Although the United States has a tradition of dominating track and field, the International Association of Athletics Federation World Championships for track and field have never been hosted in the country.

But now Eugene — in addition to Barcelona, Spain and Doha, Qatar —  is one of three cities that could host the 2019 IAAF World Championships.

The city of Eugene submitted a letter bidding to host the 2019 Championships to the IAAF in mid-April. According to TrackTown USA President Vin Lananna, the next step is for the IAAF to send out formal bid documents to each of the three cities. Once TrackTown receives these documents, they will begin to determine the feasibility of hosting the event in Eugene.

“A critical part of our process in moving forward will be determining what are the costs associated with all of these financial obligations. At this point, it is far too early to say what those costs might be,” Lananna said.

This event is usually very expensive. Lananna explained that the financial obligations for the host city include travel and housing costs for over 1,800 athletes, team officials and support staff. It also includes security, transportation, insurance, accreditation, facilities and more.

“If we move forward with a bid, we will jointly present the bid to the IAAF in an in-person meeting,” USA Track and Field Chief Public Affairs Officer Jill Geer said. “They will make the choice of who will host.”

The IAAF World Championships is held every two years. In 2015, it will be in Beijing and in 2017, it will be in London.

Because this event has never been hosted in the United States, Lananna said that there were preliminary steps to take before requesting to host this event. That is why Eugene is hosting the IAAF World Junior Championships at Hayward Field this summer. Portland will also be hosting the 2016 World Indoor Championships.

“Over the past two years, the landscape has begun to tilt in favor of a viable U.S. bid, and I believe the timing is right to pursue this renowned event,” Lananna said.

The most decorated runner in University of Oregon track and field history, Jordan Hasay, is a UO alumni who may be eligible to compete at a high-caliber event like this.

“If we were to host the World Championships, not only would it be a huge hometown advantage, but I think it would bring Eugene closer to the world and the world would appreciate the crowd in Eugene,” Hasay said. “The crowd is incredible.”

The final decision will be made by the IAAF Council at its meeting this November in Monaco.

“Today, I believe we are better positioned than ever to make a run for the IAAF’s crown jewel, and because of the rich tradition and history of TrackTown USA and our built-in fan base, historic Hayward Field is the right spot for that meet,” Lananna said.

Ellie, a 9-month-old, short-haired black cat enjoys chasing her own shadow, jumping high in the air while attempting to do tricks and sitting on Mom’s lap. Unfortunately, Ellie was the victim of flea infestation earlier this year.

Anne Marie Payne explained that the fleas were difficult to spot because her cat is black and so are the fleas. The first time she noticed them, she thought it was just dirt that Ellie had tracked in.

“One day she was scratching her head, so I decided to look there and I saw one run across her scalp,” Payne said. At the time, Ellie was only  3 months old.

Payne flea-bombed the house to kill the fleas, and also treated Ellie with a topical ointment to eliminate any remaining fleas.

Student pet owners are generally more at risk for encountering fleas. Due to the close living quarters of most student housing complexes, pet owners may find their pets attracting fleas frequently, as it is easy for a pet to pick up fleas from another pet.

Payne explained that Ellie got fleas shortly after a friend’s cat stayed at her house for a week. Apparently the cat wasn’t clean, and Payne believes that is how Ellie got fleas.

According to Leah Nansel, a veterinary assistant at Busch Animal Clinic, the most affordable way to rid your home and pet of fleas and ticks is to take preventative measures. Keeping floors, bedding, and furniture clean through routine vacuuming is the easiest way to ward off these pests.

“Every season in Eugene is flea season. Usually places with a colder season will knock out fleas completely. Here it doesn’t get cold enough to freeze out all the adult fleas,” Nansel said.

Areas with colder climates have a more defined flea season than in Eugene. However, flea infestation does increase as the temperatures rise. Nansel said that fleas are more common as the weather gets warmer.

Taking precautionary steps to avoid flea infestation is important, but Nansel explained that fleas can also get into a home by jumping onto your clothes or shoes. Clearing your yard of debris may help keep fleas away from your house.

Nansel said, when a pet is attacked with fleas, most pet owners turn to topical medications such as Frontline or Advantage. These medications are absorbed into the pet’s hair follicles, so when a flea jumps onto the pet, it is either sterilized or killed — depending on which medication is being used.

If an inspector notices fleas in one of the rentals during turn-over season, it usually is not very difficult to fix. Their standard protocol usually involves flea bombing the unit and shampooing the carpets. Most of their units do not allow pets, so this doesn’t happen frequently, Christina Shank of Property Management Concepts said.

As summer is approaching, the best way to prevent your cat or dog from attracting fleas is to keep your house or apartment clean. If your pet does get fleas, topical or oral medication can be purchased at a number of local veterinary offices.

The gender equity hall is home to students who do not want their housing to be limited by gender or sex. It is a place that houses roughly 25 residents and is located on the fourth floor of Carson Residence Hall.

All Pac-12 universities offer some form of gender-inclusive housing. Whether it be a floor in the dorms, apartment-style dorms or a separate dorm building, there are a variety of options for equal student housing at these large public schools.

Unlike the Pac-12 universities, smaller colleges don’t accommodate a diverse student population in the way we have grown familiar to here at the University of Oregon. George Fox University in Newburg, Ore. recently made national news for not allowing a transgender student to live in the all-male dorms. In other words, gender inclusive housing is not an option there.

Andrew Rogers, a residence hall assistant for the gender equity wing, explained that it is absolutely necessary for students to have this housing option.

“This is a place where you can start your first year of college and you can feel comfortable where you are living. I think that is really important,” Rogers said. “The gender equity hall is where you identify as you are and you live as you are. That’s what this is here for.”

In addition to the gender equity hall, the fourth floor of Carson also has two collegiate wings and a social justice wing. Gabe Gardiner, a resident of the male collegiate wing who identifies as a member of the LGBTQ* community, said that there is an overwhelming sense of community on this floor.

“Carson fourth floor has helped me prosper in my community,” Gardiner said. “I think it is a very positive experience for people and the residence halls in general should focus more on community-based groups because that is what helps students reach out in their communities.”

Kalie Solomon, a sophomore who identifies herself as part of the LGBTQ* community, did not live on the gender-equity floor. She describes her experience living on an all-girls floor optimistically.

“It was a very accepting and inclusive space — but at the same time, I felt I was the token queer person on the floor,” Solomon said. She added that not all LGBTQ* affiliated students have had the same positive housing situation that she did, so having the gender equity hall is still very important.

Claudia Sneathen, a resident of  the female collegiate hall of Carson fourth floor, explained that being on this floor reduces nervousness and stress LGBTQ* students might have about their sexualities.

“We are living in a heteronormative, straight and cis-gendered kind of world. We haven’t really reached that amount of diversity and inclusiveness,” Sneathen said. “Just knowing that there is a little place for (LGBTQ* students) makes a big difference.”

Spring is the time of year that many University of Oregon students strap on their helmets, dust off their bicycles and begin to ride. This spring, the UO Bike Program has a lot of new workshops and programs available for the entire biking community to take part in.

The Bike Program offers a variety of clinics to help students learn how to do both preventative maintenance and emergency repairs. A do-it-yourself bike station inside the bike barn allows students to bring in their broken bikes and get hands-on help from mechanics.

Alec Wright, a UO sophomore and avid cyclist, uses the do-it-yourself bike station frequently.

“It’s frustrating at times, but you learn a lot and it becomes more fun,” Wright said. “Next time if I have the same problem with my bike, I will know how to fix it.”

Kate Armstrong, UO junior and operations coordinator of the Bike Program, explained the usual bike school will continue this term. The bike school is a six week class that meets once per week.

“Bike school is where you take apart each system of the bike and put it back together to learn about how all the systems are working with one another,” Armstrong said.

Some of the other workshops that the Bike Program is offering this spring include: 5 Repairs on the Fly, Confidently Biking Campus and Beyond, Women’s Maintenance Night, Bike Music Fest and BicyClean. More information for each of these workshops can be found on the Bike Program website: http://outdoorprogram.uoregon.edu/bikes.

Most friday mornings the Outdoor Program hosts, “Ridgeline Friday,” a mountain bike trip with the Bike Program that is free and open for anyone to go on. “We are trying to encourage more beginning riders and especially more ladies to come out with us,” Armstrong said.

The Bike Program also rents out bicycles to students for $30 per term. Over 100 bikes of various styles and shapes are available to rent. Max Vuylsteke, a UO junior and bike mechanic, said part of his job is to maintain this fleet of bikes so that they stay in good condition for the following terms.

Vuylsteke explained many of the bikes were donated, but some are just found around campus.

“It’s very common for students to ditch their bikes when they don’t want them anymore. Those get impounded and come to us,” Vuylsteke said.

With spring in the air and warm weather on the horizon, Armstrong said that this is the Bike Program’s busiest time of the year. She encourages all students to come in to the barn to learn more about bikes and to go on some bike trips this term.

Vuylsteke said, “The bike program is all about empowering students and community members to take transportation and bicycle mechanics into their own hands and to show everyone that bicycling is not only functional, but fun.”

University of Oregon instructors now have the freedom to teach more controversial subject matter without fear of  ramifications from the university, thanks to the UO’s new academic freedom policy. The University of Oregon Faculty Senate has unanimously approved an updated version of the policy on academic freedom.

The policy requires that researchers and professors have the right to conduct, produce, publish and teach anything they choose. As long as the subject matter is relevant to the course, instructors may present controversial topics by means of their own discretion.

Students, faculty and non-faculty employees already have the protection of freedom of speech under Policy No. 01.00.16, but the updated version extends these freedoms to include various aspects of scholarship, public service, shared governance and teaching.

President Michael Gottfredson has 60 days to either sign the policy, veto it or request a revision.

ASUO President Sam Dotters-Katz believes that similar policies are shared by many academic institutions.

“Ensuring academic freedom is important. I think it’s the cornerstone of an academic institution,” Dotters-Katz said.

The policy’s shared governance element allows the university community to question or criticize any institutional policies or practices.

Under the policy, all members of the UO community have the freedom to participate in unrestricted debate. In doing so, people can choose to identify their affiliation to the UO or not, but they must specify that their opinions do not reflect that of the university.

Section 2 of the policy provides the context for these newly extended freedoms.

“The academic freedoms enumerated in this policy shall be exercised without fear of institutional reprisal,” the policy states. “Only serious abuses of this policy – ones that rise to the level of professional misbehavior or professional incompetence – should lead to adverse consequences.”

This would not protect slander. For example, if a professor were to claim that the university president was committing a crime when he or she wasn’t, the professor would not be protected.

In a statement to The Oregonian, President Gottfredson said: “I look forward to closely reviewing (it) … I fully support the strongest policy on academic freedom possible. Academic freedom is central to our mission and underlies everything we do as a university.”

John Bonine, a professor in Oregon’s Environmental and Natural Resources Law program and member of the UO Senate, is very passionate about this topic.

Bonine explained that the original policy was revised in 2013 to address the issues of academic freedom and freedom of speech as their own separate entities. President Gottfredson requested that the policy be examined more closely.

Since then, the senate has been working with the president’s administration. The updated policy is the result of the senate’s work.

“The university has recognized for some time the importance of student and staff with shared governance,” Bonine said. “This policy assures that such participation will be encouraged and protected.”

Every student enjoys fancy, new buildings on campus — but when it comes to footing the bill, they quickly become less enthused. This, in addition to a potential tuition increase, is causing both in and out-of-state students to grow concerned about their finances.

The University of Oregon Governing Board of Trustees has recently submitted a recommendation to the Oregon Board of Higher Education for the 2014-15 school year. The budget includes a 3 percent increase in out-of-state tuition, a 16.4 percent increase in mandatory fees and no increase in in-state tuition.

A portion of the mandatory fee increase would go towards the renovation of the Erb Memorial Union. The total budget for construction is $95 million. It is expected that $5 million will be earned through private donations. Students will cover the rest through a $67 fee paid each term, by each student, for the next 30 years.

Beth Villano, a UO sophomore from Bend, Ore. feels that students need to know more about what our mandatory fees are spent on.

“I don’t understand why they have to redo the EMU in the first place. Besides that it’s kind of annoying structural wise, it still works,” Villano said. “I understand that the money has to come from somewhere, and if mandatory fees is the way they have to do it, then fine. But the public should know exactly where this money is going.”

ASUO President, Sam Dotters-Katz, explained that a lot of our mandatory fees go toward things that we all benefit from such as the Health Center, the Recreation Center, and Lane Transit District. He feels that current and future students will be pleased with the EMU renovation once it is completed.

“One of the reasons out-of-state tuition will only go up a little is because we think we have reached the market rate. Out-of-state students shouldn’t expect large increases in the future,” Dotters-Katz said.

Oregon Legislature gave public Oregon universities $40 million in order to help prevent tuition increases for the 2014-15 school year. Lawmakers decided, for the first time in 14 years, to put a freeze on in-state tuition.

Quinn Hopp, a UO sophomore from San Carlos, Calif. feels that even a small increase in out-of-state tuition could drive students away. She doesn’t think it’s fair to only increase tuition for a portion of the student body.

“Obviously mandatory fees going up is never a good thing. But it’s better that everyone’s fees are going up, instead of targeting one group of people who are already paying more,” Hopp said.

The finance and administration sub-committee of the Oregon Board of Higher Education will take a vote to finalize the budget later this spring.

Dotters-Katz said, “The reason that I voted for it is because every building on this campus that we use, someone else paid for.” He believes that the EMU renovation will serve as a legacy for future students that will leave this campus a better place.

“For how much this campus has done for us as individuals, we want to pass that on to others,” Dotters-Katz said.

A driver of a red Toyota Camry collided with a parked car while heading east along E. 17th Ave. toward Patterson St. around 10 p.m. Monday.

According to the Eugene Police Department, no one was hurt, but the Camry was likely totaled.

Traffic is encouraged to avoid the area.

Ordinarily, most couples would tend to avoid arguing with each other — but not University of Oregon debate partners, Liz Fetherston and Kehl Van Winkle. Debate is what brought them together.

The pair placed 6th out of 55 teams at the National Parliamentary Tournament of Excellence competition at Northern Arizona University last month. Additionally, Fetherston was awarded the title of Top Speaker and Van Winkle was awarded 4th Speaker.

Both Fetherston and Van Winkle have been involved in debate since high school. The couple admitted that if it weren’t for their partnership, they may not have done so well.

“I ended up hating debate at first. I just wanted to quit and it was terrible,” Fetherston said. “I thought he [Van Winkle] was really mean in the first practice debate we ever had in high school.”

When Fetherston was in high school she attended the UO Debate Institute, a program that UO Speech and Debate members put on to help high school debate students learn more about the field. From that point forward, she was hooked.

Since then, Fetherston and Van Winkle have been a part of the UO Forensics program and have competed annually at various competitions. “That’s why I applied to go to college here, it was actually the debate team,” Fetherston said. She feels that every student could benefit from competitive debate in one way or another.

“It helps you succeed academically as well. Learning how to articulate what your opinions are helps to write papers very quickly.” For this reason, she and Van Winkle currently volunteer at Thurston High School in Springfield to coach the speech and debate team.

“I think it helps to some degree the fact that we are a couple. We spend so much time together,” Van Winkle said. “Even though it’s not always the most romantic conversations, we are able to come up with a lot of off-the-wall ideas and develop them more because of how comfortable we are with each other.”

Both debaters are looking forward to beginning their graduate studies next fall. Fetherston plans to earn her English for Speakers of Other Languages endorsement, and hopes to become a high school teacher. She would also like to continue coaching high school speech and debate. Van Winkle anticipates going into law and hopes to attend Lewis and Clark Law School.

As the first UO Speech and Debate member to be awarded Top Speaker, Fetherston feels like she is part of a larger movement taking place for gender roles.

“It’s just statistically true that there are not very many women reaching high levels of competitive success,” Fetherson said. “This year every NPTE national champion was a woman. I thought that was a really cool way to end my career — knowing that women are achieving success.”

Director of Forensics, Trond Jacobsen, is very proud of the entire UO Forensics program’s accomplishments this year. He describes Fetherston as a great student and an exceptional debater.

“Her legacy as a leader is that she made everyone better and more successful,” Jacobsen said.