Shooting in New Zealand Shocks the World: PC Clubs and Students Stand with Muslim Community

by The Cowl Editor on March 21, 2019

National and Global News

PC students walk in solidarity for those affected by the mosque shootings.

Kellie Johnson ’22

News Staff

On Friday, March 15, 2019, the world became witness to a devastating tragedy in Christchurch, New Zealand when two shooters killed a mass of 49 citizens at two separate mosques.

A 28 year-old man named Brenton Tarrant, along with four other suspects, have been charged for this mass murder. The police force in New Zealand worked diligently to diffuse explosive devices that had been placed on cars outside of the mosque.

After live-streaming this attack, Tarrant uploaded a detailed manifesto full of right-wing extremism and hatred toward many Muslim groups.

The Australian identified himself as a white supremacist. His manifesto was 74 pages long, talking about anti-immigration and his reasoning for his brutality. This man, while acting alone, is also a symptom of a much bigger problem: white supremacy.

Tarrant had been traveling throughout the Balkans before his attack last Friday as he hoped to study the historical conflicts between Christians and Muslim Ottomans in the area.

Although not a resident of New Zealand, Tarrant had stated that he went there with the sole purpose of training to harm Muslims due to their mass immigration to New Zealand.

Officials in New Zealand have spoken out that these citizens had made New Zealand their home, and they will continue to support the individuals who had immigrated there because New Zealand is their home and they should feel safe.

This tragedy is specifically noteworthy because of how uncommon such violent acts are in New Zealand. Unlike the United States, where annual gun deaths have been raising to alarmingly-high numbers, New Zealand has previously reported a low annual death-by-shooting rate. This shooting, however, has killed or injured more than the total number of annual deaths New Zealand typically reports.

Because New Zealand is known to many as a peaceful and accepting country, the fact that so many people were killed in such an act of violence shocked people around the world.

Various countries stand with New Zealand during this time. World leaders have expressed their condolences, including Queen Elizabeth of England, who sent her thoughts and prayers to New Zealand, saying, “Prince Philip and I send our condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives” during this “tragic time.”

The Providence College community is also standing with New Zealand by holding several events. An honorary walk was held this past Wednesday, March 20, by the Board of Multicultural Student Affairs (BMSA) and the Middle Eastern Student Association (MESA) in remembrance of those killed in the shootings. A Mass was also held in St. Dominic’s Chapel in remembrance of all those killed or injured in the shoooting.

Be a Pioneer by Building Your Own Major: A Look into the Process of Making an Individualized Major

by The Cowl Editor on February 14, 2019

Campus

Students are given the freedom to create their own major based on pre-existing courses at PC.

by Kellie Johnson ’22

News Staff

At Providence College, students are privileged enough to receive a well-rounded education. The core curriculum is structured to give exposure to all different types of studies. From Development of Western Civilization courses to your natural science courses and so on, students are gifted with the ability to expand on their knowledge based on what they love.

While PC offers an extensive amount of majors to choose from, some students choose to expand their education and work with Director of Academic Advising Peter Palumbo to create an individualized major which is a unique and special opportunity.

In Harkins 213, students are able to drop by the office and pick up an information packet including all of the tools needed to create their own major.

In this document, students are required to get signatures from various advisors who are able to contribute to the major they are trying to create.

Students are expected to write a proposal, which includes their experience so far at PC, and why their current major is not the appropriate path for them.

In order to create your own major, you need to identify what it is exactly you want to do with your future, and how you are going to get there. It is the student’s responsibility to meet with various academic advisors and professors on their own time in order to establish an academic plan.

In your academic plan, you have to identify your possible future goals and careers you could be interested in. Nobody will hold you accountable for these jobs, but in order to go through this process, students should show their passion and drive for their future endeavors.

Students then must map out the required courses for this major, and the credits earned from each course. For example, Corrie Traverse ’20 made her own communications major. She carefully chose courses that would be required for her to pursue this communications degree, such as marketing and English courses. She identified the specific courses she plans on taking within her four years, along with electives, and justified why each course would benefit her education.

The last step on this document is to decide the classes you want to take to fulfill your core curriculum at the college.

Finally, students map out a general idea of the courses they intend to register for the rest of their years in college. This involves an organizational skill recommended for all students.

Various students on campus are working through this process to create minors as well. For example, a group of business students are working to create a psychology minor. Eventually, they hope to map out a curriculum that can be utilized school-wide for students with same interests as them.

Many students do not know about this opportunity to individualize their education. This is a valuable tool at PC, and students are encouraged to take advantage of it and create an education personalized to their needs and interests.

PC Performers Go Behind the Scenes

by The Cowl Editor on January 31, 2019

Campus

By Kellie Johnson ’22

Lots of work goes into set design for PC productions.

Between managing an insanely busy rehearsal schedule and keeping up with classes, theatre, dance, and film (TDF) majors are very driven students.

Both Aisling Sheahan ’19 and Mireya Lopez ’19 provided insight into their lives behind the scenes.

To audition for a production at Providence College, students are expected to prepare a two-minute monologue for the director. From there, students who made an impression at their audition will be asked to participate in callbacks.

Callbacks are exactly as they sound. If the director sees potential in an actor, then he or she will call them to come back with given material for a final look.

Students are preparing constantly for auditions and summer programs, since opportunities at the College and in the city of Providence are always coming up.

Rehearsals for productions run on a demanding schedule of 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. every night, except for Saturdays. Six days a week, time is put in toward developing characters and meeting with voice coaches and various other experts who are able to help the actors perform to the best of their abilities.

Attendance is mandatory, and goes even beyond that. In the theater, showing up five minutes early is a rule. Being “on time” will be considered late.

Lopez gave an example of one of the special opportunities that comes with being a theatre, dance, and film (TDF) major at Providence College. She talked about the time that she met with a fight choreographer to help her with the fighting scenes involved in a production.

She explained, “I played Gertrude in Hamlet and I had to have rehearsals with the fighting choreographer and the actor who played Hamlet in order for us to be able to physically fight appropriately during the show.”

Sheahan talked about how close she has become with the others involved in productions at PC. The relationships developed between everyone in the theater department are noteworthy due to how much time they spend together.

She said, “I have found theatre majors to be the most hardworking people I know because we do not even have much time to do our homework, we have to finish it before rehearsal if we want to get a good night’s sleep.”

Lopez explained her job on campus in the scene shop. The scene shop is where the set for productions are built. This experience is valuable because she is able to be involved backstage as well as perform onstage, managing her time incredibly well, while still being able to have a great experience inside and out of the classroom.

The theatre department has their own Twitter account, @pctdf. They encourage students to be a part of any of their productions, whether it be onstage or in the crew. Everyone is encouraged to visit the Smith Center for the Arts in order to explore the opportunities that the theater department provides.

Following this weekend’s production of Lord of the Flies, the department’s next production will be Moon Over Buffalo, and auditions will be held in February. All are welcome to an incredible experience with incredible people.

Controversial Video Creates National Outrage

by The Cowl Editor on January 24, 2019

National and Global News

by Kellie Johnson ’22

News Staff

On Friday, January 18, just outside the Lincoln Memorial, a standoff between a high school boy from Covington Catholic High School in Kentucky and a Native American elder went viral.

The video is sparking reactions from the rest of the country.

The standoff began when a group of high school boys and members from a religious group called the Hebrew Israelites allegedly taunted each other with remarks about President Trump’s infamous wall, which has been especially relevant to American lives today due to its role in the recent government shutdown.

However, despite multiple witnesses claiming the students were chanting “build a wall,” this is not found in any of the videos from the incident.

The standoff officially started when Nathan Phillips, 64, began to sing and play a prayer song in between the two groups. The students around the elderly man then supposedly began to mock him.

The viral video broadcasted on many news stations is of the man standing face to face with a boy who appears to be smirking.

Some people are perceiving his smirk as arrogance, while others are excusing the boy by saying he was just nervous.

The boy is now being called racist by many people on social media, while others are attributing his reaction to the taunting. As always, the country is divided on its opinion of what really happened that day.

The young man publically apologized and is receiving great backlash from his school and the media.

While not being entirely sure of the intentions of the video, it points out the effects of social media, as it is proof that actions have consequences, and the young man in the video is facing them.

PC Holds Holiday Themed Fun and Festivities: Students Get in the Holiday Spirit Before Finals

by The Cowl Editor on December 6, 2018

Campus

PC students could attend free skate night in Schneider Arena.

by Kellie Johnson ’22

News Staff

All over campus, students are celebrating the holiday season and are having an amazing time being with one another for the remainder of the first semester.

This week on campus, many events were held, like skate night, tree lightings, holiday market, and Bingo. Unfortunately, with a busy finals schedule it is hard to attend all of these festivities. However, a study break is always good, and it is the most wonderful time of year to have a break.

The skate night took place for a few hours at Schneider Arena on Saturday, December 1 as a way to kick off the holiday season and the final month of the year.

There was a huge turnout for the event. Students were constantly flooding in and out to have a good time with their friends. The skates were available to rent for free.

The event was well organized and an easy way to have fun on campus for the night.

Students loved the opportunity to embrace the winter. They said a lot of the friars and sisters on campus attended the event as well, so it was a good experience to bond with the Providence College community.

Most students, when asked about how they felt about the festival events, voiced their opinions about how they wished events like this happened more often on campus.

Along with the skating, students were invited to Slavin Lawn on Monday, December 3, for the Christmas tree lighting. Insomnia Cookies were served, along with hot chocolate. A capella groups performed songs and everyone gathered around for the tree to be lit. The tree was lit about 30 minutes after the event started, giving time for people to gather.

If you did not have the chance to witness the initial lighting, you can still enjoy the tree. It will remain on Slavin Lawn until the end of the semester.

Josh Flynn ’22, who went to both events, described how he has been having a wonderful experience during his first Christmas season at PC.

While talking about the events, he mentioned how he would like to go to more events like these on campus because he was able to have a great time with his friends, while not spending a large amount of money.

With upcoming stress and finals, students are encouraged to stay in the holiday spirit and PC is giving them many ways to do so. It is important to put the books down and enjoy the community you are a part of, and the Christmas events on campus are a great way to connect with the PC community in a fun and festive way.