ESTABLISHED 1826 — OLDEST COLLEGE NEWSPAPER WEST OF THE ALLEGHENIES
Volume 154 No. 16
Miami university — Oxford, Ohio
FRIDAY, MAY 3, 2024
Miami … Merged: ‘We both didn’t want to leave yet’
AT THEIR BLIND DATE, BRONWYNN ORDERED MISO SOUP AND A KIMBAP BOWL AND LAURA GOT DUMPLINGS. PHOTO BY SARAH FROSCH
TAYLOR STUMBAUGH SENIOR CAMPUS & COMMUNITY EDITOR
LILY WAHL
SENIOR STAFF WRITER In a world of romance novels, reality TV shows and love songs, expectations about college romance are high – only to be met with the dissonance of piles of homework, hook-up culture and Brick Street. “Miami … Merged” was created out of this imbalance as a chance for Miami University students to meet
In this issue
new people and experience what OxIRUG KDV WR R̆HU ZLWKRXW WKH VWUHVV RI asking someone out or the confusion of dating apps. Two couples were matched up out of a pool of applicants based on simple questions such as majors, hobbies and interests, to more in-depth prompts like ideal types, if they like to talk during movies and who is willing to kill bugs. The two dates took place between Laura and Bronwynn and Olivia and Cole. Their love stories may not EH ORQJ EXW HDFK JDLQHG GL̆HUHQW OHVsons from this experience.
LUKE MACY
First Amendment continues to protect Miami students - page 4
RETIRING SECTION
‘She’s connecting to us’: How one professor has impacted the lives of her students - page 8
Laura, a sophomore primary education major, did her research on “Miami … Merged” before applying. After reading the previous years’ coverage of “Miami … Merged,” as well as the inspiration for the column, The Washington Post’s “DateLab,” Laura took the plunge and applied to participate. “I thought it was so cute!” she said. “I thought I would be more nervous. I told my friends I signed up for this and they thought I was insane.”
She was especially excited about the prospect of shaking things up by trying something new. “I haven’t been in a long-term relationship while I’ve been in college,” Laura said. “I’ve just been keeping it open so it’s kind of like a new experience for me.” When asked about her ideal type, Laura emphasized that she was looking for a relationship focused on communication and trust. “Someone who’s nice, someone who I can just kinda hang out with and there isn’t a lot of pressure,” she
Budget symposium 2024: Miami looks to diversify as tuition revenue EDITOR-AT-LARGE
CAMPUS & COMMUNITY
The participants
$IWHU D PLOOLRQ EXGJHW GH¿FLW IURP ODVW ¿VFDO \HDU 0LDPL 8QLversity’s annual budget symposium brought news of a lower, but still exLVWHQW GH¿FLW “While Miami University’s overall ¿QDQFLDO SHUIRUPDQFH ODVW \HDU ZDV good, education and general spending exceeded its revenue by $10.3 million, and required a reduction in the reserves overseen by the Provost,” one of the presentation’s slides read. The symposium, which took place on April 22, was led by university Provost Liz Mullenix and David Creamer, senior vice president for ¿QDQFH DQG EXVLQHVV VHUYLFHV DQG university treasurer. During the symposium, Mullenix and Creamer attributed the problem to a decline in tuition revenue. In one graphic, Miami was compared to 100 other top doctoral-awarding institutions. Creamer said that among all the other institu-
tions, Miami relied most heavily on tuition revenue for its funding. “We’ve been up and down with state support,” Creamer said. “It’s why we’ve been so dependent upon tuition.” In another chart, Creamer showed that as tuition increased yearly, the university should have earned an estimated $379 million in tuition revenue. However, when DFFRXQWLQJ IRU VWXGHQWV¶ ¿QDQFLDO DLG and scholarships, the total comes to around $216 million. “Tuition is rising, but we’re not capturing any of that,” Creamer said. +H DGGHG WKDW ¿QDQFLDO DLG DQG scholarships are necessary to continue attracting students considering they get into their primary picks for universities more often. The university is trying to diversify its funds but is struggling to change amid the declining tuition. Creamer estimated that $14 million would be taken from the reserves to help the university. Mullenix reassured the crowd.
“We’re in a good position because we’ve planned for a rainy day,” she said. Part of the reason Miami had a ORZHU EXGJHW GH¿FLW IRU ¿VFDO \HDU 2024 was that vacant positions at the university lowered spending on salary and expenses. Creamer said this would not be a sustainable solution. 3DUW RI WKH GLYHUVL¿FDWLRQ RI IXQGV includes investing in new projects in hopes of seeing returns. In 20172018, income from investments only made up 1% of the budget, but they’re VWDUWLQJ WR SD\ R̆ PDNLQJ XS RI the 2023-2024 budget. Creamer announced at the symposium that Miami had just committed to a new project, renovating Bachelor Hall, which would cost another $27 million. One symposium attendee questioned why the university was making high-risk investments if the university was trying to avoid using reserves. CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
Behind the Building: You’re Fired OXFORD
Local allergy clinic announces closure, leaving many people in a lurch - page 6
STUDENTS WORK ON THEIR INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS AT YOU'RE FIRED. PHOTO BY JESSICA MONAHAN
SADIE CHILDS THE MIAMI STUDENT SPORTS
Miami golf concludes an impressive 2024 season as MAC runner-ups - page 14
If you’ve ever had the urge to paint pottery, there's a good chance you’ve checked out You’re Fired. This store, at the corner of West High Street and Beech Street has a long history of housing not just painters, but also various grocery stores.
Built in 1880, this Greek revival building has gone through a variety of uses through the years. The Greek revival style is categorized by being modeled after small Greek doric temples. These buildings would often have a sharp gable roof, a triangular shape at the top and a simple, unadorned front. The You’re Fired building once housed a saloon and a carriage paint-
LQJ EXVLQHVV RQ WKH VHFRQG ÀRRU It would go on to also house a pool room, a gas station and a children's FORWKLQJ VWRUH GXULQJ WKH ¿UVW KDOI RI the 1900s. Eventually, the building would become a grocery store. The Ruhlman family owned this grocery store towards the end of the 1900s. In 1963, the grocery store expanded into the building of 102 W. High St., which had previously been a private residence. From 1965 to 1980, the building housed the Ruhlman’s Super Value grocery store. As a main grocery store in town, this was an important part of the Oxford community. Over the next two decades, the EXLOGLQJ ZHQW WKURXJK WKUHH GL̆HUent grocery stores. In 1981, Anderson Grocery occupied space until 1984. The next year, Becky’s Grocery opened. )LQDOO\ LQ :RŎ¶V *URFHU\ inhabited the building last. It was also the longest since Ruhlman’s, occupying the building for just over 10 years. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
said, later adding, “I like humor and just having fun together.” Bronwynn, a junior public health and computer science double major, saw the application for “Miami … Merged” on Instagram and was intrigued by its similarity to popular dating shows such as “Love is Blind.” While she didn’t initially think she would apply, she later changed her mind. CONTINUED ON PAGE 5
‘Omigod You Guys!’ Stage Left’s ‘Legally Blonde’ was ‘Serious’ly spectacular! GABBY BENEDICT STAFF WRITER “What, like it’s hard?” From April 25-28, Miami University musical theater organization Stage Left put on a fully student-run production of “Legally Blonde” at the Harry T. Wilks Theater in Armstrong Student Center. The production of “Legally Blonde” was captivating, comedic and campy all in one, thanks to the direction of junior Emma Enderle. “[‘Legally Blonde’] has been a favorite of mine for the longest time,” Enderle said. “Me and my friend from home had a dream of directing it together. Unfortunately, she doesn't go here, but I’m glad I still JRW WR IXO¿OO WKDW 7KLV VKRZ KDV D special place in my heart, especially as a blonde woman. I love the little girly-pop moments and also the fun, inspiring girl-power moments.” The “Legally Blonde” musical, EDVHG RQ WKH ¿OP LV ¿OOHG ZLWK drama and dance breaks that the Stage Left cast executed perfectly on the Wilks stage. The show follows Elle Woods, played by Sophie Wertz. Elle is the president of her sorority, Delta Nu, and she decides to enroll in Harvard Law School to get back together with her ex-boyfriend, Warner. Over the course of the story, she learns to merge her growing knowledge of law and her expertise in fashion with the help of her friends, learning to always stay true to herself rather than change herself for the people around her. Wertz’s stellar interpretation of Elle as a character likely draws from experiences being a member of Miami sorority, Chi Omega. CONTINUED ON PAGE 3