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The independent student newspaper of Northeastern University

The Huntington News

The independent student newspaper of Northeastern University

The Huntington News

The independent student newspaper of Northeastern University

The Huntington News

Zoe MacDiarmid

Zoe MacDiarmid, Deputy Campus Editor

Zoe MacDiarmid is a second-year cell and molecular biology major and deputy campus editor of The News. She previously served as news staff for a year. You can follow her @zoe__macdiarmid on X.

All content by Zoe MacDiarmid
Protesters listen as Karl Klare talks into a microphone on Centennial Common. GENU-UAW held a rally Oct. 2 to voice their demands amid contract negotiations with the univerity.

‘GENU-UAW does not give up’: Grad workers rally amid negotiations for their first contract

Devyn Rudnick, Siera Qosaj, and Zoe MacDiarmid
October 8, 2024

Members of the Graduate Employees of Northeastern University rallied on Centennial Common Oct. 2 to mark the one-year anniversary of their union election and 10 months since contract negotiations began....

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Northeastern's Boston campus shown at various stages from 1952 to the present day. The university faced a budget gap of $17 million in 1991, causing them to formulate a strategy to bring in more money. Photos courtesy Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections. Bottom right photo by Jessica Xing.

Op-ed: Our rapidly-expanding university’s growing pains are just beginning

Zoe MacDiarmid, contributor
September 23, 2024

In a biological context, a metamorphosis refers to a dramatic change in a body form from an infantile stage to an organism’s adult stage. One may conjure an image of tadpoles growing into frogs, or eggs...

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A customer places an order at Da Vinci Gelato & Waffle. The  dessert shop opened Aug. 30 on Huntington Avenue.

From savory waffles to traditional sweets, Da Vinci Gelato & Waffle opens its doors on Huntington

Zoe MacDiarmid and Matias Gonzalez
September 16, 2024

Of the shops frequented by Northeastern students on Huntington Avenue, Da Vinci Gelato & Waffle’s aesthetic stands out. A dozen blue chandeliers hang from high-vaulted ceilings; blue crushed velvet...

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Members of the class of 2028 stand up at the end of convocation as confetti falls in Matthews Arena. Nearly 5,000 students attended the celebration in Boston.

‘Welcome to your next chapter’: Northeastern celebrates 126th incoming class at Matthews Arena convocation

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
September 4, 2024

Northeastern’s leaders and administrators welcomed nearly 5,000 students to Matthews Arena Sept. 3, celebrating the school’s 126th class. Beyond the Boston campus, convocation ceremonies were held...

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A sign in Curry Student Center advertises Northeastern's revamped dining plans. Northeastern announced the new meal plans will be effective starting this fall semester.

Northeastern unveils revamped dining plans, aiming to increase flexibility, value

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
August 12, 2024

After over 20 years of offering dining plans on a meals-per-week basis, Northeastern announced in June new dining plans that will offer a set number of meals per semester and mostly eliminate meal exchanges.  The...

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A Boston Police Department officer walks toward the scene of the bomb hoax in Holmes Hall Sept. 13, 2022. Jason Duhaime was convicted June 28 of staging the bomb hoax and lying to federal law enforcement. File photo by Avery Bleichfeld.

Former Northeastern lab manager convicted in 2022 bomb hoax on Boston campus

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
July 1, 2024

Jason Duhaime, the 46-year-old former new technology manager and director of the Immersive Media Lab at Northeastern University, was convicted June 28 of staging a bomb hoax on Northeastern’s Boston...

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A banner on the Marymount Manhattan College campus. Following the May 29 announcement that Northeastern will be acquiring Marymount Manhattan College, some students at the New York City college expressed concerns over MMC maintaining its identity through the acquisition.

Marymount students concerned about majors, maintaining school’s identity amid Northeastern acquisition

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
June 11, 2024

When news broke May 29 that Northeastern had acquired Marymount Manhattan College, or MMC, in New York City, current MMC fourth-year acting major Abby Mulligan said her dad, who had just read about the...

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Spectators clap as a pride flag is raised outside City Hall. The city of Boston held a pride flag raising ceremony June 3 to kick off the 2024 Pride Month.

Bostonians gather outside City Hall for pride flag raising ceremony

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
June 7, 2024

Elected officials, community leaders and Bostonians dressed in all colors of the rainbow gathered outside City Hall Monday to attend the pride flag raising ceremony, kicking off the city’s celebration...

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Mayté Castillo holds up a journal that she created with a butterfly design at the Seaport x Black Owned Bos. Market May 19. Read more here.

[Photo] Photos of the month: May

Photo Staff
May 31, 2024

Mayté Castillo holds up a journal that she created with a butterfly design at the Seaport x Black Owned Bos. Market May 19. Read more here.

Dominique Dixon poses for a photo with her handmade polymer clay earrings. Dixon founded Mahogani Shop in 2017 using her design background and inspiration from African culture. “I started [Mahogani] in a place where I was trying to rediscover myself as an artist, as a Black woman," Dixon said. "So a lot of my influence comes from my culture, architecture, art.”

‘Rhythm and Blooms’: Seaport x Black Owned Bos. Market highlights local Black businesses

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
May 29, 2024

As shoppers perused pop-ups at the Seaport x Black Owned Bos. Market, passersby could see Tony Johnson and Greg Bailey laughing and effortlessly engaging customers in conversation. Friends since childhood...

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A sign that reads, "Snell Library Entrance" points students to the side entrance of Snell Library during the temporary closing of the front entrance. It was announced to Boston campus students through an email May 17 that Snell's front entrance will reopen May 20, after which the side entrance will close until library renovations are complete in the fall. File photo by Quillan Anderson.

Newly renovated front entrance of Snell Library to open Monday, university says

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
May 18, 2024

The front entrance of Snell Library, which has been closed since July 2023, will reopen to students Monday, May 20 at 8 a.m., Dean of the Library Dan Cohen announced in an email to the Boston campus community...

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A graduate holds up a Palestinian flag during the undergraduate commencement ceremony May 5. Many students took the opportunity to voice their solidarity with Palestine during the commencement.

‘To celebrate our graduation was not morally sound for us’: Pro-Palestine demonstrations mark 2024 commencement, graduations

Zoe MacDiarmid and Val O’Neill
May 13, 2024

As the Class of 2024 graduates flipped their tassels and walked the stage over the last several weeks, some students used graduation and commencement ceremonies as an opportunity to express their frustration...

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Students walk in what is now Krentzman Quad in 1965 with signs protesting the Vietnam War. By 1968, the nationwide Vietnam War resistance movement had reached Northeastern. Photo courtesy Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections.

‘It was a thrilling time to be a college student’: Amid pro-Palestine protests, alumni reflect on activism during Vietnam War

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
May 8, 2024

On April 25, Northeastern students joined a global movement unfolding on college campuses. Through protest, students sought to replicate the disruption to the lives of Palestinians in Gaza as Israel continues...

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The class of 2024 watch as fireworks explode over Fenway Park during the undergraduate commencement ceremony May 5. Many members of the graduating class started college during the COVID-19 lockdown, a theme mentioned in many speakers' speeches.

‘You will shape the 21st century’: Class of 2024 celebrates commencement at Fenway Park

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
May 6, 2024

On an overcast Sunday afternoon, 4,000 members of the class of 2024 gathered as family and friends filled the Fenway Park stands to celebrate Northeastern’s spring undergraduate commencement.  Graduates...

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A "No Trespassing" sign hangs from a a barricade that blocked off Centennial Common following the clearing of the pro-Palestine encampment April 27. JAG expressed gratefulness to university leadership and the NUPD for ending the encampment in a statement emailed to the News.

Jewish Affinity Group commends Northeastern administration for clearing pro-Palestinian encampment

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
April 30, 2024

In a statement emailed to The News April 30, Northeastern’s Jewish Affinity Group for Faculty and Staff, or JAG, said it is “grateful to the Northeastern University leadership and Police Department...

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Members of the SARC e-board pose for a photo. SARC hosted their first Take Back the Night event April 17.

‘Power in numbers’: Dozens show out to combat sexual violence at Northeastern’s Take Back the Night

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
April 20, 2024

At Northeastern’s “Take Back the Night” event April 17, survivors, allies and sexual assault prevention advocates gathered on Centennial Common to show support for one another as part of a worldwide...

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The exterior of LightView. LightView management sent an email to residents April 11 reminding them that throwing food products such as eggs and other forms of vandalism are a violation of students' lease agreements.

LightView cracks down on residents throwing food in halls, destruction of property

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
April 18, 2024

Residents of LightView received an email from building management April 11 alerting them of “six instances of an individual maliciously throwing eggs and other food products down one of the stairwells.” LightView...

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Maggie Heaney holds a radio as runners in the Boston Marathon pass by. The radio allowed Heaney to communicate across 23 channels with repeaters all over Boston.

Going the extra mile: the radio operators who connect all 26.2 miles of the Boston Marathon

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
April 15, 2024

Early in the morning April 15, thousands of volunteers and athletes began to check-in and start the race that constitutes one of the biggest days in sports: the Boston Marathon. Among them were a cadre...

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VIDEO: Tastemakers president voices club complications due to Curry office closures

VIDEO: Tastemakers president voices club complications due to Curry office closures

Meghan Hirsch and Zoe MacDiarmid
March 13, 2024

  Tastemakers Magazine is one of six Northeastern clubs being displaced from offices on the second floor of Curry Student Center due to renovations. Trevor Gardemal, president of Tastemakers,...

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Students write letters addressed to President Aoun urging the university to divest from companies that produce military weapons. The university indicated it rejected students' demands to cut ties with military-industrial companies Feb. 14.

‘There’s nothing apolitical about $1.5 billion’: Sunrise Northeastern protests university’s investments in recent campaign

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
March 1, 2024

Environmental activism group Sunrise Northeastern gathered Feb. 20 to write Valentine’s Day-themed letters opposing the university’s investments in military-industrial companies.   The event,...

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VIDEO: A day in the life of 3 Northeastern campuses

VIDEO: A day in the life of 3 Northeastern campuses

Zoe MacDiarmid and Annika Sunkara
February 28, 2024

  Across the Boston, Oakland and London campuses, the day-to-day life of a Northeastern student can look vastly different. In this video, Boston first-year Sandeep Sood, Oakland first-year...

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The entrance to the student media suites in Curry Student Center. Tastemakers, Council for University Programs, N.U. Science, N.U. T.V., Live Music Association and Spectrum Literary Arts Magazine received an email from the Center for Student Involvement Jan. 22 that they would need to vacate their spaces by the end of the semester.

University to displace six clubs from offices in Curry ahead of summer renovations

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
February 26, 2024

Six clubs with offices on the second floor of Curry Student Center will be forced to find new spaces by the end of the semester after a university announcement outlined plans to renovate the floor to create...

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WRBB News Episode 5: AI in Academics and Students Serving Jury Duty

WRBB News Episode 5: AI in Academics and Students Serving Jury Duty

In the fifth episode of WRBB News, co-hosts Bela Omoeva and Grace Sawin speak with The News about two recent stories. Staff writer Zoe MacDiarmid dissects the ambiguity of Northeastern's policies on students'...

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WRBB News Episode 4: Janitor Union Contract and a Former Track Coach’s Nude Photo Scheme Plea

WRBB News Episode 4: Janitor Union Contract and a Former Track Coach’s Nude Photo Scheme Plea

In the fourth episode of WRBB News, co-hosts Bela Omoeva and Liza Rosen speak with The News about two recent stories. Staff writer Zoe MacDiarmid maps out how a union representing 330 Northeastern janitors...

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Created or generated? The debate over AI comes to Northeastern classrooms

Created or generated? The debate over AI comes to Northeastern classrooms

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
January 25, 2024

Game design professor Chris Barney was used to scrutinizing his students’ assignment submissions. He used Canvas’ built-in plagiarism checker and occasionally checked manually for telltale signs of...

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Northeastern students gather in solidarity with Israel on Cabot Quad Oct. 10. On Oct. 7, Hamas launched an assault on Israel, with thousands of rockets raining down on southern and central Israel.

[Photo] Op-ed: What Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre meant to Israel and the Jewish community

Liat Weiss, contributor
January 18, 2024

An empty Shabbat table sits in Cabot Quad Oct. 27. The table featured balloons and kidnapped posters honoring the 229 hostages taken by Hamas.

Students gather in Cabot Quad Oct. 10 in solidarity with Israel days after Hamas' attack. Authors of an open letter shared with The News Nov. 30 said phrases used at an Oct. 20 pro-Palestinian protest were supportive of violence against Israel's Jewish population.

[Photo] More than 130 faculty, staff sign open letter condemning alleged antisemitism at pro-Palestinian group’s demonstrations

Sonel Cutler, deputy campus editor
December 23, 2023

Students gather in Cabot Quad Oct. 10 in solidarity with Israel days after Hamas' attack. Authors of an open letter shared with The News Nov. 30 said phrases used at an Oct. 20 pro-Palestinian protest...

VIDEO: St. Francis House art room offers unique outlet for expression

VIDEO: St. Francis House art room offers unique outlet for expression

Chris Tung and Zoe MacDiarmid
December 7, 2023

St. Francis House, the largest daytime homeless shelter in Massachusetts, offers several resources supporting guests’ health and safety. Among them is their art therapy room, led by art specialist...

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Gurleen Anand poses with one of her art projects. Anand has overseen the St. Francis House art therapy room for three years, giving guests project ideas and assistance.

St. Francis House serves more guests amid record-high homelessness, food insecurity

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
December 6, 2023

For this year’s Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, Nov. 11 to 18, local homeless shelter St. Francis House surpassed its $10,000 goal during its new “Sheltering Hope” campaign while continuing...

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Graduate student worker Niki Thomas leads a voting party on the day of the union election in late September. Thomas is one of the members of GENU-UAW's recently-announced bargaining committee.

Northeastern graduate student union announces first bargaining committee

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
December 1, 2023

On Nov. 14, the Graduate Employees of Northeastern University, or GENU-UAW, announced the members of its first bargaining committee, the union’s first major step towards bargaining with the university...

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Students in Monrovia, Liberia hold up period products. Love Your Menses collaborated with Mavee Maternal Empowerment Initiative to provide communities with menstrual products. Photo courtesy Ebere Azumah.

‘Flowing through life unapologetically’: Boston-born group Love Your Menses promotes global menstrual equity

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
November 19, 2023

Growing up in Plateau State, a small city in northern Nigeria, Dr. Ebere Azumah said no one told her what to expect when she got her first menstrual period. A self-directed learner, she took to reading...

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A crowd of union members and supporters gather in Post Office Square in downtown Boston following a tentative new contract agreement. The updated contract included the conversion of 500 part-time jobs to full-time positions. Photo courtesy 32BJ SEIU and Ann Hermes.

Union representing 330 Northeastern janitors tentatively agree to historic new contract, avoiding strike

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
November 17, 2023

At 4 a.m. Wednesday, a negotiation committee of janitors of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, or SEIU, which represents about 330 cleaners at Northeastern, unanimously approved a...

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Tomasa Rodríguez, a janitor at Northeastern since 2000, poses in front of the painting depicting union members with the words of the American Dream. "You can see here that we're asking for justice just like we're asking for now,"   Rodríguez said of the painting.

Union representing hundreds of Northeastern janitors pushes for better contract, nearing possible strike

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
November 12, 2023

Three days before the expiration date of a contract between the union representing 330 cleaners at Northeastern and the Maintenance Contractors of New England, or MCNE, the union wrapped up another week...

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Shriya Thangada and Matt Coughlin receive applause from members of SGA after Coughlin is elected EVP. Thangada served as interim EVP until Coughlin won a majority of votes Nov. 7.

After delays, SGA elects Matt Coughlin as executive vice president

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
November 8, 2023

On Monday night, the Student Government Association elected former Vice President for Operational Affairs Matt Coughlin, a third-year mechanical engineering major, to fill the role of executive vice...

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Op-ed: Deception, marketing and prestige: Why U.S. News’ rankings are losing influence 

Op-ed: Deception, marketing and prestige: Why U.S. News’ rankings are losing influence 

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
November 6, 2023

Every year, the college admissions cycle happens like clockwork. Students make one of the most important decisions of their lives so far: where to go for college. To guide them during a notoriously difficult...

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An empty Shabbat table sits in Cabot Quad honoring the 229 hostages taken by Hamas. Posters with names and faces of hostages along with balloons indicating birthdays spent in captivity were attached to chairs.

Jewish and student organizations assemble an empty Shabbat table memorial for 229 Hamas hostages

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
November 1, 2023

A stillness engulfed Cabot Quad, which was covered with an expanse of empty tables and chairs for two and a half hours Friday afternoon as passersby observed a Shabbat memorial organized for Hamas hostages....

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A member of the 32BJ union raises her hand in front of a screen showing Northeastern students' support for janitorial workers. Northeastern's facilities were cleaned by members of the 32BJ union. Photo courtesy Ann Hermes.

Union representing hundreds of janitors at Northeastern authorizes strike amid negotiations with maintenance contractors

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
October 31, 2023

About 330 janitorial workers who clean Northeastern facilities could go on strike in mid-November following a Saturday strike authorization vote by members of a union representing thousands of cleaners...

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An empty Shabbat table sits in Cabot Quad honoring the 229 hostages taken by Hamas. Posters with names and faces of hostages were attached to chairs.

[Photo] Developing: Northeastern community responds to Israel-Hamas War

Sonel Cutler, Eli Curwin, and Emily Spatz
April 18, 2024

An empty Shabbat table sits in Cabot Quad honoring the 229 hostages taken by Hamas. Posters with names and faces of hostages were attached to chairs.

Protestors holding signs in support of the DivestNU campaign cross Forsyth Street. DivestNU's demands included complete divestment from fossil fuels, no new investments and transparency throughout that process.

‘They have to stop making the poison’: DivestNU rallies against Northeastern’s investments in fossil fuels

Zoe MacDiarmid and Sonel Cutler
October 26, 2023

On the heels of Family & Friends weekend Sunday, Oct. 15, more than three dozen members and supporters of DivestNU gathered on Centennial Common to pressure Northeastern’s administration to divest...

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Community members fall silent as Hillel president Julia Gilinsky begins to address the group. Many students wore kippahs or the flag of Israel to show support.

Northeastern community responds after Hamas attacks in Israel

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
October 10, 2023

Hundreds of Northeastern community members gathered Tuesday night on Cabot Quad in solidarity with Israel. Since Hamas’ Saturday assault on Israel, over 1,200 people in Israel and 900 people in Gaza...

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Charlie Sheldon, a third-year environmental studies major, casts his vote during tribal before the second challenge of season 13. Players on the losing team for challenge one had to vote to eliminate a team member.

Could you survive tribal council? A glimpse into Survivor: Northeastern

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
October 4, 2023

Can you trust your friends? Do you really know your allies? Do you know how to survive? These are the questions that contestants have to answer for themselves in the game of “Survivor.” On a chilly...

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Students hold signs promoting the union vote. Graduate students were seeking increased wage and benefits in response to Boston's rising cost of living.

Northeastern graduate student workers overwhelmingly win union certification after 8-year delay

Zoe MacDiarmid and Joseph Brant
September 21, 2023

On Thursday, Sept. 21, graduate student workers at Northeastern officially became a certified union in a vote that has been awaited since 2015. After a surge of organizing in 2022 and 2023, Graduate...

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Messages appear on the ISEC bridge directing graduate workers towards the Robinson Quad, where voting occurs this week. The vote, years in the making, will determine whether graduate workers will be represented by a union.

Voting begins for graduate workers union; pro-union chalking on ISEC bridge erased

Zoe MacDiarmid, news staff
September 19, 2023

Polls opened Tuesday, Sept. 19 for the Graduate Employees of Northeastern University, or GENU-UAW, who are voting to be represented by the United Auto Workers union, or UAW, after years of delays in voting...

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