Issue 23, Volume 85

PRINT WEEKLY. DIGITAL DAILY.

Wednesday, March 4, 2020 Issue 23, Volume 85

@TheDailyCougar www.thedailycougar.com

Est. 1934

‘We’ve won nothing’ Houston is tied for first in The American, but with a hectic week ahead, the Cougars’ fate in the AAC is still a toss-up. | PG. 5

NEWS With Frontier Fiesta around the corner, dive into the student-led spring festival’s long history. | PG. 2

opinion

The passive approach UH takes on sexual assault isn’t enough. | PG. 8

2 | Wednesday, March 4, 2020

NEWS

THeDaIlYCouGar.CoM/neWs

auTuMn renDall, edITOr

@THeDaIlYCouGar

campuS

Frontier Fiesta remains a flourishing campus tradition

Frontier Fiesta had included musical performances in the past as part of the many events that the spring festival provides. Uncle Tino, as pictured, opened for expected headlining act, Jeremih in 2018. Other popular artists throughout the years had performed at Frontier Fiesta such as A$AP Ferg, Schooboy Q and Rae Sremmurd. | kathryn lenihan/The Cougar

dOnnA keeyA

assIsTanT neWs eDITor @DonnaKeeYa_

Frontier Fiesta, UH’s studentled spring festival, is coming back to campus from March 19-21. The event is a Universitywide tradition that dates back to 1939 and includes musical performances, a carnival, a cookoff and more.

The first Frontier Fiesta, created by a group of students, was quickly discontinued due to World War II. In 1947, it returned thanks to student leader Johnny Goyen’s efforts, who later moved on to become a Houston City Councilman. Most recently, Frontier Fiesta was revamped in 1992 after being discontinued by former UH President A.D. Bruce in 1959.

Daily Cougar Classifieds HELP WANTED Hiring Entry Level Office Assistant at PsyMed Inc (7505 Fannin) for scanning and general office work.

10-20 hrs/week. Flexible schedule. $10 /hr + scanning bonus. Email resume to venette.westhoven@ psymedhealth.com or call 2 14-348-5557.

To advertise go to thedailycougar.com

Frontier Fiesta is comprised of student organizations and individuals coming together to establish Fiesta City, the area of campus where the event is hosted. This year, Frontier Fiesta will be located in Zone F, in Lots A and B near TDECU Stadium.

The carnival booths are a place for student organizations to showcase themselves through the activities they put on.

There will be five carnival rides, including the addition of a slide for children and adults. Beyond entertainment, Frontier Fiesta also has a store that sells event merchandise for visitors.

Frontier Fiesta hosts a “worldclass cook-off ” where teams can compete in six different categories, and potentially win a cash prize in the beef brisket category. Cook-off categories include chef ’s choice, chili, fajitas, chicken, pork spare ribs and beef brisket.

This year, Frontier Fiesta will include Step Show, a collaboration with the Center for Fraternity and Sorority Life. Step Show allows Greek organizations to perform their rhythmic talents in a competition for a $1,000 prize.

“We’ve done a step show in the past, but it’s not something that is done annually,” said Frontier Fiesta Chair Jordan Hart. “We’re going to bring it back this year with the hopes that it’ll spark a more annual event. That’s the only thing you can hope for.”

Fraternities and sororities have historically been active in Frontier Fiesta, participating in Frontier Fiesta traditions like Variety Shows. In 1948, the Joe Koppel Award for Variety Shows was awarded to the fraternity now called Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

While fraternities and sororities have often come out strong to celebrate Frontier Fiesta in years past, the festival is open to both students and the general public.

“Frontier Fiesta doesn’t turn anyone away,” Hart said. “There’s not a specific kind of student we’re for. We’re for the students.

Greek organizations might take a special interest in Frontier Fiesta.

They might take it more serious than other students but Fiesta, on our part, is for all students.”

As an event that was once named “The Greatest College Show on Earth” by Life Magazine, Frontier Fiesta wants to showcase the talents of students.

“We’re creating an event where any typical UH student can come and feel welcome,” Hart said.

Throughout the decades that Frontier Fiesta has existed, changes to the social and political climate nationally have had an impact on how Frontier Fiesta has been perceived.

Over the years, Frontier Fiesta has maintained its Western-themed appearance but has adapted to appeal to the University’s current students.

Recently, hip-hop artist A$AP

Ferg was one of the musical performers at the festival.

“We don’t necessarily have the most Western things going on,” Hart said. “You may see some signage and some backdrops that are more Western-themed, but I don’t think it’s something that drives the central point of Frontier Fiesta.”

A portion of Frontier Fiesta

is put together by their student board each year. Some board members are hired months in advance to organize and plan Frontier Fiesta for the student body.

“The point of it is to bring a show like no other to our college campus,” Hart said. news@thedailycougar.com

Jiselle santos/The Cougar

Wednesday, March 4, 2020 | 3 auTuMn renDall, edITOr

THeDaIlYCouGar.CoM/neWs

NEWS

@THeDaIlYCouGar

i

DaNcE

Bauer student balances Bollywood dance studios with business classes sydney rOse

assIsTanT neWs eDITor @sYDneYrose1029

From going to class to teaching them, Vismita “Mimi” Varghese can juggle being both a student and running a family-owned dance studio.

The management information systems sophomore said her dancing career started when she was 3 years old.

Varghese’s brother was a dancer and she wanted to perform with him, but at the time was too small.

But when the judges allowed her to perform anyway, her love of dancing was cemented.

She went on to dance for 15 years after that performance and recently opened her own studio in December.

Varghese’s dance background includes classical dancing, ballet, hip-hop and jazz. Both Varghese and her brother share a dancing background with their mother as well.

Now, the Varghese family has turned their dancing passion into a business by hosting dance and fitness classes in a Bollywoodinspired studio called Bollycurves in Missouri City.

Business and family Varghese said her classes at C. T. Bauer College of Business have helped her learn to manage time and how to better run the studio, even though being a college student and business owner can be a lot.

“Once you’re passionate, there’s never really an excuse,” Varghese said about balancing the business

and her classes.

Varghese along with brother, Visak Varghese, and mother, Shiela Varghese, co-own the studio. Visak Varghese is a UH alumnus as well and devotes time to the studio.

Part of her reasoning behind opening the studio was the health Varghese’s parents. Her mom and dad had health problems and struggled to find a place that accommodated to that as well as their age, Varghese said.

Varghese told the Houston Chronicle about her parents’ health injuries, describing her mother’s shoulder injury and father’s heart attack. None of the gyms the Varghese family found were able to personalize a workout to fit these conditions.

Personalization and culture “At the studio, we really focus on personalization,” Varghese said.

“To me, I believe every individual is really different and they need the personalization.”

Part of the personalization that Bollycurves offers is adjusting to people’s needs. They have had guests in their 80s and others who have recovered from back surgery.

The studio has three different classes: yoga, kids classes and Bollywood cardio, which Varghese describes as “Indian Zumba.”

Classes usually have ten or fewer people, but there are one-on-one private sessions, which Varghese said are popular.

One of Varghese’s favorite parts of running the business is teaching the kids classes. She said these classes are a way to help children

The Cougar

thedailycougar.com

ABOUT THe COUGAr

The Cougar is published every Wednesday during the fall and spring semesters and online everyday at thedailycougar. com. The Cougar is supported in part by student service Fees. The first copy is free. additional copies cost 25 cents.

COPyrIGHT no part of the newspaper in print or online may be reproduced without the consent of the director of student Publications.

IssUe sTAFF ClOsInG edITOrs

Michael slaten Katrina Martinez COPy edITInG

Mason Vasquez COver

Mikol Kindle Jr.

i

Center for student Media uh.edu/csm

Vismita Varghese teaches yoga, Bollywood cardio and kids classes at Bollycurves, the business she co-owns with her family. | sydney rose/The Cougar

bridge the gap between Indian culture and American culture.

“I’m Indian, and Houston is a diverse hub,” Varghese said.

“Growing up here, it is really hard to accept your culture, so each class is kept small so we can personalize to their ability.”

With personalization, Varghese said she feels that everyone should be accepted into her culture when they go to class.

This culture is a large part of Bollycurves, Varghese said, as yoga originated in India and the whole idea around Bollywood involves Indian culture, music, movies and costumes.

The start of it all Before the business was up and running, the Varghese family held pop-up classes in churches and

Vismita Varghese (left) uses the studio and business as a passion and a work out. | Courtesy of vismita varghese

other community centers to gauge the demand for the classes.

They finally decided to open Bollycurves amidst Varghese’s freshman year while she was juggling two mini session courses, but despite the struggles they faced, “everything just fell into place,” Varghese said.

About 20 people showed up on the first day of Bollycurves, Varghese said, and it made the studio feel like a welcoming environment back on Dec. 9. Many have learned about the studio through word of mouth and have kept a continual flow of clients coming through the doors.

“After every workout class I see how proud my clients are and it makes me really happy, because I feel like we really bring ourselves down sometimes,” Varghese said.

“Even if it’s just ten jumping jacks, (the clients) feel really proud of themselves and I feel happiness.”

Her time running Bollycurves has changed the way that Varghese views other people. She said they value comfort at the studio and want each client to feel welcomed and accepted not only within Bollycurves but also in her family’s culture.

“I realized that we tear ourselves down as women,” Varghese said.

“We need to bring each other up as a society because we are all so beautiful on the inside and the outside, so I feel like it has taught me to bring other women up and realize how powerful we are.” news@thedailycougar.com

ABOUT CsM The Center for student Media provides comprehensive advisory and financial support to the university’s student-run media: The Cougar newspaper, CoogTV and Coog radio.

Part of the student life portfolio in the Division of student affairs, the CsM is concerned with the development of students, focusing on critical thinking, leadership, ethics, collaboration, inter-cultural competence, goal-setting and ultimately, degree attainment.

While our students are engaged in producing and promoting media channels and content, our goal is to ensure they are learning to become better thinkers and leaders in the process.

CenTer FOr sTUdenT MedIA

(713) 743-5350 csm@uh.edu www.uh.edu/csm n221 student Center university of Houston Houston, TX 77204-4015 AdverTIsInG

(713) 743-5340 advertising@thedailycougar.com thedailycougar.com/advertising desIGn TeAM ruchi Bhakta

4 | Wednesday, March 4, 2020

NEWS

Autumn rendall, EDIToR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS

@thedailycougar

campus

College of Medicine among several projects breaking ground this summer Autumn rendall

news editor @autumnrendall

Several construction projects are preparing to break ground this summer, changing the look and capacity of major buildings for future years, including a permanent home for the College of Medicine.

Here’s a roundup of some buildings breaking ground this summer that are scheduled to be completed by summer 2022:

College of Medicine The new multi-story College of Medicine, with a budget of $80 million, will be built across from MacGregor Park and feature an anatomy lab, a full continuumof-care simulation suite, an innovation lab and clinical spaces.

The college will be home to Houston’s first medical school built in almost 50 years, and it aims to help medically underserved communities in Houston.

Hilton University of Houston The Hilton University of Houston project, with a budget of $30 million, will add an additional tower to the Hilton.

The expansion will increase the number of hotel rooms from 86 to 150.

The hotel will also get a new main entry area and renovations of existing spaces such as the Center for Student Success, Cougar Grounds and the Hall of Honor.

The hotel was renovated in 2010, but this will be its first expansion.

The College of Medicine will be Houston’s first medical school built in almost 50 years and aims to help medically underserved communities in Houston. | Renderings courtesy of Facilities and Construction Management

John M. O’Quinn Law Building This new standalone building will still house all of the Law Center. With a budget of $90 million, the project will include instructional spaces, student lounges, student service areas, faculty and administration offices and more. The building will also include a courtroom, an advocacy skills lab, a law library and clinics.

The 4. construction will cause the EXTERIOR RENDERINGS

permanent closure of lot 19B at the end of the spring semester.

The lot is currently one of three that make up Zone C parking and is located where part of the John M. O’Quinn Law Building will be located.

Auxiliary Retail Dining Center As a replacement to the Student Center Satellite, the Auxiliary Retail Dining Center will be a food hall with an open floor plan where

guests can see their food be made directly in front of them.

With a budget of $35 million, the food hall aims to bring a “unique retail environment to campus,” according to Auxiliary Services website.

The center will feature modern architectural designs, large community tables and international cuisine. The outdoor area will also have patio seating. news@thedailycougar.com

The Hilton University of Houston expansion will increase the number of hotel rooms from 86 to 150 by adding an additional tower. It will also renovate existing spaces like Cougar Grounds, the entryway and the Hall of Honor.

ENJOY RESPONSIBLY

The new Law Center building is expected to cost $90 million to build and will also host a courtroom, an advocacy skills lab, a law library and clinics.

Wednesday, March 4, 2020 | 5 JHaIr roMero, edITOr

THeDaIlYCouGar.CoM/sPorTs

SpoRTS

@THeCouGarsPorTs

Previewing No. 21 Houston at UConn

mEN’S BaSKETBaLL

‘This journey that we are on is not over ’

Andy yAneZ

assIsTanT sPorTs eDITor @aYaneZ_5

Heading into the final week of the regular season, The American is a tossup. For Houston, the next two games can be make or break

Andy yAneZ

assIsTanT sPorTs eDITor @aYaneZ_5

The Cougars enter the final week of the regular season tied with the Tulsa Golden Hurricane for the No. 1 spot in the American Athletic Conference, but the landscape of the conference can be drastically changed by the weekend depending on the outcome of the final two games.

“We’ve won nothing,” head coach Kelvin Sampson said after the win against Cincinnati.

“Championships are destinations.

This journey that we are on is not over.”

The Cougars, who are 12-4 in The American entering Tuesday evening’s matchup, end the season with a trip to Connecticut to take on the Huskies on Thursday. Just a few days later, the Cougars will host the Tigers on Sunday morning.

Big implications The matchup against UConn

will be a critical one for Houston, who will look to remain in the No. 1 spot it shares with Tulsa as both teams are 12-4 entering Wednesday.

“We got a big game coming up Thursday, and I think we are more focused on the process,” Sampson said after Sunday’s win against Cincinnati. “If you start getting ahead of yourself, you’re losing sight of why we start in June and (why) our kids work so hard.”

With a win on the road, Houston gets a step closer to the No. 1 seed in the AAC tournament as it gains an advantage over both Tulsa and Cincinnati, who each split the regular-season series with the Huskies, which could become a factor in the tiebreakers once the regular season finishes.

looking past UConn Houston ends the regular season at home in a rematch against Memphis, who defeated

When: 6 p.m. Thursday

Where: Harry A. Gampel Pavillion, Storrs, Connecticut

Tune in: CBS Sports Network, KPRC 950 AM

series vs. UComm: Houston leads 8-3

What to look out for: Regardless of how Houston ends the regular season, the Cougars are guaranteed a first-round bye in the AAC tournament. | katrina Martinez/The Cougar

the Cougars back on Feb. 22.

Besides looking to get even with the Tigers, Sunday’s game also is crucial when it comes to the tiebreakers because if Houston loses, it will also lose a tiebreaker advantage to both Tulsa and Cincinnati as both teams defeated the Tigers earlier in the season.

In the previous meeting, Memphis and Houston went down to the wire, and redshirt freshman guard Caleb Mills had the chance to hit the go-ahead basket in the waning seconds of the game but couldn’t deliver.

After the contest, Sampson

and the players reiterated that the mental mistakes such as the turnovers and fouls on the other side of the court were the reason for the loss, which led to the team focusing on those errors during their idle week.

The worst-case scenario for the Cougars in terms of seeding for the conference tournament is finishing as the No. 3 spot. The best-case scenario is the No. 1 seed. If the Cougars can win the conference tournament, they would get an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament. sports@thedailycougar.com

aTHLETicS

UH athletics annual spending skyrockets JHAIr rOMerO

sPorTs eDITor @JusTJHaIr

Houston’s football team saw a drop in ticket sales in 2019, going down from $3.66 million in 2018 to $2.68 million in 2019. | File photo

In its innate drive to push itself into national prominence and the Power Five, and clad with a newly-hired — and expensive — head football coach and $3-million-per-year basketball coach, UH athletics made it clear in fiscal year 2019 that financial investment in the department would grow.

“We have to act as if (we’re in a Power Five conference),” athletic director Chris Pezman told ESPN ahead of the football team’s bout with Oklahoma in September 2019, projecting UH’s spending

would hit $75 million by 2022.

Although UH athletics did not hit Pezman’s mark in fiscal year 2019, according to a report from the UH System Board of Regents meeting Thursday, Houston’s revenues and expenses skyrocketed exponentially in one of the biggest jumps the department has ever seen.

UH athletics, which saw success in 2018-19 with its programs combining for six American Athletic Conference titles, had a $19.91 million jump in revenue to $75.05 million

sPendInG

Continues on page 6

The No. 21 Cougars will travel to Connecticut for their final road game of the regular season against the UConn Huskies on Thursday evening at Harry A. Gampel Pavillion.

“They are playing absolutely their best basketball of the season right now,” said head coach Kelvin Sampson during his weekly radio show on Monday evening. “This will be the hardest road game we’ve probably had all year long.”

UConn enters the contest winners of three-straight games.

Sampson on Monday evening pointed out the extra energy the Huskies will likely have as it will be the final home game for senior guard Christian Vital.

On the season, Vital leads the Huskies in three different categories with 15.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.6 steals per contest.

The Huskies will be without freshman forward Akok Akok, who led the team with 2.6 blocks per game, as he suffered a torn Achilles injury on Feb. 16 against the Tigers.

The game in Houston came down to the wire as the Huskies had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds on a jumper from senior guard Temi Aiyegbusi, but he missed, and redshirt freshman guard Caleb Mills sealed the win by hitting two free throws that put the contest out of reach.

Vital hurt the Cougars back in the Jan. 23 meeting with 14 points, three assists, four rebounds and two steals before fouling out of the contest.

Despite it not being the cleanest game, the victory was important for Houston and has made a difference in the conference standings. sports@thedailycougar.com

6 | Wednesday, March 4, 2020

SpoRTS SpoRTS

JHaIr roMero, edITOr

THeDaIlYCouGar.CoM/sPorTs

@THeCouGarsPorTs

BaSEBaLL

For former JUCO players, the Cougars did ‘really good job’ of making Houston home

JAMes MUeller

sTaFF WrITer @JDM2186

Junior college has become a feeding ground for many Division I baseball teams across the country, with many programs dipping into the talent pool to fill out their rosters.

It’s no different for Houston.

Of the 35 players on the Cougars’ roster this season, 15 of them began their collegiate baseball careers at a junior college.

Former San Jacinto College player and junior first baseman Ryan Hernandez, who is batting a team-high .333 with four home runs on the season, is just one of the many for UH who got their start in JUCO. Hernandez, who helped lead the Gators to a Region XIV Championship in 2019 with a .295/.390/.409 slash line, said he is thankful for his time at San Jacinto and the DI doors it opened that allowed him to transfer to Houston.

“San Jacinto is known for being one of the biggest transition schools, and being able to play at San Jac in front of such good scouts and coaches directly opened up the opportunity for

Senior catcher Blake Way made his way to Houston in 2019 after two years playing JUCO. Last year’s Cougars, he said, welcomed him to the team with open arms. | Jhair romero/The Cougar

other schools to come watch,” Hernandez said.

Senior catcher Blake Way, who joined Houston in 2019 after spending two seasons at Delgado Community College, furthered echoed how JUCO opened the door for him to play baseball at the next level.

“Delgado offered a huge

opportunity for me to play (DI) baseball,” Way said. “Coach Joe Sherman does a great job getting guys seen and help them get further on to play for other universities.”

Although it might seem like a big jump going from JUCO to a DI program, both Hernandez and Way said their junior colleges

prepared them well, which made the transition to Houston much easier.

Other than adjusting to the new class, Hernandez said, most aspects of school and athletics found in JUCO have carried over to UH. “When you go from one of the top schools in JUCO to

number in 2019 grew by nearly $12 million to $34.2 million.

Financial support directly from the University has been on the rise since 2008 — the year Renu Khator, a known advocate for UH athletics’ growth, took over as UH president.

From 2007 to 2008, direct institutional support from the University ballooned from $2.31 million to over $13.15 million, making up 42 percent of UH athletics’ revenues in Khator’s first year.

The number also grew by over $21 million in the last decade.

However, other programs in UH athletics have picked up the football team’s slack.

Led by Kelvin Sampson and the squad’s 33-game home win streak, Houston’s men’s basketball team’s ticket sales eclipsed its 2018 numbers, going from just under $350,000 to $1.1 million in 2019.

The women’s basketball team also saw a big jump in ticket sales, more than doubling from $25,290 to $57,124 in the same span.

Much of the success can be attributed to both programs finally being able to make use of Fertitta Center, which opened December 2018 for both teams to host home games.

Ticket sales Head basketball coach Kelvin Sampson’s Cougars increased ticket sales from $350,000 in fiscal year 2018 to $1.1 million in 2019. | Mikol kindle Jr./The Cougar

sPendInG

direct institutional support

and a $16.57 million increase in expenses to $73.68 million.

With the increases, UH athletics profited for the first time since 2017 and just the second time in five years.

Here’s a breakdown of what changed for Houston:

To say University administration has prioritized growing UH athletics is an understatement.

Much of the reason Houston saw the jump it did in revenue, according to the report, is because of “direct institutional support.”

In fiscal year 2018, Houston athletics received $22.4 million from the University, but that

Continued from page 5

As a whole, UH athletics ticket sales saw a slight boost, jumping from $4.31 million in fiscal year 2018 to $4.88 million in 2019.

But the football team, despite a 2018 season that saw the Cougars win five games at home, averaged just under 30,000 fans in attendance and took a near $1 million hit in ticket sales, continuing a downward trend.

The football team’s figures peaked in fiscal year 2017 at $5.53 million, dropping in 2018 to $3.66 million and again to $2.68 million in 2019.

Contributions Although not at its peak in recent memory, UH athletics pocketed over $1 million more in contributions in 2019 ($9.6 million) than 2018 ($8.39 million).

That number was at its highest in 2017, when UH athletics made $9.92 million in contributions.

The football team ($942,517) was given the most out of any program in 2019, but non-specific program contributions exceeded $6.44 million.

another top (DI) athletic school like Houston, it’s pretty similar,” he said. “It requires the same intensity and the same rigorous attitude.”

Because Houston gets so many JUCO transfers each year, the baseball program has to have a culture centered around welcoming in everyone and making people feel at home.

Hernandez emphasized how Houston’s program does a good job of welcoming in all JUCO players, embracing them and quickly making them feel like part of the team.

“When I got here it was really nice to be brought in with open arms,” Hernandez said. “I’m really excited to be here, and I came in with about 10 other JUCO guys who were also all really excited to be here. People treat you really well when you show excitement.”

For Way, Houston became home, and he hopes the newer players that took the same path as he did can feel the same.

“I think the team last year did a really good job of embracing me and making me part of the team and did the same thing this year with the new guys,” Way said. sports@thedailycougar.com

Coaching salaries When it comes to coaching — and its known Pezman and Khator embrace the “spend big to win big” mentality — UH knows how to splurge.

On top of Sampson, who signed a six-year, $18 million extension in April, UH athletics inked a fiveyear deal with Dana Holgorsen in January worth $20 million to make him the highest-paid Group of Five football coach.

Before that, Houston was dishing out $1.4 million and $1.5 million annually to Sampson and former football head coach Major Applewhite, respectively.

UH increased football coaching salaries by over $2.5 million in 2019, also nearly doubling basketball salaries from $2.53 million in fiscal year 2018 to $5.07 million last year.

The increase in coaching salaries was seen across the board, other sports seeing a $604,633 boost.

With UH’s continued investment in athletics, these numbers can be expected to grow in 2020. sports@thedailycougar.com

Wednesday, March 4, 2020 | 7

Universal Crossword Edited by David Steinberg February 6, 2019

ACROSS 1 “Terrific!”

6 Dietary supplement 10 Botch 14 Woolly Peruvian animal 15 Great Fire of Rome emperor 16 Go up 17 Loosened, as a knot 18 Read Braille 19 Luau instruments, for short 20 Certain a cappella performers 23 Be a busybody 24 Scammer’s scheme 25 Address for a queen 26 Cocktail vessel 31 Sacrilegious 34 Decimal points 35 “My ___ tells me ...”

36 Like the score 7-7 37 Close to the ground 38 Shimmer makeup mineral 39 Chickenking connector 40 Biodiesel, e.g.

42 Just swell 44 German fish delicacy 2/6

47 Hatcher or Polo 48 Same-old grind 49 Employee of Santa 52 Cable company’s encryption, or what connects both words in 20-, 26- and 44-Across 57 “Regretfully ...”

58 Gushing review 59 Kiss-up 60 ___ guy (reliable sort) 61 Where things get heated?

62 Mother’s brother, say 63 Eve’s first home 64 Desire 65 Pumpkin eater of rhyme DOWN 1 Batter’s dry spell 2 Of a forearm bone 3 Rice wetland 4 Dubai bigwig 5 Extreme 6 One in a onesie 7 Revolvingspool device 8 Mine metals

9 Kind of hold’em 10 Penny-wise 11 Amazingly effectively 12 Word before “fee” or “ID” 13 “Porgy and ___” 21 Not for the squeamish 22 Old horses 26 Reddit admin 27 Teen heartthrobs 28 Without delay 29 “No __ luck!”

30 Time at a hotel 31 Bryce Canyon locale 32 River through Egypt 33 60-100 bpm, normally

37 Shin’s place 38 Incensed 40 Unlikely to sag 41 “Line” over the eyes 42 + 43 Savor a compliment 45 It may be hard to listen to 46 Passionate 49 Pass, as a statute 50 Gravy server 51 Advertising handout 52 Wise person 53 Lump of dirt 54 Mauna Loa flow 55 Unvarying 56 “I’m ___!” (“See ya!”)

PREVIOUS PUZZLE ANSWER

2/5

© 2019 Andrews McMeel Universal www.upuzzles.com

“Mixed Messages” by Gary Cee

8 | Wednesday, March 4, 2020 Santiago gaughan, EDITOR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/OPINION

OPINION

@theDAILYCOUGAR

campus

Passive online programs aren’t the key to preventing sexual assaults

Editorial Board editor in chief

Michael Slaten managing editor

Katrina Martinez creative director

Jiselle Santos News editor

Autumn Rendall features editor

Vacant

Chief Copy Editor

Mason Vasquez

sports editor

Jhair Romero photo editor

Kathryn Lenihan opinion editor

Santiago Gaughan assistant editors

Juana Garcia Donna Keeya Sydney Rose Lino Sandil Andy Yanez

Staff editorial The Staff Editorial reflects the opinions of The Cougar Editorial Board (the members of which are listed above the editorial). All other opinions, commentaries and cartoons reflect only the opinion of the author. Opinions expressed in The Cougar do not necessarily reflect those of the University of Houston or the students as a whole.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Cougar welcomes letters to the editor from any member of the UH community. Letters should be no more than 250 words and signed, including the author’s full name, phone number or e-mail address and affiliation with the University, including classification and major.

Anonymous letters will not be published. Deliver letters to N221, University Center; e-mail them to letters@thedailycougar.com; send them via campus mail to STP 4015; or fax to (713) 743-5384. Letters are subject to editing.

ANna Baker

Opinion Columnist

One in five women are sexually assaulted on college campuses nationwide. At UH there were 11 cases of rape and 13 cases of fondling on campus in 2018 reported to the police, according to the 2019 annual security and fire safety report.

This is the reality of what students must endure.

Universities should do everything in their power to help survivors and prevent assault, but UH doesn’t necessarily rise to the

File photo

occasion on this issue.

Salutations is the online program freshmen must complete in the fall. The program is a video about basic college safety, defining words like “consent” and asking students what their perception of consent is. After the video, students take a quiz and then they’re done.

This is helpful in a lot of ways and it features commentary from UH students which grounds the program into the community.

The problem with the training is student passivity.

All students do is watch a video and take a quiz without engaging in any real conversation about the topics at hand.

“Obviously, the stuff is important, but I wouldn’t say the training is impactful,” said civil engineering junior Gilbert Badillo. “I knew I wouldn’t do anything like that so the training felt pointless for me.”

There are 46,000 students

at UH, in-person training would be hard to pull off, but students should still contribute. If, after the video, students are surveyed to gauge any shifts in attitudes that would show the impact the training has.

Surveys are also a relatively cheap way to allow students to be more engaged with the material.

Additionally, while Salutations endorses intervening in stopping sexual misconduct, it does not give much information on how to do so.

The training focuses on telling people to always ask for consent, which of course is a good thing.

However, many students know about consent so treating them as a potential perpetrator is not effective.

Instead, this program should teach bystander intervention techniques, which would work better and encourage viewers to take action when seeing signs of

sexual misconduct.

Bystander intervention scenarios teach people how to properly deescalate a situation while also correcting misconceptions that might keep people from intervening.

Many, if not most, know somebody who has been sexually assaulted, and this is just a sad truth. If the University taught students how to prevent these things, it would create a whole populaiton of students who are knowledgeable and know how to stop incidents before they happen across the campus.

Sexual assault is a major problem on college campuses and it’s the University’s duty to ensure the safety of their students, which in this case means changing prevention training to give students a more active role in preventing sexual assaults.

Anna Baker is an english sophomore who can be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com

GUEST COMMENTARY Submissions are accepted from any member of the UH community and must be signed with the author’s name, phone number or e-mail address and affiliation with the University, including classification and major. Commentary should be limited to 500 words. Guest commentaries should not be written as replies, but rather should present independent points of view. Deliver submissions to N221, University Center; e-mail them to letters@ thedailycougar.com; or fax them to (713) 743-5384. All submissions are subject to editing.

ADVERTISEMENTS Advertisements in The Cougar do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the University or the students as a whole.

The Cougar is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press.

studentpress.org/acp