Sydney Hetherington juggles many responsibilities as RHA’s vice president of programming, including oversight of two hall councils. | Courtesy of Sydney Hetherington

“Busy” is one of many words to describe the members of the Residence Halls Association executive board.

Formed to represent those living on campus, members of RHA’s governing student body help communicate the needs and concerns of residents and plan events for their respective hall.

However, keeping up with the needs of the halls is no easy feat, according to hotel and restaurant management junior Sydney Hetherington.

But fortunately, Hetherington adjusted quickly due to her experience from the RHA Rotational Program last year. In addition to training her for her potential role, it inspired her to apply for a hall council position.

“The (RHA Rotational Program) was an opportunity including mentorship from each executive board member throughout the year,” Hetherington said. “After learning each person’s role and even working with other hall councils, it was amazing to see how an organization of students could have such a large impact on others’ lives.”

Currently serving as RHA’s vice president of programming, Hetherington’s position puts her in charge of planning all organization events from start to finish, including task delegation. 

Equipped with a knack for event planning, she uses her passion for it towards the creation of each student event.

“Each event has to be planned in a way that will reach every student differently,” Hetherington said. “For example, one of the past events included interest points for different students. Food, karaoke, coffee and even stickers are different reasons students come out and have a good time or meet new people.”

With each event comes challenges, as Hetherington encounters roadblocks in her work. Although a limited budget is one she struggles with, other challenges, however, persist.

“Each event’s goal is to make the most students happy using the least amount of energy with each event,” she said. “Having a limited budget this year makes it difficult to plan, but small things can make a big difference.”

“Since I am only in my second year at the University, one of my biggest challenges is lack of knowledge,” Hetherington added. “I do not know what school was like before the pandemic, and event-planning during is not the easiest task. That said, it is a good reason to reach out to older students and receive advice on how to plan events and such.”

Connecting with students is what Hetherington considers the best part of her job. Through her interactions, she grows potential friendships, some of which can last beyond graduation.

Hetherington appreciates making friendships immensely as she did not have the opportunity with her hall council. During that time, everything remained online due to COVID-19.

“This year, it has been a lot of fun being able to see new members in person and make that face-to-face connection,” she said. “A lot of hall council members end up becoming good friends as well as easy networking opportunities. I still chat with my previous mentors every now and then even as they enter the real world after graduation.”

arts@thedailycougar.com

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“A day in a life of an executive RHA member” was originally posted on The Cougar

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Active Minds brought their mobile exhibit “Send Silence Packing” to the Residential Plaza from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Oct. 13. The exhibit features over 1000 personal stories of individuals who lost loved ones to suicide taped to backpacks. Many of these individuals wrote about family members who took their own life, but others wrote about friends.

Students can view the photo gallery to see select stories and sections from the exhibit or students can go Behind the Backpacks to view the virtual exhibit and learn more about the stories of the individuals who took their own lives.

Students can also view past exhibits to see what Active Minds has brought to other schools.

For students who are experiencing suicidal thoughts, they should call 911 or the suicide prevention hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Students in a crisis situation can also text “BRAVE” to 741-741.

For deaf or hard of hearing individuals who are experiencing suicidal thoughts, “Use your preferred relay service or dial 711 then 1-800-273-8255.”

Students can also call the university counseling center at 912-344-2529.

For more information, students can read

1. The university counseling center’s H.E.R.O Folder
2. National Alliance on Mental Health’s (NAMI) Navigating a Mental Health Crisis
3. The counseling center’s suicide prevention tool kit.
4. The George-Anne Inkwell’s “How to help a friend who is thinking about committing suicide,”
5. The George-Anne Inkwell’s “Fresh Check Day: Photo Story”
6. The George-Anne Inkwell’s “Suicidal Thoughts Don’t Discriminate”
7. The George-Anne Inkwell’s “Suicide Prevention on the Armstrong Campus.”

The post Send Silence Packing Active Minds Exhibit appeared first on The George-Anne Media Group.

The Boston University men’s hockey team won, 4-1, against Sacred Heart University on Saturday to split the weekend series.

The University of Utah women’s tennis team attended the ITA regionals in Las Vegas from Oct. 13 to Oct. 17. The Utes played well and even saw a player make a deep run in the tournament. 

The first matches were on Wednesday, Oct. 13, and multiple Utes picked victories. The Utes went a perfect 3-0 in the doubles portion.

The standout performers from doubles were Lindsay Hung and Samantha Horwood who put up a convincing final score of 8-2.

The singles portion was successful for the Utes as well. Linda Huang, Madeleine Lamorauex and Emily Dush all picked up wins in the singles section. Anastasia Goncharova and Madison Tattini both fell in their opening matchups. Katya Hersch also managed to pick up a solid win. 

Day two saw many Utes lose in their matchups, but Huang continued her fantastic play and went 2-0 on the day.

Huang started off the day with a straight set victory over Holly Steward, the Boise St. stalwart. Huang then faced her toughest test against No. 15 Britt Pursell from Denver. Huang dropped the first set 6-4, but gathered her composure and was dominant in the second and third sets, winning each 6-1.

Hung was eliminated from the tournament in the round of 32 by Sophia Zehender. She was a heavy underdog entering the matchup and played well considering the circumstances. Hersch, Horwood and Lamoreaux all fell in the round of 16. The Utes also failed to win any of their doubles matchups.

Day three left only Linda Huang standing, and she prepared to face off against her quarterfinals opponent Anastasia Luneva who attends the University of Nevada.

Huang’s match followed a similar trajectory to her previous matchup. She started slow and lost the first set 6-2. Then after using the first set to gather information and figure out her opponent she began playing great tennis. She won the second set 6-1, then in the final decisive third set pitched a shutout and won 6-0 and earned a ticket to the semi-finals. 

Linda Huang’s impressive run came to an end in the semifinals as she matched up against the No. 2 seed Anna Diedmiller from Denver. The first set was a nail biter. Huang forced a tie-break game, but lost 7-6. She appeared deflated after the close loss in the first set and lost the second 6-0. 

The Utes have some time off to regroup and prepare for their next matchup. This will take place on Nov. 12 and the Utes will either attend the San Diego Fall Classic or the UNLV fall classic.

f.adler@dailyutahchronicle.com

@frankad68162488

The post Linda Huang Shines at ITA Regionals appeared first on The Daily Utah Chronicle.

As the election approaches, students need to register in Minneapolis before casting their ballots. Here’s how:

For students, the first step in the process of registering to vote is determining their residency, said Aaron Grossman, the election administration supervisor for Minneapolis. For students, that can be where they live when at school or where they live when on break.

“The advantage is that if you are living in Minneapolis and you feel invested in the community and want to have your voice heard, in order to vote, you need to be registered to vote and add an address that is in Minneapolis,” Grossman said. “But it’s really a choice, because there’s certainly other elections that are going on in other cities, and you’re only going to be able to vote in one of them.”

Students from Minnesota who want to vote in the upcoming election will need to change their residency to Minneapolis if they have not already. If they want to pre-register, they can go to mnvotes.org. To pre-register for the Minneapolis election, voters need four things: their name, date of birth, a Minneapolis address and an identification number such as a driver’s license number or Social Security number.

After voters have completed the pre-registration process, the county will send a postcard to verify that they can receive mail at the listed address. Residents can also go to the Office of Elections & Voter Services in person and fill out a paper form with the same information.

If voters choose to register on Nov. 2 when they are casting a ballot, they will need to bring something that shows proof of residency in Minneapolis to register. This can be an ID with a current address, a photo ID and a document that shows proof of residence such as a bill or current lease, a notice of late registration sent by the county or a registered voter who can vouch that they live at the address they have listed.

For students who previously lived out of state, they first have to prove they have lived in Minnesota for at least 20 days. These voters are also able to pre-register or register on the same day, as long as they bring proof of their residency.

Students who move addresses year-to-year will need to update their registration each time they move in order to be eligible to vote in the elections.

In recent years, you may have seen terms such as “clean,” “green” and “nothing bad inside” proudly brandished across labels in every aisle, from makeup to shower products, to dish soap and sunscreen. But what do these words even mean?

Buying specific products based on the moral compass of environmental consciousness is nothing new, and this mindset has been skyrocketing as consumers work toward reducing their participation in ecologically harmful activities. 

In the fight toward conscientious consumerism, new revelations have brought more questions that are left unanswered to the average consumer. Since the late 20th century, numerous scientific papers have been published examining the biological effects of potentially harmful chemicals, leading to the restriction or outright ban of many. A famous example is asbestos, a fibrous crystal which causes asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma from long-term exposure. 

While many chemicals, such as asbestos, are definitively known to be harmful to humans, many other chemicals are swimming in uncertainty about their true safety. Scientific publications are notoriously difficult reads, written in a complex language that is indecipherable to the average consumer. They’re not as accessible and widespread as the labels and marketing provided by companies. It’s not surprising that many consumers are not aware of the scientific literature surrounding products.  

These concerns aren’t limited to everyday consumers, either. Hawaii recently banned the sale of sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate, citing concerns from scientific publications that detailed the harmful effects of these chemicals on marine life, notably coral bleaching. With one of the richest marine ecosystems on the planet, Hawaii works tirelessly to preserve its vitality. Doing so means adopting a better safe than sorry mindset — a highly protective approach. However, that allows for bans that might not have strong scientific evidence, like the recent sunscreen ban, to still impact the legal system.

Scientific publications about oxybenzone safety frequently end on a teetering conclusion, in which they say lab settings may show a correlation, but more research is needed. These lab settings often don’t reflect real life exposure or usage, but for both consumers and companies in the ‘clean’ movement, that ‘maybe’ translates to a strong definitive answer. 

This article from Reef Repair (which coincidentally sells its own “reef safe” branded sunscreen) uses frightening words and imagery to paint oxybenzone as “dangerous” and that humans should avoid exposure at all costs. They link numerous studies and journal publications, which appears to bolster their credibility, but reading through these links reveals gross misinterpretations of the actual data.  

For example, they state that oxybenzone is linked to ‘organ toxicity,’ implying that this is a risk you face when you have oxybenzone in your sunscreen. The associated link is a short explanation of oxybenzone from the American Chemical Society, which displays the traditional chemical hazard list for oxybenzone. Although the hazard list includes organ toxicity among other hazards, this describes completely pure, 100% lab-grade oxybenzone if you ingest it, get it in your eyes or inhale vapors in a laboratory setting. Nobody is casually eating their sunscreen, hopefully. The concentration of oxybenzone in typical sunscreens is also incredibly low compared to pure, lab-grade products. 

In Reef Repair’s article, they cleverly sprinkle in ads for their own ‘reef safe’ products in between horror stories about oxybenzone. This is just one example out of dozens of companies that weaponize misinterpretation and misinformation to sell their alternative products as better, cleaner, and greener because they don’t use those “bad chemicals.” 

These kinds of buzzword terms aren’t rooted in any scientific or chemical definition, and only contribute to misinformation and fear instead of educating consumers on what’s inside their cabinets. Ultimately it’s up to companies to provide better ingredient transparency, including explaining what the chemicals in their products actually do in order to help others be less afraid of chemicals they don’t recognize or can’t pronounce.

On Thursday, the Eagles were embarrassed by the South Alabama Jaguars, 41-14.

The 27-point loss was the Eagles’ first defeat at the hands of the Jaguars, who they had previously beat in seven consecutive meetings.

For the second straight game, GS came out of the gates startlingly slow. The Eagles found themselves in a 23-point hole at halftime, which proved to be too much to claw back from.

“I felt like we didn’t come out with any intensity,” said interim head coach Kevin Whitley. “We knew it was going to be a big game for them and we just didn’t match their intensity.”

The Eagles recorded more than 160 yards rushing, but did so while averaging under three yards per carry. Through the air, Justin Tomlin and Cam Ransom combined to complete just seven passes for 112 yards and one interception.

Defensively, the Eagles allowed more than 400 passing yards and three touchdowns through the air. The Jaguars added two more touchdowns on the ground.

Following the loss, GS sits at 2-5 (1-3 SBC) on the season, which puts them in last place in the conference’s East division.

The Eagles welcome a bye week following the defeat, but will be back in action when they take on rival Georgia State on October 30.

The post Eagles drop another road contest appeared first on The George-Anne Media Group.

Sophomore Jenna Wenaas has been an important part of this Gophers team as they approach the midway mark of the season. No. 12 Minnesota sits at 10-5 and returned back to the Pav after two straight away weekends.

“I think it’s so much more fun than last year with it being empty. [The crowd] is cheering for us, whether we do good or bad. They give us a lot of energy and I think it just makes it a lot more fun,” Wenaas said of having fans back in the Pav.

Wenaas and the Gophers have given fans plenty to cheer for thus far. She is second on the team in kills with 177 to go along with 10 service aces which puts her at fourth on the team.

The breakout season continues to showcase what type of player Wenaas is, but she gives credit to her team and coaches.

“My team has definitely helped me a lot. They’ve been super supportive and when I have my bad days, they’re there for me,” Wenaas said. “The coaching staff as well, they’ve been super helpful and helped me grow a lot in a short amount of time.”

The Gophers have had their rough games throughout the season, one of them being against Wisconsin. That’s one game that Wenaas has in mind when she looks forward to her most anticipated games for the rest of the season.

Late in November, No. 3 Wisconsin will travel to Minnesota to close out its season series and Wenaas is looking forward to a rematch against one of the top teams in the nation after being swept in its first matchup. Another game that sticks out to her is at the end of October against No. 9 Nebraska.

Head coach Hugh McCutcheon has been very impressed with Wenaas’ performances this season, but isn’t surprised by the emergence.

“It’s not a surprise, she’s a very good volleyball player and it’s just great to see her out there competing and doing the things we know she’s capable of doing. A great year, but she’s a great player,” McCutcheon said.

Looking forward to the rest of the season, Wenaas and the Gophers have some goals they want to achieve.

“We want to win the Big [Ten], and go far in the tournament, but I think in order to do those things, we have to do the things that we know how to do consistently. We’ve talked about working towards daily goals and if we can do these daily goals then the Big Ten and the tournament goals will come on it’s own,” Wenaas said.

The Colorado State defense forced three turnovers and held the University of New Mexico to 79 total yards on offense, as the Rams dominated in a 36-7 road victory over the Lobos Saturday, moving to 2-0 in Mountain West Conference play. The win marks the Rams 11th straight victory over New Mexico and also marks […]

UH volleyball dropped its second match in AAC play on Friday night, falling 3-1 to SMU. | Esther Umoh/The Cougar

The Houston volleyball team fell to SMU 3-1 Friday night at Fertitta Center, bringing the Cougars American Athletic Conference record to 5-2 and overall record to 15-4. 

Junior middle blocker Rachel Tullos started the game off with a kill from the middle on the first play of the game. 

From there, the opening set saw both teams battle back and forth.

The Cougars created some space in play and went on a short run early to take the lead by three. 

UH led 9-5 after a setter dump from sophomore setter Annie Cooke, who finished the match with 38 assists. 

SMU fought back and gained a two point lead when senior middle blocker Isabel Theut slammed one down the middle to cut the deficit to one. 

The Cougars had to huddle up after the Mustangs reached 20 points in the set as the Cougars trailed by four.

Coming out of the timeout, UH battled back to bring the game within one, but an overpass from the Cougars with SMU at game point ended the first set 25-22. 

In the second set, the Mustangs wasted no time and began to dominate, taking a commanding 18-12 lead. 

UH struggled to generate much on offense, relying on SMU’s errors to close the gap. 

A kill from Cooke and an ace from senior defensive specialist Torie Frederick, who recorded 14 digs on the night, kept the Cougars alive but ultimately UH dropped the second set 25-18. 

In the third set, back-to-back kills from junior outside hitter Abbie Jackson gave the Cougars some momentum with a 6-0 run. 

Jackson shined with 19 kills and 20 digs in the match. 

After another run sparked by aces and the Mustangs’ mistakes, the Cougars stormed to a commanding 25-16 set victory to close the match two sets to one.

SMU got off to a hot start at the beginning of the fourth set, taking the lead 9-5.

After a kill from Jackson helped UH chip away at the lead, back-to-back blows from the Mustangs made things difficult for the Cougars. 

Eventually, SMU extended its lead to 20-10 to put UH on the brink.

The Cougars could not overcome the dominating advantage held by the Mustangs and lost the last set 25-14. 

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“UH volleyball offense struggles in loss to SMU” was originally posted on The Cougar