Univ. hosts annual Leonard Bernstein Festival of the Creative Arts

The university held its annual Leonard Bernstein Festival of the Creative Arts over the week of April 21 to April 30. The theme of this year’s festival was “Make Art to Make Change” featuring events that celebrate the creativity of the Brandeis community along with special guest artists. “The Leonard Bernstein Festival of the Creative […]

Brandeisian reflections: a graduating senior and a rising junior

One of the, perhaps silliest but, most storied traditions here at The Hoot is the Editorial Board’s practice of tracing our lineages. Not our actual lineages with 23andme or Ancestry.com but rather who our “Hoot Parents” and “Hoot Grandparents” are. In writing this article Thomas Pickering ’23, current editor-in-chief, and Cooper Gottfried ’25, current opinions […]

An interview with the incoming Student Union President and Vice President

Recently, Brandeis’ Student Union has gone through a new round of elections in preparation for the 2023-24 academic year. On April 26, The Brandeis Hoot spoke with Noah Risley ’24, the new Student Union President, and Erica Hwang ’25, the new Student Union Vice President about their plans for their time in office, why they […]

Hannah Peters named senior vice president of institutional advancement

In an email sent to the Brandeis community by university president Ron Liebowitz, it was announced that Hannah Peters—previously interim senior vice president of institutional advancement—would take the position of senior vice president of institutional advancement.   Liebowitz described Peters as “a knowledgeable, versatile and experienced advancement professional.” As the email also states, Peters was […]

Brandeis Hospitality announces new meal plan; students raise alarm

On April 26, Brandeis Hospitality announced new meal plans coming at the start of the fall 2023 semester. The changes include adding in unlimited “All Access” meal plans and removing the traditional weekly meal plans.  “Over the last two years, Brandeis University students have been gauged on what changes they wanted to see in their […]

Men’s and women’s tennis teams play against five other schools

Since our last publication, the Brandeis men’s and women’s tennis teams concluded their March games and began their April competitions. The men’s tennis team won three of their four games, as they won against the University of Rochester (URochester), Skidmore University, and New York University (NYU). Their only loss was in their competition against Babson […]

Peeps, Peepsi and puzzling ingredient choices

Cooper Jamie will make some very valid points about Peeps Pepsi (Peepsi), a soda which I can only describe as “bleh.” But actual Peeps are even worse than their soda-based counterpart. These marshmallow candies hide something wicked behind their soulless eyes: Peeps are actually carcinogenic (and they taste disgusting). Some Peeps, including the pink and […]

Coalition victory: eBay subsidiary ‘TCGPlayer’ forms eBay’s first union

On March 10, eBay subsidiary TCGPlayer formed eBay’s first union. TCGPlayer is an online marketplace for card games like “Magic: The Gathering,” “Yu-Gi-Oh!” and “Pokémon.” They also sell comic books and card game accessories. Employees in TCGPlayer’s Syracuse authentication center voted 136-87 on Friday to become a part of Communications Workers of America Local 1123 […]

Movement to reform Brandeis housing emerges after DCL’s ‘blatant failure’

For the upcoming 2023-2024 academic year, the Brandeis Department of Community Living (DCL) is not currently guaranteeing housing to all of the students who received approved housing accommodations. Students with higher housing numbers are no longer guaranteed housing despite having approved accommodations for specific on-campus housing.  Before housing accommodations are approved, a student must undergo […]

Brandeis professor writes about ‘food forests’

Professor Prakash Kashwan (ENVS) talks about the benefits of food forests in American cities in an April 4 article in The Conversation—a news outlet that publishes articles for the general public written by academic experts. Food forests, or “edible parks” as Kashwan and co-author Karen A. Spiller from the University of New Hampshire put it, […]

SU releases candidate bios and constitutional amendments for round two of elections

In an email sent to Brandeis students on April 20, Student Union Secretary Carol Kornworcel ’26 sent students information on candidates and constitutional amendments for the upcoming Student Union elections. This email included a link to the election rules and the candidate bios, which also holds links to the constitutional amendments. The campaigning period for […]

Renovations for Village fitness center coming soon

Mo Re Kim ’24—personal trainer—explained that the renovation process for the Village B/C fitness area has begun, he said in an interview with The Brandeis Hoot. The fitness room is currently closed due to renovations, according to a sign placed on the entrance door.  According to Kim, the ellipticals, bikes and stair machine currently present […]

Winter 2022-23 Academic All-UAA team includes 57 Brandeis student-athletes

The University Athletic Association (UAA) recently announced the Winter 2022-23 UAA All-Academic Honorees. Established in 1998, the “honor is intended to recognize the high level of academic achievement demonstrated by student-athletes who effectively balance their significant commitment of time, effort, and energy in athletic endeavor with their highly challenging academic responsibilities,” according to the UAA […]

Time and the taking of it

Once upon a time, in a parking lot outside of a Wegman’s, I was scared. This was a few short weeks before I would leave before my first semester at college, and I was scared. I’d known for a while that I wanted to go to college: I was ready for a new social scene, […]

Don’t drink the water if you can’t see through it (part two)

In a past article, I expressed concerns about per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), being found in rainwater. These chemicals, which are generally used in coatings and products that resist heat, oil, stains, grease, and water, are known as “forever chemicals.” Terrifyingly, this means that these highly toxic fluorinated chemicals don’t break down naturally. They’ve been […]

Disability rights activist Judy Heumann’s legacy

Earlier this month, famed disability activist Judy Heumann passed away. She was “regarded as ‘the mother’ of the disability rights movement,” according to her website, and played an instrumental role in the movement to reimagine “what it means to be disabled,” according to NPR. After contracting polio at 18 months of age, Heumann used a […]

Brandeis professor cited in article about reproductive health care for women with disabilities

Monika Mitra (HS), the Nancy Lurie Marks Associate Professor of Disability Policy and Director of the Lurie Institute for Disability Policy at the Heller School, recently spoke about reproductive healthcare for women with disabilities. In a recent Youth Today article, Mitra spoke on the barriers and difficulties women with disabilities face in accessing reproductive healthcare.  […]

Setting the record straight on cookies

Many of The Hoot’s editors have taken on the topic of Oreos in our newspaper’s opinions section. But they’re all wrong. As opinions editor, I am the only one allowed to have correct opinions and everybody else is so despicably wrong that they should be completely barred from writing for The Hoot ever again. To […]

Student Union responds to recent protests in Instagram post

In the wake of recent protests surrounding the Palestine-Israel conflict, the Student Union released an Instagram post “in light of recent events.” The Student Union added that they “appreciate and hear all student feedback, and as such, felt it necessary to make the following statement.” First, the post says that, “in light of recent events, […]

Petition to refurbish weight room garners hundreds of signatures

A petition to tell Brandeis’ administration that Brandeisians want a “new and refurbished Weight Room at Gosman” has circulated throughout the Brandeis community recently. This petition is the work of the “Weight Room Renovation Project,” which consists of Aaryuj Trehan ’24, Andrew Parisi ’24, Cyriac Joyce ’24, Darren Nguyen ’24, Isabella Doulas ’24, Jacob Mikelberg […]