Little Red Riding Vogue: Balenciaga: the new “Karl Who?”

For those of you who haven’t seen the season finale of “American Horror Story: Coven”, stop reading. Now. Unless of course you want to know what happens. What I’m talking about is Myrtle Snow—the show’s patron saint of fashion.

Clearly modeled after fashion’s beloved Grace Coddington, former model and creative director of American Vogue magazine, Snow graced “American Horror Story: Coven” with fashion the likes of which Frances Conroy has been denied in the past. In seasons one and two, Conroy was trapped with basically a single outfit throughout. The first season had her stuck in a maid’s uniform and the second had her in a black ensemble to represent her character: the angel of death.

Season three, however, gave Conroy the outfits she so greatly deserved. Among my favorite trends were her multiple pairs of Gaspar Gloves—absolutely flawless. But even beyond the fashion she styled, Myrtle Snow was a character that was so deeply rooted in fashion that it came out in her conversations. At one point, Snow claims to have had a relationship with Prince Egon von Fürstenberg, stating that she forgave him for leaving her because he ended up marrying Diane Simone Michelle Halfin.

Snow said, “I had a love like that once. Egon Von Furstenberg. He dumped me, but everything worked out alright in the end. You know why? Because he went on to marry the divine Diane. And without Egon’s support, Diane Von Furstenberg never would have created the greatest invention of the century, the wrap dress!”

All of that was of course said in Snow’s unforgettable voice, reminiscent of fashion legend Diana Vreeland. In fact, Conroy has said in interviews that Ryan Murphy, the show’s creator, asked that she model Snow’s voice after Vreeland.

Now that the season has ended, it is impossible to write about Snow and not cover her final words as she burns at the stake for the second—yes, second—time. As she approached the desert setting in a floor-length crimson gown, Cordelia Foxx asked Snow if she had any last words. Snow responded, “Only one…Balenciaga!” And, with that, she burst into flames.

Meanwhile, of course, I was live-tweeting the episode—this scene spawning tweets about the French fashion house, famous for protégés such as Oscar de la Renta and Hubert de Givenchy. Then, to my horror, I received tweets from people who did not seem to know Balenciaga. It was a fashion nightmare.

Founded by Cristóbal Balenciaga, a Spanish designer, Balenciaga is known as one of the greatest fashion houses of all time. Christian Dior once said of Balenciaga, “Haute couture is like an orchestra, whose conductor is Balenciaga. We other couturiers are the musicians and we follow the directions he gives.” Coco Chanel said, “Balenciaga is a couturier in the truest sense of the word. Only he is capable of cutting material, assembling a creation, and sewing it by hand. The others are simply fashion designers.”

Today Balenciaga is owned by the French multinational company Kering and run by its Creative Director and fashion prodigy, Alexander Wang.

All of this unfamiliarity originally produced horror, but now, in hindsight, I find it resonant of the ongoing fashion joke “Karl Who?”. It began with a tote bag from designer Naco-Paris. The bag was a plain tote bag with the phrase “Karl Who?” crudely painted on it. It raised the notion that those unfamiliar with fashion might not immediately know who Lagerfeld was if he were referred to by his first name.

Witty and snarky, the tote bags rose to fame, were picked up by Colette and eventually graduated to t-shirts. Not to mention, Lagerfeld himself began sporting the tote. Both the t-shirt and tote are still available on Naco-Paris’ online shop for €65 each.

With all of this in mind, is it time to start producing a line of “Balenciaga Who?”

Bring Your Own Bard or lend an ear: monthly Shakespeare series opens at Té Café

On the frigid evening of Monday, January 27, actors and amateurs alike gathered at Té Café in Squirrel Hill to open the fifth season of Pittsburgh Shakespeare in the Parks’ series “Bring Your Own Bard”, where Shakespeare lovers read, recite and listen to excerpts from the Bard’s vast body of work.

Just after 7:30 p.m., when the café’s chairs and tables had been rearranged to allow for a small performance space, Alan Irvine, a “Bring Your Own Bard” Coordinator, introduced himself as the host for the evening.

Over the sounds of beverage making, Irvine welcomed the crowd and introduced the evening’s theme, “Shakespeare’s Favorites,” to be interpreted as each participant chose.

After reading an excerpt from “Richard II” about Richard’s fast-approaching demise, Irvine opened the floor to anyone who wished to recite something they had prepared or could find in any of the books of plays and sonnets provided.

Té Café’s foggy windows, warm yellow walls, white lights strung across the ceiling and plentiful supply of tea and biscotti made it easy for visitors to forget the freeze and immerse themselves in the passionate performances.

As the performances started, the coffee shop sounds died down, and all attention (with the exception of a few children playing chess) was given to the Bard. Irvine’s performance was followed by two different monologues from “Macbeth”. Lighter excerpts from two of Shakespeare’s comedies, “Twelfth Night” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, followed these somber performances.

The program soon moved from monologues to scenes with multiple performers.  Three people, including Pittsburgh Shakespeare in the Parks’ Artistic Director Jennifer Tober, performed a scene from “As You Like It”. Then Irvine and another performed a scene from “The Taming of the Shrew”.

Next came the famous “To be or not to be” soliloquy from “Hamlet”, which has become a tradition, according to Irvine, at the opening nights of “Bring Your Own Bard”.

The “Bring Your Own Bard” monthly reading began at the suggestion of a supporter of Pittsburgh Shakespeare in the Parks and former radio host, Kate Borger. After migrating from place to place during their first season, “Bring Your Own Bard” found Té Café and has been meeting there since its second season. “It’s a really great place, and they really like putting on these arts events,” Irvine said.

With just under 20 people in attendance, the atmosphere was cozy, not cramped.  “When you get up to 30 people, it starts feeling like standing room only,” Irvine said.

The evening ended with the reading of several sonnets.  As people filed out, they were able to make donations to support Pittsburgh Shakespeare in the Parks as they enter their 10th season of productions in Pittsburgh parks. They will perform “As You Like It” on weekends this September.

Pittsburgh Shakespeare in the Parks’ “Bring Your Own Bard” meets at Té Café, 2000 Murray Ave., Squirrel Hill, on the last Monday of each month until the season ends on June 30.  The next meeting is scheduled for February 24; the theme will be “Murder and Mayhem.”

Entertainment meets education: belly dancers take the stage at a local art gallery

On Friday, January 24, an unusual and exciting event was held on Forbes Avenue in Squirrel Hill.  Inside of the The Christina Fretchard Art Gallery, beautiful, vibrant canvas paintings lined the walls, reflecting the soft lighting as the attention was directed from the refreshment stand to the front of the gallery. Members of the audience strolled in, paying their ten dollar fee to enjoy one night of extravagant professional belly dancing.

The show consisted of two opening acts by Tribe Fidah and Madjan Saeed.  Next, the dancers came to the suito-stage.  Sahra, the main event, performed along with her students and colleagues: Hakan, Unsak, and Trsta.  The dances were all choreographed to music by Tom Moran, which played on a boombox to the side of the performers.

Each dancer began by illustrating his or her personality through an individual dance for the audience. Their gorgeously flowing movements complimented their bejeweled, glittering outfits of various colors and shapes. Some wore the traditional belly dance clothes, which show and accentuate the belly, while others wore more conservative gowns.

A variety of types of belly dance were shown. There were dances that were considered tribal, some tribal fusion, and some tango fusion. Each dance had the basis of flowing arms, popping hips, and an amazingly relaxing beat.

Between each act, the next performer was introduced, and cultural aspects of belly dancing were explained. The show was as informative as it was entertaining.

One of the reasons for the show was to gain public interest pertaining to belly dance classes. Sahra teaches belly dance in three locations, one of which is now the JCC in Squirrel Hill. Her classes will be held on Tuesdays from 8:15 p.m. to 9:15 p.m. She offers classes in Dormont on Wednesdays and in Point Breeze on Thursdays.

Her business card proclaims her a performer, instructor, and choreographer. Sahra also co-writes a blog about her teaching and learning of belly dance, tracking her travels, studies and performances around the world.

Beyond her classes being advertised, another key point of the event was to educate about the culture and history of belly dance. Between acts, a variety of types of the dance were explained along with their origin. One particular dance originated in Saudi Arabia, while others originated in a variety of other places.

One of the most surprising aspects of the performance was Hakan. Hakan is a male belly dancer who uses his sense of humor to entertain the audience during his performance.

Often, belly dancing is thought to be for females; however, this demonstration was sure to convince the audience that that is not the case. He did not wear the same revealing dress as the women did, but his performance was just as entertaining and beautifully danced as the women’s.

After the finale, Sahra, Hakan and the other dancers made their way to the front of the room for more dancing. During this part of the show, the audience was encouraged to stay and dance alongside the professionals.

The atmosphere was light-hearted and the intimidation factor was surprisingly low. Quite a few members of the audience did choose to attempt a dance of their own. Once gaining their confidence, the professional belly dancers were more than happy to provide and tips and knowledge about the art to anyone participating.

Overall, the night of belly dancing made for a wonderful show. It allowed people to come out of their shells, expand their horizons and experience an art form that is often overlooked.

Squash takes off at Chatham

A brief history of the game of squash indicates that it is a sport that has been practiced for centuries in various forms. Squash rackets originated from the ancient game of tennis which was played in the twelfth century in the narrow streets of French villages. The game became popular in England, around the middle of the 19th century at the Harrow Boarding School of England. In 1864 the first four squash courts were constructed at the school.

For quite a long time, squash had been labeled “an old boy, Ivy League schools, and private clubs sport” inaccessible to the common athlete. However, for the past forty years or so, that has not been true. According to recent statistics published by the World Squash Federation, squash is played in some 185 countries on nearly 50,000 courts.

Chatham’s squash complex was built about 12 years ago. Coach Costa who teaches squash at Chatham as a regular sports activity explained he had the opportunity to provide some advice during the building of their structure. Chatham University is the only higher educational institution in the area to have squash courts that are built to international standard.

Photo courtesy of Yolaine Michaud

Photo courtesy of Yolaine Michaud

Amy Gilleazeau who attended Chatham College was ranked in the top 114 college players in the USA during the 2009-2010 seasons and placed 3rd in the Caribbean Squash championship in 2010.

Both Coach Costa and Dr. Sean McGreevey (the Assistant Dean of Students and an avid scholar of the game) emphasized that squash is a more complex and strategic sport than it appears.  It is sophisticated and at the same time technical; it is considered a great body and mind exercise.

Squash strengthens the core and glutes of the athlete.  Playing a serious game of squash can burn an average of 850 kcal/hour. Forbes magazine in 2003 classified squash at the top of the ten healthiest sports to practice.

In providing an analysis of the game, Coach Costa said that it is a game of deception. The speed of the ball movement and its size forces the player to maintain constant focus and have a keen awareness of the opponent and ball positions.

Coach Costa said, “Squash is known as the chess of Racket sport, it is a game of geometry and angle and this cannot be mastered by anyone. Squash is life and the rest is mere detail.”

Furthermore, it was emphasized that squash is weather proof, being practiced indoors; it is suitable for all ages;  The health benefits are many. To name a few, it builds endurance and leg power, promotes coordination, boosts flexibility, improves concentration, and increased strength and stamina, those advantages may explain the growing popularity of the sport.

Dr. McGreevey provided a practitioners approach to the game. He explains that squash, while being  excellent exercise for general fitness, is also a mental sport.  One needs to maintain their inner aggression in order to have the optimum results. It also helps to deal with frustration.

However, one has to be aware that in this game, hitting harder it is not necessarily better. The player needs to adjust his/her game to the opponent. Dr. McGreevey also indicated that to be beneficial a player should practice at least three one-hour sessions a week.

He also gave a little insight in dealing with the equipment–particularly the ball, which needs to be warm in order to respond to the player hit. Additionally, the density of the ball differs according the altitude. For the players who passed the beginner stage, there is a Pennsylvania league, the Box league, which is an online matching of players that works on a six week rotation.

Squash seems to present all the advantages of a complete and thorough workout. For those who want to try it, Coach Costa would like to mention that up to date and standardized equipment is available to borrow for the classes. Squash sessions are held on Monday to Thursday from 6:30 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. There is also a faculty clinic twice a week for 10 weeks between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. The program is oriented toward beginners.

 

Reimagining Woodland: the future of art in liberal arts at Chatham University

One of Chatham’s most overlooked gems is the Olkes Collection, which contains hundreds of African artworks. Housed in the Woodland Gallery and the primary subject of one of the university’s Museum Studies courses, Curating African Art, it is rarely showcased to visitors due to both a lack of proper security and a shocking lack of interest on-campus.

When I came to Chatham in the fall of 2010, I entered as a Creative Writing major. Even so, it wasn’t long before I became an Art History major instead. One of the most promising and, in today’s contemporary art scene, most challenging fields out there, I felt thrilled to choose the museum world as my career path.

By the time I became a Senior, the art history program had vanished as its own major and had instead been reduced to a mere concentration in the Visual Arts major. The logical answer for this sad turn of events is simply that Chatham University did not have enough interested recruits.

But how could they when no marketing was given to the department? Chatham University’s numerous brochures boast for pages upon pages of their interest in global issues, politics, environmental studies, and science – and their renowned English department, whose professors have (quite deservingly) received many accolades.

However, the Olkes Collection, art history program, and Museum Studies minor were rarely mentioned. In fact, as Chatham pours millions of dollars into the Eden Hall Farm project (which has so far served only to artificially impress donors and alumni rather than serve current students), they have cut opportunities for student jobs, refused to fix faucets, pianos and other parts of their mansion-like dorms, taken away beloved student spots such as the Weathervane, and major by major, are slimming down their academic offerings.

Any other university in the country who offers a strong art history program, especially one with such a spectacularly focused collection and a close proximity to world-renowned museums such as the Carnegie International, would boast about these things. Chatham, however, has never said so much as a peep. I only knew about the major, in fact, after purposefully scrolling for it after taking interest in an art history survey course in high school.

If Chatham is to proclaim itself to be a powerful liberal arts school, then it must not ignore the study which so strongly encapsulates the visual culture and material evidence of our past, present and future. The wise choice would not have been to cut back on, but to build on their program (which has offered classes as varied as African Art, 19th Century European Art, Asian Art, and even special topics, such as Women in Art), to expand and market the Art History major, including welcoming new professors and redesigning the Woodland Gallery.

The new gallery could not only beautifully display the entire Olkes Collection, but might have also included a separate gallery, connected by doors, for student, faculty and guest exhibitions. Even better, would have been regular hours for the Woodland Gallery’s opening, regular security members on-site to protect the items, and, perhaps, even full-time staff members to research and restore the university’s art collection, both in a research room in the gallery, and in an off-site storage space for works not currently in view (perhaps at Eden Hall?).

Chatham University has always taught its students to be world-ready women. With an increasingly limited number of disciplines offered at the school, how can this be possible if we are not allowed, in college of all places, to explore different subject matter and improve upon those dear to our hearts?

How is it possible that they are able to quietly lock away studies, which–despite their important influence in the world at large–are strangely ignored in our own supposedly progressive academic halls? Take, for example, the Carnegie International, which made headlines not just in Pittsburgh but around the world this year for using groundbreaking contemporary art to bring light to important issues, including poverty, war, and discrimination. Art and its study must never, can never, and should never be removed from the liberal arts.

Students share laughs at Chatham Improv Night

On Friday January 17, students took the stage of Eddy Theater as drug dealers sailing in Jamaica, camel riders in Maryland, and a proud dog owner during Chatham Improv Night. Sponsored by the Fickes Residence Hall Council and hosted by Indigo Baloch, the event was based on the popular improvisational comedy show “Whose Line is it Anyway?”

The contestants participated in different games based on prompts read aloud by the host. The scene, characters, and dialogue were created on the spot by contestants or by audience suggestions. Anyone in the audience of 20 could participate. At the end of the night, audience members voted for the winner of “funniest” contestant.

McKenzie Haskins took home the grand prize, a $25 Chipotle gift card. “I literally just embarrassed myself for a couple of minutes and got a free gift card out of it,” said Haskins. Brianna Rice, Jessica Chow, and Erika Martin claimed second, third and fourth place, respectively.

Waiting for Intermission: Review of “Her”

Audiences know director Spike Jonze for his bizarre films. Those who watched “Being John Malkovich” can attest to this fact. As a filmmaker, he takes themes from the postmodern world and brings it to a mind-blowing conclusion.

Jonze continues this strong tradition with the new film “Her”, centered on loner Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix). After separating from his ex-wife, he develops a relationship with an operating system Samantha (Scarlett Johansson). As the relationship evolves, Theodore learns about the intimate and emotional components of human nature. Complete with stunning cinematography and astounding acting, “Her” examines the anxieties and beautiful nuances forming the human connection.

Success of the film relies on its basis in a grounded reality. Emotional attachment can only be maintained if audiences can believe in the world being portrayed. Visual and contextual elements create this grounded future world.

Audiences notice sprawling shots of the city skyline, panoramic outside Theodore’s apartment. The metallic texture of the buildings reminds audiences of the standard future setting, gleaming and otherworldly. Yet these buildings do not stretch into the atmosphere, nor do hover cars or teleportation devices dominate the skyline. Subtle technological changes mark a natural progression into the future.

Jonze envisions a future our children and grandchildren could potentially inhabit. Even Theodore’s job of writing emotional letters for those who cannot express themselves are just the natural evolution of Hallmark cards. This realistic world offers a platform to understand and ultimately accept the love between Theodore and Samantha.

Audiences also view this transition through Theodore’s flexibility toward talking about Samantha to the public, leading to an inevitable double date with him and a human couple. Some scenes will cause some seat lurching, particularly Theodore and Samantha’s sex scene and their date using a human female surrogate. However, these scenes capture Jonze constant break from the reality of the film. He finds opportunities to break the fourth wall, particularly through the musical transitions between scenes.

The musical score of the film seamlessly transforms into Samantha’s compositions, which she says represent the scene’s events. Jonze wants us to remain enchanted while inhabiting his grounded reality.

The film not only examines the logistics behind a relationship, but also analyzes Theodore’s inability to connect emotionally with those around him. Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of a man fearing the lonely expanse of life is simply fantastic. His pained desire to give language to his feelings provides a vessel for audiences to analyze their own anxieties.

Use of silent flashbacks reinforces this anxiety, as it forces audiences to give language to the emotions displayed on screen. Despite Phoenix’s acting command, the character of Amy, played by Amy Adams, hits the message home. In the middle of the film, Amy talks to Theodore about how overthinking things sews the seeds of our own self-doubt. People need to accept our emotions and strive to give voice to these emotions; otherwise thoughts could potentially cripple us into silence. Aside from the fresh portrayal of a strong female character, her monologue speaks to the purity of the human experience. Being open to connection involves risk, but eventual happiness outweighs these fears.

“Her” is an incredibly intelligent film examining our detached society through a post-structural lens. The wonderful messages of this film will stick with you long after leaving the theater.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Jasmine Davis speaks on life after Chatham

In 2010 Jasmine Davis graduated from Chatham with a degree in marketing.  After living on campus all four years, she journeyed out into in the real world.  Staying within the Chatham circle, her first job was for a pair of women who also graduated from Chatham. She worked at the content factory managing five to seven clients in social media, conducting phone interviews, and tending to any overall online needs. When talking about the transition from student to graduate, Davis admitted, “It took a little bit of time acclimating to not getting a grade–you have to maintain a level of quality while solving your own problems.”

Originally, Davis said she hoped to find an on-campus position, but is now glad that she chose to find a job away from the, “Chatham bubble.” Her time at Chatham clearly prepared her for her off-campus life, especially in the aspect of time management.  Participating in a number of extra curricular activities added to her success, in particular her position as President of Student Government her senior year.  Also, Davis held two jobs during her four years on-campus: an on-campus job and working as a page for the Carnegie Library.

Her tutorial prepared her most in the aspect of balance. During her tutorial she created an outline, allowing for her to utilize the entire year. Within the outline were highlighted dates to keep her on track.  Davis believed her tutorial was her best tutor in time management skills.

Photo courtesy of Jasmine Davis

Photo courtesy of Jasmine Davis

Now, Davis works for as an account manager at Community Elf.  She describes her job as a, “blogger.” Working with local clients, she manages an online presence for most of her clients. The job entails working with her clients to respond to online conversation, and blogging about things people want to read. That’s not all Davis worked for last year though.

Davis created her own board game design on the side. She entered it in the Tabletop Deathmatch, though she did not win.  She did make the cut for the sixteen finalists.  Furthermore, she noted she was the only solo woman to be part of the competition. Davis admitted that part of her strive comes from attending an all-girls school and the empowering environment it involved. She explained, “It is really important for women to stand up for themselves, in the workplace, hobbies, or whatever you’re doing in life–Chatham was fantastic for that.”

Besides her time working and making board games, Davis is also a member of the young alumni association at the school.  The Young Alumni Association’s goal is to remind young alumni they do not have to miss out on the events they loved as students.  It also reminds graduates to attend any events such as reunions.

Davis’s love for the University and the campus itself runs deep. She was interested in holding her wedding reception on campus and admitted one of the first things she did when dating a guy was show him around our beautiful campus.  She also noted her love for the dining hall during this part of the interview.

In fact, the last part of her advice for any students on campus that Davis gave was, “Enjoy the dining hall while you have it!”

 

Little Red Riding Vogue: The irresistible urge to stare at children’s clothes

I know it sounds ridiculous, but sometimes I wish I were still a little kid. I feel this more strongly when I’m in stores like Target ogling at all of the new toys and most importantly—the children’s clothes.

What I wouldn’t give to be seven and wearing a tutu like a little Monster High doll. I feel like children’s clothes have progressively gotten cuter as the years get on. When I was a kid in the late 90s I had parents who dressed me up in dark sweaters and black leggings (most likely to fit in with their Depeche-Mode-inspired fashion sense). Later though, I was able to graduate to soft, velvet party dresses and Mary Janes. However, what I was truly lusting after were glittery crop tops, jean shorts, and those weird hair clips that dominated the 90s. Who didn’t want to be a Spice Girl?

Nowadays, kids clothing aisles are stocked with brightly colored leggings, and pastel cardigans, and basically everything you wish they had in adult sizes. It’s not rare for me to hear a friend or two whine about wanting younger relatives to dress up. More and more children’s clothes are actually just smaller sizes of the types of clothes a young girl might see on her older sister. It’s almost like we’ve reverted into the Victorian era again where children were dressed as little adults.

Allison Albitz, first-year and Communique Managing Editor Photo Credit: Indigo Baloch

Allison Albitz, first-year and Communique Managing Editor
Photo Credit: Indigo Baloch

Even boy clothes are overwhelmingly cute. There’s enough flannel and faux leather to make your little brother into a Winchester. In fact, there’s no better example than Instagram icon Alonso Mateo. Online he has been dubbed the world’s most fashionable 5-year-old. In real life, his stylist mother dresses him like a miniature adult—scratch that: a ridiculously fashionable miniature adult.

Now I’m not sure if the internet has decided on a “most fashionable little girl” yet, but the well-known blog Humans of New York often posts pictures of children with style, using the caption “Today in microfashion.” Sometimes they’re wild getups you know the kids chose themselves, but sometimes they’re pretty spectacular outfits that make you wonder if their dad is Karl Lagerfeld or if that kid is the next Coco Chanel.

And it’s not just the children who have great fashion these days. Monster High dolls, the new toy craze, are some of the most fashionable dolls I’ve seen by far (even I have a growing collection). The best part about these dolls is that each doll has a distinct personality and style. Where other dolls like Barbies and Bratz have interchangeable outfits, each Monster High doll is unique. Although you could exchange the outfits if you wanted to, each doll stands out. However, you’ll always see similarities in color choices among one character’s wardrobe.

Of course a classic example of clothing-envy in toys is the American Girl dolls. Especially with the more modern dolls, it seems like there is an endless amount of style options. And everything is just the right size to taunt you, but obviously never be wearable. It’s not small enough to be for a Barbie, but it isn’t big enough to be for a toddler. Then, American Girl changed everything and made certain clothes that could be bought for the doll, but also the owner. So yes, Kit and I did have matching pajamas every night.

Now maybe it’s just my/America’s obsession with merchandise, but the other day, when I saw that Target had Lalaloopsy dresses, I was immediately depressed by my lack of youth. Cherish your cuteness while you can.

Get to know Chatham’s Student Government

“Be the change you wish to see on Campus” is an opportunity that Chatham Student Government (CSG) grants to every student on campus.

CSG is the student elected Senate which consists of officers from each of the four classes, in addition to the executive board.

“[CSG] is a platform where we can be liaisons to the administration but where we can also advocate for issues that we really care about” is how Jeannette Schollaert describes CSG. Schollaert is a junior majoring in English & Women Studies at Chatham and serves as the Executive Vice President of CSG. According to Schollaert, CSG meetings as a whole are open to every single person on campus. Any student who has any concern may attend those meetings and express his/her concerns to the Senate members so they can work towards “making Chatham a better place to be.”

Mareija Bibbs, senior in Human Biology and the executive president of CSG said, “We’re always open to hear feedback, because we want everyone to enjoy their experience here at Chatham, so whenever there’s an issue, it’s our top priority.”

CSG Senate meetings are held every Thursday to discuss Senate issues.

CSG is a giant umbrella that is bisected by different branches. One of those branches is the Student Organization Forum (SOF), which is part of what Schollaert runs in her position. SOF consists of student organization leaders who gather for monthly Tuesday meetings. SOF meets to share concerns and operates under a basic set of policies and procedures, in order for student leaders to be more effective in their work.

SOF also provides guidance to the student organizations through the event planning process if needed in order to make events more profitable and efficient. They can be helped, for example, with a room request, a speaking invitation and other basic steps in order to eventually produce a successful event. Every organization is required to send one representative to those meetings, in order to remain eligible for the UBC funding.

Schollaert runs both the SOF meetings and the CSG Senate meetings as Parliamentarian.

A large number of the events held on campus are partially or fully funded by the Undergraduate Budget Committee (UBC), which is run by Claire Swauger, a senior majoring in Environmental Science at Chatham and the CSG Vice President of Finances. UBC is another branch of CSG.

According to Swauger, UBC was given a budget of $30,000 this year, which UBC is responsible for dispensing properly. “Student organizations come to us, present an event with a special funds request, and according to the UBC constitution or methods of order, we decide how to allocate those funds” added Swauger.

UBC meetings are held every other Tuesday and requests should be handed in four weeks in advance.

“We always try to be fair, and follow the guidelines for how we distribute funds. Things that happen on Chatham are given first priority, and if they collaborate with a lot of organizations, that gets priority as well.”

The CSG Constitution and UBC Methods of Order can be accessed on myChatham under Documents and Forms, Student Affairs.

CSG has been working on “Town Hall Information Sessions,” which is kind of a press conference release that is held every Thursday in January. In those sessions, each administration person from each category comes and discusses the students’ concerns with them.

All the information about the CSG meetings is open to the public, whether in hard copies or online. CSG announcements can also be reached at CSGSTUGOVT on Twitter, or on the Facebook page: Chatham Student Government, which is updated every Thursday to broadcast the meetings.

“We are all students here, and we want to get the most out of our four years in the happiest way possible, so if you have a concern, we probably have it too!” Schollaert said.