Newspapers / Elon University Student Newspaper / Sept. 9, 2015, edition 1 / Page 2
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News Wednesday, September 9, 2015 • page 2 Yoga studio celebrates 1 year in Elon Amanda Garrity Reporter As one of the few yoga, Pilates and barre studios within walking distance from campus, Zenitry Yoga Studio is hoping its first anni versary as an Elon business will bring fresh faces, yoga lovers and fitness enthusiasts to the Zen space. Zenitry opened its doors more than three years ago in Burlington. Last October, eager to gain a larger student clientele, it moved to a vacant space near the Fat Frogg Bar and Grill and Simply Thai and Sushi. Zenitry’s founder Christine “Cricket” Foster said Elon University students have welcomed the local studio with open arms, but she believes there is still room for growth. “Being close to a university campus brings a lot of young energy and excitement to the studio, but there are still so many students who haven’t taken advantage of the classes we offer,” Foster said. Similar to other local businesses, Zenitry is continuously trying to spread word of the services it offers, but they are not shy to boast about the positive benefits that Elon students have already brought to the studio. Because of students’ varied backgrounds, the Zenitry clientele has diversified in the last year. Before moving closer to campus, Foster said that the conservative surroundings in Alamance County did not mix well with the spirituality of yoga, and many people misin terpreted yoga as a religious practice. “There are two sides of yoga: athleticism and meditation,” Foster said. “A practicing yogi strives to find the balance between the two in hopes to find center in their life. It doesn’t have to be a religious experience un less you want it to be.” Classes at Zeniny range in age and ex perience. The studio is focused on increasing class sizes and blending different communi ties, and popular classes like power hour and hot yoga often have a mix of Elon students and Burlington locals. Foster hopes to keep it that way. “Zenitry allows you to build a home. It’s a community of people looking to have a more balanced lifestyle and we want it to be just that — a community,” said Foster. While Elon students have access to the campus gym and group exercise classes, Ze nitry provides students with something dif ferent: a Zen atmosphere. Taking a class at the studio gives students a space away from campus, both figuratively and literally. “Classes at Zenitry not only give partici pants physical exercise, they also offer a men tal break for students who may be experienc ing stress or anxiety,” said Marissa Douglass, an Elon senior and part-time Zenitry yoga instructor. “Whether they are freshman who are struggling being away from home or se niors who are overwhelmed by their course load, Zenitry is a safe and relaxing space stu dents can come to when they need time for themselves.” New students can attend their first class for free. Zenitry also offers student deals, in cluding the monthly-unlimited contract for $79 per month. Students can purchase an annual group exercise membership at Elon Campus Rec for $20 — significantly less than Zenitry’s contract cost. Some students interested in taking the classes Zenitry offers may be de terred by the steep membership price. Elon senior Sara Russell attended a ballet barre class at Zenitry this summer. “I took advantage of the first' free class at Zenitry and felt like it was an ok experience,” Russell said. “Unfortunately, their high prices MALI TAUXE ] Photo Editor Cricket Foster, owner of yoga, barre and pilates studio Zenitry, leads the 9 a.m. yoga class. are not feasible for most students, like myself, when we have free facilities on campus.” Group exercise classes at Elon have a ten dency to get over-crowded and students can be turned away. Elon senior Natalie Kamer- er, a part-time barre instructor at Zenitry, recommends that students weary of waiting times or packed classes should take popular classes like Zumba and Pilates at Zenitry in stead. “Zenitry is a great alternative to group ex ercise classes at Campus Rec, especially when classes are fuU,” Kamerer said. “They also of fer more specific classes like Piloxing or barre, which is a nice change from the traditional group exercise classes.” Maintaining the studio space and improv ing its overall atmosphere are reasons for Ze nitry’s high rates. The monthly package cost, while steep, allows Zenitry to complete its construction goals. This year, the studio will remove the fluorescent lights in its ceiling and replace them with decorated Japanese lanterns. From there, they plan to create a lobby space and sheer the outer window to give more privacy to students in classes. In line with its Zen atmosphere, Zenitry offers massages, a private meditation room and a program called Zen Zone, which gives community members a place to study or practice dance routines. Elon organizations, including Greek sororities' and fratern;£i^, can use the Zenitry space for dance redii^^^'jis or events. RESTROOMS from cover dcr-inclusive bathrooms two years ago was not as open to all genders and sexes as they are actually today. “They used to be labeled ‘unisex bathrooms,’ which makes people think of one sex,” Bosch said. “But this was before the advent of thinking of multiple genders and sexes.” The term “universal” captures the variety of identities that fall under the sex and gender spectrum. Bosch said a significant reason behind choosing the term was that it is accessible to ev eryone — including people with disabilities or outside guests who visit the campus during kirge events. “Tiere might even be a father who wants to take his three- yciir-old daughter to the bathroom but doesn’t know if he should take her to the men’s restroom or the women’s,” he said. “Despite gender identity and despite disability access, there are still plenty of situations where people of multiple genders need to use a restroom.” Ther -signing process When the office was created, Bosch led a restroom assess ment and began to look at places on campus where long lines would fomi outside restrooms. Realizing that many of these re strooms were labeled “men” or “women” but were single stalled and lockable, Bosch pushed to change their signs and ensure that tliey were accessible to people with disabil^s. “There wasn’t much reconstruction, per se,” he said. “It was just a matter of finding these spaces and re-signing them.” Because of several factors including the fire code, the cam pus could not construct universal restrooms on every single floor — but with the exception of Historic and Danieley Neighbor hoods, all residence buildings have at least one universal bath room. Bosch said he is very appreciative of Physical Plant and Con struction Management for cooperating and realizing the signifi cance of universal bathrooms. “Those spaces could have easily been mechanical rooms or storage facilities,” he said. “It’s not easy on their behalf to say, ‘This is why we need to remove some space in order to carve out some space for a universal restroom.” Bosch said because of the administrative support behind re- stroom-inclusivity, universal bathrooms are being included in blueprints for builefings that are now in construction, including McEwen’s new School of Communication! “From now on, it won’t even be a question — universal bath rooms wdU appear in blueprints because of the campus support,” Bosch said. Elon senior Samantha Allen said the existence of universal bathrooms is another step in a right direction for all-campus inclusivity. “I fee! absolutely comfortable,” she said. “I’ve never felt that gender identity is black or white and everyone, especially on a college campus, should feel comfortable walking into a bath room that doesn’t put them in a box.” ON-CAMPUS GENDER-INCLUSIVE RESTROOMS Is it enough? While universal bathrooms are accessible to students in most residential buildings, they are not accessible on every floor. For traditional-style on-campus housing — which is common in Historic — most restrooms on the hall are multi-staUed and gender binary. This means a student conforming to a gender outside male or female would have to either use a bathroom that doesn’t align with their gender or travel upstairs or downstairs to find a uni versal one. “I would love to. see them everywhere,” Bosch said. “But it has a lot to do -with the fire code.” He does not foresee multi-staUed universal restrooms being created in the near future. The question of having universal multi-stalled restrooms is tricl^ in a university setting simply because it is a newer con cept, he said. “I don’t think Elon is fully ready to move in that direction yet — there would need to be a lot more education and explanation, especially for parents of prospective students. Allen said while it may take some time for the community to get used to and while it may mean maneuvering around logisti" cal issues, such as including showers, it is necessary. I hate doubting Elon’s ability to accept, because for the last three years I ve been blown away with the changes that have occurred on this campus,” she said. “But if just one person would be more comfortable if we had it, then I think it is something that needs to happen.” Academic Village (20) Located in: Belk Pavilion. Holmes & Spence Pavilion. Kenan Pavilion, Cannon Pavilion, Darden & Gray Pavilion, Numen Lumen Pavilion, Gray Pavilion Moseley Center (11) Located in: Irazu Cafe, Moseley. Lakeside Dining Hall. Center For Leadership Center for Leadership (4) Global Neighborhood (10) Located in: All five Global buildings and Global Commons Historic Neighborhood (5) Located in: Mooney Hall, McEwen Dining *not including residential areas Campus West (1) Located in: The Oaks *not including residential areas Colonnades Residence Halls (5) Located in: All five Colonnades buildings Center for Arts (8) Located in: McCoy Commons, Koury Ath letics Center, Center for Arts Arts West (4) Located in: Scott Studios, Purchasing Business Services Poweil House (2) South Campus (24) Located in: Scott Eliington, Financi Planning, Worsley, Holland, Holt Ci Johnston Athletics (3) Located in: Koury Fieldhouse, Soft Fieldhouse Francis Center (2) Located in: Francis
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