Hurricane Francine was originally projected to hit most of Louisiana head on as a Cat 2, only to shift more towards Mississippi. Despite that shift, she still made landfall hitting Terrebonne Parish on Wednesday, September 11 with wind speeds of around 100 mph. As she made her way inland, she died down to a tropical storm.

Earlier in September, the Louisiana State University body was faced with a question of how to deal with an act of prejudice that has riveted and divided the campus community. The Delta-Tau Delta Fraternity at LSU has demonstrated an act of Anti-Palestinian hate after the hanging of a banner that read, “What do Nicholls + Palestine have in common? Getting BOMBED.” While this hate speech is unacceptable under Greek-life and administrative rules, it is something that, like many college campuses, has been dusted under the rug by the administration and has only been brought up by other students according to The Reveille, LSU’s student magazine . . .

In March of 2023, The Conglomerate published an article Titled “50 Cent to Save Shreveport,” where we reported on the murmurings of, household name, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson’s recent interest in Centenary’s very own hometown. A year later and those murmurings have become a reality as Jackson and his team have already purchased multiple downtown properties, put on events, opened new businesses, and made changes to the skyline.

The Louisiana state senate made news back in June for passing SB 294, a bill that “Confirms the protections of free speech and First Amendment protected activities on college and university campuses.” 

While this act, proposed by Denham Spring’s Sen. Valerie Hodges (R), parades as a victory for Louisianian’s First Amendment rights, certain clauses within the bill limit the ways in which Louisiana students can protest on college campuses.

Dear Reader, Happy holidays and welcome to our final issue of the fall 2023 semester! I can speak for all of the editorial board when I say that we are so incredibly proud of what we have accomplished this semester . . .

It's sleeting, it's snowing! The pile of ice is growing . . .

Dear Reader,

I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to our poetry issue! As an English major, I adore both reading and writing poetry, but I’m not going to lie, I still have a hard time defining what exactly poetry is. I’ve heard people say that poetry is how people think, and this is true to a certain extent. Some people might think in poems, but other people might think in prose. Additionally, poetry goes beyond just being a reflective piece of writing. It is a vast genre of literature that has many different forms, and I like the fact that a sonnet, a blackout poem, and a haiku all look very different from one another . . .

As we all know, the talented Aimee Nezhukumatathil visited our campus this semester on Monday, October 23, 2023. While she was on campus, she gave a guided tour of Centenary’s Arboretum, visited a poetry class, and, of course, spoke at the official Corrington Award Ceremony. If you were not able to attend the ceremony, there is, fortunately, a recording on Centenary’s Facebook page!

On October 25, 2023, the House of Representatives elected its 56th Speaker after more than three weeks of attempting to replace Kevin McCarthy, who was historically removed on October 3, 2023. Desperate to return to business after three failed nominations, the Republican Party united behind their fourth choice, a candidate low enough in party ranks to appease moderate sects and staunchly conservative enough to appeal to the far-right: Mike Johnson.

Dr. Matthew Blasi, one of Centenary’s English professors, recently gave a reading from his debut novel, Sweet Muffin Ranch. The novel follows Gene, his family, and their rescue and rehabilitation center for dogs. Before Dr. Blasi read an excerpt from his book, Sam Brown, Dr. Jones-Pierce, and Dr. Martin all read brief pieces. Sam Brown read a couple of flash fiction pieces, and Dr. Jones-Pierce read a creative nonfiction excerpt about a childhood friend

It’s officially fall and spooky season! The weather has finally gotten the memo and given us just a hint of a chill in the air, so now you can truly partake in the festivities! And don’t you worry, Shreveport has some fun stuff you can do to celebrate autumn and Halloween coming up. We’ll talk about 4 things that you can go to this month, and one that starts this month and extends into November. . . .

Dr. Matthew Blasi, one of Centenary’s English professors, recently gave a reading from his debut novel, Sweet Muffin Ranch. The novel follows Gene, his family, and their rescue and rehabilitation center for dogs. Before Dr. Blasi read an excerpt from his book, Sam Brown, Dr. Jones-Pierce, and Dr. Martin all read brief pieces. Sam Brown read a couple of flash fiction pieces, and Dr. Jones-Pierce read a creative nonfiction excerpt about a childhood friend

As qualifying for the Louisiana gubernatorial election ended on August 10th, there are officially 16 candidates vying for the governor’s seat—eight Republican, four Independent, three Democratic, and one with no declared party. All sixteen candidates will run against each other during the primary election on October 14th. Unless one candidate wins more than 50% of the vote, the top two candidates (regardless of party affiliation) will go on to compete for the governor’s seat during the general election of November 18th . . .

Dear Reader,

It is my absolute honor to welcome you to the Fall 2023 volume of The Conglomerate! With the start of a new volume and a new semester, I have been thinking a lot about beginnings. As a society, one of the beginnings that we talk a lot about is the beginning of a new year. Many people have lots of New Year’s traditions, ranging from starting a new planner to making a meticulous list of goals for the year, and, of course, it would be hard to forget about New Year’s resolutions . . .

With Centenary in Paris approaching fast and the school year about to start, it’s a good time to start preparing for traveling abroad. Maybe you’re a first-time traveler joining the rest of your freshman class to explore Paris, or perhaps you’re just thinking ahead for your May module. Either way, it’s important to know some tips when you’re traveling internationally . . .

There are so many words that I could use to describe Remi Miller, our head of the News and Worldview section. She is assertive, creative, determined, fashionable, driven, passionate, and so much more. She has done a fabulous job guiding the News and Worldview section this year

Dear Readers, it seems that somehow, we’ve reached the end of The Congo’s 2022-23 publication year.

No matter how many times I reread that sentence it still has yet to sink in. It honestly feels like only the other week where I was accepting the Editor-in-Chief position – being told strongly that “it’s a crazy job, absolutely mental, but you’re going to be fantastic and love every moment.” Simply speaking, that claim was nothing but an understatement . . .

Most of you may know Emily Moreno as an incredibly encouraging, stylish, and beautiful woman, but we here at The Conglomerate know her as the brave and hardworking soul in charge of getting everyone paid. However, next year Emily will be leaving her post as Business Manager to become the Sports Section Head for the 2023-2024 school year . . .