10-20-22

CAMPUS LIFE PAGE 4

OPINION PAGE 3

2022 midterms approach

Panthers cast first votes through early voting in Maucker Union

MALLORY SCHMITZ News Editor

Students can participate in early voting in the midterm elections from Wednesday, Oct. 19, through Friday, Oct. 21 in Maucker Union.

The chairperson for satel lite voting in Maucker Union, who asked to be identified as Pat, said, “There are people who cannot come on Election Day, so this just gives them another opportunity to get their vote registered.”

The electronic voting booths are set up in the cof feehouse level of Maucker Union near the Essentials con venience store.

Any voter registered in Black Hawk County is able to participate in early voting. In addition, people can register to vote for the first time at the polls or update their vot ing information to reflect their Black Hawk County address.

While students can register to vote with their Cedar Falls

address, Pat said that they should be sure to note that some candidates on the ballot will be specific to Black Hawk County and may differ from their hometown officials.

The deadline for absen tee ballot requests is also

approaching. Absentee ballot requests must be received by the County Auditor’s Office by 5 p.m. on Oct. 24.

Absentee ballot requests may be mailed to the County Auditor’s Office or delivered in person.

The absentee ballots them selves must be received by the County Auditor’s Office by 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 8. They also may be mailed or delivered in person.

“Insure Your Future” unveils firstof-its-kind internship program

TREVOR MEYERS Staff Writer

Insure Your Future is a group made up of many insur ance companies throughout the state of Iowa who are now rolling out a first-ofits-kind internship program. This program was made pos sible through collaborations between the Iowa Economic Department Authority, the Iowa Insurance Division, participating financial ser vice companies and other regional education institu tions.

More than 72 internships are being targeted towards college sophomores and freshmen and will be avail able for the summer of 2023.

UNI’s study abroad program bounces back post pandemic

KATE MURPHY Staff Writer

More students are looking to study abroad through UNI as it has been bouncing back since the pandemic restrict

ed travel over the last couple years.

Ann Frenna, who works as a secretary at the study abroad center (SAC), says it was a challenge to function during the pandemic because of health

risks and travel restrictions but is happy to see study abroad programs start up again.

“At this point, all of our partner universities have wel comed students back to their campuses. The loosening of travel restrictions and entry requirements has made travel much easier,” Frenna said.

According to Frenna, the planning that goes into stu dents studying abroad hasn’t changed much since the pro gram has been reopened. Students typically discuss the location they’d like to go to, how long they plan to stay and what courses they’ll take.

“The only difference is that we do have some students com ing in to plan their experience abroad later in their academic career than they had initially planned because COVID-19 prevented them from traveling for a time,” Frenna said.

Another adjustment the program encountered was the change from LAC core classes

to UNIFI.

“As UNI makes the transi tion from the LAC structure to UNIFI, we continue to work with upperclassmen who are continuing to earn LAC cred its at universities abroad and through short-term faculty-led programs over winter session and in the summer months,” Frenna said. “Those students who are on the UNFI track are able to satisfy those courses abroad as well.”

According to Frenna, study abroad students also go through a process of having their cours es abroad pre-approved so that they know how their credits will come back to UNI at the end of their experience. The biggest change from the LAC core to UNIFI is the change in Capstone requirements.

“One change is that in the past, students had to be of (at least) junior standing to satisfy their Capstone through a shortterm faculty-led program,” Frenna said. “Now that many

of these two to three week long faculty-led programs are tied to UNIFI credit, all students can participate in this type of study abroad experience.”

The locations available for students to study abroad change yearly. Currently, there are programs open to study at universities in 14 different countries. Students can also participate in a two to three week long faculty-led program over winter session or in the summer.

“We have exciting facul ty-led summer offerings in Greece, the Galapagos Islands, the United Kingdom, Brazil, France, Mexico and Spain,” Frenna said.

Frenna believes that hav ing the opportunity to study abroad helps students grow academically and emotionally while preparing them for their professional future in a global community.

CEDAR

COURTESY/INSTAGRAM

A group of students went a faculty-led tip to Mexico this past summer. This year, all of the faculty-led programs are tied to UNIFI credit instead of Capstone credit, meaning that students are no longer required to be of junior standing to participate in the two to three week long programs.

NIXSON BENITEZ

Early voting is available in Maucker Union from Oct. 19 - 21. Residents of Black Hawk County can register to vote for the first time at the polls or update their voting address to reflect their Black Hawk County address.

CAMPUS LIFE Campus prepares to welcome parents, siblings and more for Family Weekend.

OPINION Opinion Columnist Drew Hill looks at religious freedom in the U.S. in an international context.

SPORTS Media day gives pre-season look at UNI men’s basketball.

EARLY VOTING

The 2022 midterm elections include the race for Iowa gover nor as Democrat Deidre DeJear and Libertarian Rick Stewart run against Republican incum bent Kim Reynolds.

Republican U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley is also up for re-election, while Democrat Mike Franken attempts to take the seat.

For the U.S. House of Representatives in District 2, Republican incumbent Ashley Hinsen is facing off against Democrat Liz Mathis.

A variety of other state and county positions are also on the ballot, including retention elec tions for Iowa Supreme Court Justices.

The ballot also features a proposed amendment to Iowa’s state constitution. The amend

ment would add “the right of the people of Iowa to keep and bear arms,” giving further protection to the right to bear arms beyond the second amendment of the Constitution of the U.S.

The amendment must be approved by a majority of voters in the 2022 midterm elections in order to be added to the state constitution.

“Just come vote,” Pat said. “We want people to vote, and we want them to get comfort able with that. We’d love to have them.”

People can register to vote or update their information online at sos.iowa.gov.

More information on voting at UNI can be found at pan thersvote.uni.edu.

For more satellite voting sites and Black Hawk County elec tion information, visit black hawkcountyelections.iowa.gov.

2022 Iowa Midterms Important Dates

INTERNSHIPS

Some participating com panies would be Geico, Farm Bureau Financial Services, Transamerica, Nationwide and American Equity, along with 23 other insurance companies located within the state of Iowa.

Ten universities and colleges located within the state of Iowa are participating in this pro gram, including the University of Iowa, Iowa State universi ty, Drake University and the University of Northern Iowa, along with several other institu tions in Iowa and a few outside of Iowa.

In 2021, the average employ ee in the insurance industry earned roughly $89,997 which is about $36,000 more than the average for non-insurance industry employees in Iowa who averaged $54,175 per year.

“Insurance industry jobs may not be top-of-mind for most college students, but in addition to substantial com pensation, insurance industry positions save lives, protect people’s assets and livelihoods (cars, apartments, homes, crops, etc.), build wealth for the future, support Iowa’s diverse economy and give back gen erously to communities,” said Michael Gould, manager of insurance development for the Iowa Economic Development Authority. “Our goal is to

Insure Your Future is offering over 72 paid internships targeted toward college freshmen and sophomores. The progam aims to involve young people in the insurance industry and introduce them to the opportunities available.

introduce students to the many rewarding careers throughout the insurance industry.”

All internships offered through this program will be paid. The pay for said intern ships will range between $15$22 per hour. Along with the internship there will be four major opportunities that consist of leadership and networking events. According to Gould, in addition to seeking busi ness majors studying account ing, administration and man agement, economics, finance, human resources management, international business, mar keting, real estate, sales, etc., the industry seeks positions in actuary science, computer sci ence, mathematics, data ana lytics, journalism/communica tions and a wide variety of other majors.

There are even options for

N.I. EN ESPAÑOL

STUDY ABROAD

Continued from page

“Studying abroad is a unique, life-changing experi ence,” Frenna said. “The UNI Study Abroad Center provides a wide-range of opportunities for students to study across the globe.”

According to Frenna, most programs offer courses in English, while select programs focus on foreign language pro ficiency.

The Study Abroad Center strives to match each student with a program that’s com patible with their academics, budget and desired location.

“We have been very busy meeting with students who are excited to plan their experi ence abroad while at UNI, this year.”

NORTHERN IOWAN

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Ser mujer

DEANNA HERNÁNDEZ CARRANZA Escritora invitada MAYRA VILLANUEVA Editora en español

Nota editorial: Esta es una colaboración especial con la clase de español avanza do de la escuela secundaria de Marshalltown. Se le qui ere agradecer a la escritora, Deanna Hernández Carranza, por su contribución al periódi co estudiantil y dedicación al escribir su relato. La obra presente es la última de la colaboración como parte del Mes de la Herencia Hispana con el fin de contar las histo rias y experiencias de estudi antes latinx en Iowa.

EDITORIAL STAFF

MALLORY SCHMITZ News Editor schmimbt@uni.edu

DIAMOND ROUNDTREE Campus Life Editor diamondr@uni.edu

DAVID WARRINGTON Sports Editor warringd@uni.edu

SOPHIE HOFFMEIER Copy Editor hoffmeis@uni.edu

MAYRA VILLANUEVA Spanish Editor villamaa@uni.edu

Ser mujer en un hogar hispano me hizo enfrentar obstáculos en mi vida dia ria. Sufrí el abuso mental de mis padres. Sobreviví los días inquietos llenos de gritos y súplicas de mi madre que solo quería lo mejor para sus hijos. Sobreviví a la ideología de dos padres inmigrantes que cre cieron en un mundo machista y yo en una sociedad que no fue construida para una lati na. Sé que sobreviví a esas heridas brutales porque ahora estoy aquí para usar mi voz. Ser mujer en la comunidad latina es estereotipada como débil. Ella es débil porque pasa innumerables noches siendo golpeada por un hom bre. Ella es débil porque nadie escucha sus súplicas. Porque cuando una mujer latina usa su voz, la tachan como loca. Cuando una mujer latina usa

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EMMA KOEHLER Webmaster Graphic Artist

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CIRCULATION

ELIZABETH SPAKE Circulation Manager

su voz le dicen “callada te miras más bonita”.

Siendo la más chiquita en mi familia ha sido difícil. Siendo la que tenía que ver a mis padres pelear y no poder hacer nada. Recuerdo que cuando era chiquita tenía una idea perfecta de mis padres. Mis padres sufrieron al viajar a un país sin conocer a nadie y sin nada.Y es cierto, los res peto mucho por eso y les doy muchas gracias por ese sacri ficio. Sin embargo, no los res peto por el daño mental que me han hecho experimentar en mi vida. Crecer con padres que no cambian su manera de pensar, con un padre alcohóli co, y con una madre que esta ba manteniendo a sus hijos sola, no es fácil. Esto me daba tanto miedo. Tenía miedo de que todos los blancos en la escuela me excluyeran por ser

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students who live outside of Iowa. Housing options will become available around the area colleges including Grand View University in Des Moines and Coe College located in Cedar Rapids.

Within the state of Iowa, there are roughly 60,753 jobs within the insurance indus try in a study done by the Insurance Information Institute in 2020, and the state of Iowa is considered the number one state for insurance opportuni ty jobs according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Completing one of these intern ships could help students land a job in the industry after com pleting their college career. Any college students interested in Insure Your Future early-stage internships can find them listed at www.iowaeda.com/ insure-your-future.

mexicana con padres inmi grantes.Tenía miedo de que la gente blanca llamará a los ser vicios infantiles a mis padres. Tenía miedo de que los blan cos se llevaran a mi padre alcohólico. Tenía miedo de que los blancos me juzgaran. Siempre traté de mantener una sonrisa en mi rostro para mis maestros, amigos y mi mamá. No quería que supieran que era débil. No quería que supi eran nada.

Esta latina es un bosque que está ardiendo con llamas, llamas que no se pueden apa gar. Pero lo que más temen es un volcán. Un volcán lleno de voces de mujeres. Un grupo de mujeres que se organizan jun tas para hacer cambio, empod erarse, salir del cascarón y romper barreras. A este grupo le llamó “Mujeres”.

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Tell us what’s happening on campus. Email submissions to northern-iowan@uni.edu.

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COURTESY/MICHAEL GOULD

Embracing more religous freedom in the US Iran, France and religous rights should be balanced in US soil

DREW HILL

Opinion Columnist

Nearly one month ago, 22-year-old wdied in police custody in Iran. Though police claimed they did everything they could to save her, many people in Iran believe the police tortured and killed her, according to a CNN article by Celine Alkhaldi and Ramin Mostaghim. According to Maryam Sinaee of Iran International, movement has risen up in protest against the Iranian regime, led by young people calling them selves Tehran Youth. Amini had been detained for not properly wearing her hijab in accordance with Iran’s Islamic standards. Now, what began as a protest against the religious hierarchy in Iran has turned into a protest against the established government as a whole.

It is easy to sympathize with the protestors in Iran. Women are required to com ply with strict dress standards and are being punished for protesting and not complying. However, there is actually a similar situation in France.

Earlier this year, Presidential Candidate Marine Le Pen proposed ban ning headscarves in public spaces if elected, according to France 24. She ended up being defeated by Emmanuel Macron, who opposed her measure. However, there are already laws against religious expression in public schools. This includes crucifixes, yar mulkes and other obvious religious symbols, as well as head scarves. Full face coverings are also banned in public places. For a country with an 8.8 percent Muslim population as of 2016, accord

ing to Conrad Hackett with Pew Research, this is a very controversial policy. In Iran, women are forced to com ply with strict religious stan dards. In France, students in public schools are expected to comply with antireligious secular standards. Similar to Iran, people in France do not have the choice to express themselves in their religion in certain places if it does not align with the state.

What sets the United States of America apart from both France and Iran is the First Amendment. Along with guaranteeing free dom of speech, the press, peaceful assembly and the right to redress the govern ment for grievances, the First Amendment includes this clause: “Congress shall make no law respecting an

establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” These two clauses of this Amendment are meant to stop both the state religion of Iran and the state secularism of France from occurring in the U.S.

When the First Amendment says that Congress cannot make a law respecting an establishment of religion, it speaks of creating a state reli gion. In the early days of sep arate American colonies, dif ferent colonies had their own state churches. People who wanted to follow a different religion or another denomi nation of Christianity were sometimes punished. For example, Roger Williams was banished from Massachusetts Bay Colony and founded Rhode Island to be a haven of freedom for people of differ ent faiths.

The First Amendment also granted freedom of reli gion by guaranteeing that Congress cannot prohibit the free exercise of religion. The free exercise of religion includes not only private set tings, but also public.

However, some people in America today have attempt ed to push the U.S. down either the path of a state reli gion or state secularism. One area that brings out this con flict is public schools. In the 1960s, the issues of prayer and Bible reading in public schools were ruled on by the Supreme Court. The Court ruled that government orga nized prayer or Bible reading in public schools went against the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. This was held to be true even if the

activities allowed for students to be excused from participat ing.

Perhaps the idea that stu dents should not be forced to participate in religious activi ties if they are not religious or of a different religion makes sense. However, the line of cases coming from those early decisions have extended beyond what may have been originally intended.

One example is the case of Kennedy v. Bremerton School District. Joseph Kennedy, an assistant football coach for Bremerton High School, lost his job for praying at mid field following games. He was told to stop or change where he prayed. He refused, and ended up suing to regain his job. The case went to the district court, who ruled for the school board. Kennedy then appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, who also ruled in favor of the school board. The case even tually went to the Supreme Court, who ruled 6-3 in Kennedy’s favor. The Court’s majority opinion, written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, said that Kennedy did not force players to pray with him. Even an employee of a public school has the right to express their freedom of religion and speech. Kennedy prayed on a football field after games, and some players and other peo ple voluntarily joined him. Opposing views of the case suggested that his act of pray ing was coercive in itself, as a person in authority would influence his players.

So, we see multiple sides waging a war over the First Amendment. One side says

the Establishment Clause is being eliminated with prayer by government employees being permitted that could influence students and impose on their freedom of reli gion. Some fear the Supreme Court is eroding separation of church and state and draw ing us closer to the type of state religion we have seen in Iran or in history, such as the state churches of the Middle Ages in Europe. Another side sees the continuing encroach ments on public employees and their freedom of religion and speech as a transition to the forced secularism that we see in France. They see the Supreme Court cases in the 1960s and 1970s that took away many religious rights of employees in public schools as the example of an out-ofcontrol Supreme Court.

However, the First Amendment was not meant as a contradiction. As Justice Gorsuch said in his ruling, “the Clauses have ‘comple mentary’ purposes, not war ring ones where one Clause is always sure to prevail over the others.” There should be a balance between the two opposites. Congress should not establish a state religion. However, that does not mean that the government should be hostile to religion. For exam ple, both Houses of Congress still open with prayer, a practice begun before the Constitution was even writ ten. This balance is a difficult goal to shoot for, but certainly worth it for all the citizens of the U.S.

TRIBUNE NEW SERVICE

Protestors protested against Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi outside of the United Nations in New York City, N.Y. over the 22-year-old Iraninan woman, Mahsa Amini, who died in police custdy for allegedly violating the hijab rules in Iran.

TRIBUNE NEW SERVICE

Former Football Coach Joseph Kennedy addresses reporters outside of the Court House over the decision the Bremerton School District’s made to fire him.

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Panther families celebrate Family Weekened

CAROLINE CHRISTENSEN Staff Writer

Panther families will visit their UNI cats and kittens this coming weekend during the official Family Weekend from Oct. 21-23. Assistant Vice President & Dean of Students Allyson Rafanello encourages families and students to take advantage of the many events and festivities occurring this weekend.

“This is a really exciting and unique opportunity for a student to say ‘let me show you my experience and how I’m making that big picture of university life unique ly mine,’” Rafanello said. “Particularly keeping in mind our first year students; they are here and have gotten sit uated and this is their home away from home. Now is their family’s opportunity to visit campus and to let them show UNI, their experience, their places and spaces where they are making memories.”

The festivities will kick off Friday evening with a Choirs Concert in Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center (GBPAC) at 7:30 p.m. The Campus Activities Board (CAB) will be hosting a Bingo night at Maucker Union Coffeehouse with prizes and fun for any age at 8 p.m. An observatory show will round out the night at 7 p.m. - 9 p.m.

in McCollum Science Hall if weather permits.

Many of the activities will kick off Saturday, with a wel come introduction occurring at 9 a.m. in GBPAC. During that time the UNI Singpins will perform, President Nook will make some remarks, and a 2022 “Forever Family” will be announced. According to Rafanello, the Forever Family was nominated by students for their commitment to UNI.

After the welcome address, families are encouraged to participate in a campus wide scavenger hunt by using the Goosechase app to take pic tures of different places around campus. The challenge closes at 10 p.m. Sunday, and prizes include a UNI Bookstore gift card.

Several colleges will be hosting open houses for stu dents and families to check out, as well as demonstra tions by various departments. A Robot Demonstration will occur in the Applied Engineering Building from 10 a.m. to noon, and the UNI Chapter of the American Chemical Society will be host ing their annual Chemistry Magic Show which will be held in Lantz Auditorium in McCollum Science Hall.

Rafanello encourages families to visit this demonstration, as it is a hit every year with fam ilies and is fun for all ages.

Various other unique oppor tunities throughout the day

will be offered for Panthers and their families. Parents and family members of Panther Marching Band students are invited to march alongside their students at 1 p.m. in the UNI-Dome before the football game, families can experience a real excavation as archeolo gy students dig at a site locat ed off of Jennings Drive south

of Business & Community Services. Students and fami lies can also explore the green houses, Rod Library, and the Dementia House Simulation unique to UNI. Finally the football game versus Missouri State University will take place in the UNI-Dome at 4 p.m.

A few events will be tak

ing place Sunday, including a brunch at St. Stephen’s the Witness Church at 10:30 a.m., and a “Scarecrow Stroll” located at the Cedar Valley Arboretum and Botanic Gardens at Hawkeye Community College. Finally, the women’s soccer game ver sus Belmont State will be tak ing place at noon.

DigUNI showcases archaeology program with campus excavation

AUBREY SCHAFBUCH Staff Writer

As a part of Family Weekend festivities, DigUNI is hosting an open house Saturday, Oct. 22, from noon to 2 p.m. Students, their families and any interested community members get the opportunity to experience an open excava tion site firsthand. The show case is located on the south part of campus in the field along Jennings drive–south of the creek and east of the observatory–where archaeolo gy students will be looking for remains of the Hillside Courts student housing that was built in the 1970s.

Donald Gaff, Ph.D., UNI anthropology professor, says the event is to “showcase our campus archaeology program which provides hands-on learning opportunities to stu dents interested in careers in archaeology, history or histor ical preservation by carrying out a real excavation on UNI’s campus.”

It is a unique experience for visitors to witness as it is not just set up for a superficial showcase reason. In fact, stu dents have been working on this project since the start of the semester and already have several open excavations. The event is an “actual, working research project,” Gaff says. This open house is used for students to learn more about outreach or what is general ly called Public Archaeology. Students involved in the archaeology program have the opportunity to volunteer for a wide range of events taking place during the Homecoming week or Family Weekend.

During these events they are able to gain experience work ing and interpreting the sites for visitors.

This event along with the students and faculty working it hope to open the eyes of people that have never expe rienced these things before. Gaff says, “One of the benefits of attending is to experience archaeology firsthand and dis cover that it’s not quite what is seen in TV and movies.”

The benefits of this DigUNI

event do not stop there. In fact, it is an exclusive way to experience and be involved in campus history. The things students will be looking for will help garner an under standing of life at UNI some 50 years ago and can be used for further investigation and research on both a university and student level. The campus history here is rich and this is another opportunity to learn more about it, beyond looking through artifacts at the UNI Museum at Rod Library.

If hoping to attend the event, there are some things to keep in mind. Since the excavation site is in a remote part of campus and in a nat ural setting, Gaff highlights that visitors should be dressed not just for the weather but for walking in a field. “Since we will be actively shovel ing and screening, we can’t guarantee that visitors will be kept clean,” he says. Think of it like another unique part of the experience. And finally, note that in case of rain, this DigUNI showcase will be can celed.

DIAMOND

NI ARCHIVES

For a full list of events and details, visit https://familyweekend.uni.edu.

International students and culture shock

PATRICE WATSON Guest Columnist

One cannot begin to fath om the sacrifice and change an international student has to go through from transition ing to a culture they have an understanding of to a culture that is so foreign and they are strangers to. The University of Northern Iowa currently has 456 international students on campus—of which 273 are undergraduates—in compari son with their total popula tion of almost 9,000. Being a minority within a minority already sets them back at a disadvantage and their various experiences differ.

Cedar Falls is relative ly peaceful, and because the campus is walkable, it is easy to get around and have inter actions with other students, faculty or just people in the community. But, there is so much that goes on in terms of international students being conflicted with the culture here that they have to adapt. The following content and quotes are based on interviews that were carried out focusing on six international students that were randomly chosen; they were all asked similar questions. The questions that were asked garnered some similar responses, but the main focus was on some of the biggest culture shocks they’ve experienced while being in the United States, specifically while being in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Culture shock can be described as personal disori entation a person may feel when they’re experiencing an unfamiliar place due to immi gration. This is something that is not normally talked about as it doesn’t apply to the majority of students here at the University of Northern Iowa, but when the interna tional students were given the opportunity to share their experiences and thoughts, the responses were quite hilarious and eye-opening.

A small gesture, something as simple as someone smiling was one of the most common responses among the partici pants. In most countries outside

of the U.S., when eye-contact with another person is made, they have a tendency to look away fast—in some instances they would be greeted with a mean mug. It’s the total opposite here at Cedar Falls on campus; for some reason Americans have a tendency to always have a smile on their faces, leading people to ques tion “whether it is really gen uine or is it just being fake.”

This type of behavior is so easily adopted amongst inter national students; they stated that sometimes they automati cally do it without even know ing because it’s such an easy habit to learn. It’s not only students—it’s everyone who they have made contact with within the Cedar Falls area.

Some recall even when they return back to their respective home countries this habit of them smiling with strangers happens without them notic ing and it is not received like it would be in Cedar Falls.

Another popular response was the dressing or attire of students on campus. In some countries clothing is very strict regarding how individuals put themselves together when they are going on the road and when they’re going to school. Here in the U.S. and on cam pus it’s the total opposite. It is more relaxed, and people can wear anything they feel com fortable in. For instance, paja mas can be seen on campus being worn on a daily basis and it is accepted here; if it was either in Nigeria, Jamaica or Ghana the elders would find such a big problem with it—it wouldn’t even be allowed to pass the front door of your home. Properly covering one’s skin is very essential, and it is a way people know that you are a respectable young man or a respectable young woman as you take pride in how you carry and present yourself to others. This again is so easily adaptable because you are not under those restraints anymore that you sometimes adapt to the norm here and just go along with the flow. In trying to fit in at some point, inter national students find them selves slowly being indulged in this practice but it cannot be repeated or shown to other persons in their respective

countries.

Graduate student Telsleem Ajisafe stated that, “The class culture here is different from what is back at home in terms of how formal the classroom setting is. You had to address your professors by their respective titles verses here it is so casual as professors would tell you to call them by their first names.”

International student Christiana Ogunlana empha sizes, “The various class

different languages and their accents, sometimes these are concerns for international stu dents as they don’t know how they are going to be received or perceived by other students.

There is limited diversity here in Cedar Falls and on campus—that creates issues of being able to get familiar goods that might be available in some of the international students’ respective countries. Which leads to the next culture shock: food. The American diet consists of a lot of fatty and oily foods. In some of these international students’ countries, fast food restau rants are few to none as it is instilled in them from a young age that it is very important for one to know how to pre pare traditional meals for the family. Being in Cedar Falls and seeing the different fast food varieties is very foregin and sometimes causes issues in terms of having limited options of what to eat. Some students noted that they had to bring some of their ingre dients that they would typi cally use from their respective home countries to school to have a sense of home while preparing their various dishes here. Others would have to outsource within the U.S. by ordering online or traveling to Des Moines where there is more diversity to get various ingredients. Others admit that the fast food is really good, but it gets to a point where one has to force themselves from indulging too much as they start to have problems because they are not used to this type of food.

es here are more discus sion-based versus back home, where it is more note taking; this really encourages a lot of group work and team building which isn’t very popular in our curriculum.”

Small changes like what was previously mentioned about the classroom takes these international students out of their comfort zone, especially if they are intro verted and are not used to public speaking. While others can be very fascinated by their

Despite having to adjust to so many different things about American culture, one thing for certain and that inter national students would most definitely admit to is that the opportunities that are here are not in their respective coun tries. If achieving their goals is making simple sacrifices by adjusting to the different clothing, food and smiling a little longer or more often, it is definitely worth it. This is per fect practice for international students when they decide to enter the labor force whether in their respective countries or if they decide to remain in the U.S.

COURTESY/PATRICE WATSON Pictured above is Telsleem Ajisafe, 24, a first-year graduate student studying geography from Nigeria.

COURTESY/PATRICE WATSON Belinda Ampedu, 25, is from Ghana. She is currently a graduate student in teaching English as a second language (TESOL).

COURTESY/PATRICE WATSON

Pictured above is UNI alum Nino Mateshvili, 30, from Republic of Georgia in eastern Europe.

COURTESY/PATRICE WATSON

Sahja Abd-Elhai, 30, is from Isreal, and is currently studying women and gender studies.

COURTESY/PATRICE WATSON

Pictured above is Hakima Afzaly, 32, from Afghanistan, who is currently studying women and gender studies.

COURTESY/PATRICE WATSON International student Christiana Ogunlana, 25, is a first-year graduate student studying women and gender studies.

Stranger’s smiles: are they genuine or fake?

Coach Jacobson speaks at media day

ADAM JOHNSON Sports Writer

UNI’s season is getting underway in two weeks, as on Nov. 2, they will go up against Dubuque in an exhibition game. With the season coming up quickly, the team had media day on Monday, Oct. 17, and gave us a chance to see what we might expect from this sea son of Panther basketball.

The highlight of this media day was a press con ference with five-time MVC Coach of the Year Ben Jacobson, who is going into his 17th season as the head coach at UNI. To start it off, Coach Jacobson had sixth year senior Austin Phyfe joining him. Phyfe, who has had a great career at UNI, was there to discuss his health and what this season might look like for him. At the moment his ability to play is still up in the air, with the earliest potential return being around Christmas, but

he might not make it on the floor at all. Coach Jacobson says that Phyfe’s health is far more important than him being on the floor.

After Phyfe left, the focus went to the season, and what things are going to look like this year. One of the things that got brought up imme diately was the schedule that UNI has this year. The Panthers look to have a very tough schedule this season, as seven of their non-con ference opponents ranked in the top 100 last season.

Coach Jacobson said that there are two ways to make it to the tournament.

“You either win your con ference tournament, or you build a schedule that can get you there.” He believes that the schedule is strong enough that if they per form well, they could have a chance at an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament.

He also noted that he really liked the additions of qual ity teams like Murray State

and Belmont into the con ference. UIC has the poten tial to be a good addition as well.

Going forward, the shift went towards the players. UNI is coming off a great season last year, but they lost a lot of key pieces of the team. They lost the likes of AJ Green, Noah Carter, Tywhon Pickford and Trae Berhow. This means that they will need a lot of play ers to step up, and make greater impacts on the team this season.

One of these guys will undoubtedly be reigning MVC Sixth Man of the Year, Bowen Born. Coach Jacobson noted that Born has been looking very good so far, and he’s excited for him to take the next step as a player and as a leader. About Born, he said, “From a mentality standpoint, he just wants to win.”

Coach Jacobson then went on to talk about the rest of the roster and what

playing time might look like. He said that Born, Nate Heise and Tytan Anderson would most definitely be in the starting lineup. Someone between Trey Campbell, Landon Wolf and Michael Duax would likely be anoth er starter in the backcourt, but all will have roles. True freshman Ege Peksari is another guy to look for in the backcourt, and for the forward position, the top guys are James Betz, Cole Henry and Derek Krogmann.

Towards the end he was asked about expectations this season with a young roster. Without hesitation he said, “I think we’re gonna go undefeated.” While he was clearly joking, he said the expectations do not

change. They love the good non-conference, and believe they can beat those teams. They also expect to be in the hunt for a conference cham pionship. He closed by say ing, “They want to play the best. They might be young, but they are not going to back down to anyone.”

This UNI team looks to do great things this sea son, and it should be fun to watch in about two weeks. The Panthers will begin the regular season on Monday, Nov. 7, hosting the nearby Wartburg Knights at 7:30 p.m. inside the McLeod Center. This will be part of a doubleheader, as the women will also host St. Thomas in a game scheduled for a 5 p.m. opening tipoff.

MEN’S GOLF

UNI competes at Iowa Fall Classic

CADEN SHEA Sports Writer

The UNI men’s golf team competed in the Iowa Fall Classic on Tuesday after noon at the Blue Top Ridge Golf Course in Riverside, Iowa. The Panthers shot a team score of 921 which helped them obtain a sixth place finish. The Classic

was won by the University of Iowa Hawkeyes who shot a total of 884.

The first day of play was capitalized by four birdies right off the bat on the front nine by Thomas Storbeck.

Storbeck shot a 72 on the first round of the day for an even score before shoot ing a 76 later that after noon to finish the day four shots over par. Connor

Van Weelden shot an eagle on the third hole of the first round of the morning, also shooting an even first round. Griffin Parker tied for 30th on the first day by shooting an 81 in the first round and a 76 in the second for a total of 157.

Tommy Doyle tied for 34th with a total 158 after rounds of 75 and 83, respectively.

The second day was more

difficult than the first for the Panthers. Storbeck shot an 81 which gave him a total of 229 for the tournament. His second day was high lighted by a birdie on the back nine. Both Storbeck and Van Weelden finished the tournament with scores of 229 or 13 over par on the entire course. Nile Petersen, a freshman for the Panthers, shot an even 72 on the sec

ond day. This gave him a total of 235 after sinking five birdies on the second day. This gave him a +19 on the course and 28th place on his first intercollegiate tournament.

The Panthers fall season will conclude on Oct. 24 and 25 in Tulsa, Okla. when they compete in The Clerico at the Oaks Country Club hosted by Oral Roberts.

NIXSON BENITEZ/NORTHERN IOWAN UNI head coach Ben Jacobson speaks to the media Monday during UNI’s annual men’s basketball media day.

NIXSON BENITEZ/NORTHERN IOWAN

The 2022-23 UNI men’s basketball team poses for a team photo during Monday’s media day.

Preview: Bears @ Panthers

BEN LAHART Sports Writer

The UNI football team is looking to end their four game home stand with a victory against confer ence opponent Missouri State (2-4, 0-3 MVFC) for the purple out game. The Panthers have gone 2-1 in their last three games at home and 3-1 in the last four overall.

UNI has won eight of the last 10 games against the Bears but have lost the past two. Last year’s matchup turned out to be a shootout coming down to the last minute of the game. Theo Day had a rough start last year throwing two intercep tions in the first half. The Panthers found themselves down 13-6 at half time. Day nearly doubled his passing yards from the first half as he threw for 156 yards and

two touchdowns in the sec ond half. Tyler Hoosman also found the endzone in the second half on a two-yard touchdown run. After being down 14 points at one point, UNI found themselves at a 27-27 tie late in the fourth quarter before MSU quar terback Jason Shelley threw a 55-yard touchdown to win the game.

Day continued his stellar season last week as he had arguably his best game thus

far. He accounted for four touchdowns on the day, three in the air and one on the ground, as well as throwing for over 300 yards for just the second time this sea son. The biggest play of the game came late in the second quarter on a 70-yard touch down pass to Sam Schnee. This was Day’s second lon gest touchdown pass of the season. He ranks sixth in passing yards among FCS schools with 1,850 and is tied for 16th in touchdown passes with 16. He ranks first in the Missouri Valley Football Conference in both of those categories as well.

The Panther offense looked great all around last week and will look to con tinue that success. UNI had their most productive per formance of the season put ting up nearly 550 yards of offense in the 41-14 thump ing of Utah Tech. Schnee had the 70-yard touchdown reception, and his 154 receiv ing yards was a season high. Dom Williams ran in his fifth touchdown of the sea son early in the second quar

ter. Benny Sapp III recorded his third interception of the season in the game. Edwin Dearman also had an inter ception.

Missouri State is coming off a tough loss to Southern Illinois 38-21. In the loss, quarterback Shelley threw for 195 yards and a touch down. He also threw two interceptions. Jacardia Wright had 83 rushing yards in the contest and ran in for two touchdowns as well. The Bears defense strug gled against the pass allow ing for two SIU receivers to break the 100 yard mark. Ty Scott led MSU in recep tions with four and receiv ing yards with 60 in the loss as well.

UNI enters this game sit ting sixth in the conference rankings with a 3-4 record and a 2-2 record in confer ence play. They will look to carry that momentum from last week to get back to .500 on the season. Kickoff will be at 4 p.m. this Saturday, Oct. 22, in the UNI-Dome. The game can also be streamed on ESPN+.

VOLLEYBALL

Panthers still perfect at MVC halfway mark

DAVID WARRINGTON Sports Editor

The UNI volleyball pro gram is halfway through their Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) sched ule, and they have yet to lose a match, sitting at a perfect 9-0 in conference play. The Panthers are also currently ranked 49th in Ratings Percentage Index, best among MVC teams. It is a team with depth, expe rience and tons of skill that has plenty of potential to make a lot of noise in the postseason.

Starting conference play 9-0 isn’t anything new for the UNI volleyball program. This is the 12th time it has happened in program his tory, most recently in 2018. In all 11 other instances, the Panthers won at least a share of the MVC regular season championship, including winning the outright title 10 times.

The Panthers regular

season didn’t get off to the start they wanted, losing five of their first six matches. In a trip to Arizona, the Panthers fell to Toledo and Arizona State in four and five sets respectively, but did pick up a 3-0 win over CSU Bakersfield. Next up was a trip to Omaha, Neb. for a tournament hosted by Creighton. In matches against three ranked teams, the Panthers picked up just one set win, falling to USC, Kentucky and Creighton, ranked 25th, 16th and 17th in the nation, respectively.

After this start, the Panthers turned it around at their home tournament.

Inside the McLeod Center, UNI took down Western Michigan in four sets, Southeast Missouri State in three and Grand Canyon in a reverse sweep, winning the last three sets after fall ing behind 2-0. This started a string of success for the Panthers, winning 15 of 16 matches in that time. This

included a win in Ames against Iowa State, and the one loss came to Big 10 foe Iowa on the road.

Emily Holterhaus has led the way offensively for the Panthers. The Pella, Iowa native has recorded 269 kills to lead the team. Kira Fallert has also done very well, as the sophomore has 230 kills. Fallert has also been dead ly at the service line, total ing a team-best 24 aces so far this season. A total of six players have at least 100 kills. Tayler Alden has done a great job leading the UNI offense. Alden has totaled 818 assists on the season, and has also added 117 kills.

Carly Spies leads the way in blocks for the Panthers with a total of 87. Inga Rotto, who has now played in more sets and matches than any other Panther, has also been good defensively, totaling 62 blocks alongside 190 kills on a .356 hitting percentage. Sydney Petersen has added a team-best 340 digs. The libe

ro is a transfer from Texas and the daughter of head coach Bobbi Petersen play ing her last collegiate season for the Panthers.

There are plenty of other Panthers that have made huge contributions this season, such as Sydney’s twin sister Baylee Petersen, who is just 22 digs away from 1,000 in her career, Olivia Tjernagel, and Payton Ahrenstorff, that help prove just how deep and talented this team is.

Next up for the Panthers

will be a road trip to Indiana, taking on Indiana State this Friday as well as Evansville on Saturday. Your next chance to catch the Panthers at home will be Friday, Oct. 28 and Saturday, Oct. 29. The Panthers will host Murray State on Friday and Belmont on Saturday. All games remaining on UNI’s schedule can be viewed on ESPN3, with the exception of the season finale at Drake, which will be available for streaming on ESPN+.

COURTESY/UNI ATHLETICS

They Day (12) had one of his best games as a Panther on Saturday, passing for 308 yards and three touchdowns without an interception.

COURTESY/UNI ATHLETICS

For the 12th time in program history, the UNI volleyball team is off to a 9-0 start in Missouri Valley Conference play.

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