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eating in isolation
DT Volume 121, Issue 18 friday, september 18, 2020
destiny alexander
/ the daily texan staff
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News
The University has reported more than 1,000 COVID-19 cases since March.
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life & arts
Out-of-state students say they feel unsure about how they will get home if campus closes.
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UT must cease its acceptance of standardized test scores in its undergraduate admissions process.
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Emily Caldwell (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com
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sports
Texas volleyball players show their ongoing support for Black Lives Matter.
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How will students quarantining in dorms get their meals?
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Students who are self-quarantining and are secondary contacts are still allowed into UT dining halls to pick up food, sources from University Housing and Dining and University Health Services said. Students who test positive for COVID-19 are removed from campus buildings, but primary and secondary contacts to positive cases face less strict regulations from the University, according to previous reporting by The Daily Texan. UHD director Rene Rodriguez said primary and secondary contacts can pick up food in the dining halls, but Susan Hochman, University Health Services associate director of assessment, communication and health information technology, said only secondary contacts can. UHD did not respond to multiple requests for clarification on whether or not symptomatic students awaiting test results will be allowed in dining halls. “(University Health Services) has said they can still come into the dining room because everything is to-go there,” Rodriguez said. “They can fill up the box and then take it to the room and still quarantine safely.” Hochman said the statement from UHD was not entirely true. She said students who are quarantining because they may be secondary contacts can go into the dining halls, but primary contacts cannot. “If they have symptoms and are awaiting positive test results, they are told to self-isolate and will no longer be in the residence hall, even if they have not been confirmed
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positive,” Hochman said. Quarantined students in dorms can also request to pick up a meal at the J2 or Kinsolving dining halls on the UHD website and pay for their food online to avoid additional contact, Rodriguez said. He said if students are following mask, hand-washing and social distancing protocols, dining halls will remain safe. “It’s not like they’re having to touch anything or things like that,” Rodriguez said. “We still have all our protocols, washing hands and all the dispensers with hand sanitizer. There are options.” UHD and UHS will only notify primary and secondary contacts of
COVID-19 cases in residence halls through email despite protests from students, according to previous reporting from the Texan. Neuroscience freshman Frida Espinosa said she lives in Jester West Residence Hall and heard about COVID-19 cases in the building from other students. She said she is taking precautions to stay safe and has bought groceries and made her own food so she does not have to visit dining halls. “I have been avoiding going to dining halls,” Espinosa said. “Even though they do a good job at making sure people are (socially distanced) FOOD
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NEWS
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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2020
UNIVERSITY
UT estimates $152-$162M in costs related to COVID-19 By Andrew Zhang @andrewczhang
UT’s revenue losses and expenditures from COVID-19 could total $152 to $162 million by the end of 2020, according to an Aug. 18 UT Budget Office report obtained by The Daily Texan through the Texas Public Information Act. The University spent nearly $20.5 million to reopen campus and estimated $9.5 million in additional costs, according to the report. Of that amount, $7.5 million was used for educational technology, including classroom video platforms and remote learning resources. “Estimates and projections of COVID-related costs and revenue losses, (particularly) for those expected in the Fall 2020 semester, should be considered preliminary and subject to change,” the report said. Personal protective equipment and sanitation supplies contributed $4.6 million to the reopening costs. Nearly $500,000 of this amount was used for student safety kits with face masks, sanitizer, a thermometer and health instructions. Another $1 million was spent on more than 3,000 sanitation stations. UT estimated over $2 million is needed to purchase sanitizer and other supplies. UT also budgeted $2.1 million to buy safety signage and protective barriers. To create UT’s COVID-19 testing system, the University spent $5.2 million from the reopening costs on personnel and testing supplies, such as three rapid testing machines for symptomatic tests and
food
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and they have their masks, there’s still groups of people that sometimes don’t follow (the rules).” Business freshman Elizabeth
funding for the Proactive Community Testing Program. “By developing in-house testing capacity, the institution will be able to serve the testing needs of (UT) despite fluctuations in demand that could limit available capacity of commercial labs serving the broader Central Texas community,” the report said. The report estimated UT will also experience $81.8 million in total revenue loss related to service refunds and event cancellations throughout the 2020 fiscal year. According to the report, UT issued $15.2 million in reimbursements for housing, $11.3 million for dining and $9.2 million for parking when campus closed in March. UT received $15.7 million in CARES Act funding, which is approximately 10% of the total $152 to $162 million loss estimate, according to the report. Interim President Jay Hartzell announced in a June 8 message that UT began furloughs in units not generating enough revenue to mitigate financial loss. Eighteen UT employees began their furloughs in September, University spokesperson J.B. Bird said in an email. The number of people on furlough is time-dependent, Bird said. “Furloughs are a local decision as each college, school, and unit considers its financial health and makes plans,” Bird said in a July 7 email. “Units that self-generate revenue were affected first by the furlough process.” Some of the estimated revenue losses include $5.5 million from the AT&T Hotel and Conference Center,
Hernandez said UHD notified her when an individual tested positive in Jester West, where she also lives. The email from UHD recommended she “self-monitor and continue practicing social distancing.” Hernandez said she feels concerned about how she will receive meals from the dining halls during
megan fletcher
$2 million from the Blanton Museum of Art and $2 million from Texas Performing Arts. Financial impacts from canceled sporting events are “conservatively estimated” at $9.1 million in fiscal year 2020, according to the report. Texas Athletics announced salary reductions and employee furloughs earlier this month, according to previous Texan reporting. According to the report, best-case projections reveal the University may experience $40 to $50 million in additional unspecified revenue losses besides those from athletics.
her quarantine. “I would feel comfortable asking (someone on my floor) to go get me food and just tell them (to) please leave it outside my door,” Hernandez said. “That’s the only way I can think (of) to come into the least amount of contact with the least amount of people.”
/ the daily texan staff
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Editor-In-Chief E M I LY C A L D W E L L FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2020
OPINION
COLUMN
Do away away with with Do standardized standardized testing scores scores testing
UT should stop considering standardized test scores in the undergraduate admissions process. By Eva Strelitz-Block Columnist clara sánchez
mid all of the challenges of COVID-19, the pandemic has accelerated innovation and overdue change in some areas. COVID-19 disrupted students’ access to standardized testing this spring and summer, prompting students, parents and university admissions teams to reconsider the role of testing in the upcoming round of undergraduate college admissions. Since March, universities across the country, including UT, have worked briskly to reimagine the college admission process. In response to these unforeseen circumstances, UT announced in June that it will adopt a test-optional policy for fall 2021 undergraduate admissions. Prospective Longhorns will not be required to submit an ACT or SAT test score as part of their admissions application. However, a test “optional” admissions policy, as opposed to a policy which prohibits the submission and consideration of test scores altogether, only further advantages higher-income students whose resources and circumstances allow them to submit standardized test scores — even during a pandemic. There is a clear consensus that there are racial, economic and cultural biases inherent in the construction,
administration and preparation of standardized tests. They are also not accurate benchmarks of students’ academic readiness for college. UT should do away with standardized testing requirements altogether instead of keeping them optional. Data presented demonstrates that high SAT and ACT scores are disproportionate factors of students’ family income, their parents’ education achievements and their race. It is no longer an open question whether standardized testing adds value or is fair. It doesn’t, and it is not. UT should capitalize on the opening for change COVID-19 presents to dismantle the insidious impact of the “testing industrial complex” on college admissions. Test prep tutoring alone brings in an estimated quarter of a billion dollars annually. Earlier this month, in response to COVID-19, Bay Area Judge Brad Seligman ordered the University of California System to immediately suspend standardized testing requirements in admissions. The judge’s ruling makes clear that COVID-19 has brought equity concerns regarding testing to the forefront of public issues. There is a notable upside to this rapid shift. “I think going through an admissions cycle without reliance on standardized testing is a great opportunity for us to put together an incoming class selected on their merits outside of SAT
or ACT scores,” said Alexandra Wettlaufer, a French and comparative literature professor and the director of the Plan II Honors Program. Wettlaufer also acknowledges the meaningful impact that decreased reliance on standardized testing at colleges and universities across the country has on diversity. “(It) may well open the door for a more diverse student body at these institutions, which would be wonderful,” Wettlaufer said. We’ve all had to collectively — and swiftly — rethink the ways we teach, learn, work and socialize. In the last few months I have assembled petri dishes in my kitchen for an online biology lab, applied for a job via Zoom and had my first telemedicine appointment. The thing is, none of these “new” approaches are actually novel. We’ve simply lacked a collective push, until now, to respond to available technology and do things differently, even when doing so is objectively in service of fairness, increased access or lower costs. UT must go beyond its interim pandemic test-optional policy. In the wake of the California ruling on standardized testing, UT has the opportunity to be a leader in higher education and do away with standardized testing requirements altogether. Strelitz-Block is a Plan II sophomore from Austin, Texas.
/ the daily texan staff
GALLERY
charlie hyman
/ the daily texan staff
NEWS
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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2020
COVID-19
UT-Austin surpasses 1,000 reported COVID-19 cases since March By Amanda Figueroa-Nieves @amandafn02
UT has reported a total of 1,117 COVID-19 cases since March 1, including over 600 cases since classes started Aug. 26, according to the UT COVID-19 dashboard as of Thursday afternoon. The University added 104 cases retroactively Thursday from self-reported cases and positive results sent by Austin Public Health from UT community members who were tested off campus, according to a dashboard update. No new cases have been reported on Thursday, according to the dashboard. “Given the serious health concerns of the virus, any number of positive cases is a concern, and we are committed to working together as a community through testing, tracing, isolating and public health measures to limit the spread,” University spokesperson J.B. Bird said. Of 1,198 students tested before the Sept. 12 football game against UT-El Paso, 95 tested positive and 1,103 tested negative, according to a University announcement. Sixty-nine of these were new results. “Some of the positive results were people with previously reported cases, already counted on our dashboard, who were still testing positive but are no longer infectious, which is a known result with some tests,” the announcement said. TheaaaaaUniversity previ-
stephanie sonik
ously reported three coronavirus clusters with collectively about 100 positive cases in West Campus on Sept. 10. The University declined to release the addresses of the clusters, citing privacy laws, according to previous reporting by The Daily Texan. The dashboard does not display the number of active
cases. Susan Hochman, associate director for assessment, communications and health information technology for University Health Services, said community members can refer to the number of cases in the last 10 days for a general sense of the number of active cases. She said this is not a precise measurement
since some cases are reported after the onset of symptoms, and some people experience symptoms for more than 10 days. “Active cases is not a metric the University’s medical and contact tracing teams rely on for their work, but the University continues to discuss ways to refine and im-
/ the daily texan file
prove the dashboard’s public health utility and can review the idea of listing active cases, as some dashboards do,” Hochman said. In the last 10 days, UT has reported 255 cases, according to the dashboard. No new clusters have been reported by the University since Sept. 10.
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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2020
NEWS
CAMPUS
In-person, hybrid classes repond to coronavirus cases By Brooke Ontiveros @brookexpanic
With UT reporting 1,117 COVID-19 cases as of Thursday evening, some hybrid and in-person classes are making adjustments for when students test positive for or have potentially been exposed to the coronavirus. UT’s Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost created a COVID-19 exposure guide for faculty to provide recommendations and rules for how to handle coronavirus cases in class. Dave Junker, advertising associate professor of instruction, said he moved his Life of the Mind class entirely online last week when some students reported they would be self-quarantining. “A total of four students decided that they were going to self-quarantine because either someone in their dorm tested positive or they think they had been exposed in some way,” Junker said. “When the risk seems kind of high, I fully anticipate moving the class to all-online for a week or two or three weeks as needed.” Kathleen Harrison, communications manager for the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost, said handling in-person classes is up to the professor and department. The guide outlines steps for professors to take if a student has been potentially exposed, experienced symptoms or has tested positive. Junker said he resumed
in-person classes this week but gave students the option to participate fully online for the rest of the semester. Junker said if someone in the class tests positive, the course will move entirely online for at least two weeks. “I feel pretty safe with the way the class is … being handled,” said Reagan Fuller, a speech, language and hearing sciences junior in Junker’s class. “My professor has made it a point that if you do not feel safe, you don’t have to come in.” If a student tests positive in a class, the professor is not allowed to tell the other students because of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, according to the guide. Instead, students in the class will get one of two notices: a general notice that a classmate tested positive or a directed notice given to close contacts, according to the guide. “Since faculty and TAs do not have a health provider relationship with the student, the faculty member or TA should not alert the class, because that would be a violation of FERPA in the same way that divulging information about disability accommodations or grades is not allowed,” the guide said. Other courses, such as philosophy graduate student Michael Dale’s Contemporary Moral Problems class, will continue in-person sessions even if there is a positive student case. Government fresh-
sophia solomon
man Lauren Post skipped Dale’s in-person class this week to get tested after she received an email that a classmate tested positive. Post said Dale is allowing students with COVID-19 concerns to view the class online since the student tested
positive, but she is unsure how long that will continue. Dale declined multiple requests for comment. Post said she would want class to move online for two weeks and return to in-person classes after.
/ the daily texan staff
“He’s giving us the option by saying you can participate more online and come back whenever you’re comfortable, but I think he should have just made the decision for everybody instead of leaving it up to the students,” Post said.
LIFE&ARTS
Life&Arts Editor
7
ARIANA ARREDONDO
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2020
STUDENT LIFE
Students avoid public transport Safety concerns amid pandemic pose as obstacle for students who rely on public transportation. By Leni Steinhardt @lenisteinhardt
ome students are avoiding public transportation during the pandemic because of safety concerns. But those without a car, like out-of-state student Anna Kaminetz, might find themselves stranded on the Forty Acres if campus shuts down. If UT closes campus like The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill or SUNY Oneonta have, students without cars could be left scrambling to return home. As of publication, UT has not announced a specific number of cases that would prompt a campus closure. Design freshman Kaminetz said she plans to drive back to her hometown of Philadelphia with a friend from UT if this happens. “Our plan is to drive back together at Thanksgiving or if we get thrown out of the dorms beforehand,” Kaminetz said. “Knowing that I have him and his car means I could leave at any time. If he decided to leave
before me, that would be a very different story.” For Kaminetz, bringing a car to campus wasn’t an option. “I don’t have my own car at home,” Kaminetz said. “I share one with my younger brother who’s still in high school. I’ve been driving around with friends, but most of the time I have just been walking.” Some students, like Kaminetz, are hesitant to rely on alternative modes of transportation such as Uber, Lyft, public buses and electric scooters during the pandemic. Because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends maintaining a distance of 6 feet from others, social distancing while on a bus or in an Uber can be challenging. “(On the bus) I definitely have been extra careful, paying attention to the social distancing sign on the bus and sanitizing everytime I get on and off,” said Austin Tackman, aaaaaradio-television -film freshman. Tackman said she also worries about the cleanliness of the buses themselves. “I think (the pandemic) is definitely affecting the way I view public transportation like the bus just because I know typically they’re not as sanitized as they should be,” Tackman said. UT is asking those who do rely on the UT shuttle service to wear a face mask and keep an empty seat between passengers. To address sanitation concerns, Uber released a compa-
alex donovan
nywide mandate that requires their drivers to wash their hands regularly, wear face coverings and keep windows open in the vehicle. However, Tackman said she is still hesitant to get in an Uber. Other students, like journalism freshman Merit Davis, are still using their own cars to get around. “I’m for sure using (my car)
a lot more than I think I would if (COVID-19) hadn’t been a thing,” Davis said. “I would be walking around more, using buses and Lime scooters. It’s nice knowing that I’m safe in my car.” Davis said her roommates rely on her to go places. “One of my roommates doesn’t have a car, so I drive
/ the daily texan staff
her places,” Davis said. Davis said she takes comfort in knowing exactly who has been in her car. “I would much rather use my car over public transit, whether that be an Uber or a bus or anything of that sort,” Davis said. “You don’t know who’s been on it. You don’t know who’s been touching it.”
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Life&Arts Editor A R I A N A A R R E D O N D O FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2020
LIFE&ARTS
CAMPUS
Students deal with lab restrictions Textiles and apparel students buy own materials and work alone now that labs are socially distanced. By Morgan-Taylor Thomas @mtthomas_
tudents used to eat pizza and pull all-nighters in the textiles and apparelw draping lab as they worked on their class projects with “Jersey Shore” playing in the background. Now, the whitewalled room is largely deserted as soon as class ends. “We would spill all our tea to each other and occasionally cry,” said Maggie Deaver, textiles and apparel senior. “Now, the entire lab is shut down as soon as we leave.” Along with a lecture demonstration from a professor, students use lab time to use classroom equipment and work on their projects. Gail Chovan, textiles and apparel assistant professor of instruction, said in a normal semester, labs would usually have 18 students in one room. The students must now leave what used to be a come early, stay late space as soon
as class ends. They are also separated into two socially distanced rooms restricted to eight people each. “We get to use sewing machines, industrial irons, an assortment of fabrics that have been donated, dress forms (mannequins) and tons of other equipment,” Deaver said. “With the lab closed, I am nervous about how I will get my projects done on time and also be able to input the amount of time and energy that each design requires.”
We will just have to figure it out.” MAGGIE DEAVER
textiles and apparel senior
Most lab sections are hybrid, and students are given the choice to participate in person or online. Students participating synchronously through Zoom are required to complete activities and submit photos through Canvas. They are also required to mail in their projects as well as pay for the shipping. During class, students participating in person are assigned their own workspace with the equipment they will need for the semester. This
semester, students also received hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes. “We have also installed air purifiers in the labs,” Chovan said. “The students are required to wipe down their individual stations at the end of each lab, and the (teaching assistant) or lab manager wipes down any common spaces that may have been used. We also restrict crossover into the other labs.” If a COVID-19 outbreak were to occur in the lab, the class would be immediately moved online. In that case, Deaver said students would have to buy their own equipment. For those already attending the lab virtually, these purchases were required. Some students have bought equipment for personal use outside of class. Jeannelle Romero, textiles and apparel senior, said she bought a dress form, which normally costs around $380, and a corkboard topping for her table because of the lack of lab time. “Our professors have warned us to make sure we have some (type) of a dress form to work with and a sewing machine at home just in case (class is moved online),” Romero said. Deaver said without access to the equipment in the lab, creating higher-quality projects will be much harder for students.
amber perry
/ the daily texan staff
LIFE&ARTS
9
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2020
9
FEATURE
Education junior creates tutoring program taught by UT students for K-12 pupils in Austin area By Anissa Reyes @anissaareyes
For Alexa Cumming, a break from her Zoom class usually looks like scrolling through her Twitter feed. But for the elementary school students she tutors, it might involve running laps around the house. Cumming, a speech, language and hearing sciences freshman, is a tutor with The Texas Learning Pod, a tutoring service that connects UT students with K-12 students in the Austin area. Education junior Natalie Ward started the service in July after she noticed more parents on Facebook looking for tutors rather than babysitters. She said almost 150 families contacted her when she offered tutoring services. Unable to take on every family, she started The Texas Learning Pod. “I think it’s great that (we’re) able to help these families,” Ward said. “A lot of (the kids) are elementary school-aged, and that’s (an) important time in (their) education. A lot of people see it as glorified daycare, but that’s when (kids) develop the most.” On Sept. 1, the Austin Independent School District announced their reopening plan. It will start with remote learning for the first four weeks of instruction, and after then families
can choose to send their child back to school for in-person instruction. Ward said around 180 UT students applied to tutor, but because of scheduling differences, she only matched 50 students to 50 families. Payment varies based on the number of kids in a home. Tutors get paid around $16 to $20 hourly and receive 80% of the profit. Ward gets the remaining 20%. When the tutor is first matched to a family, they coordinate with the parents to set a tutoring schedule and mutual agreement on COVID-19 guidelines. While the parents are typically at work, tutors work with their client’s kids one-on-one at the family home. To give the tutoring sessions more of a classroom feel, Ward said she offers tutors lesson plans with handson activities such as science experiments. “Online school for these kids is just sitting in front of a computer and listening to the teacher talk,” Ward said. “It’s really important for kids to also be able to touch something and see if they can make it work.” Education junior Caroline Campbell said she found out about The Texas Learning Pod through Ward. She said this is her first job teaching and tutoring kids. “I was a little nervous going in but also
confident because this is what I want to do for my career,” Campbell said. “I looked back at my notes from previous classes and talked to my parents and grandparents because they are also educators.” Campbell said she did a science experiment with her students using an ice cube and water to teach them about solids, liquids and gasses. “They were really into that and told me they wanted to do a blowing up experiment sometime, so I’ve been trying to come up with a fun experiment for them to do,” Campbell said. Cumming heard about The Texas Learning Pod through a Facebook group. She said the first and second graders she tutors are immunocompromised and will not be going to school this year. “I have been wearing my mask and following (the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines, so (I) haven’t had any issues with (COVID-19), but I have been more careful about where I go because of (the students),” Cumming said. She said she hopes to make learning enjoyable for the kids even in these unusual circumstances. “They’re both really bright kids,” Cumming said. “I want them to realize that learning is interesting and fun, and it’s not always as frustrating as it seems right now.”
rocky higine
/ the daily texan staff
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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2020
SPORTS
VOLLEYBALL LABELHEAD
Volleyball players speak out about Black Lives Matter By Daniela Perez @danielap3rez
e x a s volleyball players are not allowing the Black Lives Matter movement to leave the spotlight. The team showed its support for the movement in a video released Sept. 9. In the 41-second black-and-white clip, volleyball highlights interweave with footage of players at Black Lives Matter protests. In between the shots, various players on the team speak out about social justice to the camera. Since the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25, the women within the volleyball program have been vocal about their allegiance to the movement. “I won’t always be an athlete, but I will forever be a Black woman,” freshman outside hitter Madison Williams said in the video. Junior outside hitter Logan Eggleston and redshirt sophomore middle blocker Asjia O’Neal wrote the video’s script, according to a Texas Athletics spokesperson. Along with Eggleston, Williams and O’Neal, sophomore opposite hitter Skylar Fields and junior middle blocker Brionne Butler also shared their message in the video. “If you care about me when I do this or when I do this, you should care about us when we do this,” members of the squad said as highlights of the team in Gregory Gymnasium played. The video, which garnered almost 200,000 views on Twitter as of Thursday evening, ends with four shots of players saying “Black lives matter” into the camera. Players on the squad have supported the movement on their personal social media accounts as well. O’Neal and Eggleston took to social media over the summer to demand justice
jack myer
/ the daily texan file
The Longhorn volleyball team huddles together in front of fans in Gregory Gymnasium. In a show of unity, the team posted a video supporting the Black Lives Matter movement Sept. 9.
for Black people around the United States. “I am Black before I am anything else and the tragic events happening in our country directly affect me, my family, my friends, and my community,” Eggleston said in an Instagram post June 2. “This is the time to use our voices to promote change and bring people together to advocate against injustices that directly affect the hearts and lives of so many of our friends!” O’Neal posted an Instagram photo of herself at a protest in Southlake, Texas, holding a poster that
said “Silence = Violence.” She shared her desire to keep the movement alive in another Instagram post. “Being a young Black girl going to predominantly white schools in predominantly white cities, I rarely saw people who looked like me or those that could relate to me,” O’Neal said in the post June 1. “While I’m glad that over this past week our country has had their eyes opened to the tragedies that my people have faced since the day that they were brought here in bondage, I don’t want to only see support
while #blacklivesmatter is a trending topic.” Senior setter Ashley Shook, who posted a black square for Blackout Tuesday on June 2, stood behind O’Neal in the video, showing her solidarity with the movement. Junior libero Sydney Petersen and junior setter Jhenna Gabriel reposted on Instagram the actions list put together by Texas athletes who called on the University to make changes that advance diversity and inclusion on campus. O’Neal said in her Instagram post that the
I am Black before I am anything else and the tragic events happening in our country directly affect me.” LOGAN EGGLESTON junior outside hitter
diversity within the Texas volleyball program is what
drew her to the team, adding that she will continue to use her voice and her platform for systemic change. “Coming to college and being around people from various ethnic, religious, and economic backgrounds was one of the best things that could have happened to me,” O’Neal said. “Now, being in a culturally diverse setting, I feel as though I have a true voice and platform to speak out on the racism in our country.”
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SPORTS
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Unpredictable offseason marks start of Vic Schaefer era By Carter Yates @Carter_Yates16
ith a roster full of young prospects and an allnew coaching staff, the Texas women’s basketball team knew the 2020 offseason would be an important transition period. However, the COVID-19 pandemic forced new head coach Vic Schaefer, who was hired in April, and his three assistants to limit face-to-face instruction. Despite these external challenges, the new coaching staff was able to communicate with players virtually before in-person training began, associate head coach Johnnie Harris said. “Before we started practicing, we Zoomed with them,” Harris said. “Since practice has started, we are at weights and conditioning with them. We have been in the gym with them just trying to be there and getting to know them.” The coaches have been pleased with the veteran leadership inside the locker room so far, Harris said. The team has no seniors on its roster, so it has been up to established playmakers such as junior center Charli Collier to lead by example for the underclassmen. “I’m just stepping up vocally on the court,” Collier said. “We have a lot of young freshmen on the team, so it’s about being a leader on and off the court and making sure that everyone is doing what they are supposed to do. At the same time, I am making sure I am getting better myself.” While the Longhorns’
courtesy texas athletics, and reproduced with permission
Texas women’s basketball head coach Vic Schaefer looks on as a player runs through a drill in practice. The COVID-19 pandemic limited face-to-face instruction for Schaefer, who was hired in April.
veterans grow into their roles as leaders, the new faces on the team have embraced the Texas culture. Schaefer said the entire team has put in the work to prepare for the new era. “I think our team, old and new players, has done a great job,” Schaefer said. “Everybody has embraced the change and the way that we
do things. I have been super encouraged and really pleased with how hard our kids have worked, how they come ready and prepared every day and how they show up on time.” Preseason practices have been vital to the Longhorns as they develop their chemistry with one another. Seven of the current 13 players did not play for the team last
season. Texas is also looking to replace dynamic players from last year’s team, such as point guard Sug Sutton and forward Joyner Holmes. The lost production is not an area of concern, however, and the team is excited with the idea of proving themselves, Collier said. “There are a lot of new faces on this team,” Collier
said. “People don’t know a lot about what we have going on right now; they just hear from social media. I feel like when we get on the court, we are going to surprise a lot of people.” Despite the personnel and player changes as well as the circumstances surrounding the pandemic, the coaching staff knows they have the
ingredients for a successful season. That confidence starts with the man leading the charge. “I believe in his system. I believe in his vision,” Harris said. “Coach Schaefer has no desire to be good — he wants to be great. He has made it known to our players, and it’s that mentality that makes me want to be around him.”