Issue 6 - Volume 137

THE CYNIC Est. 1883 | Issue 6 - Volume 137 | October 6, 2020 | vtcynic.com

Backyard bones

New hockey coach

UVM team excavates backyard after construction workers stumbled upon unknown burial ground.

Despite hiring freeze, UVM Athletic Department hires new assistant hockey coach with little explanation.

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“EVEN MORE DIFFICULT”

Advocates concerned over new sexual assault policy Irene Choi Assistant News Editor

New guidelines from the Trump administration will impact the way UVM can handle sexual assault, making it impossible for students sexually assaulted off-campus to open an investigation, among other changes.

Betsy DeVos, U.S. Secretary of Education made the changes through Title IX, a federal law that protects students from sexbased discrimination, including sexual misconduct, according to the U.S. Department of Education website.

Implemented at UVM Aug. 14, the new policies will also allow the lawyers of a perpetrator of sexual assault to cross examined the survivor and eliminates any timeline for universities to conduct investigations, according to UVM’s Title IX coordinator.

“The system was already oppressive for survivors,” said UVM Senior Syd Ovitt. “Now it will be even more difficult.”

Ovitt is the founder of Explain the Asterisk, a student-led organization that aims to hold perpetrators of sexual misconduct accountable. Ovitt herself is also a survivor of sexual assault who has first-hand experience with UVM’s process of investigating seuxal assault under Title IX. DeVos changed the policy to “strengthen Title IX protections for survivors of sexual misconduct and to restore due process in campus proceedings,” stated on the Department of Education’s website.

The majority of sexual assault in college occurs off-campus, with 60% of sexual assault survivors reporting off-campus incidents, according to a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Fifty-eight percent of college sexual assault cases occur at parties, according to the report.

affiliates, he stated.

“Individuals can report any incident of sexual misconduct to UVM Police for safety planning and criminal investigation, to AAEO for student conduct and support purposes or to both AAEO and Police Services,” he stated.

beyond the 60 day timeline in the past, in her case lasting four months.

“The process for your timeline is really, really traumatizing. The amount of times that you have to retell your story and feel belittled makes you feel really small,” she said. “There’s a lot of pressure to be the ‘per-

Off-campus sexual assault According to Nick Stanton, UVM’s Title IX Coordinator, off-campus incidences of sexual harassment no longer fall under Title IX enforcement rules and UVM will no longer be able to start an investigation through Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity.

AAEO is a UVM office with the goal of ensuring compliance with state and federal laws and University policies related to discrimination, and offers “thorough and impartial investigations of complaints of discrimination and harassment,” according to the AAEO website.

Ovitt said she believes that taking off-campus incidences out of Title IX is dangerous.

“This change allows colleges to not have to deal with sexual assault that occurs off-campus,” Ovitt said. “But so many of us live off-campus. Fraternity houses, study abroad and off-campus parties are all no longer the school’s responsibility.”

Though the new Title IX guidelines do not require investigation of off-campus incidents by the institution, UVM has opted to maintain an investigative process with University

Timeline of resolution In addition, Title IX previously required that the university reach a resolution within 60 days of the report.

But the new Title IX guidelines do not offer a specific time frame, according to Stanton.

However, UVM has “retained the goal of 60 days for investigation of discrimination and harassment, including sexual misconduct,” Stanton stated.

Ovitt said UVM has gone

fect victim’ when there are no perfect victims.”

Cross-examination Direct cross-examinations, where the accused’s lawyer or representative directly interrogates the accuser or their lawyers, are also now mandatory, according to Stanton’s email.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama discouraged direct cross-examinations in 2011, who stated in a letter to congressional offices that “allowing an alleged perpetrator to question an alleged victim

directly may be traumatic or intimidating, thereby possibly escalating or perpetuating a hostile environment.”

Ovitt also believes that direct cross-examinations would do more harm than good for the reporter of the incident, especially because many schools are not often equipped with a lawyer to provide to reporters.

“The perpetrator can hire a lawyer to grill whoever the survivor chooses to represent them, but it’s really difficult for survivors,” she said. “The representation school can provide may not be versed in law.

There’s an unbalance of power there.”

While UVM was forced to comply with many of the changes to Title IX, the school chose to omit several optional changes.

The new policies recommend making the standard of evidence in an investigation higher, requiring survivors to produce more evidence of their assault.

However, UVM will continue to use their current standard, where the evidence only needs to show that the facts given are more likely to be true than not.

Ovitt said that although the federal changes to Title IX will hurt survivors, UVM has done a good job of interpreting them, changing only what they absolutely had to.

The University created an FAQ page on its website dedicated to Title IX and its latest changes.

The new policy and a summary were also sent to campus groups that work with students, along with policy stakeholders, Stanton stated.

The Campus Victim’s Advocate and AAEO communicate directly with students about the Title IX process, and UVM offers online training for community members, he stated.

Even with the FAQ page, however, UVM needs to do a better job of informing students of the changes made to Title IX, especially because it heavily impacts students, Ovitt said.

“I’m glad that UVM at least didn’t take the harshest stance on these new changes,” she said.

“But it isn’t very helpful when you make these changes without informing the whole student body.”

NEWS Experts expect high UVM voter turnout

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Top five UVM states’ voting laws

What U.S. states are UVM students from?

Vermont student population: 2,938 Ballot must be received by Nov. 2.

Massachusetts student population 1,954 Ballot must be received by Nov. 6.

New York student population: 1,172 Ballot must be received by Nov. 10.

Connecticut student population 730 Ballot must be received by Nov. 3.

New Jersey student population: 632 3000-1000

999-500

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Kate Vanni Layout & Illustrations Editor

Across the United States, college students lag behind in voting, including at UVM. But experts in Vermont say this election could be different.

Falling 5% below the national average, UVM’s undergraduate voting rate in 2016 was 42.8% according to a study done by the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Education.

But, this year, Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos, the state’s elections expert, says he believes the voter turnout in the younger age groups will be much higher, but there are complications due to widespread mail in voting.

“I would like to think in this election people are engaged,” Condos said. “We have young folks who are on the ballot and obviously a very contentious presidential race. I think all of the above is going to contribute to a higher turnout than normal.”

Condos also said he thinks this election is a means for getting democracy back on track, a sentiment that UVM Professor Jack Gierzynski agrees with.

“Joe Biden is not the liberal dream candidate but is someone who will help us all get back to square one in terms of our democracy,” Gierzynski said. “The importance of that is coming through to most people.”

Gierzynski said he sees an urgency around people wanting to have a say in what’s happening in the country right now.

“I think there’s an urgency around a lot of people wanting to be able to have a say in what’s happening in the country right now,” he said.

At UVM however, not everyone is looking forward to

249-125

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Ballot must be received by Nov. 10.

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UVM 2016 voting trends by percentage each Percent of people who voted in 2016 at of UVM byfield fieldof ofstudy study Unknown Public Administration and Social Service Family and Consumer/Human Sciences Natural Resources and Conservation Health Professions Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies Education Social Sciences History English Language and Literature Mathematics and Statistics Visual and Performing Arts Parks, Recreation, Leisure, and Fitness Biological and Biomedical Sciences Psychology Liberal Arts and Sciences, and Humanities Foreign Languages Agriculture and Agriculture Operations Philosophy and Religious Studies Communication and Journalism Engineering Physical Sciences Computer and Information Sciences Business, Management, and Marketing Area, Ethnic, Cultural, Gender, and Group Studies

NA

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

TOP RIGHT: Data sourced from the University of Vermont’s student geographic origin records.

TOP LEFT: Data sourced from each individual state’s Town Clerk and Secretary of State websites.

BOTTOM LEFT: Data sourced from the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement’s 2016 report on UVM’s voting rates. voting in this election.

Senior Sean Brewer initially was not going to vote in the 2020 election because they did not feel represented by the two candidates.

“There was a point in time where I said, ‘I’m not voting, the democratic system that exists in this country is not fully democratic,’” Brewer said.

Brewer said they are not against voting, but they are against contributing to a system that does not benefit people who look like them.

“I am a black guy with pink and green hair. Glasses from I don’t even know, the 90s, that make me look like I want to be a DJ, nice smile, nonbinary all the different things that you

could be,” Brewer said.

Brewer said they don’t want to look back in 20-30 years and regret not voting in the 2020 election. They see voting as democratic in essence.

“For me, if Trump is reelected it is very clear to me that the system is done,” Brewer said. “If Biden is elected, I’m still not happy, but I think we have more space to decide what we want our government to look like.”

Leader of the UVM Votes coalition James Tedesco said he believes it’s important to empathize with people who say they aren’t voting.

UVM Votes is a bipartisan student group that is looking to increase voter turnout by

texting other students over the course of three meetings held between mid-September and election day, according to their website.

“We aim to get people of any affiliation out to the polls,” Tedesco said.

In an effort to make voting an easy process during COVID times Condos helped pass legislation in February that allows for ballots to be mailed in to all active voters in Vermont.

“The way we approached this year with the pandemic was that no voter should have to choose between their health and their ability to cast a ballot,” Condos said.

Though Secretary Condos said he is worried about

the narrative President Trump is spreading with his misinformation on mail-inballots causing voter fraud.

“I am very concerned about those comments and I wish he would just be quiet about it,” Condos said.

In order to be assured that your ballot will count Condos encourages all voters to make sure they are filling out their ballot correctly. In Vermont that means making sure the ballot is enclosed in the certificate envelope as well as the mailing envelope.

“Remember your vote is your voice,” Condos said. “This is the best time in your life to exercise that right.”

Infographics by KATE VANNI

NEWS

UVM has reversed faculty pay and workload cuts originally issued in the Spring following months of pushback from UVM’s faculty and students.

The reversal in policy will bring roughly 63 lecturers back to full pay and workload, while three remain “partially restored,” according to a Sept. 30 SevenDays article.

The decisions came Sept. 22 following months of protest by United Academics, UVM’s faculty union, and UVM United Against the Cuts, a group that formed in response to the budget cuts announced in April.

However, UVM Spokesperson Enrique Corredera said in a statement the decision had nothing to do with pressure from the Union and everything to do with student demand for particular courses.

Deans announced the cuts to faculty in May 1 memos to their respective colleges outlining changes for the 2020-2021 academic year, including an announcement that non-tenure track faculty would work 25% less for 25% less pay.

Professor Julie Roberts, president of UA, said she is happy the University reversed course, although she is not sure why the decision was made.

“I think to be honest, it wasn’t very well thought out anyway,” Roberts said. “Because the deadline for adjusting the workload of non tenure track faculty was coming up at some point last spring, it was kind of like if they wanted to do it, they had to do it right then.”

Corredera said the Univer-

For the second semester in a row, study abroad programs have been canceled at UVM due to travel risks and restrictions brought on by COVID-19.

The decision to cancel study abroad for Spring 2021 was announced in a Sept. 30 email from the office of the Provost, signed by Kim Howard, director office of international education and J. Dickinson, associate provost for academic affairs.

“Due to continued uncertainty regarding travel and the stability of health and safety conditions globally, at this time the University is confirming the cancelation of all study abroad for Spring 2021,” the email stated.

According to Howard, 242 students had applied to go abroad, but dozens had already withdrawn by the time the announcement was made.

The Office of International Education, Risk Management and Legal Council made recommendations to UVM President Suresh Garimella and Provost

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Paige Fisher Cynic News Reporter A conservative campus group that supports Donald Trump is no longer recognized as a club at UVM just 36 days short of the election in a resolution was passed by SGA. SGA derecognized the club in their Sept. 29 meeting and approved funding to satirical campus paper “The Water Tower” despite the organization’s poor financial footing.

SGA derecognizes two clubs: MARY MCLELLAN/ The Vermont Cynic

The Waterman building located on the corner of South Prospect Street and College Street stands with nobody around it, Sept. 30. Waterman is the largest academic building on campus. sity disagrees with UA’s characterization of the decision.

“The collective bargaining agreement explicitly recognizes the University’s need-- on an annual basis-- to adjust lecturer workloads between 0.75 and 1.0, depending on student demand,” Corredera stated.

UA had issued a grievance on behalf of the lecturers in response to the cuts, but plans to withdraw it because of the University’s recent decision.

Roberts said she first heard about the reversal as a rumor until the University formally announced the change.

Despite how vocal UA was against the cuts, Roberts said there was no discussion between UVM and UA on the matter.

Despite progress with the faculty pay and workload cuts, United Academics and the administration announced the two bodies have come to an impasse last week over disagreements on the University’s handling of fall 2020 reopening.

In a press release sent Sept.

22, United Academics stated the group remains at odds with the University over faculty’s ability to choose to teach remotely, the use of course evaluations during COVID-19 and compensation for additional work in preparation for the fall.

Roberts said faculty were sent a survey in the spring asking how professors prefer to teach in the fall. Although most, but not all, faculty were able to teach in their preferred modali-

ty, the Union wanted professors to have the right to change their mind later on depending on the situation.

“We wanted faculty to be able to shift their courses if their lives dictated it, and whether for health concerns or because of childcare issues,” Roberts said.

“And that’s where we could not come to agreement.”

Corredera stated in a press release that the University is maintaining its position on all three issues because of student’s needs.

“Course modality factored into students’ class selection. It is not acceptable—nor is it fair to students—for faculty to independently, unilaterally, and permanently change course modality,” Corredera stated.

UVM cancels study abroad for spring 2021 Emma Pinezich Cynic News and Sports Editor

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Emma Pinezich Cynic News and Sports Editor

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Admin reverses faculty pay cuts

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Patty Prelock on whether or not to cancel study abroad.

The Provost and President then made the final decision to cancel study abroad.

According to Howard, the most significant factor in her recommendation to cancel spring study abroad was the lack of stability in international travel, citing quarantine and border restrictions and guidance from the U.S. Department of State.

“I recognize that students could say that they understand the risk of getting stuck somewhere,” Howard stated.

“But I’m not sure that even I could fully understand what it might be like to suddenly find that I am physically unable to return to the U.S. to my family and friends because borders or airspaces have closed.”

Howard said some students found themselves in this situation during the height of the pandemic this past spring.

Some also traveled away from their host country for the weekend only for the borders to subsequently close, barring students from getting their belong-

Two clubs, the Student Veteran Organization and Turning Point USA, were derecognized on Tuesday under a bill authored by Ann Wong, chair of Club Committee Affairs.

Before the bill passed, Wong reminded the club that recognition cannot be vetoed, “based on their mission or purpose,” because that would violate students’ freedom to assemble.

Turning Point USA is a national conservative political group that aims to “identify, educate, train, and organize students to promote the principles of freedom, free markets, and limited government,” according to its website.

Although UVM’s chapter of Turning Point USA chapter started in 2012, the group has not been active on Facebook since 2017.

The Student Veteran Organization provides services to student veterans to expand on their academic careers.

“Both of these organizations just didn’t have people who wanted to take over with leadership, and didn’t have enough members to continue membership,” Wong said.

‘The Water Tower’ receives funding despite poor finances:

SAWYER LOFTUS/ The Vermont Cynic

President Suresh Garimella addresses assembled media at a press conference, Nov. 14. ings back.

In an Aug. 25 email sent to students slated to study abroad in the Spring, the Office of International Education encouraged students to have academic and housing back-up plans, and told students not to make non-refundable deposits.

UVM had cancelled Fall study abroad just a few months earlier in a June 1 memo from Howard, forcing 69 students to abandon their plans to go abroad.

The memo also said updates to UVM’s travel policy will be updated by Nov. 2020.

Currently, the policy restricts travel to only essential research and requires approval for any business travel.

The school has not yet decided whether Summer study abroad and travel study programs will be canceled, but the decision will be made around Feb. 1, 2021, according to the Sept. 30 email.

SGA voted during the meeting to allocate $3,243 to “The Water Tower,” UVM’s alternative newsmag, to support their webpage and printing needs despite issues filing for financial support earlier.

Finance Committee Chair Zyakkiriah Rhoden said the previous club signers were not in good standing with the Finance Committee and did not submit a budget last year.

Treasurer Samantha Kyprios also said she had been advised not to give “The Watertower” money because of their failure to submit a budget.

Despite this, SGA voted to pass the bill.

The Watertower requested $4,818. However, SGA allocated nearly $1,500 less because there are fewer students on campus and therefore expect fewer physical copies to be printed.

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EXECUTIVE Editor-in-Chief Sawyer Loftus editorinchief@vtcynic.com Managing Editor Alek Fleury newsroom@vtcynic.com

OPERATIONS Operations Manager Katherine Izadi operations@vtcynic.com Distribution Manager Inquries email cynic@uvm.edu

EDITORS Copy Chief Will Keeton copy@vtcynic.com Culture Sarah Robinson cynicculture@gmail.com Features Greta Rohrer cynicfeatures@gmail.com News & Sports Emma Pinezich news@vtcynic.com sports@vtcynic.com Opinion Gabby Felitto opinion@vtcynic.com Podcasts David Cabrera vtcynicpodcasts@gmail.com Layout & Illustrations Kate Vanni layout@vtcynic.com Photo Bailey Samber photo@vtcynic.com Digital Media Mills Sparksman cynic@uvm.edu Assistant Editors Mac Mansfield-Parisi (Layout), Cole Fekert (Illustrations), Irene Choi (News), Hayley Rosen (Sports), Emily Johnston (Opinion), Sophia Venturo (Culture), Jacob Goodwin (Podcasts), Kyle Elms (Photo) Page Designers Will Guisbond, Maggie Adams,

Take a mental break. You need it.

Staff Editorial Ever since 2020 started it has felt like a tsunami of bad event, after bad event, after bad event.

We’re still dealing with a global pandemic that has changed our ways of living, probably for forever.

We are also still dealing with police brutality, racism, protests, Trump and the many issues going on within Burlington and our campus.

Now, we have to also start worrying about elections too.

There is a lot going on in the world, and at times, it feels like too much.

As students who are leading the next generation and trying to better the future, we have to pay attention to everything going on in this world.

It’s our responsibility to vote, to wear masks, to go protest in the ways we can and to keep ourselves updated.

While there are so many

monumental and important things going on during our lifetimes, we have to remember to take care of ourselves first.

If you feel like you need to skip out on watching one of the debates, avoid the news for the rest of the week, avoid social media, skip a protest, etc, in order to deal with your mental health, do it.

In order to deal with these many negatives, we need time for the positives.

If carving out some time for yourself and doing happy things like watching “Twilight” and baking cookies are going to make you feel recharged and not like we’re living in this seemingly pre-apocalyptic time, you have every right to do it.

Right now, all of us have to deal with a lot, but we also want to be involved with the important things going on.

This is a time where we are all social activists in our own ways, but it is okay if you take

some time for yourself.

Many of us are mentally exhausted from all of this bad energy that is being let out into the world. We are sick of it, and yes, that is why we continue to educate ourselves and fight to change this, but it is ok to rest, especially now.

We can see it in the way some are acting around campus. On Sept. 30, there was a preacher preaching outside in the middle of Central Campus, similar to the one who was preaching outside on Central Campus on the same day the year before.

Unlike the preacher last year, who attracted a group of about 150-200 students protesting him, most students simply walked by him, drowning him out.

Even though we are still dealing with many of the issues we were dealing with last year, many issues are certainly piling up and coming to a head, especially due to COVID-19.

It is completely okay that this preacher didn’t attract the amount of protesters they would have last year.

Students are already dealing with so many social and personal issues along with this new weird schooling set up.

Remember, we are living through some insane history right now, so don’t feel guilty for avoiding the news, social media and the world for a little bit.

You need to take care of yourself first before you can help change the world.

Staff editorials officially reflect the views of the editorial board, which includes the Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor and Opinion Editor. 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.

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OPINION

Give The Grundle a break, it’s not too bad Sam Jefferson Cynic Columnist

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he Grundle is defined on Urban Dictionary as the region between the balls and the arse-hole.

Known to UVM students as the university’s disgusting excuse for a dining hall. False.

Come Oct. 6, I’ll have called UVM home for more than a month and a half.

Living in Wilks, I’ve been blessed with Simpson Dining Hall, a two minute walk away, and not to brag or anything, but a 25 second sprint.

Being a first-year here, I’ve made lots of small talk with fellow first-years since getting here.

A common, unifying talking point is that the HarrisMillis Dining Hall, known as “The Grundle,” is absolutely horrendous.

This is false.

During my on-campus quarantine there was only one place to eat.

I chowed down at “The Grundle” for a whole week straight. Every. Single. Meal.

And I loved it.

I have never understood all the hate “The Grundle” gets.

Honestly, I think kids just like to crap on things to assert common ground and fear going against the grain while navigating the social minefield that is being a first-year.

“The Grundle,” and Calc homework, both things UVM students love to trash to make conversation. We are better than this.

Not everything needs to suck to be funny.

On Sept. 27th I decided to venture past my beloved Simpson Hall and into HarrisMillis, to see if things had somehow gotten as bad as my peers had described.

I looked around to scout at the menus for lunch and came across the infamous Mansfield Grill. My eyes scanned the chalkboard and was delighted by my options. They had everything I could ask for, black bean burger, chicken sandwich, french fries and a cheese burger.

That’s right.

The Grundle’s got cheeseburgers and they put Central Dining’s to shame.

And seriously, what makes Central so special? I will concede that they definitely have the best salad and vegetarian options on campus, but aside from that it’s bang average food.

I think people rave about it because it looks fancy and they confuse this with the quality of their meals.

“The Grundle’s” food quality, aside from their pizza, dare I say is on par with Central’s.

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Coming from California, this fall I wondered how I would get my In-N-Out fix and gave up hope when I learned that Five Guys on Church Street had closed.

Harris-Millis has filled this gap for me.

Their cheeseburgers are seriously that good, I urge you to give them a try.

It’s also a very spacious dining hall, Central and Simpson are both great but also extremely busy at times.

When you enter “The Grundle” you’re guaranteed to find a seat for you and your friends.

Also, the faculty and staff at Harris-Millis are some of UVM’s sweetest people.

Whenever I enter “The Grundle,” the staff members always seem glad to see another student and tell me to have a great day.

It’s the little things.

But, most people’s complaints about “The Grundle” are not about the seating or the staff, it’s about the quality of the food.

And I hear you, the main area called “Fresh Healthy” can get really iffy.

I was told by an avid Grundle enthusiast to always steer clear of this area and that the pizza can upset your stomach for days.

So, I get it, I’m not here to tell you all “The Grundle” slander is unwarranted, some of it is.

But people have made it out

to be so much worse than it actually is.

This is what they had this Saturday at “Simple Servings” which I’ve heard students call “Safe Servings.” Their menu consisted of glazed ham, lentil swiss chard and some okra sauteed with tomato.

All looked super tasty.

“The Grundle” also keeps plates out with fruit on them for students to take at any time.

This is by far the most accessible fruit on campus.

At many of the other dining halls you have to wait in line for fruit, which usually discourages me from getting any at all.

At my Grundle breakfast today I had a banana with some wonderful french toast, a great way to start the day.

I truly think if you hadn’t heard so many complaints about Harris-Millis dining one would go there, shrug their shoulders and say, “that was okay.”

It’s solid food, and they’re open at almost all hours of the day. Your one swipe away from a good meal at any time.

So stop bad-mouthing “The Grundle,” and glorifying Central.

If you hate it so much why waste so much time on it.

Sam Jefferson is a first year with an undecleared major.

He has been writing for the Cynic since Fall 2020

Stop picking at your zits, they make you look cute Gabby Felitto Opinion editor

W

aking up, feeling that dull ache of a clogged pore growing under your skin is one of the worst things to wake up to.

It feels especially worse when Proactive and Curology ads attack you left and right with before and after photos, telling you how their limited time cleanser will be your one way ticket into beauty.

For years, I have struggled with my skin. I come from a family of greasy skin and large pores.

It sucks dealing with acne when you’re in elementary school. I spent years picking and scratching at the red pimples and the blackheads on my chin, forehead and nose in my bathroom at two in the morning.

In middle school, you would never catch me with my greasy, bright, dyed red emo side bangs out of my face.

That was most likely a huge reason acne was so bad, as I couldn’t let anyone see my

gross, bumpy forehead.

Now, as a 20-year-old whose hormones are calming down and who keeps her hair off of her now clear forehead, I’ve realized that not only is having acne not ugly, but is pretty gosh darn cute, even though it made me hate myself for so long.

Acne is very common. It is the most common skin condition in the US, as it affects about 50 million Americans annually, according to the American Academy of Dermatology Association.

In our society, acne is always seen as ugly and that if you have acne, you have “problem skin”. All the actors, singers and internet stars we follow have clear and radiant skin or use makeup to cover it up.

In many shows portraying teenage high school lives like “Teen Wolf ‘’ and “Pretty Little Liars,” all were beautiful adults who either had clear skin, or

were wearing makeup and used good lighting, playing teens who should have pizza faces.

No wonder I felt so gross (and sometimes still do) having chestne and breakouts on my chin!

While my acne is far better, I still struggle with it.

I still cover my skin up with foundation and feel dread

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talented people, who always seemed to have the most flawless skin. But one day, scrolling on Tumblr, I saw the youngest member of BTS without makeup.

His cheeks were covered in dark red acne bumps.

I felt my heart flutter out of my chest. After that day, I started paying closer attention to k-pop idols when they didn’t have makeup on.

All of them had acne. It’s silly to think of this as being my epiphany that acne is something that everyone deals with and

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when I feel an angry lil’ red pimple erupt.

It’s funny though, because when I see other people with acne, I think they look so, so cute. It all started when I got into k-pop.

I was spending all my time looking at more beautiful and

doesn’t make you an ogre.

But as a 15-year-old, it made my favorite idols much more appealing and human.

Now, you might be thinking, “celebrities are some of the most beautiful people in the world, of course they look good with acne”, but after realizing that acne doesn’t downgrade a person’s

appearance, I truly believe that it makes people cuter.

When I see any of my friends without makeup, I feel warm and get butterflies in my stomach.

When I see a pretty girl or boy in class with pimples covering their cheeks and foreheads, I get hearts in my eyes.

Acne makes people much more human and relatable. It’s something we can all complain about together.

Imperfections are always the most endearing parts of a person.

And trust me, when you’re interacting with people, they’re not hung up on the pimple on your nose like you are.

So, while you’re sitting at your desk, obsessing and picking at your fresh new pimple, remember there is someone who will have a crush on you, with or without your pizza face.

Gabby Felitto is a junior Public Communications major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2018.

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OPINION

All skinny jeans should go out of fashion Sophie Oehler Cynic Columnist

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work at American Eagle.

It’s a great job, minus staring at the same promo poster of Addison Rae while on greeting duty — which is just cruel and unusual punishment for introverts — seriously, who likes saying hello to strangers for two hours straight.

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HERRY

in jeans: 31 cuts and 210 washes, including skater jeans, skinny bootcut, original bootcut, ‘70s flare, ‘90s favorite boyfriend (which is misleading, is the boyfriend the favorite, or is it the jean?) and so on and so forth.

What’s frustrating is that we have all these options, and yet few of them are sold in stores. The culprit? Skinny jeans.

In an “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” turn of events, skin tight denim has taken over the fashion industry, and brainwashed the

population into believing we look good in pseudo-spandex with a square centimeter of pocket space to match.

And some of you do look great in skinny jeans. I just don’t happen to be a member of the community who was blessed with legs like Gigi Hadid.

I’m short, with wide hips, and thanks to years of soccer and skiing, thighs that could crush a medium sized watermelon. In skinny jeans, my already stubby legs qualify me for the live action remake of “Gnomeo and Juliet.”

They just never fit right.

Stores like AE make

body inclusive cuts to accommodate those of us with, to quote Fergie, “junk in the trunk.”

Curvy jeans eliminate restricting waistbands, removing that obnoxious gaping in the back, making belts obsolete, and you a lot happier, now that you don’t have space fit for a small country between your skin and waistband.

But even with their modifications I still hate them.

I know this is a very “kids these days” sounding column, so in lieu of sounding like a disgruntled mother in front of Hollister, I’ll offer you a few alternatives to the trend that never seems to be “out.”

Mom

jeans are my personal favorite.

They sit high on your waist, and cinch in at your ribcage, so that they give you a “snatched” waistline, while simultaneously holding in the three bowls of Annie’s Mac & Cheese you had for dinner the night before.

The pockets are big enough to fit almost anything, be that a phone, keys or a packet of fruit snacks if you’re an actual mom and not a college student who wants to make their butt look good. Which, by the way, it will.

If you’re more the “born in the wrong decade” type, allow me to suggest a ‘70s flare jean.

It’s a flattering shape that accentuates your natural curves and if anything else, they make a cool sound while flapping down the street.

Pair them with a braided belt and a tunic style top and your ‘fit will be enough to make even Stevie Nicks jealous.

Regardless of your shape, put your skinny jeans in the back of the closet, and come visit me at work.

I’ll be Tan from “Queer Eye” and you’ll be my lost soul that just needs a push in the right direction.

Just don’t tell my manager I complained about greeting duty.

Sophie Oehler is a junior political science and French major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2019.

Outdoor cats should go back inside and stay there Jordan Spindel Cynic Columnist

M

any may agree that one should treat cats almost as equally as humans, giving them the same opportunities of food, enrichment and comfort. But one aspect that may need to be limited or eliminated altogether is time outdoors.

Domestication changed a lot of traits in cats, but one that hasn’t changed is their drive to hunt. When cats are let outside into backyards and surrounding neighborhoods, they often target local birds and mammals, even if well-fed.

Cat predation has a significant impact on native wildlife. A study by the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute estimated that up to 3.7 billion birds and 22.6 billion mammals are killed by cats annually in the United States alone.

This has caused conservationists to sound the alarm, as cat predation threatens the recoveries of

several vulnerable species in the U.S., such as the Piping Plover and Florida Scrub Jay. What is also a concern is predation of the cats themselves. Several types of animals found in Vermont have been known to hunt cats to some degree, including coyotes, fishers and even birds of prey.

While this isn’t that common, it is a real threat that should be taken very seriously.

Yet one creature that is a threat to cats is not a predator of them at all. It is other cats.

Letting a cat roam free often leads to encounters with strays.

If any turn violent, a house cat can be injured or killed from these interactions.

Even if relationships between house cats and strays are peaceful, there is still reason for concern. Stray cats carry many diseases that can be passed on to others, such as rabies and feline AIDS. Some, such as the parasite Toxoplasmosis gondii, can infect humans and have negative side effects including

fever, fatigue and seizures.

Pests such as fleas, mites, and ticks can also be received through interactions with strays. Bites from these pests can cause irritation and infect cats with deadly pathogens.

Treating cats for diseases like these can cost a significant penny. Without pet insurance, infections can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars, with similar numbers for injuries as well.

Letting cats out is also risky because they may wander out

JULI BALDICS

on their own and become lost.

This could lead to them being thought of as strays and picked up by random people. Even if they are caring enough to give them to a shelter, they may not be able to be reunited with their owners.

Being lost can also put them at the mercy of the elements.

Depending on where one lives, a cat may easily become overheated, frostbitten or dehydrated, putting its life at risk.

Cars are also a significant threat to free-roaming cats, as cats don’t exactly listen to the rules of the road. Their small size also makes a collision much more deadly.

Cats should be kept inside for their own good, as hazards like those mentioned above are scarce to nonexistent. If you do let your cat out, keep a close eye on it at all times. An easy way to do this is to get a leash.

This is done with dogs for a reason, after all.

Jordan Spindel is a junior environmental science major. He has been writing for the Cynic since spring 2020

8

CULTURE

Jingle bells, batman smells, Xmas sucks Emily Johnston Assistant Opinion Editor

S

leigh Bells ring, and I am not listening.

We all see the memes, the posts and the conversations online about Christmas as the best holiday.

Sure, we get time off from work/school, we get presents and we get to spend time with family we don’t often see.

All of those are great things, but they do not make Christmas this holiday that should be idolized.

Living in the United States, the majority of people believe in some form of Christianity.

This means around Christmas time, and even months beforehand, popular culture and the internet become obsessed with the candy-cane, gingerbread cookie and old-man with a beard loving holiday.

This needs to stop: Christmas is not amazing. In fact, it’s actually kind of weird.

Christmas normalizes lying to children. My parents, and many others, told their kids Santa existed so we would believe in the fantasy and get into the “Christmas Spirit.”

When I found out Santa wasn’t real I cried for a week, I felt crushed and betrayed.

Now that I’m older, I have to keep this fantasy going for my younger cousins.

JORDAN MCDERMOTT

On Christmas Eve I feel like a crook every time I ask if they’re excited for Santa to come. Why do we do that?

If you break it down, Santa is an old man who breaks into people’s houses to leave presents for children.

That is creepy.

Fred Figglehorn says it best with the song “Christmas is Creepy.” I think it’s strange that we support this tradition that teaches kids nothing but betrayal and lies.

I think it’s also strange that some adults are still obsessed with Santa. The man is not real and I do not understand why people want to dress up as him.

Especially strange are the people who sexualize Mr. and Mrs. Claus for Halloween costumes.

I understand wanting

to spice up your Halloween costume, but I do not want to see muscle-tee Santa making out with a scantily clad Mrs. Claus.

These figures are typically old, and all this does is make me think about the rise of STD cases in old folks homes or people my grandparent’s age getting it on.

Good for them, but keep it out of my head, please.

Christmas should not be sexy and it should not be thought about around Halloween.

I think my main problem with the holiday stems from the fact that people try to celebrate it year-round when the roots of Christmas come from holidays celebrating the winter solstice.

Yule, a Scandinavian holiday, is celebrated with the burning of a Yule log and a

massive feast in late January.

Saturnalia, the celebration of the sun, was celebrated in Rome around the winter solstice (Jan. 21).

The Romans decorated their houses’ with evergreen trees. These traditions were combined once Christianity became a widespread religion.

Instead of honoring pagan gods, however, the holiday is now celebrated as the birth of Jesus of Nazareth.

I understand the desire to celebrate the solstice or Jesus’ birthday. Religion is an important part of human culture.

I do not understand the need to bring this holiday into other times of the year.

Of late, I’ve seen people celebrating “Christmas in Summer” or “Quarantine

Christmas.”

It’s no wonder too when it’s July or September, I wouldn’t be having a wonderful Christmastime because it isn’t Christmastime! There is a time and place to celebrate everything, so please leave your celebration at that time and place.

I hate the music too.

It is catchy but causes me to have massive headaches in which I realize I am not having simply a wonderful Christmastime.

Emily Johnston is a Junior environmental science major. She has been a Cynic since fall 2018.

CULTURE

Seven skeletons found under BTV home

9

Meredith Rathburn Cynic Staff Writer

As construction workers began to excavate the ground in a Burlington backyard, as part of a simple foundation project, instead of finding more dirt, they found bones.

Homeowners in Burlington decided to undertake an extensive home makeover only to discover they’re not the only ones inhabiting the area.

The construction workers on the scene initially called the police in, thinking they’d stumbled upon a crime scene.

But after a medical examiner took a look at the scene, what the workers had found was not a crime scene, but a burial site.

That prompted a call to State Archaeologist and UVM lecturer Jess Robinson as well as the UVM Consulting Archaeology Program (CAP).

The team found 17 grave shafts, seven containing outlines of coffins with skeletons inside and 10 mysteriously empty grave shafts.

The team of students and instructors, led by John G. Crock, the Director of UVM’s Archaeology program, was called on to analyze seven sets of skeletons they later found out were most likely soldiers from the War of 1812.

“We do feel for the landowner,” Crock said of the discovery.

“They’re very interested and supportive but of course it was certainly a shock.”

His team of students and faculty were able to finish excavation on Sept. 29 and are now in the process of analyzing the

Image courtesy of John Crock

Members of the UVM Consulting Archaeology Program scrape dirt into their tools, uncovering the burial grounds of seven skeletons and 17 grave shafts form the War of 1812. remains further and eventually finding a home for them to memorialize some of the country’s first veterans.

“There’s a collaboration between the City and the State to try to establish a memorial for these War of 1812 soldiers,” Crock said.

The State recently invested in an above-ground mausoleum where the remains, along with previous remains from the Burlington area, will go and if more research needs to be done they will be easily accessible, said Laura Trieschmann, Vermont’s State Historic Preservation Officer.

“We want to make sure that Vermont and our nation’s history is understood and celebrated and that anything that relates to that history such as buildings or archaeological sites are treated as they should and preserved as needed,” she said.

Burlington is home to many grave sites, similar to this one, as it had a large army base during the War of 1812 which is now memorialized by Battery Park.

As many as four thousand soldiers were based in Burlington at that time and many people died from battle wounds, hospital treatments and most

commonly from deadly epidemics like pneumonia.

At that time, the military wasn’t recording where they were burying people and there was no map drawn so people soon forgot and started to build Burlington on top of these cemeteries.

However, the military hospital left detailed records of all of the deceased so there were about 550 remains from people who died at the hospital.

“I think there are a lot more [archaeological sites] we just don’t know exactly where they are and there’s really no large financial support to undertake

an investigation that would find them all and exume them all,” said John Crock.

The new mausoleum is anticipated to take around a year and is set to be completed by Memorial Day of 2021, according to Trieschmann.

UVM CAP will continue to do research on and analyze these human remains further to try to identify age, sex, stature and obvious trauma or pathology.

Archaeologists and historians will then wait for the next home renovation to reveal another set of lost soldiers to tell us more about the history.

Students at home find ways to enjoy remote learning Luke Davis Culture Staff Writer

M

y phone is on the floor, singing its morning blues. Luckily, I don’t have to reckon with rousing my roommate. I’m at home this semester.

Far from all the weekly case reports, campus-wide testing and social distancing, there are roughly 1,400 UVM students currently taking classes from home, according to a Sept. 30 Cynic article.

So far, everything seems to have gone better than expected.

Olivia Vogel is a first-year student at UVM. “I thought it would be a lot worse,” she told me. “It’s been helpful to know that [my teachers] are only an email away.”

However, some UVM professors have even gone further beyond timely responses to emails.

“Some teachers have given phone numbers out and been like ‘feel free to text me, call me, anything you need I’m right there.’ So that’s really helped,” Vogel said.

Many at-home-students have had to find a way to separate their school life from their

social life, a task made substantially more difficult when one is confined to their homes instead of an entire campus.

“I know that my room is my home life, and then the table [is] the desk,” sophomore Lucas Pencak said. “That’s for all the classes.”

Sophomore Clara Byors breaks from the confines her home in order to feel more comfortable in virtual classes.

“I used to do work out by our stream and do my classes out there. I feel like I can speak freely and be the college version of myself that I like a lot more,” she said.

The college experience is about far more than just grades, projects and papers. For Pencak, it hasn’t been ideal but he’s made it work as a member of the alpine ski racing team.

“We had our first virtual meeting yesterday and what they’re doing for at-homepeople is, you can just do the workout at home,” he said.

Lucas also talked about the experience of seeing his friends in that virtual meeting. “[I] got to interact with everybody a little bit before the meeting which is really good actually because I hadn’t seen a lot of those people since like March,” he said.

Engaging with remote

Photo Illustration by ALEK FLEURY

Students who chose to stay at home and take UVM classes remotely have been surpsingly having a better time than expected, according to multiple student sources. I thought it would be a lot worse,” said first-year Olivia Vogel. “It’s been helpful to know that [my teachers] are only an email away.” students as a club can be very difficult and for some clubs operating on campus, is not worth it.

“I chose not to engage in the clubs that I engaged in last year because they didn’t want to just do everything over Microsoft Teams,” Byors said.

When I asked Byors about whether or not she had attended any of the virtual events on UVMBored, she responded with a morose sentiment.

“I haven’t. I just think it’s really sad, I just get more sad about the fact that I’m not there,” Byors said.

She said she’s been trying to stay positive despite all the uncertainty.

“At this point, I’m just taking it one day at a time, just like everybody else is, and I’m trying to be as grateful as possible for everything that’s given to me,” she said.

Not every part of Byors’ home life was doom and gloom, though.

She said her friends had started an interesting hobby together to stay connected.

She continued, telling me about how her best friend had sent her a care package to help.

“I just want everyone on campus to be as smart as possible so I can come back in the spring,” she added with a hearty laugh.

All in all, it’s impossible to say that at home students don’t want to return as soon as possible, but at the same time, they feel that UVM is doing a good job and that everything will be back to normal soon.

Luke Daivs is a sophomore.

He has been wwriting for the Cynic since spring 2020.

10

CULTURE

English professors lead reading on BLM Anna Kolosky Culture Staff Writer

Small video chat boxes mark out the different people present as English Professor Gregory Bottoms waits for everyone to arrive.

Unlike usual university events, this one is held online in accordance with COVID-19 guidelines but is still surrounded by the same excitement.

On Sept 30, UVM’s English Department held an event over Microsoft Teams called, “Writing in the Times of Black Lives Matter.”

The event featured Green and Gold professors of English Major Jackson and Emily Bernard reading their latest poems and essays focused on racism, Black Lives Matter and the pandemic. The event was a continuation of the summer curbside events that had begun in the summer, Jackson said.

English Professor Gregory Bottoms hosted the event and introduced Jackson and Bernard to the students and faculty present. Bottoms said that he has known them and their work for almost two decades.

The event began with Jackson reading a short poem, followed by his short essay, “Letter from Vermont” which had originally been published in LitHub. His essay centered on his personal discussions with friends about dealing with heightened racial tensions in a pandemic-ridden world.

Jackson’s second essay focused on a man named Joseph Wood, an accomplished writer

Image Source UVM

Professors Emily Bernard and Major Jackson read essays and poems in a Microsoft Teams event, organized by the UVM Department of English. The event focussed on racism, Black Lives Matter and the COVID-19 pandemic. who went missing on Mt. Rainer in 1999.

“Joe has been on my mind ever since that year,” Jackson said. “His body was never found, and his family believes that he was the victim of racial violence.”

His essay explored how natural spaces function as white spaces, and the violence people of color experience in the outdoors.

“The investigative branch of the park service reports that last year saw the highest number of cases against people including: sexual and physical assault, stalking, burglary

and vandalism, Jackson said.

“Which begs the question: How safe are our outdoor spaces, especially for people of color?”

Bernard followed up Jackson’s essay by reading an editorial called “From the Stranger in Me to the Stranger in You,” that she wrote for “Image Journal.” Her piece spoke about pain, liberation and the power writing holds.

“Here is what I’ve learned from my 50+ years of being a black woman in this country.

People are the worst,” Bernard read. “From being a human: fear is a prison. To tell the story is to choose liberty over pain. I

write from the stranger in me to the stranger in you, from my discomfort to yours.”

Bernard believes that we must meet in our brokenness, in the gaps between sentences and paragraphs, between silence and speech.

“It is from the brokenness that I teach and write. The creeds and prayers that anchor my faith are opportunities to articulate my only aspiration, to become whole,” Bernard read. “To become whole is to become free. My entire philosophy is based on my belief in forgiveness, I teach because I have been uninformed and I know

deeply the pleasure of being liberated from ignorance.”

She finished with her essay, “I Can’t Sleep,” in which she describes how the effects of white supremacy had left her and her daughter unable to sleep.

“I wish I could disappear into books the way I did in the before, but I couldn’t go back to willful ignorance if I tried. No more sleeping,” Bernard said.

“The term “white supremacy” is now part of Isabella’s every day idiom. At 14, my daughter has already experienced the painful experience of white supremacy.”

‘Folklore’ is market motivated ‘queerbaiting’ Sophia Venturo Assistant Culture Editor

I

n late July, I heard that Taylor Swift was releasing a surprise double album called “folklore,” a dreamy indie record with a black-and-white album cover showing a whimsical treeline. It set my teeth on edge.

“Folklore” is Swift’s eighth studio album that was mostly written and recorded during the pandemic.

It is a follow up to last summer’s “Lover,” a vivacious return to pop-form after 2017’s “Reputation,” a tried hand at trap and R&B. “Folklore” has all lowercase titles, lowercase tones and lowercase energy.

The lead single is “cardigan.” A hookless, lo-fi effort that drifts along and fades away quickly into the back of your mind, trickling slowly and leaving a lot to be desired from Aaron Dessner and Jack Antonoff’s production.

“Cardigan” is exemplary of Swift’s shallow lyricism on the record and is characterized by a flat simile.

She sings “I felt like I was an old cardigan under someone’s bed.”

The entire record drifts along like this, predictable and unremarkable, and its 16 song tracklist makes this project a somewhat fruitless listen.

In fact, waiting for something, anything to reach and grab you on this record is quite the anxious task.

I was not so much surprised by this release, as much as I did not understand why one of the biggest pop stars in the world would shift gears like this.

“Lover” and “Reputation” were a lot of things, but they were not boring. I am obviously no Swiftie, but I can admit that songs like “London Boy” or “Better than Revenge” cook and catch you, corny lyrics aside.

The leaps Swift made from country to pop to trap to pop again and finally to alternative production shows that she is simply focused on what is popular and what is commercial.

“Folklore” is a jewel in Swift’s crown of inauthenticity.

You can practically smell the months of market research that precedes a new Taylor Swift album cycle, gauging the culture for popular or new music industry trends and naturally, she just adopts them and capitalizes on them.

But Swift has never pioneered any genre. Her music falls short of the emotional grit

and willingness to experiment which diminishes her appeals to artists that invented or refined modern pop, R&B, or alternative music.

“Folklore” is a shockingly good yardstick for this theory.

It sounds like she heard “we fell in love in october” by girl in red and thought, “Oh, I can do that!”

This brings us to Swift’s queerbaiting on “folklore.”

Swift is not shy about using the language of social justice for her personal gain, and even went as far as using queer people as props of sorts in her music video for last album’s “You Need to Calm Down,” which features LGBTQ pop-culture staples like Haley Kiyoko, Adam Lambert, Laverne Cox and more.

She dances around them in a whirl of glitter and rainbows, singing “Shade never made anyone less gay.”

In the last year, folksy lesbian dreampop has taken hold in the mainstream.

Artists like Phoebe Bridgers, Clairo and girl in red are writing about their experiences as queer girls and gaining traction.

“Folklore” is an obvious appeal to this yearning, woodsy

cottagecore vibe.

“Betty” is one of the closing tracks on “folklore,” and has been called “queer-canon” by everyone from Twitter users and professional critics, despite the fact that it portrays a heterosexual relationship with Swift singing from the male’s perspective.

Remember on her first record when she sung “Tell all your friends I’m crazy that’s fine. I’ll tell mine you’re gay” on “Picture to Burn”? Being gay was not so cool to Swift when she was trying to appeal to a demographic of country fans.

IZZY PIPA

Now she’s suddenly queen queer?

Queerness is counterculture and Taylor Swift is the definition of establishment.

The entire tone and tenor of “folklore” feels like she’s toying with queerness, throwing it at the wall and seeing if it sticks.

It’s almost like if John Rich stole Tracy Chapman’s flow.

I don’t mean to thrust a label on Swift, but as a queer consumer of pop-culture, this incarnation feels like a way to capitalize on the thematic concepts that were popularized by other artists without any personal risk that is tied to identity.

Swift’s watered-down, radio palatable reworkings of other music styles is not cutting it for me anymore.

I am ready to see Taylor Swift evolve and write critically and compellingly from her own perspective.

“Folklore” was ultimately a disappointment, and we can only hope that she will find her footing as an artist in the album cycles to come.

Sophia Venturo is a junior political science major.

She has been a Cynic since 2018.

SPORTS

11

Hockey hires new coach in hiring freeze Hayley Rosen Assistant Sports Editor

Despite budgetary shortfalls and dozens of unfilled job openings across the University due to a hiring freeze, UVM Men’s Hockey has added two new coaches onto payroll.

No one from the University or UVM Athletics has offered an explanation as to why the coaches were able to be hired, with a combined yearly salary well over $150,000.

The University implemented the hiring freeze in the last week of April to protect the finances of the school during the coronavirus shutdown, according to an April 27 memo from William Falls, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences .

Head Coach Todd Woodcroft was hired in April, after the pandemic had already begun, and just days before the hiring freeze went into effect.

Woodcroft was hired at an annual base pay salary of $275,000. However, according to an Apr. 16 Burlington Free Press article, the coach’s salary would be 165,000 until “the school returns to normal operations due to the coronavirus pandemic.”

Several months later, Assistant Coach Stephen Wiedler was hired into the hockey program in September 2020, making him the team’s third assistant coach.

During last year’s 20192020 season, there was only one paid assistant coach and one volunteer. With the new hire, there are now two paid assistant coaches and one volunteer, according to the UVM Athletics website.

The Cynic reached out to eight administrators from the Athletic Department and Human Resources asking why a hockey coach was hired during a hiring freeze.

After two weeks, Nich Hall, director of communications shared the following statement from the Athletic Department.

“The hiring of an assistant coach in the men’s hockey program was delayed for five months. However, once the team returned to campus and began training, it was determined that the position was essential in order to support the safety and wellbeing of our student-athletes and the overall continuity of the program.”

The Athletic Department stated that they are unable to answer questions about the hiring freeze and how exceptions are made.

Although the statement underscored the safety and wellbeing of athletes, neither Hockey players, nor the two coaches mentioned in interviews that the hiring had to do with the safety or wellbeing of student-athletes.

Rather, the team members focused on the prospect of a winning season.

“COVID has affected everybody from an economic standpoint and a life standpoint. I think everybody has kind of been put on freeze and the hiring process here was definitely delayed and just not a natural progression,” Wiedler said. “The state of the world really slowed things down too.”

The Athletic Department also deferred to Richard Cate, vice president of finance and administration, and Jes Kraus, chief human resources officer, for questions regarding how the exception was made to allow Wiedler’s hiring.

Neither responded to request for comment.

Senior defenseman Brian Kelly said players on the team were aware the team was hiring a new assistant coach during a hiring freeze.

“Coach Woodcroft kept us up to date and informed us about the hiring freeze and that they did have someone in mind [for assistant coach], Kelly said.

“But it was tough because they couldn’t announce it, so we were all waiting on the decision.”

Senior goalkeeper Matt Beck said he knew the team was having difficulty hiring an assistant coach, but said that his team was not informed about the identity of the candidates.

Although the players and new coaches have started practicing for the season, Hockey East, the conference UVM plays in, has postponed play until further notice.

Despite the uncertainty and safety concerns brought on by

Image Source UVM Athletics

TOP: Coach Todd Woodcroft and Assistant Coach Stephen Wiedler watch as players practice.

BOTTOM: Coach Todd Woodcroft stands before a group of kneeling UVM hockey players. the pandemic, both coaches and players are optimistic about the prospect of having at least some type of season this year.

“As a new person coming

NHL just did.”

Beck said he, like Woodcroft, is feeling confident about the team and the likelihood of a season this year.

“I think we are going to have a season,” Beck said. “It’s just a matter of how many games we’ll get to play and how the travel is going to work.”

Although Kelly is optimistic about the upcoming season, he is also concerned about how not having fans will impact this year’s season, given the tremendous effect they have on the season as a whole.

“Playing at a place like Vermont, the history and the

“It was determined that the position was essential in order to support the safety and wellbeing of our student-athletes and the overall continuity of the program.”

-UVM Athletics Department in, I am very impressed by both the NCAA and our own Athletic Department,” Woodcroft said.

“I am very confident that we are playing and that it will be under very strict guidelines, like the

fans are such a big part of home games, but when you come down to it, despite that aspect, it’s the same sheet of ice and the same rules,” Kelly said. “So whether there are fans or not we play to win.”

One difference is in how the team conducts practices this year, with smaller groups of players on the ice at a time, since the whole team can’t have in-person gatherings to reduce contact.

“In terms of pulling some positives out of a negative, [the pods have] really allowed us to put greater one-on-one attention towards each player” Wiedler said.

According to a Sept. 14 Burlington Free Press article, the Athletic Department expects the team to start competition again sometime in November.

“These are waters that haven’t been navigated before,” Woodcroft said. “This is all new for us; we’re just trying to keep the players healthy and be compliant with the rules set by the City and the University.”

FEATURE

12

Sweater Weather

Klye Elms Assistant Photo Editor

As the sporadic rain storms fell down upon the cold Flynn St. cement, customers shuffled around, looking to buy sweaters and various antiques from the Vintage Lifestyle Marketplace.

There was never overcrowding, but with a constant stream of customers flowing through, there were always people browsing the sometimes bizarre wears from inside the store, or looking through the racks of cozylooking sweaters.

The woman running the

pop-up shop from Olann and Wool knew personally who most of the sweaters were from.

Oftentimes being from children that outgrew them to older nephews that had no more use for them.

The pop-up shop attracted a variety of people anywhere from families with kids, to the more talkative college-age folk, many sporting UVM masks and appeal.

There were many textural interests and oddball antiques to take pictures of that made for a feeling of childlike interest in how many nooks and crannies there were to explore.

WILL GUISBOND