Skip to Main Content
College of DuPage's Student Newspaper

The Courier

College of DuPage's Student Newspaper

The Courier

Mariyam Syed

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor

Content by Mariyam Syed
Volunteers gather the GardenWorks Project's first harvest. (Photo provided by Teri Woods)

DuPage’s Community Garden Network

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor July 15, 2024

Two minutes northwest of COD is Glen Ellyn’s community garden in Village Green Park. Tomatoes, chili peppers, potatoes, cucumber vines and sunflowers bloom in neat rows. The garden, and others like it...

Youth Academy Explorers day camp group photo. (Photo from COD website)

The Youth Academy’s Kids in College

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor July 1, 2024

Over the summer, COD has become a campus for young schoolchildren. Groups of them in color-coded t-shirts traverse campus grounds, some wearing aprons in the culinary center and others wearing miniature...

Cicada Photos by the Morton Arboretum. HSC Greenhouse Photo by Mariyam Syed.

Summer of the Cicadas

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor June 3, 2024

Editor's Note: This article has been updated to correct the brood's periodic emergence years, locations, and the name of the Hemiptera true bug order. Open your window on a dry summer day, and you’ll...

Students at Graffit Workshop for 2024 Hip-Hop Summit

Cultivating Creativity Through Graffiti

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor April 29, 2024

With the low rhythm of 1990s rap in the background, students colored unique works of art with ink markers on small canvases as part of COD’s fourth annual hip-hop summit. Devin Chambers, a COD counselor...

COD Votes officers Shahid Khatib and Emily Kesler table with League of Women Voters

Young Voter Advocacy Rises Ahead of Primaries

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor March 18, 2024

As the last days for primary elections draw close on Tuesday, March 19, the students of COD Votes are busy at work increasing voter engagement efforts. This year’s presidential election will be the first...

Early voting site in DuPage County in February 2024.

Ranked Choice Voting: A Fix For the Two-Party Voting Trap

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor March 4, 2024
As early voting for the presidential primary elections in DuPage County happens from March 4 to March 18, voter advocacy groups like FairVote Illinois are also working for voting system reform they feel will increase voter engagement and make the voting system more fair. FairVote Illinois is a non-partisan organization whose objective is to implement rank-choice voting on Illinois ballots for all state and federal elections as well as presidential primaries. They often host informative tables at civic engagement events and college campuses, including COD. Ranked choice voting is a system used in elections with multiple candidates, in which voters can rank their most to least preferred candidates on the ballot.
Student Masuda Moutushi and Days for Girls leaders stand by boxes of ninety-seven donation packages.

Donation Drive Against Period Poverty

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor February 26, 2024

On a busy Friday afternoon, students gathered to assemble care packages of sanitary products to donate to local pantries and shelters. The event was led by student Masuda Moutushi, who is a cybersecurity...

Phi Theta Kappa members in a  meeting, president Ty Giardano and alum Nick Karmia at front. (Photo provided by Phi Theta Kappa)

Phi Theta Kappa Success Beyond The Scholarships

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor February 19, 2024

Traveling across the country for conferences, designing campaign strategies, creating research projects, and receiving thousands of dollars in scholarships are just some of the defining experiences enjoyed...

(from left to right) COD president Brian Caputo, scholarship recipient Alexis DeAnna Collins-Harris, Elizabeth Gómez de la Casa and David Swope pose for a picture.

Scholarship Recipients Honor MLK’s Legacy

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor February 12, 2024

Soon after honoring The Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy during the January virtual commemoration, COD hosted the annual MLK Service and Scholarship Award event in the MAC. The event honored three...

Reviewing Three 2023 Bestsellers

Reviewing Three 2023 Bestsellers

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor December 11, 2023

As the year reaches its epilogue, the literary world has produced many popular new tales in the fiction genre. These three award-winning novels center Black characters and are set in captivating historic...

Native American Heritage Month display in International Hall at COD.

Indigenous U.S. Diplomats Share Their Stories

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor December 4, 2023

Often overlooked in the sphere of U.S. politics and public service, Native American diplomats and representatives have played a central role in serving the public in the nation and abroad. To highlight...

New Movie Screening Room Opens for Film Studies

New Movie Screening Room Opens for Film Studies

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor October 30, 2023

Students can now watch some classics at COD’s new campus theater, with 55 auditorium-style seats and a projector screen. The room is located on the BIC’s first floor and is used for film and literature...

Training attendees spar with Lindsey. (Photo provided by Lindsey Daehnke)

Trauma Informed Self-Defense Training

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor October 9, 2023

A group of students assume a basic strike stance in unison, with their feet planted apart and their hands raised. They are learning how to defend themselves in a violent encounter, by aiming for target...

India Johnson's Artist Talk to photography and art students.

The Power of Community Artists

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor October 2, 2023

The starving artist is a pervasive image in a field where professionals struggle to make livable wages. This issue captures the interest of Minnesota-based artist India Johnson, who has an MFA in Book...

Bomb Threats Target Chicagoland Libraries

Bomb Threats Target Chicagoland Libraries

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor September 25, 2023

On a busy morning at the Eola Road Branch Library, library guests were browsing books and staff were conducting programs. At the second-floor reference desk was Flannery Crump, a librarian at the Eola...

Festival of the Monarch Butterfly

Festival of the Monarch Butterfly

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor August 21, 2023

Booming drums resounded through the park as dancers clad in colorful garbs performed traditional Aztec dances in front of an enthusiastic crowd. A series of performances at the event included ancient Conchero...

COD Fuel Pantry main shelf

Fuel Pantry: A Lifeline Against Food Insecurity

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor July 31, 2023

Editor’s Note: This article uses an anonymous source. The pseudonym of “Anna Morgan” is used in place of the source’s name. This has been done at the request of the individual. The reason for anonymity...

Cropped photo from the College of DuPage Instagram page.

Juneteenth and the Struggles Beyond Slavery

Mariyam Syed, Managing Editor July 17, 2023

A melodic chorus of singers lit up the student atrium at the College of DuPage to celebrate Juneteenth this summer. Juneteenth commemorates the day that news of emancipation was brought to slaves in Texas...

Load More Stories