As more students find themselves drawn to graphic design, junior digital media communications (DMC) major and non-profit minor Ryan West and DMC professor Julianne Donovan worked together to create a space to foster and share that creativity. The club was officially created in 2022, in which West acted as president and advertised the club for all to join.

“Design Hive is a branch of William Jewell [College]’s Art Club, where we help other organizations with their marketing – such as [with] posters, flyers, logo designs, t-shirts, stickers, you name it,” West said. “We are here to help others get creative while growing our passion for digital media as well.”

Prior to the club’s start, West admits that she had been thinking about creating such a club since she was in high school, but remained unable due to the stress of graduation. However, at Jewell, West was given the perfect components to finally make her vision of a graphic design community a reality.

“Since [my] freshman year of being at Jewell, I have been planning and recruiting other creative individuals to help me bring Design Hive to life,” West said. “It’s been a great journey, and I’m grateful to have so many helpful hands in this club.”

West created Design Hive with the ultimate goals of having fun and providing her peers with creative opportunities in a relaxed setting.

“Having a space where people can just be creative without the pressure of grades, deadlines and stress on their shoulders is the end goal,” West said. “We want to help our Jewell community out while having fun doing so.”

With Design Hive being newer on campus, West was still testing the waters throughout the first year of the club’s creation. Now, she is focusing on recruitment, expanding the club’s community, and collaborating with other campus organizations.

”We’re planning on working with the Art Club more this year, as well as other clubs to boost their marketing,” she said. “We also plan on having guest speakers who are in the marketing and digital media field to talk with us about the future, networking, etc.”

This year, Design Hive is out of its creation phase and is ready for student leadership to elect an official Executive Board. While West had to step down from the President position, she is encouraging students to pursue leadership and membership in the club to those who are interested. 

“A way to be involved is to come to our weekly meetings on Wednesdays at 4 p.m.” she said. “Our meetings are held in the DMC lounge in Brown Hall.”

Another way to keep in touch with Design Hive is to follow @jewell_designhive on Instagram and/or to fill out this Google Form to sign up for newsletter emails.

On April 7, 2023, Tupperware Brands released a statement regarding recent efforts for financial assistance, partners and investors.

Tupperware Brands Corporation wrote, “In addition, the Company is reviewing its real estate portfolio for property available for potential dispositions or sale-leaseback transactions, and is exploring right-sizing efforts, monetization of fixed assets, cash management, and marketing and channel optimization, to preserve or deliver additional liquidity.”

The following Monday, shares for the company dropped nearly 50%. Reportedly, the company is struggling to appeal and stay relevant to younger generations. Although there was a comeback in Tupperware during COVID-19 pandemic, sales fell again after quarantine from around $500 million to $300 million in the past 3 years. On top of this, Tupperware’s stock price dropped from $97 per share to $1.26 per share in just 10 years.

“Tupperware has embarked on a journey to turn around our operations and today marks a critical step in addressing our capital and liquidity position,” said Miguel Fernandez, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tupperware Brands.  “The Company is doing everything in its power to mitigate the impacts of recent events, and we are taking immediate action to seek additional financing and address our financial position.” 
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) sent a notice to Tupperware Brands for not filing its Form 10-Kannual business report. Tupperware Brands has been given six months to file the report to become compliant again.

The sculpture that first caught my interest was “Leaf Basket,” created by sophomore Addie Shields from Liberty High School. I was immediately attracted to the simplistic design. Although “Leaf Basket” was just made from clay, jute and stain, the unique textures and techniques from the artist give the illusion of real leaves and a real wooden basket.

On Monday morning at 9:54 a.m. on Mar. 27, 2023, The Covenant School, a Nashville Christian elementary school, was targeted by an active shooter. Three employees, Katherine Koonce (head of the school, aged 60), Mike Hill (custodian, aged 61), and Cynthia Peak (substitute teacher, aged 61), and three nine-year-old students, Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, were shot and killed before the shooter was stopped and killed by police.

Police released six minutes of police body camera footage and two minutes of security camera footage. The event spanned at most 15 minutes. 

The shooter was identified as 28-year-old transgender man Aidan Hale, previously known as Audrey Hale, a former student at The Covenant School.

A message Hale sent at 9:57 a.m. to a former classmate, Averianna Patton, stated, “I’m planning to die today. You’ll probably hear about me on the news after I die.” After another message ominously stating “something bad is about to happen,” Patton called the Suicide Prevention Help Line and the Nashville Police.

Shortly after, Hale was seen through security camera footage breaking into the elementary school with three guns: A KelTec SUB200, a semi-automatic rifle; an M&P 9mm semi-automatic handgun and a grunt rifle.

At 10:13 am, Nashville police were notified of the shooter threat. At 10:26 am, the officers and Hale exchanged gunfire, then confirmed that the shooter had died.

Though Nashville police and the FBI have gone through writings and documents left by Hale, a motive for the shooting remains undisclosed for the time being. What is known, however, is that the shooting was planned for many months and that Hale studied the actions of other mass murderers.

Immediately following this tragedy came many protests and walk-outs that took place outside the state capitol demanding more restrictive gun control legislation. In recent years, Tennessee’s government has loosened gun laws in the state, such as lowering the minimum age to carry handguns to 18. This legislative change took place the same day as the shooting. 

As a response to the protests, Governor Bill Lee and state lawmakers decided to add more funding to schools for mental health resources, armed security guards and an extension to the state’s homeland security network to include public and private schools.

Although this might contribute to lowering rates of gun violence in schools, the state government has yet to add any restrictions to gun policy in Tennessee this year.

To donate to survivors of the shooting, please visit https://www.cfmt.org/story/support-survivors-of-the-covenant-school-shooting/