“As a freshman and sophomore, I remember going and seeing the shows and thinking of these people that were pretty much just my peers as sort of celebrities,” Slayden said. “Then once I noticed that I had a decent body of work that I could show off and was proud of, I just kind of decided that I would love to do a show and sort of start getting my name out there more.”

It was this feeling that led to the creation of the “IN THE EYE OF” exhibit, which features Slayden’s art as well as the work of Ethan Justice, Lance Burdette and Kyra Embra. The walls and three podiums in the gallery are filled with Slayden’s art. Comments left on notecards by both the artists and observers also line the gallery’s walls.

The exhibit boasts a variety of types of art including a charcoal piece of a cow skull, several collages, a human figure made of tape, a head sculpt, a welded sculpture, pottery and more. 

“All the pieces vaguely revolve around identity and how your physical body and self interacts with the conceptual self that you have in your mind,” Slayden said. “ All of the people in the show have an understanding and appreciation for work that isn’t solely graceful traditional art.”

“IN THE EYE OF,” the name of the exhibit, comes from the phrase, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” Slayden said.

“I just kind of cut out the parts that made it a phrase that made sense. It was interesting because not all the work is necessarily beautiful in a traditional sense,” Slayden said. “Also I draw eyes a lot, so there’s a lot of eyes in the work. It was a play on that too.”

Burdette’s piece “Abstract” features a textured and impressionistic man holding his chest that appears to be bleeding. The note next to it reads the lyrics of “Abstract (Psychopomp)” by Hozier.

“The texture is divine I can feel the heart bleeding,” reads a comment left next to the painting.

The interactive element is one many people have chosen to participate in. The notecards are scattered across the walls filled with thoughts of observers. “The Divine Transsexual” by Embry has two notes left floating adjacent to the pieces. “Beautiful,” reads one note. “Love this,” reads another.

“Mimesis” is the exhibition’s largest piece, hanging in the center of the largest wall of the gallery. It is a collage made by Slayden about the “creation and deconstruction of oneself.” Of Slayden’s work in the gallery, “Mimesis” is the most meaningful to him.

“I started with an oil painting, a self-portrait,” Slayden said. “Then immediately, once it was done, I cut it into pieces. Then I put it on a new thing and took more of my old artwork combined with different magazines and comic books and destroyed them and put them into different pieces. And then, once again, put them back together to create a new piece and then added more back on top of that.”

Slayden said he hoped those who visit the gallery interact with the work he and the other artists created. 

“I just want people to interact with art,” Slayden said. “I like to think, hopefully, people come away thinking. Just thinking about whatever. Thinking about themselves, about other people, or just thinking about coming back to more shows.” 

“IN THE EYE OF” is on display in the Cube Gallery, found at FAC 436, for the remainder of the week from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

News Reporter Malone Farmer can be reached at james.farmer674@topper.wku.edu.

With Halloween just around the corner, many people will be looking for some new horror films to keep them from sleeping too easily or some spooky classics to revisit. 

Here are some modern and classic horror movies to enjoy as the 31st approaches move towards the 31st.

“Freaky” (2020)

Millie Kessler is a high school outcast who swaps bodies with serial killer the Blissfield Butcher, forcing her and her friends to stop the possessed Millie. “Freaky” takes key influence from both “Freaky Friday” and “Friday the 13th,” so much so that the original title of the movie was “Freaky Friday the 13th.”  

Director Christopher Landon brings both concepts together in a slasher comedy that has the staying power of a modern classic. Landon brought much of his style from his “Happy Death Day” duology, and that style earned the movie positive reception from both critics and audiences.

“Freaky” can be watched on Peacock for free or rented on most digital movie retailers. 

“The Evil Dead” (1981)

“The Evil Dead” was the first movie by acclaimed director Sam Raimi who would go on to direct the original “Spider-Man” trilogy and “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.” 

The movie features Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell) and his friends who go to a cabin in the woods where they find a mysterious book in the basement. 

Despite being a micro-budget indie horror film by a first-time director, “The Evil Dead” found large success upon its release. Through this movie, Raimi inspired generations of horror fans and filmmakers with his unique and unpolished style. The legacy of Raimi’s first feature has extended to this day with plans for a sixth movie announced earlier this year.

“The Evil Dead” can be watched on AMC+ with a subscription or rented from most digital movie retailers. 

“The Strangers” (2008)

“The Strangers” is a psychological horror film starring Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman. Harkening back to home invasion classics from the 1970s, “The Strangers” finds a couple in the midst of a fight for the future of their relationship that turns into a fight for their lives. 

The movie has spawned a sequel and reboot that is fresh out of the theaters. It is an eerie and frightening sendup to a beloved era of horror films.

“The Strangers” can be watched on Max with a subscription or rented from most digital movie retailers.

“Cabin in the Woods” (2011)

Written and directed by Drew Goddard, “Cabin in the Woods” is a loving homage to horror classics like “The Evil Dead,” “The Thing,” “Night of the Living Dead” and many others. 

The movie follows a group of college students going to a cabin in the woods, leading to one of the most inventive horror comedies ever made. The movie stars a young Chris Hemsworth and was written by “Avengers” director Joss Whedon and is a terrific collage of humor and horror that sends up the genre’s long and storied history. 

“Cabin in the Woods” can be watched on Peacock with a subscription or rented from most digital movie retailers.

“The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” (1974)

“The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” is the feature-length debut of Poltergeist director Tobe Hooper and inspired countless horror films. 

Hooper’s horror classic follows a group of teenagers in 1970s Texas who find themselves in the hunting ground of a family of cannibals. 

Despite its name, TCM is not a gore-fest. Instead, the movie is more of an art-house psychological horror that focuses on the human fears of the protagonist.

“The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” can be watched with a Prime Video subscription, on Tubi for free, or rented from most digital movie retailers.

“Barbarian” (2022)

“Barbarian” was released in 2022 to both critical and commercial success and focuses on Tess arriving at her Airbnb to find a stranger named Keith. To avoid spoilers, I won’t talk much more about “Barbarian’s” plot because the movie is best watched without knowing much. 

Helmed by comedian Zach Cregger, the movie fuses the styles of David Fincher and Sam Raimi to create a truly unique film. 

You can watch “Barbarian” with a Prime Video subscription or it can be rented from most digital movie retailers.

“Scream” (1996)

“Scream” is a tried and true classic that I recommend to everyone. The whole movie is a send-up to the horror genre, specifically the golden age of 80s slashers. 

“Scream” follows Woodsboro teen Sydney as she and her friends are tormented by a serial killer wearing a ghostly mask. “Scream” is filled to the brim with good scares, creative kills, funny jokes that don’t feel out of place, a terrific cast and terrific direction from Wes Craven.

If you haven’t watched it, you absolutely should. If you have, you should watch it again. “Scream” deserves all the hype it’s been given as one of the best horror films of all time.

“Scream” can be watched on Max with a subscription or rented from most digital movie retailers.

“Hush” (2016)

Mike Flanagan, director of “Doctor Sleep” and “Haunting of Hill House,” brings his A game with this movie. 

“Hush” follows deaf writer Maddie as she faces off against a sadistic serial killer who tries to get into her house. Flanagan succeeds on every front with “Hush.”  He brings suspense, likable characters, visually engaging chase scenes and well-earned scares. 

There isn’t much else to say about “Hush” besides how highly I recommend it.

“Hush” can be rented from most digital movie retailers.

“Nope” (2022)

Most people know who Jordan Peele is, whether it be from his successful comedy career or his Oscar-winning directorial debut, “Get Out.” While “Get Out” is an amazing movie, I would argue that “Nope” is even better. 

“Nope” is a fusion of blockbuster and horror that results in a movie that goes between impressive and beautifully shot setpieces and genuinely eerie horror. 

The movie follows OJ and his sister Emerald who try to take a picture of the alien living above their farm. It boasts amazing performances from Steven Yuen, Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer. This is a movie that truly anyone can enjoy, so you shouldn’t stop yourself from doing so.

“Nope” can be watched on Starz with a subscription or rented from most digital movie retailers. 

“Halloween” (1978)

Directed by WKU alumn John Carpenter, this classic film ignited the popularity of slashers. 

Though it is not the first slasher, that honor arguably goes to “Black Christmas,” “Halloween” brought the subgenre to prominence and critical success. 

Laurie Strode is the victim of escaped serial killer, Michael Meyers, on Halloween night of 1978. 

This movie is a classic for a reason, and it would be borderline sacrilegious to not include it on this list. So my recommendation is to enjoy October 31st watching John Carpenter’s “Halloween.”

“Halloween” can be found on AMC+ and Philo with a subscription, on Crackle and Plex for free or rented from most digital movie retailers. 

News Reporter Malone Farmer can be reached at james.farmer674@topper.wku.edu. 

According to the Kentucky Folklore Program website, “Día de los Muertos or Day of the Dead is a Mexican/Mexican-American traditional holiday celebrated on the night of October 31st, and continuing through November 1st and November 2nd in which families remember their loved ones who have passed on with an altar, food, music, and togetherness.”

An ofrenda is a homemade offering or altar used to celebrate loved ones who have passed away. The folklore program’s website says, “The legend is that our loved ones who have passed return to these Ofrendas to celebrate life with the living.”

The Folklore program invites people to donate items for the ofrenda’s altar. These things, like pictures, sentimental items, fake foods and fake flowers, will be placed on the altar to display. A full list of items and how to donate them can be found on the program’s website.

The ofrenda was organized by folklore specialist Camille Acosta. Hailing from El Paso, Texas, Acosta is a WKU alumna with a master’s degree in folk studies.

She organized the ofrenda for the first time last year in the Pioneer Log Cabin. It was created out of Acosta feeling homesick.

“I was just missing home,” Acosta said.“I think you get these little moments of, ‘Man, I miss this. I miss the food, I miss the smells, I miss people.’ And I’ve always loved this tradition so deeply and there’s always been some semblance of an altar. Like in my home, or my grandparents’ home and things like that.”

Acosta’s father is an immigrant from Parral, Chihuahua, Mexico, who moved to El Paso, Texas. Her father ignited her love of folklore by raising Acosta and her brother with a connection to their Mexican heritage.

“My dad has always loved a scary story. My dad loves horror. He loves monsters. When me and my brother were younger he always used to tell us really terrifying stories. Just right before bed, here’s this terrifying story,” Acosta said to the Herald. “As I grew up, I started to realize I really love different cultures’ versions of horror and the way folklore transcends borders,”

One of Acosta’s aims with the ofrenda is to bring people together despite cultural differences.

“There is that semblance of togetherness that transcends borders and hatred, or what have you. And I think that’s exactly what these cultural traditions do, right? This ofrenda specifically does. It invites people to talk about, you know, who is this picture of your grandpa?” Acosta said. “That’s what this specific ofrenda does for the college population. For Kentucky, the commonwealth, in general: just start a conversation.”

The community ofrenda will be open Wednesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Kentucky Museum until Saturday, November 2.

News Reporter Malone Farmer can be reached at james.farmer674@topper.wku.edu. 

The forum began with a panel of invited speakers that included Kelley Paul, wife of U.S. Senator Rand Paul, and Jenean Hampton, Kentucky lieutenant governor from 2015 to 2019.

Warren County Conservatives, a local political organization, gathered a group of speakers calling local voters to vote “yes” on Amendment 2 in the upcoming election. The amendment, which will be on the ballot in November,  would allow the General Assembly to “provide financial support for the education of students outside the system of common schools.” 

Paul spoke about her perceived failings in the public school system, and how she believes Amendment 2 is the path forward.

“We keep doing the same thing for decades, and it’s not working,” Paul said. “We constantly hear we just need more funding. Well, every year we spend more money to increase our public school budgets, and yet scores continue to decline.” 

Paul also defended the constitutional change against claims that it will take funding from public schools. 

“Amendment 2 will simply allow our elected representatives who are accountable to you, the voter, to consider new options for students and families who are stuck in failing or violent public schools,” she said.

Paul was followed by Jenean Hampton who served as lieutenant governor under former Governor Matt Bevin. A Detroit native, Hampton spoke of her experience in the city’s magnet school program and how it helped her in the long term.

“I was a voracious reader in elementary school, the worst punishment my mom could do for me was take my books away,” Hampton said. “And when I learned that it was once illegal for people with my skin color to read and write, nothing was going to keep me from school.” 

Hampton argued for the amendment, saying that it would improve the quality of education for Kentucky children.

“Let’s vote yes on Amendment 2,” Hampton said. “Let’s vote yes because Kentucky’s teachers deserve better. Kentucky’s parents deserve better, and Kentucky’s kids deserve better.”

Paul and Hamton were also joined on the panel by two concerned parents, Walter Blanks Jr. and Ashley Cornwell.

Blanks emphasized that the amendment would make private school education more accessible to families like his own who could not otherwise afford it.

“This is life or death for students that look like me, students that don’t look like me, but primarily for families that don’t have the means,” Walters said. “Those families’ education is the only way out, just like it was for me and my family.”

Cornwell reflected Blanks’s sentiments, saying that public school education is becoming rife with “political content.” She expressed her feelings that “sexually oppressive or politically biased content” were harming her children in their public school education.

It was for these reasons that Cornwell decided to take her children out of public school.

“I chose to homeschool, like so many other Kentucky families, because I cannot afford private tuition,” she said. “I gave up my career, my income, my health insurance and a savings account to ensure that the best situation was provided for my child.”

During the question and answer session that followed the panel’s prepared remarks, opponents of the bill were given an opportunity to voice their concerns.

Former WKU Vice President for Student Affairs Howard Bailey accused the amendment of being a return to segregation-era policies. 

“[White segregationists] started their own community church schools, so that the white kids did not have to go to school with black and brown kids,” Bailey said to the panel. “This looks like a rerun of what was done in 1954.” 

“I think this will have terrible effects on minority students,” Bailey told the Herald.

Retired Warren County teacher Claudia Hanes also raised concerns about the amendment’s consequences adversely affecting troubled students. “So are you telling me that charter schools don’t have to take kids who are bullies or are aggressive?” she asked the panel.

“I’ve worked with kids who were troubled. I’ve worked with kids who were bullies. I’ve worked with kids who are disabled,” Hanes said. That’s what public education is meant to do, accept everybody and educate everybody.”

“But to me, it feels like we’re trying to divide ourselves, and what we ought to be doing is rallying around public education,” Hanes continued. “The problem can be solved if we want to solve it.” 

Blanks expressed his hopes for Amendment 2 to the Herald. He talked about wanting it to be an incentive to create discussions. 

“If you’re going to do it right, bring everyone to the table,” Blanks said.

News Reporter Malone Farmer can be reached at james.farmer674@topper.wku.edu. 

The Office of Sustainability leads projects on campus to improve the school’s effect on the environment. Its website states, “As an office, we feel a moral obligation to our students, our local and global communities, and the planet to do our part in mitigating environmental problems through sustainability initiatives and by training our students to prepare for crucial emerging issues.” 

The office’s recent efforts have been led by Leslie North, who became the second director of the Office of Sustainability in 2018, and has since made several strides toward making WKU a more sustainable campus. North’s efforts have been fruitful, from earning the Hill three Green Dining certificates to qualifying the campus for international sustainability recognition for three years in a row. 

North also created the farm-to-campus program which partnered the WKU Agriculture Department with Aramark. This partnership allows student-cultivated produce, dairy and meat to be used at Fresh Food Company. According to North, the produce used is fresher and the school’s carbon footprint was greatly decreased by using locally sourced food.

“So the whole point in that from a sustainability perspective is that locally sourcing food is much better for the environment. You usually have much better products because they’re not artificially ripened after they were transported hundreds or thousands of miles. So from an environmental perspective, it was important for us to be able to establish that to be able to source at least a portion of food locally.” North said to the Herald.

The WKU Food Pantry, initially created by students of Potter College of Arts and Letters (PCAL) before being absorbed into the Office of Sustainability, provides food, toiletries and menstrual care products to anyone in the WKU community.

The pantry receives some funding from the university, but the bulk of its inventory comes from donations, North said. Anything donated to the pantry helps, she said, but pasta noodles and sauce, canned fruits and vegetables, menstrual products, cereal, canned chicken and tuna, toiletries and granola bars are the most necessary donation items. 

North encouraged anyone in need of the food pantry’s services to go get what they need. 

“We’re just another office on campus, here to help our students and staff be as successful as they can possibly be,” North said.

Additionally, the Office of Sustainability offers several student volunteering opportunities. Positions range from food pantry shelf stockers to office assistants, collecting extra food from campus restaurants, helping with the office’s Earth Day celebration and more. A full list of volunteering opportunities can be found on the office’s website.

Anyone interested in volunteering at the Office of Sustainability can email North at leslie.north@wku.edu.

News Reporter Malone Farmer can be reached at james.farmer674@topper.wku.edu. 

Hudes is the Pulitzer and Tony-winning writer of “In the Heights” and “Water by the Spoonful” and creator of “Emancipated Stories.” She was raised in a tight-knit Puerto Rican family that had a heavy emphasis on heritage.

“Puerto Rico never leaves us, that granular irritant scrapes at our insides so far from its original shore,” Hudes said in her speech. “That sand knocks around until we’re a homesick family with guts full of pearls.”

Family and heritage are something that Hudes emphasized during her speech. She spoke of her Tio [Uncle] George and his service in the Marines, her stepfather walking to school everyday barefoot, her mother giving her baths for her depression and, most importantly she said, her Titi [Aunt] Jenny washing the rice before cooking it.

“This way our dinner always began with a baptism,” Hudes said about the washing of the rice. “By this method, as if finger-raking a Japanese rock garden, Titi Jenny touches every grain before it hits the oil that has been heating on the stove. That is how our pot gets filled. One grain at a time.”

Hudes also spoke about her cousin, Sean Ortiz. When Ortiz was previously incarcerated, Hudes said she and her cousins formed “Emancipated Stories,” a “writing project bridging two populations: those inside the justice system and those outside it,” according to Hudes’ website. 

When speaking on the future of “Emancipated Stories” and other advocacy projects to the Herald, Hudes said, “I think it would be beautiful for it to end up as a collection one day, like a published book. It’s a little hard to get the permissions from all the authors who are like scattered like seeds on the wind across the nation.”

The “My Broken Language” author also talked about her connection to art and how it tied into her cultural background and heritage during the speech. Her writing has always harkened back to her elders, she said. She based “Elliot, A Soldier’s Figure” on her tio’s experience in the Marines, and so much of the culture of “In the Heights” originated from her experiences with her Puerto Rican family.

“As I mentioned, there’s a lot of fighters in my family,” Hudes told the Herald about her approach to living and working as a writer in the current political climate. “I have a softer approach a little bit. I did learn that. I think it comes naturally from my abuela, like she was a soft-spoken lady, and so her acts of radical questioning of the status quo came in very gentle and discreet and sneaky ways.” 

Hudes also spoke personally about her thoughts on legacy and what it means to her. 

“What communities have the most perspectives representing them? Same with income brackets, same with gender,” Hudes said.“You know, I think about these things a lot, and so when I think about legacy, the real goal that my heart pushes towards is just a sense of taking up more space on the library shelves.” 

Hudes emphasized the importance of her legacy to those who come from similar backgrounds and whose people have similar histories.

“The truth is, I’ve never held Broadway in any particular esteem,” Hudes said. “Its nickname is the great white way after all, and I descend from a colonized people. So what, then, was the dream?” 

Hudes did not ask the audience that question, instead asking it of herself. In answering this questions, she talked of dreams that came and went over time and of the many things she hoped for over the years but said there was only one dream that stuck.

“The dream that outlives them all, the dream that fits in my pocket and stays there for years, through loads of laundry, is that grain of rice, like a breadcrumb I follow every day, on a trail leading I don’t know where,” Hudes said.

News Reporter Malone Farmer can be reached at james.farmer674@topper.wku.edu. 

The Talisman was first released in 1924 as a yearbook. Overtime, the Talisman evolved from its original yearbook format to WKU’s life and culture magazine, publishing once per semester, as well as publishing content daily on its website and releasing a weekly digital newsletter. Now the Talisman is a magazine with both a physical and digital presence. 

Despite this format change, the goal of the Talisman has always been the same – to document life on the Hill. Robert “Bob” Adams, who served as adviser for the College Heights Herald from 1968 until 1990, when he took on the role of director of WKU Student Publications, spoke of how impressive this evolution has been and his pride in the Talisman’s growth.

“You never really leave,” said Adams in reference to the Talisman’s impact on his life. This is a sentiment shared among the former staff who were there to celebrate.

Adams spoke on the evolution of the Talisman going all the way back to his time as a student at WKU. According to Adams, when he began his time on the Hill, the Talisman it was not much more than a yearbook hosted in the agriculture department. He spoke of figures instrumental in the growth of the Student Publications like Jody Richards and the current heads of Student Publications, Chuck Clark and Sam Oldenburg. Adams also expressed that he was looking forward to seeing the magazine’s continued work.

The Talisman’s co-executive editors, Cecilia Alali and Ragan Harrington, spoke on the fond memories made during  their time with the publication. 

“It’s more than a magazine,” said Alali. Both Alali and Harrington emphasized their excitement about the future of the Talisman and the stories that it will continue to tell.

“I love this place, I really do,” Brett Phelps, senior and web visuals editor for the Talisman, said. Phelps talked highly of what his opportunity at the Talisman has given him and how highly he recommends it to others. 

“It’s gonna look overwhelming at first, it is,” Phelps said. Despite this, he encouraged current and future freshmen to jump in with both feet like he did. 

“I found my family here,” Phelps said.

News Reporter Malone Farmer can be reached at james.farmer674@topper.wku.edu.