Annual Tree Lighting Festivities

Photo Source // Amy Reglin

By: Morgan Jacoubs, Staff Writer

On a night of merriment and cheer, the Regis community gathered around the tree sipping hot chocolate, taking pictures with Santa, and much more at this year’s annual tree lighting. 

Several families came on campus to join in on the festivities, which included taking train rides around the quad as well as decorating gingerbread men and writing letters to Santa in the Student Center. 

As part of RUSGA’s introduction to the tree lighting, they invited Regis President Father John Fitzgibbons to speak. 

“They say that Easter is the holiest day, but I say there ain’t no Easter without Christmas… We started with a very challenging semester, but I could not be more proud… With all my heart the best Christmas present I ever received is to be here with you,” said Fr. Fitzgibbons. 

After Fr. Fitzgibbons’ introduction, Regi Worles and Tricia Charfauros sung “How Great Thou Art” and another resident Jesuit Father Bill Oulvey lead a prayer.

“Bless all of us here, bless this tree as a reminder of the gift of your son to this world,” said Fr. Oulvey. 

Though a very festive night, some students wished for more as far as the music went. 

“I mean I thought it was cute, I just wish the concert choir would have sang at it. I feel like that would have been [really] cool, but Regi and [Tricia] were really good,” said first year student, Alaina Valdespino. 

Though there are some possible considerations for next year’s tree lighting, it was a good night had by all, and now the Regis campus is more festive with a big tree entwined in blue and yellow lights, with Main Hall also showing its festive side with a green and red illumination of its façade. 

Social Justice Week 2019 Built on History with Unity Project, Dear World

Photo Source // Amy Reglin

By: Morgan Jacobus, Staff Writer

This year’s social justice week is one of the most successful in recent memory due to the new unity project and increased attendance at events. Social justice week is an annual Regis tradition that began in the early 2000s, then hosted by the Social Justice and Spirituality Committee, which is now the Social Justice and Diversity Council. 

“What they did was around the deaths of American and non-American soldiers in a war in the Middle East, so they camped on the quad and that was… the first social justice week. That was how it started, and it was definitely more focused, I think, on our Jesuit spirituality,” said RUSGA Vice President of Social Justice and Diversity Regi Worles.

For this year’s Social Justice and Diversity week the programming committee was headed by Emma Menchaca-Chavez and Regi Worles, with Malia Olson as the project manager along with contributors Alex Rucker, Guillermo Barbella, and Eleanor Ruth.  

“They wanted to have events every day that basically involved everybody so anybody could interact – [the unity project] is like an interactive art exhibit and anybody on campus could get involved,” said Rucker. 

There’s around 15 people on the Social Justice and Diversity Council, and they’ve been working on Social Justice week since mid-October. 

“That has pretty much been the bulk of our work, getting permission to do things like stake 33 things in the ground. I wasn’t expecting [Mike Redman, campus management] to say yes too easily,” said Worles. 

Since it was Worles’ last social justice week, he did more research this year, which led to the involvement of Dear World as well as the unity project. 

“I did a lot of research on what other schools do… so Dear World and the unity project are things that are national, and different campuses and different community organizations use those tools to talk about justice, but I kind of wanted to put them in conversation with some of our home-grown programming in order to have a more full and rich discussion of identity. I wanted these things to be able to speak to one another,” said Worles. 

The main goal of this year’s social justice week was connection, with the theme being “The Strings That Connect Us.” 

“We just want people to realize that we are not that different, we are all humans, even though we have labels and identities we are not just one thing, we are many things,” said Rucker. 

It’s not just about coming together as a community, it’s also about gaining better understanding of your own identities. Social justice week also explored what unity, solidarity, and the fight for justice looks like when everyone has their own experiences and differences. 

“What I really wanted it to be was simultaneously around exploring your identity and who you are, the things that make you you, and then also… the things about yourself that start to layer up on each other that then forms deep communities of understanding,” said Worles. 

When it came to the unity project itself, it drew a considerable amount of attention from those around campus. By the center pole was a table with yarn and instructions, prompting people around campus to contribute to the project as they passed by. As more people contributed their string, the web grew and became more connected. After social justice week, the Regis University Instagram posted pictures of the unity project describing it as “a tapestry of stories.”

“[It] just makes you very cognizant of how connected we actually are. You interact with people every day that you don’t know things about. I think especially somewhere where it is easy to feel tied to one group or siloed in one group it’s nice to have a visual representation that this many people are experiencing what I’ve experienced,” said Assistant Director of Fitness and Wellness, Sarah Wilkinson, who participated in the unity project. 

The unity project contributed to the high attendance and participation in this year’s social justice week. Worles explained that they bought about 60-70 balls of yarn, and nearly all of them were used in the unity project. In addition to the unity project, another prominent feature of the week was the Dear World event that occurred, where 60 people came to the closed shoot, and there were about 260 photographs taken at the open shoot. Further, the Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday events all had around 50-75 people at them.

“This social justice week is the most attended social justice week… I know we were able to come in contact with more people than we have ever been able to come in contact with,” said Worles. 

Not only was this social justice week more innovative and widely participated in, it also demonstrated how much it has grown and how far it has come. 

“It felt really special in a way that it doesn’t necessarily flow every year. I have been a part of [it] since I was a first-year, and this was the year that I saw people that weren’t just my friends there… It was really affirming in so many different ways… At my heart, the reason I do the work is to do meaningful community building and it definitely feels like meaningful community building when different people from different backgrounds and with different beliefs are coming together to create something that I think so many people got to touch,” said Worles. 

When asked what his favorite part of the week was, he said all of it. This week was such a success in more ways than one. The campus was able to come together as a community, explore their individual and collective identities, have meaningful conversations, and the council was able to revel in what they had created as well as the relationships that were built.

The Peace Market

Photo Source // Amy Reglin

By: Rose Ferrie, Staff Reporter

For those of you who didn’t know, last week was social justice week, a time for education and fun events surrounding topics like sexuality, race, expression, intersectionality, and so much more. One of these lovely events was the peace market which was toward the end of the week. Though it was a chilly evening, people came out to listen to poetry and shop around at booths like Earth Links, Regis’ own crochet club, and more. Students were also invited to make their own essential oil blend and many people participated in the Unity Project, which was the beautiful yarn display up all week.

Hip Hop Event

Photo Source // Amy Reglin

By: Rose Ferrie, Staff Reporter

Last Wednesday, there was a little gathering in Regis 333 where people mingled, artists performed, and students got to learn a little something about Hip Hop. The performer Donny Blot (@donnyblot) had such a lovely presence and students appreciated him for sharing his talent. 

After that, students were invited to walk around the room where they could learn about generations of Hip Hop and the artists that made the genre what it is. Artists like Snoop Dogg, Tupak Shakur, Nipsey Hussle, Lauren Hill, Missy Elliot, TLC, Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Kanye West, Slim Shady, Kid Cudi, Mac Miller, Donal Glover, Kendrick Lamar, and more were included. 

Their lyrics and biographies were also exhibited, showing their lyrical gifts and enlightening people to their beautiful music.

2019 Trick or Treat Street Marks Another Annual Success

Photo Source // Amy Reglin

By: Morgan Jacobus, Staff Writer

On Oct. 31 from 3-5 Regis’s campus was filled with joyous trick or treaters and their families as various departments and students handed out candy. Trick or treaters could go all around campus, from inside Carrol Hall to the steps of the Dayton Memorial Library, to the Student Center, outside of West and O’Connell Hall, and everything in between. ­

On the steps of the library in between handing out candy, Kim O’Neill said, “Yes [I participate every year], its Halloween; it’s the best. All the fun of a holiday without having to buy presents or make dinner. It’s a good holiday. The kids have a lot of fun. They are all happy and making costumes is a fun thing.”

Only a short walk away from the library is the Student Center, where people could come for a meet-and-greet with Regi, trick or treat, eat some cotton candy, enter a costume contest and more! Families could also venture upstairs for more candy throughout the various offices, such as the Diversity Office.

In the Diversity Office were various Halloween decorations and lights, as well as videos of Hispanic Halloween songs and sweet or spicy candy for the trick or treaters.

Bemar Martinez said, “For us [Diversity Office] we like being a part of it, and getting to know people, seeing the costumes. It is such fun, it’s awesome.”

As students got out of class and walked around campus, they could feel a great sense of community.

“What good community outreach,” said Lexi Wrich as she observed the trick or treaters. “I think this was a really good idea to bring the community onto campus.”

Though most students weren’t seen wearing costumes during the Safe Trick or Treat Street, many appreciated Regis’ Halloween festivities.

“I think it is very adorable I love to see all the little kids’ costumes, it definitely brings life to the campus because no one on campus actually dressed up, me included until like 20 minutes ago,” said Shelby Plummer.

While many didn’t dress up, there were the few spirited students who wore their costumes around campus, like Paul Weisner.

“I love Halloween. [I didn’t see a lot of college students dress up], I was disappointed. I just walked to the café for lunch and there was like no one dressed up and everyone was looking at me weird and I was like ‘what?’” said Weisner.

Overall, it was a good time had by all. Regis students, faculty and staff enjoyed a feeling of community and Halloween spirit, and trick or treaters got a lot of candy. A young dragon commented towards the end of the event that, “It’s getting heavy,” referencing his full bag of candy.

KRCX Regis Radio: Regis’ Diamond in the Rough and Denver’s Oldest College Radio Station

Photo Source '// Amy Reglin, Lizzie Brown

By: Lizzie Brown, KRCX General Manager and Highlander Reporter

The power is still out around some parts of the Northwest Regis University campus, and this reality carries over to the KRCX Regis Radio Station located in the basement of Clarke Hall. Since we haven’t been able to broadcast and display our talented new hires and DJs yet this year, let’s talk about it station’s history.

KRCX, the oldest college radio station in Denver, was one of the only stations to pioneer an apartment shortwave broadcast that connected to all of the dorms on campus--pretty convenient. Today, the radio streams online 24/7 and features a vast library of contemporary music important to students and timeless classic we all love-- from Snail Mail to Frank Ocean and all the way back to B.B. King. The station has seen legendary visitors in its professional-grade studio such as Ron Beaty, The Revivalists, Suuns, Oberhofer, Admiral Fallow and Bon Jovi.

 But variety means more than music, and KRCX has stuck by that. In 2008 a group from the station went to the convention center to cover the Democratic Convention-- come see our pictures! We are a station that has evolved to the profound sound we are today. Serving to inform and entertain the Regis community, KRCX hosts live campus events and broadcasts music, talk, sports, and community announcements. We are excited for a new year and to carry on a proud tradition of dedication to our students and neighbors in the community. Look out for our Open Mics or stop by the basement of Clarke to get a volunteer DJ application, get away from campus and talk music, politics or whatever you are passionate about. Visit us at http://www.krcx.org/ and reach out!