Issue 13, Volume 84

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Wednesday, November 7, 2018

Issue 13, Volume 84

Campus dining hot spot returns After a semester-long closure, the Student Center Satellite will partially re-open Monday. | PG. 4

LIFE & ARTS Smoke-free in theory

Students still consume tobacco products despite University policies and signage. | PG. 6

SPORTS No room for error

There is a fine line between making and missing the championship game, so the Cougars cannot afford to slip up. | PG. 9

OPINION Slow communication poses risks

The University’s slow response time to health threats raises concerns following an on-campus case of tuberculosis. | PG. 11

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NEWS

SARAH WHITELEY, EDITOR

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CITY

Parking changes at Gateway on Cullen prompt complaints

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A town-home style apartment complex, Gateway on Cullen, changed their guest parking pass policy in response to complaints regarding the lack of resident parking spaces at night. Gateway now gives out 10 guest parking passes per day, but they were previously unlimited, causing the issue. | Corbin Ayres/The Cougar

HADRIAN BARBOSA

SENIOR STAFF WRITER @HADRIANSWALL_

After a change in management, many Gateway on Cullen residents complained about a lack of parking spaces for those who paid for reserved passes.

Management has since changed the apartment complex's policy on guest parking, but students have additional reservations about the new system.

Gateway on Cullen is an off-campus luxury apartment complex that opened in 2017 and is now home to UH and Texas Southern University students.

Before the shift in management, guests could get a parking pass from an employee at the front desk that could be used for a maximum of 72 hours as long as they could provide the make, model and license plate of the car.

Due to a high number of residents complaining about their inability to find a parking spot despite paying for a parking permit, Gateway on Cullen reduced the number of guest parking passes they give out per day to 10, said the leasing agent Demai Brown. Before, there was an unlimited number of passes.

Cars displaying a guest pass could be parked in any uncovered spot in the Gateway’s gated surface parking lot that wasn’t marked as “reserved.”

Before the change, those passes allowed guests to park in resident spots when there was not available parking outside the gate.

“It wasn’t too difficult at first to get visitor passes, but when they changed the policy it became very difficult,” said pre-pharmacy junior Carissa Ramirez. “You can only get a pass early in the morning when the office opens, and the pass is only for 24 hours. I work full-time, which means I cannot always go to get a pass before they run out.”

The new visitor parking pass policy still requires the make, model and license plate number of the car, but guests can no longer ask for a pass. The resident must retrieve the pass for their guest.

“The previous guest pass system at Gateway was that all residents were allowed and able to get a visitor’s pass,” Ramirez said. “Now all residents are allowed to still get a visitor’s pass, but only if there are any left.”

This change in the amount of visitor passes provided to residents has restricted the ability for friends and family to visit at Gateway, Ramirez said.

“I am able to have guests over if I get to the office in time, but most of the time I’m at work and can’t make it to the office to get a pass,” Ramirez said. “The office doesn’t allow residents to request a visitor pass over the phone — it has to be in person.”

Near the Gateway’s leasing office, there are 18 guest parking spots that don’t require a visitor parking pass at all, since they are designated for guests, with 1 of these 18 parking spots reserved for those with a handicap permit.

There is no time limit on these spots, however, and some cars remain in the guest spaces for days at a time before moving, Ramirez said.

While guests are allowed to park in the spaces designated for future residents outside business hours, their vehicles will be towed if they're still parked once the leasing office opens for the day.

Residents have been told that if they are unable to find a spot, they can park along the curb as long as the car is moved by 9

a.m., Ramirez said. Otherwise, they have to wait and hope they can find a parking spot, she said.

Despite the policy change and unavailability of free spaces, some students, like mathematics senior Noelle Meinen, have had a positive experience with guest parking.

In the previous parking pass system, Gateway on Cullen towed vehicles with passes that appeared to have been tampered with or damaged along with vehicles lacking a pass at all, but Meinen says the new system is “straightforward.”

Since guests could park in the designated resident parking lot, there were times when residents would have to drive around for extended periods of time, sometimes half an hour, before a spot would open up.

“I’ve never had to use guest parking, I’ve always been lucky and got a spot out front,” Meinen said. “Before, it was hard to find a spot when I came home late from work. I definitely don’t have as many issues now.”

Gateway on Cullen declined to give a comment on the updated parking system. “

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NEWS

SARAH WHITELEY, EDITOR

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CAMPUS

Student Center Satellite to re-open with Starbucks, Smoothie King, more SARAH WHITELEY

FEATURES EDITOR @SARAHKATEWHIT

Following a semester-long closure for repairs, the Student Center Satellite is scheduled for a partial re-opening Monday, bringing the return of the TV room, Games room, Starbucks, Smoothie King and Market.

The Student Center Satellite has been closed due to damages from Hurricane Harvey, and maintenance is expected to be ongoing on the main food court area until the anticipated grand re-opening in January 2019, said Eve Esch, director of Student Centers.

"So what happened after Harvey - the whole thing flooded - and so we were able to reopen the food court in the spring, but we didn’t open the Starbucks and Smoothie King," Esch said. "They’ve been closed since Hurricane Harvey, and they are ready now because they’ve been down the whole time."

The University wanted to ensure at least part of the Satellite was open prior to finals, so students in the area had options closer to their classes, Esch said. For now, only the South end of the building will be re-opened, including the restrooms, and there will be a grand re-opening of the entire Student Center Satellite in January, she said.

"We mitigated and did some damage control after Harvey, and just to provide some food service, we re-opened it without redoing everything completely, but that set that area back a little bit," Esch said. "Since we were doing service out there, we couldn’t tear

everything out and redo it."

UH began repairing the food court area in the Satellite over the summer, Esch said. A majority of the food services will look similar to how they did before Hurricane Harvey, she said.

"The Starbucks will have a new look to it. Starbucks, the brand, they like to refresh it and keep their look up to date," Esch said.

"It will look slightly different from the previous version of the Starbucks."

The Smoothie King will look almost identical to how it looked before Harvey, but all of the equipment has been replaced and everything - including the counter-tops and paint - has been redone, Esch said.

Students, particularly those with classes on the north side of campus, have been lost without the Satellite.

"I would go almost every day, going to (The Market) or grabbing a quick bite to eat in between classes, and I used everything but the game room," said mechanical engineering senior Gene Beche. "I'm definitely happy it's reopening, but I wish it was fully re-opening."

Since the front portion of The Market is a window instead of walls, the establishment required less work than the others in the Satellite whose walls needed to be torn down and replaced, Esch said. Overall, the south side of the Satellite took about 15 months to complete, she said.

"The Satellite was in between my classes and my dorm so it was always super convenient," Beche said.

Since the food court was open

for four months in the spring, UH had to wait until the summer to start on the mill-work.

Mill-work is the process of tearing down the wall to the studs and replacing the materials, because of the tendency of wood to grow mold when exposed to water for extended period of times, Esch said. This includes rebuilding all of the counter-tops and structure impacted by the flooding, she said.

"Whenever you have flooding, it sort of seeps up into wood or behind it. There’s space between what you see and space between the next wall, and so that’s a great place for things like mold to grow," Esch said. "Essentially, you have to tear it down to the studs, start all over and build it up from there."

In addition to these repairs, furniture and carpet have been replaced as needed, and all of the walls in the Satellite have gotten a fresh coat of paint, Esch said.

"The TV lounge has got all new carpet, all new furniture, so its a great spot for folks to be able to eat and study," Esch said. "The pool tables, the games room area also got all new carpeting.

We went ahead and re-felted the tables in the game room, so they’ve got all brand new surfaces to play on."

News of the re-opening has been somewhat limited, as students like political science junior Alex Zaibaq did not realize any portion of the Satellite would be re-opening within this semester.

"I would use the Indian restaurant, the sushi place, and Chick-Fil-A," Zaibaq said. "I would go there pretty often, because I'd

Student Government Association passes Homeless Student Relief Act

MCKENZIE MISIASZEK

NEWS ASSISTANT @MISIASZEKUH

During a packed Student Government Association meeting Wednesday night, the SGA Senate passed the Homeless Student Relief Act to offer discounted prices for students

who may not otherwise be able to afford a meal plan.

The act would allow a maximum of 50 students to receive a 70 percent discount on meal plans. SGA President Cameron Barrett said the prices of other meal plans would not increase as a result of this new option.

“I think homeless students are some of the most ambitious and passionate students we, as a University, could have,” Barrett said. “Imagine going to class and not knowing where you’re going to sleep that night. I think it’s important we do as much as we can to support these extraordinary and courageous students.”

He said he has been working with Auxiliary Services for nearly four months to actualize the plan to aid some of the University’s more vulnerable students.

The cost per meal on the reduced plan would total about $2.80, which he believes is a good deal.

“Auxiliary will be paying for the discount themselves, so for each homeless student that receives a meal plan courtesy of SGA, it costs Auxiliary over $1,800,” Barrett said. “Essentially, Auxiliary Services is subsidizing each homeless student who gets a discount by over $1,800.” news@thedailycougar.com

The Student Center Satellite has been closed since Hurricane Harvey for repairs, and will re-open in January of 2019. | Corbin Ayres/The Cougar

usually have class around there.

I've definitely missed it, it's a good place to study, too."

The Satellite also had a few options that students could not get anywhere else on campus, drawing more students to make the trek across campus for food options like Taco Bell.

"It was located near one of my three classes, but I’d often go out of my way to head to the Satellite," said Student Government Association Vice President Davis Darusman. "I just got food, I never really utilized that area to hang out or study because seats over there seemed scarce enough and I didn’t want to take one from a starving student looking

everywhere for a table."

Like Darusman, many students were upset to hear of the Satellite's closure after the building had previously been closed until the spring semester following Harvey. Now that the grand re-opening of the Satellite is official, students are preparing to indulge in food options closer to their classes.

"I went down to the Satellite at least twice a week," Darusman said. "To be honest, I miss my guilty pleasure of Taco Bell. As a part of UH Dining, they were never allowed to sell non-Coca Cola products which really ruined my Baja Blast cravings, though." news@thedailycougar.com

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LIFE & ARTS EMILY HUBBARD, EDITOR

CAMPUS

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ARTS@THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM

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Smoke-free campus, who?

The University of Houston claims to be tobacco-free, but usage is still prevalent among students

Smoking is still prevalent throughout campus despite anti-tobacco signage and policies. | Fiona Legesse/ The Cougar

EMILY HUBBARD

LIFE AND ARTS EDITOR @_3MMY

As we all know, the University of Houston is a "smoke-free campus." The Tobacco-Free Campus Policy

was implemented back in 2013 to reduce health risks among students, faculty, staff and visitors to the University.

Through this policy, the campus restricts the use, sale and advertising of all tobacco

products including cigarettes, chewing tobacco and electronic cigarettes.

"Any member of the UH community may inform the tobacco user of the policy and

request that he/she comply.

Individuals who are reported to the Tobacco Task Force for non-compliance will receive a message reminding them of the policy, and the availability of tobacco cessation services.

There are no plans at this time to issue citations or fines, or to report anyone to his or her supervisor," according to the University's Tobacco-Free Campus Policy.

This shows the University community is expected to comply with these wishes. But are wishes enough?

People continue to smoke on campus and will continue to whether the policy is there or not. The implementation of a policy is a great effort, but without consequences, I can assure you there will be no change.

"Banning smoking completely hasn't made smoking go away.

It's just made smokers criminals.

People smoke on campus everyday, but they're breaking the rules in doing so. Smoking sections need to be brought back," said political science junior Matt Jones.

Most tobacco users on the university campus feel victimized by these smoking policies and make people feel unaccepted.

For the students, staff, faculty and visitors that are smokers, this policy is very inconvenient. There is only one designated smoking area, located at the Isabel C. Cameron Building. If you are familiar with that location, you know it is remote and not easily accessible to most on campus.

For the students, faculty, staff and visitors who have a tobacco addiction or want to continue smoking throughout the day are hindered by these "rules".

From the University's point of view, this policy is ensuring a safe, healthy environment for students, staff and faculty.

It can be inferred that if these policies were enforced, the rates of smoking among students would decrease overall.

Cigarette use among college students fell from 16 percent in 2010Â to an all-time low of 9 percent in 2016, and the daily smoking rate fell from 7.6 percent to 3 percent during that same time, according to a study

by Truth Initiative, a TobaccoFree college program.Â

In addition to the decrease in smoking rates, a smoke-free campus can help eliminate litter.

Cigarettes are the most littered item on earth. Worldwide, about 4.5 trillion cigarettes are littered each year, according to Truth Initiative. So yes, cigarette butts are a source of litter, but what about electronic cigarettes?

UH's policy also bans the use of E-Cigs such as vapes, Juuls and other smoking devices.

My question is, why are these also banned? If they are not contributing to litter, then how are they directly affecting campus?

I guess now the topic of second hand smoke would come up? The question most commonly asked would be: can one suffer from second hand smoke from an electronic cigarette? The answer is yes.

When exhaled, aerosol particles make their way into the environment.

While it is masked by a sweet scent of mango or mint, the "clouds" produced from electronic cigarettes are just as harmful as cigarette smoke.

Everyone has a different opinion when it comes to smoking, whether it's a cigarette or any other form of tobacco product. There are students, staff and faculty who are smokers, so why should they be told their choices are not going to be accommodated?

As the University accommodates those who do not agree with smoking, they should also accommodate those who do. It is a personal choice to smoke, and people should be able to exercise that right, just like people who choose not to.

The university needs to reevaluate thier policies and implementations to see if they are helpful, hurtful or neither.

As of right now, the Tobacco Free Campus Policies standing for the university is one that is doing nothing but making students, faculty, staff and visitors feel victimized by a poliy that is not even implemted effectively.

While the University has valid reasons for the policy, if they are not going to enforce it, then it is not effective.

Either enforce it or accommodate it. arts@thedailycougar.com

Wednesday, November 7, 2018 | 7

ANDRES CHIO, EDITOR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS

SPORTS

SPORTS@THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM

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BASKETBALL

Growing into new defense is key for Men's basketball JACKSON GATLIN

SENIOR STAFF WRITER @JTGATLIN

The Houston men’s basketball team's regular season tips off Saturday as the Cougars host the Alabama A&M Bulldogs.

After graduating key seniors Wes VanBeck, Devin Davis, Nura Zanna and Rob Gray, this year’s Cougar squad will have some big shoes to fill.

New year, leaders With so many integral players leaving the Cougars after the team’s first NCAA appearance since 2009-2010, it should come as no surprise that head coach Kelvin Sampson will now rely heavily on his new trio of seniors: guards Corey Davis Jr. and Galen Robinson Jr. along with forward Breaon Brady.

Brady will be expected to do what he has always done: use his 6'8" frame to be an imposing presence in the paint and soak in as many rebounds as possible.

Last season, Brady started

31 games for the Cougars and averaged 4.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per contest. Brady was also a leader in fouls with his aggressive defensive style.

Without Gray, Robinson Jr. will now be the new guiding hand of the Cougars' offense. He was second in assists during last year’s campaign with 130, trailing only Gray who notched 148 dimes on the season.

On the defensive side of the ball, Robinson Jr. knows just how to turn his guiding hands into a pair of quick hands, as he led the Cougars with 46 steals in 35 games played.

Long-distance sniper Davis Jr. will likely be this season’s leading scorer.

Last year, he was second only to Gray with 13.1 points per game on 44 percent accuracy from the field and 43 percent accuracy from deep. With Gray’s team-leading 488 field goal attempts no longer in the system, Davis Jr. will have plenty of opportunities to fill up the stat sheet.

Senior Galen Robinson Jr. has the seventh most assists in UH's men's basketball history and is 12 away from taking sixth.

Robinson Jr. would end his career ranked fourth if he can get more than 107 this season. | Thomas Dwyer/The Cougar

Defensive mindset “I like this team, but we have a long way to go before we’re a good team,” Sampson said. “I really like our senior class, they provide great

leadership. Those three guys play hard every day, they understand what our culture is all about and they hold the other players accountable to our culture.”

The culture Sampson is referring to is one that preaches defense above all else.

MEN'S BASKETBALL

Continues on page 9

DIVING

Diving team creates winning legacy for UH TRENTON WHITING

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR @TRENTONWHITING

In the past two years, the UH swimming and diving team has had one of the best stretches for any sport in school history.

After two straight conference championship wins, the Cougars have created a winning culture and plan on continuing its winning ways.

The team understands it will need to lean on its upperclassmen and high performers to do well.

The divers are a huge contribution to the team’s success, but they came into the season with an extremely young group as they do not have a senior in their ranks.

The upperclassmen divers, however, have the success and experience to help the team win another conference championship.

Junior diver Lauren Burrell is one of the key competitors on the team. Last year, she beat many of her personal bests and won first place in the conference championship for the three-meter springboard dive.

Burrell and fellow junior diver Claire Liptak have taken it upon themselves to help the freshmen

get on board with the team’s philosophies.

“I feel like we have (taken a leadership role),” Burrell said.

“With three freshmen, we try to lead them along and keep them under our wing.”

With so many new additions to the team, there could have been a drastic drop off in production to start the season. After winning four of the first five meets in the season, however, it is clear another quality season is on the horizon for UH. The freshmen have some work to do to catch up with their elder teammates. The juniors have won the conference championship every year of their college career, and they have no intention of slowing down.

“We’ve been winning since I got here, so I just expect it to keep going,” Burrell said. “We’re getting better people since we are winning, I feel like we’ll continue to win.”

Looking forward Diving coach Bob Gunter has helped the team gain its recent success. UH hired Gunter in 2015, and he has been positively

affecting the team’s success since.

Gunter was an award-winning diving coach for the Woodlands Diving Academy and won the AAC’s Diving Coach of the Year award in 2017. He has also earned the respect and trust of his divers.

Gunter’s effect was immediate, as he has helped the team win the conference championship in two of the three seasons he has coached at UH. “With Bob, it was pretty easy to come in and do what he wanted to do, and that bettered me,” Burrell said. “So having him here again, I feel like I’ll continue to get better.”

After nearly a month of consecutive competition weekends, UH is caught in a month-long hiatus before it returns to compete in midNovember.

This competition will be huge, as it will feature the return of Burrell, who suffered a concussion from a diving accident and missed every meet to start the season.

“This will be my first meet, so I’m excited,” Burrell said. “I think I’m ready.”

So far, the rest of the divers have proved they are ready as well. If the swimming and diving team

can keep up the momentum it has created from the early season, then there is no reason it will not have a good chance to repeat for its third conference championship in a row.

The team is confident and has a lot of expectations for itself, but this is only because of the standard of excellence it has created. It accepts nothing less than the best. For Burrell and the

divers, the best is expected.

“I expect 100 percent that we will three-peat,” Burrell said.

“Actually a four-peat. I’m trying to get four rings.”

After becoming one of the teams that has won the most in UH's athletic history, the swimming and diving team still has its sights set high. sports@thedailycougar.com

Junior diver Lauren Burrell is one of the most experienced divers and has been counted on as one of the leaders of the team. | Courtesy of UH Athletics

8 | Wednesday, November 7, 2018

SPORTS ANDRES CHIO, EDITOR

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SPORTS@THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM

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FOOTBALL

By the Numbers: Houston falls to SMU ANDRES CHIO

SPORTS EDITOR @CHIOANDRES

Homecoming with high expectations The Cougars lost for just the second time this season last week and now return home to face Temple, which has proven to be a top team in the American Athletic Conference despite its bad start. After beginning the season with two losses to Villanova and Buffalo, Temple has won five of its last seven games and almost defeated No. 11 UCF in primetime on Thursday. The Owls have shown that their offense can hang with the best teams in the conference, and the Cougars could end up in a shootout with the Philadelphia squad. The Houston defense needs to prove that it is not a doormat and will have to stop a Temple offense that has averaged 36 points per game in its last seven outings.| Fiona Legesse/The Cougar

FOOTBALL

Houston must win out or risk losing West ANDRES CHIO

SPORTS EDITOR @CHIOANDRES

After a stunning win by SMU in Dallas and a dominant upset by Tulane over USF, both teams sit just one game behind Houston and are breathing down its neck.

Houston needs to win the rest of its games or the team could lose the West and a berth into the American Athletic Conference Championship Game.

To avoid missing the AACCG, Houston simply has to win out, but it has a tougher task than the other two teams.

Houston has Temple, Tulane

and Memphis left on its regular season schedule, and it is looking like none of those games will be cakewalks.

Temple nearly defeated No. 12 UCF and has just one conference loss this season.

Tulane has been up and down in the conference but has a pair of big wins over Memphis and USF. Memphis has been a power in the AAC for years. Although it is struggling this season, it has shown flashes of its former self in games against UCF and Navy.

SMU has a very light schedule with the two worst AAC teams, UConn and Tulsa, as well as Memphis. UConn is one of the

worst teams in all of FBS, while Tulsa has struggled to beat everyone not named UConn.

Tulane has a bit of a tougher schedule with games against Houston and Navy, but its ECU game is of a similar or lower level as Tulsa.

SMU has the tiebreaker over both Tulane and Houston, so if it wins out and UH loses another game, the Dallas squad will go to the conference championship game, no matter what Tulane does.

The Nov. 15 game against the Green Wave is an essential win for the Cougars.

A Houston win would mean Tulane would not have a head-

to-head win against either of the other two contenders, while a loss would take all control of the West out of UH's hands.

A loss in that game, or any game for that matter, would put all control in the Mustangs' hands, and the Cougars would need to pray for someone to steal a win from the Dallas team.

SMU has hit its stride and could very well win out, so Houston has no room for error or its players will likely be watching the AACCG from their couch. sports@thedailycougar.com

With its second loss in three years to SMU Saturday, Houston fell out of the AP Poll rankings once again. Houston's defense had a poor performance, while the offense finally stumbled.

In the game, Houston ran the ball 47 times and threw it just 22 times. That is the highest run-to-pass ratio this season with 2.14.

The previous high was 1.54 against ECU when UH ran 43 times and threw 28 times in the 42-20 win. Before the SMU game, Houston's balance was nearly equal with about 39 runs and 38 passes per game.

The lowest ratio was .64 against Navy, which was similar to the SMU game as the opposing team got out a big lead early and UH had to come back.

SMU had 318 passing yards and 196 rushing yards against UH. SMU averaged 250 passing yards and 99 rushing yards in its previous games.

Its season-highs against FBS opponents were 328 yards passing against Cincinnati and 158 yards rushing against Navy.

Houston had just 175 passing yards on 11 receptions. This is the second time the Cougars have been kept under 200 passing yards this season with the Tulsa game being the first.

Houston's average this season was 337 passing yards.

UH had 190 rushing yards, which was the fourth-lowest total of the season and below the team's 232-yard average.

Junior quarterback D'Eriq King managed three touchdowns and still sits at the top of the NCAA in points responsible for. But, the quarterback had many out of character throws that went very short or very wide of the receiver.

Houston will need to clean up its play and be ready to fight when Temple arrives on Saturday. sports@thedailycougar.com

Wednesday, November 7, 2018 | 9

ANDRES CHIO, EDITOR

MEN'S BASKETBALL

Continued from page 7

“Last year, the reason why we were good was because we were good defensively,” Sampson said.

“There’s 351 schools in America.

We were ranked No. 13 in the nation in defensive field goal efficiency. That’s why we won.”

With notable opponents this season like the Oregon Ducks, Wichita State Shockers and Cincinnati Bearcats, that defensive-minded culture should prove quite useful.

The Ducks have been a pillar of NCAA consistency, as Oregon has totaled eightstraight 20-win seasons along with eight-straight postseason appearances.

In addition to Oregon being a capable opponent, the Dec. 1 match against the Ducks will be the inaugural game at the newly-furnished Fertitta Center.

Caging the Bulldogs The Cougars’ first-game opponent, the Alabama A&M Bulldogs, are coming off a rough

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS

3-28 season.

This year, A&M has a relatively experienced team composed of mostly sophomores and juniors but has just three seniors left on the roster.

One of those seniors is Arthur Johnson, a 6'2" guard who was the only player to average double-digit points for the Bulldogs last season.

Being one of the only three seniors on the team, he will likely lead the younger players and take on an even bigger role this season, much like the new seniors for the Cougars.

On the Cougar side of things, with lethal three-point shooters like Davis Jr. and junior guard Armoni Brooks, Houston will look to prioritize playing inside-out in its half-court offense, taking advantage of Brady’s post-play while also trying to set up looks for its outside shooters. The game against Alabama A&M will start at 2 p.m. Saturday at Texas Southern’s H&PE Arena. sports@thedailycougar.com

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Senior Corey Davis Jr. was the Cougars' top distance shooter with 103 three-point shots and he was the third most accurate in the American Athletic Conference with 42.9 percent accuracy. | Thomas Dwyer/The Cougar

UHRecreation uh.edu/recreation

STRENGTHENING THE PRIDE

OUTDOOR ADVENTURE

INTRAMURAL SPORTS TOURNAMENTS

REGISTER BY

Farmers Market Bike Ride DATE

Houston, Texas Day Trip Saturday, November 17 | $15 - UH Student

TIME

Cougar Combine 11/9 at 3:00 pm 11/9 3:00 - 7:00 pm NFL Madden 11/26 at 3:00 pm 11/26 5:00 - 12:00 am NCAA Bowl Pick’em Bowl Season TBD Register on myrec.uh.edu, for a full listings, visit: uh.edu/recreation

Register by 11.9

WTX Entrada Backpacking & Caving Guadalupe Mountains National Park Tu-Su, November 20 -25 | $300 - UH Student Register by 11.12

Farmers Market Bike Ride

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HIRING LIFEGUARDS For those interested in Becoming a lifeguard, visit: uh.edu/recreation

Houston, Texas Day Trip Saturday, December 1 | $15 - UH Student Register by 11.26

PRIVATE SWIM LESSONS

To register go online and fill out a Private Swim Lesson Inquiry form, email to rrodgers@central.uh.edu.

Private Lessons are dependent on availability of the instructor/facilities.

Prices 1 Lesson 4 Lessons 7 Lessons

Member $30.00 $105.00 $180.00

Community $37.50 $130.00 $222.50

Survival Skills GoPro

Wednesday, November 14 | $5 - UH Student 5:30 - 8:30 pm, CRWC Room 1017

+

Register by 11.13 Visit the website for more trips: uh.edu/recreation

FITNESS

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@ 4:30pm

FITNESS ASSESSMENT

Interested in improving or maintaining your current fitness status? $20 for a -30-45 minute session Go to uh.edu/recreation to schedule an appointment

10 | Wednesday, November 7, 2018

OPINION WAFA KAZMI, EDITOR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/OPINION

OPINION@THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM

713-743-5304

POLITICS

Sanctuary cities provide benefits to U.S. and immigrants RYAN NOWROUZI OPINION COLUMNIST Political talk on immigration has obscured the meaning of the term sanctuary city. A sanctuary city doesn't have to be a city; it can be a city, a county, or even a state. It is an area wherein the local government limits how much help it offers to federal immigration enforcement officials and agencies. This includes the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. Sanctuary cities have been portrayed in a negative light under former president Obama and President Trump.

The latter, however, has called for an all-out attack on these cities. Despite the negative connotation attributed to the term, sanctuary cities are not a hole in immigration policy, but rather are a legal, realistic mechanism to allow entry for non-violent undocumented immigrants while creating a safer society.

A primary concern about sanctuary cities is that they pose a safety risk by allowing undocumented immigrants to remain in the country. This false claim insinuates that immigrants are more of a threat than the average citizen. The demonization of immigrants as dangerous has been one of the focal points of the president's attacks on sanctuary cities.

In reality, immigrants pose less of a threat than native-born U.S. citizens. In a 2015 study by the American Immigration Council, a non-profit and non-partisan organization, the results showed that higher immigration is associated with lower crime rates, and immigrants are less likely to commit crimes and be incarcerated than native-born citizens.

Regardless of this finding and many others, on only his fifth day in office President Trump signed into law Executive

Sanctuary cities provide legal protection to immigrants, and also act to increase transparency. | Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons/user: MB298

Order 13768, which threatened mean cities that don't practice immigrant beyond what sanctuary jurisdictions by deportation at all. is legally required in order withholding federal grants to A misconception about for ICE to pick them up is cities. sanctuary cities is that they unconstitutional. This has been This move was a step toward will not prosecute or deport upheld in several court cases, better fulfilling a longstanding any undocumented immigrant including in Miami and Oregon. campaign promise to round regardless of background, but Sanctuary cities are mutually up and deport large numbers this is not true. beneficial, creating a safer city of undocumented immigrants.

Those who are arrested for by bringing undocumented Since then, a federal judge has a non-criminal offense are not immigrants out of the shadows. blocked this executive order as subject to being held for ICE In the United States, there an overreaching of executive via what is known as a detainer are approximately 11 million power, but this hasn’t stopped request in sanctuary cities. undocumented immigrants. In Trump from stoking unjustified Violent criminals or those who 2017, ICE performed 226, 119 fear in the public. have repeatedly been deported deportations on undocumented Most recently, Trump attacked and have returned, however, immigrants. a democratic Pennsylvania are routinely referred to ICE for The United States should focus senator on his view of sanctuary further action. on how to make theCAMPUS country a CATHOLIC MASS ON SUNDAYS: cities. “Bob Casey voted in Those in favor of eliminating safer 10:45 place immigrants by AMfor - Religion Center 6:00 PM - Catholic Center favor of deadly sanctuary sanctuary cities argue that pushing forWEEKDAYS: greater social and Tuesday—Friday 12:00 Noon cities that released thousands their presence is unlawful and economic cohesion that benefits CATHOLIC NEWMAN CENTER SUNDAY WORSHIP SERVICE Confession: Before or After Masses upon thousands of illegal they violate federal law by not all U.S.Office residents, instead of # (713) 748-2529 alien criminals and vicious following federal policy. trying to force out individuals First Service: 7:15 amThe Second Service: am gang members to prey on problem with this9:00 argument is that President Trump falsely Third Service: am Pennsylvania streets, to prey all twofold.

Not only11:00 are sanctuary think provide a clear and present Fourth Service: 1:00 pm over this country," Trump said. cities completely legal and threat.

Sunday School: 9:00Tenth am This number is false protected under the According to a study out of UC according to multiple sources, Amendment,BIBLE but they also San Diego, sanctuary counties WEDNESDAY STUDY including Politifact, and is offer12 protection under experienced approximately 35.5 noon & 7:00 pm the law representative of the kind of to undocumented immigrants fewer crimes per 10,000 people Bible Class patently false fear-inciting where protection is due. versus Sunday non-sanctuary counties rhetoric Trump has used to Being undocumented in and boasted stronger economies. scare the public. the United States is a civil The reason for this difference Not only is the number offense, not a criminal one. is surmised to be caused by Trump cited in this argument Undocumented immigrants are immigrants in non-sanctuary false, so is his idea regarding still entitled to constitutional cities being dramatically less IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN ADVERTISING IN WORSHIP DIRECTORY, the release of gang members rights, including the right to likely to report crimes, act as SALES REPRESENTATIVE AT 713-743-5356 and violent criminals. CONTACT Adue process. This means that witnesses and work with local Sanctuary cities do not detaining an undocumented law enforcement if they think

worship DIRECTORY

their status in the country is at jeopardy.

Despite what the current political climate suggests, fear is not an immigration policy. The hallmark of any good immigration policy is recognizing that undocumented immigrants will be present in any given country. Instead, the focus should be on maximizing safety through better screening, asylum requests and a path to citizenship when possible.

The country's immigration policy should be led by levelheaded realism, not stories of caravans and MS-13. A complete purge of undocumented immigrants would endanger all citizens by alienating peaceful immigrants from society and violating the rights guaranteed to them in the Constitution.

Sanctuary cities like San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles and many others provide reasonable legal accommodations to undocumented immigrants while also allowing the country to exercise its ability to enforce immigration policy. Let them be.

Opinion columnist Ryan Nowrouzi is a biomedical sciences junior and can be reached at opinion@ thedailycougar.com.

Wednesday, November 7, 2018 | 11

WAFA KAZMI, EDITOR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/OPINION

OPINION

OPINION@THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM

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HEALTH

EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR IN CHIEF

Jasmine Davis MANAGING EDITOR

Cristobella Durrette

SPORTS EDITOR

Andres Chio

LIFE & ARTS EDITOR

PHOTO EDITOR

Corbin Ayres

CAMPUS EDITOR

Wafa Kazmi

Michael Slaten FEATURES EDITOR

Sarah Whiteley CHIEF COPY EDITOR

Morgan Horst

JANET MIRANDA OPINION COLUMNIST

Emily Hubbard

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Fiona Legesse

Slow communication from UH puts us at risk

OPINION EDITOR

ASSISTANT EDITORS

Trenton Whiting, McKenzie Misiaszek, Billion Tekleab

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.

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When diseases like tuberculosis appear on campus, there needs to be clear and efficient communication between the University and student body. Delaying the spread of information puts us at risk of getting the disease due to ignorance of the situation. | Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons/user: Magnus Manske

L

ast week, a member of UH involved in the Fine Arts Building was confirmed to have tested positive for tuberculosis. University officials have been slow to establish a communication channel with students and faculty regarding the case.

University authorities have been following the case closely under protocol outlined by the City of Houston. The University handled the case by contacting individuals who had extended contact with the individual first before informing the rest of the students and staff.

Although this is a good rationale to prevent panic, it is essential for UH authorities to inform the campus community about important and rare health concerns sooner.

Despite handling the case according to the proper guidelines, this doesn't counterbalance the fact that UH needs a better communication system. The threat of disease on campus merits a stricter, more streamlined communication process that informs students and staff about potential threats in a quick, efficient manner.

It is reasonable for

SLOW COMMUNICATION

Continues on next page

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12 | Wednesday, November 7, 2018

OPINION WAFA KAZMI, EDITOR

SLOW COMMUNICATION

Continued from previous page the University to wait for confirmation of a positive tuberculosis diagnosis from the individual affected, but there should be faster communication channels and more resources so students can understand how tuberculosis spreads.

“Tuberculosis is a very ubiquitous disease. It is all over the world, although it is less common today in developed countries than during the Industrial Revolution,” said professor of biology and biochemistry and NSM Associate Dean for Graduate

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/OPINION

Studies Anne Delcour, who teaches a class on infectious diseases.

TB is a contagious bacterial infection that can be fatal if it is left to spread and not caught and isolated.

Infected people can sometimes go into what is called latent TB, where your immune system has contained the bacteria but you do not show any symptoms, said Delcour.

“When people have the active form of TB and they are infectious, then they can spread the disease to other people,” Delcour said.

A slow communication response can put students with other health problems that

OPINION@THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM

result in immunosuppressive effects on their immune system at risk.

It is important to have good communication between students and the University for this reason. It is not only important for the health of students and staff, but it could lead to faster reaction times that would put less people at risk, especially individuals with medical problems that lead to weaker immune systems.

We need to make it easier and faster for students and faculty to be kept up to date on what is happening on campus, especially if it is something as serious as an infectious disease.

The City of Houston sent the City of Houston Health

Department officials to speak to UH students and employees about tuberculosis and answer any questions. This attempt to keep students informed was inefficient, however, as many students' busy schedules did not allow them to take advantage of this resource.

It is not an issue of increasing panic or fear of catching a disease. It's an issue of communication. Students bombarded with hundreds of emails a day might not see the email, needlessly putting their health at risk.

Transparent communication needs to be a priority for any other infectious disease responses. For a more robust communication strategy, the

713-743-5304

University needs to react faster and raise awareness of the issue and its potential consequences because students and faculty have a right to know what is going on in their community.

Transparent communication should be a priority for any future disease and other emergency responses. The University needs to react faster, raising awareness of the issue and its potential consequences for those at the University.

Students and staff have a right to know what is going on in their community.

Opinion columnist Janet Miranda is a marketing junior and can be reached at opinion@ thedailycougar.com.

ACADEMICS

The research process at UH could be more efficient MARYAM BALDWANI OPINION COLUMNIST Students need research because education is about applying the material, not just memorizing it.

Research enhances students’ critical thinking skills and connects the material applied to material covered in other subjects, fostering an environment for indirect interdisciplinary learning and a distinctive perspective, according to an article in the International Journal of Exercise Science.

The process of getting a research position at a lab, however, is a maze. From finding a research project students are passionate about to getting in contact with the lead professor, the process isn't easy. One way to simplify this overcomplicated process is to have a single web page listing all the research faculty for each college and department.

Each professor can have the department name, the lab research topics and a short synopsis of the main project in the lab. This more organized manner would allow students to view all their options at once.

Hence, this website would help students find desired research projects.

Another aspect of the web page can be to include student input. In other words, registered students working in that specific lab can post their experiences of working there.

Moreover, students should be able to have an idea portal with submitted ideas not visible to

Research is an important part of the college experience. At UH, we can open the gates to research by creating direct channels to connect students and professors. This way, students will be encouraged to pursue their interests. | Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons/user: Yakuzakorat

the public for future research projects to consider.

The website could also include student input, allowing students conducting research in that lab to post about their experiences. In addition, students could have an idea portal, featuring proposals for future research projects.

Students don't, however, need to work directly with a professor to conduct research at UH. With the free workshops at MD Anderson Library in various different subjects, students can gain a creative outlet to do research on their own.

Although this is not considered official research, students can experiment to satisfy their curiosity.

This solution also benefits professors. If more students encounter their lab, then more students apply. Therefore, the professor will get more applications and may find a student that is better qualified than ones he already knows, making research a competitive and rigorous extracurricular at UH. Professors that do not conduct research can further their students’ learning with individual project-based

assignments. The same concept from research of gaining a deeper knowledge is relevant for project-based assignments, and students may become inspired to pursue the particular topic even when the assignment is over.

Another side effect of research is it promotes better teaching. The professors interact with new students and are able to realize the way some students analyze problems and reach conclusions. It also provides professors with more opportunity to integrate new research technologies into their

curriculum.

Since students with research experience learn the subject matter with a deeper understanding, the University can elevate the students’ education experience through research. This can be accomplished by better connecting the students to research opportunities and professors, which will in turn benefit student curiosity and classroom methods.

Opinion columnist Maryam Baldwani is a biology sophomore and can be reached at opinion@ thedailycougar.com.