Issue 1, Volume 86
@thedailycougar Wednesday, August 26, 2020
Est. 1934
www.thedailycougar.com
Welcome Back. It’s been nearly six months since campus was shut down by the pandemic. Exactly how different is life at UH going to be for the next year? | PG. 2
LIFE AND ARTS Its relevance rising, students are turning to astrology as a coping mechanism. | PG. 4
SPORTS With a few weeks until its season opener, the UH football team needs all the practice it can get. | PG. 6
OPINION Many teachers are returning to the classroom, and it’s time we give them the respect they deserve. | PG. 10
2 | Wednesday, August 26, 2020
NEWS
DONNA KEEYA EDITORS & SYDNEY ROSE,
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS
CAMPUS
New normal: How life at UH will look this fall as pandemic continues SYDNEY ROSE
South on Tuesdays and Thursdays like during a normal semester.
NEWS EDITOR @SYDNEYROSE1029
As the back to school season begins, the UH campus has change in the air. With the pandemic still at large, many changes will be impacting the University for the fall semester. Social distancing is the new normal for students, faculty and staff at the University as there are guidelines to follow at multiple buildings around campus, along with the requirement of wearing a mask or face covering. The University announced that all the guides and protocols related to COVID-19 will adjust as necessary to reflect new information and findings. This includes a to-do list item for students that differs from previous academic semesters. Even coronavirus protocol training is on that list. Students must now complete the “Protecting Our Campus Communities from COVID-19” safety training on their UH selfservice accounts ahead of the semester’s start.
Dining
Juana Garcia/The Cougar
Student Centers In regards to the pandemic, the student centers have less tables and seated areas to ensure the 6-feet apart guideline, as well as asks for gatherings within the
building to be kept to under 10 people. The dining options within the student centers will remain open for the fall with revised hours of operation.
While past semesters have had food trucks scattered across campus, this semester will not be getting rid of that, just limiting it. There will still be a food truck stationed outside of Student Center
For the fall, Cougar Woods Dining Hall has been open 24/7 since Sunday. The dining hall will close for few hours a day, the time dedicated to sanitizing. Moody Towers Dining Commons, which used to be open all day, will now be closed for the entire semester. The dining commons will have Plexiglas at each station and at the register to check in, as well as offer the taking a to-go plate of food from one of the stations. The markets at Student Center South, Cougar Village I and the University Lofts will remain open for students to shop at, but the Cougar Woods Market will be closed. Each campus meal plan comes with some amount of Cougar Cash and meal exchanges. Meal exchanges for the fall will be available all day and locations such as the Starbucks in SC South will
FALL
Continues on page 3
08.24.20 - 09.05.20
For full event schedule visit
uh.edu/wow
Wednesday, August 26, 2020 | 3 DONNA KEEYA EDITORS & SYDNEY ROSE,
ACADEMICS & RESEARCH
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS
NEWS
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
‘The staff at UH are killing it’
Faculty gears up for an unprecedented fall semester AMINAH TANNIR
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR @AMOUNAJT
Now having to hold the majority of their classes to some online capacity, professors at UH have been trying to adapt to the new normal as much as students. “The initial thoughts were that there would be a significant in-person component in the fall,” economics department chair Dietrich Vollrath said. “We weren’t sure what to expect.” Vollrath said his department realized later on in the summer that the number of coronavirus cases in Houston weren’t going to allow for in-person courses to operate normally. “I think the biggest struggle was a lack of understanding about exactly how we were expected to make this work,” Vollrath said. “A lot of this is being done on the fly with limited knowledge and guidance.” Although the process to build courses structured around online learning was difficult, Vollrath said, the University helped to make the process easier for professors. The University’s faculty advancement center provided live training opportunities that were recorded for later reference and helped to compile lists of concerns and necessities among the staff. The provost’s office has also provided resources for faculty with information about IT assistance and learning to better online teaching. “The staff at UH are killing it,” Vollrath said. “They are working their butts off doing a lot of things that have never been asked to do before.” Byron Ross, a communication science and disorders professor,
FALL
Continued from page 2 have meal exchange options available. A new addition to the technology on campus will be the salad robot available in SC South for students in the fall.
Residence halls With the addition of The Quad as a place for students old and new to live, UH residence halls will also encourage social distancing guidelines. Each lobby area has to have a 6-foot distance between group members and less than 10
The University’s faculty advancement center provided live training opportunities that were recorded for later reference and helped to compile lists of concerns and necessities among the staff. | Christopher Charleston/The Cougar
praised the University for being at the ready to assist the faculty throughout preparations for summer and fall courses. “They really jumped out in front of this as much as they could,” Ross said. He said the resources the University provided really helped in preparing him for the HyFlex courses he will be teaching this fall semester. Ross said teaching a HyFlex course will be especially difficult because there are students attending online and in person simultaneously. His concerns revolve around how to attend to each group of students and keeping them engaged.
Ross expressed that his traditional style of teaching involved paper quizzes and exams, but with a HyFlex course, it won’t be possible. He said he needs to incorporate new methods for assessment, attendance and teamwork while implementing academic dishonesty policies. Education professor Carrie Cutler said her concerns lie with students. She said she wants to make it a priority to ensure that her students know she cares for their well being. “I hope my students still feel connected to me and to each other,” Cutler said. “I want them to know I care about them.” To make sure her classes were
fun for her students, Cutler made a YouTube channel with her three young sons. They have over 60 videos with math lessons for teachers and parents to try from home based on what would have taken place in an in-person course of hers. Vollrath expressed similar concerns over students being engaged with them and their peers virtually. He said the technical requirements and the interim grading policy could contribute to frustration and lack of engagement in a course. “It reduces the dynamic for us,” he said. “The energy and excitement we get for teaching is keyed off of you guys.”
members gathered in the group. One regulation that is consistent for each residential hall is that no guests are allowed within a suite that they do not live in.
that usually are handled in person, new approaches are being taken. As of Friday, SPB partnered with the Residence Hall Association to host a socially distanced movie in the Student Center Theater. Student accounts will receive emails with links to join events held on Zoom or with reservation forms for events with a maximum number of participants.
Center were spots a student or staff member could visit at any point in time. For the fall semester, the library will be opened with limited capacity, with services such as the desktop computers and book checkout still available. Study rooms and group spaces in the library will be closed as well as checkouts of items such as laptops and other equipment will be prohibited. The Rec Center will be opened for reservation for the upcoming fall semester. Students, faculty and staff will be able to go online and submit a time slot to use the facilities while social distancing
Events Organizations such as the Metropolitan Volunteer Program, Student Program Board and Homecoming relied on in-person interaction in the past to host events and meet-and-greets. Now, events are being transferred virtually or requiring a maximum amount of people to encourage social distancing. For Weeks of Welcome, events
Campus life Before adjusting to the pandemic, buildings such as the M.D. Anderson Library and the Campus Recreation and Wellness
Amy Sater, the biology and biochemistry department chair, had different concerns with the structure of courses. Sater said her department was focused on adapting their lab courses to be instructed online and to troubleshoot potential challenges to teaching them in that format. Instead of focusing on research programs, her and her faculty have been meeting to map out how this fall was going to play out. “We’re biologists,” she said. “We knew that there was a good chance we’d still be dealing with COVID by the start of the fall term.” With professors learning to conduct their courses over Zoom, what to wear and where to teach are things they are still trying to figure out. Vollrath said his wife will also be teaching online courses and his two daughters are trying to navigate school virtually. “They almost have tape out on the floor just finding whose zone is where,” he said. Another thing to consider when conducting lectures through Zoom is the background. Vollrath said what you wear to teach a class in person shows what kind of environment you’re creating as a professor. Now, he said, it’s your Zoom background. “Everybody starts to worry about all these students staring into their house,” Vollrath said, his professorial office bookshelf being his least favorite background. Jokes aside, Vollrath said students should appreciate the amount of effort on behalf of UH faculty and staff to make this semester a success. news@thedailycougar.com
on machines and using wipes on all equipment. With each building on campus, one of the most notable changes is the use of a mask or face covering, as it is required inside all buildings. “To be successful as a University, individually we must commit to protect ourselves, and each other, from contracting and spreading this virus using a strategy that starts with our first line of defense,” the Coog Strong, Mask On mission statement said. “Mask on. Together, we are Coog Strong.” news@thedailycougar.com
4 | Wednesday, August 26, 2020
LIFE AND ARTS NEWS
DONNA KEEYA EDITORS & SYDNEY ROSE,
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/LIFE-ARTS
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
ASTROLOGY
’It gives me something to believe in’
Astrology’s impact on college students DONNA KEEYA
NEWS EDITOR @DONNAKEEYA_
With the rise of the relevance of astrology in popular culture, many college students have turned to the practice as a coping mechanism to the everchanging world. For biochemistry junior Isabella Mason, astrology has played a key role in her life since 2017. Since then, Mason’s love for it has only grown as she gets excited to read and analyze people’s natal charts. “I do think it plays a role in my day to day activities because I find it interesting, especially when meeting someone new,” Mason said. “I do try not to treat others differently based off their signs but rather highlight common attributes. We’re more than our sun signs.”
When practicing astrology, Mason values the relatability that comes as a result of her birth chart placements. Within each person’s birth chart, they have a variety of placements in different signs, corresponding to different parts of their personality. “I believe it gives me a peace of mind in a way that it lets me channel my thoughts and emotions in a relatable way,” Mason said. “Almost ‘normalities’ or gives a source of why I might be thinking certain ways. It’s shown me so much insight in myself over the years.” For some, astrology can indicate something greater than themselves without being directly related to a specific religion. In times of economic or personal hardship, people can turn to astrology to help them believe in something, according
Juana Garcia/The Cougar
to The New Yorker. “I love (astrology) for the reason that it gives me something to believe in without my beliefs becoming demanding or controlling random aspects of my life,” Mason said. “There is no ‘bible’ in astrology.” Mason mentions how astrology can be comforting for Generation Z as they evolve the way they think about and approach the world. For people interested in astrology, the practice can range from a casual activity all the way
up to a way of life. “I think Gen Z relies on astrology, because as a generation I feel we are all constantly expanding the way we think and what we think of as (the) quality of life,” Mason said. “For some people, astrology is a fun hobby to relax their mind, while for others, it’s something they are deeply passionate about and can come back to ground them in their lives.” In the grand scheme, Mason believes astrology can be flexible to a person’s own individual
desires. While accessible through free applications, online resources and professional astrologers, astrology is readily available for those who seek it. “I think astrology is special in the way that it can be so malleable in the way people implement it in their own life,” Mason said. “I also think astrologers aren’t doing their work in any sort of forcing of info way; only educating those who ask for more info.” arts@thedailycougar.com
CREATIVITY
How students can use bullet journals to help with organization, creativity SHIVANI PARMAR
SENIOR STAFF WRITER @JOURNALISMBYSHI
Being a student means having a busy life but that should not stop you from staying organized and on top of your work. Bullet journaling is an activity that has been beneficial for students to stay on task with their many activities and buried schedules. This activity encourages people to customize their notebook in whatever way will benefit their needs and personalize it by creating your own planner, schedule, or notes. Whether it be a food diary, school planner, work schedules or fitting everything into one, you have the capability to create whatever you when you make your own. Bullet journaling was created by Ryder Caroll, who was diagnosed with learning disabilities growing up,
Shivani Parmar/The Cougar
forcing him to develop a new methodology to stay focused and be productive. This laid the foundations for modern-day bullet journaling.
There are a multitude of benefits bullet journaling has the potential for. It is a haven for visual people, for one. You have everything laid out to see
as well as organized to your liking. In addition, it can spark productivity as it did for Caroll. When you aren’t using
a premade planner, you are forced to take initiative. This can promote an active mind for other activities. On top of keeping up with short term deadlines, you can work ahead and write down long term goals and deadlines. Embarking off on your bullet journal journey can be daunting, but here is an easy way to get started. Create an outline and have an idea about what you want to include. Decide whether you want to make an hourly, weekly or monthly calendar. Additionally, an important part of this journey is to schedule a time to keep up with your journal. It’s important to consider if it’s best for you to keep up with your journal once a month, every few days, or before the start of the new month. arts@thedailycougar.com
Wednesday, August 26, 2020 | 5
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6 | Wednesday, August 26, 2020
SPORTS NEWS
ANDY YANEZ, EDITOR
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS
@THECOUGARSPORTS
FOOTBALL
‘They were deconditioned’: Dana Holgorsen says UH needs weeks of practice before first game
ANDY YANEZ
SPORTS EDITOR @ AYANEZ_5
The Houston football team is 25 days away from kicking off the 2020 season as of Tuesday afternoon, and while the Cougars have been back since mid-July for workouts, head coach Dana Holgorsen knows they are ways away from being ready for the first game on the schedule. “(We are) still three and half weeks away (until the Memphis game), and I think we need it,” Holgorsen said on Tuesday afternoon during a Zoom video conference call with media. The head coach said that the Cougars have had to battle through a bunch of adversity since initially returning to campus for voluntary workouts on June 1. “We were without (the players) for three to four months,” Holgorsen said. “(When) we came back on June 1, they were deconditioned. We got a couple of weeks with them. We made some gains and then we had to hit the pause button again. Then we got them back mid-July, and they were deconditioned.” One challenge that UH has been able to avoid since returning to campus in mid-July according to the head coach, however, has
Head coach Dana Holgorsen said he is aiming for 25-30 practices before the start of the season against Memphis. | Kathryn Lenihan/The Cougar
been COVID-19 stoppage, which has allowed them to get the student-athletes into a routine needed to ramp up conditioning, but the staff is not rushing the players to get to that point. “It’s been good,” he said. “We’ve been back for about five weeks. (We’re) trying to ease everyone back into it. You’ve got to be careful with how much volume you’re giving your guys because you want to be fresh and ready for that first game.” Even though UH got to have nine practices in the spring, Holgorsen does not believe
that those workouts have given the Cougars an advantage since returning because of the extended layoff that the team was on. On top of that, about 35 percent of the team was not on the roster for those workouts according to Holgorsen, which leaves the Cougars with the challenge of working on strength and conditioning at the same time as focusing on the X’s and O’s of football. “You usually get eight to nine weeks of strength and conditioning in the summer, but nobody got that,” Holgorsen said. “It’s a
constant everyday battle.” A huge part of the challenge since returning has been that everyone is on a different level in regards to their conditioning, Holgorsen said, which is why the coach is glad he still has over three weeks to prepare for the Tigers. “We’re not in shape to play football right now,” he said. “We haven’t had the physical nature of practice that we need prior to be ready for the first game. “There’s still guys, five weeks later, that we have in strength and conditioning only, and we won’t let them put a helmet on, and we won’t let them put pads on because they’re not conditioned to the point (needed).” Despite all the obstacles the Cougars have to hurdle over to get to Sept. 19 when they are scheduled to face Memphis, the 49-yearold head coach is aiming to get in at least 25 total practices to get the players to the level needed to start a season, and he continues to push a resilient attitude. “I’ve stressed, roll with the punches, things are going to change,” Holgorsen said. “When we have opportunities, whoever’s here, let’s make the most of it. That’s our attitude right now.” sports@thedailycougar.com
Wednesday, August 26, 2020 | 7
Psi Chi Honor Society & Psychology Club
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SWIMMING AND DIVING
Peyton Kondis looking ahead at new chapter in her life ANDY YANEZ
SPORTS EDITOR @AYANEZ_5
As the University enters a new semester that will include an attempt to have competitions in the fall, UH swimming and diving alumna Peyton Kondis begins a new chapter in her own life away from Houston as well. After her senior season was abruptly cut short due to COVID-19, Kondis never got the opportunity to compete in the NCAA championships that were going to be held in Athens, Georgia. But, after being several months removed from the season’s end, the Pittsburgh native has learned to accept how things turned out. “The way everything happened was really fast,” Kondis said in a phone interview with The Cougar on Thursday. “I think that originally, it was hard to accept that it was ending the way I never really imagined it would. (But) I think that just knowing that I was able to accomplish what I
wanted to … knowing that those accomplishments couldn’t be taken away even though the physical opportunities were, I think that helped me come to terms with the way everything ended.” Kondis is no stranger when it comes to accolades. She garnered over 20 awards in her time with the Cougars and was on the team for the four straight seasons that Houston won the American Athletic Conference championships. With Kondis now attending the University of Pittsburgh in the fall for graduate school, she can now reflect on her time in Houston. “I look back at it very fondly,” Kondis said. “I think that I can very confidently say that if I had to decide to do it all over again, to swim in college, that I would 100 percent go to Houston no matter what every time.” One thing that stood out to Kondis was the camaraderie she was able to build with her teammates, and while she has slowly removed herself from
UH swimming and diving alumna Peyton Kondis during a competition in 2017. She was named the 2019-20 American Athletic Conference Co-Swimmer of the Year in her senior season with Houston. | Courtesy of UH athletics
official team meetings, she is still in contact with some of them and is excited to see where they take the program in the future. “They have a really good foundation there, and (the team) has a lot of good leadership in all of the upperclassmen,” Kondis said. “I think that if they get to perform this year, they’re going to have a breakout year. Maybe even more so than we’ve had in the past. “I have a lot of faith in the girls left behind.” While the AAC has given football, soccer and volleyball the
green light to prep for a fall season, a lot still remains uncertain with the swimming and diving team. Kondis’ biggest advice to them as they navigate the unknown is simple. “Lean on each other and stay in contact,” she said. When it comes to Kondis herself, her journey at Pitt is to study clinical rehabilitation and mental health counseling with the goal to one day become a counselor or therapist and potentially even work with student athletes in the future. When it comes to swimming
competitions, Kondis is prepared to leave that chapter behind in Houston as well. “I think I’m ready to move on,” she said. “I’ve gotten (in) the pool once or twice since March just to see if I really miss it, and I think I miss the atmosphere of swimming, competing in swimming and being on a team. But I am ready to say goodbye to the sport itself and just move on to the next phase in my life.”
diligently to prepare for this upcoming season and have remained vigilant fighting against this pandemic. “We remain committed to the health, safety and wellness of our student-athletes and look forward to our programs competing this spring.” The main reasoning behind the AAC’s decision to postpone all competition is so the conference’s volleyball and soccer schedules can align with the NCAA championship season, which has been moved to the spring. “We were prepared to conduct competition in the fall in
men’s and women’s soccer and women’s volleyball, but moving to the spring was in the best interest of our student-athletes as it will align our schedules to allow our teams to compete for national championships,” said Commissioner Mike Aresco in a statement released by the conference. The AAC also plans to make a decision regarding whether or not cross country competition will still take place as schedules in the fall as soon as they receive further clarification from the NCAA.
sports@thedailycougar.com
CORONAVIRUS
AAC postpones volleyball, soccer seasons to Spring 2021
The Cougars’ 2020 season was postponed until Spring 2021 by the AAC after it said it was in its student-athletes’ “best interest.” | Trevor Nolley/The Cougar
JAMES MUELER
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR @ JDM2186
All volleyball and women’s soccer competition and conference championships have been postponed until next spring, the American Athletic Conference announced Tuesday. “This is a difficult day for our student-athletes who represent us in soccer and volleyball,” said athletic director Chris Pezman after the AAC’s decision. “With the NCAA’s decision to move Fall Championships to the spring, this is a logical decision to mirror this effort. Our affected student-athletes have worked
sports@thedailycougar.com
8 | Wednesday, August 26, 2020
STUDENT CENTERS CONFERENCE & RESERVATION SERVICES The Student Centers is a multipurpose building where students can relax in-between classes, grab food & participate in various events throughout the year. Our Conference & Reservations team is eager to help you or your organization reserve meeting & event spaces. With 3 facilities & 19 event spaces, you’ll be sure to find a place where you belong.
CREATIONSTATION Student Centers’ graphic design & print shop, CreationStation, offers a wide range of services including design, printing, lamination & passport photos.
GAMES ROOM The Games Room offers bowling, billiards, table tennis & other amusement games! It’s available for individual or group usage for open play & by reservation.
SHASTA’S CONES & MORE Stop by Shasta’s Cones & More, a student-run ice cream shop featuring a number of ice cream flavors, candy & beverages.
Follow us @uhstudentcenter to stay up-to-date with the latest news & events happening throughout the year!
Wednesday, August 26, 2020 | 9 ANDY YANEZ, EDITOR
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS
SPORTS NEWS
@THECOUGARSPORTS
TRACK AND FIELD
Houston’s track and field team adds 26 signees for the 2020-21 season
EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR IN CHIEF
Jhair Romero
MANAGING EDITOR
PHOTO EDITOR
Vacant
COPY CHIEF
Jiselle Santos
Zai Davis
WEB EDITOR
ASSTISTANT NEWS EDITORS
Mason Vasquez NEWS EDITORS
Donna Keeya Sydney Rose SPORTS EDITOR
Aminah Tannir Cristobella Durrette ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR
Andy Yanez
James Mueller
OPINION EDITOR
ASSISTANT CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Gina Medina
CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Gerald Sastra
Juana Garcia
STAFF EDITORIAL The Staff Editorial reflects the opinions of The Cougar Editorial Board (the members of which are listed above the editorial). All other opinions, commentaries and cartoons reflect only the opinion of the author. Opinions expressed in The Cougar do not necessarily reflect those of the University of Houston or the students as a whole.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
The programis looking to get back to competitions after having the NCAA Indoor Championships canceled due to COVID-19. In February, both the men’s and women’s teams won the American Athletic Conference Indoor championships. | Courtesy of UH athletics
JAMES MUELLER
ASSISTANT EDITOR @JDM2186
The UH track and field team, which has dominated the American Athletic Conference the past two seasons, just got even better as the team announced the addition of 26 new student athletes, 14 men and 12 women, for the 2020-21 season. The Cougars have consistently been able to recruit some of the best athletes in Texas and this signing class is no different as 13 of the new signees hail from the Lone Star State. But this year, Houston was also able to sign 13 more athletes that come from all over the world, including six different U.S. states and three different countries. Head coach Leroy Burrell attributes the large number of signings from outside of Texas in this year’s class due to the track and field program’s recent success. “The success that we have had has allowed us to expand our recruiting footprint to the point where we can attract the athletes from all over the world,” Burrell said. As the track and field team
heads into the upcoming season looking to sweep the American Indoor Track and Field titles for the third consecutive year, here is a look at some of the new signees for both the men and women’s teams that can make an immediate impact for the program:
Caleb Malbrough
Zarie Dumas
Malbrough comes from Manvel High School where he was the 2019 UIL Class 5A State Champion in the triple jump. Malbrough also holds the Manvel all-time program record in the triple jump at 48 feet, 1.5 inches.
Dumas joins Houston from Hillcrest High School in Simpsonville, South Carolina, as one of the top sprinter. Dumas racked up numerous awards and honors during her high school career including being a South Carolina State Champion, being named a New Balance Outdoor All-American and being selected as the most valuable track athlete in all of Greenville County. Burrell is happy with the new signees and believes they can make an impact this season and set up the program to be successful in the years to come. “I am really pleased with how the coaching staff did an excellent job of addressing the future needs of the program in assembling this group of outstanding young women and men from all over the world under some very challenging conditions,” Burrell said. “Quiet as it is kept, this is one of the best group of athletes we have assembled in my time here and I really feel we are set up for continued success at the conference and national levels,” he added.
Men’s squad
Women’s squad
Here are a few of the new signees for the men’s squad:
Here are a few of the new signees for the women’s squad:
Mustafa William Fall
Sarah Belle
The Suva, Fiji, native comes to Houston after spending time at Coffeyville Community College where he racked up a plethora of awards. In 2020, Fall was the NJCAA National Champion and the NJCAA Region VI Indoor Champion in shot put. Fall was also named an NJCCA Indoor All-American.
Belle, a sprinter and hurdler, hails from Barbados and has experience competing on the international stage. Belle earned a silver medal in the 100-meter hurdles at the 2019 CARTIFA Games.
Phatutshedzo Shaun Maswanganyi Maswanganyi joins the Cougars as a sprinter all the way from South Africa. Maswanganyi currently holds the South African junior record in the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.06 seconds.
Nu’uausala Tuilefano Like some of the other signees, Tuilefano joins the Cougars from Coffeyville Community College as a thrower. Tuilefano is a two-time NJCAA All-American, being the 2019 NCJAA Region VI Outdoor and 2020 NJCAA Region VI Indoor bronze medalist in shot put. Tuilefano also won a silver medal at the XVI Pacific Games.
sports@thedailycougar.com
The Cougar welcomes letters to the editor from any member of the UH community. Letters should be no more than 250 words and signed, including the author’s full name, phone number or e-mail address and affiliation with the University, including classification and major. Anonymous letters will not be published. Deliver letters to N221, University Center; e-mail them to letters@thedailycougar.com; send them via campus mail to STP 4015; or fax to (713) 743-5384. Letters are subject to editing.
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10 | Wednesday, August 26, 2020
OPINION NEWS
GINA MEDINA, EDITOR
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/OPINION
EDUCATION
School teachers deserve better. It is time we pay up.
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The Cougar
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ABOUT THE COUGAR The Cougar is published every Wednesday during the fall and spring semesters, and Wednesdays during the summer and online at thedailycougar.com. The Daily Cougar is supported in part by Student Service Fees. The first copy is free. Additional copies cost 25 cents..
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ISSUE STAFF CLOSING EDITORS
Jhair Romero Jiselle Santos Mason Vasquez COPY EDITING
Zai Davis
COVER
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ABOUT CSM The Center for Student Media provides comprehensive advisory and financial support to the university’s student-run media: The Cougar newspaper, CoogTV and COOG Radio.
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ANNA BAKER
STAFF COLUMNIST @ANNA2POINT0
The media is talking a lot about teachers right now in light of kids returning to school during COVID-19. There is a lot of malice towards teachers who don’t want to teach in person and who prefer to be online. Many think that teachers should be willing to risk their own and their families’ lives to teach students. The mistreatment of teachers has been happening for a long time, and it’s time for it to stop. Teachers need to be paid more, be given funds for school supplies and overall be treated the way people influencing the future generations of America should be. Teachers are a huge part of our lives growing up and they definitely shape who we are today. Many people don’t seem to dispute that concept and yet, they don’t endorse the idea of paying teachers more. The starting salary for a teacher in Texas is around $30,000 and that number doesn’t increase much over the years. Of course, the reason they are paid so little has to do with funding for public education, but when it comes down to morals, teachers should be paid more. Teachers have a big role in getting kids interested in subjects that influence hobbies and career choices later on in life. They can help kids grow self esteem
and confidence to learn. Not to mention they teach us the foundations of knowledge that we need to function in society like basic mathematics, critical thinking and history. They also bring schoolwork home to grade and work on lesson plans, all after hours with no pay. They do so much more work than just what we initially see in the classroom. We cannot deny that teachers are instrumental in our society since they prepare future generations for the workforce. Their importance needs to be shown in their pay because it simply is what the teaching profession deserves. Some may say teachers should just live frugally but that’s hard when a lot of teachers have to buy their own school supplies. Many teachers are given a budget for their classroom that the school can cover, but it’s usually not enough. So much so that teachers have to ask students to bring in hand sanitizer and tissues for the class. A lot of students are low income as well and cannot often afford school supplies for themselves, leaving teachers to pay out of pocket. Teachers sometimes can end up spending thousands of dollars just to teach. Why should some of the most important workers have to pay to do their own job? It’s understandable for them to use their own money to do some
extra decorating in their room, but to buy essential supplies like notebooks and tissues? That should not come out of their own pocket but more often than not it does. Schools need to fund their teachers’ supplies. Lastly, we should overall respect our teachers, including their decisions to not teach in person right now. Many people say that teachers should teach right now because they signed up for this job. However, teachers did not sign up for risking their lives among potentially infected people. They did not sign up for this and we should respect their decisions to demand online schooling. It’s similar to when people thought that teachers should have guns in the classroom to defend against school shooters and teachers claimed they didn’t sign up to do that. The teachers are correct! They did not sign up for a teaching job to be continuously put in danger, especially for such low pay. Teachers have a great importance in our lives and society as a whole, and we need to start acting like it. School teachers need to have better salaries, more funding for supplies and overall be respected for the work they do. Anna Baker is an English junior who can be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com
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Wednesday, August 26, 2020 | 11 GINA MEDINA, EDITOR
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CAREER ADVICE
Networking sites are the key to career advancement during the pandemic GINA MEDINA
OPINION EDITOR @ITSGINA_M
In these unprecedented times where our interactions with others are severely restricted, technology and social networking sites allow us to remain connected. Although sometimes overlooked by college students, professional networking sites like LinkedIn are a great way to make and keep connections. Most business majors are encouraged to have an active LinkedIn profile as it is one of the best ways to build a professional network. However, not many other colleges encourage their students to be active on LinkedIn. For all students who are not already on LinkedIn, here are a few of the most compelling reasons why you should create and continuously update your professional networking profile:
First professional step Most college students have little to no experience in professional settings, which
means that once we leave college, we will not have the necessary tools to participate in serious settings. Joining LinkedIn or any other professional networking site is the first step towards the professional world, because it can kick start the desire to pursue a career after college. Having an end goal in mind will help you stay on track throughout college as you will have a better idea of what you are working towards. If you are uncertain of what you want to pursue after college, connecting with professionals in different fields can help you get a better sense of what certain jobs entail, so don’t be afraid to browse and seek different paths.
Making connections By joining a professional networking site like LinkedIn, students are able to make connections with professionals in their field of interest, seek mentorships and even find jobs. This pandemic has forced us to physically distance ourselves, but these sites give us the
opportunity to continue to build our professional network and make the connections that we would have otherwise made in person.
More than just a resume College is the best time to build your resume; you are learning and hopefully participating in your field of interest and now it is time to show future employers what you are capable of. Your profile should be much more than just a document with some dates and information about yourself. Your profile should be a superresume! Have the basic resume worthy information available, but also include a portfolio of your best work, professional looking photographs of yourself, your plans for the future and why you are interested in your field of study. This additional information will present a much more accurate picture of yourself and will help prospective employers get a better sense of who you are. Starting a profile early on will
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help you gradually build your portfolio and resume, make connections with peers and mentors, as well as practice professional interactions with others. The job market is incredibly competitive as more people find themselves unemployed, so preparing and perfecting an online professional profile will give you a leg up when looking for jobs in the future. Making a profile is the first
step towards better preparing for your career, however, maintaining that profile is just as important as creating it. Once you have created your profile, remember to continuously update it with your latest accomplishments so that your growing network can see what you are up to. Gina Medina is a journalism senior who can be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com
JOIN THE STUDENT CENTERS TEAM! Our goal is to be the best on-campus employer for students. To apply, please visit uh.edu/studentcenters/about-us/student-employment
12 | Wednesday, August 26, 2020
Universal Crossword Edited by David Steinberg January 23, 2019
ACROSS 1 McMahon and Asner 4 Lady in a chocolatier’s logo 10 Nightlife spot 14 Stroke gently 15 Lean toward 16 First-rate 17 Bullfight cheer 18 Baseball film DVD that’s missing the last scene? 20 Fashionable 22 Nanny animal 23 Third Greek letter 24 Celebratory slap that doesn’t quite connect? 26 Socialist Marx 27 Tirade 28 Frantic scramble 31 Rap or rock 34 Rower’s need 35 4-Down suggestion 36 Near-miss remark that’s a clue to 18-, 24-, 50- and 58-Across 41 Santa ___ winds 42 Fitting 43 Alpha’s opposite 44 Crumb catchers
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47 2017 World Series champ, slangily 49 At one’s ___ and call 50 Mostly get rid of? 54 Lacking a partner 56 Oktoberfest quaff 57 “Spare tire” 58 Slightly early marital restlessness? 61 Elected officials 62 Innovator’s spark 63 Gossiped 64 Vote of support 65 Org. 66 “I’m all ears!” 67 Roseanne’s husband DOWN 1 Many, many years 2 New ___, India 3 “Shrek!” author William 4 It aptly bookends “Google Maps” 5 Mount Hood locale 6 Deeply religious 7 “My concern is ...” 8 Blow off steam 9 Sleeve tattoo spot 10 Duck, to a French chef
11 Appear imminent 12 E pluribus ___ 13 Second Greek letter 19 “Omigosh!” 21 Comedian Rock 25 Come to grips with 26 Corn syrup brand 28 “Geez!” 29 Like bachelor parties 30 Queen on Mount Olympus 31 Thom ___ shoes 32 Elbow-wrist connection 33 Political platforms? 34 A giant among Giants 37 Target of a heist
38 FedEx alternative 39 Fortune 500 abbr. 40 “Later!” 45 Nairobi resident 46 Slurpee kin 47 Simmer with anger 48 Old Toyota 50 Voltaire, theologically 51 Long Greek story 52 Literary uncle 53 Buddy who played Jed Clampett 54 Myanmar’s locale 55 Eye shades? 56 Wooden train maker 59 Stir in 60 “Good” cholesterol letters
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