Jose Gonzalez-Campelo/The Cougar

At UH, students are told to strive for greatness and to be our best selves. But in the pursuit of our best selves, it can be easy to ignore potential mental health crises forming.

It may be hard, but knowing the warning signs and seeking help when needed is so much more important than grades will ever be.

While Counseling and Psychological Services has been criticized in the past, some students say they  have greatly improved their outreach and capacity this semester. The presence of mental health administrators all over campus has made getting help easier than ever before.

“I’ve seen that CAPS has been majorly pressing their mental health care options and programs to students lately,” said psychology freshman Dy’mond Reyon Spencer. “They’ve done a great job of making sure students know where to go and who to go to.”

Mental illness is not a joke. Life is unpredictable, and there’s no shame in getting help, especially when conflicting circumstances appear from out of nowhere. As tough as these situations can be, sometimes they provide the extra “nudge” needed to get real help.

Unfortunately, angry or anxious thoughts can affect anyone, no matter how calm they might seem on the surface. It’s important not to just suck it up because dwelling on these feelings can frequently make them worse, sometimes even resulting in serious consequences.

Refusing help when you need it can result in existing mental health conditions getting worse or you committing actions you might regret later. As anxiety builds, you might fall behind on assignments or lash out at your peers.

The most important thing you can do in situations like this is to avoid the cycle of shame that keeps people from getting help. Life has a way of causing us to fall flat on our face, but figuring out how to bounce back is what makes us human.

It might sound like a cliche, but there really are people available that want to help you get better. Study after study has shown the effectiveness of mental health services like UH has on campus, and the University even offers some of them for free.

It can be tempting to just deal with mental health in your own way because “that’s what’s always worked for me.” But trying to handle something as complex as mental health on your own doesn’t work in the end because good mental health needs good foundations.

Trying to fix it yourself is less like standing on concrete and more like standing on sand; trying to step out of it while constantly sinking can result in you just sinking again.

It’s understandable to have mixed feelings about services like CAPS. They’re far from perfect, but something is better than nothing.

Emotions and feelings aren’t just something to ignore; they hold real power. Reaching out can keep you or others close to you from getting seriously hurt.

As we head into the holiday season, remember: you matter, and now is a better time than ever to get help if you genuinely need it.

Alena Thomas is a history sophomore who can be reached at
opinion@thedailycougar.com

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“When it comes to mental health, there’s no shame in reaching out” was originally posted on The Cougar

The board voted unanimously to delegate the authority to Chancellor Renu Khator to negotiate a contract for a new dining hall that would replace Moody Dining Commons. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar

Thursday, the UH Board of Regents voted to approve a first step in replacing the University’s 50-year-old dining facility, Moody Towers Dining Commons.

The board voted unanimously to delegate the authority to Chancellor Renu Khator to negotiate a contract for a new dining hall that would replace Moody Towers Dining Commons. The board new facility is a $64 million project and is slated to start construction in Fall 2025. 

The dining hall is too small for students and the infrastructure is near the end of life according to Administration and Finance Senior Vice Chancellor and President Raymond Bartlett. 

“This will provide us the opportunity to, as they say, move into a freestanding position and then will afford us in the long term to address Moody Towers, which will need renovation long term,” he said. 

The independent two-story building will double the amount of space for students, as compared to Moody which stands at approximately 30,000 square feet.  While the menu will remain largely unchanged, the new dining wall will be constructed on Lot 6B, located between the Cougar Village dorms and Lynn Eusan Park.

The board also approved a new voluntary Sugar Land shuttle permit fee of $239 a semester for students. The price aligns with the cost of a zone parking permit.  

The Cougar previously reported on students’ concerns regarding the shuttle wait times and overcrowding. Parking and Transportation Services previously discussed using a permit for the shuttle and currently are using a priority system boarding system for students who have classes on both campuses.  

“This particular fee has been approved by the Parking and Transportation advisory committee and is also supported by the Student Government Association leadership,” Bartlett said. 

news@thedailycougar.com

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“Moody Towers Dining Commons to be replaced with updated facility” was originally posted on The Cougar

“Beautiful Girls” is a certified bop, but it’s definitely the kind of song that should be reserved for the awkward shuffling done at middle school dances. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar

Homecoming is meant to be a time of celebration; a time to enjoy being young, love life and dance the night away with friends and strangers alike. Yet to be honest, it’s kind of hard to really get down when the best UH has to offer is the fire beats of … Sean Kingston?

Don’t get me wrong, “Beautiful Girls” is a certified bop, but it’s definitely the kind of song that should be reserved for the awkward shuffling done at middle school dances. Bumping and grinding to “Eenie Meenie” feels like it should put you on some kind of list.

Throwback classics are great for when it’s 3 a.m. and you’re out with your gal pals at the club, but we’re slowly reaching a point where it feels like UH is just googling “songs the kids these days are into” and calling it a day.

That’s not to say that whoever picks the homecoming artists isn’t trying their best. After all, we did get the … third best member of Three 6 Mafia last year. Oh and we got T-Pain that one time, which I’m sure was a real treat for all four die-hard T-Pain fans in the house.

Normally, it would be easy to chalk this issue up to out of touch college administrations or budget constraints, but it’s hard not to feel like the grass actually is greener on the other side of the fence.

After all, TSU managed to get Megan Thee Stallion not too long ago. Sure, TSU was her Alma Mater, but UH has it’s own fair share of impressive musical alumni including Lizzo and even Lil Wayne.

There’s no guarantee that they would perform just because they went to UH, but Houston artists have a deep love for the city; anyone who went to Beyonce’s most recent concert can tell you that the energy here in H-town is electric in a way few other cities can match.

Even if UH can’t swing more “mainstream” acts, surely they could try calling up some of the hotter up and coming hip-hop artists that Houston has no shortage of. For god’s sake, we are THE home of the legendary DJ Skrew and the chopped and screwed style after all.

Houston had an absolutely gorgeous and diverse musical landscape, and if homecoming isn’t a reflection of that, it’s kind of hard to claim that we’re really “For the city.”

But maybe I’m just being ungrateful; UH could pull some really impressive early 2010s banger artist next year. Imagine getting turnt with your homies to “Replay” by Iyaz, wouldn’t that be something?

Say what you will about UH, but that’s certainly an experience you can only get here.

Malachi Key is a Journalism senior who can be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com.

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“UH deserves better artists for homecoming” was originally posted on The Cougar

Jose Gonzalez-Campelo /The Cougar

On Nov. 3, the Cougar Closet, which provided free materials for those facing clothing insecurity, announced on social media its sudden closure due to “unfortunate circumstances.” 

Some factors that contributed to the unforeseen closure include improper funding, inappropriate space, lack of resources and possibly internal conflicts among executive board members, according to some organization volunteers. 

“I believe they were having issues filling the executive board and not enough members contributing to the organization as they should have been, in the way that they committed to,” said junior pre-nursing major Kennedi King-Jones. “It had nothing to do with clothes.” 

However, the general consensus behind the closure is that it was primarily caused by damage and general wear-and-tear to the organization’s equipment. Racks were damaged and, with some in need of replacement, Cougar Closet has struggled to secure the necessary funding to repair them. 

Last year, Cougar Closet was forced to move locations from the Welcome Center next to McAlister’s to the Student Services Center next to Cougar Village and the A.D. Bruce Religion Center. This move was the beginning of the end of the used clothing racks. 

“Transporting the racks with their clothes on them did real damage and, with the small spaces that we were given to keep our racks and our clothing in, it was just hard to try to keep it all in the room,” said sophomore psychology major Dy’Mond Reyon Spencer, a volunteer with Cougar Closet.  

Over 400 articles of clothing remain in storage within the Student Service Building. According to management information systems senior and Cougar Closet President, Ojonobi Emina, members are currently exploring options to donate the remaining inventory.

Emina represents the organization, oversees the Executive board and coordinates organization events. She did not want to comment on whether the executive board had conflicts but did confirm King-Jones’s statement that there was a lack of help from within. 

“Some of our board members have realized that they cannot take up the responsibility for what they have signed up for,” Emina said. “However, some of our board members are also graduating this December.”

Emina stressed the main issues her organization is facing are obtaining funding, getting new racks and finding a fixed location that is suitable for their operation. 

Moving from the Welcome Center near McAlister’s only created more difficulties for the Cougar Closet. Before they had a fixed location and held events outside of the Welcome Center if need be. Operating out of a storage closet and mobilizing them has disrupted performance, she said. 

“It really harms the smaller operation of running the closet,” Emina said. “It’s very difficult to run the Closet out of the storage unit because the unit is stacked all the way to the brim.”

Volunteers don’t want to have students visiting the closet to dig from bins or sort through clothes on the floor, according to Spencer.

“We want to make sure they have a good stance on what they’re looking at and make it look professional,” Spencer said. “We want to make sure that it’s easy for them to look through and to choose.”

The Cougar Closet has since met with the Center for Student Advocacy and Community about obtaining new racks in the hope of addressing the problem soon. CSAC has offered to help provide racks but the timeline is still uncertain.

“Despite the hardships, we’re facing right now. We will be able to bounce back bigger and better next semester and hopefully into the next school year, “ Emina said. “We will be able to operate smoothly either in a new location or with our current location. But, things will get better. It’s just really hard times right now.” 

news@thedailycougar.com

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“Cougar Closet faces temporary closure due to ‘unfortunate circumstances’” was originally posted on The Cougar

The University’s newest royalty have different reasons for running but both are proud of their accomplishments and success, and they both hope to inspire people through their wins. | Anh Le/The Cougar

After an eventful homecoming court process, journalism senior Auyana Aird and sports administration senior Austin Craig have been crowned this year’s Homecoming Queen and King.

The University’s newest royalty have different reasons for running but both are proud of their accomplishments and success, and they both hope to inspire people through their wins.

While Aird’s mom was her first supporter, last year’s Homecoming Queen Asa Lewis helped give the final push Aird needed to run.

“I started thinking about how much I love the campus and love the University,” Aird said. “I thought it’d be cool to run and represent the university in that way. And also, other people were kind of rooting for me.”

Aird’s purpose of running shifted along with her campaign when she lost her brother to suicide, as she wanted to become an advocate for mental health. Ultimately, she wants to give people a sense of belonging and help guide them toward resources that will benefit them.

“That’s one of the reasons why it was so important to me, to be able to have this platform and be put in a position to possibly help someone else because that’s the worst thing in life to go through,” Aird said.

Wanting to serve as an inspiration to others who have struggled with themselves, Craig decided to run for Homecoming King. The newly crowned king enlisted his Zeta Zeta Chapter of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc. brothers to help.

“I knew that when I ran, it was going to be something bigger than myself,” Craig said.

“I knew that when I ran, it was going to be something bigger than myself,” Craig said. | Anh Le/The Cougar

Coming from a small town, Craig’s brothers helped guide him and get him to where he is today.

“They were so wise that I was able to take something from all their experiences,” Craig said. “I got shown the pathway, I just had to put in the work.”

As a freshman, Craig would attend UH football games and sit at the top of the bleachers, where he could look over the city and school. Remembering these moments as he was crowned homecoming king made the event feel like his life had come full-circle.  

“I was shy my freshman year so being able to get to this point, it’s just surreal to me,” Craig said.

When campaigning, both Aird and Craig enjoyed the opportunity to speak to the vast community on campus.

“I started as an orientation leader in the summer so during our campaigning – the two weeks we had, I had to channel that inner spirit,” Craig said. “Being able to walk up to somebody I didn’t know and become a familiar face.”

Aird also noted the countless hours that were spent campaigning and how enjoyable it was to be able to connect with different people throughout the university. For Aird, homecoming is important because it allows current and former students to come together and reflect on how the university has helped them.

“It just feels like one big happy family and I feel like the school sets up Homecoming Week and homecoming in a way that really gives you a sense of feeling or community and family as to what UH really means, even beyond graduation,” Aird said. 

For Craig, it’s more of a time for brotherhood and for alumni to help guide him.

“For me, it’s a time I get to see brothers that I haven’t seen in years,” Craig said. “Brothers who are coming back to the chapter since they left and graduated so I’ve been able to see them again and fellowship with them means a lot.”

Aird is the service chair for Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. — making this the second year in a row that a member represented by the sorority has won.

Despite her heavy involvement with Alpha Kappa Alpha, Aird is also the president of the UH chapter of the Association of Black Journalists. She also holds leadership roles within CoogTV and Coog Radio, while also interning with the athletics department.

“I’m just grateful and overwhelmed and appreciate all the love and support,” Aird said. | Anh Le/The Cougar

“I think what balances it out is that I enjoy doing these things and I know at the end of the day, it’s helping me,” Aird said. “Every skill I’m improving or learning is gonna help me in the long run. So these organizations now, it’s like a skill that I need before I graduate.”

Craig also has his fair share of involvement as the vice president of the Zeta Zeta Chapter of Phi Beta Sigma and working as a residential advisor, along with previously working as an orientation leader and with the football team.

“We try to provide programs and support services in terms of if they need to go to LAUNCH, CAPS, everything that encompasses the well-being of the students,” Craig said.

Although both Aird and Craig have heavy involvement with a variety of student organizations and are dedicated to helping their fellow students, their support systems and organizations helped them achieve their goals.

“I’m just grateful and overwhelmed and appreciate all the love and support,” Aird said.

news@thedailycougar.com

—
“‘It’s just surreal’: Homecoming royalty recounts journey” was originally posted on The Cougar

The University’s newest royalty have different reasons for running but both are proud of their accomplishments and success, and they both hope to inspire people through their wins. | Anh Le/The Cougar

After an eventful homecoming court process, journalism senior Auyana Aird and sports administration senior Austin Craig have been crowned this year’s Homecoming Queen and King.

The University’s newest royalty have different reasons for running but both are proud of their accomplishments and success, and they both hope to inspire people through their wins.

While Aird’s mom was her first supporter, last year’s Homecoming Queen Asa Lewis helped give the final push Aird needed to run.

“I started thinking about how much I love the campus and love the University,” Aird said. “I thought it’d be cool to run and represent the university in that way. And also, other people were kind of rooting for me.”

Aird’s purpose of running shifted along with her campaign when she lost her brother to suicide, as she wanted to become an advocate for mental health. Ultimately, she wants to give people a sense of belonging and help guide them toward resources that will benefit them.

“That’s one of the reasons why it was so important to me, to be able to have this platform and be put in a position to possibly help someone else because that’s the worst thing in life to go through,” Aird said.

Wanting to serve as an inspiration to others who have struggled with themselves, Craig decided to run for Homecoming King. The newly crowned king enlisted his Zeta Zeta Chapter of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc. brothers to help.

“I knew that when I ran, it was going to be something bigger than myself,” Craig said.

“I knew that when I ran, it was going to be something bigger than myself,” Craig said. | Anh Le/The Cougar

Coming from a small town, Craig’s brothers helped guide him and get him to where he is today.

“They were so wise that I was able to take something from all their experiences,” Craig said. “I got shown the pathway, I just had to put in the work.”

As a freshman, Craig would attend UH football games and sit at the top of the bleachers, where he could look over the city and school. Remembering these moments as he was crowned homecoming king made the event feel like his life had come full-circle.  

“I was shy my freshman year so being able to get to this point, it’s just surreal to me,” Craig said.

When campaigning, both Aird and Craig enjoyed the opportunity to speak to the vast community on campus.

“I started as an orientation leader in the summer so during our campaigning – the two weeks we had, I had to channel that inner spirit,” Craig said. “Being able to walk up to somebody I didn’t know and become a familiar face.”

Aird also noted the countless hours that were spent campaigning and how enjoyable it was to be able to connect with different people throughout the university. For Aird, homecoming is important because it allows current and former students to come together and reflect on how the university has helped them.

“It just feels like one big happy family and I feel like the school sets up Homecoming Week and homecoming in a way that really gives you a sense of feeling or community and family as to what UH really means, even beyond graduation,” Aird said. 

For Craig, it’s more of a time for brotherhood and for alumni to help guide him.

“For me, it’s a time I get to see brothers that I haven’t seen in years,” Craig said. “Brothers who are coming back to the chapter since they left and graduated so I’ve been able to see them again and fellowship with them means a lot.”

Aird is the service chair for Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. — making this the second year in a row that a member represented by the sorority has won.

Despite her heavy involvement with Alpha Kappa Alpha, Aird is also the president of the UH chapter of the Association of Black Journalists. She also holds leadership roles within CoogTV and Coog Radio, while also interning with the athletics department.

“I’m just grateful and overwhelmed and appreciate all the love and support,” Aird said. | Anh Le/The Cougar

“I think what balances it out is that I enjoy doing these things and I know at the end of the day, it’s helping me,” Aird said. “Every skill I’m improving or learning is gonna help me in the long run. So these organizations now, it’s like a skill that I need before I graduate.”

Craig also has his fair share of involvement as the vice president of the Zeta Zeta Chapter of Phi Beta Sigma and working as a residential advisor, along with previously working as an orientation leader and with the football team.

“We try to provide programs and support services in terms of if they need to go to LAUNCH, CAPS, everything that encompasses the well-being of the students,” Craig said.

Although both Aird and Craig have heavy involvement with a variety of student organizations and are dedicated to helping their fellow students, their support systems and organizations helped them achieve their goals.

“I’m just grateful and overwhelmed and appreciate all the love and support,” Aird said.

news@thedailycougar.com

—
“‘It’s just surreal’: Homecoming royalty recounts journey” was originally posted on The Cougar

Len Duenas/The Cougar

From the moment you set foot on campus, your advisors are meant to be the guiding light that helps propel your educational journey forward. But for many students, the advising process can range from clunky to downright unhelpful, resulting in serious potential delays to graduation.

This is not to say that advisors are inherently bad people. On the contrary, most are simply trying their best in a job that’s high-pressure, low-paying and relatively thankless. A good advisor can make or break a student’s future, and they should be loudly applauded for their efforts.

But the issue is, to put it frankly, that the University doesn’t have nearly enough of those “good” advisors. Ask any student about the advising process and they’re likely to regale you with stories of long wait times and ridiculously short appointments that rarely end with useful advice.

This issue can be especially prominent when it comes to some of UH’s less “money-making” majors. It’s hardly a controversial statement; the humanities have been in decline for decades now.

As their buildings slowly crumble and the number of faculty employed in any department that doesn’t produce a “return on investment” keeps shrinking, high quality advising in various places has slowly become harder to find.

Take the journalism department, for example. For as much as the University’s program is touted as a “learning lab,” your advisor is rarely likely to explain to you the importance of obtaining practical internships or putting together a portfolio of clips.

Both of these elements are deeply vital to succeeding in the journalism industry, but advisors are more likely to point you towards the required classes and shoo you out of their office instead of patiently explaining a journalist’s career path or directing you to join student media.

Again, this is not the advisor’s fault, nor is this issue specific to just the journalism program. Each advisor for the journalism program has to handle students from a wide variety of majors, all lumped under the broad label of “communications studies.”

What this means is that each advisor is unlikely to know the specifics of how to help a student trying to get a job in niche fields like print, broadcast or radio journalism.

While societies and student groups like PRSSA or Coog TV are able to make up some of this knowledge gap, students need to know these options exist before they’re able to best make use of them.

Even more than that, students deserve to be informed about the path into their career of choice. Jobs in certain areas are scarce, to be sure. Not every student majoring in medieval history is likely to find themselves a comfy tenured position at an Ivy league.

But if students aren’t receiving crucial information about the field they’re going into, aren’t they being robbed of a fighting chance? The University invites students to dream big, but they can’t do that if many of them don’t even know where to start.

All of this doesn’t even take into account technical problems, like when the UH Navigate website supposedly crashed recently while students were trying to enroll.

Between individual advisors not being equipped to help students, delays caused by a limited amount of availability and unexpected technical issues, advising can turn into a complete headache even in the best of circumstances.

It’s going to take more than just hiring more advisors to fix this system; advising is fundamentally broken in many ways. Students deserve real support, and the process of building that kind of support is not going to be an easy one.

At the same time, though, isn’t that what we were promised when we first stepped foot at this university? College can be the pathway for so many to escape difficult financial or social environments, but you can’t fly high without a little help.

A good advisor can be a complete godsend, but there’s quite simply not enough of them. If the University doesn’t seriously consider how and why advising falls short, they’re at risk of killing dreams before they even get started.

Malachi Key is a Journalism senior who can be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com.

—
“UH needs to invest more in its advisors” was originally posted on The Cougar

Students gathered at Lynn Eusan Park for the 2023 Homecoming concert featuring Sean Kingston Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023. | Raphael Fernandez/ The Cougar

Editor’s note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that approximately 150 students attended last week’s homecoming concert. The actual number of attendees was closer to 750. 

Last week, UH hosted several events for Homecoming 2023 which kicked off with a lot of school spirit. 

Homecoming signifies the community coming together. Events like Bed Races and Canstruction have been a part of the Homecoming Week celebration for years. 

“Homecoming is like getting back to High School again,” said economics junior  Dat Nguyen.  “It’s the whole week of community activities that bring us all together.”

Kickoff

At the Homecoming Kick-off at the Student Center Plaza, the Homecoming Board along with the Residence Halls Association provided treats like cotton candy and food from Raising Cane’s.  

Later that evening, Ada Cinar, Amy Mazariegos, Auyana Aird, Tumi Adeyoju, Caterina Giuliana, Ik Evbayiro, Angel Martinez, Omar Castanon, Austin Craig and Hussein Hoballah were nominated to the 2023 Homecoming Court.

“The kickoff has been really amazing,” said public relations senior Natalia Marinero. “Seeing all the students especially because the timing of the event was off as it’s going on at the same time as a basketball game.” 

Bed Races, student performances

The following days witnessed a number of events. From performing skits on the theme “Dream Big, Win Big” at the Strut Your Stuff  event to the annual Bed Races.

The Bed Races had fun inflatables and food trucks which were enjoyed by participants as well as those who had come to watch.

UH Hallyu Club’s Kpop dance cover team, Cypher, bagged the prize at Strut Your Stuff. Delta Zeta and Tau Kappa Epsilon won the bed races. 

“It was such an unforgettable experience! The teams practiced our hearts out to give a fun and exciting performance and we’re so happy the audience loved it,” said Madison Wickliffe, marketing senior and dancer for Cypher.

Thursday, the Homecoming Board collaborated with the Metropolitan Volunteer Program and organized the event Canstruction, at which the Spirit Teams designed and constructed buildings from food cans. 

The cans were later collected and donated locally to the Manna House Third Ward Food Pantry. 

“Canstruction helped us in team building and making new connections,” said Alexis Dooley, freshman pre-nursing major, who was competing at the event. “It’s a lot of time management and balance but still everyone is happy and vibrant on the campus.”

The concert

Sean Kingston performing during the annual Homecoming concern at Lynn Eusan Park Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar

Amidst the rain, approximately 750 students gathered in Lynn Eusan Park Thursday night to see Sean Kingston perform at the annual Homecoming concert.

Overall, the performance received a somewhat lukewarm reception from the students in attendance. Still, despite the criticism for some students Sean Kingston’s performance was well worth the time spent in the rain.

“I was very excited to see him coming, so I ended up liking how there were not too many people there,” Lam said. “It was worth getting drenched.”

Others, however, were less impressed with the University’s talent choice. Some students cited the artist’s lack of name recognition and relevance to younger audience as criticism of the show.

“They could have gotten someone that more people know,” said accounting freshman Tajj White. “They could have even gotten another one-hit wonder, but one that Gen Z is more familiar with.”

Kingston rose to fame following the release of his debut single “Beautiful Girls” in 2007 and sustained his success with the 2009 hit “Fire Burning.” Despite launching his fourth studio album in 2022, Kingston hasn’t made an appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart since 2010.

“I was excited for him to perform the three songs I knew, but UH could have gotten someone more recent in today’s music,” said senior entrepreneurship major Erik Pantoja. “The crowd was decent. Obviously, his most popular songs were the loudest, but there were times when it was pretty dead.”

Kingston performed around ten songs, following the opening act, Orion 224, a student-led indie rock band. The crowd noticeably increased in size when Kingston took the stage.

“UH could have honestly chosen a different artist, but Sean Kingston is perfect for college students because we all grew up listening to his songs,” Pantoja said

Spirit cup, philanthropy 

The Homecoming Court and the MVP also organized Rock the Campus, which was initially meant to beautify the campus by planting trees, however, due to the weather it was shifted indoors. Instead, the Spirit Teams prepared hygiene care packages with items like tampons, diapers, baby wipes and hand sanitizers. 

“We made care packages for families to be donated at a refugee fair,” Landa said. “I think the location change actually benefited us because we had so many supplies and it was easier to manage inside. We made about 300 packages.”

Friday, the Homecoming Court met with President Renu Khator as well. 

“We had the opportunity to talk with President Khator for almost an hour,” said Caterina Giuliani, marketing and management senior and Homecoming Queen candidate. “It was fun and we got to know her. It was really inspiring to talk with her.”

After winning best attendance, most cans donated and having the best painted cougar, Alpha Chi Omega took home this year’s Spirit Cup. 

Though inclement weather put a bit of a damper on some of the events, this year’s Homecoming week served as a welcome break for students feeling the pressure of finals. 

“It was really nice to have a distraction from sitting for hours studying for finals and tests,” said Landa.

news@thedailycougar.com

—
“Homecoming week recap: Cougar spirit endures despite weather” was originally posted on The Cougar

Jose Gonzalez-Campelo/The Cougar

Many people are too quick to disregard meditation as a way of handling stress. To some, it can seem “silly” or “ineffective.” But contrary to what many might assume, meditation can be very effective and more people should consider trying it.

Whenever we think of meditation many people understand it as simply a method of relieving stress or anxiety. But fully studying the practice of meditation can lead to discovering so much more, including the often under-appreciated spiritual benefits.

Understanding the essence of how meditation works is just as important, if not more, than understanding its benefits. Just hearing about the potential benefits can be intriguing, but knowing how it works as a whole can help you get real results.

Meditation is simply a technique that helps the practitioner to get to the action of not thinking. Not thinking, living in the present moment and being happy as you are, are common phrases used to refer to this stasis-like feeling.

Getting into this state of “not thinking” can provide a lot of balance, especially for anyone who struggles with “overthinking.” Overthinking, on the contrary, can overwhelm the mind, cloud our judgment and make us act irrationally. 

Even more, some studies have suggested that meditation can make you more rational, smarter and happier because it prevents the loss of grey matter in the brain. Those who meditate have been observed to have a thicker prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for our attention span. 

People have also been reported to be overall kinder after meditation. Meditation can have a lot of benefits, to be sure. However, the process of getting to that place of inner peace may require some training and patience. 

Telling someone to simple “not think” can be harder said than done. Even if you try to not think right now, odds are good you would end up actually thinking about not thinking. Ironically, trying to get into a meditative state can sometimes make you more anxious!

Your mind can be pretty resistant to your attempts to quiet it, no matter how much you want to. But if not thinking is the goal, then meditation is the means- the boat guiding you across a river- to get there. 

To be able to meditate successfully is to let go of all the attachments and stressors in your life, and to eventually be fully detached.

Hard as it may be, you need to detach yourself from the environment and any external stimuli, and you especially need to detach from your emotions and thoughts. Everything that causes internal havoc must be left aside for the time being. 

Meditation is often described as an “observation” of the mind because you are not forcing yourself to not think. Rather, you are observing the emotions and thoughts that come to your mind and not bothering to give any importance to them. 

Invasive thoughts or worries will naturally dissipate when you do not focus on them. Simply “observing” them will cast them in a light in which you can see them better. By seeing these worries clearly, you can calmly approach even the most stressful situations in your life.

When someone manages to find a general detachment from overwhelming situations, they are then able to naturally understand the best way forward because they will never be in a “state of lack”. 

This “state of lack,”  a state in which one fixates on what they don’t have, is what causes a lot of stress and anxiety in the first place.

In contrast to this “state of lack,” a person who truly feels abundance and gratitude for what they already have would not be anxious or stressed. Instead of worrying about what they want, they’re able to be at peace in their current state.

Feeling doubts about our abilities, when we perceive ourselves to not be capable of achieving what we want, or when we undermine our self-worth, all contribute to that state of lack. 

Just think about everything in which you might feel fear or doubt about in your life: That big upcoming test, financial problems, disputes over family or work. These external causes are made worse by our own anxiety as we try to overcome them. 

When we believe that we cannot overcome a problem, that adds another problem. Suspicion leads to paranoia,  worry leads to anxiety and anxiety leads to stress.

Meditation is merely the process of leaving that state of lack and entering into the state of simply “being”. In this state, you are capable of being happy and grateful for everything that you already have. In other words, you are fulfilled as you already are.

It is important to note that meditation is a habitual lifestyle. Just as much as drinking water every day becomes an unconscious action that we do to maintain our health, meditation is a practice we have to repeat regularly to stay happy and whole.

To be sure, meditation is not the easiest thing to practice in the beginning. But once one gets into a routine, it can be as easy and satisfying as drinking water to quench your thirst.

So if feeling more aligned and happy with oneself is something you want to achieve, give meditation a try. Inner peace and happiness is underrated nowadays, so why not try to find yours?

arts@thedailycougar.com 

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“Meditation 101: The importance of finding inner peace, how to get there” was originally posted on The Cougar

Jose Gonzalez-Campelo/The Cougar

Last month, the Student Government Association unanimously passed the Wudu Station Resolution. But the legislation, despite being met with resounding support from the Senate, has hit a brick wall with the administration. 

The resolution established a task force to plan the construction and installation in partnership with the Facilities/Construction Management Department. But progress has been brought to a halt by the University, which  cited Article 1, Section 7  of the Texas Constitution. The clause prohibits the use of public funds or property for religious purposes. 

Senior Director of Media Relations Chris Stipes said that input from the University’s advisory groups is constantly evaluated for feasibility and implementation based on legal requirements, funding availability and alignment with UH’s goals. 

“We are aware of the SGA legislation that supports the installation of centralized Wudu stations on campus,” Stipes said. “However, state law prohibits UH from designating building spaces specifically for religious use.”

Representatives of the Muslim Student Association were disappointed by the University’s response. MSA campus life coordinator and Middle Eastern studies sophomore Ibrahim Islam said the claims that such accommodations would violate state law are contradictory and ungrounded. 

“Not only were the students expected to fundraise for their own accommodations, but they were told to secure a location that the university didn’t own,” he said. “This response was an attempt to reject the legislation by SGA and the requests of the broader student community.”

The resolution was passed in response to reports of a growing safety hazard in MD Anderson Library, where Muslim students currently go to pray. Hundreds of students were performing ritual ablution in the washrooms, struggling to wash their feet and elbows said Islam. The legislation was seen as a first step toward addressing these issues.. 

“I saw how happy students were when they saw that the Wudu station resolution was going up, and how happy students were in the group chat when we were making the task force,” said MSA member and political science senior Tasnuva Haque. 

But Mohammad Tabbara, political science sophomore and SGA director of multicultural affairs, said that Facilities/Construction Management has been less than forthcoming in their conversations with SGA. 

“There was a lot of back and forth over the summer with Facilities/Construction Management constantly pushing us back towards the A.D. Bruce Religion Center, even though we already had communications with the Center,” Tabbara said. “This felt rather dismissive of SGA and our goals.”

Initial setbacks aside, the task force has contacted out-of-school donors and Islamic centers to try and explore possible avenues with them to achieve their goals. However, it’s difficult to secure funding without knowing the exact costs of building the stations, Tabarra said. 

“There are so many unknowns that come with construction that unless facilities are as hands-on as the task force in tackling the initiative there are bound to be obstructions within our road,” Tabbara said. 

Similarly, MSA representatives said they will not stop in their mission to make students comfortable on campus. Islam does note that MSA’s relationship with the University is more complicated. He said several diversity initiatives, like accommodating for Ramadan or setting up morning prayers, have been met with hostility. 

“The argument that public universities can’t fund such projects seems to be a lie or laziness encapsulated in legal jargon,” Islam said. “Accommodating student needs on campus is a responsibility of the University.” 

Public and private universities such as Marquette University, Mount Royal University, University of Minnesota, and University of Illinois Chicago, accommodated Muslim students by installing Wudu stations. In addition, Texas A&M has a Muslim Student Center while the University of Texas at Austin has a mosque near campus.

While SGA faces roadblocks, Tabbara said they continue to focus on helping students at the University. 

“Being able to accommodate a large population of students at UH by giving them a more suitable and welcoming environment should never be up for debate,” Tabbara said.

news@thedailycougar.com

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“Wudu station SGA resolution hits roadblock with Facilities/Construction Management” was originally posted on The Cougar