Issue 1, Volume 117-- August 25, 2021

THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS’ STUDENT NEWSPAPER

SINGLE COPY PAID FOR BY STUDENT PUBLICATION FEE

WEDNESDAY

AUGUST 25, 2021 Volume 117 — Issue 1

ucanews.live TODAY’S FORECAST CONWAY

Campus Life:

Entertainment:

Sports:

Greek Stroll Off: Delta Zeta wins annual greek life stroll off.

New Release: The Killers release “Pressure Machine”

Scrimmage: Scrimmage concludes welcome week festivities.

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Former UCA professor aquitted on conspiracy charge

Sunny

97/75 THE NEWS DESK FROM THE ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

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

Evacuations at Kabul airport cause chaos

Evacuations at Kabul airport in Afghanistan are being constrained by armed Taliban checkpoints and paperwork issues. The checkpoints are a major evacuation barrier to Afghans who fear the Taliban. Paperwork issues leave many Afghans without proper evacuation clearance.

Afghans and Americans at Kabul airport are struggling to evacuate quickly as the August 31 evacuation .deadline approaches.

N AT I O N A L

By Emilee Hagewood

checks to the PACs, but UCA

Sports Editor

2014 after questions about

Gilbert Baker, former UCA music professor and lobbyist, was acquitted Aug. 12 on a conspiracy charge in a lengthy federal court trial.

A mistrial was declared on an additional seven counts of wire fraud and one count of bribery because the jury could not reach a unanimous decision on the charges.

Baker was indicted in January 2019 for conspiracy, bribery and seven counts of wire services fraud.

Baker was accused of conspiring with nursing home

Baker was part of the UCA music faculty, he left the university to serve in the Arkansas Senate and returned to UCA as a lobbyist and fundraiser. this position when Baker was found lobbying for parties other than UCA. Because he was a tenured faculty member, Baker was able to remain at UCA as part of the music faculty.

He was still working at the university when he was indicted in 2019 but has since retired.

Shortly after the trial, the

money to former circuit judge would reduce the judgment in a million judgment in a negligence Bull.

Bull

was

admitted

to photo courtesy off Lauren McLemore

CDC reveals upcoming COVID-19 booster shot The chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other top health authorities recently outlined their plan for making COVID-19 booster shots available. The plan calls for an extra dose of the vaccine eight months after people have gotten their second shot vaccines. The extra doses could be given out as early as the week of September 20.

been a one-month rehabilitation, but died after two weeks.

A jury returned the checks totaling $30,000 to 10 political action committees (PAC) that Baker formed. Baker then directed the money to Prosecutors argued that PACs rather than donate directly the bribery.

announced that it will erase student loan debt for over 300,000 severely disabled Americans. According to the Education Department, this decision will erase over $5.8 billion in debt for Americans

expected to be discharged by the end of the year.

S TAT E

Ventilator use at its highest in Arkansas The total number of people on ventilators in Arkansas has reached an all-time high of 303. This of people on ventilators has passed 300 since the COVID-19 pandemic started. COVID-19 cases are still on the rise in Arkansas, according to the Arkansas Department of Health.

WHAT’S AHEAD IN OUR NEXT ISSUE RSOs meet and greet with students during Conway Daze.

reduced the judgment from $5.2 million to $1 million.

Student Center will be renamed to Ronnie Williams Student Center, approved in a vote at the UCA Board of Trustees meeting Friday, Aug. 13.

President Houston Davis proposed to the board to rename the Student Center to the Ronnie Williams Student Center in

rare distinctions and UCA was the better for having Ronnie on our team. However, the true measure of his work and impact on the lives of tens of thousands of students, and the futures of those students that he impacted,” Davis said.

“We want to ensure that thousands of more students at UCA will know the name, Ronnie Williams and have the opportunity to actively engage with that legacy.”

Robin Williamson was named Vice President of Student Services in place of Williams.

Board Policy No. 525 established the Diversity Advisory Committee. Associate VP for Institutional Diversity and Inclusion Angela Webster appointed Trustee Curtis Barnett for another one-year term and Vice President for Student Affairs Robin Williamson for a two-year term on the Diversity Advisory Committee.

The board passed all of the campus projects for the Communication Science Disorders building renovation, Snow Fine Arts renovation, Schitchtl renovation, and Air Quality projects around various

2 4

Students Say

4

a credible source, stating that he attempted to change his plea many times after pleading guilty

former employer. Courtway declined to comment for this article. to the UCA Foundation around the same time he wrote the

trial until after the prosecutors decided whether to retry him. process. I had incredible support from my family and friends. I had an outstanding defense team,” Baker said.

GRAND OPENING

buildings on campus.

Each of these renovation projects are upgrading the facilities and systems within the buildings. The Communication Science Disorders building, Snow Fine Arts, and Schichtl are funded by bond funds and plant funds. The anticipated completion for the Communication building will be July 1, 2022, and Snow Fine Arts and Schitchtl are expected to be completed July 1, 2023.

The Air Quality projects are funded by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and should The project will enhance the air quality in buildings around campus; “buildings will be need and available budget.” The estimated cost for the project will be $7.7 million.

Provost Patricia Poulter Department of Geography in the College of Natural Sciences and of the Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Geography. The four students currently in the program are set to complete their degrees Dec. 2023. The university will continue to offer the Bachelor of Science (BS) in Geography following the deletion of the BS. SGA, faculty, and staff senate have all shown appreciation to the board and President Davis for the support of the new mask policy on campus, following CDC keep students and faculty safe for the fall semester. senior Skyler Austen for the (celebrating the lofty achievements of our wonderful students) segment.

Contact Us:

Index: Police Beat People of UCA

judgment not only because he was bribed but because he felt it was the right thing to do.

The defense reminded the

Student Center renamed to honor UCA employee

records as being permanently disabled. All of the loans are

did not write checks to PACs, but instead chose to donate directly to a campaign, as he had done with Arkansas Supreme Court Justice Rhonda Wood.

The day after the checks

serving a 10-year sentence in federal prison.

Former UCA President Tom Courtway also took the

STUDENT CENTER

Biden erases loan debt by Delaney Van Wilpe for disabled students Editor-in-Chief The Biden administration

Prosecutors also argued

motion to give prosecutors the chance to discuss deliberations with the jury and build a stronger case in the event of a retrial.

Prosecutors are deliberating whether to retry Baker on the seven counts of wire services fraud and one count of bribery, which they have until Aug. 30 to decide.

If retried and convicted, Baker could serve 20 years for each count of wire services fraud and 10 years for bribery.

Baker was not willing

6 Opinion Entertainment 7 Sports 5, 8

photo by Delaney Van Wilpe

UCA celebrates grand opening of Integrated Health Sciences Building

By Delaney Van Wilpe

shared their gratitude to donors and excitement for the building and its

Editor-in-Chief

The Integrated Health Sciences building, located at Western Ave. and Bruce St., was introduced to the public Friday, Aug. 13. With a high of 96 degrees in Conway, Ark., President Houston Davis moved the event inside to the lobby of the new 80,000-square-foot, four-story building.

Speakers for the grand opening were Vice President for University Chair of the Board of Trustees Kay Hinkle, President Houston Davis, and President and CEO of the Conway Regional Health

The new building will house the “School of Nursing and the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, along with Simulation and Interprofessional the entire College of Health and Behavioral Sciences,” according to The Interprofessional Teaching Center, which is a partnership with UCA and Conway Regional, is the country. “Its design is focused on interprofessional spaces for transformative experiences

Social:

and partner with others.”

Troup pointed out that Aug. 13 was not only the grand opening of the building, but it was also Health Center Staff Appreciation Day within National Health Center Week, which fell on Aug. 8-14, 2021 this year. “Nurses that come to

See Building - page 2

Inside:

Opinion:

Anti-vaxxers, it’s time you saved yourselves.

E-mail: ucaechoeditor@gmail.com @ucaecho

for all engaged with the building.

All of these experiences prepare our students for internships, for employment and, ultimately, for careers providing exceptional health care,” Davis said. “This new facility is a perfect example of what we can accomplish by joining together to

The Echo

ucaecho

© 2021 The Echo, Printed by The Courier, Russellville, Arkansas.

see page 6

2/August 25, 2021

ucanews.live

NEWS

Police Beat

MOVE IN DAY

The following information is compiled from UCAPD incident reports

by Assistant News Editor Sydney Cyr

Student incurs injury in dorm

Joshua Stiles was located by UCAPD while bleeding in the bathroom of his dorm with a gash under his left eye and another gash down the middle of his forehead after his roommate, Jonathan Buchanan, was awoken by his screams and called the police. Stiles told UCAPD that he had fallen to sustain his injuries, but could not disclose his location at the time of injury. Stiles was taken to Conway Regional for stitches that night.

Traffic stop leads to student DWI

UCA faculty member harassed

Andrea Simpson was pulled over by Sgt. Hill after driving erratically on Bruce Street.

Simpson was slurring her words, was unable to provide her driver’s license, registration, and proof of insurance when

Faculty member Femina Varghese was harassed by faculty member Judd Copeland in Mashburn Hall. Copeland made some insulting remarks towards Varghese during an interaction between the two in the hallway. Copeland later

standing up without swaying. Simpson was placed under arrest for DWI and was taken to the police department to complete paperwork.

to try and apologize for what he had said.

Varghese reported the incident to UCAPD, and Copeland remorsefully stated that he took full responsibility for the incident.

Photo by Mia Waddell

U N I V E R S I T Y S TAT U S

Photo by Mia Waddell

STUDENT LOANS

Biden administration extends pause on student loan debt until January

by Olyvia Gonzalez Assistant Online Editor

Graphic by Mia Waddell

STUDENT CENTER

The Biden Administration has extended the pause on student loans until January 31, 2022.

Students and alumni received an email from the U.S Department of Education notifying them of the extension on August 17, 2021.

This decision has suspended payments and interest on student loans since March of 2020. The original date of expiration on the extension was set for September 31, 2021.

The Administration has determined this will be the last extension. Those affected should expect payments to resume February 2022.

“The payment pause has been a lifeline that allowed millions of Americans to focus on their families, health and loans during the national emergency,” said U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona.

“As our nation’s economy continues to recover from a

photo courtesy of UCA News

President Houston proposed the Student Center be renamed to honor former UCA employee Ronnie Williams.

Williams sits in attendance with his wife Connie Williams as the board passes the resolution.

Building:

Conway Regional partners with UCA.

Continued from page 1

work here, healthcare professionals that come to work they were made to impact a life somewhere down the line, and it will be your cousin, your friend, your neighbor, some soul out there that needs a hand, that needs help, and what a great blessing that is to be a part of,” Troup said.

When the idea for this building came out six years ago, Troup said he knew he wanted to have a hand in its creation and innovative spirit.

“This isn’t an effort to recruit staff,” Troup said. “We want to be partners, we want to

be right there with UCA, not just in helping to shape the learning and education of students, but to together to solve this complex problem that’s called healthcare and our healthcare crisis in this country. So thank you all for giving us the opportunity to be a part of it. “ This mission to improve healthcare is all thanks to the donors who contribute to UCA. The primary funding derives from a $37.7 million bond appropriation by the UCA Board of Trustees. Additionally, the $5 million fundraising campaign UCA Now: Impact Arkansas

and Beyond, which began in fall 2019, has reached $4.8 million to contribute to the facility and equipment support.

The Sunderland Foundation contributed $1 million to this campaign. “They focus on supporting construction projects and have a particular passion for health care and education. reputation of our faculty, and the impact of our health care drive,” Davis said. “What a resounding trying to do here at UCA.” The ceremony concluded with ribbon cutting and tours of the new facility.

will give students and borrowers the time they need to plan for a restart and ensure a smooth pathway back to repayment.”

This extension has caused an uproar on social media with new hashtags emerging about canceling student debt altogether. ‘#CancelStudentDebt’ has been one notable example of this. Pausing student loan debt has caused many students to wonder and demand why the Biden Administration cannot eliminate all student debt.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) believes that the pandemic has “exacerbated student debt” extending the deadline for pardons on student loans only prolongs the problem.

President Biden and Vice President Harris made promises during their presidential campaign to help ease the burden of student loans. Their promises included: free college tuition for many students, and debt relief and/or student loan forgiveness.

With the United States in a 1.7 trillion dollar economic hole for student loan debt, social media has not slowed

down to point this out.

Many students are happy with this change and some are frightened by the upcoming deadline. Rachel Bishop, administrative assistant for Nutrition and Family Sciences at the University of Central Arkansas said, “[I am] grateful for the extension because it allowed my family a way to pay off student debt without the added fees.” warns about the approaching deadline and states that students should be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of the extension. for current or former federal student loan borrowers is that it does allow those who have these payments while they are working to recover and said Cheryl Lyons, Director of Financial Aid. “The downside is that for some who could have continued making payments but chose not to do so, resuming repayment after such a long pause could be a challenge.”

Campus Life

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August 25, 2021

Around Campus:

Conway Daze On August 25, from 12:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m., Conway Daze will be in the Student Center Courtyard with different student organizations, UCA departments and local businesses to give out information. There will also be free food and giveaway items.

201 Donaghey & Party On August 25, from 6:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m., the Minority Mentorship Program will be in the Ida Waldran Auditorium to have an introduction event for incoming freshmen.

Service Excellence From 1:40 p.m.-2:30 p.m. on August 26, University Training and BearX will host an event in Student Center room 213 to learn about the key principles of customer service. Attendees must register prior to the event.

The link to register can be found on CubConnect.

Welcome Back Coffee Night On August 26, from 5:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m., Baum Gallery will have T.H.I.N.K. Coffee, jazz music and local art for students to enjoy. The event will be sponsored by the Students for the Arts and all proceeds will go back toward the UCA community.

Photo by Delaney Van Wilpe

New students recieve greek life information BY

OLYVIA GONZALEZ

Assistant Online Editor

Greek life held a meeting Aug. 16 to discuss fall 2021 formal recruitment.

Registration for the fall formal recruitment ended Aug. 16, but informal recruitment, or continuous open bidding, will be open soon.

Informal recruitment can be limited in choices of which greek organization or chapter.

Formal recruitment is focused on greek organizations reaching their maximum membership.

Informal recruitment begins after the formal structured recruitment process has concluded, and

continues up to Dead Day. Continuous open bidding is another opportunity for students to join “without the commitment and stress of formal recruitment,” Student Orientation Staff representative Chandler Losh said. “Once the [chapter] knows you are interested, they can extend offers from there.”

Assistant Dean of Student Life and Panhellenic advisor Shun Ingram said good ways to get involved in Greek organizations are to research the organization or council you are interested in, attend an interest meeting, contact a member of that organization or contact the Office of Student Life to get plugged in.

To be eligible for Panhellenic recruitment one must: be enrolled as a full-time student and in good standing, have a 2.5 high school GPA for entering freshmen or a 2.5 UCA GPA for current UCA students, 2.5 transfer GPA for transfer students and complete a Greek Life Orientation session after joining. Different chapters may have different GPA requirements, which can come from national chapters.

These communities are a great way for “accountability” in a student’s academic career, Ingram said.

Ingram said that being involved in a Greek organization is a great way “to have opportunities to serve

their community easier than how others try to find them because they’re connected with philanthropies and different opportunities to get service hours.”

To sign up for recruitment, there is a sign up through myUCA prior to Welcome Week. Formal recruitment consists of 3 days of getting to know each greek chapter based on your gender. During this time, students who are going through the recruitment process will get to know the values, philanthropies and members of each sorority or fraternity.

Once a student has met with each chapter, they are required to make a final

decision on what he or she would like to join.

Bids, formal invites to join a chapter, are distributed on the last day, in this case Aug. 22. This is when the student finds out which Greek Life chapters has invited them to join. From there, the student will make a decision to accept or reject this offer.

A student is expected to pay anywhere from $550 to $850 for their first time dues, but subsequent semesters can require $300 to $500 more depending on the organization.

More information can be found at uca.edu/panhellenic or with a local greek life recruitment officer.

COFFEE

Comedian/ Magician: Derek Hughes From 7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m. on August 26, the Student Activities Board will host comedian and magician Derek Hughes in the Student Center Ballroom. Hughes has performed his “Stand Up Magician” routine on Comedy Central, Penn & Teller and more.

Paradise Pong Tournament On August 28, Phi Gamma Delta will host a cup pong tournament to raise money for the Epilepsy Foundation in honor of Jacob Phillips, a brother of Phi Gamma Delta that passed away from a seizure.

There is a $15 registration fee for teams of two with all proceeds going to the foundation. More information can be found on CubConnect.

Movie Night August 29, at 7:00 p.m., the Student Activities Board will host a movie night in the Student Center Ballroom. They will be showing The Fast and the Furious.

Balloon Art by Haley On August 31, from 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., the Student Activities Board will have balloon art outside the Student Center.

Semester Exchange Info Meeting From 1:45 p.m.-2:30 p.m. on Aboard will host an online info meeting for students interested in studying abroad. There will be a short presentation on different program options and a time for questions. The link to the meeting can be found on CubConnect.

Photos courtesy of T.H.I.N.K. Coffee

T.H.I.N.K Coffee to open new location on UCA Campus in the College of Business

BY MADISON OGLE

Entertainment Editor & Cartoonist

It began with a woman from Texas, a man from Southwest Arkansas and a severe lack of drive-thru coffee options in the midwest.

Within time, John Keith and his wife Jo began T.H.I.N.K. Coffee, now a drive-thru staple of the Conway community.

Their initial location on Harkrider St. started the pursuit of it all. Now, T.H.I.N.K. Coffee focuses their efforts into a new spot within UCA’s College of Business.

Opening a location at UCA was not something Keith had on his horizon, but by no means was it a disappointment to be offered the opportunity.

“We were approached

by Jim [Nabors] and his team, Aramark, to come over and

potentially take over the space here in the COB.” Keith said. “I think we literally made the decision to move forward on that probably in a matter of days. I mean, it’s kind of stunning how fast it all happened, actually.”

One of the main features of T.H.I.N.K. Coffee is its focus on drive-thru service in an attempt to eliminate the normal wait people go through for coffee. While this new setting in the College of Business is a bit of a departure from that, Keith maintains that the process of setting up the location has been relatively simple.

“The great thing about the space is it’s been almost kind of turnkey,” Keith said. “We’ll have to put a few things for our but this space was pretty much ready to go.”

T.H.I.N.K. announced its UCA debut on their Instagram

page on Aug. 9, alerting students that the location would also be hiring parttime and full-time employees.

“We announced that we were coming on our social and man, the post just absolutely exploded. We broke the internet for 30 minutes or so when we dropped that,” Keith said. “We’ve had some fans that I think were proponents for us here.”

Keith says that as of this month, T.H.I.N.K. will be in their third year of operation. “[It] feels crazy that it’s only been three years. This is just one in a long line of crazy opportunities that have been thrown our way, of people who were just fans and have taken chances with us and given us very special and unique kinds of opportunities,” Keith said.

“I attribute it to the Providence of God because otherwise, I mean, there’s just no reason for us to be doing what we’re

doing.”

Keith and his wife lived in Benton for some time after they were married, then lived When they came back to Arkansas, the two noticed how much more widespread driveNorthwest.

“We’d come back here and it’s just nonexistent. I mean there’s hardly any drivethru,” Keith said. “The spot over on Harkrider that we have became available and my wife came home one day and was like, ‘that whole thing on Harkrider, it’s for sale. We gotta go in there, we gotta get it, we gotta do it, we gotta do it.’ I was just like, I don’t know, maybe. Then she just pushed me, pushed me, pushed me.

We took over that little spot and the rest is kind of history.”

Keith said that the two always wanted to be entrepreneurs and to have their

own business. After working in corporate settings, managing companies and working in sales, Keith decided he wanted something different for him and his wife. “[We] also wanted something that was bigger than us from an ethos and a give back standard. We do give back quite a bit,” Keith said. “I mean, that was really the drive behind the company is yeah, coffee’s great, and we’re certainly passionate about our product, but we’re more passionate about the impact that we can have inside the community and inside organizations that we give back to.”

While T.H.I.N.K. Coffee does not have a promised opening date for the College of Business yet, Keith is eager to get the operation going.

“It’s a cool thing,” Keith said. “It’s a really neat opportunity and I can’t wait to

start serving.”

4/ August 25, 2021

CAMPUS LIFE

ucanews.live

STUDENTS SAY What are you looking “forward to most about

being back on campus?

”

Story by Bennett Tinnermon

Photo by Madison Ogle

Members of Omega Psi Phi Trey Miller (left), Cameron Johnson (middle) and Ashton Hunt Smith (right) pose before the dance competition.

Delta Zeta wins the Greek Stroll Off 2021

by Madison ogle Entertainment Editor and Cartoonist

“We’re going to approach it just like last year,” President Houston Davis said to the Farris Center crowd. “We’re going to handle our business.” With that, Aug. 16 was no longer just another Monday night, it was the commencement of the 2021 Greek Stroll Off. Seven groups took the stage, but, ultimately, the sorority of Delta

but to support all sports teams at UCA. By offering spirit events to all students, Bear Den strives to enhance student engagement throughout campus and at sporting events.

Followed by that was a brief history on the origins and culture behind “stepping,” with its beginnings deriving from African slaves and how slave owners would refuse to let them communicate through drums. Stepping eventually grew to be a commonplace activity among traditionally Black fraternities and sororities of the late 40s and 50s.

competition. performed, the audience received a bit of information on what the host of the event, Bear Den, does around campus. Their goal is to not only support UCA’s football team,

women of Sigma Kappa, followed by the men of Omega Psi Phi. Alpha Sigma Tau performed third, Alpha Sigma Alpha performed fourth, Sigma Sigma Sigma

sixth and Delta Zeta performed last.

decisions, the women of the Delta Zeta sorority were named the 2021 Stroll Off champions.

“We practiced everyday for a couple hours and we got sent videos while we were back home,” Chloe Sherman, a member of Delta Zeta’s performing team said. “We’ve been working on it for a few weeks.”

Abby Tipton, another performing member of Delta Zeta’s team, said that the selection process for who performs is volunteer based, “Whoever kind of wants to do it can do it.”

Both Tipton and Sherman expressed a lot of excitement for the victory, saying that while they were unsure if they’d win, they were determined to have fun regardless.

Senior Drayllon Jeffery

Junior Maja Gledic

“Honestly, I’m looking forward mostly to school being somewhat normal, but I do like the fact that everyone is taking protective measures.”

“Probably just going back to in-person and being able to meet people again. I think I really missed that.”

Senior Chyna Clements

Sophomore Christian West

“Mostly just being around people and getting to know more people because being quarantined, I didn’t get to hang out with many people or go out. Just meeting new people basically.”

“Being in five ensembles in the music department, that’s gonna be pretty cool.”

Senior Kennedi Williams

Sophomore Christian West

“It’s kind of more normal than it was last semester and actually getting to see everybody’s faces and not do everything virtual.”

“I’m just glad that, for the most part, we get to be in-person with our fellow students.”

COMPETITION

Photo by Madison Ogle

ANNOUNCEMENT

President’s Leadership Fellows announced

BY ADDI FREEMAN Editor

The University of Central Arkansas has announced the President’s Leadership Fellows for the 2021-22 class.

“President’s Leadership Fellows is a student group of the most proven and seasoned student leaders on campus,” said Steven Shook, director of student leadership. “They serve as student representatives of opportunities to sharpen their networking, communication and personal branding skills, and get to visit with leaders of the Faulkner County business community.”

Former UCA President Tom Courtway started the President’s Leadership Fellows in 2014.

The 2021-22 inductees are members of the eighth class of PLF. Thirty-four leaders from different campus organizations were chosen.

To become a President’s Leadership Fellow, students must go through an application process. This program is only available to juniors and seniors by credit hours who have completed a full year at UCA.

accepted into the organization this year.

“My application process consisted of [questions about] past and present leadership

application via CubConnect, then some move on to an interview.

“Those selected for the interview will undergo the interview in the Board of Trustee room. This 15 minute interview is facilitated by various faculty, staff and alumni of the program,” Shook said.

Chanel Dale, a junior, was

PLF get to share “their personal collegiate experience at various institutional events, on and off campus,” according to uca.edu.

“I decided to apply for PLF and a video explaining why I for the betterment of myself. I chose to attend UCA,” said saw a leadership opportunity, Dale. and I wanted to be a part of The questions asked during it,” said Dale. “President’s the interview process are created Leadership Fellows sharpens by the Center for Leadership your leadership skills and helps Development staff members. you learn from community “The applications and members about networking, interviews are scored based communication, personal upon four criteria: demonstrated branding, civic responsibility, leadership ability, academic real world leadership and achievement (minimum of 60 decision making.” completed hours are required The formal announcement for consideration), diversity of this year’s inductees will be of college experience and Sunday, Sept. 26, at a 3 p.m. interpersonal communication coat ceremony in the UCA skill,” said Shook.

Board of Trustees room in As representatives of the Wingo hall.

People of UCA: Skyler Austen

BY ADDI FREEMAN Associate Editor

Senior Skyler Austen’s line of study makes one wonder if he’s living in a movie.

Majoring in both Computer Science and Cybersecurity, Austen is well-versed in looking at both sides of an issue.

“I really like the kind of dual perspectives that having a degree in computer science and cybersecurity can provide because when you’re looking at a computer system, that computer science degree will teach you how to build it and the cyber security degree will teach you how to break it,” Austen said.

Austen has been interested in programming and computers for several years, but his interest in cybersecurity began when his North Little

Rock high school started a cybersecurity competition team with a college student from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

“Getting to compete in those sorts of competitions and learn more about the security world was really interesting,” said Austen.

“So, when UCA announced that they were opening a cybersecurity degree, I knew that was what I wanted to pursue.”

Pursuing this line of work has gone quite well for Austen, so far. Over the summer, he completed an internship with NASA at their jet propulsion lab.

Austen first made connections within the jet propulsion lab through another cybersecurity research internship.

Knowing he wanted to write his thesis over cybersecurity education, Austen stayed in touch

with one of the speakers brought in to speak to the interns.

In January, the speaker emailed Austen asking if he was still looking for another internship. He knew of an opening at the NASA jet propulsion lab where they were working on a project that was a good fit for Austen.

In a way, Austen spent his summer embroiled in competitions, and this is where the movie-like sequence comes into play.

“They [NASA] have an internal cybersecurity competition that they developed to train their NASA engineers to see what kinds of security vulnerabilities there are, and the engineers get to be the attacker in that case, to figure out how to actually exploit those vulnerabilities and see why they’re bad,” said Austen.

Austen was also

recognized by President Houston Davis at the Board of Trustees meeting on August 13, where he received a Bear CLAWS award “I didn’t know what a CLAWS award was before I got there, and I didn’t know that it was as significant of a thing as it was,” said Austen. “It was awesome. I wasn’t expecting it at all, but it was a super cool award to receive.”

Austen is involved with several campus clubs and organizations, and is the president of UCA’s ambassador program, the cybersecurity club and the computer scienceclub.

Austen is a huge advocate for students Photo courtesy of Skyler Austen finding the right internship for their field. “Put yourself Skyler Austen is involved in various organizations around campus relating to out there and don’t knock computer science and cybersecurity, both of which Austen is majoring in during yourself out of a position his studies at UCA. before you even apply,” Austen said.

Sports

5

August 25, 2021

Upcoming Games

Men’s Soccer 7 p.m. Aug. 26 vs UTRGV at UCA Volleyball 9:30 a.m. Aug. 27 vs San Diego State at UCA Volleyball 3:30 p.m. Aug 27 vs Houston Baptist at UCA Women’s Soccer 7 p.m. Aug 27 at University of Louisiana

Editor’s Take

Photo courtesy of uktimenes.com

Conor McGregor on the road to a speedy recovery.

McGregor Bikes Back to Recovery BY

EMILEE HAGEWOOD

Sports Editor

After taking a shattering blow to his leg , Conor McGregor is back on a bike only five weeks after the injury.

McGregor broke his leg in a fight against Dustin Poirier and has been undergoing extensive physical therapy since then. Last Friday, @Thenotoriousmma posted on Instagram to share an update on his recovery with a video of him riding on a bike. McGregor is showing miraculous results with his speedy recovery, and is doing it all ahead of schedule.

McGregor took to Instagram Live to talk with fans about his recent scans saying, “Scan went well. Scan went very well.

To be back on the bike, I’m back on the bike before he said I was going to be able to bear weight.”

UFC middleweight Chris Weidman recently had to have a second surgery for his leg injury which has given McGregor a bit of anxiety over his own injury. According to UFC president Dana White, McGregor is set to be back in the cage by next summer.

Remembering the match against McGregor and Poirier, seeing that fatal moment live, the room was filled with so much energy, so much anger and heartbreak over what we had just witnessed. Following McGregor and his recovery posts has made me and many others very happy, expectant and ready to see him get back in the cage.

McGregor is ranked number 10 for best UFC fighters of all time in a list done by clutchpoint.com, with a career record of 22-5 but is number one in my book. He was the first fighter in UFC history to record knockout victories in three different weight divisions and if that isn’t incredible enough, he was also the highest paid athlete of 2021, something no one expected from a UFC fighter.

Following McGregor and his journey, it’s easy to see why so many people are rooting for him; he has the heart of a lion who preserves despite all the obstacles he has faced. He has inspired many, with school starting and blood pressures rising once again, it helps to remember McGregor and know that there are others persevering, and that you can too. Let’s all take a page from his lesson book and remember to stay strong this semester and fight hard until the finish.

Photo courtesy of ucasports.com

Noah Cameron gets ready to throw a pitch. Cameron was drafted to the Royals in the seventh round of the 2021 MLB draft. UCA head baseball coach Nick Harlan said Cameron showed consistency during his time at UCA, and that was a contender on why the Royals chose him.

Cameron goes from claws to crowns as MLB draft pick BY

DELANEY VAN WILPE

Editor-in-Chief

Former UCA Bear Noah Cameron was drafted by the Kansas CIty Royals in the seventh round of the 2021 MLB draft July 12. Cameron was the 119th

known as ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, August 2020.

Cameron is on the road to recovery and told “We’ll continue to recover this fall and, hopefully, by

selection.

Originally from St. Joseph, Missouri, the left handed pitcher will not be far from his hometown and alma mater, Central High School, with his move to the Royals.

According to ucasports.com, Cameron said, “It’s always been a dream, for sure, to play major league baseball, but obviously, secondly, to play with the

Fortunately, this setback did not prevent Cameron from making his mark at UCA. UCA head baseball coach Nick Harlan said, “Noah was a pleasure to coach. He brought tremendous value to the team. He was a great player who’s skill set showed up every outing, but more importantly, he

Cameron’s short time at UCA was anything but ordinary. Unfortunately, Cameron missed the 2021 season after undergoing Tommy John Surgery, also

strikeouts and just 19 walks in 94.2 innings. In the

Harlan said Cameron showed consistency during his time at UCA, and that was a contender on why the Royals chose him. “He put up great numbers for two years in Division 1 baseball as a weekend starter. He is a big strong lefty who commands the fastball and throws a plus change up. His consistency is attractive to scouts because pro On top of his impressive record, Cameron felt the support from the community at UCA to continue his career further.

According to ucasports.com, Cameron said, “The people in the community were just so loving and supportive of us, just very positive all the time, my career, and I know all the other players can

2.57 ERA, with 31 strikeouts and just two walks in

SOCCER

Bears falls short in exhibition game against Sun Devils BY

ASHLEY SAVAGE

Staff Writer

The UCA Women’s Soccer team played in an exhibition game against Southeast Missouri State on Aug. 15.

The Bears held their own in the beginning of the match, but were ultimately defeated “Matches like this at the beginning of the season are just a way for us to see how we are learning our system of play and identifying which players are able to make head coach Jeremy Bishop said.

Taylor Lassiter, who plays forward, said she “felt pretty good about the game “It’s important for us as a team to work on speed of play and capitalizing The Bears made many defensive moves time with a 3 point lead, and added two more in the second half.

Abby Gibson, who plays defensive

the team went to Arizona.

“We played alright but the speed of play could have been faster. I thought we were There are many areas in which the players performed well during the game.

Photo courtesy of ucasports.com

held their own in the beginning of the match, but were ultimately defeated by the Sun Devils, losing 6-1.

“I felt good about my personal performance, but there is always room for improvement. I felt that I did well with my getting to play at home with our new Players plan to focus on building up their skills for future games.

“I need to improve on pressing with the

other forward and staying connected with “I think I connected passes pretty well.

I could have been cleaner with my passes Gibson said.

The team plans to continue to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses in order to improve throughout the season.

“We will address areas of improvement in

our training sessions so we can become the best team we can be, week to week and match to match. It’s going to be an exciting and challenging season, and we The UCA Women’s Soccer team is scheduled to play an exhibition game against the University of Arkansas at Little Rock on Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. in Little Rock.

Purple Passion event sparks excitment in fans and athletes BY

ADDI FREEMAN

Associate Editor

Athletes from all of UCA’s sports teams and fans football season at the Conway Regional Health System’s Off the Clock: Purple Passion event.

“We love it when our teams are playing at home with the visitors that come here, and so that’s why we like to do this and introduce the community to all the student and CEO Brad Lacy Posters were provided for fans to get autographs from any and all players, and UCA themed stress balls were given out at the entrance. The dance team and cheerleaders brought out their extra UCA temporary tattoos and helped children put them on to get in the spirit.

Head football coach Nathan Brown was also in attendance and interacting with fans.

“If you’re here tonight, I assume you bleed purple. I

Brown said.

After the allotted time for autographs was over, the children in attendance were encouraged to play games with UCA athletes. Each team had a zone with an activity corresponding to their sport.

“You guys get to know these young men and women.

They’re phenomenal, they work hard and they do it all Brown addressed newer COVID guidelines when University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.

“Let’s make sure we continue to do our part with COVID...whether it’s getting the vaccine or staying six feet apart, do your part so we can enjoy football and The football team plans on blocking off Bruce St. and encouraging fans to come and tailgate before the game.

The university has moved to the ASUN conference, bringing more competition to the athletic teams, something both coaches and players are excited about.

“For this upcoming season, we’re trying to chase the ultimate goal of a national championship. We’re

running back Kylin James.

The Purple Passion event was also a way to get the freshmen athletes involved with fans. Freshmen from all teams were included in the autograph signing portion of the event, and the cheer and dance teams had large groups of freshmen interacting with fans.

“We’ve got an amazing group of returners, and we brought in an incredible class as well, so it’s going to be Beau Theriot.

UCA’s athletic director Brad Teague ensured fans that the university was just as excited as they are about the upcoming sport seasons.

“We’re so excited about our fall sports. Certainly this Lake Liquor of Maumelle presented the event, and several local restaurants catered to athletes and fans as a game will be held September 4 at Arkansas State University in Jonesborough.

Opinion

6

ucaechoeditor@gmail.com

August 25, 2021

The Voice

U C A’s r u s h for n or m a l c y ’s i mp a c t on s tu d e nt s

Amid all the “welcome back, bears!”

Anti-vaxxers, it’s time you saved yourselves Delaney Van Wilpe Editor-in-Chief Addison Freeman Associate Editor Mia Waddell News Editor Sydney Cyr Assistant News Editor Bennett Tinnermon Campus Life Editor Olyvia Gonzalez Assistant Campus Life Editor Sarah Smythe Opinion Editor Madison Ogle Entertainment Editor/Cartoonist Emilee Hagewood Sports Editor Andrew McMahan Assistant Sports Editor Olyvia Gonzalez Assistant Online Editor Ashley Savage Photography Editor

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Editorials written in The Voice express the opinion

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I spent the bulk of my summer back at home, lounging and living lavishly in my tiny hometown.

It boasts a Dollar General and a Sonic of course, but don’t forget the sweltering mass of anti-vaxxers.

They’re rampant, they’re (in most cases) insanely contagious, but, by god, they are absolutely the most educated individuals when it comes to COVID-19 and the vaccine.

If you can’t taste the sarcasm in that, here’s the

there.

They’ve done rigorous and extensive research (even if it all was a lie).

Because, yes, of course, CNN wants you to sell your soul to the government. those who happily ignore facts are too long gone.

They honestly can no longer be saved at this point.

Not because they don’t understand, but because they’ve fallen so far off the deep end that they can’t possibly swim back up.

These people are intent on clinging to the websites they stick to.

They never want to change and they never will want to change.

The behavior has run much deeper than just being a fad, it’s a lifestyle to them.

Yes, it sucks that this is the type of person we’re letting hold us back from international peace and solace.

Over the course of just a few weeks of summer I’ve encountered the most out-of-this-world screenshots, reposted from Snapchat story after Snapchat story.

These screenshots of “undeniable facts” talk about the vaccinated being the real super spreaders, vaccines causing massive blood clots in the brain and vaccines exploding in people’s arms.

I’m not kidding.

I’d tell you the exact websites I see quoted as “news” these days but they get enough shameless now controls the rest of us who made promotion from the gullible our personal efforts to end the minds of small town America. pandemic.

The range of ages We’ve done all we can.

Seeing as these fraudulent is expansive in this and often quoted websites cite demographic, not themselves as credible sources just favoring the older generation but now the legitimacy of vaccines, I’m

by Madison ogle younger as well. doubtful that a conclusion to Entertainment Editor & Cartoonist The parents see a this issue will come anytime post on Facebook and, in soon. turn, push it onto their My advice to those who kids who, in turn. push it have been reposting articles onto other kids over and over until the entire town’s that preach about vaccinated superspreaders and explanation for why they believe what they believe can deadly vaccine side effects?

Check the sources under your articles or, better It’s 2021 and news is everywhere all the time.

It’s an active challenge to be ignorant, especially when you’re discussing the global crisis we’ve been You don’t have to be swept out to sea with the rest dealing with for the past year. of the idiots, but you’ll have to swim back solo.

There is an undeniable frustration against those We can no longer extend our hands as a desperate means to educate you. who push against our central path back to normalcy.

It’s time to grow up and get smart.

You can’t help but beg for them to listen, to open We cannot pull the stragglers from the tide. their minds, to research just a bit more.

They’ve dug their grave and chosen to lie in it.

But that’s the tricky part.

No matter how many myths are debunked, new Anti-vaxxers and COVID deniers don’t even ones continue to breed and rise to the surface. Let’s think of themselves as blissfully ignorant.

For all they know, they’ve spent the past few be honest with ourselves, these people are not worth months following the only credible news sources out

Artists should be in charge of their own art The lack of artistic license in the music industry is unsettling.

From Britney’s conservatorship to Pop Smoke’s latest album “Faith,” it is no mystery that industry people care less about the art and more about the money within the industry.

As fans, we see only the music and the facade of a star, but with incidents like the #FreeBritney movement, we can see the inner workings of the industry and who really owns the art.

The publicists, recording companies, lawyers, estate managers and even family members are the real owners.

Although fans innocently worship these artists and wish for resolution for them, by supporting their work, they are supporting those who suppress their artistry.

Member of the #FreeBritney movement Jared Lipscomb told VICE, “We knew money that Britney Spears, the brand, was receiving was not going to Britney Spears, the person,” Lipscomb said.

“The moment we saw those documents, the diehard Free Britney advocates, we started putting it out there on social

a collaborative disaster.

As a fan, I was excited for its arrival, but after listening, I was disheartened.

On the deluxe version, out of the thirty songs on the album, only 7 songs were without features (which includes an interlude and another appearance of “Dior”).

This album was not about the music or about retaining the artist’s legacy, it was about the money.

The whole thing made me question if some

artist passes.

Because they no longer can have a say in its production, it seems unethical to release their work.

Anderson .Paak recently tattooed a warning for people to not touch his art once he’s dead. It said, “When I’m gone, please don’t release any posthumous albums or songs with my name attached. Those were just demos and never intended to be heard by the public.”

The fact that .Paak got this permanently tattooed on his body tells you all you need to know about an artist’s ownership within the industry.

Other artists, like Taylor Swift, have made their struggles with recording companies known to the

by Delaney Van wilpe public.

Editor-in-Chief After signing away her masters as a teenager to Big Machine Records, Swift had

music. Do not consume the product. Do not consume anything from Britney, the brand.”

In other instances, these outside entities can completely ruin the art and the original mission of the artist.

After Pop Smoke’s death, he released his debut album “Shoot For The Stars Aim For The Moon” and most recent album “Faith.”

His debut album was a commercial success because he had a hand in most of its production before his death.

However, the sound of the album was much slower and softer than his earlier music.

Fans were expecting Brooklyn drill music, and got hits like “What U Know Bout Love” and “Something Special” instead.

This change of pace wasn’t bad, but it did raise a few eyebrows and lead people to question Pop’s input on the posthumous album before his death.

Additionally, his most recent album “Faith” was

on everyone’s mind is COVID-19 and what colleges are doing or not doing about it.

I bet we can all recall when we were kids and got warned of something, like not to put your hand in a boiling red hot pot of water on the stove while mom was making spaghetti.

I was the second child, so luckily, I never put my hand in the water or on the red burner out of curiosity. I had a sister who stopped me when I was about to do something dumb.

Parents warned us not to put ourselves in dangerous situations growing up and through high school, I can recall my mom lecturing me about important details on where to go and not to go in Central Arkansas.

Even with all that we were told in life, so far, about avoiding dangerous situations at all costs, here we all are, rushing back to a campus that has been at “red status” for the past two weeks.

The warning email that gets sent out every Sunday states that the weekly status “is based on the CDC showing this region of the state at ‘High Risk’ on their Level of Community Transmission statistics.”

That really sounds like something, or in this situation somewhere, that I would try my best to avoid in my adult life.

But, of course, the rush to normalcy is great within colleges across the country right now and students and teachers have heard about this push for the duration of the global pandemic.

This huge push for normalcy continues to impact students who get to hear about it every day.

What the universities aren’t taking into consideration with this decision to return to school at full capacity is that many students’ ideas of what “normal” is has changed drastically in the past year.

Instead of being required to put myself in a “high risk” situation as a college student, I would much rather have been asked my preference.

I can only speak for myself, but I know that I am a much stronger student online due to my test anxiety and just the comfort I get from being in a controlled place when I’m learning.

The common misconceptions about online and remote learning do not apply to me, and honestly need to be thrown out the window completely.

But, because colleges didn’t reach out and simply ask students what they would like to do, or what they think they would do the best they could do in, there

campus.

I can sit and waste energy on a decision that I believe is rushed and basically timed in the middle of a COVID surge that looks a lot like the one we saw last fall, or I can choose to be more proactive than what is required. Simply sanitizing my desk when I sit down and when I get up for the next student and being sure that I always wear my mask when indoors on campus.

I advise all who are on campus this semester to be sure to check in with Scott Borchetta, founder of Big Machine Records, sold Swift and her records to leader of Ithaca Holdings, friends on the topic of mental health and Scooter Braun.

Finally, Braun sold her masters to a private equity most importantly, take time to check on your own mental health. through streaming and sales to this day.

Amid all the health warnings, the most Swift is admirably taking matters into her own important thing is to keep your mind hands and re-recording her old albums.

So far, she has released “Fearless (Taylor’s healthy for the upcoming “red status” Version)” and is currently working on a rendition of semester. her “Red” album.

Be sure to schedule time for yourself Swift wrote in a 2019 Tumblr post, “You deserve to own the art you make.” during these upcoming weeks as school She is completely right, and I hope that artists do goes back to full swing. the same to take charge for their own sake.

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

7

August 25, 2021

New This Week Movies

Aug. 27 — Candyman (R), directed by Nia DaCosta, starring Tony Todd and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.

Sep. 3 — Cinderella (PG), directed by Nia DaCosta, starring Camila Cabello, Nicholas Galitzine and Billy Porter

Oct. 1 — Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (PG), directed by Derek Drymon and Jenifer Kluska, starring Brian Hull, Selena Gomez and Andy Samberg

Music Sep. 3 — Mercury - Act 1 — Imagine Dragons

Sep. 10 — Diana Ross — Thank You

Sep. 10 — Kacey Musgraves — Star-Crossed

Oct. 1 — Doobie Brothers— Liberté

The Killers’ ‘Pressure Machine’ tackles hometown nostalgia

by Delaney Van Wilpe Editor-in-Chief

The Killers’ ambitious and somber concept album “Pressure Machine” is about lead singer, Brandon Flowers, early life in the quiet Utah town of Nephi.

Their seventh album released Aug. 13 and featured several recordings of the people of Nephi sharing old town tales and personal stories.

If there’s one thing to know about The Killers songwriting skills it’s that they will always paint a vivid picture for listeners.

A combination of the lyrics, the audio recordings and the production completely transports listeners to the town of Nephi.

At the beginning of the pandemic, Flowers told Rolling Stones Magazine that he was thinking about his hometown. He said, “There was a nostalgic longing in the air and a little bit of sadness.

I started thinking about where I was in the Nineties, and these stories just sort of blossomed out.”

By listening track to track, it seemed as though the band retired their

Netflix Aug. 27 — He’s All That, directed

by Mark Waters, starring Addison Rae, Tanner Buchanan and Peyton Meyer

by Addi Freeman

As someone with a head full of opinions just itching to make their way out, it’s not often that something causes me to be fully at a loss for words. Nor is it often the point of shock-induced chit-chat. But there’s just ‘Sweet Girl’ that somehow brought out both sides.

This was hands down, one of the worst movies I have seen in quite a long time. I like to give movies a fair chance and watch a good chunk of them before

Evolutions in Pokémon List compiled by Sarah Smythe Opinion Editor

it’s the getting by that gets right underneath you/ It’d swallow up your every step, boy, if it could/ But maybe it’s the stuff it takes to get up/ In the morning and put another day in, son/ That keeps you standing where you should.”

A couple album highlights were “Runaway Horses” featuring Phoebe Bridgers and “Pressure Machine.”

Bridgers subtly adds a warm presence to “Runaway Horses,” making it sound like a beautiful lullabye. The high notes that Flowers hits in “Pressure Machine” are immaculate and something I have not seen from him in his earlier discography.

To top that off, the violin in the instrumental outro completes the song in a very fulfilling and pleasing way.

This album is eloquently written with embedded double meanings in the lyrics and the recordings.

It is somber, but it is also hopeful. This album made me think and reflect, which doesn’t happen often nowadays.

“Pressure Machine” is available for streaming on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

H B O D O C U M E N TA R Y

create a scene that would rival what was actually used in the movie.

I’m not sure what the producers used their budget for the action sequences.

Ray and the hitmen, my mind kept wondering how this random widower was able to take on and beat fully trained killers. Sure, the movies established that he had some prior boxing knowledge, but that’s not going to give him the upper hand against trained assassins.Coming along for the ride in this messy situation Ray created for himself is his daughter, Rachel, played by Isabela Merced.

After Ray gets involved in this bloody situation, he

Photo courtesy of www.nytimes.com

‘In the Same Breath’: a contemporary take on the history of COVID-19

by Sydney Cyr

idea been given to the right people for some minor -and in some areas, major -- tweaking, this could have been a good movie.

The new HBO Max documentary, “In the Same Breath,” tells the story of the origin and spread of COVID-19 from it’s outbreak in Wuhan, China to its spread across America.

The documentary starts in Wuhan, China on New Year’s Day in 2020.

The film details how COVID-19 cases started to pop up in Wuhan, but when patients and doctors started to spread the word about the virus, they were censored, and many of them were punished by China’s government.

The documentary follows a timeline through 2020 and into 2021, telling the story of the COVID-19 pandemic through monthly progressions. The way that the information is presented in the documentary is dramatized and suspenseful.

The music and editing in the film brought back the early feelings of panic that I experienced when the pandemic first started.

The film does a great job at illustrating the tension and fear that many people felt when COVID-19 began to spread across the world.

The entire documentary used a very solemn tone to explain the stories of families in both China and America who were affected

by COVID-19.

The film highlighted how widespread the deaths from COVID-19 truly were by focusing on the vast number of people who were affected.

The film also focused on the heartbreak and confusion that many families felt after losing loved ones to the virus.

The way that the documentary highlights the negative effects of the pandemic are appropriate due to the fact that many people experienced severe trauma and loss from the spread of COVID-19.

Towards the end of the film, the documentary focuses on how the governments in both China and America contributed to misinformation about the virus.

The film criticises

China’s authoritarian government and America’s democratic government by making the argument that, in both systems, ordinary people become casualties of their leaders’ pursuit of power.

One central message of the film was that the pandemic has basically become a test of our forms of government.

This argument was presented strongly throughout the film, and the documentary made many valid points for the public to consider as we continue to deal with the effects of COVID-19.

Overall, I think the documentary was very well made and did a great job talking about sensitive, tragic topics in a factual and unbiased way.

I think many people would benefit from watching this documentary.

This film allows viewers to take a close look back to where the COVID-19 pandemic began which is important as the world continues to live through the pandemic in the

1.Mega Mewtwo Y

2. Mega Charizard X

3. Mega Rayquaza

4. Mega Lucario

It’s almost impossible to not know what Mew or Mewtwo are in the Pokémon world, even if you have never played the game. This genderless mega evolution comes after the other mega evolution of Mewtwo, Mega Mewtwo X, which actually has

It would be disrespectful not to include Mega Charizard X in the top three on this list. Differing in flame color from the original Charizard, this mega evolution has a black and blue body that is combusting with blue flames. As both a fire and dragon Pokémon, opponents can expect both flames and meteors on certain attacks.

Mega Charizard X has high attack and special statistics, although it is said to never cross an enemy that is weaker than itself. The most common ability of this mega evolution is tough claws, which is probably as heinous as it sounds.

5. Mega Absol Everyone should have at least one dark type Pokémon in their bags for battle. The funny thing about Mega Absol is that it normally hates to fight opponents, so it is rare that the mega evolution is recorded through the history of Pokémon. With magic bounce as its ability, Mega Absol not only will tear down the opposing Pokémon, but deflect incoming attacks.

Equipped with large wings, Mega Absol has been known to cause fainthearted people to expire from show at only its sight. With only slight differences in appearance, this evolution can be seen through the years of Pokémon history.

Jason Momoa plays Sep. 2 — Afterlife of the Party, Ray, a man whose wife directed by Stephen Herek, starring recently died of cancer Victoria Justice, Adam Garcia and after the generic brand of Midori Francis an experimental medication is pulled from the market by a bigger pharmaceutical company. After her death, he works on planning his revenge against the Sep. 15 — Nightbooks, directed company’s founder, digging up some dirt on the

by David Yarovesky, starring employees along the way.

Krysten Ritter, Lidya Jewett and This, of course, causes Ray Winslow Fegley to be the target of hitmen and other people working to keep the secrets hidden.

Each character that comes across the screen is sub-par, and there isn’t a lot of depth to anyones’ backstory.

Sep. 22 — Confessions of an With Momoa coming Invisible Girl, directed by Bruno from huge hits like ‘Game of Garotti, starring Júlia Rabello, Thrones’ and ‘Aquaman,’ I expected a little more from Stepan Nercessian and Rosane him. I feel like he should be Gofman and Alcemar Vieira embarrassed that he had a

Top 5 Mega

journey of his adolescence where he learns about life and struggles with obstacles such as depression.

Flowers sings, “Hey, mama, can’t you see your boy is wrapped up in the strangle silk/ Of this cobweb town where culture is king?/ I’m in my bedroom on the verge of a terrible thing.”

‘Sweet Girl’ misses the mark of a good movie

but I seriously considered turning this off within the

Sep. 29 — No One Gets Out Alive, directed by Santiago Menghini, starring Clint Howard, Brian Gallagher and Chris Ready

classic, upbeat guitar riffs.

Instead, they have adopted a folk sound in “Pressure Machine.” However, they came through with a guitar solo in “Cody”—a song which perfectly duplicated a town gossipping about a troubled teen.

Throughout the album, Flowers takes listeners on a

NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Associate Editor

Oct. 1 — Lady Gaga & Tony Bennett — Love For Sale

Photo courtesy of www.rollingstone.com

The recordings of the townspeople tap into other difficult and traditionally “hushed” topics. In the introduction of “In Another Life,” the townsperson spoke about how the Opioid crisis and addiction has impacted the town of Nephi. He said, “There’s a lot of opioids going around/ It makes you feel pretty damn good/ After a few hours, you gotta take more/And then after a while, you’re taking a ton and you don’t feel great/ Everyone’s just tryin’ to escape something.”

Flowers spins this concept in the song to reflect on what his life might be like if he didn’t grow up in this small town.

He grapples with the idea that if he grew up somewhere else, maybe he and the townspeople would not struggle with addiction or depressive episodes.

He sings, “I spent my best years laying rubber on a factory line/ I wonder what I would’ve been in another life.”

In the final song of the album, “The Getting By,” Flowers contemplates whether Nephi and its smalltown culture makes or breaks a person. He sings, “Maybe

Since it’s advertised as a suspenseful, action thriller movie, one would think that at least the action scenes would be worth watching.

Not exactly. I could go to a seedy hotel with dim lighting, use a water pistol and ketchup packets and run down a hallway, and

Mega Mewtwo Y has the ability of insomnia, which when cast on the opposing Pokémon, will cause it to not be able to go to sleep. With high special attack ratings and speed, Mega Mewtwo Y will be and fairy type Pokémon. The main physical difference between this mega evolution and Mew is that the tail is connected to the back of the head on Mega Mewtwo Y.

actions by telling himself and Rachel that he needs to keep her safe.

Really? It was made clear to Ray and his family that his wife would likely die from cancer despite having the drug, yet he went after the pharmaceutical company anyway. He was the one to put his daughter at risk in Overall, this movie is delivered by monotonous actors and scenes that are starting to be known for.

There is a twist at the end of the movie that some viewers may be interested in, but it in no way furthers the plot or drives any hardhitting lessons home.

It was added for shock value, and, like most everything else about this the target.

Assistant News Editor

This mega evolution of Rayquaza in the third generation from the Hoenn region is said to have survived for hundreds of millions of years. Coming from the Sky High Pokémon category, Mega Rayquaza is both dragon and flying type. Although, something special about this mega evolution is the ability that it can hold called Delta Stream. This special ability allows Mega Rayquaza to alter the weather in order to eliminate all of the weakness to flying type Pokémon. This is a huge advantage when it comes to combat, and can ultimately be summed up as a bonus hit right as the match starts.

Just as Lucario should hold a special place in Pokémon fans’ hearts, so should Mega Lucario. Mega Lucario’s aura expanded due to the mega evolution, causing a change in the Pokémon’s category completely. Mega Lucario holds high speed statistics, along with notable attack and special attack statistics as well. This mega evolution looks more rugged than Lucario, with red hands and feet. As a steel and fighting type Pokémon, Mega Lucario shows weakness toward fire, ground, and other fighting type Pokémon but is known to strike enemies without mercy during battles.

present moment.

ucanews.live

SPORTS

8 / August 25 , 2021

NCAA policy allows athletes to profit EMILEE HAGEWOOD

On July 1, the National Collegiate Athletic Association passed a temporary policy that allows college athletes to use their name, image and likeness to

partners with these companies.

Springer said, “Not even looking at myself, but just affecting other brands is important. Knowing I have these brands that count on me, that think I can help represent their brand and help endorse their

With practices, training, game days and school, it’s

Connections down the road are something he thinks will be

BY

Sports Editor

with their schedule.

The NIL policy gives athletes to make money in a less time consuming way.

One UCA football player has already begun making partnerships with different brands around the world.

Robert Springer, junior defensive back and double major, currently has nine different ambassador for.

Springer is an ambassador for seven different clothing brands, many of which are located in Los Angeles and one from China.

He is also an ambassador for Curl Days, a black owned business that makes hair care products.

Putting his name out there isn’t the only reason Springer

Conway’s Convention and Visitors Bureau reached out to UCA and will be choosing 30 advertise the City of Conway.

“What I am most pleased about this agreement is that the CVB will also provide education and training for these individuals

in the future.

Springer shared an instagram post a few days after the policy was announced, representing his nine brands but also saying that he is open to more.

“I’m open to more, just getting more connections because connections are big, you

said.

For athletes looking to take advantage of this policy, Springer claims that social media is the best place to start.

Many of the brands that he’s an ambassador for reached out to him through Instagram.

Putting your foot out there

said.

Although universities are not allowed to help athletes acquire sponsorships or brand deals, UCA has provided information to all athletes about the rules regarding the new policy.

UCA’s athletic director Brad Teague said, “We are happy that

is another good way to get recognized or sponsored.

Springer said, “Go out, reach out, say ‘I’ve bought a lot of things from your brand’ or ‘I really love what your brand’s doing, me being an athlete I play on ESPN, I can really bring attention to your brand from the

the opportunity to monetize their name, image and likeness.

We have equipped them all with information to assist those

He also encourages athletes to keep their social media clean, look professional and post things that make people want to work with you.

Teague also shared that

SCHOOL SPIRIT

Men’s Basketball

Photo by Bennett Tinnermon

UCA defeats CBU to start season BY

SYDNEY CYR

Assistant News Editor

head coach Kohlenstein said.

“It’s nice to be back on the from dropping throughout the

The UCA Men’s Soccer team won an exhibition game against Christian Brothers University Aug. 14.

Alberto Suarez scored the winning goal late in the match off an assist from Ole Kjoerholt.

The team’s new head coach, Frank Kohlenstein, said the team’s win came after “a hard

into making some offensive runs, but I think the best thing has been that we improved the chemistry with the teammates

Edoardo Merci, who plays

The team is also ready to focus on improving areas that could’ve been stronger during the game.

“The team will look to improve in all areas of the game and do that throughout the

“overall, the game was a good “It was a decent game. It’s always hard at the beginning of the season to get to know all the new teammates and the new Merci said.

The team performed well in many aspects during the game.

“The areas that were best from the team were effort and having

Karim Diao, who plays that he is “looking forward to building even more of a connection with his teammates

Kohlenstein said.

Many players also have important personal goals to work toward this season. level to prevent my intensity

“There is still a lot of work The team plans on rising to the challenge and continuing to train hard.

“Having been picked to team enjoys proving the rest of the conference wrong from Kohlenstein said.

“The team is working hard and is ready for the season. I would love for more people to come watch us play to build an even more exciting The UCA Men’s Soccer team is scheduled to play an exhibition game against the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley 7 p.m. Aug. 26 in Conway at the Bill Stephens Track/Soccer Complex.

BASKETBALL

Photo by Madison Ogle

SCRIMMAGE

Photo by Madison Ogle

Purple and Gray welcomes semester BY

BENNETT TINNERMON

Campus Life Editor

UCA football held the Purple and Gray scrimmage at Estes The Bears were recently placed 14th in the Stats Perform FCS Preseason Top 25 with 561 points, according to the NCAA during last fall’s season.

The pep rally and scrimmage featured the cheer team and the marching band, helping to get students excited about the upcoming football season. UCA head football coach Nathan Brown posted a tweet about the turnout and said, “thanks to the students and UCA band for participating in our welcome week scrimmage. Might have Defensive lineman Jalen Bedell said that the team is excited about returning to a regular season after having worked hard all summer to prepare.

About the scrimmage game, Bedell said, “it gave us the chance to see where everyone was at on

He also said he is proud of the

The Purple and Gray scrimmage marked an end to Welcome Week activities at UCA where new students got connected to the school and its extracurricular activities. Conway Daze was rescheduled to August 25 due to weather, but the Purple and Gray scrimmage was able to see better weather later in the day.

the coaches are all vaccinated, mentioning that they have shown leadership through that.

A recent article from THV11

season will be against the Arkansas State Red Wolves in Jonesboro, Arkansas, on Sept. 4 at 6:00 p.m. The Bears last played the Red Wolves in

Houston Davis was also in attendance for the event. Davis said, “I’m very excited to see

football team have received having medical experts come in to inform the players about the vaccine.

The team may be forced to forfeit games if they have positive helps

prevent

contracting

variant, according to the CDC website.

The number one ranked team from the Stats Perform FCS Preseason Top 25, Sam Houston State University, will face off against the Bears on UCA’s home turf on Sept. 25.

The Bears full schedule and other information can be found at ucasports.com. Nathan Brown can be found on Twitter @ NathanBrownUCA.

Photo by ucasports.com

Junior Jonas Munson prepares for his third year playing for the Bears. Munson secured his spot with the Bears as the 7-foot center and aims to continue to grow alongside his team.

Munson: UCA showed me my potential BY

SYDNEY CYR

Assistant News Editor

Junior Jonas Munson knows all about change since arriving in Conway from Alexandria, Virginia to play for the men’s basketball team. Munson graduated from West Potomac highschool and chose to land with the Bears shortly after.

“After talking with the coaching staff [at UCA], I was shown how successful I could “I’ve been playing basketball since I was in the third grade, but I really began to focus on it The sport was something the future Bear loved, for various reasons, from a young age.

“I loved playing basketball at that age because it let me run

around, hit people and it was honestly a way to bond with my The Virginia native secured his spot with the Bears as the to continue growing alongside the rest of the team.

This upcoming season will be Munson’s third year playing for the Bears while working toward his degree in Political Science.

“I’m interested in working in political campaigns or potentially starting my own many ways, Munson’s interests extend outside of his academic and athletic goals. something new to cook and

it a priority to make the most of his time here in Conway on and off of the Bears court.

Munson’s love for trying new things has left him looking for ways to branch out in his new environment.

“The best advice I’ve received, in my time, is to simply me, It’s been very rewarding living in and experiencing a culture that is so different from Additionally, being so far from home, the relationships made while living here in Conway are crucial to the college experience in Munson’s mind.

“I’d like to form lifelong bonds with my teammates and set myself on a path toward

Munson.

Munson.