaged beyond repair.”

The letter was posted on change.org and had more than 900 signatures as of Friday evening.

Since Lee’s appointment in 2011, University of Utah Health has risen from a rank of 54 in the country in research to 40. In health care quality, it has risen from seven to one.

The Daily Utah Chronicle will continue to update this article as more information is made available.

e.anderson@dailyutahchronicle.com

The post Vivian Lee Resigns from Positions as CEO of University of Utah Health and Dean of the School of Medicine appeared first on Daily Utah Chronicle.

Lindsey Lanham | A&E Editor

Brandishing black X’s on their hands like medals of honor, groups of people crowded around the stage at Shaka’s Live anxiously awaiting for the show to start. People of all ages flocked to Virginia Beach to … Read More

The post Balance and Composure Rock Shaka’s Live appeared first on Mace & Crown.

The Best in Movies of Spring 2017

Ben Rothstein/Courtesy

T

 he first third of the year has been criticized time and time again as the worst season for movies. The Oscar contenders have nationwide runs in January, but those are technically still movies of the last year. The rest of January — notoriously referred to as a dumping ground for studios — is filled with a bunch of crap.

While the number of great movies is undoubtedly weaker — there’s no arguing that, really — spring, in any year, is actually host to plenty of gems, both hidden and right in front of our faces. From January to April, 2016 saw the releases of “Deadpool,” “The Witch,” “Zootopia,” “10 Cloverfield Lane,” “Eye in the Sky,” “Midnight Special,” “Green Room,” “Everybody Wants Some!!” and “The Jungle Book” — a mix of phenomenal blockbusters and overlooked independents. 2017 is truly no different.

We’ll admit that not all deserve awards, but each of these movies contribute something great to the world

February ended with the landmark film “Get Out.” March kicked off with the now all-time great comic book movie “Logan.” And numerous other fantastic films, or films that featured outstanding performances, kept us coming back to the theater when many expected to have to wait until summer for the industry to really get going.

Some spring movies of the past have had the staying power to last — 2016’s “Zootopia” won Best Animated Feature and 2014’s “The Grand Budapest Hotel” received nine Oscar nominations. But not all of them get their fair share of praise at the end of the year. We’ll admit that not all deserve awards, but each of these movies contribute something great to the world — whether that be a bunch of laughs, a moving tale that helps us find our own strength or a direct impact on pressing issues in our society. And those don’t deserve to be forgotten.

— Kyle Kizu

Best Motion Picture

Winner: “Get Out”

Universal Pictures / Courtesy

“Get Out” is as shocking as it is entertaining, an intensely compelling film that creeps into one’s consciousness and stays there long after the credits stop rolling. Jordan Peele (in his directorial debut) ingeniously bridges racial satire and psychological horror, infusing comedic moments into the increasingly suspenseful narrative; what starts out as a conventional meet-the-parents tale unravels into something far more terrifying. Every line of dialogue in the script is cleverly woven into the story and serves multiple purposes — as hilarious and cringe-worthy as the lines of casual racism may be, they contribute to the unease and exhaustion that make the Armitage residence feel so strange. The film constantly subverts viewers’ expectations and leaves them with several questions about intention, trust and morality. Above all, Peele never shies away from authentic issues of race, addressing matters ranging from microaggressions to police brutality. His blunt depiction of modern anti-Blackness reminds us that, perhaps, the evils of racism are not all confined to the world of the Armitages — they permeate our own lives as well.

— Anagha Komaragiri

Runner-up: “Logan”

The comic book movie landscape is one that typically favors broad appeal, and unfortunately, this often comes at the sacrifice of a unique vision. “Logan” turns this expectation on its head by becoming one of the few comic book movies to transcend its own genre. It uses the trappings of a Western to delve into themes of legacy and family, and it yields profoundly emotional results. Until Robert Downey Jr. makes a gritty “Old Man Tony” film for Marvel Studios, the sole inhabitants of comic book movie Elysium will be “The Dark Knight” and “Logan.”

— Harrison Tunggal

Nominees:

3. “Colossal”
4. “The Lost City of Z”
5. “The LEGO Batman Movie”
6. “I don’t feel at home in this world anymore.”
7. “Raw”
8. “Their Finest”
9. “Kedi”
10. “John Wick: Chapter 2”

Best Lead Actor

Winner: Hugh Jackman, “Logan”

Ben Rothstein / Courtesy

When Hugh Jackman announced that “Logan” would be his last outing as Wolverine, the hearts of comic book movie fans around the world collectively shattered. Jackman has been playing Logan since 2000 and has consistently approached the character with a nuanced complexity that is incredibly rare in superhero films. In “Logan,” Jackman stretches the depth of the character and of his own acting ability — diving into the rageful spirit that makes Logan at once both intensely exciting and devastatingly tragic. There’s something new about the Wolverine that we haven’t seen before; he’s broken and vulnerable, almost pathetically so. It’s this new weakness that makes the savage, bloody fight sequences all the more powerful. The movie itself defies the long tradition of X-Men films to come before it with its style and tone, which serves as a magnificent vehicle for Jackman to tackle the darkest corners of Logan’s character. Not even the gritty, rough exterior Logan possesses could cover up the sheer passion Jackman has for this role. His performance in “Logan” is the perfect swan song, one that moviegoers will appreciate for years to come.

— Shannon O’Hara

Runner-up: James McAvoy, “Split”

An actor playing multiple personas in a creepy way could describe an Adam Sandler movie, or it could be describing James McAvoy’s genuinely terrifying turn in “Split.” For this category, it’s definitely the latter, and McAvoy pulls off a truly stunning feat. Each of the personalities he portrays is distinct, down to tics and the way his eyes glower. The true accomplishment of his performance, though, is the empathy he elicits from the viewer. His character is never truly a villain, and that complexity is a credit to McAvoy.

— Harrison Tunggal

Nominees:

3. Daniel Kaluuya, “Get Out”
4. Jim Broadbent, “The Sense of an Ending”
5. Charlie Hunnam, “The Lost City of Z”

Best Lead Actress

Winner: Anne Hathaway, “Colossal”

Neon / Courtesy

In “Colossal,” Anne Hathaway plays Gloria, who’s more than a little down on her luck at the start of the film. She’s an alcoholic, unemployed and her soggy crumpet of a boyfriend dumps her because of it. Soon, however, Gloria realizes that she is in control of a massive monster that has appeared in the middle of Downtown Seoul, South Korea. In this sense, Gloria is a character that is dropped into a world-altering situation, while still battling demons of her own. Unfortunately, “Colossal” isn’t a film that is particularly Oscar friendly, but yet, Hathaway is still given a role that allows her to truly shine. She navigates Gloria’s alcoholism in a frank manner, while still allowing her comedic timing to bring moments of levity in a film that isn’t afraid to get dark. “Colossal” hinges on its main character and her ability to connect with the audience, and luckily for us, Hathaway gives one of the year’s best performances.

— Harrison Tunggal

Runner-up: Kristen Stewart, “Personal Shopper”

Kristen Stewart seems to play the same character over and over: a girl whose insecurities are laid bare and who is not known for her sophistication. But in “Personal Shopper,” Stewart taps into a level of introspection where suspense, terror and immense grief meet in the character of Maureen. The film follows her alone, so Stewart’s performance literally carries the film, the emotional weight of which she embodies is quite compellingly. Her brooding performance captures Maureen’s internal conflicts regarding the loss of her brother and her own sense of purposelessness. In this role, Stewart demonstrates her often-underestimated ability for subtlety and grace.

— Sophie-Marie Prime

Nominees:

3. Melanie Lynskey, “I don’t feel at home in this world anymore.”
4. Garance Marillier, “Raw”
5. Gemma Arterton, “Their Finest”

Best Supporting Actor

Winner: Patrick Stewart, “Logan”

Ben Rothstein / Courtesy

Many forget that Patrick Stewart has been playing Professor X as long as Hugh Jackman has been Wolverine. But let’s not forget the figure who helped guide Logan and the rest of the X-Men on their respective journeys, a figure who ends his time in the role in utterly hilarious and heartbreaking fashion.

In “Logan,” we find Professor X cut off from the world, held up in a large silo-like structure and cared for by Logan and Caliban. He’s suffering from Alzheimer’s, which causes unpredictable spells of destructive telepathic force. He’s also got his most irreverent sense of humor yet. And Stewart captures all of it.

Stewart conveys the crushing pain of an extremely difficult stage in his life. He’s able to pull off a foul-mouthed sense of humor with wondrous comedic timing and then in the very next moment, pull at the hearts of every viewer with his lost, searching eyes. Professor X has tried everything to protect his family, especially Logan, and Stewart embodies a deep sense of history to the character in this last film. The performance is as moving as Jackman’s, but with a comedic edge on top of it. And Stewart captures Professor X’s final monologue, a rumination on friendship, family, fatherhood and more in regard to this grand, 17-year journey he’s shared with Logan, with deep truths. “Logan” is, undoubtedly, a swan song for two.

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Bill Nighy, “Their Finest”

In “Their Finest,” Bill Nighy is essentially playing a part of himself. Ambrose Hilliard is an aging actor, in his sixties but seeming older. This connection, this reality that could’ve potentially been one for Nighy allows the still-prestigious actor to find a truth in the character. Nighy portrays Hilliard’s emotional insecurities and how he hangs on to the past convincingly, and one of the final scenes, in which Hilliard comes to help Gemma Arterton’s Catrin, is rousing precisely because of Hilliard’s arc. But what makes this performance a genuine highlight in the British actor’s career, though, is the comedic timing Nighy brings. He perfects the self-absorbed, yet endlessly charming nature of Hilliard that makes the character one of the more memorable of the year.

— Kyle Kizu

Nominees:

3. Lil Rel Howery, “Get Out”
4. Elijah Wood, “I don’t feel at home in this world anymore.”
5. “Beat” Takeshi Kitano, “Ghost in the Shell”

Best Supporting Actress

Winner: Dafne Keen, “Logan”

Ben Rothstein / Courtesy

It’s hard to imagine anyone stealing the spotlight from Hugh Jackman’s performance in “Logan,” his last go at the role, but Dafne Keen gives Wolverine a run for his money — and she’s only 12 years old. Keen’s character packs a captivating punch: Laura hardly speaks, but she’s fearless, fiercely loyal and full of blistering rage. Keen’s character remains unpredictable and mysterious because she delivers such a subtle performance, made even more impressive by the fact that “Logan” is her first feature.

Like Logan, Laura is a mutant with claws in her hands and feet. She survived early years in a facility where mutant children such as she were being groomed and weaponised as assassins. Her superhuman healing powers mirror unwavering resilience.

Keen captured the nuanced complexity of Laura’s tragic past as well as her boundless bravery; her vulnerability clinches the most powerful scene of the film. Laura is clever, headstrong and determined, all of which make her an ideal superheroine for young girls — and Keen perfectly embodies her brilliance.

— Sophie-Marie Prime

Runner-up: Allison Williams, “Get Out”

In “Get Out,” Allison Williams plays Rose, the oh-so-innocent white girlfriend who insists on bringing Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) home to meet her parents. Williams fits the multifaceted role to a tee, from her loving reassurance of Chris’ welcomeness to her utter shock and panic toward her parents’ endeavors. The film’s biggest reveal rests on her shoulders, and Williams pulls it off with slick, terrifying precision; she presents viewers with two different sides of Rose with equal believability, making her the film’s darkest, most disturbing secret.

— Anagha Komaragiri

Nominees:

3. Rebecca Ferguson, “Life”
4. Mckenna Grace, “Gifted”
5. Sienna Miller, “The Lost City of Z”

Best Director

Winner: Jordan Peele, “Get Out”

Kevin Edwards / Courtesy

“Get Out,” Jordan Peele’s directorial debut, is unquestionably a masterpiece. Peele manages to incorporate a catalog of visual hints that provide a historical foundation and narrative suspense throughout the entire film. From the clever cover-up of scars that would trigger suspicion to the color coordination of Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) and Rose’s (Allison Williams) party outfits to look like the American flag, “Get Out” is rich with symbolism and self-reflexive irony. This is tough to accomplish without crossing the line into gimmick territory — but Peele achieves it with biting poignancy.

Under Peele’s direction, actors give performances that go from comforting and familiar to suspect and horrifying. Subtle lines of dialogue, props in the set or aspects of costuming give this film an acute sense of self-awareness of its mission — Peele’s mission — and coming across brilliantly. The film is a masterclass on metaphorical imagery and production design (among many other cinematic techniques), not to mention a sublime realization of the director’s vision. With “Get Out,” Peele achieves a level of detail and nuance unlike any other genre-bending horror film we’ve ever seen.

— Sophie-Marie Prime

Runner-up: James Mangold, “Logan”

James Mangold’s job directing “Logan” is nothing but astounding. The final film for Wolverine has been lauded for its transcendence of genre, making use of features of the Western to create an emotionally brutal and profound end, and the guidance and success of that vision can be attributed to Mangold. His control of action is supremely masterful — each fight sequence is chaotic and bloody, with various lines running at once, and yet, we absorb and understand everything. And the themes of legacy and family are on full display but never overdone. We feel a history in these characters, their bonds made tangible, and Mangold sells a final act for the ages.

— Kyle Kizu

Nominees:

3. Nacho Vigalondo, “Colossal”
4. James Gray, “The Lost City of Z”
5. Julia Ducournau, “Raw”

Best Original Screenplay

Winner: Jordan Peele, “Get Out”

Universal Pictures / Courtesy

The reason why Jordan Peele’s “Get Out” is so effective goes back to its foundation — the screenplay. Peele has made a name for himself with his brilliant, satirical writing on “Key & Peele,” so his command of comedy is no surprise. But his sharp sense of horror, and how he blends that genre with comedy, is at the forefront of “Get Out.” The allegory of race and racism works so well not only because of the biting, bruising dialogue, but also because of how Peele constructs the story. Each step subverts the horror genre while also building a commentary that places sadly hidden aspects at the images’ forefront — microaggressions are manifested and literalized, subtle ignorances are made glaringly clear and more.

Great comedy writing already deserves massive praise, but horror writing that is directly of the times makes a piece of art boundless. The fact that some of the events of the film’s world are so absurd, but still are extremely palpable and truthful in their essence boils down to how Peele tells the story. While most others on this list won’t make it to the year-end awards, Peele, with his original screenplay, is the one that has the best shot.

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Nacho Vigalondo, “Colossal”

“Colossal” is truly one of the most original films in recent memory and that is a credit to its writer and director, Nacho Vigalondo. His premise is a remarkably inventive one — what happens when a woman realizes that she is controlling a massive monster? Where Vigalondo shines is using that premise to produce smart social commentary about our relationship with the technology we have become so dependent on. Vigalondo also shows his writing skills through the film’s well-balanced tone — there are plenty of laughs, but just the right amount of darkness, too. Vigalondo is a filmmaker with a truly, ahem, colossal future ahead of him.

— Harrison Tunggal

Nominees:

3. Macon Blair, “I don’t feel at home in this world anymore.”
4. Julia Ducournau, “Raw”
5. Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick, “Life”

Best Adapted Screenplay

Winner: James Mangold, Scott Frank and Michael Green, “Logan”

Ben Rothstein / Courtesy

“Logan” is a true testament to allowing filmmakers to control their entire vision. In writing their screenplay, Mangold, Frank and Green seemingly never had to compromise what they hoped to do, which allowed them to tell an entirely moving tale of loss, love and the passage of time. Each character is given a sense of great emotional weight, and their arcs are grand, sweeping and fully realized — achievements of the writers in the construction of their story. The dialogue is not only hilarious, but imbues an idea of a grand past behind our heroes. They’ve been through so much, and have grown and changed in ways that only a long life can result in. And the choice of such little dialogue for Laura, X-23, is to be commended, not only for its informed basis, but also for the way in which the writers characterize her outside of her dialogue.

The three also command their sense of imagery with class. While Mangold may have been the one to visualize the Western features, and how those add depth to the characters, as director, all three writers offered the starting points by which Mangold could do so. The desolate landscapes,  brutal action and that haunting, utterly hauntingly beautiful final image are conceptions of the writers.

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Seth Grahame-Smith, Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Jared Stern and John Whittington, “The LEGO Batman Movie”

Calendar Man? Check. The Condiment King? Check. A cohesive story about the essentiality of family, told through the eyes of Batman? Of course. The writers behind “The LEGO Batman Movie” gave us a true gem of a superhero film, which combined the smart-but-kid-friendly style of “The LEGO Movie” with the subversiveness of “Deadpool.” The Merc with a Mouth might have lampooned superhero films in general, but “The LEGO Batman Movie” took thorough, savage jabs at every piece of Batman lore at its disposal. The result is an adapted screenplay sizzling with humor and glowing with heart.

— Harrison Tunggal

Nominees:

3. Gabby Chiappe, “Their Finest”
4. James Gray, “The Lost City of Z”
5. Guy Hibbert, “A United Kingdom”

The winners, runner-ups and nominees were voted on and chosen by the Daily Californian Arts & Entertainment staff.

Contact the Daily Cal Arts Staff at arts@dailycal.org.

The Daily Californian

For the past 10 years, Brown alums have consistently been nominated the Pulitzer Prizes for Drama. This April, Lynn Nottage ’86 P’20 won her second Pulitzer Prize in this category, continuing the decade long trend with her play “Sweat,” which explores economic stagnation and the lives of steel workers in the town of Reading, Pennsylvania. While some past-winners studied in Brown’s Master’s of Fine Arts program and others studied playwriting as undergraduates, all point toward Brown as the root of their success.

Nottage, the first woman to win two Pulitzer Prizes for Drama, was initially inspired by Paula Vogel, who was the head of Brown’s graduate playwriting program when Nottage was a student.

“It’s been a struggle. Hopefully, young women will see what I’ve been able to accomplish, and … they might sit down at a desk and write a play,” Nottage said.

Gina Gionfriddo MFA’97 was nominated for a Pulitzer in Drama in 2013 for her play “Rapture, Blister, Burn,” a dark comedy exploring the consequences of internet pornography. Gionfriddo  credited her success to Brown’s MFA program, which she said provided her with the time and space to focus on writing.

“It was two years where I had my education funded and I could focus 100 percent on my writing,” she said. “You develop your skill set faster than when you are working a 40-hour a week job.”

Nottage, however, believes that the necessity of an MFA depends on the individual. While some writers need graduate programs to grant them the freedom to explore, other emerging writers prefer to dive deeply into the world of writing on their own time, she said.

“You can’t give people talent. But you can inspire them to go deeper and write expansively and to be more adventurous,” Nottage said. She now teaches as an Associate Professor for Columbia’s  MFA program.

Stephen Karam ’02, who was nominated twice for a Pulitzer in Drama in 2012 and 2016,  shared a similar sentiment. Karam recalled forcing himself to work day jobs that were uninteresting but financially stable to give himself the opportunity to write.

“It’s what I needed to do to free me up to pursue something that felt impossible,” Karam said. “Some people get a job to make them feel safe, others need to run at it 100 percent. There is no right or wrong — it’s just what you need to do to be able to pursue (writing),” Karam said

All three playwrights agreed that producing their work at Brown was crucial to their developing careers.

“I had three full productions of my plays while I was at Brown. I think there’s stuff you learn as a playwright that you have to learn through having your plays being produced, and I think that’s an incredible education,” Gionfriddo said.

Karam noted the importance of developing his adaptation of a Jane Austen novel with Brownbrokers, a student run theater group who produces a student-written musical every other year.

“I had a lot of productions at Brown,” Nottage said. “If I hadn’t had that time to play in the sandbox, I might not have had the confidence to move forward in this career.”

The playwrights also credited their success to the faculty who taught and inspired them. “I was fortunate enough to study with several really incredible playwriting professors,” Nottage said. “They were really key in me beginning to find my voice.”

“Studying with Paula Vogel was the reason I went to Brown. I was drawn to her dark, irreverent sense of humor,” Gionfriddo said.

Gionfriddo also spoke on the importance of fostering peer connections at Brown. Gionfriddo met Peter DuBois AM’97, the director of “Rapture, Blister, Burn,” at Brown when he was in the graduate theatre program and she was in the playwriting program. After directing her thesis “U.S. Drag,” DuBois went on to direct three of her plays.

The playwrights stressed the pertinence of continuing to write. “See as much theatre as you can and write as much as you can. Do what you can to create a life where you have space for writing,” Gionfriddo said.

“You have to keep continuing to explore the craft. It’s really about making a commitment to doing that,” Nottage said.

Psychology professor Dr. Nick Heck discusses LGBTQ mental health, the increased stress individuals experience and how to be an ally. Heck specializes in research on LGBTQ mental health outcomes and has piloted multiple gay-straight alliance support groups at various high schools.

On this episode of the Idea Industry, Emily Kalei and Franziska Monahan talk about American Airline’s recent social media scandal surrounding a confrontation between a male flight attendant and a mother of two young children over a stroller. They discuss the role social media and mobile phones play in keeping big businesses accountable and how American Airlines might try to prevent similar incidents in the future.

This episode was produced by Franziska Monahan

The post Idea Industry: American Airline’s turbulent social media ride appeared first on Emerald Media.

With the year coming to a close, the SGA executive branch is already transitioning from the leadership of outgoing President Nagela Nukuna to incoming President Sujay Peramanu. As this change of the guard takes place, it will be of paramount importance for Peramanu and his team to look back upon Nukuna’s tenure in order to arrive in office with an idea of what works and what does not.
In essence, there are many lessons to be learned from Nukuna’s term as SGA undergraduate president. One of the highlights was her continued advocacy on behalf of the student body on many legislative issues, including the contentious HB-51. Peramanu should take notes from this approach; Tech’s students should always have a voice in legislative debate that affects them.
Accordingly, partaking in serious conversations for advocacy or other purposes should be handled with a degree of professionalism. This is another area in which Nukuna and her staff have excelled. In addition, Nukuna was able to engage with students on a personal level at events like “Take Back the Night.” Peramanu needs to prove he can do so as well.
An area within which the incoming administration can continue to make improvements in is transparency. Students deserve to know what the leaders that they voted for are doing, even if initiatives are not always successful or fruitful. Additionally, the platform used during the campaign should be utilized in deciding what projects are going to be undertaken. If something does not work out, there should be a public explanation why along with efforts to work towards a goal in the spirit of what was originally planned for.
Lastly, Peramanu should ensure that the valuable but unfinished work from Nukuna’s term — like the CIOS result dissemination — sees a finish.

Zach Berger

By Mackenzie McDermott

Salt Lake City native and East High graduate Zach Berger will be the new president of Associated Students of the University of Utah (ASUU). Berger is an English major heading into his senior year.

After being involved in ASUU, Berger thought he could make positive changes to the organization, and he decided to run.

“I just noticed a lot of room for improvement,” Berger said. “I felt really tied to the university and I felt like ASUU can have a sort of disconnect with students, and that was something that I saw as a strong suit that I could bring to ASUU.”

Many of the skills that Berger felt qualified him for the presidency he learned through involvement with his fraternity, Sigma Chi.

“I think that the things that I gained from it, mostly, were dealing with difficult situations, and understanding people who come from totally different backgrounds.” Berger said. “It just helped me develop so much as a leader.”

Berger said his success is inspired by his mother.

“My mom is just extraordinarily impressive,” he said. “She serves on the presidential task force, right now, against sexual assault.”

Although Berger’s family has strong connections to the U, he said at first the U was just the school that made the most fiscal sense.

“I came to the U and it ended up being just the best experience ever, Berger said. “I honestly don’t think that I possibly could have had an experience nearly as good as this in any other university. I love it so much and really the way that I was able to do that was through getting involved.”

Berger’s friend and older brother, Nate Berger, studies finance and also attends the U and is a member of Sigma Chi.

“I love seeing Zach around — Zach’s Mr. Social Butterfly,” said Nate.

Nate thinks Zach will push ASUU to new heights by forming new connections with the students.

Nate said, “He’s very innovative, thinks of a lot of new ideas, and he’s pretty hard working when he puts his mind to something.”

m.mcdermott@dailyutahchronicle.com

Saeed Shihab

By Jordan Higgins

ASUU president-elect, Zach Berger, and vice president-elect of university relations, Zoe Kozlowski, approached Saeed Shihab last September to propose that they run for ASUU executive positions together.

“At first I was really hesitant because, number one, I wasn’t really familiar with ASUU, and also, I’ve heard kind of negative things about it in the years past,” recounted Shihab, who was skeptical of ASUU as an organization.

The more he learned about student government and its potential role on campus, however, the more he liked the idea of running for office with Berger and Kozlowski.He reflected on his own distrust of ASUU as he ran for office throughout this past year, which helped him focus on the real reason he wanted to run for office.

“If I won, I wanted to change people’s perception of this organization and make people realize what it is really meant for – to serve students,” recalled Shihab.

Shihab, who studies biomedical engineering, was elected vice president of student relations. He is working hard for a smooth transfer of power.

“It is a little hectic right now,” Shihab said. “The old officers are transitioning out, and then we are ushering in a new generation with us.”

For now, Shihab said he is focusing on assembling next year’s cabinet, “as well as talking with multiple student groups and other students” to get suggestions. He is gathering input to make sure his term is focused on the students.

“I would just want students to realize that this is a place for them,” Shihab explained. “This should be their second home. They should feel welcome and accepted.”

j.higgins@dailyutahchronicle.com

Zoe Kozlowski

By Ashley Baker

Zoe Kozlowski juggles her responsibilities as a full time student, employee and now ASUU Vice President of University Relations.

As a freshman, Kozlowski was eager to become inovolved in as many student groups and campus activities as she could. Once a writer for The Utah Daily Chronicle, student ambassador and advocate at the Center for Student Wellness, she can now be found spending her days in the ASUU office.

“I’m really busy, but I wouldn’t want to do anything else with my time,” Kozlowski said.

Kozlowski is a junior studying health, society and policy, and plans to apply for law school next year.

As VP of university relations, she aims to continue the progress that the outgoing administration made.

“The past administration has done so much for student groups,” Kozlowski said. “I hadn’t really felt the sense of community as I do now prior to the work they’ve done in things such as making the [ASUU] office more inviting.”

Along with her colleague Saeed Shihab, who is the new VP of student relations, Kozlowski will focus on increasing student safety.

“Our goal is to work with the administration to improve campus safety and one of the ways that we hope to do that is by making the [Presidential Task Force on Campus Safety] a permanent institution,” she said.

Kozlowski and other members of ASUU’s leadership aim to amplify the voices of the student body and student groups.

“I think that the student voice isn’t fully represented on many subjects,” Kozlowski said. “There needs to be more conversation on campus about safety and student involvement is a conduit for that change.”

The administration is working to implement a Risk Management Officer within every student group. Their role will be to support students as well as train and disseminate information to the organization.

“We have backing from administrative members, and that has been great,” Kozlowski said of the idea.

Kozlowski explained that had they won the election by a landslide, the succession would probably be less exhilarating for her.

“This transition has been the most exciting thing I’ve done in my college career,” Kozlowski said. “We only won by 19 votes, which could have been the last minute calls to friends.”

Kozlowski urge other students to participate in ASUU.

“I want people to know that they can come into the ASUU office anytime,” she said. “They can come meet with their student groups and even use the couches as a place to study between classes. We want to create an open, welcome feeling.”

a.baker@dailyutahchronicle.com

The post Meet Your Student Body Officers appeared first on Daily Utah Chronicle.

A teenage boy once told Lorelei Carlson that her music was too girly.

At that moment, young Carlson had an epiphany: Although many women listen to male artists, a lot of men don’t listen to female vocalists. She became self-conscious about any “girliness” in her writing, discarding topics she considered to be overtly feminine, such as love and heartache.

I related with the fourth-year gender studies student, since my hopeless romantic side commonly comes out in my songwriting. In high school, I tried to make my songs vague and general in order to appeal to a broader audience.

Now, Carlson said she doesn’t care if her lyrics are too feminine. Sitting across from me at Kerckhoff patio, she told me that her only goal is to make listeners to feel, no matter what that feeling is.

Growing up with a father as a musician, she remembers watching him record folk music with a cassette tape and small microphone. Carlson recorded her first original song, “Mr. Bungle Jungle,” at 5 years old on one of his cassettes.

When Carlson was 12 years old, her dad helped her record her first demo in a studio. The song, “Now That I Realize the Truth,” talked about teenage crushes and heartbreak, a nod to middle school days when girls realized that boys no longer had cooties.

Though she previously lived on the East Coast, Carlson moved to Los Angeles in 2010 a week after she turned 21. All she had were two suitcases and her demo when she got off the plane.

[Read more: Laura Sauvage strums past boundaries with raw, honest melodies]

Carlson built a new life in Los Angeles, taking the bus every day and working two jobs, one at a hair salon and one at a gym. When she wasn’t working, Carlson recorded music at a local studio downtown. The same producer she met when she was 21, David Gielan, is the producer she works with today.

One of her old songs “Low Life” marks the start of Carlson’s journey in California. Written when she first moved out to Los Angeles, the song represents Carlson’s personal quest for strength.

In the chorus in “Low Life,” she sings, “Could you live through my half life / Would you detain my blood knife / if I’m in pain, would you be in pain / ‘cause I’m a low life looking for a high life.”

The brutally honest lyrics intrigued me when I listened to the song online. Carlson’s haunting voice, paired with the ominous chord progression, makes the song utterly raw, and I can almost feel the fragility in her voice.

[Related: Josephine Tehrani inspires with fearless vulnerability in new EP]

The dark, electronic song discusses the insecurities of a woman when she measures herself against other female figures. Carlson admits how she struggles when comparing herself to others. Listeners who may feel similarly inadequate can find comfort in the fact that they are not alone in their pain.

As a young woman in a culture of pressure and expectations, I battle with feeling confident in my appearance and my worth. Carlson validates my feelings of imperfection and incompetence, serving as a companion on my own journey to find strength.

Since her first gender studies class in community college, Carlson has been passionate about gender and she said she writes with a feminist lens.

Thus at age 25, Carlson released a cover of Nirvana’s “Rape Me,” which is now on her album “Dopamine,” in order to make a political statement. She looked all over the internet and couldn’t find female covers at the time, making her cover stand out and switch the power balance in the song.

Carlson used “Rape Me” to speak out against sexual violence, she said. She wanted to remove any notion of stigma from survivors and speak out against rape.

Her cover reached more than a million listeners on SoundCloud.

Now she writes music with the purpose of inspiring women; she uses the insecurities she experienced when moving to Los Angeles – and her subsequent strength – to strengthen and resonate with listeners.

As an advocate for gender equality and female empowerment, Carlson knows what she stands for. In the small amount of time we had together, her passion for justice inspired me to make my life meaningful.

She displayed confidence when her music was called too girly. She was determined when she had to couch surf for a couple weeks. She showed strength when singing out for survivors.

Carlson shows a compelling power in her story, her music and her life.

Listen to some of Carlson’s favorite artists:

https://open.spotify.com/embed/user/12128635918/playlist/4hdQrVxNk3BWKd3F5vGFDf