M THE MANEATER The student voice of MU since 1955
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Vol 86. Issue 13
december 4, 2019
DOUBLE TROUBLE
NCAA denies Missouri’s appeal, Odom fired in same week
Former coach Barry Odom during Missouri’s loss to Vanderbilt on Oct. 19. | PHOTO BY MADELINE CARTER
FOOTBALL
Odom’s out: Sterk on coaching search, state of program and future Director of Athletics Jim Sterk emphasized the importance of confidentiality as Missouri looks for new football coach.
Missouri players prepare to make their entrance on Faurot Field prior to Missouri's loss against Tennessee on Nov. 22. | PHOTO BY ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR ANDREW MOORE
FOOTBALL
EMILY LEIKER
Sports Editor
In a press conference Saturday afternoon following the firing of Missouri football coach Barry Odom, Director of Athletics Jim Sterk emphasized confidentiality would be key in the university’s coaching search. “A national search is underway and confidentiality around this time will be critical,” Sterk said. “Therefore, I won’t be accessible for public comments or comment on any search ‘til the next football coach is hired.” While defensive line coach Brick Haley has been instated as Missouri’s interim coach, Sterk said multiple times that finding a permanent new man for the job — and the right man — is imperative. “We need to try to act swiftly, be upfront with the potential candidates: ‘Here’s what we’re looking for, here’s what we want to do,’” Sterk said. “We’re going to have a lot of interest, so we’ll have to gauge who’s truly interested. I don’t
odom | Page 4
Sterk, Cartwright hope Missouri’s misfortune stirs reform within NCAA On Tuesday, the pair gave an impassioned joint press conference expressing their dismay with the NCAA’s decision on Missouri’s appeal. EMILY LEIKER
Sports Editor
“The current system is broken.” Missouri’s Director of Athletics Jim Sterk minced no words during a press conference Tuesday afternoon addressing the NCAA’s
decision to uphold sanctions against the university. “Last night when we received our decision, [we] obviously [were] disappointed,” Sterk said. “Then, shock quickly set in. Now I’m just angry. I’m angry because of our student-athletes and coaches who were so wrongly impacted by this decision from the Appeals Committee and the Committee on Infractions. The NCAA has proven again it cannot effectively serve its membership and the student-athletes it’s supposed to
sterk | Page 4
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T H E M A N E AT E R | N E W S | D E C E M B E R 4, 2 0 1 9
INSIDE THIS THE MANEATER The Student Voice of MU since 1955
Vol. 86 Issue 13 2509 MU Student Center • Columbia, MO 65211 573.882.5500 editors@themaneater.com www.themaneater.com
Twitter: @themaneater Instagram: @themaneater Snapchat: @the.maneater facebook.com/themaneaterMU The Maneater is the official student publication of the University of Missouri and operates independently of the university, student government, the School of Journalism and any other campus entity. All text, photos, graphics and other content are property of The Maneater and may not be reproduced without permission. The views and opinions expressed herein are not necessarily the views of the University of Missouri or the MU Student Publications Board.
Can Janae’s epitaph be “Wilson told me to drink it?”
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page 10 MU offers Sanvello for mental health help.
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14
Books Are Magic!
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Online this week: Research monitoring stress levels in adolescents with autism, profiles on the Kemper Fellow recipients and more at themaneater.com
COMMUNITY
IDE holds open forum, asks public what they want in next vice chancellor Members of the MU community said they wanted a candidate that is helpful in building relationships in the community, knowledgeable of social issues and future-oriented. LAUREN HINES
University News Staff Writer In search of the next vice chancellor of inclusion, diversity and equity, the Division of Inclusion, Diversity & Equity held open forums on Nov. 19 in the MU Student Center and Jesse Wrench Auditorium to get the public’s input on what they want in potential candidates. Former Vice Chancellor Kevin McDonald left for the University of Virginia on Aug. 1. IDE has established a search committee and is now building the profile for candidates based on McDonald’s performance and the public’s input. “Vice chancellor doesn’t just serve the
chancellor,” Pat Okker, co-chair of vice chancellor Equity Search, said. “Vice chancellor serves the entire campus, so I think it’s important that we hear from the entire campus.” The vice chancellor supervises the divisions within IDE and their projects. The role also demands they work with the chancellor and faculty across the university. MU faculty, IDE fellows and other community members mainly said they wanted a candidate who was a previous faculty member, has academic knowledge on social issues, is future-oriented and can build strong relationships in the community. Those in attendance also said IDE could improve as well. They said they wanted the IDE to hold the vice chancellor accountable, to give the vice chancellor real authority and to support and implement the framework McDonald created. The Inclusive Excellence framework lays out multiple ways in which inclusion can be implemented on all levels of campus. The discussion also touched on the events of
TRANSPORT
2015 when then-UM System President Tim Wolfe resigned after multiple student protests. “The first thing I think is important is somebody who is going to come in and learn, because one of the ways the status quo is restored is that most people try to start from scratch when they get here,” Michael Williams, assistant professor in the Department of Education Leadership and Policy Analysis, said. Williams presented data he and his research team collected that said the issues they were identifying today were the same issues they have been identifying since 1996. “2015 is not the entire context of this university. There’s plenty of racism, sexism, genderism that went on before 2015 that wasn’t addressed because the football team had nothing to do with it,” Williams said. “We have a lot of longstanding members of the university community whether they are still on campus or they’re still members of the
IDE | Page 5
WELLNESS
Bird is gone, but scooters will be back in Columbia soon, city says Bird's scooters may be gone from Columbia's streets, but a new option will be arriving soon. WICKER PERLIS
University News Senior Staff Writer On the morning of Nov. 20, authorized chargers for Bird in Columbia received an unexpected email: the company's scooter fleet would be gone at the end of that week. "We've had an amazing ride in Columbia over the past year," said a copy of Bird's email obtained by The Maneater. After thanking the chargers for their role in the scooter program's success, the company informed them that their services would no longer be necessary after Nov. 22. "Unfortunately, due to regulations on e-scooter providers, we will be pausing operations in the city until circumstances improve," the email said. Bird and Lime, another scooter provider, had been in negotiations with the city of Columbia and MU over regulations since their first arrival. Last year, after the city and MU passed a series of regulations, both companies withdrew their scooter fleets shortly before students left for winter break. When the weather warmed, Bird returned but
Anti-smoking organization Quit Tobacco Now helps those addicted to nicotine overcome their addictions through support and free resources. | MANEATER PHOTO ARCHIVE
A Bird scooter sits on the sidewalk at the start of September. All Bird scooters were removed from Columbia on Nov. 20. | PHOTO BY PHOTOGRAPHER TEDDY MAIORCA
Lime did not. At the time of Bird's return, Bird spokesperson Rachel Bankston said that the company had always intended to return to Columbia when the weather made it possible to do so. Now it seems the city and MU are not giving them the choice to stay. The same day that Bird informed their chargers of the impending departure, the city of Columbia made an announcement. "Effective Nov. 20, 2019, no scooter companies are licensed to operate in
BIRD | Page 5
Quit Tobacco Now helps community members quit smoking Ellis Fischel Cancer Center and the MU Wellness Resource Center work in collaboration to help the Columbia area. JOY MAZUR
Student Politics Reporter The journey to reduce smoking in the U.S. remains a priority for health institutions. As interest in vape products increase, healthcare professionals continue their goal
to decrease tobacco and nicotine addictions among people of all ages. In Columbia, the Ellis Fischel Cancer Center and the MU Wellness Resource Center offer Quit Tobacco Now, a free program designed to help members from the community quit tobacco. The group meets every other week for five classes over the course of 10 weeks. Two sessions are offered every year and the next session begins Jan. 9, 2020. It is open to any member of the community 18-years-old and on. The classes are co-facilitated by assistant teaching professor Jenna
SMOKE | Page 5
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ODOM
Continued from page 1
want to talk to someone who is just trying to leverage for a better contract. I want someone that wants to be here that can lead this program in the right way.” Sterk has previous experience hiring coaches, including Missouri men’s basketball coach Cuonzo Martin, whom he hired within his first year at the helm of MU’s athletic department. The search firm involved with Martin’s hiring, Parker Executive Search, will also help with the hire of a new coach for Missouri football. Even after a 6-6 ending to its 2019 season, Sterk seemed confident that Missouri’s program looks promising to potential hires and that there are already interested candidates. He cited having good players and “necessary resources” as two promising qualities. As for the qualities Sterk is looking for in his hiree? “Someone that brings a lot of energy and experience to the program,” he said. “A leader. Quality individual that has had success in leading a program or as a coordinator at a high level. Those are some of the qualities.” Sterk indicated that Chancellor Alexander Cartwright and UM System President Mun Choi would both be active participants in the search for a new coach. He also said the pair was involved in the decision to fire Odom, a decision that came “within the last 24 hours.” Sterk avoided any direct statement on whether that decision came before or after the Tigers’ win against Arkansas yesterday afternoon. A drop in the team’s momentum, which Sterk said he did not think would return under current leadership, was cited as one of the main reasons for Odom’s dismissal.
The cause for that shift in momentum is unknown to Sterk. “As a program, we had tremendous momentum heading into 2019 with the opening with our south end zone project, along with other strategic investments into the program,” Sterk said. “We lost a great deal of energy over the last half [of] the season which caused great concern as we looked to the future.” Odom was part of the Missouri program for 18 years, playing four years as a linebacker, spending six in an administrative capacity and then coaching for the last four. “All of us really appreciate what he’s done and contributed to the university and the program,” Sterk said. “Mizzou is really thankful for his contributions. I know how hard he and his staff have worked this past season and the previous three to make our program better. Coach Odom has dedicated himself to developing our student athletes, on and off the field, for which we’re really grateful.” Odom’s firing, which comes at a cost of almost $3 million, has a number of other possible repercussions including losing assistant coaches and committed recruits. With NCAA sanctions on the program’s budget, the financial costs could weigh heavily upon Missouri. Despite that, Sterk seemed unconcerned with finances, stating that he and Tim Hickman, the athletic department’s chief financial officer, were already set to have a meeting with Cartwright and the university’s CFO concerning finances. As for a timeline for the coaching hire, Sterk said he’s hopeful they’ll have an idea of who Missouri’s next coach will be within the next two weeks. “I’m excited about the future,” he said. “I think we have a great opportunity moving forward.” Edited by Wilson Moore wmoore@themaneater.com
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STERK
ruled that there was no evidence of academic misconduct, despite allegations by the enforcement staff that student-athletes were Continued from page 1 provided with extra benefits such as protect. The decision today is just special access and course assistance. Perhaps the most striking difference wrong.” MU Chancellor Alexander between the two cases was that Cartwright spoke alongside Sterk, both a former UNC department and while the pair admitted the chair and a department secretary university has no precedent for legal were uncooperative during the recourse on its case, both intend to investigation. While Sterk was careful to add continue their fight. They just have that it was only speculation, he said to attack it at its root. “We certainly have exhausted he did believe the ruling in North our NCAA appeals process, but Carolina’s case affected Missouri’s we will continue to push for ruling. “I think we were the next case meaningful and substantive reform of NCAA processes when it comes to up after that and those folks on the compliance,” Cartwright said. “We Committee on Infractions, they had know we’re not alone in that. That a strong opinion of what should have there are many other institutions happened with the North Carolina case and then we were the next case that feel similarly.” One of the biggest concerns up,” Sterk said. Cartwright was particularly shared by Sterk and Cartwright about the NCAA decision was its concerned with the implications that stark contrast to recent rulings on Missouri’s cooperation throughout similar cases, specifically Mississippi the investigation had no impact on State. In an almost identical scenario the ruling and how other universities to Missouri’s, a Mississippi State would perceive that. “If you look at what we did, we athletics tutor committed academic misconduct in an online course for acted with the highest integrity,” 11 student-athletes. That case went Cartwright said. “We immediately through the NCAA’s new negotiated self-reported. We opened up resolution process following completely to the NCAA enforcement the university’s agreement with staff, worked with them, went enforcement staff on the violations through the process. We received exemplary cooperation throughout and penalties. During Tuesday’s press conference, this entire process, and in the end we handouts were provided with side by received sanctions that others with side lists of the sanctions imposed on comparable cases did not receive both Mississippi State and Missouri. at all. That creates a truly chilling According to that handout, each effect on compliance because people of Missouri’s programs loses the look at this and wonder ‘If we do following amount of scholarships that, what happens?’” Despite the outcome of the appeal, per the 5% reduction: four football, 0.79 baseball and 0.85 softball. both Sterk and Cartwright were firm Similarly, for the 12.5% reduction in that should they have to go back in official visits, football loses seven, through the process again, they baseball loses four and softball loses would do it exactly the same. After one. Each program also faces seven- all, Sterk chuckled during the press week bans on communications conference, it’s NCAA rules. “You know, I can’t think of with recruits, unofficial visits and anything right now that we would evaluations. The athletic department also loses do differently,” Cartwright said. “If a significant amount financially as a we found out that something was result of the sanctions. Not only is happening, we would immediately there a $5,000 automatic penalty, self report. We would immediately but also a fine of 1% of each work with the enforcement staff. program’s budget. It’s also projected We would do all the things we did. Missouri will lose $9-10 million We would certainly hope we’d get a because of the bowl ban for the different outcome that time. It’s the right thing to do.” football team. Moving forward, the pair hopes Although most of the sanctions are nearly identical for Mississippi Missouri’s case and its outcome will State, the Bulldogs face no create conversation among NCAA postseason ban for either football or member schools about reform men’s basketball and fewer days lost within the association, specifically for unofficial and official recruiting surrounding its infraction and appeals policies. visits. “I think there’s a lot of talk “No one can look at the Missouri case and the Mississippi State and there’s a lot of disgruntled cases, which have almost identical people in the membership,” Sterk violations, and say that common said. “Where we go from here, I sense was used,” Sterk said. “There don’t know. I think, like Chancellor was no logic in today’s decision Cartwright, there needs to be reform and result. This ruling is another in the system to gain back some example of frustration from our credibility … I think it’ll definitely membership of the NCAA being be a topic of conversation. With the consistently inconsistent.” membership it already is. With the The other case to come up members, with the commissioners. frequently in comparison to Hopefully working with the NCAA Missouri’s is that of University of staff to make it better.” North Carolina Chapel Hill. In UNC’s Edited by Wilson Moore case, the Committee on Infractions wmoore@themaneater.com
IDE
Continued from page 3
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T H E M A N E AT E R | N E W S | D E C E M B E R 4, 2 0 1 9
aware of some of the issues here on campus, at least for Native
surrounding
[American] students,” Ryder Jiron,
community
Four Directions Indigenous People’s
who have seen these issues repeat
Allies President, said.
themselves over and over and over
IDE has a survey where any member
again."
of the MU community can add what
The search committee kept 2015
qualifications or requirements they
in mind and addressed it before
want for the vice-chancellor position.
discussion began. “We had some difficulties back in 2015, and when I was asked to
The University of Missouri Division of Inclusion, Diversity and Equity, who are currently searching for a new vice chancellor, apply the Inclusion Excellence framework to promote the collegiate success of MU’s diverse student body. | PHOTO COURTESY OF MU DIVISION OF INCLUSION, DIVERSITY AND EQUITY
Once IDE gains enough input and information, they will create the
become the UM president of the
diversity, equity, and inclusion,’”
more open forums for students and
profile and begin recruitment. Okker
system in response to the leadership
Michael
faculty in the future.
said they hope to have someone
breakdown, one of the first things I
System President, said.
Middleton,
former
UM
“Something
that
would
be
ready by the beginning of the next academic year.
said was, ‘The only way we survive
There was another open forum later
impactful, at least for us, is just
this trauma is if we dedicate ourselves
that day for students. One student
whoever takes up that next position
Edited by Alex Fulton
to becoming a model for dealing with
attended. However, there will be
kind of knowing or at least being
afulton@themaneater.com
BIRD
Continued from page 3
Columbia," the city
even came to Columbia to pitch their services.
said on its website.
Maybe the new program will be safer."
“And then Bird came to town and the game
As for Bird, the company has not ruled out
announcement
changed,” Davis said. “The city had no choice,
returning to Columbia if the city and MU will
went on to say the city
basically, but to put in a process for companies to
The
and MU are working together to find a single
operate.”
provider for scooter and bike rentals that they can
Now, the plan is to return to negotiations with
develop a contract with. No target date is set for
companies that can be contracted to provide the
a company to be chosen or for services to begin.
services MU and the city are looking for.
The use of a single vendor for scooters and bikes
Some students are sad to see Bird go, but hope
has been under discussion before Bird came to
that the new provider will make some positive
Columbia last year, said Solomon Davis, chair of
changes.
allow it. "While the city's pilot has come to an end, we look forward to working collaboratively with the city and the university to develop a more permanent mobility option that continues to offer a sustainable transportation solution for the entire community," Bird spokesperson Debbie Bass said in an email.
the Missouri Student Association Senate’s external
"Birds were pretty convenient for a lot of
affairs committee. Davis set up meetings between
people," junior Nate Marcus said. "I did not use
Edited by Alex Fulton
MU, the city and scooter companies. One company
them much because I was scared of getting hurt.
afulton@themaneater.com
SMOKE
Continued from page 3
Wintemberg and adjunct professor Tiffany Bowman. The class offers free resources to registrants including counseling, nicotine patches, gum and lozenges. “We know from the evidence that the way people are most successful in quitting is when they have actual support,” Wintemberg said. “When they have coaching, when they work on developing skills and good coping
assessment. It is an outlet for Ellis
class who’ve been smoking 30, 40
Tobacco Prevention and Cessation
Fischel to help prevent cancer in
or 50 years,” Wintemberg said. “We
Task Force. The group has met a
addition to treating it.
know this is not an easy process.”
couple of times to address new
According
to
Dianics,
The program does not apply only
issues, including vaping products and
another staffer on the Quit Tobacco
to long-time smokers. According
Now program, 8% of registrants
to the FDA 2018 National Youth
how to expand programs to younger
stopped
tobacco-related
Tobacco Survey, youth tobacco usage
products after attending just one
increased over the past several years
class and 54% succeeded in quitting
due to e-cigarettes. Quit Tobacco
after 10 weeks.
Now focuses on the same method of
using
Robin
“Our main goals are for people going through the program to become completely tobacco and nicotine free,” Wintemberg said.
developing active coping mechanisms to help both smokers and vapers. “We have to be prepared to address this,” Wintemberg said. “In
populations. To support the program’s goals, MU
Health
Care
continues
to
promote other resources within MU, Boone County, Missouri, and the U.S. Wintemberg stressed the program’s dedication to the importance of these goals. “We have to be compassionate,
Older registrants who have trouble
terms of people reaching out to us as
strategies and active planning and
quitting within the allotted 10 weeks
healthcare experts for help, it’s only
we have to help people, we have to
they combine that with nicotine
are always invited back to take
going to increase.”
make sure that they have resources,”
replacement therapy.”
another session and make another
The program started three years ago as a result of a community needs
attempt to end their addiction. “We’ve had people coming to our
According to Wintemberg, Ellis
Wintemberg said.
Fischel and MU Health Care recently
Edited by Ben Scott
launched a new task force named the
bscott@themaneater.com
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T H E M A N E AT E R | N E W S | D E C E M B E R 4, 2 0 1 9
DEBATE
Mizzou College Democrats and ASUM partner for debate watch party Mizzou College Democrats and ASUM held a debate watch party in Leadership Auditorium. ANNA COWDEN Student Politics Reporter Associated
Students
of
the
University
of
Missouri and the Mizzou College Democrats held
a Democratic primary debate watch party on Nov. 20. With the Iowa Caucus around the corner on
Feb. 3, students are narrowing down their top candidates.
About 60 students gathered in Leadership
Auditorium for the watch party. During the
debate, students groaned and laughed with their friends or quietly filled out their Democratic Debate bingo cards.
The party provided pizza, candy and soft drinks.
ASUM President Sidney Steele handed out debate
scorecards and bingo cards with phrases like “[Joe] Biden says something out of touch” and “anyone mentions their website.”
“People were really engaged with discussing the
debate,” Steele said. “And you could hear chatter the whole time. Everything I heard was really
relevant and in tune with what was happening. And so that was kind of our goal, especially with
having the debate bingo and debate scorecards that we printed out was to help people engage thoughtfully with what was happening on screen.” Sadie Jess, president of Mizzou College Democrats described the party’s atmosphere as jovial and chill. Though Steele and Jess said they only knew of one person who wasn’t left-leaning who attended the party, Steele said they hoped the joint party would bring a more diverse crowd than previous watch parties. “We were really interested in hosting an event that would hopefully kind of be more open to the general campus and people who might not be comfortable affiliating themselves, like with an organization that's part of a political party, but still interested in coming out to see the debate and to engage in these conversations,” Steele said. Jeffrey Bittle, Mizzou College Democrats Chief of Staff, said he was disappointed with the debate. He thought The Washington Post and MSNBC moderators asked shallow questions and wants to see a smaller debate stage. Jess agreed with Bittle’s opinion, but thought the moderators did a better job of keeping the debaters in line than previous debates. “Well, the thing is, I see these debates every time and I'm impressed with how people speak, but their records pale in comparison to what they
say,” Bittle said. “So I thought Pete Buttigieg spoke well. I thought Cory Booker spoke well, but I still support my chosen candidates because I think their records and policies will do a better job.” Senior Brock Holmes said he didn’t think there were any clear issues themes of the November debate. Holmes said Tulsi Gabbard and Biden emerged as the debate’s losers, while he thinks Booker had the debate’s best moments. “If more people were watching the debates, I don't think [Biden would] be the front runner nationally at all,” Holmes said. “I really liked when he was vice president, but he's not doing super well.” Jess believes criticism should be welcomed during the primary because it will create Trump’s strongest opponent. “It’s important that we are critical of people during the primary season, because that's the only way we'll all be the most informed we can be to make the best decision we can when it comes time to vote in the primary,” Jess said. “But I also think that by the time a candidate is chosen to be our nominee, I think it's really important that we come together to unify at that point.” Edited by Ben Scott bscott@themaneater.com
EQUALITY
MU shows commitment to diversity, representation by joining Aspire Aspire is a three-year commitment to help MU diversify its STEM faculty and be more inclusive in their teaching, research, mentoring and advising. JEB GOLDMAN
University News Reporter An Equality of Opportunity Project study states, “if women, minorities, and children from lowincome families were to invent at the same rate as white men from high-income families, the rate of innovation in America would quadruple.” MU has taken those words to heart, being one of the 20 most recent higher learning institutions to join the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities’ co-lead effort, known as Aspire: The National Alliance for Inclusive & Diverse STEM Faculty. Aspire is a national clientele-funded alliance seeking to build an inclusive and diverse STEM faculty across the nation. The initiative works with universities to give them customized approaches to help diversify their staff and faculty. Institutions join in cohorts, with the first cohort being composed of 15 universities across the nation. MU has joined the second cohort of 20 universities, which includes schools from all over the country, ranging from UC Davis in California to Auburn University in Alabama. Choosing the institutions in each of these cohorts is a very methodical process. It is a “complicated project” according to Travis York, assistant vice president for academic and student affairs at the
Association of Public and Landgrant Universities. “The reason that we accept groups of institutions together is because a lot of the research of institutional change and transformation indicates that when institutions are working in a network to tackle a really complex problem, they do so better,” York said. “They MU STEM programs have recently joined Aspire, a national organization that works to can share resources; they can attract underrepresented students into STEM fields. | PHOTO COURTESY OF ASSOproblem solve with each other.” CIATION OF PUBLIC AND LAND-GRANT UNIVERSITIES The network MU joined includes a three-year commitment to help diversify STEM faculty us in these positions to use our backgrounds and members and be more inclusive in their teaching, experiences to help our institutions invoke and maintain an environment of inclusive excellence,” their research mentoring and their advising. However, joining Aspire is not a simple or easy Loboa said. Loboa said she is excited about the resources process for any university. To join the initiative, universities must go through a very involved MU will now have access to for further growth and continuous improvement of the university’s application process. “Institutions from across the country applied, inclusive excellence initiatives. “As an institution, we will be able to better both in cohort one and cohort two, to be a part of the network,” York said. “There is a group assess our current efforts: what is working, what of application reviewers, both involved in the is not and what to change or improve,” she said. IChange Network and across the Aspire alliance “We also will obtain access to a suite of resources that pulls in experts and content experts from as well as guidance from experts on inclusive teaching, advising and mentoring practices.” around the country.” Joining Aspire is the latest move MU has made Elizabeth Loboa, dean of the College of Engineering, understands why MU joining Aspire to help diversify faculty on campus. Loboa believes is so important for the progression of STEM. In it is another important step in the right direction. “Aspire helps all of us to further improve the 2015, Loboa was named the first female dean in approaches we take to ensure our disciplines are the colleges’s 176-year history. “I believe it is important for underrepresented as diverse and inclusive as possible,” she said. Edited by Alex Fulton populations in STEM to see others who look like themselves in leadership positions and for those of afulton@themaneater.com
ENTERTAINMENT
Level Up Entertainment in the Columbia Mall is right out of a kid’s dream, featuring laser tag, bowling, an arcade room, a Nerf battle arena and a ropes course. | PHOTO COURTESY OF FACEBOOK VIA @LEVEL UP ENTERTAINMENT
Level Up your skills at Columbia Mall Columbia Mall opens new family entertainment business Level Up Entertainment. It features an indoor ropes course, laser tag and an arcade among other attractions.
inspiration, he visited other centers to figure out
pinball machine company. Montgomery enjoys
what he wished to do with his business.
working with Parks because of the variety of tasks
“It’s pretty typical [for] family entertainment
he gets to do.
centers,” Parks said. “I’ve done a lot of research
“I like my job the most because I do a little bit
and visited many of them. I took pictures, looked
of everything,” Montgomery said. “I get to work on
at what their color scheme was, what games they
games, build stuff, I get to do kind of everything.”
had, how big this room was, how big that area
Many people have flocked to Level Up to have a
ELIZABETH PRUITT
was. It gave families multiple things to do and was
fun day. Columbia resident Darcie Putnam brought
MOVE Culture Staff Writer
laid out in a way that was open.”
her son and his friends out to sample the new
Level Up Entertainment is home to many attractions from an arcade to a ropes course. Opening in the Columbia Mall, Level Up is something owner Nic Parks wishes will bring people to the mall with their friends and family. “I just thought it would be a good opportunity
Parks wants Level Up to be a place of fun and
entertainment center at the Columbia Mall. She
entertainment for people of all ages to enjoy. All
was happy that they had a lot of fun playing games
he wants is a place where families can come and
and running around on the course.
enjoy their day together. College students will
“It looks like an appeal to a wide variety of
enjoy the nostalgic feeling of the arcade games
ages,” Putnam said. “Our kids are just coming to
and have fun cheering their friends on with the
check the ropes course part of it, but they’ve also
ropes course.
played some of the arcade games.”
“The fun part for me is … the energy around
Parks plans to expand on the attractions
with a lot of activity and something that I hope
being in the amusement business and people with
available at Level Up as well. He plans to put in
will bring the traffic back to Columbia Mall.”
smiles everywhere,” Parks said. “I just think it’s a
a giant Lite-Brite system, tube slides coming from
very fun business to be in. It provides something
the party rooms upstairs and a trampoline near
that Columbia needs.”
H&M.
to do something great,” Parks said. “Something
Currently, Parks plans to set up a 12-lane bowling alley, a laser tag arena, arcade, a ropes course and a Nerf gun battle arena. However, this
Mark Montgomery has worked with Parks for a
was no short term project. To prepare and bring
long time at The Pinball Company, an arcade and
Edited by Janae McKenzie jmckenzie@themaneater.com
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T H E M A N E AT E R | M OV E M AG A Z I N E | D E C E M B E R 4, 2 0 1 9
CULTURE
‘OK boomer’: the newest written chapter in history of youth counter culture
TikTok popularized the phrase “OK Boomer” in an effort to retort against the perceived ignorance of older people. However, there may be a deeper historical meaning behind its inception. GEORGE FREY
MOVE Culture Reporter The phrase “OK boomer” spread from the social media platform TikTok and flooded corners of the internet. “‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations,’” The New York Times reported Oct. 29. It became a rallying cry for millions of disgruntled youth to voice their disapproval over certain political, social and broader societal issues, to which individuals born from 1946-64 ‘Baby Boomers’ turn a blind eye. In the eyes of young people, older generations seemed to have given the cold shoulder to issues like climate change, gun control and civil rights. The spirit behind the formation of this newest call to arms, however, is nothing new, and stirring the pot to rebel against older people in power is a part of history that has had a meaningful impact. For youth activists like Erica Overfelt, president of Period @ Mizzou, rebelling against society is not the main goal of her organization. The main goal is to educate. Within activism, she has found that those who are initially critical of her cause often become supportive once she is able to give them insight as to why her beliefs are important. “A lot of the comments and backlash we get comes from ignorance,” Overfelt said. “One thing that did surprise me was that a lot of the backlash comes from older women. I would say that is ignorance … if you tell them, ‘well, you may be a woman who doesn’t need to worry about this, but there are other women, non-binary and transgender, who have to worry about getting tampons,’ they’ll say, ‘oh okay.’” The issues, like those Period @ Mizzou discusses, in a way, mirror concerns of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Young people across the nation
| GRAPHIC BY EMILY MANN
were beginning to look toward forming their own path, which, compared to the previous decade, was a drastic change. In 2019, however, issues like climate change, the rights of political refugees and LGBTQ issues have come into the greater consciousness of society. The issues propagated by college-aged activists, unlike the 1960s, focus on the broader global society. The perception of youth today is also impacted by the fact that college students over 18 initially were not granted the right to vote until the 26th amendment was passed in 1971. At the same time, other court cases ruled in favor of students, making them legal adults in the eyes of the law. Before 1971, they were still considered minors. MU graduate student and professor Craig Forrest specializes in the history of youth in education. His dissertation, “We Are Not Children,” focuses on the evolution of the constitutional rights of college students, particularly concerning a piece of law known as “In Loco Parentis” or “the act of parents relinquishing their control to an educational institution.” For Forrest, the evolution of “In Loco Parentis” correlates with the way older generations have viewed young people for decades since the 1960s. “Students being activists for their own rights really happened throughout the 1960s, which was a direct result of the fact that legally they were considered minors by society and by the universities,” Forrest said. While the way students are viewed in the law books has changed, the perception of young people by older generations still tends to lean toward the idea that they are somehow lazy or entitled. “Today, you have administrators who look at college students as young adults who possibly do not have the best judgment, they want to try and restrain their worst impulses, Forrest said.” The reaction of these people against activism and phrases such as “OK Boomer” is one which is mixed. Some view it as an ageist slur, and others seeing it as an example of how the decisions of adults have failed youth today. New Zealand politician Chlöe Swarbrick, 25, used it as a response to political hecklers when they attempted to interrupt her speech supporting a bill concerning the climate crisis on the floor of parliament Nov. 6. Perspective is something Overfelt believes is crucial in having older people, or those who are against certain policy changes, understand why activism in and outside of the menstrual movement is a necessary ingredient in bringing about change. However, this perspective also comes from to the way in which people, particularly those of the older generation, get their information. “I think a lot of people that don’t understand the menstrual issue are older,” Overfelt said. “Just because there were so many issues in the past that were never brought to light about the current issues … I think we, Millennials and Generation Z, are also able to spot fake news easier, while the older generations succumb to fake news more often, which can make causes like the menstrual movement look really bad. It is so easy for people to manipulate the facts.” Phrases like “OK Boomer” stem from a deeper desire to make the world better, an act which has been dismissed by older generations throughout history, not just in the late 2010s. From Forrest’s point of view, these kinds of generational conflicts, are just another part of the ongoing story of human history. “I know when I was Generation X, after the Baby Boomers, we got the same thing, that we were slackers,” Forrest said. “The implied overtone is ‘God help us the world’s going to come to an end, this younger generation isn’t capable of 1201 American Pkwy, Columbia, MO65202 ∙ 573.309.9600 ∙ skyzone.com/columbiamo running their own lives, or that they are going to destroy society,’ … There is nothing different today about young people en-masse today than when I was a student.” Edited by Janae McKenzie jmckenzie@themaneater.com
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T H E M A N E AT E R | M OV E M AG A Z I N E | D E C E M B E R 4, 2 0 1 9
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YOUTUBE
Shane Dawson, Jeffree Star collaborate on ‘Conspiracy’-themed collection YouTuber Shane Dawson released a seven-part documentary series following his entrance to the makeup world CHLOE KONRAD
MOVE Angles Columnist YouTuber Shane Dawson, who some might consider to be the king of conspiracies, has had his share of controversy. From slightly racist comments to weird jokes about relations with his cat … the list goes on. So, what better theme for a series of eye-shadow palettes than Conspiracy and Mini Controversy, made with none other than makeup connoisseur Jeffree Star? What makes this collaboration different than ones Star has done in the past is that Dawson decided to document every moment – from the decision to do the project, deciding shadow names to discussing just how much money would be made if the undertaking was a success. According to Star, nothing like it had ever been done before. Okay, it might not have been done before, but I think he might need to calm down just a little. It was nothing revolutionary. The seven-part series was very interesting and offered a look into the makeup world I never thought I would get. But, there are parts where the viewer might feel a little shortchanged. I really enjoyed the series but I can see where someone
who has never heard of mascara before might want to throw their computer across the room. To make a successful documentary, the content needs to be presented in a way that is interesting to more than one demographic. I don’t know if they were able to pull that off. The entire first episode, “The Beautiful World of Jeffree Star,” covers Dawson’s mental preparation (which you’ll see a lot of throughout the series) and Star’s meet-and-greet for a previous palette launch. As a first look into the behind-the-scenes life of the makeup mogul, they did a good job. There’s a good balance between thescariest-thing-I’ve-ever-been-a-part-of and oh-wow-he’s-actually-pretty-nice. In episode two, they go to Star’s office for the first time and have their first makeup meeting. Highlight: Dawson is gifted a bedazzled bottle of Hidden Valley Original Ranch dressing. At the end, Dawson picks the first round of shade names for his eye-shadow palette. You might be surprised how this is done. The rest of the episodes follow the works of creating the collection: the ups and downs of disagreeing with Star, an entire scandal in episode three and finally, the reveal of the final product in episode 6. No, it won’t win the first YouTube Emmy, but it was well-made and Dawson did a great job capturing how crazy and truly dangerous the makeup world can be. And if I may say so myself, the palette turned out pretty good too. Edited by Joe Cross jcross@themaneater.com
Dawson and Star created a seven-part documentary, offering fans an inside look into the makeup industry. The episodes featured everything from creating shade names for the palette, meet-and-greets, and the production of the final product. | PHOTO COURTESY OF TWITTER VIA @SHANEDAWSON
Shane Dawson’s new eye-shadow palettes, “Conspiracy,” are in collaboration with fellow YouTuber and makeup artist Jeffree Star. Dawson has faced a variety of allegations and conspiracies in his career, ranging from relations with his cat to racist remarks. | PHOTO COURTESY OF JEFFREE STAR COSMETICS
PROFILE
What it means to make a difference through education Freshman Alan Wells talks about why he chose to go into education. CATHERINE POLO MOVE Culture Reporter For freshman Alan Wells, the idea to become a social studies teacher came from a desire to give students like him an opportunity. Wells feels that students should have a teacher they can connect with on a deeper level than someone who just grades their assignments. “I wanted to get into teaching because, basically, I was a bad kid at first,” Wells said. “Being a minority, a black kid, you don’t get the same treatment as white kids. Basically, I wanted to get into teaching because a lot of teachers gave up on me earlier on in school, and I feel like each kid should have an opportunity. They should be able to see a familiar face.” While Wells hasn’t settled on a specific school he wants to work at in the future, he would like it to be somewhere near his old school in Kansas City. When he gets a classroom of his own, Wells wants to make sure he gets to know his students and his students get to know him. “If they have trouble they can come to me, and I can help them fix it and not feel excluded or outcast from the school,” Wells said. “And if they need that extra voice, [then] I’ll be there for them ... to know that you can actually go and do something with your life.” Wells had wanted to be a teacher his whole life, but he has held back
because of the pay that comes with it. After meeting people in high school, he was struck with the desire to make a difference. Wells encourages others to go for what they want in life and forge their own path. “I had a few people, like a team of teachers and faculty at my school that really helped me and made a difference in my life,” Wells said. “Which makes me want to make a difference in other kids’ lives.” According to an article written by KIPP reporter Chandra Whitfield, only 2% of teachers are black males. Wells is looking to change this statistic. “Be the change that [you] want to happen, so if you want to see more black males or you want to see more males in the teaching community, be that guinea pig that first starts it,” Wells said. “And then they’ll see ‘Oh this is not something [that’s] not normal.’ … Once one person goes, the second person goes, after that second person, the third person.” Freshman Roman Leapheart met Wells in their Learning Strategies for College Students class. The two became fast friends because of their similar personalities. “Alan is a good guy and he has a really big heart and he just cares,” Leapheart said. “I think that’s something you’ll need, especially being a black male going into education, which is [like] a myth-buster discovering bigfoot … You don’t ever see that. So I just think that he has a big heart and he’s always willing to be helpful which is something you need to be a good teacher.” Edited by Sophie Stephens sstephens@themaneater.com
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MENTAL HEALTH
MU students offered Sanvello for free as positive step toward improving mental health Tools based in cognitive behavioral therapy available within the app Sanvello may help students with common mental health concerns as the stress of the semester peaks. MADDIE SCHUCK
MOVE Culture Staff Writer Each semester, college students face growing responsibilities and obligations, leading them to feel stressed and overwhelmed. As a result, many schools have observed patterns of increasing depression and anxiety among students. MU is no exception, as it is constantly working to offer solutions. The latest tool being promoted by the Wellness Resource Center is the app Sanvello, a collection of techniques and methods designed to relieve early symptoms of common mental health issues. “This app was designed as a clinical tool,” WRC Director Christy Hutton said. “Regardless of whether somebody is just experiencing stress or whether they have long-standing or newly discovered anxiety, they can use this app at moments when they’re feeling the least able to manage things on their own.” Previously known as Pacifica, the app has always been a favorite of Hutton’s. When the company recently began charging for its services, she worked to make the tool available to all MU students for free. Now, logging in with any MU system email grants users automatic premium access to the app. The creators and supporters of Sanvello hope that the accessibility and flexibility of using the app will appeal to students. The app offers a variety of resources for users in different states of mental health, from simple mood tracking to
Sanvello offers MU students a clinical tool to track their mental health and provides treatments for anxiety, depression and other issues. | PHOTO BY PHOTO EDITOR TANNER BUBECK
extensive Guided Journeys. According to the Sanvello website, “In collaboration with therapists, doctors and researchers, we are working to build the most effective behavioral health care solution in the world — and put it in the hands of everyone who needs it … Sanvello is rooted in widely-used and empirically-supported treatments for anxiety, depression, and stress.” As the semester wraps up, many students experience elevated levels of these conditions. Deadlines, grades, self-image and homesickness are a few stressors that can begin to seriously affect their daily lives. “If somebody already has something like anxiety or depression, and you add stress to that, it compounds everything,” Hutton said. “We’re hoping we can meet students where they are and
give them what they’re needing in the moment when they’re needing it.” Since its release to the MU system, Sanvello has become a valuable coping tool as the stress of midterms and finals weighs on students. “When I downloaded Sanvello, I didn’t know what to expect,” junior Katie Cross said. “Even though it’s an app, it feels like someone cares and someone wants to know how you’re doing.” With the increasing popularity of using online and mobile tools to combat problems, the WRC expects the app to catch on quickly across campus. However, this raises concerns of students assuming the app is a replacement for in-person professional help. “If a student finds that the way that they’re thinking, or the way that they’re treating themselves or others, is getting in the way of meeting their goals, that’s a great time to reach out for support,” Hutton said. “I think it’s really important that we sit down together and have face-to-face conversations, particularly when we’re hurting.” Alongside programs like habit tracking, meditations, goal setting and community discussions, Sanvello offers information to link users to professional help including hotlines. This is a way for users to differentiate between methods the app employs and help that is only available through in-person treatment. “It’s probably just your first step,” Cross said. “I think if you’re having serious mental health issues, this might help you get your foot in the door.” Hutton and her team are also developing programs for coming semesters that they hope will offer further relief from mental health struggles. Several workshops are planned, covering topics from getting the most out of Sanvello, to getting better sleep as a busy student. Edited by Sophie Stephens sstephens@themaneater.com
LGBTQ
The Center Project fights to support the local LGBTQ community The nonprofit holds support groups and special events for queer midMissourians. BEN WICHE
MOVE Culture Senior Staff Writer Local nonprofit The Center Project prides itself on being a safe space for the queer community. The nonprofit’s community center, located a few blocks west of Columbia College, hosts a variety of support groups and special events. These include Gender Blender, a support group for anyone on the transgender spectrum, and PRISM, a club for LGBTQ youths. The Center Project also sponsors the Quorus, a choir made up of LGBTQ advocates, and The Clothing Closet, a program that provides gender-affirming clothing to queer and transgender folk. Howard Hutton is a board member of The Center Project and volunteers with
Parents4Parents, the center’s support group for parents of LGBTQ folks. Hutton says that Parents4Parents attempts to teach parents how to navigate their children’s healthcare, legal and educational needs. “We celebrate our kids,” Hutton said. “We work for progress. We support each other.” Hutton was with The Center Project when it started out as a part of the Unitarian Universalist Church’s Welcoming Congregation in the early 2000s. “Out of that Welcoming Congregation group sprouted our premier youth program, PRISM, and The Center Project,” Hutton said. Though The Center Project now has a set location, they haven’t always been so lucky. Hutton remembers how the Center Project started out in a closet in the Unitarian Universalist Church. After renting various buildings around Columbia, they bought their current permanent location in 2017. According to former board
member Dustin Hampton, the physical location helps The Center Project further their mission. “It’s been a great place for people to come and have a safe space,” Hampton said in a 2016 interview with the Columbia Daily Tribune. “It’s been a really great place for a supportive or an LGBT organization to meet.” The Center Project is a volunteer organization made up of queer people and allies alike. For Hutton, activism is an essential part of allyship. “Activism is just an accident when you’re a part of this community as an ally,” Hutton said. “Basic equality and civil rights [are] simply not there a lot of times. So you have to speak up.” The Center Project, along with other LGBTQ advocates, has given Columbia a reputation as a city accepting of queer individuals. The city has earned a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index two years in a row, thanks in part
The Center Project in Columbia hosts special events and groups to support the queer community. The project originally started in a closet within a church, but after its growth, bought its current building in 2017. | PHOTO BY SENIOR STAFF WRITER BEN WICHE
to the passing of Columbia’s recent conversion therapy ban. However, there is still work to be done according to state Rep. Martha Stevens, D-Columbia. “When you live in Columbia and you’re part of this sort of progressive environment, you tend to think it’s supported,” Stevens said at a recent celebration of Columbia’s conversion therapy ban. “While that’s true, there’s still the grinding gear of politics and
democracy.” The Center Project strongly supported the conversion therapy ban, which Howard Hutton himself initiated. “The Center Project came and gave [a] really powerful testimony at the city council meeting one evening,” Stevens said. “I’m grateful for all of the community partners we got to work with.” Edited by Janae McKenzie jmckenzie@themaneater. com
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION
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Submit a letter to the editor by emailing editors@themaneater.com. EDITORIALS REPRESENT THE MAJORITY OPINION OF THE MANEATER EDITORIAL BOARD.
THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED BY THE MANEATER COLUMNISTS DO NOT REPRESENT THE OPINIONS OF THE MANEATER EDITORIAL BOARD.
SOFI SAYS
COLUMN: The monetary drawbacks of making it home for holidays
In a world where the “poor college student” life has become a reality, prices of mass transportation should be the least of our worries. SOFI ZEMAN
Sofi Zeman is a first year journalism major at MU. She is an opinion columnist who writes about politics and government. Of the 30,046 MU students enrolled this fall, thousands are from a state in the U.S. outside Missouri. Many students begin college semidependent on their parents or guardians for clothes, finances and other necessities. Because of this, being out of state can be difficult, especially when trying to make it back home. After going through the experience myself, I’ve concluded that the price students have to pay for mass transit does not meet its worth. The highest number of out-of-state students currently enrolled at MU are from Illinois. Though only a state away, 4,163 students have to figure out how to make it back to the Prairie State for the holidays. With the way mass transportation is
structured, out-of-state college students typically spend more money than in-state students to make it home for the holidays. Most people traveling a far distance opt to fly, drive or take a bus. While airfare is an obviously expensive route, the other two choices aren’t as cheap as they’re hyped up to be. With the exception of having to pay for gas money, driving seems like the most financially conservative option. In reality, this isn’t necessarily true. Yes, driving doesn’t catastrophically hurt a person’s wallet during a trip out of state. However, the biggest expense in this situation comes from having a car at school. MU students are required to pay for a parking permit in order to have their car on campus during the school year. The average price for a parking permit in Columbia falls around $150 for one year. While this payment isn’t directly related to driving back home, some students have to pay hundreds of dollars each year just to have the option to do so. Because of this, students often resort to using public transportation in order to avoid paying for these passes. Unfortunately, this doesn’t save much money at all. Long distance bus fares are no better than driving. After taking a Greyhound bus from Columbia to central Illinois, I learned that a round trip can cost well over $100, depending on the
choice of destination. It’s also important to note that as a young person traveling a long distance on their own is by no means the safest course of action. In my experience alone, there were moments of discomfort—hours of delays, layovers and technical difficulties with the heating system that ultimately forced some families to get off the bus mid-trip. A close friend was even pick-pocketed while sleeping on a separate Greyhound trip to Arkansas during the same weekend. Traveling in these conditions simply does not live up to the cost of high travel prices. Many college students don’t have the money to not be concerned about paying for long distance travel. With similarly high prices for nearly every transit option, some students will likely have issues dealing with transportation back home over the nearing holidays. It’s for this reason that many MU students, as well as locals, are left with few affordable transportation options in this area. Across the state and country, improvements need to be made in mass transportation. A major change needs to be made in either the price or quality of traveling long distances. We live in a world where people should not be afraid to take the bus home. Edited by Bryce Kolk bkolk@themaneater.com
DOHENY’S DETAILS
COLUMN: Active shooter drills need change after decade of shootings in schools The same active shooter drills have been used in schools and the amount of gun violence in schools calls for change in those drills. More consideration needs to be taken to protect students in a place that should be considered safe. MAGGIE DOHENY Maggie Doheny is a sophomore journalism major at MU. She is an opinion columnist who writes about women’s rights. Gun violence in schools has become more normalized over the past few years. Although active shooter drills and lockdown drills have been practiced in schools since the Columbine High School shooting in 1999, they are more important than ever in society’s current climate. That being said, are these drills really the most efficient way to ensure the safety of the majority of students? From kindergarten to senior year of high school,
I endured the same drills for active shooters. The drill never changed once. In fact, I can recite the routine. First, a message comes from the speaker, saying there is an active shooter in the building. Sometimes, a coded message that only the teachers know is used instead. This indicates for the entire school to go on lockdown. The teacher locks the door, the students cram into the corner of the room that cannot be seen through the door, the teacher closes the blinds and everyone stays silent until they hear otherwise. When I was young, I never questioned this routine. When I got to high school I realized an issue: why doesn’t the drill have a greater emphasis on getting out of the situation? One day, my mom addressed her specific issue with the active shooter drill. As a third grade teacher on the first floor of the building, she wondered why she couldn’t quietly guide the children through the window in order to protect them. For a long time, there was a concern that active shooter threats could have more than one shooter waiting on the outside, but data has shown that it is typically one person.
Teachers want to be more proactive in the situation. Homeland Security’s active shooter advice is “run, hide, fight.” However, some experts now say that the strategy should only be “run, fight.” In at least 13 active shootings, it was proven that over 90% of the fatalities were due to the victims hiding. If this is the case, now is the time to emphasize the importance of finding a way out. Being passive and hiding should only be a last resort, while the focus should be to escape. Therefore, getting the students out of the building might just be the most proactive way to save them. Sitting quietly in the corner isn’t fooling anyone at this point. The lockdown and active shooter drills need to get students and teachers out. As of Sept. 24, there have been 334 mass shootings in 2019. Due to the frequency of mass shootings in this time period, there needs to be more attention to detail when it comes to the safety of this country’s future. This country’s future lies in the hands of all students and should not be taken lightly. Edited by Roshae Hemmings rhemmings@themaneater.com
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T H E M A N E AT E R | O P I N I O N | D E C E M B E R 4, 2 0 1 9 ROGER THAT
COLUMN: Being complicit is being a part of the problem When it comes to the
Howard Zinn, author of
dehumanization and discrimination
“You Can’t Be Neutral on
of minorities, neutrality isn’t an
a Moving Train,” worked
option.
with
the
concept
of
neutrality with metaphors.
ABIGAIL RUHMAN
In his book, he explained
Abigail Ruhman is a sophomore journalism and political science major at MU. She is an opinion columnist who writes about student life, politics and social issues for The Maneater.
the significance of this
There is value in differing opinions. They create
especially if they took
more active discussions, inspire critical thinking
it literally and tried to
and force people to find the best option. However,
dissect its meaning. Others
there is a line. Opinions about whether a hot dog
immediately
is a sandwich create questions about how society
I meant: that events are
constructs language, but some issues don’t get to
already moving in certain deadly directions, and
you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have
be two-sided.
to be neutral means to accept that.”
chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant
When it comes to the dehumanization and discrimination of statistical and marginalized minorities, there should only be one side and it’s standing with minorities. While it’s awful to see the damage that opponents of equality have created, it’s also important to recognize that the people sitting on the fence aren’t allowed to claim the moral high ground. As individuals within the U.S., people are allowed to say whatever they want unless it conflicts with the five established exceptions to the first amendment: obscenity, child pornography, fighting words, true threats and false advertising. The first amendment protects your legal ability to say whatever you like, but it does not protect you from moral and ethical repercussions or vocal opposition. However, many people decide to remove themselves from situations involving moral or
analogy,
“Some
were
baffled by the metaphor,
saw
what
In situations where one side is asking for rights and the other side is asking for the ability to discriminate, remaining neutral only helps maintain the status quo. Currently, the status quo poses a real danger to marginalized minorities, meaning the train is heading toward them. While you may not be the conductor who is controlling the train, remaining in your seat does nothing to save the other person. While it may save you some socially awkward situations, it still benefits people with power. The act of drawing equivalencies between asking for rights and actively denying people their basic human rights means that people are willing to treat oppressors the same as the people they oppress. That means people who are hurting others are getting the same amount of space as the people they are hurting.
| GRAPHIC BY EMILY MANN
has its foot on the tail of a mouse, and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.” The false sense of intellect and morality society associates with neutrality is derived from the protection it provided the powerful. If you’re more concerned with being seen as balanced, then those at the apex of society can continue to dehumanize and demean minorities. Being objective, or conscious of how your bias may cloud your judgment, can be beneficial, but it requires a level of critical thinking that is not associated with neutrality. Objectivity is advocating for the mouse because you know the elephant won’t get hurt by moving. When it comes to moral, ethical, economic or social problems that impact the ability for people to live, you are allowed to critically consider the facts in order to form your own opinion, but
ethical stances on equality. In order to avoid
Neutrality can seem like a benevolent cause, but
joining the vocal opposition and appearing biased,
it has dangerous consequences. There are issues
into educating yourself doesn’t make you balanced
some people might simply step aside. Sitting in the
that have room for neutrality, but they tend to
— it makes you ignorant.
middle of the debate doesn’t mean that someone is
not involve someone’s right to live. As Desmond
Edited by Bryce Kolk
taking their impact out of the situation.
Tutu, a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, once said, “If
bkolk@themaneater.com
choosing to remain neutral without putting effort
Online this week: Men's basketball vs. Charleston Southern, Women's basketball vs. SLU and more at themaneater.com ATHLETICS
How the NCAA decision, Odom’s firing will impact Missouri’s finances Missouri’s athletic department lost nearly 10% of its revenue in the past week. ELI HOFF
Sports Reporter
Missouri football players hold their helmets up at the start of the fourth quarter during the game against Florida on Nov. 16. | PHOTO BY ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR ANDREW MOORE.
The on-field impacts of an eventful week for Missouri athletics are, for the most part, fairly clear. Missouri’s football, baseball and softball teams will all miss out on the postseason and face limitations in recruiting and scholarships, and the football team will have a new head coach next year after the firing of Barry Odom. What’s less clear — but equally important — for the athletic department is the extent of financial damage related to the decisions. The NCAA’s decision to uphold sanctions against the university will have an almost immediate impact on the Tigers’ coffers. A $5,000 fine may be inconsequential, but the football, baseball and softball teams will all sacrifice 1% of their budgets for one year. Those losses pale in comparison to the indirect consequences of the lost appeal, though. Missouri estimates it will lose $9-10 million due to the football team missing a postseason bowl game. The athletic department brought in about $107 million in revenue from July 2017 to June 2018, according to the latest publicly available numbers. That means Missouri will be missing at least 8-9% of its overall revenue right off the bat, roughly equivalent to the cost of travel and uniforms for all the Tigers’ programs. That’s a problem for an athletic department already operating at a deficit. Earlier in the fall, before the NCAA’s decision, Director of Athletics Jim Sterk estimated Missouri would be about $1.5 million short in revenues but able to balance that with reserves. The new $98 million South End Zone facility at Faurot Field forced the athletic department to take on debt in a coordinated effort with the UM System Board of Curators. The addition of metal detectors at the
CASH | Page 15
FOOTBALL
Missouri fires football coach Barry Odom
After going 25-25 during a four-season tenure as head coach, Missouri decided to fire Barry Odom. MAX BAKER
Sports Senior Writer After four seasons at the helm, Missouri has fired coach Barry Odom. The 2019 campaign started with promise. The Tigers jumped out to a 5-1 record with transfer quarterback Kelly Bryant spearheading the offense. Missouri was briefly atop the Southeastern Conference Eastern Division standings. But it lost five straight games, including losses to Vanderbilt and Kentucky.
"Coach Odom has represented our program with integrity and dedicated himself to developing our student athletes on and off the football field for which we are grateful,” Director of Athletics Jim Sterk said. “We wish the very best for him and his family in their future endeavors." Odom was hired to replace Missouri’s all-time wins leader Gary Pinkel in 2015. Led by thensophomore quarterback Drew Lock, the Tigers went 4-8 in Odom’s first season. The 2017 campaign started with little promise as Missouri stood at 1-5 before the Tigers rattled off six straight wins to finish the regular season 7-5. Expectations were high entering the next fall. Missouri won
eight games, but blown leads at home against Kentucky and on the road to South Carolina left a damper on the season. Nonetheless, the Tigers improved in each of Odom’s first three seasons. "As a program, we had tremendous momentum coming into the 2019 season with the opening of the new south end zone facility as well as other strategic investments in our football program," Sterk said. "However, we lost a great deal of that energy during the last half of the season. This decision was difficult to make but was necessary.”
FIRE | Page 15
FOOTBALL
With Odom gone, Missouri struggles to maintain recruiting class of 2020 The Tigers have lost two commits with more seemingly imminent. JACK SOBLE
Staff Writer
On Saturday, Missouri athletic director Jim Sterk made the decision to fire football coach Barry Odom after four seasons. As is normally the case after a coach is shown the door, many of the Tigers’ committed players from the class of 2020 are not happy.
Two of them — three-star defensive end Robert Wooten and three-star guard Jalen St. John — have already decommitted. Wooten, in particular, did not mince words in expressing why he chose to leave the fold. “Due to coaching changes, I’ll be decommitting from Mizzou,” Wooten said in a tweet less than three hours after Odom’s firing was announced. “I loved coach Odom and everything he was about.” Four-star receiver and top Tigers commit Javian “JJ”
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NCAA
No bowling this year: NCAA upholds sanctions against Missouri
All sanctions for the football, softball and baseball teams were upheld following Missouri’s appeal. EMILY LEIKER
Sports Editor
An NCAA Infractions Appeals Committee ruled to uphold all sanctions handed down to Missouri in January, as first reported by Gabe DeArmond of PowerMizzou.com on Tuesday. A release from the NCAA on the IAC’s decision said that while the committee agreed with Missouri’s argument that more mitigating factors could have been applied to the case. However, it also noted that more than just disagreement with the Committee on Infractions’ ruling is required, and that the university was unable to provide strong enough evidence to overturn the ruling. According to the release, “When reviewing the penalties, the Infractions Appeals Committee noted that the Committee on Infractions has significant discretion in its ability to determine appropriate penalties for a case. Additionally, the Infractions Appeals Committee said it is hesitant to overturn a penalty within the appropriate penalty guidelines unless
there is a clear indication of arbitrary decision-making.” A joint response was issued by MU Chancellor Alexander Cartwright and Director of Athletics Jim Sterk around the same time as the NCAA’s release. “We are deeply disappointed by the NCAA Infractions Appeals Committee’s decision to shirk its responsibilities and simply uphold sanctions that are not consistent with precedent or even common sense,” the statement read. Missouri football would have needed to beat Arkansas this Friday for its sixth win to secure a bowl game. Now, with the sanctions upheld — including the one-year postseason bans for football, softball and baseball — getting that sixth win doesn’t hold nearly as much weight on Missouri’s season. Missouri’s baseball and softball programs would have served their postseason bans this past spring had it not been for the appeal, which temporarily nullified the sanctions until the process was complete. Now, both will serve their bans in the 2020 season. Statements from all three coaches were included in a press release issued by the university. “I am absolutely heartbroken and disappointed by the committee’s decision to punish a group of 27 current student-athletes who didn’t
Across: Yoda in “The Mandalorian,” for example 5. Heathen 10. “Mamma Mia” group 14. “The Farewell” director Wang 15. In a visible state of awe 16. Dinner or breakfast 17. “American ____” (singing competition) 18. Court orders 19. Await 20. Jif competitor named after Captain Hook’s foe 22. Countdown term 24. Squad 25. King Prawn Muppet 26. Visible 29. Religion of 5-across 33. Basic requirements 34. Sub-arctic forest 35. “What ___ that?” 36. Epic sci-fi novel with (another) film adaptation coming in 2020 37. Real estate claims 38. “Purple ____” (Prince song) 39. Type of silk 40. “The Count of Monte Cristo” novelist 41. Quaint inn, informally 42. Abandoned 44. One might write a negative review 45. Respect, informally 46. Injury from fire 47. Nut that sounds like a sneeze 50. Slowly cooked meat 54. Brother of Cain 55. Keep __ ___ on 57. Groans of disapproval 58. Former NFL tight end Crumpler 59. Upscale British car, briefly 60. Long-running sci-fi franchise “Star ____” 61. Lowest high tide 62. Nautical buddy 63. Reasons for confession
play any role in this and have done everything right from the very beginning,” softball coach Larissa Anderson said. True freshmen within each program would have just entered high school when the academic infractions that are cause for the sanctions occurred. Baseball coach Steve Bieser offered similar sentiments. “These student-athletes have done everything right since becoming a Tiger, but yet are cruelly penalized for the actions of one individual from years past,” he said. The other sanctions now in effect include a 5% reduction in scholarships for each of the teams, recruiting restrictions, three years of NCAA probation and a vacation of wins participated in by student athletes involved in the 2016 academic infractions. Shortly after news broke unofficially of the NCAA’s decision, Missouri Sen. Caleb Rowden issued a statement in response denouncing the association. “With this decision, you have proven once again why your organization has become a national laughingstock and a detriment to college sports and student athletes,” Rowden’s statement said. “Your once-proud organization has become an antiquated, outdated, bureaucracy dying under the weight of its own incompetence.”
The Maneater Crossword By MOVE Angles Editor Joe Cross
The entire process took nearly 10 months beginning with the Committee on Infractions’ initial ruling in late January. According to an IAC information page, the appeals process takes an average of eight months. Missouri notified the NCAA of its plans to appeal the sanctions on Feb. 14, only two weeks after an NCAA Committee on Infractions announced its ruling on the 2016 case on Jan. 31. A written appeal was filed on March 25, and representatives for Missouri appeared for an in-person hearing with the committee in midJuly. Many are citing Missouri’s case as proof that cooperation does nothing to help a school’s standing with the NCAA in similar cases. Missouri’s athletic department self-reported the incident and was cooperative throughout the entire investigation. “Today’s decision raises serious concerns about whether the current NCAA enforcement system encourages or discourages compliance and integrity,” Cartwright’s and Sterk’s statement said. “While we have exhausted our NCAA appeal avenues, we will continue to advocate for meaningful reform within the NCAA enforcement process.” Edited by Leah Glasser lglasser@themaneater.com Down: 1. Radar image 2. French river 3. Ink mark 4. Christmas season 5. Another name for papaya 6. Its SI symbol is “g” 7. Acquire 8. Fitting 9. Savings for a rainy day 10. Insomniac’s medicine 11. “You’ll __ __ My Heart,” song from “Tarzan” 12. R&B singer Erykah 13. Craft brewery drinks 21. “Cheers” and “The West Wing” actor Roger 23. Film rating group 25. “As much as it _____ me to admit…” 26. For the foreseeable future, informally 27. Brain surgeon’s field, for short 28. To come, in France 29. Song of praise 30. “_______ That Way” (Backstreet Boys song) 31. “Said who?” response, maybe 32. Cable news station 34. Like proctored exams 37. Indifferent Jedi? 38. Some baseball cancellations 40. Truth or _____ 41. “It’s c-c-c-cold!” 43. Haul, informally 44. Twee 46. “Yesterday” director Danny 47. “Elf” and “The Godfather” actor James 48. Well-equipped 49. Japanese game developer 50. Attack with snowballs, say 51. Prefix with culture and business 52. ____ Yun (performing arts company) 53. Disapproving sounds 56. “I’ve told you __ _ thousand times!”
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FIRE
Odom spent 18 years with the Missouri football program, four as a linebacker, six in administrative capacity and eight as a coach. Among the most disappointing losses in the Continued from page 13 Odom era were the 35-3 defeat against Purdue in 2017, the 15-14 loss to Kentucky in his third season and the 21-14 loss to Vanderbilt earlier this year. One of the biggest wins came in a 38-17 defeat of No. 11 Florida in 2018 and a 28-24 comeback win against Arkansas in his first year as head coach. "Coach Odom has represented our program with integrity and dedicated himself to developing our student-athletes on and off the football field for which we are grateful. We wish the very best for him and his family in their future endeavors." Edited by Leah Glasser lglasser@themaneater.com
CASH
stadium beginning next year also added to the importance of financial consideration. All of that, along with a lackluster football season, factored into Sterk’s decision to relieve Continued from page 13 Odom of his duties. “Football is our largest revenue driver,” Sterk said in a press conference Saturday evening. “Our ticket sales have continued to go down. There’s probably a $5-6 million [gap] just to get back where we were in 2014. We’ve got work to do. The decision today is part of that and getting back to that level.” There will be some additional money lost due to Odom’s departure. He’s reportedly due a $2.8 million contract buyout. Sterk said he expects most assistant coaches to stay with Missouri or join other programs, avoiding additional buyouts. There will also be the cost of a new head coach. Even after a raise, Odom was the cheapest coach in the SEC with a $3.05 million salary. The athletic department will likely have to open the pocketbook wider to attract highercaliber talent, which Sterk is prepared for. “We’re going to look at coaches that have been successful and so there’ll be a range, if you will, of what we’ll be able to pay for someone,” Sterk said. “That’s the support [we’ve received] from [UM System] President Choi, the board and Chancellor Cartwright.” To improve both the performance of Missouri’s teams and the financial health of the athletic department, Sterk turned to the school’s benefactors. “I think we need the outside support to do it,” he said. “We’ve challenged our folks … We want to be in the upper third as far as the SEC schools and the number of annual donors to our program. We’ve made big headway this year … We need to continue to build on that and have the annual support from our alumni and friends. And then internally we need to do the right thing as far as investing in the right areas.” Sterk said the athletic department received $11.4 million last year from its 18,039 campaign for the Tiger Scholarship Fund, which aims to increase the number of donors to the school’s athletic programs. But he said that number needs to be closer to $12.5 million to adequately meet Missouri’s needs. Sterk said donors have come forward to help Missouri in the wake of this week’s events. “[I] always want to ask for support for a positive [thing],” he said. “It’s helping build our football program [going] forward and the annual donations for building excellence is what we want to do. Some folks have offered already and we’ll encourage folks to continue to give.” Edited by Emily Leiker eleiker@themaneater.com
Larry Rountree III stands in the end zone during warmups prior to Missouri’s game against Florida on Nov. 16. | PHOTO BY ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR ANDREW MOORE.
Redshirt freshman Tauskie Dove runs through warmups prior to Missouri's game against Florida on Nov. 16 at Memorial Stadium. | PHOTO BY ANDREW MOORE
2020
H e s t e r and threestar guard K e v o n Continued from page 13 Billingsly did not decommit, but they both reopened their recruitment. Three-star receiver Jay Maclin voiced his displeasure in the form of re-tweeting his cousin, former Missouri and NFL wideout Jeremy Maclin. “[I] don’t agree with this at all,” Jeremy Maclin’s tweet said. Jay Maclin has held off on commenting further, other than a tweet that said “Not answering any questions.” The strongest statement in favor of staying with the Tigers came from Brady Cook, a three-star recruit and the top quarterback prospect in Missouri. The soon-to-be Chaminade College Prep graduate was named Metro Catholic Conference Offensive Player of the Year in 2019, and he said that he understood why Sterk made the move. “Right now, my thoughts moving forward are that I want to play football at Mizzou,” Cook said in a statement made to The Maneater. “I loved Barry and he did so much for me already, but the show must go on. I’m confident this class will stick together and everything will work out.” Others, including Rock Bridge three-star defensive end Jalen LoganRedding, have declined to comment and said that they needed more time to assess the situation. Odom’s No. 2 2020 commit, Elijah Young, was recently named Class 5A Mr. Football in Tennessee, but has also refrained from sharing his thoughts on the coaching change. Losing any commits is never a good thing, but it would especially behoove whoever the next head coach is to do everything he can to retain Maclin and Hester. The latter’s reopened recruiting process has already yielded an offer from UCLA, and the 6-foot-3-inch wideout is sure to get interest from elsewhere as well. Maclin would step into Columbia and be an immediate fan favorite, not only because of his last name but because of his impressive tape at Kirkwood High School in St. Louis. He and Hester would be a dangerous pairing at receiver for the next three to four years, but only if they both
stay committed. In a press conference Saturday, Sterk said that the football staff, mainly interim coach Brick Haley, will be talking to commits, but it may be damage control from this point on. There’s also the question of incoming NCAA recruiting sanctions, which will hinder the new coach’s ability to bring in new players. They could also hinder Sterk’s efforts to hire an ideal coach. Specifically, the Tigers were hit with a 7-week ban on communications with recruits, a 12.5% reduction in official visits, and a 5% reduction in scholarships. All penalties, recruiting-related and otherwise, were upheld after a lengthy appeals process. There is no specification for when the 7-week ban will begin. “That’s a compliance question,” Sterk said regarding the communications ban. “We have looked at that, we have met with the staff and okay, can we use those this year and next year and they’ve been in discussions with the NCAA on that. So that’s a possibility.” Sterk remained optimistic about Missouri’s appeal to young athletes, especially on the heels of the completion of the new South End Zone. “Just building one of the best facilities in the country is a recruiter’s dream,” he said. He also recognized the importance of moving “swiftly” in the hiring process, which will be important in retaining the Tigers’ important commits. However fans may feel about him, Odom was popular with the players, both current and incoming, and Sterk’s decision will change Missouri’s talent pool in the immediate future. Seeing as 38 of the top 50 players in Missouri (per 247sports) and 17 of the top 20 are already committed, it could be difficult for the Tigers’ recruiting class of 2020 to recover. It’s conceivable that Missouri’s next coach could convince some new recruits to follow him from school to school, but potentially replacing Maclin or Hester is a tall task. That’s not to say that firing Odom wasn’t the right call for the Tigers’ long-term football outlook, but Missouri fans should brace themselves for it to get worse before it gets better. Edited by Emily Leiker eleiker@themaneater.com
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