/NORTHERNIOWAN
UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN IOWA
CEDAR FALLS, IA
@NORTHERNIOWAN
WWW.NORTHERNIOWAN.COM
CEDAR FALLS, IA
THURSDAY, APRIL 5
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2024
VOLUME 114, ISSUE 42
VOLUME 121, ISSUE 6
UNI to open Center for Civic Education
COURTESY/GREG BROWN
JENNA WESTENDORF Staff Writer
In a move to become a destination for civic education and political literacy, the University of Northern Iowa was recently given the green light from the Iowa Board of Regents for a new Center for Civic Education.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
The center’s goal will be to help students, faculty and the community develop civic-minded skills and put them into practice. With the center set to open in spring of the 2024-25 school year, it will be located in the Commons. There are plans to expand on not only the minor and certificate that
the university currently offers in civic education for students, but also to develop civic literacy for other majors throughout the university such as nursing, business and applied engineering. According to Political Science Department Head Scott Peters, “The Center will be responsible for making sure its [curriculum models] are up to
date ... testing different things to see what’s most effective ... and helping faculty ... get the best training they can.” Throughout the school year, the center will host several civic education-oriented activities and events to enrich students’ experiences, regardless of their majors. A number of these events will also be in
partnership with Panthers Vote, an organization on campus working to increase student participation in elections. “This is a very big year in civic initiatives … and every vote is important”, stated Jennifer McNabb, history See CIVIC EDUCATION, page 2
News briefs KULT DJs swap stories about love for campus radio
UNI to host first-ever visiting Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence
MARQUETTE MILLIAM Staff Writer
OPINION
Estelle Johnson discusses how transphobia is impacting Iowan communities following a shocking incident at LinnMar High School. SEE PAGE 5
SPORTS
UNI Swim and Dive hosted their annual Purple & Gold Intrasquad Meet. SEE PAGE 11
Located in the basement of Maucker Union, 94.5 KULTLP is a student-run radio station at UNI. There are nearly a dozen student DJs, including Isabel Robbins, AJ Gibson, and Kai Cowell. Robbins, a graduate student, has been onair for just three weeks. Gibson is a seasoned DJ with five semesters of experience under his belt. Cowell started just this year. Robbins’ involvement with KULT started when she attended the Communication and Media Open House, where she discovered that graduate students could join the station. Having previously enjoyed guest appearances on radio shows at Wartburg College, where she worked in the Communication Department, she decided to try it out at UNI. “I’d had so much fun at Wartburg, so I wanted to do my own show here,” she explained. Gibson’s introduction to the station was a bit more casual. “During my sophomore year, a buddy of mine invited me to co-host alongside him on his
segment, and I thought, ‘Why not?’” he said. After his first experience on-air, Gibson was hooked, and he and his friend have kept their on-air partnership going ever since. Cowell began listening to KULT in highschool when his friends hosted shows at the time. “Since then, I knew this was something I wanted to be a part of to showcase my love for music,” he stated. He reached out to the station manager and was swiftly coached through the process. When it comes to inspiration for their shows, Robbins, Gibson and Cowell each have their own unique approach. While Robbins’ calls her segment “The Dealer’s Choice,” she has been experimenting with weekly themes, drawing from her favorite music genres of the ’70s and ’80s. Previously, Robbins did a Muppets-themed episode where she had her husband on as a guest. “I like to add history to my episodes too,” she shared. She explained how she tells stories, such as the backstory of ‘Heart of Glass’ by Blondie, a song that took the band seven years to finish.
Gibson’s show, however, is very open-ended. “My buddy and I talk about anything and everything going on in our lives, as long as it’s radio-appropriate,” he laughed, adding that he keeps a notebook of potential topics. He said that their show often feels like a podcast, with personal stories and conversational segments sprinkled between the songs they choose. On the opposite spectrum, Cowell’s segment is dedicated solely to music so he doesn’t tend to talk much. “I do love to research artists I’m showcasing and hopefully give people new artists to gravitate towards,” he shared. Each DJ also has a very different routine for their program hour at the station. “I make a script of all the songs I want to play that take place within an era of my choice, it is usually about 10 songs,” states Robbins. She also said that her inspiration comes from songs that she has a strong connection to or songs that she used to listen to a lot. See DJS, page 2
Arta Berisha, a distinguished, prizewinning journalist and an academic from Kosovo will bring her expertise to UNI’s Department of Communication and Media and the Jacobson Center for Comprehensive Literacy. Alpha Psi Omega to host Rocky Horror Picture Show screening and costume contest Alpha Psi Omega will be hosting a costume contest and screening of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” in the StrayerWood Theater on Oct. 12. The event is free to enter, and people are encouraged to bring canned goods to donate to the Panther Pantry. Doors will open at 11:30 p.m., and the costume contest will begin at midnight.