The Slate 4-30-26

Shippensburg staple Art of Pie Cafe to close permanently in May

After nearly six years serving the Shippensburg community, Jane’s Art of Pie Cafe is set to permanently close in May.

Art of Pie, located on King Street, was opened in 2020 by owner Jane Offner as part of a retirement plan. The cafe is situated in the historical Sturgis House and has been rented out to other businesses throughout the years.

The cafe has not only become a successful business, winning the “Small Business of the Year Award” from the Shippensburg Chamber of Commerce in 2025, but has also become a key attraction for Shippensburg residents and

community members.

Offner noted she never had plans of opening a cafe, but that the opportunity fell into her lap at the right time.

“There was a need in Shippensburg,” said Offner. “That’s why I did it.”

When asked what her vision was for opening Art of Pie, Offner spoke about the importance of connection.

“[I wanted] someplace where people can gather,” said Offner. “Especially during the pandemic, people didn’t gather at all. They wanted to get together after not seeing each other for two years. And now it’s part of people’s routine, which is really nice, too.”

Offner noted that Art of Pie was originally part of a five-year

Substation fire triggers university power outage

Matthew Scalia Opinion Editor

A fire at an “isolated” electrical substation caused a campus-wide power outage at Shippensburg University shortly after 11:30 p.m. Friday, according to Megan Silverstrim, director of communications and marketing. As of Saturday evening, power had not been restored to campus and backup emergency generators were being provided to campus by the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, according to campus officials.

Dauphin Drive between Dauphin Humanities Center and Lancaster Drive and the C-5 parking lot were closed because crews were installing generators in that area, according to Silverstrim.

“At no time was the fire a risk to our campus community,” Silverstrim said.

The extended timeframe of the power outage, which dragged into the evening Saturday, was due to the “complex” nature of the repairs “requiring additional time,” Silverstrim said.

Facilities crews were dispatched immediately, according to an email sent out by campus administration overnight Friday, and by 8 a.m. Saturday morning, Reisner Dining Hall was operating on generator power and was opened to students by 10 a.m.

The dining hall was slated to remain open between its usual mealtimes so that students could charge their devices until 7 p.m. Saturday, a separate email sent out by campus officials said.

“The [Ceddia Union Building] and

After three years of teaching at Shippensburg University, Professor Colin Campbell is ready for the next chapter. As the semester comes to a close, so does Campbell’s time at SU. He will begin teaching at Morgan State University next fall. Campbell is currently a communications professor at Shippensburg University, and he will continue to teach communication at Morgan State University. It is a subject that Campbell is deeply passionate about.

library will remain closed until power is restored,” that same email said. “Students may not access academic buildings unless they have plants or animals that require feeding support.”

Silverstrim told The Slate that the university was “working with local contractors and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency to secure more generators.”

The additional generators were used to provide more power to the residence halls, Silverstrim said.

“The generators the campus does have are operating as expected,” Silverstrim said. “Residence halls have generators equipped to provide power for life safety systems and they are functioning as expected.”

“Communication is at the heart of everything,” he said. “That’s one of the foundational experiences as a human is to be able to communicate. Communication is one of the oldest actions that a human can really be a part of.”

Campbell is currently teaching a select topic political science course, titled “Black Americans in Contemporary Politics.” The course teaches students about Black political actors in American history.

Even if it is outside of his normal courses, Campbell cares deeply about the content of the class. His ultimate goal with the course was teaching SU students about people they may have not learned about previously.

“I just had a student today tell me today how she was happy that this class was offered because there isn’t much offered here in the vein of understanding Black culture [and] contributions of the Black experience,” he said.

Campbell is also a teaching fellow from the Frederick Douglas Teaching Fellowship. He acts as an adviser for the SU chapter of the Frederick Douglas Institute (FDI), which is a collaborative of several

retirement plan she had, but five years quickly turned into six. Eventually, she knew it was time to step away. She said she hopes somebody will copy what she did and start a new cafe somewhere in town.

One primary attraction in the cafe is the various art pieces decorating the walls. Offner mentioned that her artwork will continue to line the hallway for the next business that rents out the space. She also said she hopes to give classes in the future to help “revitalize downtown.”

Although the cafe may be closing, the memories and bonding of the Shippensburg community will remain.

schools within the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.

“FDI is one of those spaces where students can go and feel emboldened and feel at ease to have open discussions about what’s on their mind, but also to feel valued and to feel respected within that space,” Campbell said. “That’s been part of one of the most rewarding experiences at Shippensburg.”

Campbell is hoping to find a similar program at Morgan State University. In addition, Campbell is looking forward to the opportunities teaching at Morgan State University will provide him.

He is excited to be able to continue teaching, as he enjoys being able to work with students and teach them new information. Campbell comes from a family of teachers, and he described his call to teaching higher education as something that “would happen eventually.”

Before completing his doctoral degree, Campbell worked as an adjunct professor at Howard University, where he completed his master’s degree, and at American University. He went on to be a full-time professor at Howard

University before coming to SU.

Prior to his career as a professor, Campbell was a journalist. He started his career working at BET News, where he did everything from writing to producing interviews to occasionally anchoring on broadcasts. He worked for different media companies around the United States along with doing freelance work as a multimedia journalist under his company LoneMan Media.

Campbell still considers himself to be a journalist. He created a website, panafricanreport.com, to inform people about news across the African diaspora. He has plans of adding content about underrepresented news.

One of the things Campbell is most looking forward to about his upcoming position at Morgan State University is the opportunity to give back to the Black community.

“We see a lot of students who are in need or just really looking for the opportunity to get a good education, which not a lot of Black students get that opportunity,” he said. “I get to give back.”

Your World Today

Commentary: A bittersweet end

Jayden Pohlman Editor-in-Chief

If you are currently a senior at Shippensburg University, then I am willing to bet you have been repeatedly asked something along the lines of, “How does it feel to be graduating?”

Though I am growing increasingly tired of this question, I have to admit I have asked my fellow seniors the same thing countless times.

The responses I have gotten thus far have varied from “I can’t wait to get out of here” to “I can’t believe it’s already over.” When I ponder my own answer to this question, only one word comes to mind — bittersweet.

I know a lot of people can relate to the feeling of drowning in work this semester, more so than any other. Between The Slate, classwork and my photography business, I am fighting a losing battle to stay ahead.

I worked hard throughout college so that I would only need to take eight classes my senior year. But despite my seemingly lighter courseload, this year has been more difficult than I ever imagined, so much so that I withdrew from a class for the first time.

Though my final year at Shippensburg has hardly gone as I imagined it would, I have learned many important lessons that I will carry with me the rest of my life, the most important of which is how to say no.

I am a people pleaser who loves to be around people. If you ask me to do something or invite me to hang out, there’s a 99% chance I will say yes. But I quickly learned how important it is to take time alone to recharge when my calendar was so full that I barely had time to breathe.

The fear of missing out ruled my life for a long time, and it still overrules my need for rest some days. But I am learning to be OK with the silence every once in a while.

This past year has also taught me that it’s perfectly OK to go out and do things on your own. When I could not find anyone to go on

Evan Dillow News Editor

Unlike many of my colleagues in The Slate, I am an accounting major and not a part of the communication, journalism and media program.

a trip for spring break with me, I decided to just go by myself.

I ended up in Nashville dog-sitting for a family that I had never met before, and I can honestly say that it was one of the best trips I’ve ever been on, even though I was there during a tornado warning.

I know it’s a big leap for most people to stay in a stranger’s house by themselves, but I’ve come to realize that if I’m always waiting for someone to go with me, then I might never go at all.

Last but not least, I have learned to be more grateful for the life that I have been blessed with. While I am struggling to stay ahead of my work, in the grand scheme of life, that’s hardly a bad problem to have.

I am alive, healthy and surrounded by family and friends who care about me.

So many people cannot say the same, I am learning not to take any of it for granted.

Your World Tomorrow

Commentary: Trust the process

Madison Sharp Incoming Editor-in-Chief

My path to Shippensburg University was unexpected, but undeniably worth it. Growing up near Philadelphia, I had not even heard of Shippensburg until I started searching for colleges.

With less than two weeks until graduation, my time at Shippensburg University is coming to a bittersweet end.

While I am eager for what comes next, I know I will deeply miss the routines, friendships and moments that shaped me over the past four years. This chapter of my life may be closing, but the lessons, memories and growth I have gained here will stay with me long after I leave campus.

Because of this, I have had many people — from friends and family to prospective employers — ask why I chose to participate in a student newspaper as the journalistic skills I acquired will not play a large role in a future career as an accountant.

When reflecting on this question, my typical go-to answer is that it was fun. That answer is as simple as it is true. The experiences I have had and the connections I have made defined and shaped my four years at Shippensburg University, and I do not think college life would have been as engaging without them.

Deep down, my drive to join a high-participation student organization like The Slate came from my desire to be a part of something larger than myself.

In high school, I was one of those

Weather Forecast

I was deciding between SU and a much larger school, and although it was a tough decision, I could not deny that every time I stepped foot on this campus, I felt at home. When I toured The Slate office with our adviser, Michael Drager, I knew this was where I wanted to spend the next four years. During this tour, Drager spoke to me in his office about The Slate and how I could get involved. At one point he pulled out one of the papers, pointed to the then Editor-in-Chief and said, “Maybe that could be you one day.” I remember kindly laughing this comment away. Little did I know, he was right.

I could not have predicted this statement coming true, but I am so grateful it did. Throughout the past few years, Drager has always supported me in everything and believed in me in moments I did not believe in myself.

I am extremely grateful for those conversations. I do not know where I would

students who just went straight home after my classes were done. I was not a part of any clubs or athletic teams. I held no positions in any organization, and my only responsibilities were getting good grades so I could graduate.

When graduation came around, however, I had nothing to show for my time spent in high school other than a diploma that said I did the bare minimum: passing my classes.

Thankfully, high school is not the real world. As young adults, opportunities to get involved are numerous, but the initiative is placed on us to seek out and join them.

When I went to my first student organization open house in September 2022, The Slate piqued my interest because I liked to write

have ended up had I not had them. If I had chosen that larger school, I would not have been able to get involved like I wanted to until possibly my junior year. And now I’m editor-in-chief in my junior year. My first two years at Shippensburg University have been the best years of my life, and I owe a lot of that to The Slate. This is the greatest organization I have ever been a part of. I have made memories I will never forget, covered incredible events and have met the kindest, most hard-working team of people I am lucky enough to call my friends.

To all of our seniors on staff, I will miss you dearly and I thank you for every contribution, laugh and helping hand you have gifted myself and The Slate with over the years.

Thank you to the management over the past year, Jayden Pohlman and Megan Sawka for all of their hard work in The Slate and their mentorship as I have moved up in the organization.

It is so rare to find an organization in which you love not only the people but every second of the work that goes into it. I found all that and more at The Slate. I have written dozens of articles, taken thousands (too many) of pictures and launched my very own podcast. Not because I want resumefillers, but because I truly enjoy the process. As I begin my third year of college, I cannot express how excited I am for what is to come. Stepping into the role of editorin-chief is nerve-wracking, but it is an adventure I cannot wait to begin.

Working at The Slate has given me the opportunity to explore passions beyond the lens and fine-tune my professional goals. One of the biggest lessons I have learned is to trust the process. I cannot control what will happen, but I can control how I react and what I do with it. When I started at The Slate, I could not have envisioned myself in this role. I was just a girl who loves taking photos. But by far the best shot I have taken was a shot in the dark: the moment I stepped out of my comfort zone.

and had an interest in international politics. I remember deliberating on whether I should join because, after all, what purpose would an accounting student have in joining a student newspaper.

I am thankful I ignored that anxiety, because when I saw my first article in the paper, I knew that I was a part of something larger than myself.

From there, I was placed on a journey. In spring 2024, I had built the confidence to apply to be the assistant news editor, and from there, my skills only improved.

Through The Slate, I got the opportunity to go to events that high school me would never have the confidence to attend. I got to interview people with wonderful stories that I would never have learned. I want to thank my fellow Slaters for helping me along this journey. This organization is truly special. As a message to any incoming freshman — participate. It does not matter how big or how small the role you play; I promise you that it feels nice to be a part of something larger than yourself. I understand firsthand what it is like to feel anxious trying something new and speaking to people you have never met, but it is rewarding to experience new things and grow as a person. When I walk the stage next week, I know that I will feel fulfilled by all the amazing opportunities I got to be a part of. When your time to graduate comes, will you feel the same?

New student trustee accepted for SU

George Hogan Asst. News Editor

Henry Mohl has been accepted as the new student trustee for Shippensburg University beginning in the fall 2026 semester.

His main objective being to voice concerns of the student body. Mohl said his job is to work as an intermediary between the president and students. A major factor he wished to share with students about his role is that he “learned from the current student trustee, Colin Arnold, that this role is a direct line to change on campus. I’d like students to know that I’m here to represent them not myself, so see the student trustee as an opportunity to voice concerns that have the power to lead to change. Always feel free to reach out and bring up things that you or your friends or your classmates really care about.”

Mohl is pursuing the role to be able to represent the diverse community of students SU has on campus. He is looking to connect with and help as many students as possible while growing as an individual and building better leadership skills.

To become the student trustee, he had an application process in early March, followed by an interview with a committee designated to find the next trustee and then moving on to speak with the president of the university. If approved by all parties, the board of governors in Harrisburg votes them in and they take the oath of office. Mohl said the term starts when the current student trustee graduates.

have on the campus in the future and to create a solid strategy to be ahead of the curve.

“AI has been seen as both a blessing and curse to higher education, but clearly, it’s not going anywhere nor is its development slowing down,” Mohl said. “With the help of students, I hope to come up with a way to best utilize artificial intelligence here at Shippensburg.”

Another initial goal is to increase support for student-veterans and service members on campus. With the university’s location being surrounded by different military installations, he looks to continue building a welcoming and inclusive environment.

Mohl said that if he could share one key piece of advice to students it would be: “Seek out challenge. You grow so much as a person when you do something hard or uncomfortable. Whether that be signing up for a 5k run or volunteering to do a public speaking event, when something challenging arises don’t shy away from [it], but go at it with intent and passion. You can accomplish so much more than you think as long as you’re willing to challenge yourself.”

Carvers rev their engines at PA Chainsaw Festival

Evan Dillow News Editor

The Pennsylvania Chainsaw Carvers Festival returned to the Shippensburg Fairgrounds April 16-18 for its sixth annual event.

Hosted by the Shippensburg Area Chamber of Commerce, the festival is an opportunity for chainsaw carvers to demonstrate their skill and hard work for hundreds of guests. All three days were open for the public to see one-of-a-kind pieces and carving demonstrations.

Thirty-six carvers from across the United States were invited to Shippensburg this year, according to Chamber President Wendy Kipe. This year also had an international

A message of thanks from your SGA President

Hello everyone! For those who do not know me, my name is Ella Zinn. I am a senior accounting major and have the honor of serving as your Student Government Association (SGA) president. Being part of SGA has been one of the most meaningful experiences of my college career. Over the past three years — from starting as a Class of 2026 senator, to serving as Vice President of Student Groups and

now as president — I have had the privilege of working alongside passionate individuals, some of whom I know will be lifelong friends. My various roles in SGA have shown me how powerful student voices can be when they come together for the greater good of our campus. I am incredibly proud of how SGA has grown since I first ran for senator in fall 2023, and I have full confidence that the incoming officers will continue the positive momentum of the past few years. To my fellow officers, senators and advisers: thank you for the lessons, the laughs and the memories. I will carry them with me long after I graduate.

representative, with one carver coming all the way from Mongolia.

The first two nights had a quick carving event, in which carvers had 60 minutes to create a piece that immediately went to auction.

The main event of the festival, the masterpiece auction, was held on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. Prior to the auction beginning, a bald eagle statue painted to resemble the American flag was given the firstplace award by a panel of judges. A majority of the 36 masterpiece carvings were designed to resemble woodland animals like bears, eagles, owls and deer. There were also wooden benches and other creative displays.

The funds received from the auction are split

between the carvers and the chamber, which uses the proceeds to support free community events for local families.

Kipe said, “We provide two events specifically that give back to the community: Back to School Family Fun Day, that’s held in August right before the kids go back to school, and our second event is the Community Christmas Party. At the high school we have a totally free evening, we provide the meal, everyone gets gifts, crafts. Just a free event for all the kids in the community.”

In addition to carving, there were also numerous local vendors selling crafted goods, including handmade bird houses, jewelry, hand carved soap and more.

SGA column: A message from next year’s SGA leadership

As vice president of finance, I have enjoyed assisting groups in the operating budget process and working alongside the budget and finance committee to compile the 2026-2027 operating budget, which was passed in a unanimous SGA vote in public meeting. As president next year, I hope to bridge the gap between students and administrators to ensure students at Shippensburg University are heard and represented.

Over the last year in my role as vice president, I have helped redevelop a sense of consistency in the everyday operations of SGA. I am excited to continue this process in the 2026-2027 academic year. In addition, I plan to increase the overall visibility of SGA on campus through additional events held throughout the year.

Patterson says student support, downtown ties and entrepreneurship will shape SU’s future

Gabe Rader Staff Contributor

Shippensburg University

President Charles Patterson

said the university’s future will depend on how well it supports students, strengthens its connection to downtown Shippensburg and builds new opportunities through entrepreneurship.

In an interview with The Slate last week, Patterson said one of the biggest lessons for SU after COVID-19 was that student success cannot be measured only by academics.

He said the university has had to think more holistically about what students need, pointing to tutoring, wellness support, accommodations and other services that help students stay enrolled and complete their degrees. He also described empathy as one of the lasting lessons from the pandemic and said the university came out of that period stronger because it was pushed to better understand student needs.

Patterson also pointed to the redevelopment of Kriner Hall as one of the university’s biggest forwardlooking projects. He said he has raised “a little short of $3 million” in private donor money for the effort, which

helped leverage additional state and federal support.

He described the project as an entrepreneurship hub meant to connect student innovation with regional business development.

He said the project is designed to bring together the Diller Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership and Innovation, the Morgan Makerspace and the Small Business Development Center in a more unified space, making it easier for students, faculty and outside partners to work together. Patterson repeatedly tied the university’s future to the health of the borough around it.

He said downtown Shippensburg and the university have a “synergistic” relationship and argued that each depends on the strength of the other. Students and their families, he said, do not judge a campus in isolation. They also notice the condition and energy of the town surrounding it. That point came through most clearly when he discussed student life off campus. Patterson said students need a downtown they can actually use — a place where they can go, gather and spend time. His

comments suggested that SU cannot be only a campuscentered experience and that the borough is part of how students experience the university.

The interview also offered a glimpse into how Patterson sees leadership. Asked what he would have thought if someone told him as a young student that he would one day become a university president, Patterson said that person would have been “foolish.” He said he never planned on the traditional tenure-track path and instead found himself drawn early to administration through service on boards,

committees and other university leadership roles. Patterson also touched on transparency, student media and campus climate. He said students should be able to come to Shippensburg and “find their place,” connecting that to a broader goal of belonging on campus. He also said campus leadership has to stay focused on risk assessment and resiliency.

Taken together, Patterson’s comments outlined a post-pandemic agenda centered on stronger student support, entrepreneurship and deeper town-gown ties.

As the incoming vice president of finance, I want to hit the ground running and have a few meetings over the summer. I hope to fill the committee more consistently to allow for a wider student voice to be heard on the committee. I am also looking forward to working with each of our student clubs, organizations and boards to help them get the money they deserve to grow and develop their groups.

From “OUTAGE,” A1

Students are advised to contact the Shippensburg University Police Department to gain access for those reasons. The email said. “All other access will be denied.”

The Paul Kaiser Track and Field event was hosted as planned Saturday morning. Updates about other campus events were forthcoming.

A campus email sent out in the afternoon Saturday estimated that power would remain out all weekend.

“At this time, we are preparing for the potential that this power outage will continue through the weekend,” the updated email said. “Facilities crews are working to secure

From “CAMPBELL,” A1

While Campbell is ready to start the next chapter of his journey as a professor, he is fond of his time at Shippensburg University.

This semester, I had the privilege of seeing our campus community grow and people gain leadership experience by approving four new student groups. I look forward to continuing this next semester.

generators to provide power to residence halls and the CUB.”

Students who have medications that require refrigeration, such as certain types of insulin or antibiotics, were advised that they can utilize a refrigerator at SUPD.

The university police department is located inside the Reed Operations Center between Allegheny Drive and York Drive, across from Harley Hall and the Henderson Gymnasium. Email updates Sunday afternoon said in-person classes for Monday and Tuesday would not be held. Silverstrim said students should monitor their campus email for updates as the university works to return power to campus.

The central Pennsylvania location is very different from his previous experience in the capitol, and he is pleased with the time he has spent here.

Gotta read ‘em all!

Read more stories online!

Campbell said, “Whenever we’re uncomfortable, and we intentionally try to work through that discomfort, we always grow. I felt like I did a lot of growth here at Shippensburg.”

Opinion

The Slate Speaks: Right the ship ’26

The end of the semester is as good a time as any for some introspection. Whenever you complete a task, it is always good to analyze what was successful and what was not. Sports teams and special forces do it, so why not college students? In that spirit, we have decided again this year to offer our suggestions on what could be improved at Shippensburg University.

First on the list is the university’s curriculum and what it prioritizes. Shippensburg University, like many schools, focuses a lot on the schoolto-career pipeline, prioritizing degrees that employers look at while shifting away from the concept of the classical liberal arts education that academia traditionally focused and built its reputation on. This pivot in priorities has impacted some departments and students in recent years.

Last year, the art department faced a rocky future due to a lack of replacement professors getting hired to fill the positions of retiring ones, and the sociology department saw the elimination of the anthropology major for ostensibly the same reason. While popular programs such as education, business and engineering attract students, the focus on them has left other programs to wither on the vine and disappear.

While upsetting, these changes are not surprising, as universities need to adapt to change. For example, the advent of artificial intelligence has seen a decline in computer science majors and increase in engineering ones, as students and their parents read headlines about AI’s computer code writing abilities.

The university is a business,

and consideration needs to be given to its interest in a financially solvent, but one cannot neglect the value of the knowledge that is lost. Anthropology, for example, is more than just the study of Neanderthals. The program provides knowledge on navigating diverse cultures, religions and languages, which is crucial for multiple career fields in a diverse, globalized economy.

The elimination of degrees causes other issues besides knowledge deprivation. It muddies the rationale behind required courses.

Students are told that they must take perfunctory math and science courses as an English major, or that engineering majors must take communications and arts courses to give them a “well-rounded” education. But the university undercuts this argument when it starts cutting liberal arts classes because their path to a career is less direct.

This leaves us to ask: which is it? Are we trying to prepare for

A casino in your pocket

Gabe Rader Staff Contributor

America has finally found a way to make reading the news feel like losing $12.

For years, gambling had the decency to make people leave the house and at least gave out free drinks. It just is not what it used to be. The days of going to a casino, buying a lottery ticket or finding a guy named Sal who somehow knew the Eagles injury report before breakfast is long behind us.

Now, the casino lives in everyone’s pocket 24/7.

We already had enough sports betting that turned

every touchdown, foul shot and meaningless Tuesday night baseball game into a financial crisis for your friend who just drained his bank account. People who used to ignore the Charlotte Hornets in February are now sweating over whether a backup guard gets five assists.

That was bad enough, but just when I thought the next phase of “skill games” could not get worse, prediction markets came out of nowhere.

Platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi let users put money on real-world events. Not just sports. Not just elections. Users can bet on

Where’s Your Voice?

Shippensburg University students, staff, faculty, administrators and affiliated people are welcome to submit letters to the editor for publication.

• Letters must be no more than 500 words and may not contain derogatory language or messages of hate or discrimination. The Slate may reject letters for any reason.

• Letters become property of The Slate. Letters without a name and title (affiliation to SU) will not be accepted.

• Letters should be sent to The Slate one week prior to the day of publication. Late letters may be accepted but published the next week.

Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this section are those of the writer and not of The Slate or University.

• The unsigned staff editorial, “The Slate Speaks,” represents the views and opinions of The Slate as an organization. Participating editors help shape the staff editorial.

the workforce or acquire a wellrounded liberal arts education?

This university’s coffers seem to favor the former while the rest of the administration requires the latter. These opposing viewpoints often frustrate certain majors who feel their classification is confused. For example, it has long irked psychology majors that their discipline is considered an arts degree as opposed to a science one, and these pages have argued in the past communication journalism majors — a science degree — should not have a high-level foreign language requirement.

It is time to clean it up. Students and the university would both benefit from a coherent philosophy, more academic freedom for students to pursue their interests or a more streamlined career-oriented path, as is common in European universities.

Continuing the theme of the university’s priorities, our next suggestion looks at the disparity

politics, pop culture, weather, court cases, government decisions, war and almost anything else that can be squeezed into a yes-or-no question.

It is gambling with a finance degree.

The companies usually do not call it gambling. They call it “event contracts,” “trading” or “democratizing finance,” which is a nice way of saying they taught a slot machine to wear a blazer.

That language is not accidental. It is the business model.

If these companies are treated like sportsbooks, they face state gambling laws, licensing requirements, taxes and consumer-protection rules. If they are treated like financial exchanges, they can argue they belong under federal commodities regulation instead. That distinction is worth billions.

The goal is not simply to

of clubs and groups. There are many excellent opportunities and clubs for students to engage in, but there are favored ones that get a disproportionate amount of support.

Greek life, sports and SGA are groups that most students and faculty know about. But what about the others? Many groups are snubbed in comparison to the priority given to these bigger and marketable groups, and the students both see and feel it.

Students of a certain age, for example, may remember a time when campus walkways and building entrances were essentially a parking lot for electric scooters — a favorite of student athletes.

But focusing on athletes and Greek life is nothing new for universities, but would be nice if students pursuing other interests got some attention from the university. Speaking of attention, some needs to be given to campus

predict the future. The goal is to make the future bettable. Sports. Elections. Weather. War. Court cases. Celebrity gossip. Government action. If it can be turned into a yes-or-no question, it can be turned into a product. And if it can be turned into a product, a platform can take a cut.

“Platforms like polymarket and Kalshi let users put money on realworld events, not just sports.”

That is the quiet genius of the model. The platform does not need every user to lose every bet. It needs users to keep trading. More events, more volume, more action, more people convinced that the next bet will be smarter than the last one.

communication. Do students know why they had to throw out all their food that was spoiled in the recent blackout? The Slate managed to get some answers, but as the blackout drags on to its third day with a fourth predicted as finals weeks approaches, it is worth pondering why students do not know more.

Often, for students to get answers to questions about campus incidents, it feels like trying to get answers from the White House. With the exception of telling students where to go and what food will be available to them, students are figuratively and literally, in the case of the recent blackout, left in the dark.

Shippensburg University is not a high school, and its students are not children. They are paying customers who deserve answers, whether the administration agrees or not. There is no classified executive privilege here. This is a public university, and it should be transparent about all incidents on campus. The vacuum of information that often exists does nothing but fuel rumor and speculation, which in a blackout can cause a panic that snowballs into disorder.

None of this is to disparage the university. We only wish the best for it and its success. Shippensburg University is a place that benefits greatly from excellent professors who carry with them a passion for their subject matter that is often contagious and spreads to their students. It is a place where young adults can grow and mature into responsible actors who usher forth the next generation of professionals. Let us all work toward a better tomorrow.

The users think they are buying insight. The platform is selling action.

The damage from gambling is not some moral panic from people who still think poker causes jazz music. The National Council on Problem Gambling estimates the annual social cost of problem gambling in the United States at $14 billion, including health care, criminal justice, job loss and bankruptcy costs.

The American Psychiatric Association reported in 2025 that 28% of American adults said they gamble online daily.

That is not a hobby. That is a part-time job where the boss is an app and the paycheck is regret.

The commercials sell the fantasy: Bet $5. Win $500. Become the genius in the group chat. Turn rent money into generational wealth. Finally, a retirement plan

based on whether a backup tight end catches four passes.

But gambling companies do not build billion-dollar businesses because everyone is winning. Somebody has to lose. Usually, it is not the company. Usually, it is the person who thinks he is one bet away from fixing the last bet. Prediction markets take that same logic and spread it across public life. Instead of asking whether the Ravens will cover the spread, these platforms ask whether a ceasefire will happen, whether a government will fall, whether a court will rule a certain way, whether a politician will win or whether the United States will take military action. That is not just a new gambling product. That is a new way to look at the world.

In the fall of 2022, I attended Shippensburg University’s SIS fair. Little did I know that decision would change the course of my college career.

When I nervously approached the table labeled “The Slate,” I was welcomed by a very enthusiastic Elizabeth Peters, who listened to me ramble about my love of photography and told me that I could work as a staff photographer for the campus newspaper.

I left the table excited for what lay ahead, and after I attended the Slate’s general interest meeting, the thought of one day becoming an editor floated into my mind and took hold.

Throughout my freshman and sophomore years, I photographed countless events for The Slate and eventually worked my way up to assistant multimedia editor. My photographic, time management and leadership skills continued to grow as I became more

It does not feel real that I am already graduating. I still vividly remember moving in with my parents all the way back in August. 2022. I remember sitting in my dorm that day, overwhelmed at the thought of everything that was to come and what I wanted to do with my time in college. Just a week later, I met Piper Kull and Elizabeth Peters, who were editor-inchief and managing editor of The Slate at the time. When I was considering the student organizations I could join, they made The Slate seem like more than just another group of students. They were right.

I would be lying if I said my journey in The Slate was seamless. There were times when I considered leaving to pursue other opportunities. There were weeks when I did not participate and did not even show up for meetings. That is the thing about journeys though, they

Reflecting on four years at The Slate in 350 words feels nearly impossible. I spend 10-15 minutes each night journaling about the day I had, usually about 350 words at a time. My time here has meant so much, so some parts will sadly have to be omitted.

I spent my entire first year at SU without a major, torn between journalism and accounting. The Slate and WSYC did their best to pull me toward journalism, but I opted for the safer job prospects and steadier work. It truly set me up for the best of both worlds in college. I bounced around sections initially, before settling in at sports and becoming assistant editor before moving to editor. Along the way, I’ve published more than 130 articles, which feels absurd. Writing for sports over the years has led me to some great memories, whether it’s traveling to Bloomsburg for this year’s NCAA field hockey final, heading up

The Seniors Speak:

Reflections on Time

and more involved in the organization. In the fall of 2025, I became the head multimedia editor for The Slate — the role I had dreamed about since that first general interest meeting and the role I thought I would hold until graduation. Clearly, life had other plans.

Never in a million years did I think that I would be the editor-in-chief of The Slate, mostly because I was perfectly happy as multimedia editor. That being said, I am glad things did not turn out the way I imagined.

The past year of my life has not been easy, and I’d be lying if I told you that serving as EIC did not add unwanted stress to my life. But it also made me more confident, resilient and appreciative of the teamwork it takes to keep The Slate going.

Of course, there are a few things I wish I could go back and do differently -

have bumps and twists and turns, but they often bring you where you want to be.

In the end, I am so glad I stuck around, because I realized how much of a privilege it is to work with such amazing people. I want to thank my fellow Slaters, past and present, who gave me inspiration and kept me going on over these past four years. When I first started, I never thought that I would be an editor.

“That is the thing about journeys though, they have bumps and twists and turns, but they often bring you where you want to be”

I figured I would write a few news stories, and that would be it. It was because of my fellow Slaters that I

to Kutztown over summer break for softball regionals or any laugh I’ve gotten from Bill Morgal. As for the great people at

“My fellow section heads ... have been amazing, all absolutely crushing it in their roles. I hope you all go on to crush it, whatever you end up doing”

The Slate, I have to start with Dr. Drager. He’s provided some great assistance to me, from tearing apart a freshman year headline to editing every one of my articles, I wouldn’t be here without him. The management teams I’ve worked under, whether it’s Piper and Elizabeth or Jayden and Megan, they have all answered my endless list of questions. I couldn’t have navigated InDesign without them. My fellow section

like send a few more weekly update emails (oops). Thankfully, I was lucky enough to work alongside a managing editor who could pick up my slack and then some. Thank you, Megan. It has been such a privilege to serve as the 69th EIC of The Slate. Though I came from the multimedia section and did not have a background in “hard news,” I believe that The Slate had a great year. By far, the best part of my job has been watching my fellow Slaters fall in love with the organization again, and learning to fall in love with The Slate again myself.

Jayden Pohlman Editor-in-Chief

Evan Dillow News Editor

ended up pursuing the position.

I also want to give thanks to The Slate’s adviser Professor Drager. Because of his wise insights (and witty remarks), all of us are able to grow and improve.

For all the Slaters who are not graduating: keep up the great work! I believe the future of The Slate is in good hands. I cannot wait to see the amazing work that will come out in the future.

For my fellow graduating seniors: we finally made it. I look forward to seeing you on the stage.

heads this year have been amazing, all absolutely crushing it in their roles. I hope you all go on to crush it, whatever you end up doing. This organization is only strong because each and every one of you step up and do a great job. Lastly, I can not wait to see what The Slate puts out next year. Madison and Viper will do great things as management, I have seen enough of their work to know. As for sports, Hannah and Ben, just keep doing what you have been doing. I have no doubt that you will do very well.

I quite literally cannot believe I am graduating. Logically, I know that I am a senior in my last semester, but it simply does not make sense. It is hard to believe that I have really been at Shippensburg University for over three and a half years. When I was in high school, I did not know what I wanted to do. I enjoyed writing in class and for my school’s paper, but I never had a dream school or career. I toured SU the summer of my senior year and fell in love with the campus. One year later, I moved my life three

Megan Sawka Managing Editor

My advice for upcoming CJM students is not to be afraid to connect. This major is creative; you cannot learn all aspects of creativity through your classes alone.

Student media organizations like The Slate are a well of knowledge that you can come to every week to learn something new. I learned so much about photography in my last two years here at Shippensburg University, and while yes, I had photography classes, the meaningful progress I saw came from applying myself outside the classroom.

Every year since the age of 5, I have gone to school, done homework, had the summer off, gone back to school, met new people and repeat. While I am so ready for a new change in my life and a new routine, I am terrified.

I do not adapt well to change, and it is something that I am trying to get used to because it is inevitable. Life is constantly changing. Have you ever caught yourself saying, “a lot can happen in a short amount of time?” I just said that out loud the other day, and it made me think about

Abby Hockenberry A&E Editor

hours across the state and enrolled at a school where I did not know a single soul.

I made friends, got used to the campus life and tried to figure out what I wanted to do. October of my freshman year, I changed my major to communication, journalism and media. Little did I know this would be one of the best choices I would ever make.

“Thank you Shippensburg, for making me into a better, stronger person”

The communication, journalism and media department has given me so much, not only in education, but in community. The students and professors in our department are so dedicated, it inspires me to be better every day.

I also owe a lot to the Wood Honors College. It gave me my best friend and

I would also say do not box yourself into one thing. Do not just do photography, do not just write, do not be afraid to try new things out. The best creatives need a reset now and again to express themselves and avoid burnout. There was a point in 2024 when I wanted to try writing for The Slate, and I am so glad that I did. Since then, I have written and taken pictures at events at the same time and created galleries that I am very proud of.

“Do not be afraid to fail ... one failure opens 100 paths to success if you have the motivation to keep trying new things.”

I challenge you to create a college career that you can look back on and be

what all will happen within three months from now, six months, three years, six years and so forth. The same person I was coming into this university is not the same person who will be graduating in two weeks. At the same time, I am that same person, but in different ways.

“Life is constantly changing. Have you ever caught yourself saying ‘a lot can happen in short amount time?’ ... it made me think about what will happen three months from now, six months, three years”

Life has taught me lessons, both good and bad, that have made me evolve as an individual. If I could go back in time and do it all over again, I would change certain decisions I made

roommate, in addition to a huge community. It gave me a campus job where I was able to define my own role within the organization. It connected me to peers and alumni that I never would have met otherwise.

The last four years have been a wild ride. I have put blood, sweat and tears into every single thing I have done on this campus, including classes, jobs, organizations, internships and relationships. I have learned so much, not only from my work, but from my experiences.

College has made me into who I am today. The independence allowed me to gain confidence in myself, growing into somebody that I know my younger self would be proud of.

The time has flown by, but I am ready for the next chapter. Thank you, Shippensburg, for making me into a better, stronger person.

impressed with yourself. College is much more than your GPA and the classes you take. If something even remotely piques your interest, do not pass up that opportunity because someone else might take it. College is an equal playing field to experiment creatively, create a club if your interest does not have one and surround yourself with people who want to accomplish great things, because that drive is contagious. Set goals for yourself, but make them attainable and flexible.

Progress comes faster when you see small victories along the way. Plan for the future, but do not have everything mapped out; have a plan A, plan B, plan C, etc., because life does not stop for anyone and will throw challenges your way. Do not be afraid to fail either; one failure opens 100 paths to success if you have the motivation to keep trying new things.

initially, like majoring in accounting, but everything truly does happen for a reason.

Focusing on the positive is something I find myself holding onto lately, because otherwise I think the negative will destroy me. The negative often clouds my vision of the reality of the situation. When I reflect on something I was so worked up about, after I got used it, I recognize that it is really not that bad.

As I close this chapter in my life, I have been feeling emotional saying all these goodbyes. I will miss being “just a college girl” and making constant new memories with my friends. But at some point, the page has to turn, and a new chapter begins. Most novels have many chapters, anyway.

Ship Life

Growing a greener campus: a look inside SU’s Green League

Jordan Neperud Incoming Managing Editor

Within the Shippensburg University community, there is a place that often goes unnoticed by the general student body. It is a place filled with love and life. A place where anyone can go to feel connected with nature, get their hands dirty or pet a goat.

This place is the campus farm, where over 1,000 pounds of produce is grown every year by student volunteers.

The campus farm is primarily maintained by the Green League, a club dedicated to educating the SU community on sustainable agricultural and environmental practices.

The club gets together every Friday afternoon to work on the campus farm.

Members plant various types of vegetables and flowers, feed the animals, maintain the orchards and more.

The club’s leadership offers farm work hours where students and community members can join in on maintaining the farm.

The Green League offers several different programs for the campus community.

The programs include bonfire nights, hikes and bringing its goats to the quad for students to pet.

The Green League also works with kindergarten and middle school students, teaching them about sustainable agriculture and the environment. The club also organizes Earth Day celebrations for the university.

Along with its educational events, the Green League gives back to the

SU PAGE Center hosts ‘Take Back the Night’

Evan Dillow News Editor

The Shippensburg University Pride and Gender Equity (PAGE) Center hosted a public event on sexual violence awareness and prevention titled “Take Back the Night” on Thursday, April 23, in CUB 119.

Guest speakers from local domestic violence programs were invited to give their insights on raising awareness and to dig deeper into what healing from the scars of sexual violence looks like.

According to PAGE Center Director Miller Hoffman, the programs were also invited to provide confidential support for any students who have personal trauma that they wished to speak about to someone.

The main purpose of “Take Back the Night” is to provide a safe place for survivors and awareness advocates to open up and discuss the issues that matter to them. Food was provided, as were crayons, coloring pages, fidget toys and stickers. Booths were set up around the room that provided contact information for local domestic and sexual violence resources.

Co-president Grayson Houser of the SU chapter of It’s On Us gave opening remarks and welcomed the guest speakers. It’s On Us is a student-led organization that focuses on sexual violence prevention on campus.

Anna Nasser, the public education advocate for the Domestic Violence Services (DVS) of Cumberland and Perry Counties, was one of the speakers invited to provide comments.

The focus of her brief remarks was on how people can offer support to survivors.

According to Nasser, DVS provides survivors with assistance in legal advocacy, emergency shelter, counseling, court accompaniment, medical accompaniment and public education. Student support is also an important part of prevention work.

“Being here is a really important thing. When it comes to prevention methods, a lot of us were raised to hear ‘be careful of who you’re with, watch your drinks,’ but really that’s not what it’s about,” she said.

“Prevention is about talking to people and educating people from the ground level and not just expecting potential survivors to protect themselves. As a community, we all have a responsibility to protect each other.”

Pennsylvania Coalition to Advance Respect (PCAR) Legal Director Andrea Levy was also invited to provide insightful stories from survivors. Her speech had a clear message — recovery is possible.

Levy also brought attention to unreported childhood sexual assault. The age when most survivors bring up what they experienced as a child is around age 50, she explained.

As the night concluded, Houser led a march across campus to a tulip bed located outside of Lackhove Hall. During the march, participants were encouraged to shout various slogans that affirmed a desire to let survivors reclaim their voices.

SU students participate in “Take Back the Night.”

Shippensburg community. Members donate a large amount of their produce, which is not treated with any chemicals, to the

Shippensburg Produce and Outreach.

“There’s something in Green League basically for everybody,” said SU professor

and Green League adviser Sean Cornell. “It’s a lot about community, obviously, and giving students a fun outlet of shared experiences.”

Some students involved with Green League are participating in a mycoremediation project, where they grow oyster mushrooms that are being used to absorb and break down petroleum in the creek at Burd Run after an oil spill that occurred last May.

The students involved in the project are Emma Sokolowski, Haiden Martz, Esther Brown, Astrid Huber, Charlie Templeton and Jarod Albrecht.

Albrecht, the future “farm head,” as Green League calls its leadership, handled growing the mushrooms for the project, which was presented at Minds at Work.

Green League was

originally three separate clubs: Students for Environmental Action and Sustainability, Farm Club and the Geography Earth Science Organization. Another club, formally known as Adventure Club, was also folded into Green League.

These clubs were merged because of the large overlap between members.

Currently, the Green League has about 140 members. Every major is welcome to join, and they encourage everyone in the SU community to get involved.

“Everybody here will love and appreciate the help,” Green League member Lillian Wise said. For more information about Green League and how to get involved, visit its Instagram @ shippensburggreenleague.

We Serve Your Community: a night at your college radio station

“Don’t you guys love live college radio? Because there is nobody stopping us from having this much fun. It should be illegal.”

That message was broadcast across the airwaves from a tiny corner of the Ceddia Union Building from the studio of Shippensburg University’s college radio station, WSYC, from its general manager Caitlyn Shetter.

It was the 12th hour of the station’s annual Up All Night event, an event the station has been holding in the spring for over a decade that features prizes and marathon lineup of different DJs every hour.

But unlike the marathon drives from some other non-profit media sources, WSYC is not begging listeners for money. Instead, it is giving them prizes and entertaining them for 24 hours.

Planning starts early.

“Beginning of the second [spring] semester,” is when they start according to Shetter, who took over as the station manager in the fall. “Brainstorming prize ideas, sending out the schedule in enough time for the DJs to sign up and like have their lives planned out. It’s a multiple month planning.”

It has to be. The station has 24 time slots to fill, each with a prize to give away.

This year’s prizes included, but were not limited to, Phillies tickets, a record player, a vinyl copy of Sabrina Carpenter’s album “Man’s Best Friend,” assorted gift cards and concert tickets. The big prize of the night: tickets to see Mr. Worldwide, Pitbull.

Prizes were limited to SU students who came up to the lively atmosphere of the studio. In the earlier hours of the night, before campus rules dictated that only actively on-air hosts could be present, the studio occupied by energetic group of students surrounding a ball pit constructed by Shetter.

One of the nights winners, Grace Martin, an education major, came to collect the radio Lego set she won. Around the same time, one of the night’s Squishmallow offerings went unclaimed.

To win that prize, listeners would have had to call into “K-pop Korner,” hosted by Alex Heckman, and provide the answer to a question: “Which K-pop band member got a DUI on a scooter?”

The answer: Suga, real name Min Yoongi of BTS, who was charged with the crime in Seoul, South Korea, in 2024.

Following K-Pop Korner in the night’s lineup was English major Emily Brewer, who hosts a show called “Sundays,”

which airs Mondays this year.

“‘Sundays’ is kind of just like a home kind of vibe. It’s very welcoming, warm,” said Brewer. “I play a lot of like indie, but also like focus kind of music.”

“It’s fun, but I think it’s more for like the calmer people,” Brewer added. “It’s for the people who are just like mellow, you know, just want to roll with what’s coming and maybe have a moment to be mellow in a world full of like craziness and classes things like that.”

Like a lot of students at WSYC, she is not a communication, journalism and media major. So what brought her to the radio station two years ago?

“I honestly just wanted an outlet away from all of the work I was doing,” Brewer said. “It really is such an individual thing in a way, for you to just play your music and share it with the world and get away from the stresses of life.”

Brewer’s prize? A vinyl copy of Sabrina’s Carpenter’s “Man’s Best Friend.” The caller who won, Paige Gensinger, called before Brewer could even cut the mic after announcing the giveaway.

When they were not on the air, the DJs hanging out in the office kept busy by socializing and playing games. Some committed themselves to artistic pursuits — the latest addition to a large collection of artwork dedicated to WSYC faculty adviser James Lohrey, who is commonly called “JLo” by students.

Lohrey is a frequent subject of student art at WSYC. Pictures of him as the Joker or the moon adorn the walls of the radio station. This night’s addition?

Lohrey as a pizza overlooking the WSYC staff imagined as pizzeria employees.

Among those in the room is freshman host Abby Shygelski, host of “Abby Road.” For her, the radio station is not a hobby but is exactly where she wants to be.

Shygelski’s love of the radio started when she visited a radio station during a high school field trip.

“I was originally going to go into psych, but then I went on this field trip and I actually got to sit in a radio station,” Shygelski said. “I guess I just had like this light bulb moment that this is what wanted to do.”

Shygelski’s show was at 1 a.m. She was giving away a tote. But first, the 9 p.m. slot and its marquee prize of Pitbull tickets would need to be awarded.

Taking the mic for that hour would be Shetter, who also hosts “Pump Up the Jams,” named after 1989 Technotronic song.

“I play really depressing music sometimes, despite the name,” Shetter says. “But I really just play whatever I’m listening to.”

She believes playing music on the radio is a good emotional outlet for her and the other DJs.

“I still feel like a lot of people come here as just an outlet for musical and emotional freedom,” Shetter says. “Like screaming in the studio during a really good song is so cathartic.”

Madysen Wilt would end up winning the Pitbull tickets around 9:30 p.m. Shetter was only halfway through her day.

Senior artists explore censorship, AI and transformation in the capstone exhibition

Rader Incoming Asst. News Editor

Through printmaking, digital art, ceramics and charcoal drawings, Shippensburg University senior art students used their capstone exhibition to explore censorship, artificial intelligence, horror and personal transformation Thursday at the Huber Art Center.

The 4 p.m. opening reception featured work from Luke Lindvall, Gerald Pratt, Kaylee Will, Alayna Mandich and Lily Bramucci. Students, faculty, family members and friends moved through the gallery as the artists introduced their work and discussed the ideas behind it.

Lindvall said his work pushed printmaking beyond paper by combining the medium with carved objects, including skateboards, a stool, a guitar and a table.

“When I first started printmaking my sophomore year, I knew it was going to be my favorite medium,” Lindvall said. “My overall goal was to see how far I could push this medium and myself to make something I can

look at 10 years down the road and still be proud of.”

He said the project came with challenges because he had to change his process while working with objects not typically used for printmaking.

“It was a little scary going into it not knowing if it would even work,” Lindvall said.

Pratt said his charcoal and graphite drawings focused on modern politics and overcensorship.

“My art topic is supposed to be about censorship, not about censorship as a whole, but over-censorship,” Pratt said. “It’s to open up the discussion of how much censorship is too much.”

Pratt said his project started as a different idea based around characters and storytelling before shifting toward censorship.

“It would have been easy to make my art about something more shocking,” Pratt said. “But I decided to go with something more visceral while still appropriate so it could be seen in a public setting.”

Will’s series, “Feed Your Children,” focused

on artificial intelligence, technology and their effects on children and future generations.

“I focused a lot on our relationship with technology and the overuse of it,” Will said.

“We have a tendency to become overdependent on technology when it comes to raising children.”

Will said her work warns against relying too heavily on technology to shape the next generation.

“If we continue to rely on technology and AI to raise the next generation, it will do more harm than good,” Will said.

Mandich’s digital series, “Metamorphosis,” used horror imagery and fantasy to explore beauty and transformation.

“I’ve always been a fan of horror and scary things,” Mandich said. “I want to show that beauty can coexist with the ugly.”

Bramucci used ceramics and pit firing to explore hardship, choice and personal growth.

“When you do a pit firing, it’s essentially like making a big bonfire with your clay,” Bramucci said. “You have a lot of decisions

Artist Spotlight: Greg Schultz

Senior art student Greg Schultz had a series of intaglio glass prints on display in the Brindle Gallery at the Huber Art Center. Schultz‘s work was also featured as a part of the senior capstone exhibition. The series features delicate prints, reflecting a journey that is as much personal as it is artistic.

Schultz came to art almost by accident. Growing up in Loudoun County, Virginia, academics were not their strong suit, so art classes became a constant. It was not until the pandemic, when a planned first job fell through and their mom pushed them to figure out a next step, that Schultz found their way to Shippensburg University.

Their original medium was sculpture, but a considerate roommate decision led them to swap cardboard and plaster for something less messy: glass plate intaglio printing.

“I decided to be nice and not fill our apartment with cardboard plastering stuff,” Schultz said.

The process is painstaking and precise. Schultz etches their designs into glass plates, inks the plates and carefully presses them onto dampened paper.

The senior series began as something darker. Schultz’s original concept centered on their experience with depression. But after conversations with adjunct Professor Kathryn Keely during senior seminar, the focus shifted.

“Sometimes when someone keeps screaming, people just want to go away,” Schultz recalled Keely

saying. From there, they pivoted toward the things that bring them comfort on their hardest days — their cat Peaches, a dog, a dinosaur. Subjects that feel personal, grounded and unexpected.

“Art is in the eye of the beholder,” Schultz said when talking about what they hope viewers take away. “There’s a core comfort, but it’s different for each viewer. I don’t want to force anyone to say anything about my art.”

One of the biggest influences on Schultz’s artistic development has been Professor Steve Dolbin, who recently retired from SU. Dolbin, known for his “my way or the highway” teaching style, pushed Schultz to take creative risks and learn when to push back.

“Dolbin will be like, ‘no, that art

piece is stupid,’ and you just have to say, ‘I’m gonna do it anyway,’” Schultz said. “And then you do it anyway.”

Despite the tough love, Schultz credits Dolbin with teaching them one of their most valuable lessons — learning to accept criticism without letting it derail their vision.

The road to the senior show was not without challenges. Schultz described a significant shakeup in the art department, as a faculty turnover left printmaking students without a dedicated professor heading into their final year.

Outside of the studio, Schultz works as a stage intern at Luhrs Performing Arts Center, helped found the campus magic club and is an avid Warhammer miniature painter, a hobby they credit with

to make like what you’re burning, how much and where you place each piece.”

She said the process connects to how people change through difficult experiences.

“In life, when you’re faced with hardship, you’re presented with a lot of choices,” Bramucci said. “The results might not be as physical, but they’re still noticeable.”

Professor Kathryn Keeley, who helped guide the senior seminar and assisted with installation, said the work came together naturally across the two senior capstone exhibitions.

“It was amazing how it all came together,” Keeley said, adding that the groupings were random, but the work still aligned visually and thematically.

“I didn’t pay attention to mediums,” Keeley said. “It just worked out when they were all kind of black and white, with a little bit of color, but not too much.”

The exhibition marked the end of the students’ undergraduate art careers while showing the range of themes and processes they developed at Shippensburg.

sharpening the same eye for tiny detail that makes their

After graduation, Schultz plans to stay at SU for a graduate degree in organizational development and leadership, with an eye toward eventually becoming a production manager at a performing arts venue.

For Schultz, the past four years have been as much about finding themself as finding their style. They have learned important lessons along the way. “I just want people to know, the worst they could say is no,” Schultz said. “So just ask.”

Get Written: The Manuscript

A rose placed onto of the open pages of “Caraval” by Stephanie Garber.

Abbygale Hockeberry

Editor

A&E

I have chronically been obsessed with the TV show “You” on Netflix. It has invaded my mind. My friends and my brother told me to watch it, and not to mention, it was trending when every new season was dropped. Since then, it has opened my eyes onto what “you” really means. We talk in second person in poems, writings, paintings, fictions, etc. — everything is “you.”

The narrator, in a sense, is afraid to let you know who they are. It is exposing their muse.

When I say “you,” do you picture someone? Because as a writer, I do.

I am afraid to let the audience know who you are. Valery, my character, I have known you since third grade and I know everything about you. You do not know who you are, you love to be loved, you have superpowers and

you are afraid of your own skin. I am afraid of my own skin. You are the hardest (yet easiest) to write because, Valery, you will always belong to me.

I remember playing on my dad’s trailer when I was 10 years old, and all I could think about was you. I lived inside my mind and would act out scenes from your life that I have written. Every bonfire your name crossed my mind. Paying off car registration, during every boring lecture, applying for a new job, 8 a.m. in the morning and minutes before I fell asleep — you were there.

I had that escape because of you. I love you. You are not real, and that is OK. But I could make you real one day. No one will ever fully understand you, but I do. Some might say that you were like an imaginary friend, but I do not believe that is true. I knew I liked writing, and I had this story in mind to create and there

you were.

The most beautiful and unique thing I love about writing are the characters. I strongly believe that they are the most important element to storytelling.

Valery, you drive my story, and sometimes, it feels like I am only the passenger who occasionally takes the wheel because I do not exactly know where the end destination is. I once heard somewhere that they are lost souls you were meant to find. I was meant to find you.

Valery, I found you in a sci-fi dystopian world where you are one of the “chosen ones.” You have purple eyes when you activate your powers, and you are madly in love with Killian Wood. You are placed in a world that is much more dangerous than the world I live in, but you are embodied with more strength than I could ever possess. In a way, you are my idol.

I originally wrote your

One last review ‘Before I Forget’ you

Abbygale Hockeberry A&E Editor

The Kid LAROI dropped “BEFORE I FORGET (DELUXE)” on Friday. Disc 2 had nine more songs on it compared to Disc 1 that came out in early January with 15 tracks.

Basically a double album, The Kid LAROI opens with “ME + YOU” that reflects on a past relationship and wonders what happened to “me and you.”

manuscript in sixth grade called “Midnight Dawn.” I typed over 100 single-spaced pages, laminated every page, put them neatly into a white binder and it sat in my closet. I cannot read the manuscript today without hysterically laughing or violently cringing — there is no in between. There is even an earlier version of the story that exists somewhere that had something to do with a team that could shapeshift into animals. It is OK, you can laugh.

I know every writer experiences this, but it never fails to amaze me that when we mature, so do our stories. As I grow, Valery, you grow. I can only imagine what the final manuscript will be like and even how it will be different than the one I have that is currently called “The Imperials,” but I know I envy dying without this story being told.

Every story has a purpose, even yours.

Down

1. A series of tests and projects taking place at the end of a semester

2. The leader of a corporation

3. To delay something

4. The outermost layer of a citrus fruit that gets finely shaved for culinary use

5. The due date for an assignment

6. The term for a stressed out individual

7. The closing weeks of an academic year

8. A popular brand of erasable markers used in classrooms

9. An abbreviation that is used to preface the writer sharing their stance on a topic

10. The term for when a creditor relieves the responsibility to pay a debt

11. A person with a lot of experience in their field

12. A gray ot black powder produced from burning wood

13. A single movement to make progress in a project in embroidery, sewing, crochet, or knitting

14. A member of the large cats, often know as the king of the jungle

15. A tea species that is ground into a powder, steeped, and whisked to make a caffeinated

16. A writing instrument made of wood with a core of graphite sharpened to a point

18. The microscopic units of life that make up the different tissues in the body

type of relationship. The piano conveys the deep, passionate feeling, and his soft vocals show the vulnerable state in admitting you are wrong. The second verse, “I’m well aware that it’s over and done / Yeah, I can’t admit that I lost and you won / Whatever you need so that we can move on,” says it all. The Kid LAROI then raises his voice as he often does in slow songs to show to the emotion.

The whole album serves is a breakup album, and these are the songs before I forget you. The Kid LAROI is essentially exposing all his feelings from this relationship. Some songs reminiscing on the past and wanting what was like “RATHER BE (feat. Lithe)” and “A COLD PLAY,” while other songs like “I CONDEMN” are a good riddance.

The Kid LAROI demonstrates a variety of taste in sound with this album. An unstoppable song playing in my car, “I CONDEMN,” he tracks back to his roots with rap, while the rest of the album sounds more like R&B and pop.

On Disc 2, my favorite song is “QUIT YOU” because it shows the raw pain of trying to get over someone and literally trying to quit them. He sings, “But I’m still chasin’ this high because / You are the worst drug I’ve ever done.”

If you are looking for your next heartbreak piano ballad, “MAYBE I’M WRONG,” is the one for you. I think this song is exceptionally beautiful because it most obviously applies to a romantic relationship, but the lyrics can also stand for any

On Disc 2, the songs “PIECES” and “MOVE YOUR BODY” have more of an electronical beat in the background that are artistically placed after one another on the album. “MOVE YOUR BODY” is the most radio sounding song on the album, and I am not mad about it. When I first heard it, I thought it sounded like something I have heard before, but then I forgot I have not.

“HOLD STILL” and “JULY” are second on both discs, and with their similar sound, I wonder if that was intentional. “HOLD STILL” has the same rhythm as “JULY,” but at a much slower pace. It is more noticeable in the similar lyrics with “Hold still, no, we don’t gotta touch to feel,” in “HOLD STILL,” and “I wish that you could just be real.” Something about those parallel lyrics turned on the light bulb.

The album closes with “DYING ON THIS HILL,” and given the lyrics, it feels as though he may never get closure. It is a beautiful way to close the album because it shows the reality that you might not get closure even though you are begging for it.

Listen to the 24-track album on Spotify.

Baseball goes 4-1, throwing a no-hitter on Senior Day

Hannah Stoner Incoming Sports Editor

The Shippensburg University baseball team suffered a non-conference loss against Pitt-Johnstown but swept a four-game set against Mansfield this past week, including a no-hitter in the series finale.

Tuesday afternoon, the Raiders visited the Mountain Cats, falling 11-6 in nine innings of play.

SU struck early, scoring two runs in both the first and second innings. The Raiders held the Mountain Cats to five runs through six innings. Pitt-Johnstown, however, scored six runs in the seventh to secure the win.

Shippensburg recorded more hits than UPJ. The Raiders managed 13, while the Mountain Cats had 11. The loss to UPJ was SU’s fifth in a row.

Thursday, the Raiders traveled to Mansfield for a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern

Division doubleheader.

SU won both games, ending its losing streak.

Junior Connor Barto took the mound in Game 1, getting the win for his complete outing. Barto only gave up four hits and one walk while producing a shutout with five strikeouts.

At the plate, the Raiders scored 12 runs on 14 hits. They gained an early lead once again, scoring five of their runs in the first inning.

To start the game, junior Mason Morris reached first on a single to left, then sophomore Thomas CanoPiszel hit a two-run homer for his first of the game. After that, the Raiders had a rally going to score three more.

Cano-Piszel hit another home run in the second inning.

The Raiders had similar offensive success in the second game, winning 10-4.

Freshman Jonah Mayer started for SU, going for five innings. He had eight strikeouts, giving up one

walk and five hits.

SU scored first again, this time sophomore Evan Shoffler produced an RBI double in the second inning. SU took advantage of a couple of fielding and throwing errors by Mansfield’s defense to add more to the scoreboard in

inning, but the Raiders bounced back in the bottom of the second, securing a two-run lead.

The next batter, junior Ty Sherman, hit a double down the left field line for an RBI.

Cano-Piszel also scored on an interference. Senior AJ Wenrich brought Sherman home with a hard, line drive to the centerfield wall for a triple.

the fourth.

Friday, the Raiders played Mansfield in a home doubleheader for their Senior Day celebration.

In Game 1, the Mountaineers put up four runs in the top of the first

Emilee “Sully” Sullivan emphasizes fun on and off the softball field

faces, screaming “no” or “yes” depending if the ball lands inside or outside the strike zone.

After the first two innings, the game was delayed for lightning and rain. Once the action resumed, the Cats evened the score when they produced two runs in the fourth.

To regain the lead, the Raiders scored four runs on two outs in the bottom half of the inning.With two outs, Morris singled to left. Then Cano-Piszel worked a full count walk.

The next three batters walked, with one walk bringing another run in.

The fifth was even more productive for the Raiders as they scored seven more runs.

Starting off with a bunt from junior Jake Pope to reach first base, Morris singled again to advance Pope to third. The next batter took a hit by pitch to load the bases, and Sherman singled to left for two more RBIs.

The Raiders took advantage of Mansfield’s wild pitching to score a couple more runs.

In the sixth inning, Wenrich homered to left field for SU’s last run.

Shippensburg took Game 1, 18-7.

Between the two games on

Friday, the seniors Wenrich, Jack Robinsion, Franklin Muendel, Mike Heckman, Bryce Amos and Brenden Anderson were honored in a small ceremony.

Anderson said, “We swung it well, and you know we had some at bats that didn’t go our way, but no one let that carry into the next at bat, and we stayed on the barrel all day.”

Although the Raider bats made less noise in Game 2, the pitching from Anderson secured the series sweep. Anderson threw the first no-hitter for Shippensburg University since 2018. SU won 3-1.

SU Head Baseball Coach Mike Jones said, “Honestly, he doesn’t have a lot of starts this year, so it was senior day, and we wanted to give him that opportunity, and he just jumped in there, and we’re super happy for him, ‘cause he’s a great guy.”

Track and field shines at rainy Paul Kaiser Classic

Mason Flowers Sports Editor

It is a 3-1 count and a hardline drive was hit toward third base for a potential hit, except any hope of reaching base was crushed when the third baseman lays out to snow cone the ball into her glove.

With confidence, the fielder then swung her feet in the air, looking up and sticking her tongue out toward the camera.

That player is SU softball senior Emilee Sullivan, and she makes sure to incorporate energetic reactions into her routine plays.

“I just like to have fun, and that is my definition of fun, just being really loud, and honestly, sticking my tongue out for anything I do good,” said Sullivan.

She is also playing with confidence in a position that requires little fear and fast feet.

“Her reactions are so fast,” said SU Head Softball Coach Alison Van Scyoc. “She also does not have fear when she’s over at third, which you have to do to play that corner and be successful at it.”

Sullivan has been playing the sport since she was 4 years old, taking inspiration from her older sister.

She is also from Newville, making the 20-minute commute for athletics and academics, and she is majoring in both elementary and special education. She loves having her family close so they can continue supporting her journey.

Along with strong familial relationships, she also relies on the connections with her teammates to maintain her positive and lighthearted spirit.

“I try to always be with my teammates, make my teammates laugh. There is not a time where we’re not laughing,” Sullivan said.

Van Scyoc said the energy Emilee brings is a large part of the team’s success, as well as Sullivan’s reaction time at third and her communication skills.

Van Scyoc said, “She is probably the first person that you will hear when a ball is put in play, where she kind of designates and runs, like go to second, go to first, let it go foul.”

Sullivan’s loud personality also helps her shine in the batter’s box. Sullivan is currently batting .343 with 47 hits in 137 at bats.

When at bat, she vocalizes the pitches she

Sullivan said, “If a ball is outside or wherever, and it’s clearly a ball, I will scream no, just so it stops myself from swinging,”

She also acknowledged that other people have caught on, including her teammates.

“[My teammates] yelled at me at Frostburg,” she said. “They were like, ‘You tell that ball no, Sully!’”

Her favorite memory with the team is winning the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championship her freshman season. She also enjoyed making it to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Super Regionals and the Women’s College World Series last year.

To prepare for games, Sullivan says, “I always get myself ready by listening to music a lot, being with my teammates, extra hitting [and] having a fun drink.”

A current obsession of hers is NeeDohs, which have made their way into the dugout along with other fidget toys.

“We have a very popular item in the dugout, and it’s yo-yos,” Sullivan said. “We get bags of yo-yos because we think it makes us win, and you know what? It does.”

The Raiders are currently 32-14 overall and 19-9 in PSAC Eastern Division play. They still have two regular season series left, both against conference opponents. SU is currently in second place in the PSAC East standings.

Sullivan tries to not let her mindset change while going into postseason, and she is still focusing on having fun while acknowledging the excitement of being part of history.

“I think it’s cool for the people who are coming up through this class and everything, and girls coming in, to know what we did and to know that there is an expectation,”

Sullivan said,

The Super Regional appearance last year was the first in the team’s history, and it was its third appearance at the World Series.

Sullivan’s advice to future SU softball players is to make the most out of their time on the team and remember that it is a game that is meant to be fun.

“It is a failure sport,” she said. “So just don’t take everything to heart and it’s hard because, obviously, we want to succeed all the time, but yeah, just have fun.”

Shippensburg University’s men’s and women’s trackand-field teams finished their regular season at the Paul Kaiser Classic this weekend at Seth Grove Stadium. Despite limited entries, both teams put up impressive performances.

The event began on Friday, where junior Gian Greggo set a new personal best in the hammer throw, placing third at 187 feet, 9 inches (57.24 meters). This moves him into fifth in school history and provisionally qualifies him for the NCAA Division II Championships.

Saturday’s track action was marred by consistent rain, but the men’s team managed to win a quartet of events. This included freshman Daniel Naylor winning the 1,500 meters at 4:00.41, qualifying him for the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) championships.

Other track winners for the men’s team were

freshman Parker Smith in the 200 meters at 22.04, senior Chase Hensinger in the 800 meters at 1:53.55 and senior Garrett Quinan in the 3K at 8:43.31. SU swept the top two positions in each event.

Greggo and junior Donovan Kitchen were victorious in the shot put and discus. Greggo won the shot put at 57 feet, 11.75 inches (17.66 meters), and Kitchen put up a mark of 159 feet, 10 inches (48.73 meters) for his win in discus. Sophomore Colin Melhorn earned his PSAC qualifier in the shot put at 52 feet, 6 inches (16.00 meters)

The women’s team also scored four wins on the track, highlighted by a pair of strong performances in the 200 meters. Seniors Emily Calamia and Alyssa Wert claimed the top two spots, Calamia’s 25.07 leading home Wert’s 25.39.

Freshman Mary Stoltz placed first in the 800 at 2:19.66, sophomore Shaela Kruskie paced the 3K field at 10:24.68, and

sophomore Caliegh Vincent finished Friday night’s 10K at 40:24.52, placing first as well.

SU will host the PSAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships this weekend at Seth Grove Stadium. The event starts at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday with the decathlon, along with the hammer throw in the afternoon and the 10K’s after sunset.

Friday will see the decathlon resume at 10:30 a.m. before moving into prelims for most of the track events and a few finals in the field. The rest of the finals will take place on Saturday, with field events starting at 11 a.m. and track events resuming at 12:30 p.m.

Shippensburg’s men’s team will have 61 entries across the three days, looking to get back on top after finishing second to East Stroudsburg in 2025, which ended the Raiders streak of 15 consecutive PSAC titles. The women’s team will have 42 entries as they look for their 12th title in the past 16 seasons.

Lacrosse earns first PSAC Tournament berth since 2007

The Shippensburg University lacrosse team qualified for the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament for the first time in 19 years on Wednesday.

The Raiders posted a 17-5 victory over Shepherd in an Eastern Division match held at Robb Sports Complex.

Shippensburg and Shepherd (2-12, 1-9) were tied 3-3 with 4:52 left in the first quarter, then the Raiders proceeded to unleash a 10-0 run over the next 31 minutes of play to take control. The hosts outscored the Rams 7-0 in the second quarter en route to a 12-3 halftime lead.

Ten Raiders had at least one point Wednesday, while nine scored a goal and six had at least one assist. Five Raiders finished with five or more points.

Senior Shannon Wood, who had not recorded a hat trick in her first three seasons, produced her teamleading sixth hat trick of the year in Wednesday’s victory. Wood had three goals, two assists, a groundball and a draw control.

Junior Olivia Glinski matched her career high with four assists while scoring a goal and picking up a pair of groundballs. It is Glinski’s seventh game this season with multiple assists and the fifth time this season she tallied three or more assists in a game.

Senior Ali Pioli delivered her first hat trick of the season to match a singlegame career best in goals.

Pioli was once again integral in the circle by matching the team high with five draw controls while collecting two groundballs. She also added an assist and a caused turnover.

On Saturday, Shippensburg dropped a 17-9 decision at No. 11 West Chester in the afternoon as the team wrapped up its regular season with a PSAC clash at Vonnie Gros Field.

Shippensburg (7-10, 4-8 PSAC East) hung with West Chester (14-3, 10-2) for the opening nine minutes, as the score was 2-1 in favor of the hosts. WCU closed the first quarter on a 4-0 run and had a 9-4 halftime lead.

Despite trailing at the break, it was a competitive first half for the Raiders, who out-paced the Golden Rams in shots on goal by a 14-to-10 margin and committed five fewer turnovers (six by SU, 11 by WCU).

Pioli delivered her second straight hat trick, finishing with three goals and an assist. This was Pioli’s fifth hat trick of her career.

Senior Grace DeMarzio became the third player in

school history to reach 100 career caused turnovers late into the first quarter.

Shippensburg has now achieved back-to-back seasons of seven or more victories for the first time since 2017-18 under Nicole Meehan. The Raiders improved to 6-1 this season when leading at the half and 7-3 this season in games that they won the turnover margin.

The Raiders, under the direction of reigning PSAC East Coach of the Year Brooke DellaValle, will be competing next week in the PSAC Tournament for the first time since 2007, when a Naomi Radio-led squad traveled to West Chester for a quarterfinal.

Next Tuesday at 4 p.m., the Raiders will travel to face No. 7 Slippery Rock in a PSAC Quarterfinal at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.

Women’s tennis finishes the regular season at home

Savannah Silvestre Staff Contributor

The Shippensburg University women’s tennis team finished the regular season against Millersville at Robb Sports Complex last Wednesday. The Raiders fell in a 5-2 decision.

Sophomore Jade Miller picked up a win at No. 3 singles to complete a strong year at that position with a 7-5 record.

Graduate Yasmin De Meyer triumphed in a long match against her opponent with scores of 6-7 (57), 6-4, and 11-9.

After having her second straight league match go to the limit, De Meyer said, “To stay composed, I just talk to myself and remind myself to breathe, wash any mistakes, and take the game point by point.”

Junior Brinley Orris won five games at No. 5 singles to finish her season with a 6-5 singles record.

The match marked the conclusion of the collegiate careers of graduate students De Meyer and Corinne Markovich.

De Meyer joined the team in the spring of 2025 after completing four years of collegiate field hockey. She competed in 32 career singles matches and 28 career doubles matches with the Raiders.

Reflecting on her time at Shippensburg, De Meyer said, “It’s bittersweet; I’ve loved having the opportunity to continue competing as a college athlete, but at the same time I’m ready to move on and see what comes next.”

She extended her gratitude to SU athletics and the time she’s spent here over the past four years. Markovich wraps up having competed in 64 career singles matches, all at the No. 1 flight. She achieved a single-season career best of four No. 1 singles victories this season.

The Raiders finished the 2025-26 season with a record of 7-12 overall and 1-4 in conference.

Softball’s good overall play continues to shine as season winds down; playoffs loom

Shippensburg softball powered through yet another packed week, finishing 5-1 across matchups against the likes of Shepherd, Mansfield and Millersville.

The Raiders showed off both that offensive firepower and dominant pitching that they have come to be known for lately as the postseason approaches.

The week began at home for the Raiders with a split against Shepherd. In Game 1 of the doubleheader, the Raiders pounced early, piling six runs in the first inning alone which ultimately played the role to a 9-1 win in five innings.

The offensive onslaught was thanks to contributions all across the lineup, including multiple RBIs from senior Rilee Ehrlacher and sophomore Gianna Cimino. Sophomore Dani Hayward was also dominant on the bump, allowing just one

unearned run on four hits across the five innings.

Game 2 of the doubleheader, however, was unfortunately the one speed bump in SU’s week.

Although the Raiders were able to collect six hits, Shippensburg was unable to get those baserunners to cross the plate, falling 3-0.

Shepherd did capitalize on key moments, including a home run and some extrabase hits, while Raider starter Kaira Zamadics struck out four, but ultimately took the loss.

The Raiders woke up quickly in their next doubleheader against Mansfield. Game 1 was a complete batting party, as Shippensburg rolled to an 11-2 victory behind 15 hits in five innings.

Senior Caitlyn Martell and junior Brie Wilmot hit home runs, while senior Lindsey Haser drove in three. Hayward once again delivered in the circle, striking out seven and

earning her 20th win of the season.

Shippensburg then earned a 9-1 win in five innings during Game 2.

SU broke the game open with a five-run fourth inning, showcased with RBIs from Martell and freshman Leah Schwalm. Zamadics and Hayward both shined in the circle, with Hayward striking out six in relief and putting the game on ice.

Closing the week, Shippensburg hosted Millersville and continued its dominant mentality with yet another sweep. Unlike other wins, Game 1 this time was more of a battle.

The Raiders earned a 4-1 win behind yet another magical performance from Hayward. The ace went the distance, allowing just three hits while striking out eight.

On the bats side, Martell and Schwalm each came through with pivotal extrabase hits to provide the necessary run support for the win.

The finale capped off the amazing week for the Raiders. Shippensburg exploded for 10 runs in a 10-2 victory in six innings. The discipline at the plate and timely hitting was what really broke through Millersville’s pitching. Haser led the way with three RBIs, Schwalm added a home run, Zamadics earned the win and Hayward closed things out in relief to earn the sweep.

Now sitting at 32-14 overall and 19-9 in PSAC East play, the Raiders have put themselves in a rather favorable position as the regular season comes to a head.

With one final week remaining before the PSAC Tournament, Shippensburg will look to carry the momentum into a crucial stretch with the remaining doubleheaders at Lock Haven on Friday and closing the season the next day on home turf against Kutztown. The games could decide SUs fate in the standings.

Ship Life

Sports