Issue 25, Volume 117-- April 20, 2022

THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS’ STUDENT NEWSPAPER

SINGLE COPY PAID FOR BY STUDENT PUBLICATION

WEDNESDAY

APRIL 20, 2022 Volume 117 — Issue 25

ucanews.live TODAY’S FORECAST CONWAY

Campus Life: Awards: Communication students recognized for work.

page 7

67/61

BY MACI ENGLAND

THE NEWSDESK

Staff Writer

FROM THE ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

Lviv

Russian forces launched missile attacks on the western city of Lviv, Ukraine on Monday in what appeared to down the country’s defense ahead of an all-out assault

Severe weather across the state of Arkansas brought heavy rain, hail and tornadoes to Faulkner County Many homes and establishments around Conway were impacted by the storm, UCA

people were reported killed in Lviv, where plumes of black smoke rose over a city that has seen attacks during

UCA students were alerted on Monday through the Safe@UCA app and text messages that severe weather was approaching campus as high-speed wind, rain and hail storms began

Russia continues building troops and artillery in the east and south for new ground in

tornadoes also touched down, according to weather and emergency

N AT I O N A L

Judge voids mask mandate for travel A decision was made Monday by a federal judge in Florida to void the national mask mandate covering airplanes and other public transportation as exceeding

Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle in Tampa said the and Prevention improperly failed to justify its decision and did not follow proper rule

One of Conway’s emergency sirens — located at Fire Station #5 on Wescon Lane — which alerts residents about incoming threats such as tornadoes, was Students living in residence halls on campus took shelter in their halls’ lobbies and Shortly after 7:00 PM, the electricity went When the storm started, freshman Isabelle Saettle knew immediately that it was safest to leave her room

Photos by Bennett Tinnermon, Maci England, Mia Waddell & Bennett Tinnermon

(Top left) A bike knocked over on UCA’s campus due to strong winds. (Top right) Rain and cloudy skies shroud campus. (Bottom left) Water collects in the gravel

“I’m on the second of the lobby of Shortwas coming down it was super loud hitting the me out because it was so loud,” Seattle said, “Once the lights went out my roommate and I

went to the basement to After a while, we decided to go to the lobby because we wanted to be around other people As everyone gathered together in their safe spots, many students spent the next few hours playing card

games and talking in the dark while some kept Sophomore Michael Moreton took hallway of Farris Hall “It was pretty crowded and the power was out so it started to get stuffy quickly,”

three

centers

SYDNEY AMBRUS Staff Writer

Enforcement Administration is warning everyone of the surge in fentanyl-related drug overdose cases, after seeing several mass-

mass

such

Madison Ogle hold awards won at the annual ACMA contest, alongside advisor David Keith.

The Echo and News6 win big S TAT E Rapper arrested at ACMA awards in Jonesboro for guns and drugs

a population of about 4,000

BY

MIA WADDELL

Rapper Bankroll Freddie was in an Arkansas jail News Editor Friday after being arrested Student led publications on federal drug and weapons

The Echo and News6 won Freddie was arrested after a over 30 awards at the annual Arkansas College Media searched his pickup truck Both publications won and found a gun, 21 pound general excellence of marijuana and 171 grams the of the prescription sedative awards in their respective promethazine, Arkansas State Police spokesman Bill awarded newspaper of the Freddie was booked on state Senior Addison drug and weapons charges Freeman, editor-in-chief of and held for the federal

The Echo, won reporter of The

Echo

placed

(sophomore Madison Ogle), election/political writing (senior Edmund Burke), online coverage of

Index:

a meeting/speech (junior online newswriting (alumna

interpretative/investigative for “Pedestrian Walkway Campus,” by senior Trevor News6 placed second interpretative/investigative Pandemic,” by Senior Chase The Echo placed second for photographer of the year (Madison Ogle), general column (Olyvia Gonzalez), sports column (Junior Emilee Hagewood), online arts & entertainment coverage (alumn Jacob Smith), online editorials/commentary/

4 4

6 Opinion 7 Entertainment 5, 8 Sports

press release, a fentanylrelated mass overdose is defined as “three or more overdoses occurring close in time and at the same In months, these massoverdose events have occurred in seven American cities, with 58 overdoses “Fentanyl is killing Americans at an unprecedented rate,” said Milgram in a recent press

assistant special agent in charge, Jared Harper told of Arkansas alone, this year nearly 20,000 pills containing fentanyl have Fentanyl was found in one of every four pills seized large problem in the United States, as it was estimated in October 2021, after a 12-month period that over 100,000 Americans had died from drug overdoses, a This was nearly three times the amount of deaths due to traffic accidents and more than two times the thirds of those deaths were due to fentanyl and other

Fentanyl is a synthetic online newswriting (junior opioid that is manufactured Sarah Smythe), online in a lab with the primary meeting/speech coverage Fentanyl is used (sophomore Mia Waddell) prescriptively with and topical reporting/blogs cancer patients for pain

Last year, in the state of Arkansas there were 420 overdose deaths and about 3,000 non-fatal overdose

News 6 placed third in to 100 times stronger than broadcast news reporting morphine, according to the with Senior Berris Teague’s

be used to reverse an opioid

Many of the users are Walker’s “Campus Recreation” placed third in ingesting it unknowingly, as drug traffickers are adding The Echo placed third it to their products to drive for newspaper editor of the addiction and attract more art/illustration (Madison advertise it as “cocaine” Ogle), editorial cartoon when it actually has fentanyl (Madison Ogle), front are also selling pills that Wilpe), news photo (senior are identical to prescription Ian Lyle), sports feature pills, which have had (Madison Ogle), sports amounts of fentanyl added photo (senior Lindzie in, said a press release from

Contact Us: 2

See Weather page 2

BY

has also reached smaller communities such as Hampton County, South Photo by Arkansas College Media Association Carolina, which has a population of 18,000, and (Left to right) Maci England, Milo Strain, Emily Kennard, Bennett Tinnermon, Addison Freeman, Mia Waddell and

Police Beat People of UCA Students Say

“I didn’t notice

I opened the door and immediately saw some water, so I checked the rest of my car and saw

Fentanyl overdoses surge

the Easter holiday weekend, capping a month-long spate of gun violence in cities

population

The next morning, Moreton was surprised

that my car and the ones next to it all had a line of mud about a foot off the

DRUGS

Mass shootings hit U.S. over weekend were

were people that were keeping tabs on the tornadoes the entire time, so I felt safer

AWA R D S

remedy was to vacate the rule

There

page 8

Strong wind, hail, possible tornadoes damage Arkansas

Rain

hits

Track & Field: Bears place second at Little Rock Twilight.

New Release: The Kardashians return to the small screen in new Hulu show.

page 3

Russia

Sports:

Entertainment:

Social:

One of the most common ways to treat a narcotic

In Conway, Narcan can be purchased at Heartland Pharmacy, Amity Rd Pharmacy, and Cornerstone at

the

Student

Health

is trained to administer Narcan and has carried it for “We

have

been

were funded by the Blue and You Foundation grant for

See Drugs page 2

Inside:

Opinion:

The Democratic party deserves all its losses.

E-mail:ucaechoeditor@gmail.com @ucaecho The Echo ucaecho © 2022 The Echo, Printed by The Courier, Russellville, Arkansas.

see page 6

2/April 20, 2022

NEWS

Police Beat

ucanews.live

The following information is compiled from UCAPD incident reports

by Assistant News Editor Kathryn Thornberry

Couple calls cops on each other

On Saturday, April 16, was dispatched to Stadium Park apartments in response to a verbal students involved were the two up to begin Benson was asleep and she She then said Benson wanted to go to his friend’s house and she didn’t Robinson interviewed Benson, his story was the grabbed his shirt and tore it, so he locked her out of went to the kitchen and got a knife to try to open the is when Benson called the to her apartment so they

Sig Tau members brawl at the Den

On April 16, Saturday, Conway police department responded to a dispute between Sig Tau members and received calls from a group of nonstudents being harassed by a group of Sig Tau UCA students The activity moved to began, where one of the Sig Tau members was transported to Conway group of Sig Tau members began driving in an aggressive manner around the non-student’s vehicle non-students were able to get home at some point, when the group of Sig Tau members identified the apartment and began was called again and the

Weather:

Fender bender leads to black eye

On Friday, April 15, Officer Gene Hodges was dispatched to the Windgate construction site on UCA campus to take report of a fight that took place between nonstudent Eric Sims and 60-year-old Hodges made contact with Jauch, Jauch had blood and dirt on his clothing and face, and Jauch said Sims got mad when Jauch’ truck struck Sim’s truck while backing up to said he was not aware of Jauch’s true age, although Jauch said he informed Sim’s that he informed Sims that hitting someone of that Both parties were made aware of the warrants

Because of the amount of heavy rain, many buildings Bernard Hall, McCastlin Hall, Wingo Hall and Burdick The parking lots of State Hall and New Hall and the parking lot west of the Farris Center and south of Stadium “Those last two are signage has been in place for a long time there,” Sergeant The storm also led to an unexpected failure in the data closet of Snow Fine Arts and a window blowing open in the Student Health Center which caused some damage,

Drugs:

Severe conditions hit UCA.

at a faculty-senate meeting No injuries have been Those on campus, if caught in a storm, can go to the apartments, the basement of Burdick Hall, the basement of Lewis Science Center and Residential Halls, they are in

do not have to be on campus Safe@UCA provides timely warnings in case of an emergency as well as other useful features such as Mobile Bluelight, a function where you can send your location information to UCA security in cases of crisis and Friend Walk, a similar function where you can send your location to

To stay informed about severe weather, Sergeant Michael Hopper encourages everyone to download the

ensure that you’re prepared

“We use the app as a way

Safe@UCA also includes emergency contacts, tip

It is also useful to make contact with the police department directly, and it provides a list of emergency contact numbers for other entities in Faulkner

can also chat with safety staff at UCA through the app and access campus safety

Continued from page 1

the potential spread of fentanyl on campus, in alcohol and drug awareness programming in conjunction with Housing Then, students were

ANDREA AGUILERA

Staff Writer

UCAPD trained on overdose response.

administered Narcan once, back in May of

Ramadan fasting may affect students BY

Continued from page 1

The car did not receive any

Graphic by Jessica Underwood

able to self-select into small groups based on their interest in any number of these then created activities that worked toward solutions, such as the book drive being an action that acknowledges Arkansas’s low literacy rates and takes a small step toward helping raise those rates by

putting books in the hands of early readers,” The students plan to take all of the donations to Maumelle on Monday, April 11, to give them to Academic Plus Charter of the project has the students considering putting on another book drive in the fall

Earlier in the month, UCA faculty member Jessica Underwood sent out a newsletter to faculty members reminding them to be mindful of how Ramadan may affect Muslim students Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which is a lunar calendar based on the moon Ramadan is one of the a month-long celebration of when the prophet Muhammad first received revelations of what became

feels a bit lonely sometimes since I am not surrounded by others that are also participating in Ramadan,”

a way of cleansing and purifying the soul while having empathy for the less

Those who observe are not limited from participating in their normal day-to-day activities like

For the entire month, Muslims who observe Ramadan fast from dawn means they must abstain from eating, drinking, smoking, participating in sexual activities and having impure thoughts, words and While fasting is a time to reflect on oneself and practice self-restraint, it can be an adjustment for the students that observe on

BY

KATHRYN THORNBERRY

Assistant News Editor

ADDI FREEMAN

as a way for people who normally wouldn’t talk to each other based on their biases to have conversations about stereotypes and

The executive president The vice president of operations will be Colby vice

president

will

Graphic by Mia Waddell

The logo of UCA’s Student Government Association. The student group,

be balance those three things, you are winning at making

The senior class president will be Annabelle The junior class president junior class vice president The sophomore class vice president will be Brad Grant sustainability

Williams, graduate

sustainability using three terms: people, planet and

Students sat with people they normally wouldn’t have a chance to speak with at Torreyson Library’s Human Library event on Tuesday,

“The Human Library was created in 2000 in

increase in voting in the

“We planted 100 trees in McGee center,” Williams event this year, they planted Williams also said the Sustainibility Committee has teamed up with sororities to Williams said building a garden is a pain, but the committee has built 8 garden beds that contain produce, He also described future projects, like preventing runoff from the water near cleaning streams around the

UCA SGA recognized women of the week Grace Adeyemi and Tekerra Adeyemi is a UCA ambassador and involved in many clubs and committees, such as the African Students Association and Purple Mayweather is a Children Hospital volunteer, two-time Take Back the Night is an event on Thursday, April 21, a movement that aims to raise awareness about sexual assault and

“Some of the general adjustments that I make is to refrain from distracting activities that might stray me away from prayer and can really be anything that can distract me, such as my also limited since I have to

In the newsletter Underwood sent out on April 4, she said, “Muslim students may be tired, hungry and dehydrated in your classes — especially if they are with you late in the “Another thing I wish professors were mindful of is that students that are fasting could be very tired and drained, therefore, during exams they should be more considerate of the student especially if they need more time to finish the The first pre-dawn meal of the night during Ramadan is called breaks the fast is called are typically big feasts celebrated with friends “I have to make major changes in my daily and weekly routine since some of the classes finish late during the time when we break our fast, so I have to change my routine to where I could eat after my classes,” Ramadan this year will

Human library event teaches tolerance; gives opportunity to un-judge strangers

Library technician Heather Reinold helped put

UCA SGA 2022 spring election results were announced on Friday, April 15, revealing SGA’s new class presidents and vice presidents, as well as the new

are more intentional with reading the Quran and making time for prayer

accommodate my prayer times in between classes or sometimes after class,”

I N C LU S I V I T Y

Editor-in-Chief

SGA election winners announced

describes her experiences with observing while living on campus as less convenient than when she’s “There definitely have been some challenges that I came across because of the various minor inconveniences that I experience from not being in the comfort of my own

BY

STUDENT VOICES

Sophomore Maryam Hayyawi is a biology major and interdisciplinary studies and chemistry double minor

“Every human book from our catalog represents a group in our society that is often subjected to prejudice, stigmatization or discrimination because of their lifestyle, diagnosis, beliefs, disability, social

face and understanding on things we may be fearful of,” race is not about one or the We need to respect and have compassion for one another for our differences, but also encourage growth within Officer, Anglea Webster, was also a book, with the title “In the Presence of a Webster’s family was active in the Civil Rights movement in Memphis, and she told of her experience seeing Martin Luther King Webster was 7 years old at King that day impacted the “You can’t look at someone and decide what

Erin Weindorf, a UCA graduate student and Special Education teacher at

“You can’t see the promise of their life just by looking

was one of the “books”

Webster wrote a children’s book with the

Her title was “The XX in an XY Body,” and she told of her experiences as a transgender woman in

This was Torreyson’s

“It [the Human Library] gives some much-needed light on things that we, as a human race, want to take and put on the table as taboo and try to put a

“We started the Human Library at UCA in 2019 and our first event, hosted in the Torreyson Library, was a major hit,” Reinold have another in 2020 but

to shut down a month before The Human Library has seen much traffic over these three events and will continue to be a staple in “The Human Library is an important event because everyone has implicit biases, or the attitudes and stereotypes we have towards people without our conscious knowledge, and this event provides a safe environment for people to have conversations and address these biases,” to the books tell their stories and then having deep conversations with their readers really makes it all worth it, especially when I see the compassion and all so disconnected from everything and rarely take the time to have oneon-one conversations and really connect to another person, whether they are a friend, an acquaintance, Though the Human Library was the last largescale event for the library this semester, Torreyson will have several relaxing activities for students as Finals Week approaches, including bubble wrap popping, storytime with faculty members and

Campus Life

3

April 20, 2022

Around Campus:

Llama & Alpaca Play Day From 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 23, The National Art Education Association Pre-Service Student Chapter will host an event at N. Franklin County Fair Grounds In Ozark, Ark. Students who are looking for more information on the event can email Dr. Harlow at tharlow@uca.edu.

Relay for Life From 6-11:45 p.m. on Friday, April 22, Colleges Against Cancer will host the annual Relay for Life event at Estes Stadium. The event features games, booths, food and fun events to help raise money for the American Cancer Society.

University Chorus Spring Concert From 7:30-8:30 p.m. on Friday, April 22, the Music Department will host a Spring concert in the Snow Fine Arts Center Recital Hall.

Fashion Show From 7-8 p.m. on Thursday, April 21, the Students for the Arts and Feminist Union will host a fashion show in Ida Waldran Auditorium called ‘Trashion Show.’ The event is free to the public.

IFC Council walks a mile for women of abuse

BY OLIVIA SNELSON

Assistant Campus Life Editor

The Interfraternity Council hosted its annual event, Walk a Mile in Her Shoes, at the Student Center Amphitheater on Thursday, April 14.

The event, which raises awareness of sexual assault and domestic violence, is part of a national campaign.

It features members of various fraternities walking a mile around campus in women’s high heels and sandals.

“The purpose of hosting this event was to show support for victims of sexual abuse and violence as well as to attempt to localize the national foundation here in Conway and specifically at UCA. IFC hosted this in hopes of challenging our fraternity community specifically as well as other males in our community to begin to do their part in standing against sexual abuse and violence,” Creed Beene, Vice President of Health and Inclusion for IFC, said.

The event also featured Cynthia Perez from the local women’s shelter, Rise House.

Perez, the program coordinator, discussed the deeper meaning behind the event before it began. After, IFC presented Perez and Rise House with a $500 donation.

“IFC was thankful to work with Rise House for our Walk a Mile in Her Shoes event. We chose Rise House as our recipient of the donation due to their active work of helping victims of sexual abuse

Photo by Olivia Snelson

UCA President Houston Davis addresses members of fraternities prior to the “Walk a Mile in Her Shoes” event. The event had members of UCA’s greek life don high heels and participate in a communal march to bring awareness to violence against women.

and violence locally. We decided to donate the $500 in an attempt to further the effectiveness of the event from participation and

R S O F E AT U R E

RSO Feature: UCA Computer Science Club

BY ANDRAEA AGUILERA Staff Writer

Bears Got Talent From 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, April 21, The Bear Den will host a talent show at the amphitheater to raise money for the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences where students can come and show off any talent they have.

SIA Cookout From 5:30-7:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 21, Hermanadad de Sigma Iota Alpha Inc. will host a cookout at the Crafton Alumni Pavilion.

Students can come out and learn about their culture, and must RSVP on CubConnect.

Canvas and Coffee From 1:30-2:45 p.m. on Thursday, April 21, the Student Activities Board will host a Canvas and Coffee event where students can come and relax while painting and drinking coffee.

Block Party From 3-7 p.m. on Saturday, April 23, the National PanHellenic Council and Students For the Propagation of Black Culture will host a block party at the Student Center Amphitheater. The event will showcase the NPHC chapters and will have food and music.

Picnic Softball Game From 2-6 p.m. on Saturday, April 23, the Athletics Department will host a picnic at the softball game at Farris Field where students can enjoy the double-header softball game and a free lunchable and Capri Sun.

awareness to financial support.

We mentioned during the program of Walk a Mile that Rise House portrays a perfect example of

actively working to create change right here in our community,” Beene said.

UCA President Houston Davis also spoke at the event about the importance and significance of the cause.

“President Davis made an extremely well-spoken speech in support of the event including a call to action for our fraternity community to localize the stance of Walk a Mile in Her Shoes and find ways to actively support this foundation and its core values about sexual abuse and violence,” Beene said.

Kappa Sigma member Nick Brorman said, “It was an honor to be a part of this event and to raise awareness for such an important cause. It was not too painful at first, but about halfway through it really hurt. I started getting blisters, and it was harder to walk. We got honked at, and a lot of people asked us what we were doing, so it was good for raising awareness. Overall it was a good experience, and our chapter was happy to participate in it.”

IFC believes this event was a big success. “While we know that a bunch of fraternity members walking a mile in heels doesn’t necessarily solve any problems, we hoped this event would get more people listening, learning, and talking. Believe it or not, it’s not easy to walk a mile in heels, and we hope our participants take the experience as a starting place to continue their education, selfreflection, and go out to create change,” Beene said.

Students interested in computer science and programming can find support through peers in the Computer Science Club at UCA. The club emphasizes knowledge-sharing through guest lectures and hands-on workshops that develop computer science skills.

The students build off of each other’s technical skills.

“The main objectives of the Computer Science Club are to serve UCA students and establish a strong community where technology and science are valued and exercised,” club officer Colby Noel said.

The Computer Science Club hosts student-led lectures, industry presentations and discussions on succeeding in the profession. They also host game nights every so often.

“I personally joined because I wanted to meet others that were in the same department.

I knew nothing of what it meant to be in computer science when I chose it as my major, so I wanted to learn from the people that were

further along as well as make friends,” Noel said.

During the semester, the computer science department received two new professors. They introduced themselves at a meeting in February.

“We used this as an opportunity for the students to become acquainted with the professors before they decided to take their classes,” Noel said.

The club also hosted a road map meeting for freshman and sophomore students seeking guidance on the computer science major.

Within the club, students are able to become more competitive when it comes to applying for internships and seeking out jobs on the market.

“The computer science field requires a lot outside of just having a degree, so we try to provide all the necessary tools for students to succeed. Along with that, the computer science club is a hub that hosts specific class Discord servers that makes it easy for students to find project partners, stay on top of assignments and discuss class material,” Noel said.

There are currently 219 students, alumni

and professors in the Discord where club discussion is held. The current officers include Colby Noel, Harrison Bounds, Ian Fields, Dakota Varnell and Abby Bounds.

Members meet biweekly in the Math and Computer Science building on Thursdays during x-Period. New members will join by a Discord link which allows them into the club server.

Anyone with any interest in the computer science or programming fields is encouraged to join.

“I think the best part of the Computer Science Club is the sense of community that comes with it. Our members reach out to each other to help each other with classwork, projects, resumes and more. It’s honestly really cool. We also bring a lot of professors and students to present research or projects they’ve been working on, so it is a great learning experience all around,” Abby Bounds said.

The Computer Science Club Discord link is located on CubConnect or in the bio of their Instagram @ucacompsciclub, where meeting information and updates can be found.

CEREMONY

Local band plays at philosophy and religion department awards

BY EMILY KENNARD Staff Writer

Local band Thisness performed at the outdoor amphitheater April 15 to celebrate students who won awards for exemplary academic performance in gender studies, religious studies and philosophy.

Associate professor Taine Duncan, chair of the UCA department of philosophy and religion, gave out the Outstanding Student in Gender Studies award to senior Caroline Kelley. Duncan, director of the program, said the program is an interdisciplinary minor housed in the department.

“Our winner this year really exemplifies that notion of interdisciplinary. I cannot think of someone who is more dedicated to so many different fields of study,” Duncan said about the biology major.

Then, Duncan handed the microphone to associate

professor James Deitrick, who presented the Outstanding Student in Religious Studies award to junior Cameron Steed.

“She’s always just does the most excellent work. There’s never anything to criticize at all, and I hear that she has like a 4.0 GPA at this point in time as well,” Deitrick said. “We have the best students and so we’ve got the outstanding of the outstanding coming up here tonight and receiving awards for the work they’ve done.”

Steed said she was shocked and honored when she received the award.

“I love the religious studies program on campus. My classes have really helped me grow in my critical thinking skills and increased my love of learning.

I’m so glad I’m part of this program,” Steed said.

Duncan gave the last award for philosophy to senior Dalton Orsborn, who secured two offers for law school funding.

“It’s nearly impossible

to get funding opportunities, and he has a full funding at one opportunity, and then a huge stipend at Pepperdine, in California on the beach, which is of course where he has elected to go,” Duncan said.

“I was fortunate with my [Law School Admission Test] score, which, props to philosophy majors because they have the highest LSAT scores,” Orsborn said. He said studying philosophy also helped him with writing admissions essays.

Osborn praised Thisness, who played after the awards were distributed.

Orsborn said, “They were awesome. Top-notch. Some of the best UCA’s ever had, maybe better than AJR.” The amphitheater’s stage, covered in music equipment and looping pedals, faced an audience full of local university faculty and students.

Three of Thisness’s members work as philosophy professors at different

universities.

UCA’s Jesse Butler played guitar and was joined by Hendrix College’s James Dow, who performed on vocals and rhythm guitar. The University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s Michael Norton played bass.

Alex Bush played drums.

“I planned the event because Dr. Dow was actually the keynote presenter for the Quoined Corner, the conference that we just hosted through the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, and he’s a friend of mine,” Duncan said.

“At Hendrix, we do some exchange and so I kind of knew both what he does in terms of research, and also this band, and I thought it would be a really nice way to celebrate and actually have a fun event to be able to give the awards at,” Duncan said.

Thisness’s next performance is at 7 p.m. April 30 at Vino’s Brew Pub in Little Rock, Arkansas.

4/ April 20, 2022

CAMPUS LIFE

ucanews.live

Photo by Ashlyn Little

Christopher Roland presents the Glenn D. Smith Outstanding Student in Communication award to Gregory Warren. The award’s namesake comes from Smith, the former Department of Speech and Theatre Arts chairman and professor.

School of Communication award ceremony honors student feats

BY ASHLYN LITTLE Staff Writer

Aspiring communicators within the community were recognized at the School of Communication awards ceremony Thursday, April 14.

Students from each college within the School of Communication received awards for their accomplishments throughout the 2021-22 school year.

Writing, public relations, communication and journalism students represented the school, receiving several memorials and local and national awards and recognitions.

Christopher Roland, assistant professor of communication at UCA, planned the ceremony with the help of his colleagues in the department, including Director of the School of Communication Donna Stephens.

Roland said, “Our hope was to be able to celebrate this and have an event that was not virtual for once. We have all these different programs, and this is one of those things that sort of binds us all together.

Representing the writing department were Cristine Busser, Carey Clark, Jen Talbot and Kyle Mattson, who presented students with their respective awards.

David Keith and Angela Wiser presented the Journalism awards. Tami Phillips and Christopher Roland awarded the Communication awards.

For Public Relations awards, Dylan McLemore presented.

The Glenn D. Smith Outstanding Student in Communication award is

named after the former Department of Speech and Theatre Arts chairman and professor.

Christopher Roland presented this award to Gregory Warren, explaining the characteristics of the recipient as dedicated, hard-working and spirited.

“This student embodies the true colors of UCA Communication, and wears them a lot as well,” Roland said.

Warren accepted the award in excitement, sporting his purple UCA School of Communication polo.

Warren said, “I came here because I’m on the Student Advisory Commission and Dr. Roland told me I should come out. I was completely blindsided, I had no idea this was coming. If students need help with classes or if they have questions about events or things the School of Communication is putting on, they can come to me, and so I just like that. This award kind of just lets me stand as a leader in the program.”

Another award was presented for Principles of Communication. The Olive M. Hilliard Speech award was presented to London Blackwell.

Dylan McLemore presented an award to Hannah Phillips for being the Public Relations Student Society of America member of the year for the UCA chapter.

Phillips said, “I really love being in PRSSA, and it’s given me a lot of opportunities.”

The Alma O. Corley Award for Outstanding Student in Public Relations was presented

to Riley Neil. Three other awards were presented to Public Relations students.

Paitin Baker, Eliza Ball, and Sarah Lunsford won the Client’s Choice Award for Best Intro to PR Plan.

The P.R. Pro’s Choice Award for Outstanding Mock News Conference was awarded to Dalton James, Grace Lee, C.J. Parrish, and Jayce Burney.

Rylee Bolls, Emily Dye, Megan Franklin, and Aurora King were presented with the Client’s Choice Award for Best Capstone PR Plan.

Addison Freeman was honored with two Journalism awards presented by David Keith. Freeman received the Outstanding Print Student Award as well as the Harry Ashmore Outstanding Journalism Award.

Keith also recognized Freeman’s recent accomplishment of being named Reporter of the Year at the Arkansas College Media Association conference.

Brett Walker received the Outstanding Broadcast Student award, and ViviAnne Flora won the Outstanding Online Student.

The Joanna Castner Post Outstanding Writing Major award was given to Miriam Phwandaphwanda.

Will McDonald was awarded the Up-and-Coming Writing Major Award.

The Best Scholarly Essay was awarded to Cameron Steed, Best Multimodal Project to Addison Richman, and Best Community Engagement Project to Lexi Bratton, Alyssa Rieman, and Drew Weld.

Photo courtesy of Lola Simmons

Lola Simmons and her dog Opie, a service dog in training. Simmons is the president of UCA’s Living Unleashed, an RSO that allows students to work with dogs like Opie.

People of UCA: Lola Simmons

BY AMBER AUSTEN Staff Writer

Lola Simmons takes on the journey of turning her puppy Opie into a full-fledged service animal in an attempt to one day help someone else in need.

Simmons is a senior public relations major who is president of UCA’s student organization Living Unleashed.

Living Unleashed collaborates with Canine Companions for Independence to raise puppies for people with disabilities and mental health struggles.

Simmons was first introduced to the organization at one of UCA’s club fairs where she instantly knew she wanted to join the program and start the long process of becoming a puppy raiser.

“The length of waiting time can vary when getting a puppy. I applied my sophomore year and ended up getting Opie at the start of my junior year in August of 2021,” Simmons said. “There is a long waitlist for puppy raisers, and COVID got in the way which delayed the process.”

Opie, a yellow lab, was 8-weeks-old when he got assigned to Simmons. The two wasted no time getting straight to work.

“Training starts immediately.

Dogs are supposed to learn 30 commands over the period of 18- 21 months. The CCI recommends breaking down certain orders over time so it’s not so overwhelming for the puppies,” Simmons said.

Opie often practices simple maintenance commands such as sit, shake, lay down and proper greetings on a regular basis.

On top of learning commands, Opie also learns how to control himself in different environments as Simmons takes

him to work and to classes on campus.

Simmons expressed the importance of practicing routines, so Opie stays sharpminded and is less likely to abandon his commands.

However, certain instances occur that create challenges between raising a puppy and raising a service dog.

“I want Opie to be able to be a puppy; I want him to be happy and be able to play, yet he needs to know when it’s time to work and how to maintain his duties,” Simmons said.

Despite this, Simmons has enjoyed every part of the journey of training a potential service dog thus far.

“Seeing him learn and grow, it’s so rewarding. I get to experience a sense of his personality and see his capability of learning,” Simmons said.

“Knowing he’s going to help someone someday and make a huge impact makes it all worth it.”

Simmons emphasized how Opie has taught her just as much during the process as she learns about what it takes to be a volunteer and the proper etiquette that goes into raising and approaching service animals and how she can use that knowledge to help educate others.

Once Opie graduates in November from his puppy training, he will transition into advanced training where he will have a 50/50 shot of becoming a full-fledged service dog.

“Only 50% of dogs actually pass and make it through; not all dogs are meant to be service animals, and that’s OK,” Simmons said.

You can follow Opie’s and Simmons’ journey on Instagram @opie.wan.canopie and @UCA. living.unleashed.

STUDENTS SAY: “How do you prepare for final exams?”

Story and photos by Olivia Snelson

Elena Lainez Graduate Student “When I was in undergrad, I studied for at least two hours every night the week leading up to the exam and now that I’m in graduate school I do that but also starting sooner and trying to go to the library more.”

Madalyn Owens Junior “Probably Starbucks.”

lots

of

Masai Olowokere Junior “Probably by mainly reviewing old homework assignments and old notes I have from the class.”

Haley Cox Freshman “I study at least two weeks in advance and then I study for three hours for five days and I give myself the weekend.”

Peyton Cook Junior

“I just go through all of my previous notes and I find that teaching other students helps me. And if I don’t have anyone to teach, I’ll explain it out loud and try to teach the wall or something like that.”

Jazmin Zuniga Senior

“I prepare by creating a stress free environment the day before. So I try to organize myself a couple of days prior so I can have a day where I am relaxed and feel good about myself mentally, before I go into that test.”

Sports

5

April 20, 2022

Upcoming Games

Tennis 9 a.m., April 22 at Liberty University Baseball 6 p.m., April 22 vs.

Bellarmine University Men’s and Women’s Track and Field April 22, at Crimson Invitational Beach Volleyball 5 p.m., April 22 vs.

University of North Alabama Men’s Golf April 23 at ASUN Conference Championship

Editor’s Take

Photo courtesy of ucasports.com

Weather affects athletes, fans should pay attention BY

WILL MCDONALD

Assistant Sports Editor This past week’s severe weather made me think about the weather and sports. Does weather affect how our athletes perform? Yes, weather greatly affects an athlete’s performance.

For instance, last week’s track meet was incredibly windy.

Several runners commented about running against the wind.

Running against or with the wind can change a runner’s pace, even if it’s only by a little.

One other factor in weather that is extremely important to sports is temperature.

If athletes aren’t hydrated or prepared for the warm weather they might experience heat cramps, heat exhaustion, or heat stroke. Muscle cramps are infamous for taking players out of the game for a few plays. The heat factor applies to all outside sports, and it will dehydrate players faster than they can hydrate.

Rain, rain, go away! Wet, slippery fields result in higher chances for injuries. Tumbles and collisions are detrimental to a soccer team’s momentum up the pitch.

Lightning storms delay or postpone outdoor sports such as baseball, softball, and football.

Sometimes these cancellations cause fans to leave early. With a less electric crowd (no pun intended) players won’t feel as hyped.

An outdoor sporting event held in the snow also affects an athlete’s performance. Not only will fans be less comfortable in the weather, but the athletes’ joints and muscles will be stiffer.

To prepare for the freezing weather an athlete should take extra time to stretch, warm-up and get loose.

If the athlete isn’t prepared for the cold then they might run or react slower.

All of this is to say that athletes and fans alike are often tested by the weather. Not all of them rise to meet the challenge.

Athletes perform differently based on the conditions they play in. Next time you contemplate whether or not to cheer on the Bears through the rain, ask yourself, “Can my energy help motivate our athletes?” If you stay you will witness a triumph of passion over comfort.

Bears get second place victory at Little Rock Twilight BY

COURTNEY SHEPHERD

Staff Writer

The UCA Bears placed 2nd in the Little Rock Twilight track and field competition on Friday, April 15, 2022.

The track meet was hosted by the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in the Coleman Sports Complex, where the Bears competed against UALR, Missouri Valley, Grambling State University, Southern Arkansas University, Williams Baptist, Arkansas Tech and more.

Wesley Suen, a junior on the Bears’ track and field team, praised the performance of his fellow teammates.

“Both the male and female teams finished second behind Little Rock with a lot of good performances,” Suen said. “I’m really excited about what our team can do as we get closer to postseason,” he said.

Among the scores for the men’s teams, the Bears took second place with a total score of 123, falling only to the Little Rock Trojans in their home territory (195).

In third place for the men’s teams, Missouri Valley finished with a score of 105, and Grambling, with a score of 67, settled into the fourth place spot, beating out SAU by five points.

In the women’s competition bracket, the Bears sailed

through to second place with a score of 118. The Little Rock Trojans beat the Bears with a score of 274.

In third place was Arkansas Tech (54), in fourth place was Missouri Valley (48), and in fifth place, with a score of 44, was Williams Baptist.

The Bears completed the meet with eight first-place finishes, three of which were facility records and one a UCA record.

In first place, Malik Beasley threw a 51.33m hammer throw, breaking a UCA record in the process.

Parker Benefield placed first in the men’s pole vault (4.48m), Natalie Louw stole first in the women’s high jump and Jared Touart broke a facility record with his first-place time of 3:54.41 in the men’s 1500 meter race.

Also in first place for the Bears was Anna Bommes in the women’s 1500m race (4:45.05), Tristan LaVan, with a facility record, in the men’s 400m race (46.21), Sarah Steimel had a facility record-breaking time of 11:4.13 in the women’s 3000 steeplechase and the men’s 4x400m relay team (3:18.53).

Many athletes highlighted the performance of their teammate, Tristan LaVan, for his performance in the men’s 400m.

Freshman Preston Barker said of LaVan, “If he continues to keep his work ethic and stay motivated, he will have a school record.”

Barker competed in the 110m hurdles and the 200m dash. “I was not pleased at all with my performance in the 110m hurdles,” he said. Barker placed 6th in the hurdles, with a time of 15.93.

“I came out of the blocks well. Unfortunately, the athlete to my right hit me and threw off my rhythm,” Barker said.

In his 200m dash, Barker placed 8th, with a time of 22.64. “I was very pleased,” he said. “I set a new personal best, even with the 2.9 mph headwind.”

Kayla Scott, a senior in her junior year of eligibility on the Bears’ track and field team, specializes in the 100m hurdles. While slowly progressing from a hamstring strain, she managed to place second overall in the event, with a time of 15.38.

“I definitely feel as though I could’ve performed better. I hit a hurdle, and doing so, threw me off my balance and altered my momentum,” Scott said.

See Track- page 8

TOURNAMENT

Photo courtesy of ucasports.com

Men’s golf takes 14th at Mizzou Tiger Invitational BY

ESTEFANIA MOJICA

Staff Writer

The men’s golf team placed 14th after playing three rounds at the Mizzou Tiger Invitational.

The tournament took place in Columbia, Missouri, April 10-12.

The host team, Mizzou, took first place at the event.

Second and third place were taken by Wichita State and Oral Roberts.

Despite this, Bear’s still played well and finished the rounds at a high placement as a team.

Juniors Josh Turnock and Spencer Jenkins held the highest individual placements tying for 40th place.

“I thought I played solid in the first two rounds and put myself in a good position for the final round. I certainly made my share of mistakes out there but I was fairly pleased with how I played compared to the last few events,” Jenkins said. “ You must stay sharp mentally and physically for over eight hours which takes a lot of energy out of you as a player.”

Jenkins said that playing in a college golf tournament

can always be a major challenge. “ … Mainly because the first two rounds are usually continuous play the same day. This requires a ton of mental fortitude and stamina,” Jenkins said.

Finishing in 58th place, sophomore Palmer McSpadden felt there were obstacles that kept him from playing to the best of his ability.

“The first two rounds I struggled with getting comfortable and falling into my routine, nothing was really clicking for me. In the third round, I felt more comfortable, I was able to rely on my routine and trust my swing. I felt more in control of the round,” McSpadden said.

McSpadden shot his best round on the last day, 1-under-71 and jumped 21 places. Sophomore Blaine Calhoon finished one place behind him, he shot two 75s and ended with a 76, bringing his final to 10-over 226.

Sam Long finished with a 19-over 235.

For Jenkins, the third round, played on April 12th, was the more difficult one.

“The final round was played in tough conditions so I knew it was going to be a grind all day. We didn’t finish

with the score we wanted but I still took a lot of positives out of it,” said Jenkins.

This was the last tournament of the season before the Bears play at the ASUN Championship next week in Athens, Georgia.

Both players look forward to the championship and hope to put in their best plays.

“I’m looking forward to conference because I’ll have some more time to work on my swing and it’s another opportunity to hopefully put three good rounds together,” McSpadden said. “I expect to play my game every tournament and put myself in position to win.”

The ASUN Championship will be hosted by the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, and take place April 24 - 26.

“We haven’t had a great year as a team this season but that can all change next week at conference. It’s the biggest event of the season and it’s what we’ve been building towards all year. It’s our goal to have all our guys peaking for that tournament,” Jenkins said.

Opinion

6

ucaechoeditor@gmail.com

April 20, 2022

The Voice

More live music would revitalize campus, bring in revenue for UCA

The Echo Staff Addi Freeman Editor-in-Chief Bennett Tinnermon Associate Editor Mia Waddell News Editor Kathryn Thornberry Assistant News Editor Madison Ogle Campus Life Editor/Cartoonist Olivia Snelson Assistant Campus Life Editor Milo Strain Opinion Editor Sydney Cyr Entertainment Editor Emilee Hagewood Sports Editor Will McDonald Assistant Sports Editor Delaney Van Wilpe Online Editor Olyvia Gonzalez Assistant Online Editor

The Democratic party deserves its losses

Even if you support the Democratic enthusiasm and energy as Republicans. party politically, you have to admit its lack of Popular progressive policies, like health care clear messaging resulted in the stark voter reform and regulation of large corporations, enthusiasm gap between Democrats and could easily fill the messaging void, but they Republicans. often left them in the dust to pursue political Republicans have found much political stunts. success through consistent messaging, even Apparently, the most effective about manufactured problems.

Democratic messaging was “orange man For example, combating critical race bad.” Democrats took an unprecedented theory has become crucial to many campaigns amount of undisclosed money to defeat on the local, state and national levels, despite Donald Trump in 2020. literally just being a curriculum that connects But, now that the orange man is gone, who current issues to the ongoing effects of do poor and disabled people and minorities slavery. have to blame?

This powerful messaging is also clear in the The support of the Black vote, essential monumental shift in LGBT issues. Not to Joe Biden’s election, is dwindling being heterosexual or cis-gendered because of unfulfilled promises. is considered a moral hazard that While the Black approval rating puts kids in danger, despite studies of Biden was almost 90% the day showing that most child sex he took office, as of a few days offenders are heterosexual. The ago, it’s decreased by over 20 GOP has successfully turned percentage points. Hispanic and abuse, which is about power and Gen-Z support has followed control, into issues of sexuality, the same trend, Gallup polls and the faux moral outrage is show. an electoral goldmine.

Even with the lynching When Democrats do of George Floyd fresh on nothing to redirect or Democrats’ minds, they dispute these worries, have already returned to they leave more room harmful tough-on-crime

BY EMILY KENNARD for GOP donors and policies that continue to Staff Writer lobbyists to continue bolster police power. blasting falsehoods about It’s unfortunate voter fraud, education and gay people, and they’re so bad at their jobs because, as a Republicans continue to rack up support. person who has lived below the poverty line, The poor will not forget these meaningless I can assert that Democratic policies and battles while rent and health care costs administrations were better for my economic continue to soar. They won’t forget pandemic well-being. relief being taken away while the virus still After seeing no meaningful improvement ravages America, going unchecked simply in their circumstances, why should voters because Democratic-controlled agencies bother to show up? Just because Democrats changed how we counted cases. are technically the better option doesn’t If Democrats mobilized anger about these mean they’re entitled to minority and issues, we’d see an outrage much larger than working-class support. the meaningless backlash we see against our Once they see their electoral losses teachers and schools. in November, they will only have their The Democratic party’s quiet resignation party to blame. People will not easily to these meaningless cultural wars is forget the inaction and failures of Biden’s dangerous and puts transgender kids in administration, the rotating villains Kyrsten danger.

Sinema and Joe Manchin, and the preventable Democrats can’t muster the same suffering the party professionally ignores.

Think twice before going in for that hug Got Letters?

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I’ve come to the realization that people I’m not saying that it’s wrong to hug need to respect each other’s boundaries someone if you feel the urge to, but a better more. More specifically, in terms of hugging. way to go about it would be to ask them first I used to feel guilty about the fact that if it is okay. I’ve had a lot of people who I it made me uncomfortable when people barely know hug me and some have asked, hugged me, but I’ve realized that this is not while others have not. I always feel so something I should feel bad about. much more comfortable and like A lot of people are the affectionate my feelings are actually being type and like to show their appreciation considered when someone asks or remorse through hugging, but not me first. everyone wants to hug you back.

Nobody is going to think And it can be really hard for some that you are weird if you ask people, like me, to deny that hug. them if you can hug them, given It’s not that I don’t like hugging, that the situation warrants I’m just the kind of person who a hug of course. only likes to hug people that I’m Don’t just go really close with. walking up I find it okay every now and the street asking people then when one of my friends if you can hug them wants to hug me, but even just because you feel then I’m sometimes kind like it.

BY OLIVIA SNELSON of weary of it because it There are other Assistant Campus Life Editor can be really awkward. boundary issues that So when a stranger or have led me to feel someone I barely know the way I do about tries to go in for one, it makes me feel really hugging. I’m a very small person and people uncomfortable. have always tried to pick me up.

I think this is something that not a lot This is definitely not okay, especially if of people see as a problem because you’re you don’t ask first. It makes me, and other not blatantly doing something wrong to shorter people I’m sure, feel like we’re just someone. However if you’re a stranger or a doll to you and not actually a person and it an acquaintance trying to hug someone, you makes us feel even worse and more insecure may not be considering that they might have about our height than we already do. some kind of trauma in their life or that they I know that these kinds of signs of simply don’t like to be touched. affection are not meant to be mean or poke For some people, hugging without asking fun at people, but it would probably just be first is like going in for an inappropriate kiss, best for everyone if you kept your hands to which is a whole other boundary issue. yourself.

UCA should host more live music events on campus. Since the administration is acting like the pandemic is over, they might as well give more events like concerts.

There are plenty of great spots for shows on campus, and good concerts are few and far between in Conway and Arkansas in general. The amphitheater outside the student center, the Farris Center and Reynolds Performance Hall all immediately come to mind, but there are several more. The amphitheater in particular and the grounds surrounding it would be the perfect place for a UCA music festival, which could be a great event to host during this bleak stretch between spring break and finals week.

Live music is always popular. Lots of students enjoyed the AJR concert last month, and recent, Thisness, a local band made of several professors from around Arkansas, gathered a sizable crowd when they played a set at the amphitheater.

As long as the music is decent, people generally like to be around live music, even if they aren’t familiar with the band.

Increasing the number of concerts and live music could also really revitalize the campus social scene, providing students with another social outlet that isn’t dominated by the Greek Life community.

UCA could also work with local venues like King’s Live Music or the Bear’s Den to host live concerts, similar to what Hendrix College has done in previous years.

Encouraging students to perform on campus could make UCA into a vibrant hub of local music in an area that is lacking pretty badly.

UCA could allow students who want to play to reserve practice rooms so they can have a space to play and collaborate

[A UCA music festival] could be a great event to host during this bleak stretch between spring break and finals week with other people. A student might have an instrument in their dorm and know other students who play something, but they have nowhere to meet and practice.

The logistical aspect of organizing concerts could even be taken on by a student organization if the administration isn’t interested. An RSO could organize small concerts on campus for local acts and even take on larger events if those proved to be successful.

There are lots of touring companies that work with colleges, and UCA could snag some bigger acts than you’d think if they really tried.

Having more concerts would also give UCA more room to showcase different diverse acts. When you only have two or three concerts a year, it makes it hard to represent different genres and have something for everyone.

The concerts we do have aren’t always exactly geared towards college students either. AJR has a younger audience, obviously, but did anybody under the age of 50 go see 38 Special?

That show could have been a band that students actually wanted to see instead.

Having more input from students in the concert-organizing process would be a great start towards having more live music.

Polling and surveys could be a good way to gauge student interest in various artists and avoid another boomer band that nobody’s really excited about.

Have an opinion? Everyone does.

Write a letter to the editor at ucaechoeditor@gmail.com Letters to the editor don’t just have to be about Echo content.

If you’ve noticed something on campus that’s positive or negative, we want to hear about it.

The Echo is printed weekly by The Courier. Decisions about content are made by the student editors.

The views published are not necessarily those of the University of Central Arkansas. All material is subject to respective copyrights.

Entertainment ‘All American’ spin off beats original show 7

April 20, 2022

New This Week Movies

BY

SYDNEY AMBRUS

Staff Writer

“All American: Homecoming” is a spin-off to the popular sports drama “All American.”

The spin-off follows Simone Hick, played by Geffri Maya, and Damon Sims, played

by Peyton Alex Smith.

Hicks is an aspiring tennis player who decides to leave the drama of her hometown Beverly Hills and attend Bringston University, a fictional historically black university in Atlanta, Georgia.

April 22 — The Bad Guys (PG), Hicks connects both of the directed by Pierre Perifel, starring series.

Photo courtesy of www.cwtv.com Sam Rockwell, Richard Ayoade, Sims is a star baseball “All American: Homecoming” premiered on Feb. 21, 2022 with new episodes releasing each week since. The Awkwafina, Anthony Ramos, Craig pitcher that gave up the MLB show stars Peyton Alex Smith, Geffri Hightower, Netta Walker and Camille Hyde.

Robinson, Lilly Singh and Zazie and decided to also take his they did not end on the best The series shows not the baseball coach was exposed talents to Bringston University.

Beetz of terms. The first episode of only the fun party college for creating paper classes — After years of countless heists, a “All American: Season 1 brings us forward experience but also the for the players so they could gang of friends, The Bad Guys, are Homecoming” first aired in to move-in day at Bringston, hardships of college life. continue to play baseball and finally caught and must turn “good” 2021, as a backdoor pilot in where we see Hicks and Sims Throughout the series, we see win championships without Season 3 of “All American” to save themselves from prison. reconcile and also meet the elements of the struggles of the stress of their academics. episode 17. A backdoor pilot is other characters of the show. long-distance relationships, Paper classes are courses that an episode within a series that homesickness and even the appear to be completed credits The show has had 7 introduces and focuses heavily financial and cultural issues but were never real classes, episodes so far which are all on new characters. that HBCU students deal with to begin with. As a result, the free on the CW app to watch.

The pilot featured the stakeholders pulled out of As a whole, I enjoyed the every day. cast of “All American” April 22 — The Northman investing in Bringston’s sports One of the financial on a college tour visit to show and believe the spin-off is (R), directed by Robert Eggers, team. issues is how HBCUs are better than the original series.

Bringston University during its starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Alexander homecoming weekend.

I also like the One of my favorite things underfunded.

Skarsgard, Bjork, Bill Skarsgard, In the series, Bringston’s representation in the show.

In the pilot episode, we about the series is that it takes Nicole Kidman and Willem Dafoe sports took a large loss, after Not only does it shed light on see Hicks and Sims meet, but place at an HBCU. — A young Viking prince goes on a SERIES FILM quest to avenge his father’s murder.

April 20 — Cypress Hill: Insane in the Brain, directed

by Estevan Oriol, starring B-Real, Deejay Muggs, Sen D.O.G and Eric Bobo Correa — This documentary takes a journey through the lives and careers of the ground breaking hip hop group, Cypress Hill.

Music April 22 — Monkey Brain — April 22 — Just Like That…

— Bonnie Raitt April 22 — Pop Drunk Snot Bread — Bowling for Soup April 22 — Giving The World Away — Hatchie April 22 — Faster Than I Can Take — Jane Inc. Information from:

www.

Netflix April 21 — He’s Expecting (Season 1), directed by Yuko Hakoda, starring Takumi Saitoh, Juri Ueno, Mariko Tsutsui, Ryo Iwamatsu and Kazuya Takahashi — When a successful executive becomes pregnant, he must confront social inequities he had never considered before.

April 22 — Heartstopper (Season 1), directed by Euros Lyn, starring Kit Conner, Yasmin Finney, Sebastian Croft, William Gao, Corinna Brown and Jenny Walser — Teens Charlie and Nick discover their friendship might be something more as they navigate school and young love.

April 22 — Selling Sunset (Season 5), presented by Jason Oppenheim, starring Chrishell Stause, Christine Quinn, Heather Rae El Moussa and Mary Fitzgerald — Elite agents at The Oppenheim Group sell luxury homes to affluent buyers in Los Angeles.

‘Fantastic Beasts’ gives fans magical experience

BY

BRAYDEN BAILEY

Staff Writer

Although the plot can feel a bit flat and overcrowded by the numerous characters, “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore” provides an enjoyable experience for the “Fantastic Beasts” series with incredible scenery and a fantastic musical score.

To preface, I believe this movie is perfect for those that enjoy the world of “Harry Potter” and its ideas more than the actual story. If you have ever thought, “I would love to see this world from a different perspective,” this movie is perfect for you.

But for those that are looking for a compelling story and a well-versed cast, you will be slightly disappointed.

Basic themes such as “love is the key,” have always been a staple in “Harry Potter,” and it is also the theme of “The Secrets of Dumbledore.”

Besides Albus Dumbledore, Newt Scamander and a few charming side character moments, the characters are essentially placeholders for the viewer to interpret the world for themselves. As the name implies, “Fantastic Beasts” has incredible style and creativity for its wonderful animals and magical world.

But this is what I believe works well for this third installment of the “Fantastic Beasts” series: an emphasis on the world, the effects and the musical score to entertain the audience. “The Secrets of Dumbledore” didn’t need a complex story, as it held its weight by its subtleties.

The special effects in this movie are phenomenal, as the interactions with spells transform the world

around the characters.

Battles between wizards show incredible lasers and sparks that fly around and light up the entire screen with colors that match the tone of the scene.

The beasts in this movie are also highly emphasized even though they are not the sole focus. One such animal that is vital to the plot has the character of being able to see the nobility of the person that they meet, introducing a wellthought-out creature with a direct impact to the story.

They create interesting solutions and problems that are unique to the “Fantastic Beasts” franchise, adding depth to the main character, especially Newt, a famed Magizoologist for writing the book the series is based on.

The musical score was also impressive, an element that was always recognizable in the “Harry Potter” movies

by John Williams. Through snowy train scenes and intense battles, the score provides the musical flair that many fans will appreciate.

I would recommend this movie to anyone that just wants to experience a theatrical movie with amazing special effects and a compelling score despite a cheesy plot. Though the box office score is very lackluster, I believe that this movie deserves to be viewed by any fan in the theaters.

Though the “Harry Potter” franchise has gotten a bit old and repetitive over the years, “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore” provides an engaging experience with amazing visuals and sounds for anyone to watch.

“Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore” is available to watch in theaters.

1. Binge Watch

3 things to do when you’re sick at home List compiled by Emilee Hagewood Sports Editor

black culture and feature an allblack cast, but “All American: Homecoming” also has a nonbinary character.

In a few of the episodes thus far, the series shows the struggles of LGBTQ+ youth, as the character Nathaniel (Rhoyle Ivy King) deals with being misgendered by her peers and receiving complaints from other women in the dormitory.

Another element of the show that I enjoyed is the diversity of the characters and the storylines. In the original series, the same storylines have been repeated throughout all 4 of the seasons with little to no development.

Even though “All American: Homecoming” is in its first season, I believe that all the characters and storylines have room to grow and evolve.

The series shows the characters on a path of selfdiscovery as they navigate through the challenges of their freshman year of college.

I recommend this series to anyone who wants to enjoy a series with a fun and dramatic but realistic approach to the college experience.

“All American: Homecoming” airs on The CW network on Mondays at 8 p.m.

Photo courtesy of www.hulu.com

“The Kardashians” premiered on Hulu on April 14, 2022. The second episode of the show will air on April, 21, 2022.

‘The Kardashians’ Hulu show offers new, uncensored look

BY OLIVIA SNELSON

Assistant Campus Life Editor

The Kardashians have always been my guilty pleasure, so when I found out that they were bringing back their show, I was super pumped.

Although, I shouldn’t have been surprised because, as one user pointed out on TikTok, we should have known we weren’t rid of them yet.

I remember them saying that their new show is supposed to be a whole new look at their lives. It’s kind of hard to imagine that it could be much different from the original when so much of their life was already being exposed on “Keeping up with the Kardashians.” If you were a big fan of the original like I was, it’s easy to tell the differences just in the first episode.

There are a few common themes that you will always find surrounding their lives that were, of course, mentioned in the first episode.

These are things such as Kim’s sex tape and Kourtney and Scott’s relationship.

However, their lives have still very much evolved, and the new show is meant to highlight that.

The first episode deals with Kim finding out from her son’s Roblox game that Ray J’s former manager is willing to release unreleased footage of her sex tape.

This was an issue that was brought up a lot in the first season of the original show and why a lot of people think the Kardashians became famous in the first place.

Some might think that bringing these kinds of issues into their new show is a ploy to help get more viewers and I would not necessarily disagree with that thought. However, this was an issue that came back up for Kim at a time in her life when she has tried to move on.

The whole point of the show is to show an uncensored look at their lives, and I’m not sure how you can do that without bringing up issues like these that are going to follow them for the rest of their lives.

The rest of the first episode was actually pretty good. Again, it was not much different from the original, but you could point out a few key differences.

The structure of the show is a little different. The interviews that the family members conduct with the camera are a

2. Sleep, Self Care, Repeat

lot more casual and this follows the theme of the new show very nicely. It’s not as structured and that helps it to seem more like a documentary than a reality show, which I think is kind of what they were going for.

We also see a lot more of the children and the rest of the family just in the first episode.

You can tell that the break the family took from the cameras, or at least filming, was a much-needed one. Especially for Kourtney, who towards the end of the original show, was sick of having her life so publicly displayed.

Everyone’s lives are different now than when they were originally broadcast, and this first episode sets up what is sure to be an exciting season.

Like I mentioned before, the Kardashians are my guilty pleasure, and I think if you’re into that kind of thing it’s worth a watch. But if you are over all the drama in life, especially that which is not your own, definitely sit this one out because you can tell just from the first episode it is sure to be packed with lots of it.

“The Kardashians” is streaming on Hulu.

3. Try Something New

The easiest thing to do when you’re sick is sit

One of the things that’s actually enjoyable about

If you’re out for a week or two because of COVID

in front of a TV and completely zone out. In those

being sick is all the sleep you can get. As a college

or the flu, you’ll have a lot of time on your hands. After

first few days of sickness when your fever is high and

student with multiple jobs and some semblance of

you’ve slept half the day and the thought of watching

you’re feeling miserable, turning on a show helps

a social life, it seems that I can never get enough

TV becomes boring, try something new! If you’re not

sleep. Taking my sick time and turning it into self-

a good cook like me, get in the kitchen and try your

care time was a game-changer. Sleeping as much

hand at cooking something. I recently perfected my

as your body wants and getting the rest you truly

grandmother’s recipe for banana nut bread and baked

need is important for recovery and is a great way

bread for the whole family. They loved it, and seeing the

to catch up on all the sleep you’ve been missing

smiles on their faces after eating something I made was

out on. After sleeping, take a bubble bath, put on

a great reward. If the kitchen scares you, try something

a face mask, exfoliate your skin and meditate. You

you’ve always wanted to be able to do. Whether it be

entertaining. While you’re sick at home, try out

can do whatever it is that makes you feel like you’re

finally nailing a handstand or busting out your grandma’s

a new series, something you’ve never thought of

being pampered, even if you’re the one doing the

knitting needles, take the free time to better yourself

watching before. Try out an anime series like “Attack

pampering. When you’re sick, all you want is to feel

in some way. Take care of yourself and better yourself,

on Titan,” it’s action-packed and impossible to look

better, so do things that make your body feel like

you’ll come out of that sickness feeling unstoppable and

away from.

it’s being taken care of.

ready for the next adventure life brings.

take your mind off of the pain you may be feeling.

My top binge-worthy shows right now are “Bridgerton” and “Attack on Titan.” The gossip, immaculate dresses and love triangles of “Bridgerton” make it hard to stop watching once you’ve started.

This show definitely took my mind off of things and brought me a lot of joy while watching. The second show is completely different but nonetheless

ucanews.live

SPORTS

8 / April 20 , 2022

UCA STATS CORNER SPORT

OPPONENT

RESULT

RECORD

LSU

5-0 L

15-13

Softball

Kennesaw State

5-2 W

25-15, 10-5

Baseball

Eastern Kentucky

8-6 L

16-18, 10-5

Tennis

Florida Gulf Coast University

4-3 L

13-10, 5-4

Beach Volleyball

CONFERENCE

Photo courtesy of ucasports.com

Redshirt junior Tylar Vernon waits at the plate for a hit. The Bears won all three games against Eastern Kentucky, who

Softball secures first place in ASUN West Division after win BY

KATHRYN THORNBERRY

Assistant News Editor

The UCA softball team won three games over the weekend against Eastern Kentucky, finishing off the third sweep in ASUN play.

On Friday, April 15, UCA won two different games against EKU. The first game (5-1), began intensely with the bears putting on two runners in the first inning.

Eastern Kentucky also put two runners on the plates in the bottom of the second inning.

In the third inning, freshman Mary Kate Brown singled to send freshman Jenna Wildeman home, scoring the first run of the game.

Freshman Tremere Harris also scored in the third inning, bringing the Bears to 2-0 over EKU. Both teams scored one point in the fourth inning, while the Bears scored another point in the fifth and sixth. This would make the final score 5-1.

In game two (5-1), freshman Jenna Wildeman started the successful game for the Bears with a single and a steal.

This marked her 30th swipe of the season, making her the sixth player in the country to hit that particular milestone this season.

In the second inning, junior Regean Sperling sent freshman Kylie Griffin home to score the Bears’ second point of the game.

The Bears scored in every inning other than the third and seventh, while EKU scored once in the fifth inning, making the final score 5-1.

Sophomore Kristen Whitehouse said she felt like the Bears gave 100 percent the whole time they played.

“The outcome showed by us sweeping EKU,” Whitehouse said, “Scoring almost every inning and making key plays on defense.”

On April 16, Saturday, the Bears secured their third win against EKU with 10 points, while EKU scored six, placing UCA at first place in the ASUN West.

This game also marked the fourth time the Bears reached the double-digit mark this season.

Wildeman scored first in the first inning, while Harris and sophomore Jaylee Engelkes added to the lead in the second inning.

EKU scored its first point in the home half of the second inning on a solo home run.

While the teams went back and forth, Harris connected another single to bring Whitehouse home in the third inning. This made the score 5-1.

EKU found another solo home run to keep the lead at three.

Freshman Morgan Nelson scored in the fourth inning, and later in the inning, Wildeman hit a bases-loaded single to put another run through, making it 7-2.

While the Bears didn’t score in the fourth inning, EKU responded with two scores.

In the sixth inning, Brown sent Wildeman and Harris home.

EKU scored too, followed by freshman Kayla Beaver, making the score 10-4.

EKU scored 2 more points in the seventh inning, making the final score 10-6.

Whitehouse said the Bears stuck to the game plan.

“We did score runs early in the game and put pressure on their defense,” Whitehouse said.

The Bears will have another three-game series this weekend at Farris Fields against Lipscomb University.

FEATURE

Haessner twins break records, work toward master’s at UCA BY

ADDI FREEMAN

Editor-in-Chief

Identical twin brothers Julian and Philipp Haessner are more than just international students from Berka, Germany; they are record-breaking members of On April 9, Julian broke UCA’s 10,000-meter race record with a time of 29:41.07.

Philipp was close behind, touting with him a new personal record of 30:13.70. The 10,000-meter record was previously held by Markus Schweikert, with a time of 30:11.53.

UCA history that a runner broke the 30-minute barrier for the 10,000-meter race.

“I’m pretty happy about it,” Julian said. “I already knew before the race that I wanted to break the school record. I am a huge PR for me, and I think overall a very solid and good race.”

The brothers haven’t lost the drive for record-breaking yet, though. Their next race is Friday, April 22 in Alabama, and their goal is to break the record for UCA’s 5k race.

Philipp is optimistic about their chances and said the training leading up to this race is vital.

“The most important thing is to reduce the volume and mileage [of our weekly runs],” Philipp said. “We tried it out, and it worked well before our 10k race, so I think we will do exactly the same pattern as before the 10k race. This gives us the necessary recovery we need.

I’m excited for this,

and I’m optimistic that both of us can do this.”

Julian and Philipp are graduate students working toward their MBAs, with bachelor’s degrees in Nutrition.

The two came to UCA because they wanted to pursue competitive long-distance running while continuing their degree, which wasn’t an option in Germany.

“Going home from another country is always a challenge in the beginning,” Julian said.

“We didn’t want to get separated when we went to the U.S., and that’s why the plan was to go to the same university.”

Though the twins do a lot together, they understand that they need time apart.

“We understand each other’s needs. I think it’s important to not spend all free time together and to also have different areas where you are separated,” Julian said. “But it’s very important that we have each other and

that we can rely on each other in different situations.”

Philipp agreed that doing extracurricular activities separately can be a good thing.

“I noticed it’s also good to do a lot of things separately,” Philipp said. “Sometimes I have the feeling when we do other things together, we are not being seen individually enough. We may have to be a little bit more independent of each other.”

Julian and Philipp have a website documenting their race progressions as a way for their friends and family to keep up with their progress in the U.S. Julian’s personal bests include an indoor 14:28.82 5,000-meter, the outdoor 29:41 10,000-meter and a 25:42.5 8K in cross country.

Philipp’s personal bests include an indoor 14:52.79 5,000-meter, the outdoor 30:13.70 10,000-meter and a 26:18.4 8K in cross country.

Photo courtesy of ucasports.com

of the series against Eastern Kentucky. The Bears have another series this weekend against Bellarmine University.

Bears secure fifth consecutive ASUN series win against Colonels

BY

EDMUND BURKE

Staff Writer

The Bears clinched their fifth consecutive ASUN series win over the weekend against the Eastern Kentucky Colonels in a three-game series at the Earle Combs Stadium in Richmond, Ky. The Bears, 8-4 in conference play, and the Colonels, 8-4, were tied for first place in the ASUN West Division standings going into the first game on Thursday, April 14.

The Bears dominated the field in a 13-9 knockout on April 14 to take over first place in the ASUN West Division.

Senior left fielder Conner Emmet tied the school record for single-game home runs previously held by Eric Cameron and Michael Marietta with his three homers.

On Friday, April 15, with a 9-8 win over the Eastern Kentucky Colonels, the Bears officially won their fifth ASUN series.

The Bears came from behind twice to win the night’s game and clinched three in the eighth inning on three hits with the Colonels entering the inning trailing 7-6.

The Colonels topped the Bears 8-6 on Saturday, April 16 in the

final three-game series meet-up.

Senior left fielder Connor Emmet scored his team-leading tenth home run of his college career on Saturday against the Colonels.

“It felt great to get my 10th home run, double digits homers have been a personal goal of mine my entire college career. It honestly didn’t faze me when it happened because I was trying to find a way to win the game for us.

Overall, an amazing experience this past weekend both personally and team-wise,” Emmet said.

Junior first baseman Hunter Hicks scored his fourth home run and redshirt freshman second baseman Tanner Leonard scored the first home run of his career.

“I have been just making adjustments and working hard on certain things and to see some of the hard work paying off feels good. The games went really well, we went in there as a team ready to play and it was a battle, and we came out on top. Every weekend is going to be a battle from here on out, so we just have to keep coming ready to play,” Tanner said.

The Colonels (22-12, 9-5) took advantage of the wind even better with five home runs, including two from catcher Will King, according to ucasports.

com Even with Saturday’s final game, the Bears won the series 2-1 to improve to 10-5 in league play and hold onto first place in the West Division at the halfway point of league play, according to ucasports.com The Bears start the second half next weekend at home against Bellarmine.

“I think the team played really well this whole weekend. I feel like it was a very evenly matched series between the two teams, and the team that played harder was going to win the series,” Emmet said. “Working hard to stay focused for every single pitch has been a big thing for us and has really separated us from the other teams. Our team’s chemistry also plays a huge factor in these close series. We really trust each other and love competing together.”

Coach Nick Harlan said, “I am pleased with our approach. The guys understand the importance of taking it one day at a time.

Our mindset is to continue to improve and stay focused on the task at hand. We have a team full of high-character kids who compete at a high level.

They showed tremendous fight at Eastern Kentucky. We are excited to be back at home this week.”

Track : Bears have eight first-place finishers Continued from page 5 While she did not hit a personal record in the event, Scott is content with her performance, considering she has not competed since the first UCA home meet.

Kobe Gill, a sophomore on the team, performed well in his events.

Racing second in the men’s 4x100m relay and 5th overall in the 100m dash, Gill had a record breaking night.

“I set a personal record in the 100m dash with a time of 10.4,

just 0.2 off of the first-round NCAA qualifying list,” he said.

“We had a really good 4x100m race,” Gill said. “We set the school record with a time of 40.3.”

Now, Gill sets his eyes forward to the future. “We still have some little things to fix, but it will all come together. This team will be one to watch out for,” he said.

Overall, the Bears took pride in themselves and their teammates who performed in the meet.

Barker said, “We had several athletes compete very well in their events. I thought with how we performed, we deserved a second-place finish.”

The Bears will travel to Tuscaloosa, Alabama this Friday to run in the Crimson Invitational. They are just three runs away from the ASUN Conference Championships, which will take place from May 13-15 in Jacksonville, Florida.