As construction of the Armory unfolds its transformation into a national squash training center, yet another construction project is beginning: the installation of two domed structures on campus to become the new hub of athletic activity.

To accommodate the lost space within the Armory, the two-bubble solution was put forward to provide improved sports programming by installing two seasonal air-structures at Buckley Recreational Field and over three tennis courts at Vidas Athletics Complex, according to director of athletics Eric Zillmer.

“The two-bubble proposal for relocating sports out of the Armory provides a modern and appropriate solution for Drexel Athletics and Drexel University,” Zillmer said.

While the groundwork for the Buckley bubble is already currently underway and will be inflated and available for use in the fall of 2019, its twin at Vidas will likely be completed in 2020. Both bubbles, however, will significantly enhance athletics, according to Zillmer.

Offering a combined space of 44,572 square feet, the bubble solution surpasses the former usable space of the armory, which was about 30,000 square feet. This 30 percent increase, he said, opens new doors for open recreation, intramural, club and varsity sports.

And this space also offers a more suitable sports environment singularly appropriate for an urban campus like Drexel, he said. In addition to boasting better lighting and playing surfaces, the bubbles will also have the capacity for heating during the winter months, unlike the armory.

“The sports-specific bubbles will provide better athletic environments for our students to play sports than did the Armory,” he said.

This increased space alongside better athletic conditions will ultimately result in additional sports programming, he explained.

Most notably, he said, the construction of the bubble over the Buckley Field will allow for intramural soccer — one of the university’s most popular intramural sports — to be played across all four terms of the year. However, he said that a wide variety of other sports will also greatly benefit from the bubbles, including club baseball, softball, cricket, soccer, quidditch, ultimate frisbee, lacrosse and rugby.

“The increased programming for Drexel recreation is a significant factor and the biggest advantage of the two-bubble solution,” he said.

Students can also take advantage of the new training center as well, he said.

“One should not lose sight of the fact that the [national training center] will be a world-class squash facility that will be available for Drexel students to play recreational, intramural, club and varsity squash,” he said. “It is expected that squash will grow exponentially with the additional availability of the NTC in addition to Drexel’s popular Kline & Specter Squash Center.”

The development of the bubbles signifies the growing number of students who want to be part of Drexel’s sports environment, he said. Noting reports done by Drexel’s institutional research team, he explained how about 85 percent of full-time freshmen use the DAC and that students who visit the University’s Recreation Center 10 or more times a year have a 10 percent higher retention rate and significantly higher GPAs than the student body average.

“I am personally most proud how sports are playing an increasingly visible and important role in the perception of and the life in our University. The new bubbles will only add to this trend,” he said.

But he said that not just student athletes will profit from these changes, as the bubbles will even function as venues for numerous student organization events. Recreational Athletics formerly hosted an array of events in the Armory, as well as in the DAC, but he said that these can be difficult to accommodate with limited space. However, having bubbles over Buckley and Vidas will now allow for additional areas to host these student organization events.

All students, he said, can also be excited for the mere sociability of such an endeavor since recreational athletics have truly become the social nexus of college campuses.

“Recreational athletics are primarily social in nature,” he said. “Drexel students are not either athletes or non-athletes, but they are all social beings; they are young adults who are itching to find opportunities to play, recreate, interact and engage.”

And the overall impact extends beyond the Drexel community, he said.

“Not only will our students be able to use this new world-class facility, in addition to the Kline-Specter Squash Center at the Daskalakis Athletics Center, but the NTC will serve as a hub of elite athletic training with the potential to be designated as a United States Olympic Training Site, thus becoming a talent magnet for University City,” he said. “This partnership with U.S. Squash is a win-win for Drexel and for the sport of squash.”

Though losing the Armory is an unwelcome change for some students, overall, he said he thinks that everyone will realize that it’s worth it once the bubbles are ready for use.

“Of course nobody wants change, but the Armory was never conceptualized to be a rec center,” he said.

He explained how Drexel was merely leasing the space, knowing that it wouldn’t always be in their terrain, but since the bubbles are on actual Drexel property, Drexel athletics has full control over their programming and hours.

And with this, he said, there will be no looking back.

“I know that the moment our students will enter our new bubbles, they will want to kick a ball or throw a frisbee,” he said. “They are great fun and nobody will say ‘Oh, I miss the old, dark Armory!’”

Few issues on campus ignite as much conversation as housing, and that’s why the Undergraduate Student Government Association held a town hall meeting Jan. 28 in the Behrakis Grand Hall to initiate dialogue between students and administrators involving student housing.

“We think it’s really important that you’re able to voice your concerns or opinions — especially regarding student housing,” USGA’s Student Body President Tamara Callanan stated in her opening remarks to almost 150 students who sat in the crowd, eager to share their comments.

Before opening the floor to students, Callanan posed questions to an an open panel, which included Senior Vice President of Enrollment Management & Student Success Dr. Randall Deike; Vice President and Dean of Student Life Subir Sahu; Vice President of Public Safety Eileen Behr; Senior Vice Provost for University and Community Partnerships Lucy Kerman; Executive Director Residential Living and Student Conduct Melissa Depretto Behan; Executive Director Office of Financial Aid Cindy De Lone; and American Campus Communities’ Area Manager Matthew Mechlin.

In the first hour, Callanan rattled off common concerns students have, directed to particular panel members. She first posed a question to Deike regarding how this year’s influx of freshman displaced 74 students.

“I would choose a different word than displaced,” Deike contended, which evoked annoyed scoffs from many audience members.

He then went on to explain the difficulty in artfully planning for a new class. Due to the unpredictability of the process, he said they must factor in a “safety valve,” which may result in over-committing based on what they see historically and if they do better than predicted.

“Enrolling a class is not an exact science,” he continuously argued.

One upset student in the crowd interrupted Deike to ask why freshmen were more important than sophomores, but Deike said that wasn’t the case and that displacement didn’t officially occur since he claimed that no signed contracts were involved. He reiterated that the University’s foremost goal is always to support students first, though he admitted this can be hard to balance with overall revenue targets.

“We’re as much a business as we are an academic enterprise,” he said.

But Sahu jumped in, speaking in a much more sympathetic tone, and explained how this miscalculation can serve as a learning experience for administration.

“We take situations, and we try to learn from them and move forward,” Sahu said, adding that the renovation of Calhoun Hall will also help put more beds online for the upcoming year, which could begin to solve the problem.

But Callanan then asked why the newest housing option right on Drexel’s campus — the luxurious Vue32 — cannot be leased to students.

This, Deike said, is a response to what community members wanted: a high quality child care center and housing guaranteed separate from students.

“It’s not just about what we want; it’s about what the developer wants or is interested in [and] what the community thinks,” he said. “We don’t want to be the massive university that runs free-will of everyone in the community.”

The spotlight was back on Sahu as the conversation switched to the university’s current 2-year residency program and the overall pricing of campus housing options.

Sahu explained the importance of keeping students on campus for as long as possible.

“A student is much more likely to have a higher level of engagement, retainment and be successful in and out of the classroom if they are living on campus,” he said, while also emphasizing how this increases safety for students as well.

And when Callanan questioned the level of affordability of Drexel housing, Sahu discussed how housing rates have been relatively steady for the past several years, though he said that conversations have been ongoing to lower prices to further accommodate student needs.

“This has been a big topic for us,” Sahu said.

Another ongoing conversation that is unraveling, according to Behr, is patrol borders of the Drexel Police force. The current patrol area extends from 30th to 36th Streets and Chestnut to Spring Garden Streets, which goes slightly beyond where academic buildings and residence halls are located. Though many students would like to see these borders extended, Behr reminded the audience that resources are limited since there are currently only 40 members of the force working 24 hours every single day.

She did, however, give students advice on how to stay safe, especially when going beyond campus zones.

“It’s a matter of being aware at all times,” she said, explaining how students should always look out for lights offered by community members.

This was the perfect transition for Kerman to offer her community-oriented perspective to campus housing since Drexel rests between three vivid communities: Powelton Village, Mantua and West Powelton.

She said a safe and exciting urban experience results in maintaining a positive civic structure and from getting to know your communities — and neighbors — in the right way.

“In being a good neighbor, you should think about it as being as respectful as you would be and as you’d want people to be in your own home,” she said, joking about how students wouldn’t want others squashing red solo cups on their porches, tossing pizza crusts on their sidewalks or even urinating in their flower beds.

After a quick discussion on guest policies and gender-inclusive housing, the focus turned to Mechlin as he explained how ACC properties are working to become more accommodating.

He talked about the positive changes they’ve been enacting, like making the rising sophomore priority period to sign leases completely digital and crafting shortened leases for students on co-op, but in the following hour, students attacked many other ACC strategies when the floor was given to them.

When the floor opened to the audience, hands shot up from all corners of the room. About a dozen students got to stand up and were given the opportunity to voice specific housing concerns, but almost all of these grievances revolved around ACC.

The first student that stood up explained how she was experiencing major roommate issues but that she could not break her lease. As a result, she explained that she was paying for her room but living at home and commuting to avoid her roommate.

“What am I supposed to be doing when I’m paying for a dorm I cannot use?” she posed to the panel, explaining how she has already been in touch with several ACC officials who all told her that the only hope was subletting — something that she has had no luck with.

Mechlin owned the question and said they could chat offline about the specific situation to concoct a solution. He made the same promise to several other students as they brought up other ACC-specific issues, mostly in regard to the leasing process.

Cierra Frantz, a freshman sitting right in the front row, also questioned the panel, and Mechlin specifically, as she explained an issue she shared with her friends as they attempted to sign a lease. She explained how the group of friends who she was planning on signing a lease with did not get their desired floor plan, which they listed as their first choice, when other groups they knew got that particular plan even though they listed it as their third choice. Since the floor plan opened up only on the last day of leasing, their options were exhausted.

She directed this frustration to the panel, arguing that their actions contradict what they claim to be their mission.

“I heard you all talk about how you care about students, that we matter to you. A lot of the actions that you all seem to be taking and focusing on Drexel as a business don’t come off to me — and everyone else that I talked to — as focusing on caring about us. A lot of people are extremely upset,” she said.

Students in the audience roared in agreement like she was saying what everyone else was thinking. Her next words inspired even more supportive yells, and applause boomed throughout the room.

“A lot of upperclassmen that I talk to say, ‘Oh it’s the Drexel Shaft — that’s what always happens,’” she continued. “The fact that that’s a reoccurring thing over and over again, that people are constantly being screwed over and getting screwed out of leases, it’s just mind boggling to me that something hasn’t been done yet.”

Though students were clearly in support of her, at the end of the two-hour event, she said she didn’t feel like her questions were answered by the panel.

“I didn’t feel like they answered anyone’s questions really,” she said. “They’re not responsive.”

She found most of the responses throughout the night to be insincere and meaningless, but some students did find the town hall productive, however.

“I really liked it,” freshman nursing student Kara Meyer said. “I think it’s really cool everyone could voice their concerns directly.”

And for USGA, it was a huge success.

“It exceeded any and all expectations I had,” Callanan said. “It’s amazing students could be very blunt to administrators — and that’s who we are — we’re here to serve as a liaison between the administration and the students.”

USGA holds public Joint Session meetings every Monday night from 7 to 9 p.m. where students can sit in and listen to what the organization is working on and bring individual feedback. Students with follow-up questions or inquiries from the Town Hall can email USGA@drexel.edu.

Drexel University is severely restricting speech rights on campus, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. The organization, which strives to defend and sustain the individual rights of students and faculty members at America’s colleges and universities, ranked Drexel among the 10 worst colleges for free speech in 2018.

Overall, FIRE, which reports on written policies of over 450 of America’s largest and most prestigious colleges and universities, gave Drexel its lowest rating in the “red light” category for having policies that clearly and substantially hinder freedom of speech on campus.

“According to our latest annual report on speech codes, 28.5 percent of the schools in our database earn an overall ‘red light’ rating, so Drexel’s red light rating puts it in the bottom third of schools in our database,” Laura Beltz, a policy reform program officer at FIRE, told The Triangle.

The Philadelphia-based nonprofit referenced several policies in its report that it says actively hamper fundamental freedoms, including Policy IT-7, Drexel’s email policy. The policy notes that students can’t use “offensive language” via email, which Beltz says is far too vague.

“‘Offensive’ is a broad and undefined term that includes a great deal of speech that is protected under First Amendment standards — just about any speech could be subjectively deemed offensive by someone,” Beltz explained.

FIRE also referred to Policy OED-1: Drexel’s Discrimination, Harassment, and Bias Incident Prevention Policy.

“Freedom of expression and the right to disagree are fundamental to the educational experience and culture of our University,” a summary of the policy explained.

However, the policy itself runs somewhat contradictory to this declaration and, according to Beltz, encourages students to report any verbal conduct that is “bullying” on the basis of a particular characteristic.

“Expressions that subjectively portray bias or hate are nonetheless protected under First Amendment standards, unless they constitute one of the narrow exceptions to the First Amendment, like harassment or true threats. If students are told statements that are perceived as hateful could be reported for discipline, they may be wary about expressing any controversial opinions at all,” she said.

These policies ultimately give the administration the ability to investigate and punish speech that is protected under First Amendment standards, Beltz explained.

“Even if students haven’t heard of these policies currently being applied in this way, their presence on the books means administrators could decide to target a particular type of expression at any time,” she said.

In addition to these policies, however, the organization most notably alludes to the treatment of former associate professor, George Ciccariello-Maher, which FIRE considers a clear violation of his entitlement to academic freedom.

Academic freedom is typically granted to tenured faculty and is also applied to instructors in class, Provost Brian Blake told The Triangle, explaining that it protects teaching, research and extramural speech — including social media. The purpose of the policy, he said, is to encourage new thinking.

“It was initially conceived to allow faculty to have that ability to explore research and teaching in ways that are not prohibited by management from a financial perspective — all those kinds of constraints that could interfere with the full freedom and the full innovation and exploration of knowledge,” he said.

Blake told The Triangle that the university has a long track record in protecting academic freedom.

“We’ve been excellent in maintaining academic freedom for our faculty — even in tough cases,” he said.

But FIRE says the case of Ciccariello-Maher, which started when he controversially tweeted “All I Want For Christmas is White Genocide” back in December 2016, was inappropriately handled. When public backlash to this tweet (perhaps unsurprisingly) followed, Drexel initially promised Ciccariello-Maher that he would not face punishment for the tweet, but launched an investigation regardless.

“When we get threats that seem legitimate or we have students that offer concerns or faculty and professional staff that have complaints, then we’re put in the unfavorable position where we have to try to condense all that information to figure out what’s the best way to move operationally,” Blake told The Triangle. “In this case, the university was silent. We had no position of what would be the outcome of the advisory committee but we had an obligation to create a faculty-led committee to provide support to my office, so the committee was formed in conversation with the faculty senate.”

FIRE wrote to Drexel June 2, 2017, reminding the university of its commitments to academic freedom and warning that its investigation of Ciccariello-Maher contradicted those promises. In a response to FIRE three days later, Blake wrote back to clarify and correct what he calls a “misunderstanding” and claimed that all decisions would comply with the standards set forth by the American Association of University Professors, which defines fundamental professional values to advance academic freedom and shared governance in higher education.

“You can be assured that any potential official action that the University might take with respect to Professor Ciccariello‐Maher or any other faculty member will accord with relevant AAUP guidelines and standards (including academic freedom and freedom of expression) as well as applicable University policies and procedures,” Blake wrote.

Drexel continued its investigation, eventually placing Ciccariello-Maher on paid leave and barring him from campus in October. In a letter to Drexel in October 2017, the AAUP contended that the suspension of Ciccariello-Maher was problematic since he did not agree to be placed on leave, especially since administration did not consult a faculty committee prior to the suspension.

Blake, however, said the issue was that the AAUP defined the university’s response as being a disciplinary action when he said it was merely a safety measure.

InsideHigherEd reported on the investigation, citing a letter from Blake claiming that the university had lost potential students and donors due to Ciccariello-Maher and had been concerned about the “nearly unmanageable volume of venomous calls” that Drexel consequently received.

In an interview with The Triangle in July 2017, Ciccariello-Maher spoke of the investigation into his conduct and criticized the alleged reasoning behind it.

“You can’t go around disciplining faculty because of the fact that they themselves have become threatened and been threatened by utterly reactionary and irrational forces that are becoming very powerful in this society. If you do that, there’s no such thing as academic freedom, and if you discipline faculty based on what donors think — in other words, important people with money — then you’ve got no vestige of academic freedom left,” he said.

Ciccariello-Maher announced his resignation from the position in December 2017. Blake said this decision was ultimately up to Ciccariello-Maher and not influenced by university actions.

“Professor Ciccariello-Maher decided to resign; it was no pressure from us,” he said.

Ultimately, Beltz said that Drexel’s willingness to abandon the defense of its faculty’s academic freedom rights in the face of controversy show that Drexel is not living up to its promises in policy or practice — especially since this is accompanied by other questionable policies.

She said that FIRE recommends that Drexel revise all of its policies that regulate expression to meet First Amendment legal standards, even though the university is not legally obliged to the First Amendment like public universities.

“Private universities like Drexel aren’t legally bound by the First Amendment, but the vast majority of private colleges promise their students free speech rights in their official written policy materials, binding them morally, and perhaps contractually, to living up to those promises. Drexel provides in written policy that it is ‘committed to the free expression of ideas,’ that it ‘values freedom of expression,’ and that this value protects the expression and discussion of controversial ideas,” she said.

FIRE routinely works collaboratively with colleges to develop policies that meet administrators’ concerns and objectives — while also still protecting free speech. However, Beltz said that Drexel has been vague and opaque in responses to FIRE, and has generally been unwilling to consider policy revision recommendations.

Blake, however, said that he is always willing to make changes to better the university.

“But it’s not something that we change overnight; we have to go through the natural process for it,” he said.

In the end, Beltz also encourages that students themselves fight back to protect their free speech.

“Students at Drexel should let the administration know that [they] care about free speech and academic freedom rights. If you think students and professors should not need to be worried that constitutionally protected speech like a controversial tweet will result in investigation or punishment, you should let the administration know, and encourage the administration to revise its policies,” she said.

This, she said, is important for the learning environment overall.

“Students come to college to learn and grow, and not just in the classroom,” she said. “If students and faculty members are afraid or unable to express themselves on campus, the college is prevented from becoming the marketplace of ideas that it should serve as in our country, where students debate and ideas compete for prominence.”

Drexel University has always been regarded as a leading hotspot for research, but for the first time, it has been categorized by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education as an R1 Doctoral University in its highest level.

The organization’s 2018 classification system assigned Drexel to the, “very high research activity,” category, improving upon its previous ranking in the R2 category for, “high research activity.”

“This clearly indicates Drexel’s rising research and is a recognition of the talent and commitment of our faculty,” President John Fry said in a DrexelNow announcement.

Drexel was one of 130 colleges and universities to reach this level of status, alongside other universities like Harvard University, Princeton University and the University of Pennsylvania.

Drexel was one of only 37 private institutions in the nation included on the list. As a private institution, Drexel does not receive public funding that typically supports such undertakings, making it more difficult to expand its efforts. This framework, however, can expand opportunities even further, as it is widely used by state legislatures, federal agencies and grant-making institutions.

“We are familiar with the many ways in which Drexel researchers are making their mark — buoyed by an impressive 15 percent increase in sponsored research awards last year, to nearly $124 million,” Fry said. “But the Carnegie designation is a welcome affirmation by independent reviewers of the growth of Drexel research and its impact on society.”

Even though the weather is freezing, school spirit is burning hot as Homecoming Week kicked off on Jan. 14 with a bonfire on Race Street Lawn.

Hundreds of students came to enjoy hot chocolate, s’mores and Drexel apparel giveaways.

A large bonfire was set up in the middle of Race Street Lawn as students gathered around it to stay warm in the cold. A live DJ set the mood with energetic music, and Dragons from many different branches of the University made appearances.

The bonfire, along with the rest of the homecoming events, was organized by Drexel University Student Life. The Homecoming Bonfire was the first of several events this week, culminating in the homecoming basketball game Jan. 19.

Homecoming is a time to celebrate university achievements and welcome alumni to engage with their alma mater. Homecoming has been a Drexel tradition for many years, but recent efforts have tried to increase excitement for this week of celebration.

According to Provost Brian Blake, homecoming promotes engagement of all Drexel students, whether they’re in classes, on co-op or even graduated.

“Homecoming done right allows us to reunite current students with past students. There will be a number of events that really connect alumni with students that are working in co-op that may not be in term and students that are currently here that can really give back to what the mission of the school is. It gives them the opportunity to actually see what has happened since the time that they were here,” Blake said.

Homecoming celebrations will conclude with the Drexel University Men’s Basketball game Jan. 19. Their current coach, Zach Spiker, made an appearance at the bonfire where he gave a brief pep talk to encourage attendance and get students excited about the game. The team will face off against James Madison University at 2 p.m. in the Daskalakis Athletic Center.

There is more to Drexel University’s Recreation Center than merely gym equipment, and students in the gym’s marketing department are working to highlight these offerings through a video blog called “My Rec Life.”

The vlog, which just wrapped up its first season and is awaiting to roll out the second season during winter term, showcases various club and intramural sports as well as group fitness classes in which the students become active participants to display these offerings in a more humorously authentic way.

“Our overall goal is to make sure that everyone on campus knows that there’s some type of creative wellness outlet for them and it’s not just an addition to their life here at Drexel University; it’s also something that should be a part of their life here,” Andrew Case, manager of sales and marketing for the Department of Athletics, said.

Case, who manages the team of seven student vloggers, said this is particularly important because students are often not aware of what the Recreation Center offers beyond basic gym equipment — though these activities could certainly yield great benefits to their mental and physical well-being.

And the vloggers themselves are becoming familiar with these facets of university athletics for the first time as they work to inform the student body. Connor Levesque, a film and video sophomore, said that this experience has been an enjoyable way to learn about and directly engage with these activities.

“Personally, I’ve never done any of this stuff either and I think it’s a great opportunity to learn what things are and also have fun making some video content — which is something that I enjoy to do — with my pals,” he said.

While the energetic team behind the videos is having fun producing content, they hope that current and prospective students — from all backgrounds and athletic abilities — are drawn to recreate the activities they participate in.

“For me, I think of myself coming in as a freshman. I wasn’t necessarily familiar with all the offerings of the Rec Center other than the gym floor from working out and I think I see these videos as a great opportunity to show the Drexel student body that number one, these things exist, but also, even if you have no experience, that you’re able to come in and get a very productive workout from that,” Matt Kopyt, a senior in the music industry program, explained.

Kopyt recalled a recent episode they filmed in which he and a fellow member of the team, Robbie Corbin, joined the Drexel Fencing Club for a practice. Though he admitted they had previously only seen the sport in movies, by the end, they were fencing against the president of the club and the coach.

“That just shows students that regardless of their experience level, they are able to come in and get a good experience out of this,” Kopyt said.

Corbin, a senior studying mechanical engineering, said he enjoyed his first time fencing, and that their active involvement within these ventures takes the project to the next level.

“I just like that we not only get to show everyone this cool and interesting stuff, but we get to try it too,” he said. “All the cool stuff we get to do has definitely been the best part.”

This segment on fencing will premiere in the vlog’s second season this winter in addition to episodes showcasing BodyPump, barre and Cycle 45 — three group classes available at the Rec Center. There are also upcoming episodes dedicated to Drexel’s Cycle for a Cure, an event that raised money for the nonprofit organization Susan G. Komen for the Cure, as well as the “Roc the Rec” competition at the climbing wall.

Alongside promoting university athletics, Case said the students are gaining experience as marketers while practicing their own trades, since every student has an individual part within the project besides just being on camera.

Ryan Mack, an animation and visual effects senior, started off doing photography for the Rec Center but has been able to expand his horizons with his involvement in My Rec Life by shooting video.

“I’m pretty fresh to videography — I just started within the past six months or so — and so for me, a lot of this has just been trying to really excel on stuff that I’m not good at and trying to push myself forward,” he said.

Taylor Knox, a senior marketing major, formerly worked behind the equipment window in the Rec Center. Getting involved with the vlog has allowed her to get firsthand experience with social media promotion.

But most importantly, according to Case, all of these students have learned to tackle another imperative skill: appearing on camera. Case said he soon learned the importance of being on-camera while he studied communication at Temple University and he wants all students to tackle what he learned from it.

“I realized, by getting in front of the camera, there was this whole other world of skills that came about that would transfer over after graduation,” he explained, noting that it has forced the students out of their comfort zones.

“It definitely brought me out of my shell,” Knox agreed.

These students — all from different backgrounds and with different personalities —  each provide a special component to the series, Case said. And ultimately, bringing them together to serve as the face of recreational athletics at Drexel has injected a more human feel into the marketing endeavors.

Kopyt admitted that it can sometimes be difficult to manage these big personalities while attempting to maintain an overall structure.

“But we’re getting much better at that as the terms go on,” he explained.

And overall, the students say it has been worth the great effort.

“All the hard work, it goes into it and then it comes out, and people see it and they like it and that’s rewarding to hear,” Levesque said.

Moving forward, as the team prepares to put out season 2, it hopes to continue marketing the first season to students and to develop an even stronger plan for future videos, which may contain student influencers or possibly higher-ups from administration.

For now, Case said, this undertaking has already helped propel Drexel’s recreational athletics.

“We’ve been able to utilize this platform to just really stand by the department’s values and also the mission statement,” he said. “We’re just making sure that we’re always figuring out the best ways to put a nice spin on all of our great work and [putting] the spotlight on recreational athletics to enhance the student experience here.”

Season 1 of “My Rec Life” can be viewed on on the Recreational Athletics website and its Youtube channel.

After almost four years at Drexel, comfortably tucked into the vibrant city of Philadelphia, and having spent my days dorkily keeping up the latest headlines and incessantly blasting podcasts at all hours, I thought I had a pretty good understanding of the world and where I fit into it, but studying abroad this summer turned that all around.

Taking on two cities that I’ve always dreamt of seeing — Dublin, Ireland and London, England — I anticipated having some jaw-dropping moments from picturesque scenes of rolling Irish fields speckled with sheep and getting to see all my favorite scenes from “The Parent Trap” up close, but those superficial expectations took on a deeper level of meaning as I experienced these cities beyond those incomplete assumptions.

My classes in Ireland walked us through the country’s contentious history as it departed from the United Kingdom and how this sparked the period known as “The Troubles.” But rather than sitting in the classroom hearing about the revolutionaries and the bloody battles, we travelled to Northern Ireland to get a more immersive experience. As we endured an emotional tour of the walled city of Derry, we also learned about Bloody Sunday by seeing the Free Derry Museum, as well as the numerous murals proudly erected across the city’s buildings that serve as reminders of these difficult times. Back in Dublin, we later explored the Glasnevin Cemetery, in which the key figures of the revolution lay at rest today, but beyond analyzing these events from a historical lens, we also learned how these times shaped the country into what it is today.

On another class trip, we visited the Glencree Centre for Peace and Reconciliation, an organization that emerged following “The Troubles” to promote global peace through facilitated dialogues. The building was almost hidden within the plush countryside, but whizzing through circuitous backroads brought us to this place where we spent the day learning about lessons of the Irish revolution and its application to modern-day conflicts.

And through my other classes, we also explored the country’s economics — which have been particularly bountiful due to Brexit — as well as the faces of renowned Irish literature like Yeats and Joyce, and other cultural components, such as hurling and the Gaelic League, which define Ireland today.

I’ve never learned so much in such a short amount of time and in such a meaningfully rich way. In five weeks, I managed to pack a lot in and experienced some of the most well-known sites throughout the country, tromping along the Giant’s Causeway, anxiously crossing the rickety Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, staring in awe at the Cliffs of Moher and the Ring of Kerry, tailing dolphins in the Dingle Peninsula and even kissing the Blarney Stone in Cork city. Though we trekked across almost the entire country, Dublin is what really won my heart with its quirky street markets, intriguing museums, live music permeating from every corner of every street, restaurants and pubs and the friendliest people I’ve ever met in my life who didn’t make too much fun of me for my spastic rendition of Irish dancing or as I practiced my Irish slang — which is pretty “class,” by the way.

I felt truly heartbroken to leave behind the trad music, the castles, the cliff-side hikes, the best coffee I’ve ever had and all of the memories, of course, but the beauty of doing a dual-city program is that I got to venture to London next.

I was lucky enough to stay just minutes away from both the Kensington Palace and the Buckingham Palace and their breathtaking gardens, as well as endless shopping and restaurants of all cuisines. I checked off the notorious sites that London itself boasts — like Hyde Park, The London Eye, Tower Bridge and Big Ben — but it was even more fun to venture out of the city to see Oxford, Bath, Stonehenge, and even Wales and Scotland.

While I seemed to have soaked up Ireland historically, I soaked up London culturally — seeing concerts, a comedy show, and even a show on the West End, while also exploring an array of animated street markets overfilling with antiques and local treasures and too many museums to count. And in a way, I felt like I was seeing what I learned about in Ireland from the other side, and having these two exceedingly different experiences back-to-back made it even better.

As I strutted across Abbey Road, tiptoed through the adorned Westminster Abbey, delicately sipped British tea and underwent an eerie Jack the Ripper tour through Whitechapel, I felt something inside of me changing. I never wanted to be one of those people who came back from their study abroad pretentiously claiming to be a “changed person,” but there’s no better way to say it.

Beyond the usual self-reported feelings of strengthened confidence and increased global awareness, I realized I absolutely, 100 percent, want to establish myself in Ireland upon graduation. In an entirely unexplainable and seemingly cliched way, I somehow felt like I was home. I am currently looking at graduate programs in Dublin in international peace studies — inspired by what I learned about “The Troubles.” I’ve totally reevaluated where I see myself in the future and, of course, what I originally thought of these places. I’ve also been able to draw astounding parallels back in the classroom at Drexel, like conversations about Brexit in my politics class and discussions on British imperialism in my history course. Being able to see how interconnected the world is gives me goosebumps and I hope to continue recreating this intensely powerful feeling through future travels.

Executing this column this term showed me that studying abroad consistently reaps this momentous impact on students at Drexel. Some students had critical self-realizations while abroad, like Minel Cannucciari who learned to come out of her shell during her exchange program in South Korea or Abigail Mosse who overcame culture shock in London. And other students’ experiences helped shape their future aspirations like film student Brian McCann, whose time in Dublin and Amman inspired him artistically, or pre-med student Bhavya Thuremella, who received hands-on medical experience in Peru. While we’ve all had different experiences through different types of programming within Drexel Study Abroad, in the end, it has changed us for the better in ways we couldn’t have even imagined.

Now it’s your turn — go see the world differently.

Brian Sella is the lead vocalist and guitarist of The Front Bottoms, an American indie rock band that originated in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey. Sella — alongside bandmates Mat Uychich (drums) and Tom Warren (guitar, vocals) — is currently co-headlining a tour alongside Manchester Orchestra and will be in Philadelphia at The Fillmore Dec. 12 and 13.

This interview was edited for grammar and clarity.

The Triangle: What are you looking forward to on this tour?

Brian Sella: I think the thing you get most excited about is being able to see some of the friends that you’ve made all across the country. When you’re on tour, you get to hangout with them all the time, and then when you go home, you don’t get to see them. I got a bunch of friends in Denver that I’m excited to hangout with; friends I haven’t seen in awhile.

And I’m excited for the two shows in Philly — without a doubt that’s going to be amazing. And then the two shows in Brooklyn, and after that, we play the Champagne Grand in Jersey, which is our sort of hometown, annual holiday show. So by the 10th, I’ll be back in the area — it’s all good. Philly is our spot — it’s definitely our spot. You guys always just show us so much love down there. And we’re from New Jersey originally so that was the only spot we could get to in the beginning.

TT: Last month, you shared your brand new track, “End of summer (now I know).” The band has certainly come a long way within the past few years, touring the country, performing at large festivals like Coachella and even doing some shows outside of the U.S. and yet, this song was recorded in your friend’s basement. Why did you decide to do that and what does this say about the band?

BS: It says that this is the way we’re just gonna try to do it — the same sort of mindset that allowed me to travel around the country and go overseas and be in this band; this is the same mindset that told me we should record this song in a basement. We have the ability to do it, there’s no point in stressing, and it was such a quick turnaround, and fortunately for us, our label is very open to us doing weirder ideas — anything that we really want to do.

Tomorrow, in this same vein, we’re gonna release a new song with Manchester Orchestra. That was the same situation: I came down to Atlanta, we hung out for like a day, made this banging song in their house, and then we’re gonna release it tomorrow. I think that’s the pace I wanna take things at now. A lot of music happens quickly — it’s small moments — but you don’t want to wait a year until you can release a new album. That’s basically the mindset. That’s why I like to release singles — I like the idea of releasing it right when we record it.

TT: Recently, you also put out the album “Ann.” Tell me more about the inspiration for this collection and the idea behind the conception of the band’s “Grandma Series.”

BS: Ann is my grandmother. We did one called “Rose” a few years ago — Mat’s grandmother. The idea came from the fact that people would request these songs that were really, really old that were basically demos that Mat and I would record and put out that night. Back in the day, we’d just record with our friends and over the years and years and years of time, people have heard these songs and so basically we decided we’d go back and record these properly and put them out in memory of our grandmas. It’s pretty full circle because that’s what we’re trying to do now with all this new stuff.

When the idea was happening, Mat’s grandmother passed away and we were like “let’s do this”. Then my grandmother had passed away and that’s where it came from: dedicating this to the important women in our lives. And my mom did the album artwork for “Ann” which I was very, very proud of.

TT:  As time has gone by, the complexity of your music has clearly grown — both lyrically and instrumentally — and yet the band’s overall sound hasn’t changed much. How do you strike this balance between trying new things and stepping out of your comfort zone but also remaining true to the band?

BS: I think it has a lot to do with the other people involved. If you stay true to yourself, that’s easy, then basically you have to get people involved who can make the music more complex and make the music sound better as long as you stay true to what you do artistically — like the lyrics and the vocal melodies and the delivery and stuff like that. I think the reason the band has developed and the reason why we go on tour and why we’re able to do that is because it’s not just me and Mat. There’s the lighting guy and the sound guy and the tour manager and the bus driver — there’s all these different elements. You got to let people do their job so that you can do your own thing. Basically, stay true to yourself and let the other people around you that you trust or that you should trust do their job and then it will balance itself naturally. But that took a long time to figure out; there was a lot of frustrating years of trying to figure it out, but now that’s the conclusion.

TT: Another balance the band seems to strike is going back and forth between being kind of silly but also being capable of being more serious. What kind of songs do you enjoy putting out more or do you enjoy having this balance?

BS: I like the balance for sure. I’m not really sure where that comes from — I think that’s just life. And for me, my perspective of life is that “it is what it is.” I can give an example that sums it up for me. One time, a long time ago, we had this song called “Father.” I had this girl come up to me crying after, saying, “Oh my gosh, this song reminds me of my father and brought back all this stuff” and hugged me. Then, this other person comes up to me five minutes later and says, “That song ‘Father’ is the funniest song I’ve ever heard in my life!” Allowing people to get what they need from the song is like something that I’ve always tried to make happen. I just want people to take the song — whether they think it’s the funniest song in the world or if it makes them cry — that was a feeling I have to keep that in mind: allowing people to paint their own world.

TT: What can people expect if they attend a show during this tour? Will the focus be mostly on new material or will you play some of your classics?

BS: We’ll kind of do what we’ve always done — we’ll do a good mix. We basically mix the set up every night. We’ll start with something one night and end with something one night and throw in a bunch of songs in the middle. I’ve started doing a lot of requests. We’ll definitely play “End of summer,” we’ll play some of the new ones we just released, and we’ll kind of just go with the flow. It’ll just be loose — just going to keep it loose and make sure everyone is having a good time.

The journey of a Drexel University pre-medical student to Lima, Peru gave her hands-on experience that has propelled her interest in the medical field, while also giving her a new perspective on the importance of global health communication.

During this intensive course abroad that took place during spring break, Bhavya Thuremella spent about a week volunteering through MEDLIFE, a national organization that brings medicine, education and development to low-income communities around the world.

“I got a lot more opportunity for hands-on shadow experience,” Thuremella, one of the founding members of Drexel’s chapter of MEDLIFE, said. “And we got to interact with a new culture.”

In addition to working in clinics, shadowing doctors and assisting pharmacists, her and about 20 other students also educated locals on sexual health and encouraged other healthy habits, according to Thuremella, who helped arrange and recruit for the trip.

Her limited credentials did not restrict her from working directly with patients throughout Lima, she said, which in turn, gave her a better understanding of the society and its lack of educational programming.

“You’re in the communities for this — you’re actually seeing how people there live. It’s really immersive into the society. I’ve always been looking for that,” she said. “You just can’t see that going on a vacation somewhere.”

Her favorite part, she explained, was the opportunity to shadow physicians. Thuremella got to work alongside a general physician where she got to listen to heart murmurs, as well as a gynecologist in which she helped examine and diagnose sexually transmitted diseases — an issue that she said is particularly prevalent in Lima since sexual health is rarely discussed.

She stressed that there were many gaps within the education system in the parts of the country that she saw. Though there are some smaller educational programs offered, there are not schools like we are used to in the states, she said.

Beyond sexual health, she explained that other basic hygiene practices — like teeth-brushing — are also not taught, though the MEDLIFE participants worked with children to promote these habits.

This lack of education, she explained, is partly due to the mountainous terrain of Lima that sometimes results in lethal falls, which ultimately acts as a deterrent to navigation throughout the villages.

“It opened up my eyes about how much I’ve taken education for granted” she said. “Kids there don’t always go to school because they can’t travel because they live up on a mountain where it’s hard to get up and down.”

Thuremella and the other participants also worked on an additional development project that involved building a staircase to help natives maneuver the rocky landscape more easily.

In addition to the natural environmental barriers, Thuremella explained how there was also little governmental intervention in Lima. This not only results in poor health communication, but also contributes to greater discrepancies between social classes.

In fact, Thuremella described a literal wall that separates the rich and the poor of Lima.

“On one side you saw all this greenery, bigger houses and land, and right across the wall — just feet away — there were compact houses, shacks and underdeveloped areas,” she described.

Though her time in Lima was short, Thuremella — who aspires to one day be an oncologist or neurologist — explained how it has yielded a vast impact on her studies relating to the medical field.

“It made me much more aware of health issues abroad and it made me look into healthcare systems in other countries,” she said. “It will definitely help me in my future.”

She now also delves into her coursework back at Drexel with a different perspective, in which she can draw more parallels between health systems in the United States and what she experienced in Lima.

“It’s interesting relating it back to what I saw in Peru,” she said.

Beyond her volunteer efforts, she also got to explore life in Peru and there was even a dedicated excursion for the participants, which included a sunrise boat tour, sandboarding and wine tasting.

As MEDLIFE’s first ICA, Thuremella said it was very successful, though she said it’s just the start for the organization, which has only been on Drexel’s campus for a little over a year.

“We’re planning on going to a new location every year,” she said.

This year, the group will be returning to Peru, but this time, they will be completing volunteer efforts in the city of Cusco. For Thuremella, the program did not count for credit, though she explained how this is likely to change as the program develops in the future.

Overall, she hopes the program can continue to grow and she encourages interested students to get involved.

“I would 100 percent recommend it. You can learn a lot and still have fun,” she said. “But remember: if you’re open-minded, you’ll get the best experience out of it.”

Students interested in MEDLIFE’s trip to Cusco this year, which will run from March 23 to 31, can attend an information session Dec. 5 in PISB 120 for a final chance to learn about the trip prior to the application deadline. For more information, contact drexelmedlife@gmail.com.

Click to view slideshow.

I wasn’t sure if I’d live to write this concert review after tackling my first EDM concert Nov. 16 at the Fillmore with electro-pop duo Louis the Child but I survived and my eardrums will never be the same — in the best way possible.

The Chicago-based DJ and production duo — consisting of Robert Hauldren and Frederic Kennett — performed selections from their latest EP “Kids at Play,” and ingeniously funneled the playfulness and euphoria of childhood into the highly-anticipated performance.

Two opening bands, R.LUM.R and NoMBe, helped set the scene of the night, both radiating similarly whimsical auras but in different ways.

R&B singer-songwriter Reggie Williams, professionally known as R.LUM.R, bounced onto stage right at 8 p.m. and immediately dominated with his lusty vocals, artfully combining these soulful chords with funky, electronic synths. After rocking some of his top hits like “Frustrated” and “Love Less,” he concluded by asking everyone in the audience to take a photo with him — a moment filled with buoyant jumping and cheerful screams that unified the audience.

While R.LUM.R helped the audience members feel connected, NoMBe — who is featured on a track of the new Louis the Child album called “Save Me From Myself”— brought out the unadultured energy within the crowd.

Frontman Noah McBeth, a Los-Angeles based recording artist, composer and record producer, belted his catchy lyrics with his mesmerizingly calm, almost sensual, voice. Though his vocals were soothingly tranquil, he bolted back and forth across the stage like a flash of lightning, sporting a shimmery gold shirt that reflected the shining purplish blue lights above. His energy matched the dancing crowd, which swayed in unison to the beachy feeling of the music. The crowd went especially wild over “Jump Right In” and “California Girls.”

While audience members seemed to enjoy the opening acts, nobody could deny the real reason they were there: Louis the Child, of course. In between the opening acts, excited fans impatiently shouted for the band, chanting, “All I want is Louis!”

The duo might have had high expectations to fulfill, but they surely surpassed them.

From the moment they darted onto the stage, the crowd went wild. Eager fans continued to let out adrenalized squeals every time the beat dropped, continuously swaying among the incessant strobe lights that I thought were going to give me a seizure.

Continuously changing graphics flashed behind the spirited duo who was situated behind their emblematic crown logo. While some songs featured trippy shapes with a myriad of flashing colors, other songs like “Love Is Alive” — a single from 2017 that features Elohim — were accompanied by more concrete visuals. Images associated with childhood scenes also frequently conquered the screen, connecting back to the album’s key motif of blissful childhood living.

While the lights and visuals weren’t consistent, the energy of the charmed crowd persisted throughout the almost two-hour long lineup. The song “LOVE” from their newest EP, which also features Elohim, especially evoked happy roars from all corners of the smoke-filled venue.

Towards the end of the show, the boys really got comfortable on stage and jumped atop tables, still perched above their sparkling logo. The crowd got equally as rowdy as the DJs soared over their turntables, but the truest climax was when confetti poured down during the hit-song “Better Not” featuring Wafia.

Patiently waiting for more drops, everyone in the audience was truly kept on their toes throughout the night — well, except for the people I witnessed passing out from having a little too much fun.

And myself? As a typical devotee to classic rock and as someone who just recently found out what EDM stood for, I will admit I was out of my comfort zone — though it didn’t take long to get sucked into the fun vibe. Within minutes I joined the hundreds of others in their rampant dancing and arm waving, screaming until my vocal cords ached. As someone who typically enjoys small shows of artists with less than 5,000 Spotify plays, I definitely wouldn’t recognize myself that night.

I’m not used to shows where the artists are just fiddling around with knobs, but it was hard not to be captivated by the funky visuals, the overall energy of the DJs and the excitement pouring from the crowd. I didn’t even mind the countless times I was punched in the face by other attendees and I’m sure I ended up committing a few harmless eye-punches myself as I desperately tried to fit in. Nevertheless, we all had an enjoyable night. I don’t think many people around me will remember most of it, but I sure will.

In the end, we were all just a bunch of kids at play.