THE VERMONT
CYNIC Sept. 18, 2018
vtcynic.com
Interns pulled
Artist housing
One year ago, UVM’s graduate internship program was discontinued. Now, the director of guidance faces charges.
UVM has six newly designated buildings on Trinity campus for the Arts and Creativity community.
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Moving off campus 3 / Easy recipes 5 / Hockey preview 7
“One of the problems is, if someone is dismissed from any campus for sexual assault,
there’s no real flag if they transfer to another university.” - Judy Rickstad, campus victim’s advocate
Fixing flaws in the system ■ A petition started by a student to highlight a flaw in college sexual assault reporting has stirred up a national conversation. Sawyer Loftus swloftus@uvm.edu
After a UVM sophomore reported her rape to University officials, she found a hole in UVM policy allowing dismissed students to avoid disclosing past misconduct. Sophomore Syd Ovitt started a petition aimed at flagging students who attempt to transfer to a new college or university after being dismissed for sexual misconduct, Ovitt said. The petition, which has received national attention from lawmakers, is called Explain the Asterisk. She chose the name because of the asterisk placed at the bottom of a student’s transcript used to indicate all reasons for dismissal, ranging from poor grades to academic misconduct to sexual assault. This is a practice at UVM and other college registrars to indicate why a student was dis-
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missed, she said. “We all know colleges take plagiarism and bad grades extremely seriously,” Ovitt said. “For some reason, that looks just as bad on a transcript as someone who was determined to have sexually assaulted someone.” Ovitt started the petition after discovering the policy when she reported her own sexual assault in November 2017, she said. Ovitt felt UVM’s disciplinary policies were not strict enough to fully protect students from future sexual assaults, she said. UVM Communications Director Enrique Corredera said that the University is aware of the national conversation happening around sexual misconduct on college campuses, but no plans are in the works to change the policy. “It has been a longstanding practice at the University based on established national best
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practices to view the transcript strictly as an academic record,” Corredera said. The only way for the University to know if a student was dismissed from a previous institution for misconduct is if the student self-reports the information when applying, he said. UVM doesn’t investigate to confirm if a transfer student is telling the truth when self-reporting conduct issues, nor does the University indicate if a former UVM student has been dismissed for sexual misconduct, Corredera said. If legislation based off her petition were to pass in Vermont or nationally, UVM would be forced to change its policy, Ovitt said. Since late March 2018, Ovitt has received increased support from Vermont legislators, including Vermont Representative Barbara Rachelson, and Vermont Congressman Peter Welch, she said. Ovitt wrote to Welch in March, and when he came to an event at UVM they had the chance to discuss her petition and potential legislation, Welch said. “What Sydney’s talking about really makes sense,” he said. “I so appreciated her ad-
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ALEK FLEURY/The Vermont Cynic
Sophomore Syd Ovitt has received state and national support for her Explain the Asterisk petition. The petition works to clearly identify students who have been dismissed for sexual assault.
vocacy ... and her acting so energetically to keep people from future harm.” Congresswoman Jackie Speier attempted to introduce a “Safe Transfer Act” in December 2016, which would have required universities to disclose on a student’s transcript if they were dismissed for sexual misconduct, Welch said. Asterisk continued on page 2
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Celebrity campaigns for candidate Staff Report Democratic candidate for Vermont governor Christine Hallquist and actor Misha Collins discussed campaign issues in front of a crowd of students Wednesday in the Davis Center at a UVM College Democrats’ event. Hallquist made history as the first openly transgender candidate to win a major party’s nomination for governor. Collins is best known for his role on the the TV show “Supernatural.” Hallquist spoke to a packed Frank Livak Ballroom about the state of public education and young people in Vermont, outlining a “blueprint” to provide financially accessible college education to Vermont residents. “Youth don’t have the opportunity today they had years ago,” she said. “So it is my moral responsibility for you to get the same opportunity I did.” The proposed education platform includes free college education for children of families below the poverty line, Hallquist said. She hopes to later allow children of families at 200 percent of the poverty line to go to college for free, she said. The cost of college has risen 1,100 percent since 1978, Hallquist said. “My generation screwed this up,” she said. “I still have the opportunity to fix this before I leave this planet.” Hallquist decided to run for office in 2017 when she heard about four high school students who spoke out about the harassment they faced as Muslims from other Vermont residents, she said. Sophomore Allyson Werner was underwhelmed by Hallquist’s answers, and that Hallquist did not include an incentive for out of state students to stay in Vermont, Werner said. Werner’s main draw to the event was Collins, since she is a fan of his show, she said. Collins reached out to Hallquist’s campaign to set up the combined event, Hallquist said. “Misha is quite an activist, using his fame to make positive change,” she said. Read the rest at vtcynic.com/hallquist
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NEWS
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The Vermont Cynic
Sept. 18, 2018
Interns pulled from guidance program Lee Hughes lee.hughes@uvm.edu
A year after UVM’s graduate internship program in his department was discontinued, Mario Macias ’97 , a UVM graduate and director of guidance at Burlington High School, has been charged with misconduct by the Agency of Education. The six charges came after a year-long investigation accompanied by testimony from coworkers, according to a Sept. 11 VTDigger article. The charges include falsifying student information, failing to maintain a professional relationship with a student teacher and yelling at an employee, according to a Sept. 11 WCAX3 article. Emily Russen ’18 worked under Macias during her practicum in the spring semester of 2017 even though she requested not to work under him due to his lack of professionalism, according to the Agency Of Education affidavit. Heidi Caldwell ’18 also worked under Macias and felt uncomfortable due to his behavior. She was happy when she finished her program. Sophomore Emily Perlmutter is scared at the prospect of this happening when she goes to get an internship, she said, althoug she sees it as an isolated occurrence.
Asterisk cont. from page 1 Welch plans on cosponsoring a similar bill with Speier when she reintroduces the legislation; however, when that will happen is unclear, he said. “We’ve got a tough congress, we’ve got a majority that does not step in to protect the rights of women,” Welch said. “They were resisting the Violence Against Women act for a long time — the Ryan Republican majority — it’s appalling.” UVM victim’s advocate Judy Rickstad said that on a national and local level, sexual assault is a significant problem on college campuses. Statistically, Rickstad said, 1 in 4 women will be assaulted during their first year at college. Data provided by the UVM office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity shows a steady increase in reported sexual assaults from 2013 to 2018 with a total of 194 reports in
“It seems like it’s one man and they’re doing what they can to get him out of that situation and make the situation better for everyone involved,” Perlmutter said. “I think that’s the best you can do.” Daniel French, Vermont secretary of education, recommended Macias’ licence be suspended for a year. The investigator, Robert B. Stafford Jr., reported that Macias repeatedly asked out a UVM student teacher at BHS, according to the VTDigger article. He reported that the student teacher “felt creeped out.” The graduate-level internship program at the Burlington High School guidance department stopped after the spring 2017 semester, said Scott Thomas, dean of the college of education and social services. “Because of Macias’ unethical behavior and approach toward BHS students and guidance counselors, UVM decided not to place any more students from their practicum and intern programs with the BHS Guidance Department,” according to the affidavit. Thomas said that the decision came about due to conversations between the two UVM graduate student interns and their faculty advisors. It is not unusual for students to encounter issues in their internship placements, but when
2017. Rickstad said that a change is needed to more clearly identify students dismissed for sexual misconduct. “One of the problems is, if someone is dismissed from any campus for sexual assault, there’s no real flag if they transfer to another university,” Rickstad said. “What ends up happening is we’re really just passing our problem onto another campus without them realizing it.” From the beginning, Ovitt had help from junior Sam Donnelly, UVM College Democrats president, but she has taken on most of the work drafting legislation and funding the movment, she said. Despite early progress in her movement, Ovitt said that Explain the Asterisk is still in its early stages of development. They will have their first general meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 19, Ovitt said.
Corrections In the Sept. 11 issue of the Cynic, the fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon was incorrectly identified in a cutline on page one. The correct fraternity is Sigma Phi Epsilon. The editorial incorrectly stated that the survey passed around the fraternity asked,
“who would you rape?” when the question was “If you could rape someone, who would it be?” An individual added this question to the survey, and the University found the fraternity not responsible. The Cynic regrets these errors.
ALEK FLEURY/The Vermont Cynic
Burlington High School’s director of guidance, Mario Macias ’97, has been charged with misconduct by the Agency of Education. The charges come a year after UVM’s graduate internship program in his department was discontinued due to an unsatisfactory work environment. there are issues, UVM works with those students to resolve the issue or move their placement, said Jane Okech, chair of the department of leadership and developmental science. Thomas said he has never seen an issue at an internship reach this level. “You couldn’t put your finger on it at that point, but it was pretty clear that something was not right,” he said. “We were ahead of that. That is comforting to me as the dean.”
Thomas was not aware of the student teacher who felt uncomfortable around Macias, and that he was not aware of any of the allegations until recently when they surfaced in the news, he said. UVM has students placed in internships in Burlington schools and others around the state, with the exception of Burlington High School’s guidance department, he said. Once these issues are resolved and the environment in
Burlington High School’s guidance department is more conducive to a successful internship, Thomas said he would love to reinstate the program, which had run for roughly 20 years prior to being pulled. Macias did not respond to requests for comment. Russen and Caldwell did not reply in time for publication. Burlington School District administrators were unable to respond in time for publication.
The Vermont Cynic
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EXECUTIVE Editor-in-Chief Greta Bjornson editorinchief@vtcynic.com Managing Editor Ben Elfland newsroom@vtcynic.com Operations Manager Sorrel Galantowicz operations@vtcynic.com
OPERATIONS Distribution Manager Harmony Edosomwan distribution@vtcynic.com Social Media Peter Hibbeler socialcyniceditor@gmail.com
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Staff Editorial
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fter spending their first two years as an undergraduate in a residence hall enjoying the comforts of accessible laundry, nearby food and no utility bills to worry about paying, most students begin their off-campus housing experience. And in the midst of all the excitement — which place to choose, how to decorate your bedroom, who your neighbors will be — it’s easy to forget about the more necessary, although decidedly less fun, tasks. We all say that we’re ready to move downtown and ditch our extra-long twin beds and forced triples, but the reality is a lot of us are much less prepared than we realize. From paying monthly rent and buying groceries to communicating with a landlord and signing a lease, moving off-campus can be overwhelming for those unfamiliar with the process. Sophomores preparing to move off campus often turn to upperclassmen friends for advice, but when we only take advice from each other, we’re not always going to be fully informed. Moving into your first apartment or house is serious. So, it’s important to do research (and that doesn’t include just asking a senior which street is the most fun to live on) before beginning
Layout Kyra Chevalier layout@vtcynic.com Photo Alek Fleury photo@vtcynic.com Assistant Editors Henry Mitchell (Opinion), Allie O’Connor (Culture), Sophia Knappertz (Copy), David Cabrera (Podcasts), Nickie Morris (Sports), Sawyer Loftus (News), Lee Hughes (News), Kian Deshler (Features), Caroline McCune (Layout), Sam Litra (Photo) Copy Editors Zoe Sheppard, Tori Wilson, Genevieve Rossi, Mariel Wamsey, Dalton Doyle, Alyssandra Calhoun, Lindsay Freed, Liv Marshall, Izzy Abraham, Michelle Lowry Page Designers Courtney Feldman, Lindsay Freed, Stephanie Hodel, Sarah O’Brien, Meilena Sanchez
ADVISING
HOLLY COUGHLAN
the process. Too many of us have stories of faulty security and homes being broken into, or not knowing enough about communicating with a landlord. Had we spent a little more time looking into our leases and less time browsing Homeport for string lights, we would have been better prepared and more confident about living off campus. In your own home, there’s no RA on duty, no late night Grundle for when you’re craving a snack and nobody
cleaning the bathrooms but yourself. Being ready to move out of a res hall means being educated about what exactly you’re getting into when you scrawl your name on a lease and hand over a check. The Office of Student and Community Relations at UVM is a great place to start. They offer workshops to help better inform students about the rental process, what to look for and what to avoid. Getting out of a res hall is a
large, exciting step. But like all important moves, it’s necessary to be prepared and educated to make your experience the best it can be. Staff editorials officially reflect the views of the Vermont Cynic. Signed opinion pieces and columns do not necessarily do so. The Cynic accepts letters in response to anything you see printed as well as any issues of interest in the community. Please limit letters to 350 words. The Cynic reserves the right to edit letters for length and grammar. Please send letters to opinion@vtcynic.com.
Efforts to include the disabled community Kate Springer krspring@uvm.edu
Web Connor Allan web@vtcynic.com Illustrations Holly Coughlan illustrations@vtcynic.com
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Prepare for off-campus living
Video Ruby Bates video@vtcynic.com
Faculty Adviser Chris Evans crevans@uvm.edu
OPINION
Sept. 18, 2018
I
n recent years, Hollywood has patted itself on the back for increasing diversity in its productions; more women and people of color are having their stories told and are awarded more entertainment achievements than ever before. While this progress is crucial, there is one group that is consistently left out of the conversation on equal representation in the industry: those with disabilities. Acclaimed movies such as “Forrest Gump”and “Rainman,” as well as television shows “The Good Doctor” and “The Middle” feature characters with intellectual disabilities. However, these pieces either fixate on the disability, emphasize stereotypes or use it as a source of humor, all of which are harmful in how we learn to view and discuss disabilities. If we grow up with entertainment that doesn’t represent disability as being a complete-
ly normal part of everyday life, then we will grow up believing that it isn’t. Zeno Mountain Farm is a group that promotes inclusive entertainment by integrating adults of all abilities into their projects throughout the year. One example of these works is a film called “Bulletproof.” The film features both disabled and abled adults without any reference to this distinction, proving that entertainment excluding those who identify as disabled is outdated and unnecessary. In today’s society, the thought of someone not having access to certain places due to race, religion or creed ought to be unacceptable. However, there are plenty of restaurants, movie theaters, malls, offices and public spaces that are not disability-accessible, preventing disabled patrons from truly having equal opportunities. Though there have been changes made in legislation both in education and physical access to everyday places to further include the disabled community, an attitude shift is necessary. This movement is not about
HOLLY COUGHLAN charity, it is about encouraging the world to understand that ignoring the disabled community is rejecting 10 percent of the world’s population who have anything and everything to offer. It is our responsibility as students and young adults to face this issue head-on, be-
cause if our generation — of all generations — can not make this change, then who will?
Kate Springer is a first-year secondary education major concentrating in English. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2018.
CULTURE
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The Vermont Cynic
Off-Campus Meals Easy and healthy recipes to make when you’re short on time Illustrations by KYRA CHEVALIER and CAROLINE MCCUNE
Isabella Alessandrini
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Isabella. Alessandrini@uvm. edu
f you are living off-campus with no meal plan, don’t worry — here are a few satisfying and speedy recipes, all based around healthy complex carbohydrates and veggies that will come together in 40 minutes or less. For plant-based protein sources that are sustainable for the planet and slim budgets, play around with adding in beans, tofu and seitan, which can all be bought in bulk at City Market (an even better deal: 10 percent off on Thursdays). And if you’re cooking for one, each recipe makes fourfive servings to make sure there are leftovers for lunch so you can walk past the Marketplace confidently with your tupperware in hand, free of temptation to spend money on overpriced food.
Sept. 18, 2018
Dancers inspire audience Keely Lyons
Warm Panzanella Salad
Keely.Lyons@uvm.edu
Vegetarian
As three women danced at the Redstone Recital Hall, the audience could hear the dancers’ breath as they moved across the stage in silence. The UVM department of music and dance collaborated with the Vermont Dance Alliance to present the Vermont Dance Sampler Sept. 8. The Sampler showcased artists from across the state. Each performed a work they had submitted to the selection committee this past June. The event was curated by Paul Besaw, chair for the department of music and dance, and Hanna Satterlee, founder of the Vermont Dance Alliance. The VDA was founded in May 2017 in order to create a network for Vermont artists to collaborate, Satterlee said. “I think it’s important to support efforts to build the dance community in Vermont and really important to bridge the divides that sometimes separate the University from community artists,” Besaw said. Artist Toni Nagy choreographed and performed a piece called “The Rolling Hills of the Patriarchy,” an energetic dance that not only questioned the role women play in our society but sought to redefine those roles, according to the event’s program. Satterlee had been communicating with Nagy for over a year exclusively through email before finally being able to see her dance Saturday night. Another dance was dedicated to victims of mass shooting, another incorporated a spoken word poem and one was completely improvised. Sophomore Barbara Banchik said the performance affected her more profoundly than if she had just gone to a ballet like she was used to. “I’m still thinking about it now and how it made me feel,” she said. “I appreciate that it made me feel such a range of emotions.” Satterlee and Besaw both advise students who are interested in getting invovled with dance to go out and see different performances. “My goal would be for UVM students to come and see all that’s available around the state,” Satterlee said. “If they’re really interested in watching dance, they can always find it.” For those looking for more dance performances, Polly Motley will be performing 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 3, at the Fleming museum. “A Rap on Race” will be performed Oct. 6 at the Flynn Center.
Panzanella is a bread dish from Tuscany, Italy that was invented in times of famine by crafty Italian cooks who managed to upgrade the stalest of old crusty bread loaves into a fresh, filling and nourishing meal. With just a little toasting and love, that aging bread sitting on your counter can avoid the compost and be transformed into a satisfying salad.
Ingredients: -Half a loaf of whole wheat bread, cut into ½ inch cubes -Lots of cherry tomatoes, halved -4 cloves garlic, quartered -Basil, chopped into ribbons -Olive oil -Vinegar to taste
Instructions: 1. Preheat oven to 375º F. Spread the bread cubes out onto a sheet pan, toss with oil and seasonings, then put in the oven. Take out the cubes when they’re crisp and browned. Meanwhile, put the garlic and tomatoes in a small baking dish, drizzle with oil and roast along with bread cubes until tomatoes have softened and the garlic is golden. 2. After the tomatoes and the bread cubes have cooled, put them into a large bowl and toss with olive oil, basil, seasonings and vinegar to taste. Garnish with basil and serve.
Chickpea Crepes (aka Socca) Vegan, Gluten Free I love topping these crepes with roasted veggies and a small tower of nutritional yeast flakes; they’re like edible canvases to be filled with anything. Feel free to grab inspiration from Skinny Pancake’s menu if things like their Heartbreaker are becoming your budget breaker. Stick the batter in the fridge overnight to make protein-packed breakfast crepes in the morning that come together quickly but keep you full for hours.
Ingredients: -1 cup chickpea flour -1 cup water -1 ½ TBSP of olive oil, plus more for the pan -½ tsp salt Instructions: 1. Whisk together all ingredients in a bowl until you have a smooth batter. Let sit for at least 30 minutes. 2. Heat a round saute pan and add a tablespoon of oil to it. When the oil is hot, pour a bit of batter into the pan and swirl it gently to form a wide and flat crepe. Cook until the underside no longer sticks to the pan and then flip. Repeat until you use all the batter. 3. Top with anything and everything you love.
Whole Grain Penne with Sauteed Butternut Squash, Caramelized Shallots and Chickpeas Vegetarian Sweet, tender and comforting, sauteed butternut squash is the flavor of fall to me. Its vibrant golden color always reminds me of autumn’s foliage and pumpkin patches. Penne is the best vehicle for carrying as much creamy butternut sauce as possible, but other types of pasta will work as well.
Ingredients: -1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed -3 shallots, sliced thinly -14 oz of whole grain pasta -3 cloves garlic, quartered -2-3 cups veggie broth or water -Olive oil -Nutritional yeast
Instructions: 1. Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a wide bottomed pan. Once the oil is hot, add the shallots and let cook until translucent. 2. Toss the squash and chickpeas into the pan, season with salt and pepper to taste and let cook for 7-10 minutes. When squash is slightly soft and caramelized, add in the garlic and saute until fragrant. 3. Pour the broth in the pot and bring to a boil, then let simmer for about 15 minutes until the broth has reduced by half and the squash is tender to the touch. 4. Meanwhile, cook your pasta until it’s al dente and drain, reserving 2 cups of the pasta water. When the squash has finished cooking, blend it up or add it straight to the pot with pasta. Cook the squash and pasta together for a few minutes, adding in a ¼ cupful of reserved pasta water at a time until the squash sauce coats the penne. Mix in the nutritional yeast and serve.
The Vermont Cynic
CULTURE
Sept. 18, 2018
5
“TrinCity:” a home for creativity Sarah Robinson Sarah.Robinson.5@uvm.edu
Tucked away on Colchester avenue, past the UVM Medical Center and adjacent to the town of Winooski, lies Trinity campus, now a controversial home for aritsts and creators. Also known as North campus, the buildings were used for traditional housing until fall 2018, when UVM’s Arts and Creativity learning community launched. Of the nine residential buildings on Trinity, six are designated for members of the Arts and Creativity community. The program, formerly known as the Arts Initiative and located in the Living/Learning Center, consisted of 120 to 130 students. The program outgrew the space in spring 2018, said Ann Barlow, Program Director of the Arts and Creativity learning community. The Arts and Creativity learning community, also referred to as “TrinCity” by students and administration, has grown to just under 600 students since its unveiling at the beginning of this semester, Barlow said. The majority of residential buildings on Trinity are labeled Arts and Creativity, but other residence halls such as Mercy
hall are not. “Mercy is still considered traditional housing for this year, although students in Mercy are welcome to come to any and all of our events,” Barlow said. She hopes that Mercy will officially become part of the community by fall 2019. Junior Curt Scheffel is a resident adviser in Ready hall, one of the residence halls in the “Back Five,” which includes Ready, McCann, Hunt, Sichel
and Richardson halls. Scheffel was a member of Community for Artistic Development his first two years at UVM, he said. “The biggest challenge is just that anything we want to do is brand new and we’re creating it on the spot,” Scheffel said. Scheffel has questions about why the University chose to put the Arts community on Trinity, he said. “I think that it’s very inter-
esting that they put the arts in a place where nobody really goes,” Scheffel said. Twelve classes in the College of Arts and Sciences were cut for the 2018 spring semester. Scheffel said he remains optimistic. “I’m excited to see how the community rises,” he said. “My favorite thing is that people are enthusiastic about it.” While the increase in space allows for
BARBARA BANCHIK/The Vermont Cynic
Members of the Arts Initiative learning community, located on Trinity Campus, covered the windows of McAuley Hall with inspirational and artistic messages.
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a greater number of students, Barlow said that there were concerns from students previously involved in the program about the move from L/L. Sophomore Bryce Gross was a member of the Community for Artistic Development in L/L last year and admitted he was unsure about the move to Trinity. “I was unsettled because my preconceived notion from other people was that Trinity was not good,” Gross said. Trinity appears to have a bad reputation on campus. Barlow explained that she isn’t quite sure where these rumours originate. “So wait a minute, ‘It sucks.’ But what does that mean?” she said. The shift to Trinity is still new, and Barlow is excited about what the coming year has to bring, she said. “Two weeks in, I think it’s been pretty exciting,” Barlow said. “I am incredibly hopeful to see what happens over the next 13 weeks.” Barlow said that she encourages all students with a creative mind to stop by TrinCity. “Whether you’re a practicing artist or you don’t even consider yourself an artist, come over,” she said.
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SPORTS
Sept. 18, 2018
7
Women’s ice hockey strides for goals Nickie Morris Nicole.R.Morris@uvm.edu
Women’s hockey is skating into a new season after a summer of consistent training and conditioning. This year, the team will play four of their first seven games against America East Conference opponents, wich makes winning these games necessary in order to advance to the playoffs. Head coach Jim Plumer won the New England Division I Women’s Coach of the Year in 2017, according to UVM athletics. He is pleased with the team’s upcoming season schedule, according to UVM athletics. “I like our schedule a lot this year,” Plumer said. “We’re home for the first four games, which is good compared to our difficult early travel schedule last season. It gives us a chance to make a good rhythm.” The team lost five of their first seven games last season, according to UVM athletics. Senior defense captain Sammy Kolowrat played all 35 games for the Cats last season. She is optimistic based on the team’s pre-season training. “We used an app six days per week to report to our strength coach how we were lifting and what weights we used based on designed workouts,” Kolowrat
PATRICK LANGLOIS/The Vermont Cynic
UVM senior Saana Valkama fights off junior Tori Howran in last year’s game against the University of New Hampshire. The team is hopeful for a good start this year with four of their first seven games against America East Conference opponents, making these games vital to win in order to advance to the playoffs. said. “It really kept up our accountability.” Kolowrat also played with the Czech national team this past summer, she said. Plumer is pleased with the team’s early conditioning as well. “We have more well defined expectations going into this season with strength and conditioning, and an extra week of school before official practice
starts,” Plumer said. Senior forward captain Alyssa Gorecki believes in the importance of positive team chemistry. “It feels like we’ve all been best friends since day one with this group,” Gorecki said. “The first-years really fit in like they’ve played here for years.” Women’s hockey is striving to score more during games, which could help them make it
farther into the playoffs. This will require a winning record in their division. “One of our focuses is trying to score more goals, specifically averaging more than three per game, compared to the two or less of last year,” Gorecki said. She praised the team’s new depth with its array of new personalities and larger roster. “With only one preseason game, compared to two last
year, we’re challenging the firstyears to perform under pressure in our first games,” Gorecki said. The first women’s hockey game will be 4 p.m. Saturday Sept. 29 at home against McGill University. Afterward, they’ll have another game 4 p.m. Saturday Oct. 6 at home against America East rival University of Connecticut.
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SPORTS
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The Vermont Cynic
Sept. 18, 2018
Swimming & diving suits up to win Nickie Morris Nicole.R.Morris@uvm.edu
The powerful scent of chlorine filled the Forbush Natatorium as members of the swimming and diving team practiced for the upcoming season. The swimming and diving team is preparing for their first meet of the season Sept. 30 at Niagra University, according to UVM athletics. Gerry Cournoyer, swimming and diving head coach, is entering his 19th year with Vermont as one of the top coaches in the America East Division. “We’re looking like a brand new team this year with some good first-years, returners and seniors all gelling nicely the past two weeks,” Cournoyer said. “It’s a privilege to work with such talented young athletes.” The three swim captains, senior swimmers Julia Degregorio and Sara Meyer, along with junior Sophia Smith, will lead this season’s team. Meyer had seven top-five finishes in the 100-meter and 200-meter breastroke, in addition to two top-20 finishes in the America East Championship meet. Although swimming and diving are separate events, the team trains together in the weight room, a vital strength
building measure for a sport built on muscular endurance. Practices are conducted twice a day in both the pool and on land. “I’m really looking forward to our smaller team this year,” Meyer said. “It creates potential for close connections and strong encouragement in the pool and the weight room.” Sophomore diver Emily Murphy qualified for the America East conference team in the one-meter dive last year and won the America East Diver of the Week twice. These returners join a firstyear recruiting class of eight new swimmers and divers from seven different states, according to UVM athletics. “Our new first-years have immediately diversified our roster with their strengths coming from all over the country, and each will have an immediate impact on the team’s success,” Cournoyer said. The America East All-Academic team includes all three captains from 2017, according to UVM athletics. “There’s a lot of time to think about homework looking at the bottom of a pool,” Meyer said. “We have a really strict schedule with waking up for 6 a.m. practices that everyone balances well, and a great support staff in the athletic community.”
PATRICK LANGLOIS/The Vermont Cynic
UVM swimmers reach for the wall in last year’s win against University of Maine. With seniors Julia Degregorio and Sara Meyer along with junior Sophia Smith as captains, the team faces their rivals, the University of New Hampshire, in their first home meet Oct. 13. Three members of the team also participated in the Lake Champlain Open Water Swim this summer, a 3.76 mile fundraiser benefiting the Lake Champlain Committee, which advocates for safe drinking water and clean beaches, according to UVM athletics. “About 70 people come out
for that competition every year, and three of our athletes went this year and finished first, second and third so it’s a great showing of UVM swimmers participating,” Cournoyer said. He also elaborated on the team’s anticipation for their first few meets. “We’re all definitely look-
ing forward to facing University of New Hampshire, our natural rival, as well as Binghamton University, whose head coach swam here for me at UVM,” Cournoyer said. Their first home meet is Oct. 13 vs. UNH, according to UVM athletics.
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