By: Rut Labrada, staff writer  Get ready to “Dance the Night Away,” Blazers. On Friday, April 17, VSU’s K-pop Club will be hosting their yearly busking event from 3-4 p.m., where the club members will perform a lineup of nine different K-pop dances at Converse Square.  The event, which was initially planned to occur from 2-3:30 p.m., was moved back one hour ...

By: Rut Labrada, staff writer   On April 10 and 11, the City of Valdosta hosted its 4th annual Bluesberry Festival to celebrate Georgia’s agricultural industry, local vendors, and of course, the blues music scene of the deep South. When I first heard about the festival, I was confused as to why it was blueberry themed, but a quick Google ...

By: Rut Labrada, staff writer As we approach the summer season, the sun’s rays continue to shine down on us more and more, and I’m sure we’ve all felt the sticky discomfort of sweat attacking us at every second, leaving us craving a refreshing drink.  These days, I’ve turned to drinking boba a lot more often — there’s fruity options, ...

By: Rut Labrada, staff writer   March 25 was not just any typical Wednesday for the writers at the Spectator office. It was The Chickening, the day when all the members would come together and decide, once and for all, what restaurant in Valdosta sells the best chicken.  During the previous weeks, the rowdy group carefully planned the event—they searched for ...

By: Rut Labrada, Staff Writer On March 25, the Student Life Office hosted their annual Winning Wednesday event on Converse Square amidst increased efforts to promote upcoming athletic events, as well as sororities, fraternities, and other on-campus organizations.  This event was hosted as part of an ongoing endeavor to grow engagement with student organizations on campus, which has significantly declined in the past years.  The event ran from noon-2 p.m., and it ...

By: Rut Labrada  Lowndes Residents Urge the County for Transparency Regarding a Proposed AI Data Center. Lowndes County residents call for transparency from the Lowndes County Board of Commissioners, as concerns regarding a proposed artificial intelligence (AI) data center on Coleman Road, near the Foxborough subdivision, continue to spread throughout the county.  The project is being spearheaded by lawyer and businessman Pope Langdale the III, who is working with AI infrastructure provider DC BLOX, ...

By: Rut Labrada, Staff Writer  On an early Friday morning in March, 19 bleary-eyed staff writers and editors of the VSU Spectator were dressed in their business casual finest—cardigans, skirts, khakis, and button-ups as they walked down the bright streets of Athens, Georgia.  The group was preparing to attend the Georgia College Press Association’s Better Newspaper contest, a yearly event ...

By Rut Labrada, Staff writer  A proposed Artificial Intelligence data center near the Foxborough subdivision in Valdosta, located 4.6 miles northwest of VSU, has sparked concern among Lowndes County residents amidst a growing trend of data-center construction in rural communities.  AI data centers are specialized facilities designed to train and run a large-scale AI model, which is part of a rapidly growing ...

By: Rut Labrada, Staff writer  Promenade Shopping Plaza has always been a center for restaurants and stores within the city of Valdosta, featuring places such as Books a Million and Mori, but a new restaurant opened in the plaza three months ago, calling for all foodies to stop by and have lunch: Saigon Corner.  Saigon Corner is located right next door to Books a Million, and ...

By: Rut Labrada, Staff Writer  VSU’s undergraduate research journal, Omnino, is soliciting student research papers after receiving low submission numbers due to website renovation during the Fall 2025 semester.  Every year, the research journal, advised by English Professor Dr. Anne Greenfield releases a volume of student-written and peer-reviewed papers from various departments across VSU, but after the website renovation, the Omnino staff and faculty were forced ...