The Utah Statesman - April 29, 2024

Amanda Petersen ‘doesn’t quit’

By Reagan Thomas NEWS REPORTER

Amanda Petersen, a master’s graduate at Utah State University, took an unexpected path through college.

Petersen began her master’s program in 2020. At the end of the 2022 spring semester, she was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer, which is the most aggressive form, Petersen said.

Not only was Petersen dealing with cancer, she was taking multiple classes a semester, all while teaching undergraduate classes and raising her children.

“I think that a lot of people would have postponed or left the program altogether,” Matt Petersen, Amanda’s husband, wrote in a text message.

Amanda didn’t take time off.

“I worked it out with the department so I could keep teaching,” Amanda said.

Amanda taught during all three semesters she was battling cancer. She would teach her classes at the beginning of the week, then do chemotherapy on Thursdays and recover during the weekend.

Amanda had five surgeries during her master’s program, including a mastectomy. The cancer is gone for now, but there’s a significant likelihood of it coming back in the first few years of remission.

“My life has been extended,” she said. “My mantra is, Today’s today.’ I can’t sit there and wonder all of the what-ifs. I need to live life now.”

Kathy Puzey, the department head of art and design at USU, wrote in an email Amanda is a hardworking and dedicated student. “She has faced hard challenges head on,” Puzey wrote.

After starting her undergraduate degree in art education, Amanda and her husband moved out of state for her husband’s graduate education. Upon moving back to Utah several years later, Amanda felt like she needed to finish her education because of her three kids.

“I want my kids to see how important education is,” she said.

Amanda got her bachelor’s degree in art education from Weber State University in 2020, after which she began a master of Fine Arts in the printmaking program at USU.

“Her work continued to develop because she was open to feedback and willing to take risks,” Puzey said. “Despite some big roadblocks, Amanda continued to work.”

Matt said it was difficult watching his wife go through chemotherapy.

“I don’t think that I can describe in words the experience that Amanda persevered through,” he wrote.

Matt wrote his wife maintained her sense of humor and “during chemotherapy often highlighted the fact that we were ‘bald buddies’ though we were both bald not by choice,” he added.

Before Amanda was diagnosed, she pondered defense mechanisms. Insects and reptiles have defense mechanisms like spines on their bodies and acids that warn

other creatures to stay away.

Amanda’s art reflected this thinking. She screen printed objects that were useless, such as an umbrella with holes, a telephone without buttons and a butter knife with no blade.

Amanda had recently lost her dad, stepdad and uncle in a two-year span.

While she was processing the grief of losing family members, she thought human defense systems were useless. The grief cycle is something that never goes away and no one is spared from, she had said.

“Once I was diagnosed, I realized, oh, these defense mechanisms are important,” Amanda said.

Before her cancer diagnosis, Amanda kept her art palatable to her family, wondering if they would have a negative reaction.

However, after diagnosis and after her mastectomy, Amanda realized she wasn’t being vulnerable with herself. She wanted to control the narrative.

“When you get diagnosed with something like that, you don’t have a lot of control,” she said.

Amanda’s art changed as she utilized her new perspective.

“I was able to translate that into art. I never would have been that vulnerable before,” Amanda said.

During her childhood, Amanda as always involved in art and print. She job-shadowed her dad, who worked for a global print shop. Amanda did art in school and worked part-time print jobs. Before getting married, she did fine art framing at her dad’s company.

After she got married, she printed Braille for five years. Working with books or art has “always been my adult job,” Amanda said.

“Art-making is a part of Amanda,” Puzey said. “It is more than what she does. Being an artist is who she is.”

Printmaking has been a large part of Amanda’s college experience.

Combining art education with printmaking is important, Amanda said. “You can trace that back to Lascaux cave where people are putting handprints like they’re making their mark.”

Amanda said whether it’s was letterpress printing or relief carving or linoleum carving, “you’re removing material, and you have that magic of inking the plate up, running it through the press, and it goes through all of that pressure. And something amazing happens on the other side. You have that aha moment where you get to peel back the paper and all of a sudden, your progress is revealed,” she said.

Amanda likes the touching up that comes after. “You’re able to glean that from the beauty of the printmaking processes,” she said.

Amanda is proud of her accomplishments throughout her graduate degree. “As a collective whole, being able to have institutions that supported me while being a student, a mother, and then a cancer patient,” she said. Amanda said she wouldn’t have been able to complete the master’s without her support she received from her grad committee.

“Amanda is tenacious, very tenacious,” Matt said. “She doesn’t quit.”

Amanda is searching for job opportunities in the valley and elsewhere, looking for what is best for her and her family. “Ultimately, I would love to be teaching because that is what I love to do,” she said. “Looking for opportunities to share my love of art.”

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

PHOTO BY Heidi Bingham Amanda Petersen.

Tyler Rich connects campuswide

By Malory Rau NEWS REPORTER

When Utah native Tyler Rich arrived at Utah State, he was set to be a finance major in the Huntsman Scholar program. Little did he know he would later graduate with three bachelor’s degrees and leave a lasting impact on not only the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business but Utah State itself.

In addition to the finance degree, Rich added on economics and later data analytics, Rich said as he progressed in the business school, he started discovering more of what he was interested in and wanted to accomplish in his lifetime, which is what lead him to triple major.

“In business school in general, I’ve had experiences inside and especially, I think, outside the classroom that helped me to define who I am and what I want, and how I want to help the world, or how I want to help my future employer,” Rich said.

Rich was a leader in the Huntsman Scholar program, led partially by assistant director Stephanie Hamblin.

“It’s really easy to see leadership positions as a power thing or authority. I don’t think that’s true,” Rich said. “I see it as an opportunity to help those that I’m serving grow and reach their highest potential.”

Hamblin said she was impressed with Rich’s capabilities to impact USU outside

of the business school and the scholars program.

“Tyler creates value in whatever he does,” Hamblin said. “He would look for connections not just within the Huntsman School of Business but campus-wide, which was impressive.”

Scholars are divided into small groups, or cohorts, which each have a student leader assigned to them. Rich was assigned as a cohort leader.

“I have helped coordinate a few different events with our scholars, and they’ve all been focused on either serving our community or just helping the cohort members develop themselves, professionally and academically. I think that’s the biggest thing, is just planning to be focused and seeing the needs of those you serve as greater than your own,” Rich said.

At the end of his time at Utah State, Rich was awarded the Val R. Christensen Service Award, alongside being a finalist for other Robins awards. According to the Robins Award website, the service award is given to those whose service and volunteering has significantly impacted Utah State and its community.

Rich said he was shocked and humbled by the award.

Outside of the business school, Rich was also involved with multiple campus organizations. He was the clubs director for USUSA and the vice president of the USU chapter of Their Story is Our Story,

also known as TSOS.

Rich was inspired to get involved with the chapter after serving a two-year mission in Germany for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

As stated on the USUSA website, the mission of TSOS is to “share stories of the newcomer journey to advocate and educate, and to actuate integration. We transform the perception and reception of newcomers and displaced persons worldwide, one story at a time. Ultimately, we envision a world where there is no ‘them,’ only us.”

Rich said an event he was particularly proud of this year was The Power of Stories. 30 different people, who in total had ties to 15 different countries, were able to share their diverse stories with each other.

The event saw an age range of young USU students to people upwards of 60 years old.

“Pretty much about as diverse a group of 30 people as you can get,” Rich said.

Rich was also able to host an event called Service ‘n’ Soup this year, where students who participated in service projects were able to receive a bowl of soup. The event took place during the fall semester in the TSC lounges. Rich thought this event was a big contributor to his Robins Award win.

Rich plans to move out to Minneapolis for the summer with his wife, Anna, who he met at USU. He has secured a summer internship with the company Family Search. The couple will be back in Logan for the fall semester as Anna finishes her degree, but Rich will miss his favorite Aggie Ice Cream flavor, Aggie Joy, while he is gone.

Malory Rau is a rising junior who often gets confused for singer Renee Rapp and has big shoes to fill next year as news editor.

SUBMITTED PHOTO Tyler Rich.

CEHS graduate Kiernan Callister committed to research

By Sam Goodman LIFESTYLES REPORTER

Kiernan Callister is set to graduate from Utah State University this spring, and her passion for psychology will continue to advance her education.

“I am graduating with a bachelor of science in psychology and a minor in criminal justice,” Callister said. “What I plan to do is eventually become a professor and do research. I also just committed to a Ph.D. program here as well.”

Callister grew up in West Jordan, and her decision to attend USU ran in the family.

“I had a bunch of family that had gone up here before,” Callister said. “I always saw my cool older cousins going to Utah State and thought it would be fun.”

Like many college students, Callister found starting school meant not completely knowing what to study. “I wanted to go into nursing, and this was when the nursing program just barely got up and started so I kind of wanted to get in on it getting off the ground,” Callister said.

Callister eventually found her calling in psychology and is excited to explore the field further.

“I honestly remember taking classes leading up to the nursing ones, and I took a psych class and really liked it,” Callister said. “Then I took behavior analysis, it was right after that one, and I fell in love with the behavior analysis stuff, so then I switched.”

Since 2022, Callister has been working in a lab, and she has worked closely on rat lab experiments and studies.

“I started in Dr. Amy Odum’s behavior analysis lab in

January of 2022 and started a project,” Callister said. “My lab has developed a brand new study on vaping in rats. So I have been on that project for the past two years and had kind of helped run those projects. Through my involvement with that project, I was able to get a second one and evaluated the inclusion of female subjects in our behavior research.”

Amy Odum has been at USU for 20 years, and along

with her research work, she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses.

“We have been developing a model where rats can vape completely voluntarily, with their nose,” Odum said. “We are getting the data that rats will use this, and they have nicotine in their blood. The part that makes humans and rats vulnerable to vaping is similar. Our goal is to help the Food and Drug Administration regulate e-cigarettes.” Odum is thrilled to have Callister back and had high praise for her.

“Kiernan has been working here for two years, and she is really essential to our grant,” Odum said. “She’s an amazing collaborator, with a lot of energy and vision — very critical to this project and getting this one off the ground. Grateful to have her working with us, always enthusiastic, willing to work. So happy she chose to stay here.”

— a02401436@usu.edu

PHOTO BY Heidi Bingham

Kiernan Callister.

Sam Goodman is a junior studying journalism with an emphasis in print.

Flying free: Pilot Parker Rollins soars to graduation from College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences

By Ashley Dorius LIFESTYLES REPORTER

Taking to the skies of Utah State University’s Price Campus, Parker Rollins is graduating this spring from the College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences with a dual major in professional piloting for fixed-wing and aviation management. His journey took a major change, with a campus transition and hours of training, but he is ready to move on to the next chapter. Following a religious mission in Portland, Rollins chose to be an Aggie after being accepted to USU, University of Utah and Brigham Young University. He started at the Logan campus in the spring of 2020 with a major in mechanical engineering. However, he realized engineering wasn’t his passion.

“The first class in the mechanical engineering program is just an introduction to it,” Rollins said. “I just didn’t love it. I didn’t go home every day excited to do the homework or go to class excited. It was more like, ‘OK, I could do this.’ But I didn’t love it.”

Rollins took a few aviation courses, but he said what changed his life and major was a discovery flight.

“I did a lot of searching the next semester,” Rollins said. “Took a bunch of different courses, a couple of aviation ones, and then I’m like, ‘OK, I like this. Let’s go see if I like flying in a small airplane.’ So, I took that discovery flight. The second we took off, I knew that’s where I wanted to be. I fell in love with it from that point on. So that passion and love is there, where I don’t regret going to work.”

Due to construction on the Logan runway, Rollins moved down to Price for piloting. He originally planned to transfer back to Logan, but he never did.

“I actually moved down to Price because Logan’s main runway at the airport was getting refinished,” Rollins said. “They weren’t having any of the private pilot classes, which is the first step in getting your pilot’s certificate. So they’re like, ‘Price is an option,’ and so I’m like, ‘Well, I guess I want to go fly, so I’ll go down to Price,’ and then I’ve been in Price ever since then.”

Rollins said he tried to move back to Logan three times, but something always stopped him. He said he was grateful because he wouldn’t have received all the opportunities he had or met his wife if he hadn’t moved.

“I was willing and open to stay down here, and because I stayed down here, I was given more opportunities and more chances to flourish out here,” Rollins said. “I’m grateful that I stayed because it not only gave me a great career. I mean, I found my wife, got married, and so I’ve had so many opportunities being down here in Price that I wouldn’t have had in Logan. They might not be the most flashy opportunities because Price isn’t the biggest, but it’s exactly where I needed to be.”

Rollins married someone who also loves aviation. His wife, Heather, is a drone enthusiast graduating with a degree in aviation management. He said they flew away from their wedding reception, which was held in an airport.

Shawn Barstow, assistant professor of aviation, worked with Rollins and is his father-in-law.

“She liked him right away, and he was just a dumb guy who didn’t, you know, realize it for about a year,” Rollins. “They take a while. But they got married, and now they’re happy.”

Barstow said he loves a lot about Rollins, both as a pilot and as a son-in-law.

“I liked him so much as a son-in-law because of his work and his work ethic,” Barstow said. “He’s very self-motivated. When he wants to do something, he just goes out and does it. He got his instructor rating early, so now his last semester of school, he’s actually an in-flight instructor, teaching others how to fly until he graduates. He’s the kind of employee who I could give them a task and I could walk away and know it will get done.”

Barstow said he admires Rollins’ flexibility in addition with his reliability and dedication.

“He’s able to adapt to any situation, whether it be talking to elementary kids or talking to high school kids, doing a presentation in front of a large group of adults or teaching class,” Barstow said. “The coolest part about knowing Parker is watching the growth because when he first started four years ago, he was just a punk little college kid. But now he’s a professional pilot, ready to leave the university and to go out and conquer the world.”

Rollins said aviation is a good profession to get mentorship. He had several people offer to help him along the

way, especially a family friend who got him started and continues to help him fill out applications for airlines.

“One of the biggest things for me was one of my main mentors — his name is Rob Midgley,” Rollins said. “He was there every step of the way, helping me get into flight school, figure things out. He’s still helping me to this point because I’m getting to the point where I can apply to the airlines.”

Rollins said the aviation program includes a lot of people who are willing to help other pilots get ahead.

“I’ve been able to go to so many different events with USU, “ Rollins said. “I’ve been fortunate enough to work with the UAS program and the outreach for the Aviation Department. Through that, I’ve met a lot of incredible people. One thing I’ve found in aviation is everybody is always for each other. You’ll never find somebody who isn’t willing to give back and help the next generation or just share that love. Something that I want to take forward is, I want to always be there for the next pilots — the next people coming in.”

According to Rollins, instructors are a big part of his life, and he appreciates all of the help they’ve given him.

“I give a lot of credit to my instructors Ashley and Richard,” Rollins said. “They shared everything that they had — all the knowledge, all the expertise — and I still look up to them. Also, my current chief instructor Claudio. I look up to him for all of his expertise and for continuously learning. I’m fortunate enough to have had great instructors because none of it would have been possible without them.”

Rollins said his instructors inspire him to be a better pilot and teacher.

“I hope that I can be an instructor to my students the way that my instructors were to me,” Rollins said. “I want to be that example and someone they can come back to in a couple of years when they’re getting ready to start moving on and just have someone to help them because that’s where Richard, Ashley and Claudio have all been to me.”

SUBMITTED PHOTO Parker Rollins.

Ashley Dorius is a first-year student studying English with a teaching emphasis. A Nebraska native, she loves exploring old bookstores, quoting New Girl, eating soft pretzels and being a Swiftie.

Daniella Rivera leaves mark on College of Engineering

By Lacey Cintron LIFESTYLES REPORTER

Over 40,000 students are currently enrolled in Utah State University’s mechanical engineering program, according to the Office of Analysis, Assessment and Accreditation, ushering in a new wave of aspiring engineers. Daniella Rivera, a fourth-year student studying mechanical engineering, is one of them.

Rivera started at USU in 2019, ready for a new environment like many incoming college students.

“Coming to college was a big change,” Rivera said. “I didn’t realize how much or how little time I would have to be social. I’ve had some great memories, and Logan has such a beautiful campus with beautiful scenery.”

Compelled by a knack for math and a love for problem solving, Rivera chose to study mechanical engineering.

“I love challenges,” Rivera said. “I was pretty good at math, and my mom always joked that I had to become a doctor, engineer or a lawyer because my parents didn’t go to college. I felt like it was up my route.”

Often, inspiration strikes from family, friends or one-off experiences. For Rivera, a childhood memory played a huge role in her career pursuit.

“I had a friend’s dad who came to our fourth-grade class to talk about being a NASA engineer,” Riviera said. “That really inspired me. My parents have been very strongwilled and have always been around for me. I have inspiring parents who have always been there to encourage me to do harder things.”

In Rivera’s first few years at USU, she grappled with her identity when it came to being in STEM.

“At first, I actually did not want to identify as an engineer,” Rivera said. “But I was still doing it, and I was still passionate about engineering. Then I realized how lonely it is to not have a community, especially with how rigorous this major is, so I got involved with the Society of Women Engineers.”

Founded in 1950, the SWE aims to empower, enrich and recognize the achievements of women working as engineers in the male-dominated industry.

According to Zippia.com, a staggering 86.3% of all engineers are men, while 13.7% are women. Furthermore, 67.9% are white – minority groups occupy less than half of these occupations.

The SWE, on top of empowering its members, conducts its own research and lobbying in an attempt to alter these trends and seek equity for women engineers.

Utah is one of two states with the smallest percentage of female engineers, at only 9% according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The work done by SWE at USU is critical in involving more women in this field.

Rivera served as the vice president of outreach for the SWE and later went on to become president. In these positions, Rivera worked with K-12 students to embrace their inner engineer and help them explore STEM fields. “I found a passion in inspiring kids who came from similar backgrounds as me and who are also minorities in the field,” Riviera said. “It’s been great to have a community of inspiring, powerful women who know their place in the STEM fields.”

Associate professor Elizabeth Vargis is the faculty adviser for the SWE chapter at USU.

“The SWE is highly active in this university,” Vargis said. “We do tables at every Science Unwrapped. We’re active at STEM fairs at local, elementary, middle and high schools.”

As the elected vice president of outreach, Rivera coordinated many of these efforts.

“Daniella is an outstanding person — a fantastic leader,” Vargis said. “As the VP of outreach, she looked into areas of Utah that are under-served. She started this event where we go down to the Blanding area to serve all the elementary schools.”

Rivera’s approach to mentorship stuck out to Vargis as uniquely inspiring.

“I’m an Indian immigrant. In my mind I’m thinking, ‘These college-educated kids are going to go teach engineering in the way they think it should be,’” Vargis said.

“I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Daniella taught people that they’re already engineers. She’s using activities and motivations that really resonate with that community.”

Rivera’s perspective on engineering education focuses on what’s relevant today and what’s accessible to people from all backgrounds.

“Daniella decided that we were not going to talk about

the old German scientist who made these theories 200 years ago,” Vargis said. “We’re going to talk about current Native people looking at stars and studying different medicines. It’s all within this context that’s way more relatable.”

Innovation, ambition and drive are all qualities the SWE hopes to see from its members, and Vargis saw these same traits in Rivera.

“She took on this thing that nobody told her to do. She saw a need that she felt was important and decided she was going to do it right,” Vargis said.

After college, Rivera plans to spend some time exploring other interests: mentorship and art.

“I’m taking some time off, and I’ll actually be working as an art teacher,” Rivera said. “It’s kind of a passion project thing. I think everyone should take a break after working really hard in school.”

Rivera will also work as a flight test engineer.

“I’m going to be working with commercial airplanes,” Rivera said. “I’ll be flying on airplanes to ensure they’re following safety standards, are produced and sent to airlines so the community can fly on them.”

According to Vargis, engineering provides knowledge necessary to a variety of different issues.

“Engineering gives you a different framework that is necessary to work with all the other people involved in big problems,” Vargis said. “Problems like, ‘How do we deal with the Great Salt Lake? How do we deal with years of drought?’ There’s engineers making the tools and solving the actual problem.”

Vargis said it’s more a student’s curiosity and investment in the science that makes a great engineer, rather than skill level.

Because engineering lacks female representation, Vargis encourages any aspiring students to try their hand at engineering and follow in the footsteps of graduates like Rivera.

“If the male-domination bothers you, then think about me — come to engineering so I don’t have to be in a male-dominated world,” Vargis said.

Lacey Cintron is majoring in psychology. She loves learning about the human mind, sharing stories and naps.

PHOTO BY Heidi Bingham

Daniella Rivera.

Graduate Ian Parvin unites music and STEM

By Ella Stott LIFESTYLES REPORTER

Ian Parvin originally came to Utah State University to study mechanical engineering, but after graduation he is going to pursue a graduate degree at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

Parvin said his favorite activity in elementary school was music, and he still keeps in touch with his music teacher.

“In third grade, you were allowed to audition for the choir,” Parvin said. “She asked who was going to do it, and I didn’t raise my hand. In front of everybody, she picked me out and said, ‘Ian, raise your hand.’ She knew that I had some musical ability that I didn’t even know I really had.”

According to Parvin, this made a big impact on the way he saw himself in music.

“In elementary school, in fifth grade, when the guidance counselor from the middle school I went to came, and we had to fill out these forms for what electives we wanted to take. My top choices were orchestra and then band and then choir,” Parvin said. “I guess I knew I wanted to play an instrument.”

Parvin said he tried out several instruments before choosing the viola.

“I thought the violin was too high and screechy,” Parvin said. “I really wanted to play the cello, but I didn’t want to lug it around. I don’t know why orchestra seemed to pull me, but that’s how I settled on the viola.”

Parvin played the viola throughout middle and high school, participating in school and local orchestras. He knew he wanted to keep playing when he went to college.

“I wanted to be involved in the music program,” Parvin said. “I was considering doing a minor in mu sic.”

The USU Symphony Orchestra is open to all students, including non-majors, so Parvin decided to audition in his first year.

“I ended up getting principal violist that very first semester,” Parvin said. “That first semester, I was only doing mechanical engineering and playing in the symphony.”

As he spent more time with the orchestra, Parvin got invited to studio classes. There he met Bradley Ottesen, professor of viola and chamber orchestra, as well as a violist on the USU quartet-in-residence, the Fry Street Quartet.

Parvin said Ottesen invited him to take a lesson shortly after meeting. After the lesson, Ottesen asked Parvin if he’d be interested in joining the music program.

“As I got to know Ian, it was clear how prodigiously talented he was — a truly natural musician,” Ottesen said.

Parvin wanted to keep his engineering degree, but Ottesen convinced him to add music performance as a second degree.

“I just felt weird dropping my engineering degree, so I kept going with mechanical engineering for two and a half, three years,” Parvin said. “Then I realized I didn’t like it.”

After several classes, Parvin realized working for companies and designing parts wasn’t what he wanted to do.

“I wanted to do something that seemed more impactful to me,” Parvin said.

Parvin said the Fry Street Quartet helped him realize what he wanted to do. The group is well-known for sustainability work and bringing the climate crisis into view through their music.

“The Fry Street Quartet is very socially-minded, and they want their artistry to make an impact,” Parvin said. “That shifted my thinking in the engineering world. If I’m going to do engineering, I want to be in a field that has a more meaningful impact to communities.”

Ella Stott is a first-year student studying English and journalism because she hates money. When she’s not writing, she’s watching sitcoms, eating Greek yogurt and admiring Nebraska corn.

—

ella.stott@usu.edu

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Tom Sherlock’s path from substance abuse to social work

By Henry Wright

When Tom Sherlock receives his degree in social work from Utah State University in May, a 27-year journey will come to an end. Sherlock’s path to a bachelor’s degree began in 1997 after he graduated from Logan High School. Soon after his enrollment, Sherlock thought college wasn’t the right path for him to pursue.

“I tried doing a couple of classes, and I just couldn’t get to classes, couldn’t finish homework and couldn’t figure out what was wrong,” Sherlock said. “I wasn’t in itself a place of self-actualization. I tried again two more times over the course of the next 20 years, but I couldn’t finish it.”

Sherlock subsequently stopped taking classes but remained in Logan and was working as a medical assistant at Logan Regional Hospital during 2020 when a desire to go back to school emerged.

“COVID was an extremely stressful time for me and my family because I was working at the hospital and coming home to a medically fragile son,” Sherlock said. “2020 was also the year when I noticed a lot of division in the country. I’ve always been working jobs where I wanted to help people, but I didn’t know there was a helping profession, and social work is a helping profession. That was when I realized I wanted to go back to school.”

After discovering he wanted to pursue a degree in social work at Utah State, Sherlock realized he needed to make significant changes in his own life before he could enroll in school again.

“While I was working at the hospital, I developed a substance abuse disorder. I was a mess. I was no good for myself and no good for my family,” Sherlock said. “Part of coming back to school was not just that I was seeing stuff on TV, part of it was that I knew I couldn’t fix the stuff that I saw on TV until I wasn’t part of the problem.”

Sherlock proceeded to voluntarily check himself into a rehab facility in Cache Valley, where he recovered from the effects of substance abuse and addressed some underlying mental health issues previously untreated. After receiving treatment and being accepted into the

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social work program, Sherlock was still skeptical about his ability to succeed as a non-traditional student.

“I was 42 at the time and older than everyone else,”

Sherlock said. “I didn’t know if this old dog could learn new tricks.”

As it turns out, this one could. Sherlock was recognized for his work in the classroom and was named the Social Work Student of the Year. While at USU, Sherlock has applied many of the principles he learned in the classroom to improve himself and his relationships with his wife and three kids, two of whom have been diagnosed with autism.

“We’re a unique family, having two kids with disabilities, and you have to learn how to educate your kids in different ways,” Sherlock said. “Being able to go through the social work program has given me a lot of information that I could use personally as a father too. I didn’t really see that coming when I went back to school, but it was cool to learn.”

Sherlock also expressed gratitude for having opportunities to learn outside of the traditional classroom.

4/12/24

- A trouble alarm went of in the ARC. USU Fire Marshals and Facilities officials responded and found the alarm to be in error. The issue was reported for repair and no safety threat was detected.

Sherlock attended Social Work Day on the Hill during the Utah Legislative Session where he met with the Utah chapter of the National Association of Social Workers and discussed the impact proposed legislation would have on the profession.

During Sherlock’s time at Utah State, he also attended different mental health conferences where he had the opportunity to meet and network with other social workers. “Now I’m prepared with this new information going forward, which is rad, but the cool thing is that I got to rub elbows with other people,” Sherlock said. “What really changes me personally by going to these conferences is that I’m out there living it. I’m doing it. I’m a social worker, and I’m rubbing shoulders with other social workers.”

After graduation, Sherlock plans to attend graduate school online at Tulane University while also working as a substance abuse counselor at the same rehab facility he graduated from four years ago.

Sherlock’s favorite memory from his time at Utah State was seeing the Aggies’ men’s basketball team defeat the University of New Mexico to win the regular season Mountain West championship. But unlike the same orange and gold seats in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum present when Tom Sherlock first stepped on campus as a student in 1997, he will graduate from Utah State changed forever.

“I came into the university feeling like a broken human being,” Sherlock said. “But I was treated as an individual that had a lot of potential energy stored in him. Because I was treated that way, I was mentored enough to be able to turn that into kinetic energy and start a career in social work.”

Henry Wright is a junior studying political science, American studies and anticipatory intelligence. He loves to travel, watch sports and spend time outdoors.

— henry.wright@usu.edu

4/9/24

- USUPD officers responded to the report of a suspicious odor in Moutain View Tower. Officers searched the area and did not detect any threat to safety.

4/13/24

- A vehicle sustained damage when a ball left the field of play at Johnson Field.

4/15/2024

- USU Parking reported finding graffiti in the Big Blue Parking Terrace. The word “SKID” was found painted on saftey equipment. The responding officer took pictures and placed them into evidence.

4/16/24

- A parking pass was illegally taken from an unlocked vehicle on campus. The suspect was identified and the parking pass recovered.

4/18/24

- A citizen reported being bitten while attempting to enter their vehicle by a dog being walked on a leash. The individual declined medical attention and reported the incident to USUPD.

4/20/2024

- An individual who suffered a fall was assisted by Emergency Medical and USU Public Safety officials. After being assessed by EMS on scene, the individual was released.

PHOTO BY Jack Burton Tom Sherlock.

Anais Barrientos turns outdoor passion into profession

By Maren Archibald and Jack Johnson STATESMAN REPORTERS

This week, Anais Barrientos will graduate from the S.J. and Jessie E. Quinney College of Natural Resources at Utah State University. Her degree is in conservation restoration ecology and a minor in watershed science along with a certificate in Geographic Information Science — a culmination of her lifelong passion for the outdoors.

At a young age, Barrientos was surrounded by nature because her family spent a lot of time outdoors. This festered into a full and abundant love for the wild side of life.

“Growing up with my family, we did a lot of hiking and camping which kind of introduced me to just spending time outside and being dirty,” Barrientos said. She grew up attending a charter school that took a backpacking trip when she was in the sixth grade, one of her favorite memories of recreating outdoors. Her group travelled to Zion National Park, and it was the descent into the valley that gripped her love for nature.

“It made me realize this is something that I want to do long-term,” Barrientos said. “It was just so cool.”

Although her love of nature came from hanging out with family and friends outside, she also enjoys learning about the technical aspects of studying the outdoor world.

“It’s been cool to be able to get in on the science side of things, not just the recreation side of things like that,” Barrientos said.

She transitioned this love for the outdoors to a career when she started to obtain internships and seasonal jobs, including a few summers working as a vegetation tag.

“It’s really fun to spend so much time on a landscape and get to know all the little plants around you,” Barrientos said. “Before college, I just was always like, ‘Oh, plants,’ but now I can look at it and I can tell you exactly what it is.”

Barrientos said her classes were primarily field-based, so she learned many hands-on skills, including electrofishing and gill netting in a fall fisheries class.

Last summer, Barrientos worked for a Forest Service fisheries crew in the Payette National Forest in McCall, Idaho. She is returning there again this summer as a seasonal permanent employee.

“I work May through November for as many years as I want,” Barrientos said. “It’s such a fun job, and so I’m very excited to be back.”

Outside of school, Barrientos focused her love and energy for nature into a nonprofit organization called Backcountry Squatters – the local chapter of which she is the president.

“They’re focused on building a community for women and nonbinary people in the outdoors,” Barrientos said. “When COVID hit, I had a kind of skewed perspective, but it felt like there wasn’t a very strong community of women in the outdoors.”

Barrientos helped start a chapter here in Logan and served as president. The group organizes a variety of outdoor activities for a range of skill levels for women and nonbinary folks.

“I have seen so many connections made and friendships built and have helped people go do backcountry skiing for the first time, or go climb outside for the first time, or it can even be backpacking for the first time,” Barrientos said.

She said the group works with not only with USU’s community but also the Logan community on the larger scale, which has re-

sulted in positive feedback about its impact.

“I’ve been told by some people that have come to our events that they kind of changed their perspective on things and introduced them to a whole other side of recreation and spending time outdoors,” Barrientos said.

Her favorite memory of the club was hosting a spring fling last week, which included a barbeque and a raffle to raise money for the following year.

“I set up bike ramps in the backyard, and people were just riding their bikes off the bike ramps. Barrientos said. “We were dancing and grilling and hanging out.”

Her passion-turned-degree has taken her across the country to see many different variations of the outdoors including mountains, lowlands and wetlands, but this hasn’t stopped her appreciation for Logan’s scenery.

“I worked in Alaska for the summer and in Montana for another summer and then Idaho last summer,” Barrientos said. “It’s fun to have this be the homebase and also get to go out and explore totally different landscapes and come back, because Logan’s lovely.”

One of her favorite memories of working around the country was camping in Montana then playing Settlers of Catan after making food.

“That was so lovely to be like, ‘Oh my brain is getting a break. This is so good,’” Barrientos said.

When in Idaho last summer, she worked along a river analyzing groups of cobbles and pebbles for fish to spawn into. The river was large, and she said there was a pair of eagles that would fly over her while she worked.

“It was really cool to be in such a serene area and be like, ‘Oh there’s eagles. Good morning. How’s it going?’” Barrientos said.

Barrientos will be working in Idaho again this summer and plans to attend grad school in a few years after gaining more field experience.

“I don’t know what I want to go for because I’ve liked everything I’ve ever done,” Barrientos said. “It’s been lovely. I’m feeling a mix of emotions and definitely sad to go, but it will be good.”

Maren Archibald is about to graduate with a degree in technical communication and rhetoric. She once was voted the best person in her office to share a deserted island with.

—maren.archibald@usu.edu

Jack Johnson is about to graduate with two degrees in English and history. He was once voted most likely to start an MLM. —

PHOTO BY Heidi Bingham Anais Barrientos.

The Utah Statesman has highlighted 50 Influential Aggies each year since 2015.

The individuals were nominated by students, faculty and staff on campus, then selected by our editorial board. The Utah Statesman staff is privileged to honor these people for their contributions to Utah State University.

To view the 50 Influential Aggies from past years, visit usustatesman.com/50-aggies.

Beatriz Rodrigues Setter for USU Volleyball

Matthew Jensen Director of PR and Marketing in the College of Engineering

Dantzel Minor 2023-24 CAAS Council Member

Alaisa Phithak Advocacy Director for Business Council

Rebecca Berrett Assistant Director of Academic Advising and Completion

Ronan Spencer USU Student Advocate

Brianna Brooks USU Gymnast

Ella Leonelli Engagement Lead in the Christensen Office of Social Action and Sustainability

Alliyah Rementilla USU Student Intern

Sage Critical Incident and Crisis Response K-9 at the USU Police Department

Morgan Perkins Recipient of an Emmy Award by the Society of Professional Journalists

Diana Sabau USU Vice President and Athletics Director

Jacob Lancaster USU Fire Club and USU Forestry Club Member

Alice Kenley Academic Adviser in the Kinesiology and Health Science Department

Manny Martins USU Soccer Head Coach

Alexis Lyman 2024-25 Miss USU

Sarah Pope 2023-24 School of Graduate Studies Senator

Lane Weaver Director of Athletic Bands in the Caine College of the Arts

Hannah Eddy Recipient of the Community Engaged Student Award

Shelby Green Connections Peer Mentor

Seth Lyman Director and Research Professor at the USU Bingham Research Center

Matt Richey 2024-25 USUSA President, Member of Student Fee Board

Jamie Parry USUSA Activities Director

CAI Center for Anticipatory Intelligence

Jane Irungu Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Jarrett Parry A-Team Member

Ashlynn Smith USUSA Traditions Director

COSAS Christensen Office of Social Action and Sustainability

Sophia Hessami Undergraduate Researcher in the College of Engineering

Mohammad Alkotop USU Men’s Tennis

Joseph Cooney Undergraduate Physics Researcher

Avery Barton USUSA Student Events Executive Director CAPSA Citizens Against Physical and Sexual Abuse

Sydney Fisk Recipient of the Ivory Prize

Clair Canfield Senior Lecturer in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Kris Carpenter Community Organizer and Equality Utah Representative

Carter Ottley USUSA Public Relations Director SNAC Student Nutrition Access Center

Sydney Schmidt Undergraduate Researcher in the College of Science

Keri Holt English Professor in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Cristina Chirvasa Undergraduate Researcher in the Quinney College of Natural Resources

Wyatt Williams Graduate Research Assistant in the Jon M. Huntman School of Business

Brielle Dursteler Minor Undergraduate Adviser

Inclusion Center All Faculty/Staff

Sydney Lyman 2023-24 Executive Director of the Government Relations Council

Brandon Hansen Staff Employee Association

Leiloni DePew Director for the Academic Belonging and Learning Excellence Committee

Catherine Breitweiser Recipient of the Legacy of Utah State Award

Suzy Deaver Government Relations Council Member and Miracle Club Member

Karma Black Assistant Director and Accessibility Consultant in the Disability Resource Center

Emeline Haroldsen: The limit does not exist

By Addie Hemsley STATESMAN REPORTER

Emeline Haroldsen is a passionate student at Utah State University graduating this spring with a dual-major in biochemistry and math and statistics composite and a minor in data science.

Her journey at USU began in the College of Science with a focus on pure mathematics, but she found her true passion at the intersection of math and biology, leading her to switch to a math and statistics composite major.

“I feel like some people perceive STEM as being really hard, which it is hard, but STEM people are the people that are running the world.” Haroldsen said. “People love to separate the STEM fields and the non-STEM fields but I’ve always found that things aren’t separated the way that we think they are,” Haroldsen said.

Originally from Maryland, Haroldsen grew up in a family deeply rooted in math and science. Both of her parents are Aggies. Her mother pursued civil engineering, while her father studied mathematics and physics.

Since she was young, Haroldsen always knew she wanted to follow in her parents footsteps and pursue a career in math or science.

“When you grow up in an environment where math is not hated, you realize that it’s not something to be scared of. It’s something that’s approachable,” Haroldsen said.

She restated a phrase her mother once told her: “The world does not have a lot of room in it for mediocre artists, but it always has room for another mediocre scientist.”

She always knew she was interested in mathematics and learning everything.

Haroldsen was named College of Science Scholar of the Year, a very prestigious title that shows her hard work and dedication to her education. She has also won two research grants, the Frost Award in organic chemistry and an award for undergraduate research. Outside of her academics, Haroldsen enjoys staying active through weight training, running, basketball and pickleball. She also has a creative side, and can often be found doodling in her notebook or playing the piano. Despite her busy schedule, she finds joy in soaking up the sun and spending time outdoors. “I love anything active. If it’s outside, that’s a bonus for me,” Haroldsen said.

Haroldsen’s favorite part of her USU experience has been her involvement in undergraduate research. She appreciates the hands-on experience and the connections she has made through research and wishes she had started sooner.

“Hands down, the most valuable, most important thing I have done here at USU,” Haroldsen said. Haroldsen’s main mentor at USU is Joanie Hevel, who introduced her to biochemistry research and provided guidance throughout her academic journey. Her sophomore year, Haroldsen was in Biochemistry II with Hevel.

“By the time the semester was wrapping up, I just knew I had to be in research,” Haroldsen said.

She knew Hevel was the head of undergraduate research for biochemistry, so after class one day, she approached her about any research opportunities and was happily surprised when Hevel said there was an opening in her own lab.

“She has been a phenomenal research mentor, one of the best mentors I’ve had. She’s always pushed me to be better, and to keep earning and provided the support that I need to keep pushing,” Haroldsen said.

John Stevens, head of the math and statistics department, has also been instrumental in supporting Haroldsen’s exploration of the intersection between math and biology. He mentored her while working on a bioinformatics project.

“He’s very supportive and patient, and it’s comforting to know that if I have a major problem, I can go and talk to him about it,” Haroldsen said.

After graduation, Haroldsen plans to pursue a Ph.D. in computer science at Johns Hopkins University.

“I’m really excited. The professor I’m really interested in working with is in the biophysics department. One of the cool things about computer science is that you get to play in everyone’s backyard,” Haroldsen said. Haroldsen’s dream job involves staying in research while also delving into entrepreneurship. She aims to

develop tools other researchers can use to advance their work and make a meaningful impact on society.

“I want to stay in research but would love to be more of an entrepreneur and take what I’m learning and impact people. I want to do something that is going to help us push even further forward,” Haroldsen said. “STEM science is very creative. If it wasn’t, we wouldn’t always be moving forward.”

Haroldsen said understanding how she learns, her intensity and work ethic are her greatest strengths.

“I learned that I can’t do well in school without studying. I realized early on that I would need to work hard to do what I wanted to do and do it well,” Haroldsen said. “Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn’t work hard.”

She also shared asking questions is a vital part of being in a STEM major.

Haroldsen advises future STEM Aggies to get involved in research early on and not to be afraid to talk to people.

“Research helped me decide to go to graduate school, helped me find what I’m passionate about and what I’m really interested in, and it’s made me realize how much we don’t know,” Haroldsen said.

She also emphasizes the importance of networking and mentorship in the STEM fields, stating connections are crucial for finding opportunities and succeeding as a scientist.

“If you want to go far, especially in a STEM field, you have to have connections,” Haroldsen said.

Haroldsen encourages students to push themselves and not let the fear of difficulty deter them from pursuing their passions. She said you can do so many things with a STEM degree.

“Don’t let the thought, ‘It’ll be too hard’ deter you from your path. If you put your mind to it, you can do anything,” Haroldsen said.

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

PHOTO BY Jack Burton

Emeline Haroldsen.

Congrats Graduates!

share your post-graduation plans with us and pave the way for future aggies.

fill out the first destination survey today and inspire future aggies with what they can do with their degree from usu.

p.s. have you seen these little gnome guys around campus? thats us.

come stop by our office or visit usu.edu/career for help with your career plans!

Eight athletes inducted into hall of fame

By Jack Johnson SPORTS REPORTER

Utah State University’s athletics department named eight alumni to the Athletics Hall of Fame Saturday, April 20. The athletics hall of fame is a long-standing tradition at USU, as its beginning was in 1993. Many inductions take place every year under a committee headed by Doug Hoffman. The event is to immortalize some of USU’s finest athletes for their skill on the field, court or beam. Bob Erickson was the first inducted. He holds the record for most wins as a wrestler in Utah State history with more than 100 individual victories and 119-14-3 overall. At the 158-pound weight division, Erickson helped the Aggies win their Pacific Coast Athletic Association title. During his induction speech, he cited Jesus Christ as the person who helped him the most in his skill in wrestling.

Rich Haws played on the basketball team for the 1972-75 seasons before the shot clock and three-point line were instituted into the game. For home games at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, he posted a 39-4 record. During his induction speech, he said he would have had a third more points if the three-point line existed when he played.

Sid Lane played on the football team from 1965-67, where he would play both on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. After playing for the Aggies, he got

a job as an assistant coach for football, which also made him the first African American employee for the university. Liz McArthur-Fisher was on the volleyball team for the years of 2008-11. During her junior year, she helped Utah State post a 24-9 record before entering the NCAA tournament. She holds the second all-time in career attempts (4,294). During her speech, she said one of her favorite moments while playing for the Aggies was beating Brigham Young University on their home court.

Bill Munson played on the football team from 1961-63. During his career as an Aggie, he helped them post a 25-5-

1 record. In his sophomore year, he pushed Utah State to be ranked 10th in the nation, which is still the university’s best record. He went on to play for the Detroit Lions and was in the National Football League for 16 years. Munson passed away in 2000, so his son accepted the accolade in his place.

Natalie Norris played on the soccer team for the 200912 seasons. She is the only three-time Defensive Player of the Year in the history of the Western Athletic Conference. During her speech, she said not a lot has changed for her because she still coaches, teaches and plays soccer.

Clint Silcock was a high jumper for the track and field team for the seasons of 2006 and 2009-11. He got second all-time in the outdoor high jump at 7’5” during his sophomore season. He had been a high jumper his entire life, and it all culminated to his time as an Aggie athlete. Finally, Gary Wilkinson played on the basketball team from 2008-09 under legendary coach Stew Morrill. He was named first-team all-district by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. He led the team to a 30-5 record. After playing as an Aggie, he spent six years playing abroad in Greece, South Korea, New Zealand, Estonia and Puerto Rico. During his speech, he dedicated his skill as a player to his mother and his wife for supporting him through his career as a basketball player.

— jack.johnson@usu.edu

PHOTO BY Jack Johnson

Hall of Fame inductee recipients on April 20.

Cantwell looking to the future

By Leah Call NEWS REPORTER

Elizabeth Cantwell took her time listening and learning this year. After her first year as Utah State University’s president, she’s ready to take what she heard from students, faculty and staff and make the university a better place.

The Utah Statesman interviewed Cantwell after the first week of the fall 2023 semester. She shared her plans to host listening sessions revolving around three key questions: W hat do you think we should be doing that we need more of, or what are we good at that we need to be even better at? What do we need to worry about? And what does Cantwell need to know about that you don’t think anyone else will tell her?

Since then, Cantwell has hosted over 25 listening sessions across all statewide campuses and involved student groups ranging from 25 to 100 individuals. The last session took place in February in Vernal. Participants were also provided an online platform to give feedback. Data is currently being analyzed using machine learning techniques to identify common themes and consensus points.

“The thing that we unanimously heard is that everybody wants more interdisciplinary discussion about solving these big world problems,” Cantwell said. “And we have lots of really interesting ideas about how we do that. But this focus on big, complicated, hairy problems was really fairly ubiquitous.”

According to Cantwell, students are concerned about climate change and its potential dangers, water scarcity in Utah and energy consumption. Additionally, topics such as free speech and political conflicts, including the Israel-Hamas war, are prominent among student discussions.

“When you think about what makes the news, some of it is just a lot of noise, but a lot of it is part of these big, complicated challenges that we have,” she said. “What does globalization look like now? What does the world of work look like now? What’s AI going to do? What’s the future of food?”

Cantwell also spoke about issues impacting the campus community and recent laws passed by the Utah legislature regarding diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

“We will always follow the law, so that’s what’s going to happen. If you read the legislation, it’s very supportive of what I would call excellence in supporting students,” she said. “That can take and should take many forms. Part of our land grant mission is having access for all.”

Cantwell is optimistic that the university’s current initiatives won’t be negatively affected by the legislation, which includes “a lot of leeway.” She said the language in the law emphasizes the importance of going above and beyond, working harder and prioritizing student support services, and she is thankful USU cultural centers will remain unaffected. “There will be more to come on the interpretation

of the legislation, but I don’t see significant changes to our cultural centers,” she said. “We don’t have cultural centers, say our Latinx center, that are places where only people of Latino or Latina background can go. They’re support systems, and the same was true for the new Native American Cultural Center. So we’ve never had these constructs here that were really exclusive just for certain types of people. They were support systems. And if you went into the Latinx center, there were all kinds of people in there supporting our Latinx students.”

Over the course of the year, Cantwell has hosted and published the podcast, “Future Casting.” There are four published episodes featuring a range of topics, from sexual violence to conflict resolution. Episodes can be found on the presidential communication website.

“Higher education is kind of a point institution in all of the social changes that are happening super fast. That’s a global thing. It’s not just the United States. It’s not just Utah, but so there’s a lot coming at us and I don’t find it really awful, but you have to be on your toes kind of all the time,” she said. “And I do think this job, while it is the right mission for me, certainly now is one of the most complicated ones in the U.S. You look at managing big programs that are doing all kinds of things. This one’s got lots of moving parts.” Cantwell said the world is changing quickly, and as president of USU, she is heavily invested in leading the

university to define their own future.

“You cannot prevent change from happening. You cannot. So you’ve got to embrace it,” she said. “Everybody knows this about lots of things in their life, but this is true for this job and what we are doing as an institution — the more you resist, the worse it gets. Yes, you’ll make mistakes, things will get weird sometimes. And I do think there’s a hunger for you know, driving ourselves and driving this institution to a better and different future. We know it’s going to be different.”

Leah Call is a senior studying print journalism. It is sunny outside again, and she has hung up her beloved blue hammock so she can sit and listen to the Velvet Underground and read the wise words of Patti Smith. —

PHOTO BY Claire Ott

Utah State President Elizabeth Cantwell discusses the future of the university in her office on April 17.

Claire Ott is a junior studying journalism and environmental studies. She enjoys being a photographer for the Statesman because she gets to capture some seriously cool things that are going on at USU.

Let’s start with a little bit about author Hugh Howey. He’s mainly a science fiction writer, particularly the Silo series, which includes the bestselling novel “Wool.” Like many modern writers, at least in the US, he did a lot of other things before his writing career took off, such as yacht maintenance, professional sailing, and working in bookstores. But I find him most interesting because of his relatively unconventional path in the publishing industry. He first gained significant attention when he began self-publishing the series that would become Wool on Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing platform. These stories were originally standalone pieces which later got compiled into novels due to their popularity.

Impact on Self-Publishing and the Modern Landscape of Publishing

Howey’s success — and “Wool” is hugely successful — is significant for its impact on self-publishing, demonstrating the potential for independent authors to achieve commercial success and influence. He has been a continuous and loud advocate for self-publishing, digital publishing platforms, and maintaining rights to one’s work, making him a key figure in discussions about the modern landscape of publishing. Howey continues to both write prolifically and demonstrate commercial success.

Complex Worlds and Themes in Sand

Howey creates really complicated, highly unusual worlds in mostly dystopian futures. Sand features a post-apocalyptic setting and explores themes of survival in a harsh world dominated by, yes - sand. Howey takes us to a future where the old world, with all its achievements and history, is literally buried under massive amounts of sand, shifting beneath the feet of those daring enough to try to uncover its secrets.

The Setting and Characters in Sand

The story is set in a desolate, sand-covered Colorado (although it takes a while to figure that out) where the remnants of civilization now scavenge through the dunes to unearth buried relics of the past. But those relics are buried deep beneath the sand, and somewhere along the way, technology was developed to allow people to dive in sand much the way we dive in water today. The technology of “sand diving” into the deep sands with suits rigged to allow movement through sand as if it were water adds a thrilling and unique element to the plot. The protagonist siblings - Palmer, Vic, Rob, and Conner - belong to a family with a broken and mysterious history, living in a society that mirrors both the mysteries and their fractured relationships. The narrative explores human themes of survival, betrayal, and the quest for a better life beyond the dunes.

“Conner and Gloralai dumped their buckets and turned toward town. From the top of the ridge, they had a commanding view of the Shantytown slums. Conner could pick out the corrugated metal roof of the small shack he shared with his brother. The dune behind their shack

had been creeping; the back half was already buried. Another month, and the sand would tumble over the roof and pile up around the front door. They could dig their

way in for a while, but then it’d be time to cut their losses and move.”

Character Development and Themes

To go into detail about just one of these siblings, Conner is a significant part of the story’s main family dynamic. He is one of the four siblings who navigate the challenging world of a sand-covered, post-apocalyptic Colorado. Conner is depicted as being particularly strong and resilient, traits that are crucial for survival in the harsh environment that defines the setting of Sand. His role in the family and the narrative is critical. He helps to illustrate the complex interpersonal relationships that the siblings have with each other and with the world around them. His interactions and decisions significantly impact the family’s dynamics and the unfolding of the plot. Conner is no hero - he has depths and flaws that are gradually revealed through the story.

Conner, like his siblings, is involved in sand diving—a vital activity for their survival. Sand diving involves using specialized gear to burrow into the deep sands that have buried civilizations, in search of relics and remnants of

the old world that can be traded or sold. This occupation is not just a job for Conner and his family; it’s part of their identity and ties deeply into the narrative’s exploration of themes like survival, discovery, and the human connection to the past. Overall, Conner’s character is emblematic of Howey’s ability to create authentic, compelling characters whose personal journeys are both individually engaging and critical to the broader story.

“The dive suit was cut away from him with a knife, the wires in the fabric popping as they were severed. That suit would never move the sand again. Vic stood and left his side and ran over to shoo someone away from the metal sphere, telling them not to touch it. She didn’t dare touch it either. Instead, she searched one of the impaled men and found her visor and band. Conner watched as she loosened the sand and sent their bodies beneath the market floor. She buried the bomb in the sand so no one could move it.”

Immersive Writing and Cautionary Notes

Howey’s writing lends itself to full immersion - read it in one go for the best effect - and he paints a world so palpable that each grain of sand can almost be heard in the wind and felt on the skin. His ability to develop characters shines through as each sibling’s story unfolds, revealing layer after layer of familial bonds and personal ambitions. The pacing is pretty tight, with each chapter acting as a building block towards an ending that would be tough to tolerate if you thought this was a stand-alone book. But - lucky us, it’s the first in a series. I will say that Sand is almost action-thriller like, so don’t expect a ton of slow, rational philosophical developments.

Overall, Sand gives a unique perspective on possible futures related to ecological and societal collapse. Howey’s talent for creating engaging narratives that explore the depth of human resilience and adaptability is on full display here. For fans of Hugh Howey and lovers of dystopian novels, Sand promises an immersive and reflective experience, although it’s not without its somber undertones. A couple of cautionary notes. If you are at all claustrophobic, the under-sand scenes in this book might be triggering. There is a fair amount of cursing, and while there is no explicit sexual content, the siblings’ mother does run a brothel to make ends meet.

Elizabeth “Betsy” Cantwell is the president of Utah State University.

If she lived in a one-person town, she would have a “series of little, little buildings,” including a sauna and a craft hut.

In today’s society, there is an unfortunate stigma surrounding food assistance programs. Many students feel ashamed or embarrassed to utilize these resources, fearing judgment or criticism from their peers. It’s also important to recognize that food insecurity affects people from all backgrounds. Programs like the Student Nutrition Access Center (SNAC) at Utah State University play a vital role in supporting students facing challenges in meeting their food needs. Here’s why no one should feel ashamed and utilize these resources:

-Food Insecurity does not Discriminate: It affects individuals from all backgrounds, including college students. Contrary to popular belief, not everyone struggling with food insecurity fits a specific stereotype. Students may face unexpected financial challenges that make it difficult to afford nutritious food regularly. SNAC and similar programs provide a safety net for students and faculty, ensuring they have access to essential and nutritious food items.

-Promoting Academic Success: According to a survey our social work cohort conducted last semester that gathered experiences from 1,568 USU students, 42% of respondents reported that at least once a month they experienced difficulties maintaining focus due to lack of food. While 46% said this happened a few times per month. By providing access to nutritious food, SNAC enables students to concentrate without the distraction of hunger. When a student’s basic needs are met, they are more likely to excel academically.

-Creating a Supportive Community: Utah State University strives to create inclusive and supportive environments where all students feel respected. Offering food assistance programs like SNAC demonstrates their commitment to supporting student’s overall well-being. We should commend students for their resilience and courage in seeking help. In doing so we reduce the stigmatization of utilizing this resource. Build-

Letter to theEditor

ing a community where students feel comfortable accessing support creates a culture of compassion and unity.

Thestigma surrounding the use of food assistance programs on college campuses must be challenged. SNAC has served over 3,700 unique individuals just this school year, so they are not alone. Programs like SNAC at Utah State University serve as valuable resources for students experiencing food insecurity, or simply just needing supplemental assistance, providing them with the support they need to thrive nutritionally, academically, and personally. Rather than feeling ashamed, students ought to feel empowered to utilize these resources without fear of judgment. It’s time to create a campus culture where seeking help is seen as a sign of strength, not weakness, and where every student has access to the resources they need to succeed.

-Brooklyn Timbimboo and Tim Johnson

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