11-30-22

Ethan Schulman | Staff Photographer

James Paul Staff Writer

Emily Snyder had her child in 2020 and when she was looking into daycare, she said she didn’t view the University Center for Developmental Care as an option for her family given how long the waitlists are.

“I’ve never met anyone who’s successfully enrolled their child in the program,” Snyder, an academic adviser in Dietrich, said. “It’s labeled as a benefit of working at the University, but in order to use it, you have to put yourself on the waitlist before your child is even born or even conceived.”

The UCDC is the University-provided daycare op tion available to the children of faculty and staff aged six weeks to five years. According to Nichole Dwyer, the director of communications for the Office of Human Resources, the length of the waitlist increased in 2020 to between four and six years long due to “closures during the pandemic and issues with staffing.”

Currently, there are more than 600 faculty, staff and students on the waitlist for the center, which has a total

enrollment of 109 and a capacity of 114. Dwyer said the capacity is expected to increase in January.

“The University is working to provide additional childcare options in and around Oakland, as well as ex panding its partnership with the Boys and Girls Club, to assist families with childcare resources,” Dwyer said.

Snyder said she never enrolled on the waitlist, al though she is considering enrolling in case she plans on getting pregnant in the coming years.

“I’m considering putting my unborn second child on the waitlist,” Snyder said. “We aren’t planning to have a baby anytime soon, but we might have a baby in three years.”

Tyler Bickford, who chairs the faculty union bar gaining committee, said the union is “hoping to win some improvements” regarding UCDC accessibility in its contract negotiations.

“Childcare especially is something that’s important to a lot of faculty,” Bickford said. “It can be challenging, right, space is an issue and staffing is an issue but we think we can make some progress on that and hopefully

improve things for people who need it.”

Bickford said the bargaining committee is currently negotiating changes to the UCDC with the university and he hopes it will be included in a final contract, al though he didn’t specify what the changes are.

“We’re bargaining the whole contract,” Bickford said, “We’re talking with the administration about this issue and many others and we expect to have improvements in the final contract.”

When asked about changes to the UCDC being in cluded in contract negotiations, an unnamed University spokesperson said “the union has made proposals relat ing to a variety of subjects. The University will continue to review each proposal.”

Though several people have taken issue with the waitlist, Hillary Demmon, a teaching professor of film and media studies, who successfully enrolled her child, said the service provided by the UCDC made the wait worth it.

After four years on the list, Demmon said she and her husband were able to enroll their 17-month-old son into the UCDC. Despite the wait, Demmon said she is “very happy” with the service that the center provides.

“I think the education he’s getting there’s good,” Demmon said. “He eats well, and he’s got people who care about him. When we go pick him up, he’s always perched on somebody’s lap reading a book. It’s a really great place. I love it.”

Demmon said she entered the UCDC waitlist with her husband before they were planning to have a child and before she taught at Pitt. Other faculty members, she said, had warned her about the long wait times.

“They said, ‘if you think you might have a kid, get on the waitlist, even if you’re not sure,’” Demmon said. “We were on the waitlist before I started working here. My husband teaches at Pitt as well and he was teaching here before me, which is how we were able to get on the list.”

Dwyer said there’s a separate waitlist for faculty that are interested in UCDC enrollment but have not yet conceived. Dwyer said faculty are instructed to contact the UCDC administration to “move up in the process.”

“Waitlisted families are contacted each January to ensure that they still need a space and to remain on the list,” Dwyer said. “Unfortunately, the waitlist is compli cated by several factors, and it is not a simple chrono logical process.”

Melinda Ciccocioppo, a teaching assistant professor of psychology and chair of the faculty union’s commu nication and action team, enrolled on the University Center for Developmental Care waitlist as a graduate student at Pitt in 2008. She said it took four years to get a spot.

“I got a letter in the mail when my son was 2 years old telling me that he had a spot,” Ciccocioppo said. ”By that point, I obviously had already found other arrange ments. I think what my experience highlights is just the fact that this has been a problem for a very long time.”

Ciccocioppo said she had her second child in 2012 when she was teaching at the University part-time. She said she decided not to re-enroll on the waitlist because of her past experiences and the cost.

“Given my experience as a graduate student, I just knew that I couldn’t count on it,” Ciccocioppo said.

“And it literally cost more money than I was making, so it didn’t make any sense. I just had a friend watching my kids who gave me a substantial discount and she would basically just watch them for the time that I was teach ing.”

Ciccocioppo said the length of the UCDC waitlist is an issue that “disproportionately affects women.” She said she hopes the bargaining committee is “able to work with the administration and find a creative solution.”

“I think this should be something that everyone is invested in solving because from the standpoint of the institution as a whole we benefit from having faculty members who are able to do their jobs right and feel comfortable and secure that their kids are being well taken care of,” Ciccocioppo said. “It’s not good for our productivity.”

In response to faculty criticisms of the UCDC wait list, Dwyer said the increased length of the waitlist is the result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which impacted childcare providers nationwide.

“During the pandemic, UCDC wasn’t allowing any visitors into the building, including tours, due to stricter CDC regulations for childcare centers,” Dwyer said. “However, to mitigate that issue, they held virtual meetings with prospective families. Over the past few months, they have restarted in-person tours, one fam ily at a time, if they were offered a space for enrollment. They are slowly progressing to allow more visitors and tours.”

An educator reads to a child enrolled in the UCDC child care program. Image via University Child Development Center webpage

PHIPPS CONSERVATORY CREATES ‘ARCTIC ADVENTURE’ FOR ANNUAL WINTER FLOWER SHOW AND LIGHT GARDEN

Maya Valletta Staff Writer

Warm, humid air greets guests as Phipps Conservatory opens its doors for this year’s Winter Flower Show and Light Garden. Animal displays, 15 acres of lights and plants brighten up the dark, cold night. With this year’s arctic adventure theme, many rooms feature topiary winter animals which are made of natural materi als like dry grasses and mosses.

The attraction is open from 9:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. from Nov. 18 through Jan. 8. Free for Pitt students with their student ID, the extensive displays of lights and flowers make for a fun holiday escape from finals. Non-students and non-Phipps members must purchase tickets on the Phipps web site.

Joe Reed, senior director of communi cations at Phipps, highlighted the exotic plants and characters that make the visit an immersive and festive experience.

“Our Palm Court has an amazing dis play of topiary reindeer which look as if they are meeting in a forest clearing,” Reed said.

Laura Schoch, senior plant procurer and recording and design associate, said the conservatory’s Victoria room is one of this year’s highlights and a guest favorite.

“The Victoria pond features a bowhead whale that’s just phenomenal,” Schoch said. “It has glaciers and it’s illuminated at

night, so it’s just spectacular at night. It’s like a whole different show than what it is during the day.”

Another highlight of the show is the ex travagant amaryllises, orchids and more than 1,600 poinsettias. The conservatory presents 19 varieties of poinsettias in classic and atypi cal colors.

“We have a new one called green envy, and there’s an orange one called orange glow,” Schoch said. “Most people expect a red or a pink or a white. These are very unusual col ors.”

The amaryllises are some of the show’s most extravagant flowers and come in red, white and pink. Reed said they are a popular holiday flower.

“The amaryllis became popular to culti vate in the Victorian era, but has in the last 10 years or so become a popular holiday season flower, both for its color and the fact that it can thrive indoors,” Reed said.

Schoch said guests have responded well to the plants.

“They bring a tropical touch that is so nice to see in the winter,” Schoch said.

The extravagant indoor and outdoor dis play takes an entire year or more of planning. Schoch said the winter show’s designer, Jor dyn Melino, wanted to create a theme that is whimsical and family friendly. “Arctic adven ture” captures the playful vision through win ter animals and thousands of striking plants.

“Jordyn would go back and start on the drawings and figure out how many plants she

needs to make this design come to fruition,” Schoch said.

Reed said Melino refined the designs over months in coordination with the growing of plants and the creation and manufacture of props.

The Phipps staff constructs props in the summer and the installation process occurs over a three-week period in November, ac cording to Reed.

“The process culminates in an intensive three-week install in which the entire conser vatory shifts from its Fall Flower Show dis plays to Winter Flower Show displays and the elaborate Winter Light Garden is constructed outdoors,” Reed said.

The winter light displays continue into Phipps’ outdoor gardens. Schoch said the lights transform the garden at night and cre ate an immersive holiday experience.

“It’s unique and there’s a lot of lights in a short area,” Schoch said. “It takes our outdoor gardens and transforms them into something that is whimsical and light filled.”

Mother-daughter duo Gina and Meadow, who asked not to include their last names, traveled from Virginia to visit Phipps for the first time and see the holiday displays. Mead ow attends West Virginia University and said she found the event on Google. One of their favorite aspects of the conservatory was the snowflake lights hanging in different rooms.

“There are snowflakes we’ve been looking for in all the rooms. We’re trying to see who can spot the most snowflakes,” Meadow said.

“So far we’re tied.”

They also appreciated the poinset tias and said they have learned a lot from the display plaques that coincide with the plants. Gina said she found the vast amount of plants and displays very im pressive.

“My first impression was, ‘Oh, wow,’” Gina said. “There’s lots to look at and as soon as I walked in, I found it very sooth ing.”

With all the use of lights, Phipps tries to remain environmentally conscious by using all energy-efficient LED lights in its displays, according to Schoch. All electric ity is renewable and some is even produced on site according to their website.

“At the end of the show, everything will be composted into compost for the next thing we use,” Schoch said.

The winter flower show is Phipps’ big gest display during the year and Pitts burgh’s only winter display conservatory, according to Schoch. A visit to Phipps is a common Pittsburgh holiday tradition for families, and Reed said he enjoys bringing holiday cheer through the show.

“I hope that visitors enjoy rekindling holiday memories but also see some sights that they didn’t expect,” Reed said.

Phipps Conserva tory decorated for its Winter Flower Show.

Ethan Shulman | Staff Photographer

MANOR THE

FRI, dec. 2-THURS, dec. 8

Chunky Shrapnel

Wed: 7:30, 9:35

Bones and All (R)

Fri: 4:30, 7:10, 9:50

Sat & Sun: 1:50, 4:30, 7:10, 9:50

Mon & Tue: 4:30, 7:10, 9:50

Wed: 4:30, 7:10, 9:50

Thu: 4:10, 9:50

The Fabelmans (PG-13)

Fri: 3:45, 6:45, 9:45

Sat & Sun: 12:45, 3:45, 6:45, 9:45

Mon & Tue: 3:45, 6:45, 9:45

Wed: 3:45, 6:45, 9:45

Thu: 3:45, 6:45, 9:45

The Menu (R)

No passes through 12/18/22

Fri: 2:50, 5:05, 7:20, 9:35

Sat & Sun: 12:35, 2:50, 5:05, 7:20, 9:35

Mon & Tue: 2:50, 5:05, 7:20, 9:35

Wed: 2:50, 5:05, 7:20, 9:35

Thu: 2:50, 5:05, 7:20, 9:35

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (PG-13)

Fri: 3:20, 6:30, 9:40

Sat & Sun: 12:10, 3:20, 6:30, 9:40

Mon & Tue: 3:20, 6:30, 9:40

Manor Manor Manor

Wed: 3:20, 6:30, 9:40

Thu: 3:20, 6:30, 9:40

Movies & Showtimes subject to change - visit manorpgh.com

STUDENT DISCOUNT

‘COCKROACHES OF THE LABOR MOVEMENT’:

HIGH TURNOVER PROVES BLESSING AND CURSE FOR GRADUATE UNION ORGANIZERS

Jack Troy Senior Staff Writer

Armed with a folding table, a few dozen pins and QR codes for a survey on graduate student grievances, Pat Healy and Connor Chapman connected with pro-union pass ersby on a Thursday afternoon in November.

A rotating cast of Pitt graduate student union organizers take on the duty each week at high traf fic spots on campus. This time, Healy and Chapman stationed themselves out side of the Public Health building, and managed to distribute a few pins and fly ers within the first quarter of their two-hour shift.

By their own admission, organizers have been quiet as of late, relying on these weekly tabling sessions and one-on-one outreach to maintain visibility.

It’s a far cry from the lead-up to the April 2019 election — a narrow and controversial defeat for the union — when supporters projected their logo onto the Cathedral of Learning and rallied with Sen. Bernie Sanders.

“We’ve returned to where we were be fore we went public,” Healy, a member of the union’s organizing committee since May 2019, said.

While the University may offer decades of employment for faculty, who successfully unionized last year, most graduate students stick around for five years or less. High turn over has been a blessing and a curse for union hopefuls after the last election, in which eli gible graduate students rejected unionization by a margin of 39 votes.

Healy joked that graduate students are “the cockroaches of the labor movement.”

“We are constantly sort of reproducing our selves. Even if you crush a grad union once, it’s just going to come back because there are new people here now,” Healy said.

A Pitt spokesperson said the University is

“committed to supporting graduate and pro fessional students holistically,” and has raised stipends, hired additional support staff and extended the parental accommodation period for these students in recent years.

Pitt declined to name the employee speak ing on behalf of the University.

At the same time, the ever-shifting bar

The board issued a final ruling in Pitt’s favor on Sept. 21, 2021. The Steelworkers ex pressed intent to appeal to the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court shortly thereafter, but withdrew its petition for litigation on March 18. Further appeals would have likely been a multi-year endeavor, according to Somma.

“By the time the courts would have made the decision, there could have been a 100% turnover rate of the workers,” Somma said. “How can we in good conscience talk to the work ers that we’re dealing with now and say ‘three years ago, or four years ago, your pre decessors wanted a union?’”

Organizers could trigger a new election by collect ing authorization cards from 30% of the current cohort. Somma said there’s no im minent push for an election, and right now the Steel workers are back to “just rolling up our sleeves, basic one-on-one organizing.”

gaining unit led United Steelworkers to de cide against further litigating the last election based on Pitt’s unfair labor practices, accord ing to Steelworkers Organizing Director Ma ria Somma.

The Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board found that the University had engaged in “co ercive acts” that amounted to voter intimida tion, including an email to 34 chemical engi neering students by department chair Steven Little implying that the University was track ing who voted.

Hearing Examiner Stephen Helmerich ini tially ordered a new election, but following a University appeal the board concluded that the impact of this anti-union activity was in sufficient to change the outcome of the elec tion.

David Seldin, Pitt spokesperson at the time, told The Pitt News in March 2021 that the University’s actions throughout the elec tion were “appropriate.”

Healy said in a future petition for an election, there would likely be less time be tween filing and voting given that the PLRB has already determined which graduate work ers comprise the bargaining unit. This would close one avenue of delay for Pitt, which Healy said is “always the chief strategy of union busting.”

There are other reasons to expect less re sistance from Pitt, according to Healy, such as the presence of the faculty union and lessons learned from the previous union drive.

“I think we know who we’re up against this time around,” Healy said.

Organizers remain focused for now on building organizing committee membership by striking up conversations with graduate workers through office and classroom visits as well as tabling.

“We’re doing our best to talk to every grad in the unit,” Healy said. “Every organizing project is an education one. And we’re educa tors.”

A Pitt graduate student union poster. TPN File Photo

GREG ELLIOTT HOPES TO USE EXPERIENCE, LEADERSHIP TO LIFT PITT BASKETBALL BACK TO GLORY

Richetti Senior Staff Writer

It didn’t take long for Pitt graduate student guard Greg Elliott to find a new home after en tering the transfer portal this offseason. Elliott spent the first five seasons of his collegiate ca reer at Marquette before opting to exercise his final year of eligibility elsewhere.

The decision to play his final season of col lege basketball at Pitt took just a few days. After his official visit to Pitt in May, Elliott told Pan ther-Lair.com that he immediately knew Pitt was the place for him. Pitt head coach Jeff Capel said he wanted Elliott to sign with Pitt because he brings a plethora of assets to Pitt’s roster.

"Greg is a talented guard who brings tough ness, three-point shooting, experience and maturity to our backcourt rotation," Capel said. “He has been productive throughout his career and has the ability to really impact the game with his three-point shooting. Greg's overall skill set fits well with the rest of our backcourt and will help enable us to move guys around on the wings more freely."

Elliott knew that playing at Pitt presents onthe-court challenges, but he refuses to refer to this season as a rebuild despite fans and pun dits alike seeing it as just that.

“It’s not a rebuild, we here to make some thing happen,” Elliott said. “It’s not going to be a surprise to nobody but the people that’s on the outside looking in.”

Elliott was in a similar situation just last season with the Golden Eagles. Marquette went 13-14 the year prior, and newly hired head coach Shaka Smart entered his first season with the program. Marquette finished last season 19-13 and qualified for the NCAA Tournament when nobody saw it coming.

Elliott played a pivotal role in Marquette’s success last year. He shot 39% from three, pro vided veteran leadership and did whatever it took to win basketball games. Elliott picked up the slack when the Golden Eagles needed a scoring punch — scoring 22 points against UCLA and 25 against DePaul. Elliott also played unselfish basketball and sacrificed shots for others.

Elliott said he believes that his experience last season with Marquette will pay dividends.

“Last year we came from a coaching change, everybody was expecting that to be a rebuild,” Elliott said. “But Shaka, he told me when he

came in last year that we weren’t rebuilding nothing. We was going in to make a statement no matter who we was going against, or no matter what. I feel like I want to do the same thing here...I’ve been through it so the guys can see I’m a person that led by example, and I can do it again.”

Elliott said Pitt rosters a group of experi enced players and won’t experience the grow ing pains most younger teams go through. However, the Panthers dropped three games to West Virginia, Michigan and VCU to start the season. Still, Elliott’s approach has not changed.

He is constantly the first Pitt player on the court for warmups. He brings energy every time he steps on the floor. And most of all, he is always talking to his teammates and looking for different ways to serve as a leader.

Elliott said he treats every teammate differ ently based on their individual characters.

“It depends on who the person is or what they may need,” Elliott said. “I know the twins, they don’t really talk that much so I just scream at them. It’s different.”

Pitt sophomore forward Nate Santos said the energy Elliott brings is good for everybody.

"Energy that everybody could absorb, and it's good energy," Santos said.

Elliott’s goals for the season speak to his selflessness and drive to win. When talking about goals, Elliott always speaks from a team level, not a personal level. While he has only played for the team for a few months, he’s fully embraced his role as a Panther.

In doing so, Elliott wants to bring Pitt bas ketball back to its former glory.

“Personally, I want to get Pitt basketball back to where it’s supposed to be,” Elliott said on Pittsburgh Sports Now’s “Just Buckets” podcast. “Getting to the tournament, making runs in the ACC tournament. I feel like that’s something Pittsburgh’s been needing for a while now. Me getting here and talking to peo ple from here, I get an Uber ride and they’re telling me, oh, you play for Pitt?’ We need y’all to be good.’ That’s not something I’m used to.”

Elliott believes the Panthers have the pieces to do just that.

“Our expectations are to make a complete turnaround,” Elliott told Panther-Lair.com. “We want to become a top team in the ACC and I think with the pieces from last year and the new pieces we have coming in, I think we can make some serious strides.”

Frankie

Graduate student guard Greg Elliott (3) yells after scoring during Pitt men’s basketball’s game against West Virginia earlier this month. Pamela Smith | Visual Editor

FOOTBALL SEASON REFLECTIONS

David Scott Staff Writer

It’s safe to say fans had high expectations for Pitt football heading into the 2022 season. After winning an ACC championship in 2021 and bringing in a few promising transfers, another championship run wasn’t out of the question.

As we know, the season didn’t go exactly to plan. But it wasn’t as poor as some may think. Things could have gone a lot worse after the Panthers started out 4-4, but the team settled in and won its last four games of the year.

The Panthers finished with a respectable 8-4 record and a bowl game bid. Transfer sophomore wide receiver Bub Means credited the team’s turnaround to head coach Pat Nar duzzi and his continued enthusiasm during the season.

“He brings the energy,” Means said. “He kind of lights a fire under us.”

But the individual players have the biggest impact on the outcome of the season, and this season would likely be much more disappoint ing without the breakout of Israel Abanikan da. The potential was always there for him. Abanikanda took full advantage of his oppor tunities in 2022, filling in the gaping offensive hole left by the departure of Jordan Addison and Kenny Pickett.

Abanikanda sealed a spot in the 2023 NFL draft this season, finishing with 1,431 rushing yards and an NCAA-leading 21 total touch

downs. Abanikanda also produced one of the best seasons ever from a Pitt running back, as he now owns the Pitt record for rushing yards and rushing touchdowns in a single game, as well as the fourth most rushing touchdowns in a season.

On the other side of the ball, redshirt junior defensive lineman Calijah Kancey and senior linebacker SirVocea Dennis were monsters in the trenches and helped honor Pitt’s defensive reputation. Kancey finished the season with career highs in sacks and tackles for loss, with 7.5 and 14.5, respectively. Meanwhile, Den nis finished with a career high seven sacks, 12 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and one interception. The pair combined for 125 tack les and helped lead the school to first in the NCAA in sacks with a team total of 45.

Redshirt senior defensive back Erick Hal lett II locked things down in the secondary, continuing on his breakout in 2021. He racked up career highs with three interceptions, two forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, 12 pass deflections and three tackles for loss. His strong 2022 campaign and the strength of the entire Pitt defense allowed them to be the second-highest scoring defense in the nation, scoring five defensive touchdowns on the year.

You can’t only look at the positives, though, as a season like this always comes with whatifs. But there is one huge what-if looking back on the season — the loss against UNC, who will represent the coastal division in the ACC

Championship Game this year. The Panthers held the lead in that matchup until the fourth quarter, when they gave up 21 unanswered points. If they held on and won that game, they would be back in the championship game this year. You could also look back to the tough losses against Georgia Tech and Louisville as the big let downs of the year.

It’s hard to point fingers, but the passing game is what held Pitt back this year. Pitt was hard-pressed to replace Pickett and Addison, but the passing game still fell flat of pre-sea son expectations. Among the let downs this season, senior quarterback Kedon Slovis is perhaps the biggest.

Slovis passed for 2,391 yards with 10 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 11 games. This was a monumental drop in pro duction from last year, when Pickett passed for 4,319 yards with 42 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. Not only was it a letdown from Pickett’s 2021 performance, but it was a

letdown from what Slovis can do. In his 2019 freshman season at USC, Slovis passed for 3,502 yards with 30 touchdowns and nine in terceptions. He was also sacked 23 times that season compared to only 15 with Pitt this sea son.

Is a down year the end of the world for Pitt football? No, but it definitely did some damage. Four-star quarterback recruit Kenny Minchey flipped his commitment from Pitt to Notre Dame during the disappointing season.

Narduzzi is very successful recruiting in the transfer portal. Also, a bowl game win to finish 9-4 on the season would help show prospects that Pitt is still a desirable location. The Panthers continue to have one of the na tion’s top defenses and, with a couple of ad justments, the offense can regain some of its strength

2022 failed to meet expectations, but two solid seasons in a row is a good sign for Pitt football.

WHILE YOU WERE AWAY...

While most students traveled home for Thanksgiving break, Pitt athletics stayed back and hit the scoreboards. Here’s a quick rundown on how various Pitt teams performed while you were gone.

We all know the feeling of impending doom that comes as finals week approaches. Everything besides school gets thrown out the window with many students barely eating, sleeping or seeing friends. Students spend all of their time in Hill man or locked in their dorm rooms finishing es says, studying and cramming all the information needed to finish the semester.

This isn’t what finals week should look like. While it’s essential to spend the proper amount of time studying, physical and mental health should always be a priority for stu dents, especially during finals sea son. The stress and pressure that many students put on themselves to get perfect grades are unfair, and people should treat themselves with kindness when studying.

Many students try to pull all-nighters to finish studying and try to learn every bit of information they can before the exam. Sleep is extremely im portant to our health. Not getting enough sleep raises the risk of heart disease, stroke, obesity and dementia. Having good sleep can even have a posi tive effect on one’s exam scores. A study from Bay lor University shows that students who had eight hours of sleep the night before an exam scored higher than those who pulled all-nighters. Most importantly, sleep is something that is important for our self-care and it shouldn’t be neglected to get good exam grades.

As the weather gets colder and the sun goes down sooner right while we begin to prepare for

exams, mental health often gets pushed to the back burner. Between the added stress that finals and grades bring and the influx of seasonal de pression symptoms, many people struggle this time of year. While finals are important, mental health is way more important. Between studying, everyone should take time to talk to a friend or do something they love to make sure that they are treating their mental health as a priority. Pitt also provides resources such as counseling that can help if your mental health becomes harder to manage. Stress also tends to in crease in stu dents around finals week. One study conducted by MentalHelp in 2016 found that 31% of col lege students’ biggest stressors were final exams. Reducing stress is extremely important for our health, which, in the grand scheme of things, is more important than final exams — health is our priority. To reduce stress around finals, make sure to take breaks, go outside and try to prepare early to make the actual exams less stressful.

The most important thing to remember dur ing finals season is to treat yourself gently. School is important, but it isn’t the most important thing in your life. It’s okay if your grades aren’t the best or if you tried your hardest but still fell short. Your employer isn’t going to care about one lack luster grade you received, and your future isn’t riding on it. Make sure to take care and be kind to yourself this finals season — that is what matters most for your future.

The most important thing to remember during finals season is to treat yourself gently.

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

Rentals & Sublet

For Rent

South Oakland

2‑3‑4‑5‑6‑7 bedroom apartments and houses available in August 2023. Nice, clean, free laundry, includes exterior main tenance, new appliances, spacious, and located on Semple, Oakland Ave., Meyran Ave., Welsford, Bates, Dawson, Atwood, and Mckee 412‑414‑9629. douridaboudprop ertymanagement.com

* Huge 5 BED/2baths Beautiful Duplex Home. Newly remodeled 2 living rooms, 2 kitchens w/Dish washers, 2 dining rooms, Laundry and a huge yard to enjoy! Dawson Street 10 minute walk to CMU/ Pitt. CMU/PITT shuttles and buses stop in front of house. $3495+utils NO PETS! Available August 1st. Call Jason 9a‑9p at 412‑921‑2141, tinyurl.com/ dawsonhome

Norton in “The Shawshank Redemption,” for one

Portuguese feminine pronoun

Outfit again

Whitlock Jr. of “The Wire” and “Veep”

Arms treaty subj.

Big name in pianos

Corrosive compounds

Colonel called “the second most dangerous man in London” by Sherlock Holmes

“Way to go!”

Introvert

Worn-down pencils

Santa __ winds

Posed (for)

Swingline insert

Canonized one

Concave navel

Painter Degas

Pitching stat

Typing stat

Young bird of prey

Cap brim

Thrill to pieces

“The Goldbergs” actor George

Like deli orders

Hgt.

Capt.’s underlings

Max. opposite

“I think,” in texts

Minor quibble

Bastille Day time

By Pawel Fludzinski ©2022 Tribune Content Agency, LLC