Several hundred Logan residents braved a winter storm and gathered in the recently finished Logan Library for its ribbon cutting on Monday, March 4.
The audience exceeded the number anticipated and filled the chairs set up. Attendees stood, sat on the ground and gathered around the doorway to the new community room on the first floor of the library.
The Cache Valley Chamber of Commerce performed the ribbon cutting. Donors and members of the city council held the ribbon as it was cut.
The new library is located at the same site as its predecessor, 285 N. Main St. Mayor Holly Daines said people liked the location of the old library, which received an average of 700 visitors a day.
Rebuilding the library has been in the works for at least 20 years, and Daines acknowledged many before her that worked to make the project possible. Craig Petersen, former mayor, even donated a year’s worth of his salary to the project.
“We opted to demolish the old, dark, rundown building with many failing systems,” Daines said. The new library is three stories tall, with large windows, open space and artwork done by local artists. There are several statues in and outside of the library, and the plaza and parking outside of the library was revamped.
Daines praised the children’s area, which is full of artwork, including tree sculptures that overlook the books.
“It’s like walking into a magical forest,” Daines said.
During construction, a temporary library was set up at the Logan Service Center. Daines said over 195,000 physical items were checked out from the temporary library, and she praised the library team for their effort to keep the library open.
Representative Dan Johnson of the Utah State House of Representatives was in attendance at the ribbon cutting, along with members of the city council, library board and state library board. Many parents and children who will soon enjoy the library as patrons were also among the audience.
During the event, the Caine String Quartet from Utah State University performed a piece. Logan’s poet laureate, Shanan Ballam, read a poem.
Daines said during the planning and construction process, the city had to stick to a very specific budget.
“It became clear that rising costs and our dreams were bigger than our budget,” Daines said. Daines approached donors to see if they could help fund the construction. The Hansen Sisters, Dell Loy Hansen, Cytiva, Cache Valley Bank, the Friends of the Logan Library, and the Paul and Kim Willie Family
Foundation gave more than $1.7 million toward the library.
Keri Hansen Hale of the Hansen Sisters Foundation said it was an “easy sell” as she was excited and grateful to be a part of the project. It brought up childhood memories of reading.
“My memory is of being in the library constantly in the summer,” she said.
Paul Willie was also grateful to contribute.
“We’re having fun giving away their inheritance,” he said of his children.
The library is now open to the public, with visiting hours from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday.
Reagan Thomas is an avid news junkie studying journalism and political science. When not perusing the latest stories of the day, she enjoys running, hiking and stargazing.
— reagan.thomas@usu.edu
On Tuesday, March 6, President Elizabeth R. Cantwell and USUSA President Abraham Rodriguez invited students, faculty and staff to join them during the Truth in Tuition and Student Fees hearing in the TSC ballroom.
Traditionally, these hearings are held together as one, but Cantwell decided to hold them separately, back-to-back, because student fees and tuition come from two different revenue sources.
The event was also broadcast online to make it accessible for statewide campuses.
Current and future USUSA officers, faculty, staff and students attended the Truth in Tuition hearing to learn that tuition is to be raised by 3.4% across all USU campuses, starting fall semester 2024.
There will be no increase in tuition for technical education, and this does not affect differential tuition at this time.
This increase will continue to retain Utah State’s University spot as one of the most expensive schools in the state, alongside the University of Utah and Westminster College.
“The top three reasons for rising college tuition, all of which apply to our statewide system, include college and statewide campuses providing more student support services, changes in funding levels from state and local government, and overall rising costs for services,” Cantwell said.
At the second hearing, student fees were proposed to be raised by 1.4% only at the Logan campus. This fee increase was approved by the USUSA Executive Council, as well as the student fee advisory board. This increase is being made to go towards numerous different improvements, such as replacing equipment and increasing staffing at the ARC, as well as making the Logan campus more accessible through the use of Aggie Shuttles.
“Starting with students, going from the student fee advisory board to the USUSA Executive Council is really unusual in my
experience. Driving these fee increase requests directly from students is something I wholly appreciate. It works pretty well,” Cantwell said. “I think it’s a good process. It’s not something I would ever change.”
Both the proposed tuition increase and student fee increase will go through the Utah Higher Board of Education on March 22.
USUSA president-elect Matt Richey also attended the hearing. He will be the student body president in office during the upcoming semester where these increases will be implemented. Richey was involved with the approval of the student fee increase. he said there are two different processes for student fees at the Logan Campus, versus statewide campuses.
“It’s just set up to meet the needs of students,” Richey said.
As Richey prepares to fill the shoes of Rodriguez, he talked about his future of collaborating with Cantwell.
“I think it will be a really good opportunity to network with someone who knows a lot. She cares about her job and wants to do a good job for the students at Utah State, so I am looking forward to learning from her and supporting her in any way that I can,” Richey said.
Malory Rau is a sophomore studying social media, public relations and marketing. When not skateboarding with friends, she is usually thrifting, reading or seeing the latest movie.
— m.rau@usu.edu
On March 22, from 6 p.m. to midnight at the Nelson Field House, Utah State University’s Miracle Club will host its annual Aggiethon. The Miracle Club is a student-led organization here at USU under Campus Rec, and is a branch of the Miracle Network Dance Marathon. It is the only branch within the state of Utah. This national organization has the main goal of fundraising for children’s hospitals across the nation, and the one in Logan fundraises specifically for the Primary Children’s Hospital.
The Primary Children’s Hospital is the main pediatric children’s hospital in the state of Utah. It is also the leading specialist in children’s healthcare in Utah.
In the words of Cassandra Ivie, the executive director of the USU Miracle Club, Aggiethon is “the end finale.”
“Aggiethon is a celebration, intended to celebrate the united efforts of Aggies all across campus in helping us fundraise,” Ivie said.
Last minute fundraising will be done, and following that, the actual celebration. The celebration is, in essence, a massive block party. Among the amenities will be food, games and dancing.
Furthermore, plans are being made to have several past Primary Children’s Hospital patients attend as well. “We want it to be a big party, and for everyone to be united in this great cause,” said Suzy Deaver, the external director for the Miracle Club.
Aggiethon started in 2018; however, following the coronavirus, there was a drop. Following the 2022 iteration, the national organization decided to cancel the 2023 iteration and do a relaunch, which will be this year’s version.
“The care that Primary Children’s offers, especially quality of life care, is not possible without financial contributions,” Ivie said.
Aggiethon helps pay for various resources to help out pediatric care, as well as items that can let kids undergoing treatment there be a kid, such as children’s books or coloring books.
UTAH STATE
Nearly 40% of donations go to patient services for both patients and their families, and another 37% helps provide charitable aid for patients. 15% goes to help fund education for patients. The other 8% goes to various other expenses, such as life-saving equipment, research into children care, and to support innovative programs and projects.
Ivie said the event is designed to be social.
2/22/24
- USUPD introduced “Officer Sage,” Critical Incident and Crisis Response K-9, in a presentation to elementary students.
2/23/24
2/21/24
- An officer responded to a non-injury accident. Winter driving conditions caused a driver to slide on the ice and into a parked car. The officer assisted the driver and notified the owner of the other vehicle.
- Fire marshals responded to the report of a gas odor. University and Logan Fire Department monitors were used and no gas was detected. An additional party was called on to confirm no gas leaks existed.
2/26/24
- Equipment from a storage closet was reported as missing. An officer met with the reporting party and gathered information on the missing item.
“Utah State is an events and service oriented campus,” Ivie said. “It really capitalizes on that. It is an opportunity to connect with a lot of other people.”
Another reason to attend, Ivie said, is because “it’s a whole lot of fun.”
The event is open to anyone.
“This is an event for every single student on campus,” Ivie said. “We would love to have them come on March 22 and to celebrate what we can do together.”
For Deaver, there is more to Aggiethon than just a fun party.
“Our main thing is that every child deserves to live long enough to become an Aggie.”
Deaver also wishes for the event to be a distinctly USU event.
“It’s not a national organization thing that is on campus, it’s a Utah State thing that we can all do together to unite in a better cause. That every kid can be an Aggie,” Deaver said.
Justin Brewster is a first-year student currently studying international studies and flipping a coin to figure out what he is going to minor in. In his spare time, he enjoys video games and learning about history and political and social sciences.
— justin.g.brewster@usu.edu
2/28/24
- A suspicious person that was reported was found to be a contractor repairing lighting on the exterior of the building.
2/29/24
- A turkey was reported to be a potential traffic hazard. The responding officer was able to move the bird while maintaining the safety of all involved.
- An officer assisted USU Landscaping during the removal of a large tree that had fallen and was blocking the driveway.
On March 2, the Nora Eccles Museum of Art celebrated the Global Day of Unplugging. The event was held to encourage children and families to spend time off their screens.
The event was put together by Elizabeth Masten, an integrated studies major who got involved through her program management and evaluation class.
Masten created a community program with her team at Mount Logan Middle School, and their focus was on how to limit the screen time usage of teenagers. Through her program, Masten was able to connect with the Global Day of Unplugging organization.
“Just from Googling, ‘How can we help teenagers with their screen time habits,’ I found the Global Day of Unplugging website, and I reached out to them from there,” Masten said.
According to Masten, the Global Day of Unplugging lasted from sundown on March 1 to sundown on March 2. People were encouraged to spend time off of their phones and instead engage in more mindful activities. “They really just wanted to tackle the epidemic of loneliness and isolation because of excess time on technology,” Masten said.
The museum held a number of activities throughout the day, including a scavenger hunt, a raffle and a tour of the museum vault.
Guests were asked to keep their phones put away during the event.
“That way you’re just attentive to the moment that you’re in,” Masten said.
According to the Global Day of Unplugging website, excessive time on screens and devices can have a negative impact on human health and connection. Unplugging can help people establish healthier relationships, sleep better and overall feel better. The website also mentioned children from the ages of eight to 10 spend around four to six hours using screens.
“It’s extremely important for your mental and physical health,” Masten said. “Especially for kids as their minds are developing.”
Kelli Barker, a co-director of the Adele and Dale Young Child Development Laboratory, has witnessed the negative effects of screen time on younger minds.
According to Baker, exposure to screens and technology happens increasingly younger.
“Young children are being exposed as young as two months old,” Barker said.
Barker said young children are naturally drawn to screens because of their bright colors and their ability to provide instant gratification. These factors can be incredibly stimulating to developing minds.
According to Barker, many parents seem to be using technology as a “pacifier” for their children.
“If there’s too much screen time during infancy, this could lead to changes in brain activity as well as problems with executive functioning,” Barker said.
According to Barker, some of these executive functioning skill impairments could include trouble with focusing, impulse control and emotional control as the child continues to mature.
Older children are also impacted by excess screen time.
“With elementary school children, what we’re seeing is that those social skills are decreasing because they’re isolating themselves from others,” Barker said.
According to Barker, children in this age group are choosing to remove themselves from social situations in exchange for more individual screen time. This preference for screen time has also contributed to an increase in obesity among children.
“Young children are not getting the physical activity that they need to grow and develop,” Barker said. “They’re not developing their large motor skills, they’re not developing their small motor skills.”
Barker said the lack of a reciprocal relationship between children and their screens is also dangerous.
“There’s not that serve and return relationship between person to person,” Barker said.
According to Barker, this hinders children’s ability to communicate effectively with others.
“Children need concrete activities,” Barker said. “They need real and relevant and hands-on activities to develop their brain fully.”
Barker said children need to be involved in the world and interacting with their physical environments in order to properly develop.
“I mean they literally need to play in dirt,” Barker said. According to Barker, children can only learn through experience. This experience can come in the form of playing, communicating with others and interacting with the real world. Children need a variety of well-rounded experiences in order to develop into well-rounded adults.
Essence Barnes is a first-year student who can’t come to terms with deciding a major. While that thought looms in the back of her head, she enjoys reading, writing and spending money she doesn’t have on coffee.
— a02413313@aggies.usu.edu
Utah State University hosted the annual 24-hour HackUSU coding competition in the Huntsman Hall from March 1-2. Students began constructing their projects on Friday afternoon and turned them in for judging Saturday evening.
Throughout the day and night, students were able to attend workshops on a variety of topics, including how to get a dream job, UX design, coding principles and software development. Sponsors were present for students to network with.
The event kicked off with a talk from USU President Elizabeth Cantwell, who facilitated an open discussion between students and encouraged them to practice working in a team.
HackUSU had several categories for students to compete in, including cybersecurity, game development, AI and machine learning, and hardware.
Kayli Clegg, a junior studying data analytics, was on the organizer team for HackUSU.
“They were looking for students to be on the team and I was like, ‘I’m in, I want to help organize,” Clegg said. “We’ve been working on this since the summer. Some of the sponsors are sponsoring specific categories of the competition.”
Clegg said the competition even brought in students from other schools.
“It’s such a mix of people here,” Clegg said. “We have a ton of business students, students in data analytics, we have engineering students, and we also have students from BYU-I and from U of U.”
Clegg said the decision to have Cantwell speak at the event was due to her background in the subject.
“President Cantwell was our keynote speaker, and she was phenomenal,” Clegg said. “She has a background in data and coding.”
Ella Wilhelmsen, a sophomore majoring in data analytics, volunteered for HackUSU.
“I wanted to be involved in this competition because it’s a great opportunity to network both with professors and fellow students,” Wilhelmsen said. “I randomly took the intro course for data analytics and I just loved it so much, I’m a TA for the course now.”
Wyatt Williams, a junior studying for a master’s in data analytics, competed in the machine learning category.
“My goal is to create an image classification app that’ll have facial recognition,” Williams said. “The app will take a picture of me and then sort through files to recognize whether or not it’s a match.”
Hannah Hart, a public relations major, presented an idea in the business solutions category.
“It’s glasses for people with visual impairments,” Hart
said. “I’d do it with Bluetooth so they can drive and hear where they are going.”
The first place title for cybersecurity was given to the team HoneyHack for their cyberdefense model. They designed software to mimic malware and recognize it in a computer.
Team DJET came in first place for hardware. They built a contraption to disperse signals.
A team of BYU-I students, Gone Fishin’, won first place for AI and machine learning.
There were prizes given for first, second and third place winners. Students chose from cash prizes, TVs, printers, vacuums and backpacks.
Layla Alnadar is a first-year student studying public health. She loves music, hiking, writing and the sun.
— a02414012@aggies.usu.edu
Opera may be associated with European countries and foreign languages in many people’s minds, but there’s an active opera scene at Utah State University in which students can participate in competitions and performances.
Lily Takemoto, a second-year student studying musical performance with an emphasis in vocal performance, specializes in opera.
“My mom is an opera singer,” Takemoto said. “I grew up listening to her and watching her perform.”
According to Takemoto, her mom performed a lot of choral music, which has similarities to opera.
“I got to middle school and I started doing choir,” Takemoto said. “I then just came to the conclusion that singing was something I wanted to do.”
Although Takemoto participated in musical theater as well, she realized her true passion and strength in singing lay in the classical.
“I tend to feel free and just very relaxed,” Takemoto said. “It feels almost natural.”
Takemoto won a competition in classical singing in high school and knew it was something she was passionate about. However, she didn’t always intend to go to college to study vocal performance.
“I originally came here thinking I was going to do English education,” Takemoto said. “I really enjoy teaching, and English is one of my strongest subjects.”
According to Takemoto, she knew she still wanted to do something with music, so she committed to the music program as another option.
“I started my first semester and I was like, ‘No, music is what I really want to do,’” Takemoto said. “It’s what I’m most passionate about, and it’s my favorite thing.”
The difference between English education classes and music classes is a big one, but Takemoto said she is always excited about her different classes.
“In the voice program, every Tuesday we have a guest master class, so a guest comes and teaches,” Takemoto said. “Then every Thursday, we all rotate and take turns singing to each other. It’s good performance practice.”
Takemoto said the set-up of the different classes for vocal performance majors has helped them feel closer to each other.
“It’s a really great way for all of us to be supportive of each other,” Takemoto said. “I really like watching people improve and seeing how hard they’ve worked.”
According to Takemoto, there are also opportunities for music majors with different emphases to work together.
“I really like interacting with other musicians,” Takemoto said. “It’s super interesting to see how musicians with different instruments think about music.” Takemoto said the staff in the music program is also a highlight because they’re supportive of the students
Hi, my name is Ryan Anderson and I host a show called Emotional Spectrum Sounds. My show is meant to be a safe place to talk about emotions while showing vulnerability and validation through the music I play. Tune in every Thursday at 11 a.m. on Aggie Radio 92.3 FM.
and encourage different forms of musical thought.
“We all make music so differently, we all process it so differently,” Takemoto said. “I just really enjoy collaborating with everyone.”
Takemoto recently won the award for the audience favorite at the annual USU Aria Competition. The competition was put on by the Caine College of the Arts on Feb. 12.
The competition informed the audience on what opera is and condensed a three-hour piece to make it more accessible for the audience.
“You just sign up to compete, and you work with your vocal teacher to pick the right piece,” Takemoto said. “Whoever is judging the competition will pick the winner, and then we always do a poll for the audience favorite.”
Read the rest of this story at usustatesman.com.
Ella Stott is a first-year student studying English and journalism. When she’s not writing, she’s watching sitcoms and eating Greek yogurt.
— ella.stott@usu.edu
You Swan, Go On Various Artists
Medicine Bottle
Red House Painters
By Caitlin Keith NEWS REPORTER
Matt Richey, the 63rd member of his family to attend Utah State University and a lover of a Quickstop hotdog, has been named the USUSA student body president-elect for the 2024-25 school year.
Richey won the election with 60.62% of the vote. He will be serving on the USUSA executive leadership board with student advocate vice president Sydney Lyman and executive vice president Brooklyn Ward. The three members of the board will be serving Utah State students across the state.
The platform Richey ran on for the election was, “I will effectively represent and advocate for all USU students. My goals are to support all students through prioritizing community, culture, inclusion, and accessibility. Make it with Matt!”
In the election, Richey ran against four opponents: Jake Russell, Brayden Adamson, Jamie Parry and Sarah Pope.
Richey explained how he felt when he heard his name read out loud as the winner.
“I just couldn’t believe it,” Richey said. “It felt surreal. I could not feel my hands. It was just three minutes of just pure excitement.”
Richey is a junior studying economics with minors in anticipatory intelligence and aerospace studies.
He is from Ogden, “born and raised,” and is the second oldest of five kids in his family.
Since starting at Utah State, Richey has been a part of the student fee board, the USUSA Logan VP committee, USUSA activities committee and the Huntsman Business Council. He’s also a member of the Air Force ROTC and serves as the National Business Chair for the Arnold Air Society.
Last year, Richey ran for business senator and lost the election.
“After that experience, I reflected on ‘Do I want to be involved in this community?’” Richey said. “And I found that because of the people I met and the things we’ve been able to accomplish, that this is an organization that I’m proud of and excited to be a part of.”
Richey started at Utah State after serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in New York City, speaking Spanish.
One reason Richey decided to come to Utah State is because so much of his family have attended, starting with his great-grandparents who attended when it was the Utah College of Agriculture.
“I’m the 63rd member of my family to attend Utah State. My grandparents did a count like a couple weeks ago. They were like, ‘This is kind of fun,’” Richey said. He was also swayed towards Utah State by the Huntsman School of Business and the ROTC.
Outside of school, the ROTC and his other involvement, Richey enjoys rock climbing, running, playing the piano and watching “Top Gun: Maverick” or “The Shawshank Redemption.”
Students who saw Richey during his campaign may
have questions about the kilt he was wearing and the bagpipes sitting on his shoulder.
“My high school had a bagpipe program,” Richey said. “Ben Lomond High School in Ogden, Utah. We’re the Ben Lomond Scots because Scottish people were who settled the area. And so that’s kind of like our mascot. And you’ve got to have a bagpipe corps if you’re going to be the Scots.”
Four out of the five kids in Richey’s family were a part of this bagpipe corps and can now play the instrument. Richey borrowed his brother’s bagpipes to use as part of his campaign.
“I just thought it was, I don’t know, exciting,” Richey said. “I know election time is stressful for a lot of people. But I thought it was a fun way to start it off with a bang.”
One place Richey is likely to be found is at the Quickstop in the TSC, because his favorite food on campus is their hotdogs.
“One of my buddies put me on those hot dogs,” Richey said. “I’m there like three times a week. Those are good. And the pizza sticks, $1.59! Are you kidding me? Yeah,
more of that, please.”
Richey said if he were to perform at PoBev, he would probably perform a haiku. When asked what flavor of Aggie Ice Cream he would be, he tried to take the obvious answer and say Aggie ROTC, but then decided he would be Aggie Bull Tracks.
Another thing Richey has been involved in during his time at Utah State is the fraternity SigEp, which he says has helped him find a community.
“You need to have a group of people that you can rely on, that you can feel comfortable around, that you can
have a good community with,” Richey said. “For me, that was SigEp, my fraternity. I joined my first semester.” One of Richey’s plans for his term is to have his president’s cabinet meet with every dean and department head and representatives from every campus to see what resources they have. The goal is to see how they can share those resources with every student to give them more opportunities.
“One thing that all students have in common by definition is that we’re taking classes; we interact with faculty. And I think that the department heads and deans will
be able to be in touch enough with the needs of their students that they’ll be able to say, ‘Yeah, I think that we could use some outreach about that particular opportunity,’” Richey said.
His goal is to unite students across Utah State.
Richey said one life lesson he has learned that he believes will help him as president is that failure is not the end of anything.
“It’s important to learn from failure,” Richey said. “Take that time to debrief, learn from what you’ve done. But keep moving. You’re going to miss out on your next opportunity if you don’t.”
Richey started playing the piano when he was eight years old and fell in love with it a couple years later when he learned the song “Vienna” by Billy Joel. He said the musician is one of his role models, along with his dad.
When Richey was choosing what he wanted to study in college and what he wanted to do with his life, it came down to two options: playing the piano professionally or being a businessman. But his plan to be a businessman has since changed.
His goal now is to be a fighter pilot in the Air Force after he graduates, which makes sense since his favorite movie is “Top Gun: Maverick.”
Richey said his education in the Huntsman Business school still applies because he’s looking at going into politics after he’s done in the military.
“That’s something that I’ve toyed with in the past, but after this election cycle — it took a lot out of me. I don’t know if I’m, you know, prepared for anything bigger than this for sure,” Richey said.
According to Richey, his major, economics, is the more political side of business. He said he has always been interested in the impact the government has on the economy.
Richey is involved in a number of things on campus and said he will give up what he needs to in order to go back to the basics and prioritize being USUSA president.
“Those various clubs and organizations that I’m a part of, I will still seek to support as an individual when I can,” Richey said. “But, I have a duty to my students. This is my top priority.”
Richey used the word “good” to describe the legacy that he wants to leave at Utah State. He wants to complete the missions he will set out on as president, and his goal is to create a strong community within the student government where they can work well together and hold each other accountable.
“I just want a better Utah State University statewide,” Richey said.
Caitlin Keith is a senior studying journalism. As of three weeks ago, she only has one functioning ACL.
— c.keith@usu.edu
By Lacey Cintron LIFESTYLES REPORTER
Jump the Moon is a local nonprofit art studio providing individuals with disabilities — or diverse abilities, as Jump the Moon prefers — the tools, space and knowledge to realize their inner artist. At Jump the Moon’s newly remodeled location, 48 N. 100 W., visitors at all ability levels can create any sort of art they envision.
Michael Bingham, the founder and creative director, has been working with a group of volunteers through a four-month closure to revitalize and reopen the studio. In the next few weeks, Jump the Moon hopes to host a grand reopening with food, live music, art demonstrations and interactive activities.
“We’ll have artists demonstrating how to paint with a power chair or use a pendulum,” Bingham said. “We’ll have things people can try for themselves. We’ll have spin art machines going, or they can make a melted crayon drawing.”
The primary goal of the studio is to give everybody the opportunity to make art. According to their website, the studio encourages visitors to “make new friends and overcome your own perceived ‘Art Disabilities.’”
“We’d like for the whole community to be involved,” Bingham said. “We’re especially set up to help anybody that has a disability challenge.”
The inspiration for the studio came from Bingham’s 10 years as a high school art teacher.
“Right from the beginning, there were students with disabilities in my classes,” Bingham said. “Sometimes kids will spend all their highschool years in one room. When I found out there were students with more severe disabilities that hardly got into any classes, I insisted they be a part of the art classes.”
According to Bingham, art offered an opportunity for students to create something entirely for themselves.
“Once we found a way for them to be involved in making art, it would make a big difference in a student’s joy and self-worth,” Bingham said. “Especially if they were non-verbal or didn’t have a body that really worked — we had a few students who could only move their eyes.”
According to Bingham, he focused on helping people make art because of the space and time restraints that come with high school art classes.
“In my classes there were 40 students, and as a high school art teacher you get one hour, so maybe I would get to spend two minutes with each student,” Bingham said. “It just wasn’t enough time to explore what we can do with art. So I started dreaming about a nonprofit where we had plenty of time and room to do what isn’t possible in a classroom.”
Jump the Moon was established as a nonprofit in 2017. After losing their Main Street location and spending a brief stint at Utah State University’s Institute for Disability Research, Policy and Practice, the studio settled at their newest location in 2023. Visitors can expect to create art at their own pace with as little or as much
guidance as they desire.
“We don’t ask anybody what their disability challenge is,” Bingham said. “We never want to be a place that focuses on what somebody can’t do. Our focus is completely on what you can do.”
Jump the Moon seeks to avoid “hand over hand” assistance, where one person physically directs the work and movement of another. According to the article “The Problems with Hand over Hand,” this type of assistance is commonly used on people with disabilities, despite research indicating it can be invasive and is ineffective as a teaching method.
“We are not big fans of what’s called ‘hand over hand,’” Bingham said. “We’ve overcome that in a lot of different ways so that people can primarily make their own art and be proud of what they’ve accomplished on their own.”
The studio partners with USU engineering students to create assistive art devices adapted to the person, which enables visitors with diverse abilities to create art without needing to rely on somebody else.
In previous years, students have created crayon melting robots and tools suited to those who have trouble fully grasping items.
“We make some special crayon creations called doodles,” Bingham said. “They are shaped like donuts or other shapes that are much easier to hold. My favorite is one that has the whole color wheel, so if you can get one finger around it you have a whole box of crayons at your hand.”
The studio offers motorized wheelchairs with attachments that allow visitors to paint on large canvases.
Jump the Moon artist Kaya Eccles utilized one of these wheelchairs to create artwork on display at the Hyrum museum.
Read the rest of this story at usustatesman.com
Lacey Cintron is majoring in psychology. She loves learning about the human mind, sharing stories and naps.
— a02388032@usu.edu
Spring is approaching, and Utah State softball is gearing up for the 2024 season. After a 26-18 season in 2023, the team is looking to execute a winning season this year with the Moutain West Championship in reach.
The team’s main season is in the spring, but they have already had the chance to play some games.
“The fall season is basically only eight games. Those games are almost more like a scrimmage format. They give you a little bit of an indicator of where you’re going to stand and where you’re going to be going in the season. But you know, once the season starts it’s definitely much different,” said head coach Todd Judge. Judge started coaching in June and is optimistic about this season and what he thinks they can do.
“I think as a new coach coming in, the goal wasn’t immediately, you know, performance related to endpoint of a record or conference championship or both things, but to change the culture of the program.”
He believes the team he has this year can do that.
“Our goal 100% in the spring has been to win the conference championship and go to the NCAA tournament. If you’re not willing to say it, then it can’t happen,” Judge said.
In the offseason, teams can pick up players.
“One of our big players we got in the portal was Alex Bunton from San Diego State. Alex right now is killing it,” Judge said.
“Kaylee Erickson from BYU was a big pick up, one in the transfer portal we picked up. And then Ali [Ashner]after that we picked up from Arizona,” Judge said.
“Our biggest standout right now, not even a question, is Ariel Fifita. She is playing at a level that, when you’re playing at that level, you can’t wait to go play again,” Judge said.
Fifita has been at USU her whole collegiate career and has been a standout player for the Aggies.
“Just talking to coach Todd, I told him at the beginning of the season that I wanted to bring a 2.0 version of myself compared to last year,” Fifita said.
Fifita has become a leader on the team, and she has been able to grow as a player since last season.
“We have a pretty new team. The chemistry that we are building so far has allowed for my confidence to grow even more,” Fifita said.
Fifita’s batting average is a stellar .500.
“I was kind of just hitting the ball just to hit. Now I’m going up there with a plan and I know my role in the lineup,” Fifita said. “So, versus wanting to get that home run or having those big hits, I know my role is to get on base and to do my job.”
Fifita isn’t the only key player this year. Senior Alex Bunton, who plays third base, transferred from San Diego State and has been a strong player for the Aggies.
“Winning a Mountain West Championship — I know that we have the capability to do so. So, I’m really excited to be able to conquer that,” Bunton said.
Bunton has a batting average of .444 with three home runs.
“I don’t really think much. I think that I overthink a lot. So I try to keep my mind as blank as possible. If I am thinking anything, it’s probably a song,” said Bunton in response to what goes through her head when she steps up to bat.
“As far as mental toughness, I would just say I still go out there wanting to hit the ball hard, but now I have more of a plan,” Fifita said.
Team chemistry is an important part of any sport, especially with a team with new players.
“We have lots of team dinners, team lunches even after games. We are required to kind of sit together, but it doesn’t really feel like a requirement. We kind of all just choose to sit together,” Fifita said.
“Alex Bunton, Giselle Gonzalez, I would also say Brooklyn [Pritchett],” said Fifita about fellow players that have been key parts of the team. She also mentioned Erickson and sophomore Grace Matej.
“The intensity. Our coaching staff does bring out the most intense side of us,” Bunton said.
Aggie softball might have new players this year, but they are bringing the fire with great hitters and team chemistry.
Not only was hitting mentioned, but the pitchers and pitching staff are a huge part of the program. Judge and Fifita mentioned the pitchers and pitching coaches.
“It’s very rare in today’s world to have a pitching staff where it’s not just one person that does a good job. Our staff has done an amazing job as a group,” Judge said.
“Jessica Stewart, Denay Smith, Katie Zuniga — those three players pitching-wise have definitely, you know, come out to the field,” Fifita said.
The Aggies have a current record of 7-7, but they plan to keep winning and even win the conference.
“Coming up this weekend, I think we could very possibly have a 12 and seven record with that intensity that coach Todd does bring us,” said Bunton about games held on March 1.
“I know that we can be a 10, possibly an 11, but as a team, we just got to grow more and be able to become more comfortable and trust each other a little bit more, and I think we’ll be all set,” Bunton said.
The Aggies are set to play Idaho State University on March 19 and Boise State University on March 22-23; all three games will be in Logan.
Every sport at Utah State University utilizes different coaching styles depending on the type of sport, whether it be an individual, team, Division I or club sport.
In an article from the University of Kansas School of Education and Social Sciences, it explained the three generally accepted coaching styles; autocratic, democratic and holistic.
This information stems from the leadership studies conducted in the 1930s by Kurt Lewin, a German-American social psychologist and pioneer in the psychological study of group dynamics.
When asked about her preferred style of coaching, Veronika Golanova, head coach of the women’s tennis team said she uses a combination of the democratic and autocratic coaching styles.
Autocratic coaching can best be summed up by the phrase, “My way or the highway.” Instead of dictating to their athletes, coaches facilitate decision-making and goal-setting with input from them in democratic coaching.
“You have to find the balance. As the head coach, you have a lot of power, and you have to be able to use it in the correct way,” Golanova said.
When asked her preferred coaching style, Laura Fernanda Eugenio De Hilario, a senior on the women’s tennis team, explained she likes a direct approach best.
“I like an honest and direct coach. It might not be nice all the time, but it works. I feel like it’s the most effective, otherwise you’re babied throughout your career,” Fernanda said.
Golanova changes her style depending on the player.
“Tennis is a very individual sport, so everybody has their own style, so you tailor a lot to their personality and figure out what
get to the professional sport, the need to win impacts a
“As a coach, you have to fulfill a lot of rules. And of course we’re friends, but on the court you have the mentor, coach, adviser and teacher role,” Golanova said. A key factor of being a DI player is understanding the different relationships and interactions between coaches
“We know that there is a difference between on-court and off-court. The things we’re told on the court make us grow as a player and person. Outside the court, we can just have fun, and we learn how to separate those
Manny Martins, head coach of the women’s soccer team, said the holistic style best describes his coaching.
“I’d say holistic is the closest, I don’t think there’s really one specific because there are moments when we as coaches have to adopt each of those methods and that’s part of being a leader,” Martins said.
Holistic coaching is founded on the theory that a happy team naturally becomes a successful team.
“We coach through relationships, and you either go through fear or establish a solid base of relationship founded on respect, honesty and communication,”
Before each practice, the players take a wellness survey documenting where they are physically, mentally and otherwise. A leadership committee meets once a week to determine how the team is feeling
“This information we’ve gathered helps us change and adjust our practice sessions based on the outcome of these surveys,”
Addie Hemsley is a junior studying English creative writing and journalism. In her free time, she loves watching movies, reading, writing, hanging with friends and playing all types of sports.
— addie.hemsley@usu.edu
Utah’s state legislature recently passed HB202 regarding student-athletes and NIL deals at the collegiate level. NIL deals allow any student at the university to receive compensation for the use of their name, image and likeness; often, however, the deals go to student-athletes. This is the first bill Utah has passed relating to NIL deals, and it will be enacted on May 1.
Associate athletic director for compliance Tony Hearrell’s job is to answer questions about NIL deals and provide the necessary education for players on them. He reviews contracts that players bring to him to ensure there is no pay-for-play.
Hearrell’s job isn’t to approve the deals, but just to review them.
“We can monitor from my standpoint to make sure there’s no pay-for-play,” Hearrell said.
It is against NCAA rules for players to receive payment to stay at a specific school. Thus, there is a fine line to be drawn between illegal pay-for-play and legal NIL deals, and this is where Hearrell comes in.
Before the bill was passed, Utah State University was bound by NCAA rules.
“What NIL looks like in the state of Utah may be different than what NIL looks like in the state of Florida or North Carolina,” Hearrell said.
As of right now, before the bill goes into effect, the university is not allowed to be involved in these deals. They must follow NCAA rules, which do not allow institutional involvement with NIL deals, according to Hearrell.
Student-athletes are currently not required to disclose any deals to the university — that is, until the bill goes into effect.
One of the struggles for the athletics department is there is no way for them to know if players have received an NIL deal.
“If McDonald’s did a deal with one of our players, and they’re giving them $1,000 a month and they don’t say anything, we don’t see it,” Hearrell said. “We have asked them to, but there’s no way for us or any other entity to require it because it is not required by the NCAA. So, there could not be repercussions if they don’t.”
The new bill requires disclosing deals that are over $600. The NCAA will be enacting that same rule later this year on Aug. 1, according to Hearrell.
“That [HB202] is mirroring that rule. I can almost guarantee you,” Hearrell said.
Hearrell likened non-disclosure from players to the university to going over the speed limit.
“You ever drive five over the speed limit? You get pulled over? No. Did you break the law? Yes,” Hearrell said. The university is not involved with setting up contracts for the athletes. That is done between the athlete and the company sponsoring them.
Hearrell says one of the best ways for him to know these things are happening is through educating the coaches and players. He believes they will come to him about these deals if they know they can go to him for education. “There’s nothing wrong with NIL, so there’s no reason to
hide it,” Hearrell said.
One reason the bill is being passed is because of pay-to-play, so schools don’t pay players for the purposes of playing.
“Does the contract state that you have to stay here to receive this?” Hearrell said about a hypothetical review.
Hearrell then described what a collective is.
“It’s just a group that gets together that raises funds to be able to give the athletes, you know, use the athlete’s NIL to promote their collective,” Hearrell said.
The collective can act in a variety of ways, including using the athlete’s NIL to promote their business or charity.
Hearrell gave an example of how this works.
“You’re going to promote this nonprofit or this collective, you’re going to make an appearance, like for example, Ruby’s from 6-9 p.m., where you’re going to meet people in the community, sign autographs, you know, you’re going to wear a t-shirt about the collective,” Hearrell said. “In return, we’re going to give you $500.”
then gets social media posts from the players in return. Maes knew some players before he opened the barbershop, which is how he got this NIL deal with the team.
Each institution has its own collective.
Anyone can come to Hearrell for deals they want to do with athletes at Utah State. Then, he can connect those people to the players to set up a deal between them. Hearrell described himself as the gatekeeper to the NIL rules at the university.
“The more people educated on it, the less issues you have,” Hearrell said.
Darius Brown II, guard for the men’s basketball team, said he has had NIL deals during the season. He specifically spoke about Ruby’s and Boneyard Barbering.
“The whole team gets free haircuts for posting about them,” Brown II said.
People and companies usually reach out to him through social media or Opendorse.
“Opendorse is an app that goes through the school, so the school sees all your NIL deals, and they can reach out to you through there,” Brown II said.
Out of all the deals Brown II has, he said Boneyard is his favorite.
Marcus Maes, barber and owner of Boneyard Barbering, sponsors the men’s basketball team with free haircuts. He
“When I was going to college at Utah State, I was friends with a lot of players. And I played just kind of pick-up with them and naturally started cutting their hair when I opened up the barbershop,” Maes said.
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Jack Johnson is not named after a singer, but a buttermilker. Everyone knows his name, but he rarely knows theirs.
— jack.johnson@usu.edu
Dane Johnson is a sophomore studying mechanical engineering. He enjoys photography, dad jokes and any activity in the great outdoors.
— a02340940@usu.edu
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