Elizabeth Ahern
Job Title: Employee Experience Leader, Adobe; UOAA Board of Directors
Major: Political Science
Graduated: BA 2000
Elizabeth Ahern graduated from the University of Oregon in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in political science. She currently works as an Employee Experience Leader at Adobe and is on the UO Alumni Association board of directors.
What are your tips for effective networking and how can students build a professional network early on?
Learn to keep in touch with the people you
Learning to keep in touch with the people you meet. Being someone who keeps in touch is an art and whether it’s through text or social media, having personal relationships are meaningful and really important. No matter what job you have, everyone you interact with is your network. It could be your manager, a VP, or your peer working for another organization. It’s really beneficial to just take time to get to know the people around you and build relationships because you never know where those relationships will go.
Read the full interview at uoalumni.com/careerprofiles.
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ON THE COVER
Three years after the release of their First LP, Heaven Spots, Growing Pains return with five song EP “Thought I Heard Your Car.” Growing Pains discuss the release of their long-awaited sophomore project: “Thought I Heard Your Car”on Feb. 17, 2023. (Maddie Stellingwerf/ Emerald)
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Through a new partnership with Lyft, students will get four $7 coupons every month for Lyft rides starting spring term.
BY PAUL ROBINSONTop viewed story in the past week:
“City approves 81-Unit affordable housing project” by Alan Torres
(Illustration by Ia BalbuenaNedrow/Emerald)
Second most read story in the past week: “Conservative speaking event is disrupted by protesters” by Caleb Barber
On Feb. 8, ASUO senate agreed to a $25,000 surplus request to bring students a new rideshare program through Lyft to help University of Oregon students get home safely after midnight.
The ride-share program, through Lyft, will begin spring term. Students will be able to sign up for an account with their UO email and receive four $7 coupons every month, ASUO General Policy Secretary John Freudenthal said.
He said the program will provide an alternative mode of transportation for students to avoid walking home at night. The program’s hours of operation will be between 12 a.m. and 7:30 a.m.
The program is intended for students who walk home late from work, school, classes or other extracurricular activities, so students will only be able to use it to and from the EugeneSpringfield area, said Freudenthal.
Duck Rides, a free transportation service for UO students, only operates between 6 p.m. and 12 a.m.
“We quickly realized that Duck Rides wasn’t really in a position to be expanded at all,” Freudenthal said. “They’re currently suffering from record low employment numbers, which restricts the amount of people they can pick up. They often have to turn students away.”
Freudenthal said Lyft already has rideshare programs with other universities, so it was
chosen as the preferred rideshare service for UO. This program really already exists at the UO Portland campus, Freudenthal said.
Freudenthal said that nearly 75% of students felt unsafe walking at night, and the same amount of respondents also felt that rideshare programs were a financial burden to them which prevented them from getting home safely.
Freudenthal and Contract Finance Committee Chair Jenna Travers said they were concerned that Lyft’s zero tolerance drug and alcohol policy would mean intoxicated students would be turned away, but Lyft said the policy just applies to drivers.
“They assured us they know kind of what college kids are doing at this time of night,” Freudenthal said.
After a pilot period to test how much the program will cost the university and how many students benefit from the program, Freudenthal said a longer-term contract will be written.
Travers said students will get an email from the UO transportation services outlining more of the details on how to sign up.
She also recommended combining coupons among friends. This will enable students to use rides more effectively.
(Alexis Weisend/Emerald)
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Opinion: A global technological superpower using a big white balloon to gather intelligence on a foreign rival seems too
to be true. So, what was it?
BY BRAYDON IVERSONIn early February, a high-altitude balloon hovered through U.S. airspace above Montana, South Dakota and then Missouri before exiting the states to the Atlantic Ocean by way of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Besides that being the most hellish layover experience I’ve ever heard of, it concerned U.S. intelligence as worry rose of the balloon possibly being a surveillance device sent by China.
After the U.S. military determined spying on international entities is our thing, the bubble was shot down over the Atlantic Ocean. While the balloon itself was confirmed to originate from Chinese airspace, the nature of the object is yet to be entirely confirmed as rescue crews recover the wreckage on the East Coast. However, the Department of Defense was quick to label the UFO as a “Chinese surveillance balloon” in briefings soon after the ball dropped out of the sky. The Pentagon even claimed it’s surety in it being a spy device days before it was shot down.
China was similarly quick to refute these claims, stating the balloon was a civilian aircraft that wandered its way over somehow. Fairly convincing as alibis go; I can’t count the amount of 200-foot balloons that have gotten away from my clumsy little hands.
Regardless of the lack of verification of the espionage-ness of the object, media outlets have run with the “spy balloon” tag.
I just can’t see it being a spy balloon. Floating a balloon to survey another country in
the modern day simply is too stupid to be China’s actual plan. We’re talking about a country that has artificially created islands off its coast to act as military bases. Have you heard of satellites? They have a few of those. A TIME article suggested balloons might have an advantage of lower detectability by radar over most surveillance satellites, but that also just doesn’t make sense. U.S. intelligence reportedly tracked the entire flight path of the balloon since it lifted off from Hainan Island.
If China really wanted information on the U.S., they’d just take what data TikTok has been collecting in America for years. With the way the general American public adores oversharing on that app, they’d have all they’d need in a heartbeat. You complaining about your dumb boyfriend no one cares about on that app is directly contributing to America losing an informational cold war with China.
People are concerned the balloon got a look at some U.S. nuclear missile silos, which would honestly be a disaster. Could you imagine if the world found out our little secret: that America houses weapons of mass destruction? I can find those things on Google Maps, and if that surprised China, maybe they deserved to have their bubble burst.
Sending a balloon over to spy on a foreign entity, even a fancy balloon, sounds archaic at best. I really can’t believe that was China’s best idea for the next chapter of espionage. The U.S. military would never do something so frivolous, and they certainly wouldn’t plan on spending 30.9 million
dollars on inflatable intelligence by the fiscal year 2023, per Politico.
I’ve come up with more reasonable scenarios for the balloon’s origins than it being a spy piece from China. It could have been an unnamed artist’s depiction of Joe Rogan’s bald dome. It could be the character Balloony from “Phineas and Ferb.” After all, I’m pretty sure that’s how the theme song goes: “surfing tidal waves, creating nanobots or spying on U.S. airspace.”
If it is indeed determined to be military aircraft, I would think another global superpower not named China would be responsible for this. This move better fits the M.O. of the Bloons from Bloons Tower Defense. If that were the case, taking it down with a jet seems overkill. Why waste money on a plane when you could’ve just got a dart monkey or something?
What if the aircraft wasn’t for intelligence, but for transportation? Have we considered it may have been the Fortnite Battle Bus? This move was very brazen from China indeed, beginning the third World War by attempting to drop in Musty Montana.
Braydon Iverson is a second year opinion columnist for the Daily Emerald and fourth year student. Covering sports, student life and broader national trends, sometimes he doesn’t even know if his opinion is genuine or not.
“We’re not so different after all...”(Ian Proctor/ Emerald)
Ian Proctor is an editorial cartoonist for the Daily Emerald. He is a freshman with interests in journalism, political science and animation, as well as paleontology and biology. Ian’s comics may appear bizarre, but this is just the way he tends to draw things
comical
Bred in Portland’s DIY-music scene, the latest and greatest Northwest quartet Growing Pains delivered their long-awaited sophomore project “Thought I Heard Your Car” last Friday, Feb. 17.
The newest installment in their discography is a testament to the growth the band has endured over the three years since their last release, “Heaven Spots”. This collection showcases the band’s maturity as a unit –– but also as individuals transitioning from years of teenage angst into budding adulthood.
This release marks a new precedent for the band going forward, breaking down the walls of their own psyches to create music which unapologetically reflects their thoughts and emotions first –– without adhering to constraints of genre or preconceived notions from the band’s first release.
Formed in 2018, while all the members were still in high school. Their journey as a band has paralleled their own personal growth through adolescence. After meeting through the “School of Rock” program in Portland, Carl Taylor (guitar), Jack Havrilla (vocals/guitar) and Kyle Kraft (drums) began making music together. But it wasn’t until Kalia Storer (vocals/bass) was recruited that the band was fully formed. All that was left was to
decide on a name before their first gig.
After a strenuous process discarding names that didn’t quite fit, making this decision proved to be more difficult than expected. That is until Havrilla watched season one, episode five of the TV show “Breaking Bad.” During the episode, Walt Jr. gets in trouble trying to buy beer, and his uncle Hank helps bail him out. When Hank talks to Walt’s mother, he said this in defense of his nephew: “He’s just a teeanger trying to score some beers… you know…growing pains.” Thus a name was born.
Prior to becoming the band it is today, the members of the group had extensive experiences engaging in the Portland scene as fans –– as well as through separate musical aspirations prior to meeting.
“My dad and uncle had a band together, multiple bands together, and a lot of my parents’ friends were in the music scene. So growing up, I’d go to a lot of shows,” Storer said. “When I was little, being around that scene, my family and extended family definitely were pushing for me to be in music. Looking up to my dad, my uncle and all my parent’s friends, I just wanted to be like that.”
By 2019, Growing Pains had put out their first single: “Winter Broke.” About a year later, their debut LP “Heaven Spots” –– with seven new tracks –– was available to the world. Recorded at Echo Hill
After a three-year wait, local band Growing Pains talks about the release of their newest project: “Thought I Heard Your Car.”Growing Pains performs at a sold out show at the 552, a popular house show venue in Eugene, Ore. Growing Pains discuss the release of their longawaited sophomore project: “Thought I Heard Your Car”on Feb. 17, 2023. (Maddie Stellingwerf/Emerald) From left to right: Kalia Storer (vocals/bass), Jack Havrilla (guitar), Carl Taylor (guitar) and Kyle Kraft (drums). Growing Pains discuss the release of their long-awaited sophomore project: “Thought I Heard Your Car”on Feb. 17, 2023. (Maddie Stellingwerf/Emerald)
Studios in Portland during the beginning months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the difference in process is stark. Unable to write together, or even hang out in person, while also all still being high school students, this was a dynamic the band has reflected on greatly –– especially when compared to the band’s most recent releases’ process.
“With ‘Heaven Spots,’ I was in high school, and all the music I listened to was written by people who were in their 30s and had a different view on life,” Taylor said . “I had this desire to have the same lyrical style as these artists who had totally different experiences than me. So there was a disconnect in those lyrics.”
The band continues to perform songs from “Heaven Spots” at most shows to this day, and plans to continue doing so. There remains a clear sense of pride regarding this first project and its ability to capture the mindset the band was in during this time in their career, working as a stepping stone for the potential that will come with their future projects.
In the early days of summer 2022, the band began recording “Thought I Heard Your Car,” three years after their last release. Using what they’d learned from their first LP, all trial and error was taken into account for making the latest work.
“I feel a lot more connected to our music now,” Storer said. “I’ve found a new kind of effervescence for writing lyrics, and I feel like I’m getting
better at conveying how I actually feel in a more developed sense than before.”
Storer and Taylor were responsible for penning the lyrics for all five of the songs on the project. Taylor is credited for “What are the Odds?” and “Lemon Lime,” while Storer wrote “Pretend to Sleep” and “Memory From Last Year.” The two of them unite on the song “In Effigy.” However, each member of the band was crucial in creating their own respective instrumental parts, working together to create their most innovative and cohesive sound to date.
“With this EP, it was really fun for us to take more complicated musical elements than we’ve done before looking at time signatures, chord progressions and the stacking of things,” Kraft said “and then still trying to balance it out with being a very fun pop song to listen to.”
But what does it take to write a song? And how can you know when it’s ready to go out into the world?
When posed with these questions, the band stated that for the most part, songs start and end in different ways, with some of the songs on this record based on ideas from years prior. Feeling more comfortable in their own method of songwriting, the band members were able to experiment more with new ideas as well as revamp some older pieces that needed to be fully fleshed out.
“Production felt more like a fifth instrument to the band in this, where we were all collectively
making these creative decisions with Nathan [Tucker] that were really shaping the song,” Kraft said about working with producer Nathan Tucker, who also serves as a part of two bands, Strange Ranger and Cool Original. “We wanted to go back to that feeling of recreating something that we felt somewhere else, and really conveying that emotion. You can do that with your instruments and with lyrics, but production is another color you add to the painting to really bring it to life.”
“Thought I Heard Your Car” is a must-listen for fans of the Pacific Northwest music scene. It’s a bold and innovative project showcasing the band’s versatility and willingness to think outside of any box people may try to put them in.
Stand-out track “Lemon Lime” sets the tone for the album with its gritty instrumentals. Paralleling shoegaze heavy weights like Slowdive or My Bloody Valentine, paired perfectly with Storer’s dreamy vocals akin to Hope Sandoval of Mazzy Star. However, these comparisons only aid to give context rather than entirely describe the breakthrough talent of a band with members who are prepared to, literally, grow their future together.
Spin the record now and don’t miss the next show in Eugene. Or plan a road trip to Portland for their EP release show on March 3 with Common Girl and Mauve at Mission Theater.
Keep tabs on the band on Instagram or Twitter: @growingpainspdx
Thirty minutes before tip-off, the Pit Crew was jam-packed with the rowdiest students on campus. As “Superhero” from Metro Boomin’s latest album blared from the speakers, it was clear that the Ducks would need superhero performances from their key players to have a shot at victory against No. 7 UCLA.
“They’re disciplined. They all crash the glass, and everybody knows their roles,” guard Jermaine Cousinard said. “That’s what separates them from a lot of other teams.”
On Saturday those skills certainly separated the Bruins from the Ducks as they won 70-63 to improve their record to a Pac-12 best 21-4 (12-2), while the game dropped the Ducks to 15-11 and put their NCAA Tournament hopes in jeopardy.
It didn’t start out that way, though.
Oregon got off to a blazing start, forging a 6-0 runoff smothering defense and physicality from reliable big man N’Faly Dante. That run would turn into an 8-0 advantage from Oregon after Dante followed up his defensive effort with an emphatic slam that nearly brought the roof down.
UCLA’s 0-of-4 start wouldn’t last for long, as they’d soon find their offensive rhythm thanks to
back-to-back pull-up jumpers from former fivestar Amari Bailey.
Before the Ducks knew it, the 8-0 lead had turned into a 12-10 deficit following sloppy play. Senior guard Will Richardson threw a go-ahead pass with the Ducks in transition. Instead of the ball finding Cousinard, it ended up in the statistician’s row.
“We were just really sloppy,” coach Dana Altman said. “We missed some good looks early, and they just pounded us on the boards.”
Altman’s squad has fought through adversity before, this situation being no different. A refocused offensive effort and lethargic Bruin turnovers would bring the game to an 18-all score with eight minutes remaining in the first half.
Two minutes later, the Ducks seized control once again. After a smooth NBA-worthy up-and-under layup from Bailey, Dante tipped in a faulty layup to give Oregon a 22-21 lead.
With just seconds on the clock, UCLA leading scorer Jaime Jaquez Jr. attempted a layup that seemed to be uncontested. Coming out of nowhere was Dante, who had a LeBron James-esque chasedown block. The senior big man let out a powerful
roar and flexed, invigorating the whole arena.
The Ducks ended the half leading 33-30.
What had been a hot end to the first half turned frigid early into the second. Jaquez found his groove, making multiple tough, contested jumpers. Without Dante on the court, the Ducks struggled to rebound.
Nearly eight minutes went by without the Ducks making a field goal. Cousinard would end that streak with an easy layup, but Jaquez answered back with two 3-pointers of his own to extend the Bruins’ lead to 12 with 10 minutes remaining.
Just when all hope was on the edge of being lost, Cousinard provided a much-needed spark. After he pushed the pace in transition, converting a layup, UCLA missed a jumper leading to a pull-up three from Cousinard which found the bottom of the net. With the lead cut to single digits, the crowd became electrified with under nine minutes to go.
All Duck momentum would soon be lost as multiple baskets from UCLA, including a nail-inthe-coffin three from Jaylen Clark, extended the lead back to 13.
Turnovers, missed shots and fouls emboldened the Bruins even more, resulting in the Bruins’ lead
nearing 20 with under five minutes left.
The Ducks eventually cut the lead to six with 16.7 seconds left, but they wouldn’t get any closer than that.
“We have more games in front of us. We can’t hang our heads right now,” Cousinard said. “We’ll refocus and worry about next week.”
With the loss, Oregon now sits at 15-11 (9-6). The Ducks will have to travel to Pullman for their next game at Washington St., who the Ducks handled easily in December.
JERMAINE COUSINARD, GUARDWill Richardson (0) is fouled by a UCLA defender as he drives into the paint. The Oregon Ducks host the #7 ranked UCLA Bruins at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Ore., on Feb. 13th, 2023. (Jonathan Suni/Emerald)
Elevation Bouldering Gym’s monthly BIPOC Meetups foster inclusivity, autonomy and community.
BY MIRANDAH DAVIS-POWELLOn the first Saturday of every month, Elevation Bouldering Gym hosts the BIPOC Meetup, a free climbing event reserved for members of the BIPOC community in the wider Eugene area. The UO Outdoor Program facilitates a monthly trip to the event for BIPOC students, including a pre-trip info session and transportation to the gym.
The community event is geared toward increasing accessibility of rock climbing and other outdoor sports, breaking down existing barriers so BIPOC individuals can feel welcomed in an environment that isn’t always inclusive to them. The UO Outdoor Program helps fund monthly trips from campus to Elevation for this event through the Redefining Outdoorsy initiative.
“A lot of people of color haven’t been able to access gear,” Erin McGinnes, the collaborative program coordinator at the UO Outdoor Program Office, said. According to McGinnes, who is involved with the Redefining Outdoorsy initiative, the costs of climbing can add up quickly. She said that climbing essentials such as ropes, crimps, shoes and a monthly membership can sum to hundreds of dollars, something that may not be affordable to every college student, especially for students of color who are more likely to face socioeconomic disadvantages.
McGinnes said it can be hard to even know where to go or how to learn the sport if you don’t know someone else who climbs, making it even more difficult for BIPOC who have not historically had access to this activity.
“Climbing itself is really expensive in most
other towns. It’s exclusively people who are men, exclusively people who are white,” Ashley Fenner, a fifth-year UO student and participant in the monthly BIPOC Meetups at Elevation, said. “Eugene happens to be really special and makes room to have programs like this.”
For Fenner, the inclusivity and welcoming environment are important aspects of the BIPOC climb nights. Elevation has effectively created an opportunity specifically for BIPOC that includes climbers that may have not felt comfortable in the space otherwise. “This particular space I probably would not have climbed in if there was not a program that had explicitly invited me to it,” she said.
After the first session at the BIPOC meetup, Elevation offers a variety of opportunities so BIPOC attendees are encouraged to return and keep practicing their skills. According to McGinnes, the bouldering gym offers a range of opportunities including a free one-month membership to new members of the gym. “Elevation wants to make it really accessible, and make it a place where people can come and learn,” she said.
Elevation also focuses on providing a variety of different activities, making an avid effort to include climbers of all levels. Fenner said there are always new climbers at each month’s meetup. Whether you’re a first-time climber or a seasoned pro, there is a wide range of activities to engage in. McGinnes mentioned there are lessons provided to hone in skills. “Say you’re trying to work on your crimps. Then they’ll have someone there who’s really good at that and can help you with that,” she said.
The program additionally focuses on supporting connections and fostering community within the attendees of BIPOC climb night, encouraging comfortability and fun so that the gym feels like a safe place to return to. “It’s like the best climbing experience I’ve ever had, honestly,” McGinnes said.
McGinnes said she’s looking forward to seeing more cultural aspects incorporated into climb night –– and doing even more work to make BIPOC individuals feel included and welcome in a space that may be unfamiliar to them.
Fostering a sense of community among BIPOC students and individuals is a vital step toward creating accessibility to climbing, according to McGinnes. “It’s really hard to create that culture when there’s not someone there to teach you,” she said. According to her, the future of BIPOC in spaces such as climbing gyms relies on the education of peers and friends in the same community.
With climbing specifically, there’s a special vulnerability that is reached with the extreme sport, and a trust that’s built among participants as they learn and progress. “I love being able to watch people achieve their goals and reach them and try and fail. It’s a good space to develop some of those friendships,” Fenner said.
Above all, the program aims to encourage attendees to continue using these skills. Fenner described the skills she’s learned as inspiring and transferable. “I can go climb outside. I can go hike. I can take on these new activities I haven’t tried before,” she said.
