Issue 7, Volume 86 (11.18.2020)

@thedailycougar www.thedailycougar.com Wednesday, November 18 , 2020

Est. 1934

Issue 7, Volume 86

Good Riddance

From a pandemic to a historic election, 2020 was a rollercoaster.

With the semester ending, it’s finally time to say goodbye to this tumultuous year. | PG. 2

LIFE AND ARTS This week’s Dear Donna column dives into making friends, finding love and spending time alone. | PG. 5

SPORTS Head football coach Dana Holgorsen urges patience as UH continues its rebuild. | PG. 7

OPINION The 2020 election has made it more clear than ever that the Electoral College must go. | PG. 10

2 | Wednesday, November 18, 2020

NEWS

DONNA KEEYA EDITORS & SYDNEY ROSE,

@THEDAILYCOUGAR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS

YEAR IN REVIEW

A look back at 2020, its impact on UH as fall comes to close All that has changed in the past year and what’s to come

The UH campus initiated many changes since the start of the pandemic that have followed social distancing guidelines and safety precautions in each building. | Carolina Yanez/The Cougar

SYDNEY ROSE

With the semester winding down, it’s time to look back at the rollercoaster of a year that was 2020.

A major change to this semester as a whole that differentiates it from semesters past is the coronavirus pandemic. Students had to find ways to adapt just as the world was.

As a recap of it all, here are some of the highlights, good and bad.

each residence hall, so much so that empty townhouses in Bayou Oaks became the location for those who needed to quarantine on campus.

This year has been one for the numbers. The University has been tracking the number of active cases both on campus and off as the pandemic has progressed.

Many classes, organizations and social hangouts have converted to a virtual platform this year that seems to be ongoing on to the spring semester as well.

plan had the option to eat at Cougar Woods Dining Commons 24/7.

As the semester progressed, other restaurants available to students closed or became unavailable. This includes the Subway at University Lofts, Taco Cabana, Freshii and McDonald’s in Student Center South.

The plan for the Student Center Satellite was originally to have it filled in, but because of the pandemic, the construction has been delayed.

The inside has remained closed from students.

Coronavirus

Campus

Sports

For safety precautions, UH’s campus followed social distancing protocols in every building, including new rules restricting gatherings in shared spaces and even residence halls.

With the limited amount of students staying on campus during this time, social distancing was made easier in

Changes have occurred all over campus as construction finished with The Quad this summer and continues for other buildings at the University.

Students were able to move into the newly built Quad this fall.

A loss for this year was the use of Moody Towers Dining Commons. Students with a meal

It was uncertain if sports would happen as social distancing commenced, but UH allowed for lower capacity at football games this semester.

It took a few tries for UH to hold a football game as last minute cancellations from other schools took place, but the first game ended up being held

NEWS EDITOR @SYDNEY_ROSEY

against Tulane University in October.

The basketball season is set to begin at the end of November.

Weather This year has also been defined by the surge of hurricanes and tropical storms to hit the Gulf Coast. Students prepared for Hurricane Laura, only for there to be a much bigger impact on cities in Louisiana than Houston.

Heavy rain came as a result of some of the tropical storms to hit Houston.

Weather forecasts have predicted that Texans can even look forward to possible snowfall to come this year.

National 2020 was a year of advocating for rights and protests as a surge in the Black Lives Matter movement made waves this summer and continues to be ongoing even now.

After the death of George

Floyd, a Third Ward native, rallies emerged all over the country.

A national change that came from this year was the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Before the election process began and early voting was still at large, the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg brought the need for a new supreme court justice. The current president at the time, Donald Trump, nominated Amy Coney Barrett for the position.

Before the election results were announced, Barrett was confirmed by the Senate.

After Joe Biden’s win in the election, changes have been promised by the Biden administration to come after the transition of power.

2020 as a year has held to be full of surprises across the board, but there is even more to look forward to next semester and 2021. news@thedailycougar.com

Wednesday, November 18, 2020 | 3 DONNA KEEYA EDITORS & SYDNEY ROSE,

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS

NEWS

@THEDAILYCOUGAR

CORONAVIRUS

Health prof. offers advice on staying safe this holiday season AMINAH TANNIR

EDITORIAL BOARD

ASSISSTANT NEWS EDITOR @AMOUNAJT

The holiday season is around the corner and the national surge in coronavirus cases is far from over. The U.S. is now gaining over 160,000 new cases daily, with Texas hovering around 10,000 new cases a day.

“The basic problem is the number of interactions each person in the community has on a daily or weekly basis,” said health systems and population health professor Ben King.

“The risk of an interaction can be mitigated to some degree of course, but each of those represents some risk of community transmission.”

King said even though there can be a reduction of these interactions, these precautions are not perfect and it still has a possibility of leading to community transmission.

Although masks help mitigate the spread of the virus, King said their imperfections are evidence that they shouldn’t be the only solution. As the pandemic continues, he said people will not be consistent with important

EDITOR IN CHIEF

Andy Yanez

MANAGING EDITOR

ASST. SPORTS EDITOR

Jiselle Santos WEB EDITOR

Mason Vasquez

NEWS EDITORS

Donna Keeya Sydney Rose ASST. NEWS EDITORS

Aminah Tannir Cristobella Durrette

James Mueller OPINION EDITOR

Gina Medina CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Juana Garcia ASST. CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Gerald Sastra COPY CHIEF

Zai Davis

STAFF EDITORIAL Coronavirus cases are rising before the holiday season and isn’t projected to slow down. | Juana Garcia/The Cougar

things like washing their hands and sanitizing surfaces thoroughly and frequently.

“We have to get all the big things and all the little things right in order to turn this new spike in cases around like we did over the summer,” King said.

“Every choice we make to be safe helps.”

Not only are coronavirus cases projected to increase this winter, but so will the flu. King said the

flu didn’t really have an increase in case numbers until this time last year, and getting the flu shot is one thing people can do to assist healthcare providers.

For those who are planning trips over the holiday season, King said that staying in-town is the best option. Large gatherings are likely to act as super spreaders, according to King, transmitting the virus and then people traveling will increase the

number of new cases this winter.

UH is sending students home and resuming courses online following Thanksgiving, so King recommends that for students who do go home, isolating 10-14 days before and after their trip is their best bet.

“It’s a simple idea really, but takes some commitment

HOLIDAY

Continues on page 4

ADMINISTRATION

Petition to hold in-person graduation commencement started by students SYDNEY ROSE

NEWS EDITOR @SYDNEY_ROSEY

A petition demanding UH to hold in-person commencement ceremonies for Spring 2020 and Fall 2020 graduates has earned over 500 student signatures since the start of November.

The petition reasons that if the University can hold football games on campus, then graduation ceremonies can be held for these graduates.

“I created the petition because it was an elephant in the room … Well, in this case, a cougar,” said kinesiology junior Kenneth Davis III. “There were rising concerns from students because it seems like UH has football games as a priority over graduations.”

Davis as an UndergraduateAt-Large senator for the Student Government Association is trying to use the petition as a way to show the students backing this idea to his administration.

“The petition is the first step

SPORTS EDITOR

Jhair Romero

Jiselle Santos/The Cougar

to show the increasing numbers of students that are in support of this cause because numbers are what the administration is going to pay attention to,” Davis said.

“The second step is to have a town hall with the administration in efforts to further understand why socially

distanced graduations are not presented as an option,” Davis added.

President Renu Khator said the plans for commencement ceremonies were revealed.

“After thoughtful consideration, we have decided to hold a virtual commencement ceremony for 2020 graduates on

Dec. 17,” Khator said.

Khator listed the reasons behind this decision to be rising COVID-19 cases across the nation. In defense of the football games held in person, they are able to be canceled last minute, whereas graduations cannot be jeopardized, Khator said.

Davis said graduation meant different things for different people, such as firstgeneration college students and international students.

“Commencement ceremonies serves as a tradition and once in a lifetime opportunity for all students. Many of which are first generation college students and international students who came to attend college for a better life,” Davis said.

“So when UH announced virtual graduations for our graduates, it seemed like they showed a disregard for our students that invested their hopes and dreams for four-plus years.” news@thedailycougar.com

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.

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4 | Wednesday, November 18, 2020

NEWS

DONNA KEEYA EDITORS & SYDNEY ROSE,

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS

@THEDAILYCOUGAR

ACADEMICS

Course delivery methods uncertain as enrollment opens

With Spring 2021 classes opening, students are finding that the method of delivery remains uncertain. | Gerald Sastra/The Cougar

CRISTOBELLA DURETTE

ASSISSTANT NEWS EDITOR @CRIST0BELLA

The University will offer approximately the same number of courses in Spring 2021 as available for previous semesters, despite ongoing uncertainties presented by the coronavirus pandemic.

The number of courses offered is up to the discretion of an individual college or department at the University, which determines how many sections will be open for a particular class.

“Class availability is at the core of our commitment to student success,” said Mark

HOLIDAY

Continued from page 3 to pull off,” said King. “They can monitor themselves for symptoms, but more importantly, they’re much, much less likely to have an asymptomatic or presymptomatic infectious state when they see the fam.”

King also mentioned how testing before and after their

Clarke, UH associate provost for faculty development and affairs.

The formats for instruction in many courses remain up in the air. Intending to offer one quarter of all classes for the spring semester in a face-to-face format, the University plans to continuously monitor COVID-19 conditions to determine if the virus is sufficiently contained to allow for a safe classroom environment.

“There have been no cancellation of spring classes, however, the mode of instruction could change depending on the state of the pandemic,” Clarke said.

“The delivery options will

continue to prioritize student choice, accommodate health and safety concerns and allow for rapid adjustments in the mode of instruction should that need arise due to the pandemic,” Clarke added.

The decision to implement a face-to-face option in select courses comes after a survey of the UH community revealed that students and faculty were interested in engaging in more in-person classes.

“Based on student and faculty results, the University moved ahead with offering more classes on campus in a face-toface setting,” Clarke said. “The University continues to operate

trip, leaving time for the test results to get back, is also a way to track the virus and inform the people that have been around them during the festivities.

After doing everything possible to mitigate the virus, King said that following the guidelines set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wherever you’re traveling to is the way to go about your trip.

This means wearing a mask,

social distancing, washing your hands and avoiding touching your face.

“We don’t know what the local and state government will do, but we can control our own behavior this holiday season,” said King. “If everyone gets on board, it’s really the only thing that’s going to make a difference.” news@thedailycougar.com

with flexibility and compassion.

There will be enough course selection options for those students who would like to continue their studies online.”

Students express mixed feelings about the University’s course offerings for Spring 2021.

For biochemistry senior Jack Kent, he didn’t notice a difference in the number of course offerings or face-to-face options.

“It seems about the same. Yes, there were one or two classes that I wanted to enroll in that were not available, but they were 4000 level biochemistry courses,” Kent said. “All of my classes are online, I didn’t notice

how many classes are face-toface.”

The same was not the case for liberal studies senior Ayomide Owosho, who found that the number of courses offered didn’t correlate with her expectations.

“I definitely observed that the University didn’t offer as much classes as expected,” Owosho said. “The first day I was able to select and plan my classes, a lot of my major classes were not scheduled yet. That made me nervous because I was hoping it doesn’t mess up my graduation plans. But overall, I was able to get into some classes.” news@thedailycougar.com

UH Health and Biomedical Sciences Building 2. | File Photo

Wednesday, November 18, 2020 | 5 DONNA KEEYA EDITORS & SYDNEY ROSE,

ADVICE

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS

LIFE ANDNEWS ARTS

@THEDAILYCOUGAR

Dear Donna: Advice on friendships, love, more

DONNA KEEYA

If you truly are pursuing something serious, let that be known through dating apps, in-person interactions or however you’re getting to know people.

Remember that you can’t change a person and shouldn’t waste time on someone who wants to casually date if you are pursuing something more than that. You are worthy of love and should surround yourself with people with similar intentions.

NEWS EDITOR @DONNAKEEYA

This week’s anonymous advice column brushes on friendships, love and more.

To submit your question for future issues, click the “Dear Donna” button on our home page.

How do you make friends?

I’m really shy and UH is so big. I’m worried people won’t like me Hello! Thank you for sending a question and I really admire you wanting to push yourself beyond your comfort zone and make new friends. That itself is something to be proud of, especially for someone who identifies as shy.

I know meeting new people at a big school can be very overwhelming when thinking about how many students actually go here.

I really recommend taking a step back and realizing that you don’t have to interact with a ton of people, but you can start small and just talk to someone new.

Try to join a smaller organization and start interacting with the few people there.

While it can be scary, the smaller environment can be a lot more comforting and help you connect with someone with similar interests.

FILM

What are good ways to spend alone time?

Renee Josse de Lisle/The Cougar

I’m a freshman and am worried that I’m not doing enough. How can I make the most of my college experience?

Before starting, I want to take a second to congratulate you on almost completing your first semester. College by nature is hard, and making it this far itself is a huge accomplishment.

I’m here to tell you that even thinking about “doing enough” means that you are doing enough.

I understand not wanting to feel like you’re falling behind or getting intimidated by your peers who seem to be really busy, but honestly

The Cougar Reviews: Artemis Fowl stands as an ‘undeniably horrendous movie’

CHIRAG MANGNAIK

STAFF WRITER

How disappointing. Perhaps it would’ve been folly to expect anything more, but somehow, “Artemis Fowl” managed to dash even the mildest of hopes.

However, in the interest of judging the film on its own (lack of) merits, the film shall not be compared heavily to its source material.

It’s undeniably a horrendous movie and a comparison would muddy that status, instead focusing on its existence as a bad adaptation, which would simply not do justice to the misery that is sitting through this film.

“Artemis Fowl”, the movie, is set within a hollow universe and a thoroughly inconsistent set of

rules. In one of the first action set pieces in the movie, a troll and the world around it is frozen in time, yet, when dealing with Artemis Fowl, the Time Freeze seems to … do nothing?

Well, to be clear, it creates a dividing line between the Fowl Manor and the outside world, making communication out of the bubble impossible which is what it seems to do in the book, but after setting up a powerful Time Freeze, the only explanation for not freezing the Fowl Manor in time is Commander Root saying, “I have to talk to that kid.”

Why? The faeries know exactly who the Fowls are and what they’re capable of, so why wouldn’t they use this all-powerful device at this opportune moment?

freshman year is about getting adjusted and comfortable in the university setting, and there’s no need to get down on yourself.

As far as making the most during your time at UH, follow things that spark joy.

Whether it be professional opportunities that excite you or having game nights with your friends, let yourself enjoy the day to day.

It’s a lot to think about the big picture college experience, but if you find happiness in daily life, I’m sure you will be content in your overall experience.

I wouldn’t ordinarily nitpick a plot hole, but a hole this big is a sign of the amount of effort that seems to have been put into the project, though not by the actors. Some of them seem intent on salvaging whatever they can from this mess, especially Lara McDonnell and Dame Judi Dench, whose talents are woefully wasted here.

Moreover, the characterization ranges from incomprehensible to irrelevant.

Butler is just a regular butler with some extra affection towards his employer.

Juliet is supposedly there for a specific reason: to relate to and understand Artemis Fowl.

But there’s one scene with the two of them.

Briar Cudgeon seems to be being blackmailed into being a spy, yet he continually expresses contempt of everyone around him as though he were a real villain.

There’s no resolution to that arc, either. And, of course, there’s Artemis.

Arbitrarily curt and wanting to look like a cool 12-year old in a suit,

How do I find love during a pandemic? Srsly.

To start, I want to say what you’re feeling is valid and I think a common theme among people these days.

Whether it be the cold cuffing season weather or how long the pandemic has lasted, you’re definitely not alone when it comes this topic.

That being said, I’m sure there are people who feel the same way who would love to get to know you a little better. And while love is a difficult concept to chase, I think it’s important to set your intentions out there.

As someone who loves spending quality time with others and always strives to be around people, I really value this question and admire your active effort to have alone time.

I think it’s really helpful to start off by treating yourself the same way you treat others.

Hopefully, you’re kind and respectful to others, and that same treatment should translate to yourself. Feed yourself positive affirmations and make healthy decisions for your well being.

Other than that, do things that you genuinely enjoy.

One bright side to alone time is that you don’t have to compromise on anything, and you should do whatever you desire.

Play music however loud you want. Eat what you want, and exist in your purest form. arts@thedailycougar.com

Juana Garcia/The Cougar

while making very few decisions that affect the plot (apart from the inciting incident) in a movie that bears his name.

He appears happiest when he’s surfing and one-wheeling, yet this seems to be completely irrelevant to his character. We briefly see him at school and how he doesn’t enjoy it, then never again. We see him talk to a therapist and this has no bearing on anything that ensues, or any thematic relevance.

There’s nothing that Artemis Fowl does in the movie, other than tell Butler to kidnap Holly and act smarmy from time to time.

It’s a confused, jumbled mess of a character that feels like it’s got no

thought behind it.

All in all, this movie is horrendous, occasionally entertaining only by the talents of Judi Dench and Lara McDonnell.

Everyone else either does not deliver, or is simply not given the screen time or the script to deliver.

But it’s confusing, it’s riddled with plot holes and it constantly makes no attempt at making the audience care for anything that’s happening.

At an hour-and-a-half long, the movie manages to feel longer and more laborious than some four hour-long epics. It’s simply not something that deserves a viewing. arts@thedailycougar.com

6 | Wednesday, November 18, 2020

LIFE AND ARTS NEWS

DONNA KEEYA EDITORS & SYDNEY ROSE,

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/LIFE-ARTS

@THEDAILYCOUGAR

SELF CARE

Students battle burnout during remote learning

Juana Garcia/The Cougar

CRISTOBELLA DURRETTE

ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR @CRIST0BELLA

Students juggle a variety of different responsibilities: a full course load, extracurriculars, internships, a social life.

May Huyhn is no different.

The English and political science senior balances academic demands with personal and professional obligations.

She also grapples with a lack of motivation for her online courses, caused in part by a chronically heavy load of overall responsibilities.

“I’ve definitely been feeling unmotivated in my online classes,” Huyhn said. “Work, family, friends and other obligations aren’t helping at all.”

Huyhn isn’t alone in experiencing reduced motivation for remote learning. A survey from the Student Experience in the Research University found that 76 percent of all undergraduates reported a lack of motivation as the primary obstacle to learning in online courses.

Sociology sophomore Sam Kuo remarks that his motivation has dropped significantly from when all of his classes were offered face-to-face, despite the course load remaining comparable to

his previous semesters.

“My workload is about the same as other semesters. It may feel like more and I don’t think professors know how little bandwidth students have for online assignments,” Kuo said. “I find myself having to force myself to go to class, or do readings or assignments. It impacts my overall quality of life, having to drag my feet through it all.”

A lack of motivation toward academic endeavors is one of the hallmarks of academic burnout,which entails a dive in productivity stemming from an overly stressful workload combined with a lack of social support and adequate reward.

Outside of academic stress, Huyhn remarks that broader social and political issues also contribute to feelings of concern and hindered motivation.

“There are so many looming forces that we know are uncontrollable like (COVID-19) and the … elections, and our very individualistic culture that has become toxic during these times,” Huyhn said.

Stress related to the coronavirus, healthcare and the presidential election, among other factors, are raising stress levels among Generation Z. In comparison to October

2019, 34 percent of Gen Z adults report experiencing worse mental health in 2020.

While students nationwide have been experiencing increased rates of stress, fewer are accessing the counseling services available on their college campuses.

At UH, the number of unique clients seen by Counseling and Psychological Services dropped by 22 percent from Fiscal Year 2019 to FY 2020, according to data provided by CAPS. The decline can be largely attributed to the presence of fewer students on campus, the

Savannah Smithson/The Cougar

suspension of group counseling and skills workshops, student discomfort with teletherapy, Zoom fatigue, the prioritization of other needs and state laws limiting teletherapy, said CAPS director Norma Ngo. Students can avoid burnout by making time for enjoyable activities and getting active.

Huyhn says that she prevents burnout through a variety of restorative activities.

“I deal with burnout by exercising, getting back into painting and cooking, playing with my dogs, praying or meditating and getting to know

my loved ones on a deeper level … And getting plenty of sleep for once without feeling guilty about it,” Huyhn said.

Kuo also attempts to make time for self care and activities he enjoys, but finds that they don’t necessarily mitigate his stress.

“I try to engage in hobbies, rely on peers for support, exercise and try my best to get a good night’s sleep,” Kuo said. “Those things do not get the work done, however, and fail to make me less overwhelmed.” arts@thedailycougar.com

Wednesday, November 18, 2020 | 7 ANDY YANEZ, EDITOR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS

SPORTS NEWS

@THECOUGARSPORTS

FOOTBALL

Building an AAC, national contender ‘doesn’t happen overnight,’ Dana Holgorsen says

UH head coach Dana Holgorsen encourages his team pregame before its game against UCF at TDECU Stadium during the 2020 season. Despite suffering three defeats during the campaign, Houston has lost to two ranked opponents and to UCF, which is one of the best teams in the AAC. Houston is looking to reach that level of success with Holgorsen at the helm. | Courtesy of UH athletics

ANDY YANEZ

SPORTS EDITOR @AYANEZ_5

Inside of UH head coach Dana Holgorsen’s office is a board that tells him the number of spots that the team needs to focus on during the recruitment class for the upcoming season.

So far this season, he has 25 spots on his board and only 10 names that will join UH in either January or June.

“Nobody wants to hear this because everyone wants quick fixes and they want to be great now,” Holgorsen told reporters during his weekly Zoom news conference after Houston’s loss to Cincinnati. “I’m here to build it the right way for over the course of as much time that they allow me to be able to do it.”

After suffering the beating at

the hands of No. 6 Cincinnati, the head coach acknowledged that Houston still had ways to go before it could compete with the top teams in the American Athletic Conference. UH had just lost its second straight game against a well-established AAC team.

Holgorsen listed off the three opponents that Houston has lost to this season in BYU, Cincinnati and UCF, and he said that those programs all had one thing in common: their respective head coaches are multiple years into being at the helm.

Head coach Luke Fickell with the Bearcats and Kalani Sitake with BYU both took over their programs in 2016. Josh Heupel with the Knights gained control in 2018.

For Holgorsen, who joined

Houston in January 2019, having that time is what is needed to build a program into one of the few contenders in the NCAA, and it is what he hopes he can do at the University.

“Getting things the right way doesn’t happen overnight,” the UH coach said. “I apologize for that, our fans deserve wins. Our administration demands wins, and that’s going to happen.”

Despite the emphasis on the future, Holgorsen is not abandoning the 2020 season either. Houston’s players are still invested in getting as many wins as it can, and they showed it to the coaching staff during their practices leading up to USF. “I liked our energy,” Holgorsen said. “Our guys understand where we are at. They know that we didn’t meet the challenge of

a top 10 football team and went out there and practiced hard.”

While the Cougars appear to have been snake-bit for the second year in a row with injuries to players like senior receiver Marquez Stevenson, senior defensive lineman Payton Turner and junior linebacker Donavan Mutin, who are all going through different things.

Although their inability to suit up has left voids for UH, it has also provided an opportunity to see what the team has in the younger talent.

“There are some areas where I see future and I see hope,” said Holgorsen, who kept a group of 30-40 developing players after practice leading up to the South Florida game. “There are areas where I don’t, and you address that with recruiting.”

Some of the positions that Holgorsen has said in the past he is emphasizing are on the offensive line, which has had its struggles in 2020, both in terms of production and depth.

During his weekly radio show the Thursday before the game against the Bearcats, Holgorsen said he had set aside 18 different scholarships for that position.

Despite the sobering reminder against Cincinnati, Holgorsen is confident that he has seen improvement from his first season at UH, and he expects that continue.

“We’re better now than we were a year ago, and a year from now we will be a lot better than we are right now,” Holgorsen said. sports@thedailycougar.com

8 | Wednesday, November 18, 2020

SPORTS NEWS

ANDY YANEZ, EDITOR

@THECOUGARSPORTS

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS

MEN’S BASKETBALL

How Fabian White, despite season-ending injury, continues to make impact for UH

ANDY YANEZ

SPORTS EDITOR @AYANEZ_5

At the end of last season when the NCAA and American Athletic Conference tournaments were canceled due to the infamous coronavirus pandemic, the last thing that forward Fabian White Jr. envisioned he would be in 2020-21 is an unofficial coach.

White, who suffered a torn ACL in late May, was forced to redshirt his true senior season. He has been unable to physically practice with the rest of his teammates as he recovers.

But it has not stopped him from continuing to play an active role.

White has provided guidance to the rest of UH’s forwards and centers on the roster, or as both seniors Brison Gresham and Justin Gorham said, has become a player-coach that can give specific feedback.

“I think it is almost like boxing, you have that person in the corner telling you stuff,” Gresham told reporters via Zoom.

With White’s footwork and post moves, he can go into detail with his teammates and tell them what they’re doing wrong, which has been beneficial for UH. “(Fabian White) is still at practice every day,” Gorham said. “He’ll come talk to us when we’re on the court and give us little tips. It’s good to still have Fabian around. It’s good to see him work out and stuff.”

Rebound game Houston’s frontcourt, which will

have big shoes to fill following last season’s team that was No. 3 in rebounds per game in the nation, will look a bit different in 2020-21.

In addition to losing White to injury, Houston also lost Chris Harris Jr. He graduated in May and was the team’s third-leading rebounder a season ago. On top of that, UH also lost its leading rebounder in guard Nate Hinton, who declared for the NBA Draft.

Houston, which has become one of the top-tier college basketball programs in the nation, is expected to overcome those losses, which will not be easy, and will have to be done as an entire team, head coach Kelvin Sampson said.

The main responsibility will fall on Gresham and Gorham, who enter as the seniors in the frontcourt. Both players are looking to showcase big improvements from last season.

Senior leap When it comes to Gorham specifically, his biggest focus entering 2020-21 has been consistency.

A year ago, Gorham’s minutes were spotty and he struggled shooting from the field, which affected the Columbia, Maryland, native’s mindset.

“I was down on myself some games,” said Gorham, who despite the struggles, credited the coaching staff in helping him maintain trust in himself. “Coach Sampson would always be in my ear (saying) that you can’t lose confidence.”

UH forward Fabian White battles with a Cincinnati player to secure a rebound in a regular season game during the 201920 season at Fertitta Center. | Mikol Kindle Jr./The Cougar

Now with a new season around the corner, his teammates and coaches have seen a change in Gorham.

They believe this newfound confidence will lead to a bigger role on the court for him, especially with the hole that White leaves on the roster.

“I feel like coach has given (Gorham) a lot of more trust,” junior guard Quentin Grimes said. “I feel like Justin has a lot more trust in

himself. He can go out there and if he has the open shot, coach wants him to shoot it.

“He is a big-time bruiser. He can get any rebound that goes around and falls in his area. I feel like he’s gotten more comfortable with what coach wants him to do out there. I feel like he can be a big-time contributor for us.”

Along with Gresham and the new additions like freshmen Kiyron Powell, J’Wan Roberts and

Arkansas transfer Reggie Chaney, UH hopes it can fill the roles in the frontcourt and secure the boards.

After all, Houston is motivated to make up for what the players feel was an opportunity that was taken away. This season UH hopes it can showcase its talent in the big tournament.

“It’s unfinished business,” Gorham said. sports@thedailycougar.com

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Kelvin Sampson, teammates praise Caleb Mills ahead of season JAMES MUELLER

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR @JDM2186

UH guard Caleb Mills watches Wichita State bring the ball up the court in a defensive stance at Fertitta Center. | Mikol Kindle Jr./The Cougar

Houston’s Caleb Mills made his name known as one of the top freshmen in the country during the 2019-20 season.

As a redshirt freshman, the 6-foot 3-inch guard from Arden, North Carolina, led the Cougars in scoring with 13.2 points per game, joining Rob Williams (1979-80) as only the second freshman in school history to lead the team in scoring.

Along with being Houston’s top scorer, Mills was twice named the American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Week, was unanimously voted to the AAC’s all-freshman team and

also earned a spot on the secondteam all-conference.

Senior forward Brison Gresham had a unique way of describing what it is like to play with a special talent like Mills.

“It’s like being at Benihana,” Gresham said. “You’re waiting on your food, and you’re sitting there and the person’s doing all the tricks with the food. I just love watching him play.”

Now as a sophomore, the expectations placed on Mills have risen to extreme heights as he was named the AAC’s 2020 Preseason Player of the Year.

But Mills does not give much attention to all the recognition and accolades he receives nor does he put much value into it.

“Not much really,” Mills said when asked about what it meant to be named the AAC’s Preseason Player of the Year. “I’m just looking forward to getting better and going to war with my teammates.”

And this is the exact type of answer one would expect to hear when asking Mills about how he views his personal achievements because he has a team-first mentality.

Head coach Kelvin Sampson said Mills is one of the best team players he has ever coached. “(Caleb Mills) has no ego,” Sampson said. “When I say no

MILLS

Continues on page 9

Wednesday, November 18, 2020 | 9 ANDY YANEZ, EDITOR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS

SPORTS NEWS

@THECOUGARSPORTS

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Setting the example: How Dymond Gladney was thrust into a leadership position for UH

JAMES MUELLER

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR @JDM2186

The jump from the 2018-19 season to 2019-20 was nothing less than a drastic shift for UH guard Dymond Gladney.

As a freshman, Gladney played just over eight minutes per game on average. But as a sophomore, the 5-foot 5-inch guard from Los Angeles’ role increased massively as she became UH’s primary point guard.

As the starting point guard and with Houston’s lack of depth on the bench, Gladney played over 37 minutes per game during the 2019-20 season, which led to a team-high total of 1,402 minutes on the season.

As a result of playing such heavy minutes, Gladney was also asked to be one of Houston’s primary scorers and finished the season second on the team in scoring with 11.7 points per game.

While Gladney embraced this role and always gave her best effort, it was physically draining and exhausting on her body over the course of a long season.

But this year’s Houston team is full of depth, and with the addition of many freshman and transfers, Gladney is relieved that she does not have to be relied on to play such heavy minutes.

“Oh I’m so excited,” Gladney said with a laugh when asked about not having to play the amount of minutes per game.

“It’s just a good feeling to know that someone else is going to come in and help the team tremendously when I’m tired.”

It is not that Gladney hated playing big minutes and being relied on to score a bunch, but the fact that the Cougars have much more roster depth this year will allow Gladney to be the player she envisioned being

MILLS

Continued from page 8 ego, if you were to look at his Twitter page the only thing he ever retweets is when something good happens to his teammates.

And that’s a reflection of that kid’s character and what a great teammate he is. Caleb (Mills) is an unbelievable teammate. He’s a team-first guy.”

The reason Mills exhibits a team-first mentality and is always

Houston guard Dymond Gladney drives through the lane against Houston Baptist during the 2019-20 season. In that campaign Gladney averaged 37.1 minutes per contest, and she put up 11.7 points and three assists per game for the Cougars. | Lino Sandil/The Cougar

when she became a college athlete.

“The thing with (Dymond Gladney) this year is she was like, ‘Coach Hughey, I get to go back and be the player that I want to be,’” head coach Ronald Hughey told reporters via Zoom. “‘I want to lead the country in assists.

Now we have enough people around us to score. Now I don’t have to score as much. ‘” But being the point guard and setting big goals for herself, like being the country’s leader in assists, will require commitment to leadership since she will have to have the trust of her fellow teammates to make the right decisions with the ball.

And leadership is something

Gladney has shown great growth in as she has become more mature.

“The growth that I’ve noticed the most is (Gladney’s) maturity,” Hughey said. “She has a calm demeanor about her on the court that says, ‘follow me. I’m going to lead you to the right place.’”

Not only has Gladney shown leadership on the court, but also off the court as she’s setting an example for her teammates by doing anything she can to help them get better. “(Gladney) had tremendous growth and everybody’s already following her right now,” Hughey said. “She’s even having individual film sessions with players to help them get it. That’s

how much they think of her.”

By spending extra time with her teammates, Gladney has been able to better gel with her teammates and to learn their preferences like where they like to catch the ball so that she can be a better facilitator.

“Learning my personnel with what everybody on the team can do,” said Gladney on what she has focused on to be a better point guard. “Like learning how Daphane (White) would want the ball to be thrown to her … So really focusing on making more opportunities for other people to score knowing that I don’t have to be the scorer on the team helps out a lot.”

While she has taken lots

of time to build chemistry, Gladney’s ultimate inspiration for spending extra time on her teammates, especially the younger ones, stems from the fact that she did not have a person reach out to her during her freshman season and take her under their wings.

“My freshman year I wish I had somebody to tell me that it’s OK to mess up,” Gladney said. “So I think it’s very important for me to be that type of person in their corner to let them know ‘yeah, I’m here for you. I’m going to help you out every step of the way no matter what. We’re here together.”

making sacrifices for the good of the team is because he is hungry to win. Mills views winning a championship as a far greater achievement than any individual award he receives.

He has come to understand that winning requires a full team effort and each individual player must cast their selfish desires aside in order to better the team as a whole.

“Well growing up, most everybody on this team was the best player on their team,

whether it was high school or any time leading up to this,” Mills said. “So in some aspects, you’re going to be selfish. But when you really want to win, you understand you have to (make sacrifices) … It’s a team effort. It’s not individual.”

In order for the Cougars to be successful this season, Mills knows he must step up as a leader since Houston lost its two primary leaders on the court from last year in Nate Hinton, who is currently entered into the

NBA Draft, and Fabian White Jr., who suffered a torn ACL in May. “Just being a better leader,” Mills said when talking about his primary goals for the 202021 season. “I was kind of in the rearview just letting Nate lead the group, letting Fab. So that’s really the biggest adjustment me and Marcus (Sasser) specifically made this year.”

Mills worked on improving his leadership skills over the long offeason and continues to strive to be a better leader every day

because he knows that it will not only help him improve on the court, but will also give him the skills to overcome any potential challenges the world may throw at him in everyday life.

“I feel like it is important just to be a regular person,” Mills said.

“That is something you should try to better yourself in every day. I feel like that’s one of the things I need to take my game to another level. Being a better leader.”

sports@thedailycougar.com

sports@thedailycougar.com

10 | Wednesday, November 18, 2020

OPINION NEWS

GINA MEDINA, EDITOR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/OPINION

@THEDAILYCOUGAR

VOTING

The Electoral College is an archaic practice and desperately needs an update CHIRAG MANGNAIK

Wyoming has 3.37 times the voting power of the average voter from Texas.

Voters living in the most heavily populated states of the country often have a far lower influence on the election than voters living in states with low populations.

STAFF COLUMNIST

Though the election is essentially over, the arguments regarding the Electoral College remain ever present.

Yet again in the 2020 election, the vote over the most powerful position in the world was decided by a handful of key states.

The Electoral College and the winner-take-all system lead to the electoral process being decided by a small group of people, even though the difference in the popular vote was over five million.

This system is outdated and a product of a bygone era and should be replaced with the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact for a return to democracy.

The Electoral College The Electoral College is a body of 538 electors; one for each seat in the House of Representatives and one for each seat in the Senate, as well as three electors for Washington, D.C. Every state has a number of seats in the House of Representatives that’s almost proportional to their population.

However, each state, regardless

Winner takes all

Renee Josse de Lisle/The Cougar

of population, has two seats in the Senate.

For any given state’s members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the state has an electoral vote for the presidential election. For instance, Texas has 36 seats in the House of Representatives and two seats in the Senate and, as such, has 38 electoral votes.

When people vote within a state, a presidential candidate is

decided upon by a popular vote.

Most states, with a few notable exceptions, award all its electoral votes to whichever presidential candidate won the popular vote within the state.

Finally, when all of the state electors have cast their votes, whichever candidate has the most electoral votes wins the presidential election.

There are two big issues with this system. The first is the

issue of each state receiving two electoral votes by default because of the Senate.

This throws off the proportionality of the system, resulting in people in smaller states having more power behind their vote simply because they live in a less populous state.

Unequal voter power According to Chris Kirk from Slate, the average voter from

However, that’s not the only problem with the system. The other big problem is the winnertakes-all system within all but two states, Maine and Nebraska.

The winner-takes-all system is where all the electors in a state vote for the winner of the statewide popular vote instead of distributing them proportionally.

Because of this, it’s possible for a candidate to narrowly win half the states and lose all the other states and still win the presidency.

In fact, it’s possible to win the presidential election with a mere 23 percent of the popular vote largely because of the winnertake-all system.

In 2016, Trump won Texas by a slim 9 percent margin.

In a proper representative

ELECTORAL COLLEGE

Continues on page 11

POLITICS

The Divided States of America: It is time for us to heal the wounds of hate GINA MEDINA

OPINION EDITOR @ITSGINA_M

It seems like most of the world sighed with relief when it was announced that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are projected to become the next president and vice president, respectively.

However, there are still people, including President Donald Trump, who are in disbelief of the election results.

The nation has been divided for too long and it has grown more distant over the past few years. Although we are a nation derived from unity, we have strayed so far from each other that we no longer uphold the name of our country.

The election results are just one more fact that has become an opinion, much like the effectiveness of face masks and the human rights of others.

Our nation has been misguided and fractured by the one person who has sworn to protect it. It is time for us to

become one again and move past the antagonism.

President-elect Biden emphasized in his victory speech that this was the time for healing in this nation and that he will “work as hard for those who didn’t vote for (him) as for those who did.” This is exactly the message of unity and hope that the nation has needs.

While President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris might not be the ideal, they appear to be more promising candidates who will attempt to reverse the damage of hate and division in the country.

Politics have been so polarized for so long that a Mississippi lawmaker threatened to secede from the nation upon Biden’s election.

He has since apologized and deleted the tweet, however the instantaneous reaction of hate and denial is why we need to rid ourselves of the hostility.

However, we need to ensure that we are not attempting to

After years of internal turmoil, the U.S. is ready to become one again. With new leadership in place, there is more hope than ever before. | Christopher Charleston/The Cougar

After years of internal turmoil, the U.S. is ready to become one again. With new leadership in place, there is more hope than ever before. | Christopher Charleston/The Cougar

bring peace by compromising on issues that should not even be up for debate.

We need to keep the momentum that we have built over the last few months

and continue to push our representatives to create legislation that reflects our needs, not their compromises.

We need to keep the good and work together to move towards

a more respectful and kind country.

Gina Medina is a journalism senior who can be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com

Wednesday, November 18, 2020 | 11 GINA MEDINA, EDITOR

THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/OPINION

OPINION NEWS

@THEDAILYCOUGAR

SOCIAL WORK

Social workers should not be allowed to discriminate i ANNA BAKER

ELECTORAL COLLEGE

Continued from page 10

democracy, electors should reflect that, with 20 of the electoral votes going to Trump and 16 going to Hillary.

Instead, 36 of the electoral votes went to Trump and two went to other candidates because of faithless electors, which is a separate topic.

This means that since California is known to be consistently blue and Alabama is known to be consistently red, the people’s individual votes don’t matter as much because the race has already been decided in those states.

Battleground states and campaigning This also results in battleground states and disproportionate campaigning and financing.

thedailycougar.com

ABOUT THE COUGAR

STAFF COLUMNIST @ANNA2POINT0

Recently, the Texas State Board of Social Work Examiners voted to change its code of conduct, removing protections for disability, sexual orientation and gender identity following Gov. Greg Abbott’s recommendation.

This would allow social workers to turn away people based on these characteristics.

It’s ironic that they would remove protections for people who are already disenfranchised and allow them to be even more disenfranchised by making it harder to find social workers to help them. This decision should be reversed.

According to Abbott’s office, the nondiscrimination clause went further than Texas’s state law, which was why he suggested it. While this may be true, we need to look at who this change affects to see why it is wrong.

This change obviously affects transgender people, queer people and disabled people. People who already face challenges in their lives due to being minorities and disenfranchised.

LGBTQ people put off medical treatment because of discrimination in health care accessibility. Now, they may be discriminated against by the same people who are supposed to be advocating for them.

Many queer people also live in poverty and there’s a higher likelihood of LGBTQ youth being homeless. In fact, about 35 percent of LGBTQ Texans between the ages of 18-44 were

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ISSUE STAFF CLOSING EDITORS

Jhair Romero Mason Vasquez Jiselle Santos

Gov. Greg Abbott’s recommendation to remove protections for disabled and LGBTQ people opens the door to discrimination. | Sonia Zuniga/The Cougar

living in poverty in 2017.

Disabled people are also often in poverty. In fact, they are twice as likely to be poor than someone without a disability. They often have medical costs involved with their disability that is also a factor in their poverty.

Disabled people have an income limit of about $2,000 per month to be able to get Social Security disability benefits. They are forced to be low income in order to receive aid.

Disability, gender identity and sexuality are things we cannot choose as people, so it’s horrible for people to be discriminated against for them. The reality is many of these people are discriminated against and disenfranchised for their labels.

Now, social workers — the

people who are supposed to help people out of bad situations often caused by discrimination — have the power to discriminate and cause these people to be even more disenfranchised.

People may say that it’s freedom of religion for people to discriminate. Even if it is, it doesn’t make it right. If they didn’t want to help people, they should not have become a social worker.

If they refuse to do social work for someone, they are blatantly refusing to do their job.

There’s also the fact that social workers refusing LGBTQ and disabled people will actively put them in harm’s way. By making it harder for disenfranchised people to receive help, they will likely have more trouble getting out of the bad situations that made

them need a social worker in the first place.

This decision by the Texas State Board of Social Work Examiners is going to be very harmful to marginalized communities in Texas. Whether a nondiscrimination clause goes beyond state law or not should be irrelevant because it is simply wrong to discriminate based on gender identity, sexuality or disability.

We shouldn’t allow our state to become more lenient when it comes to discrimination. We have to be staunchly active against it so that marginalized people can get the help and support they need.

Battleground states are states that have had varying results in presidential party affiliation in the past couple of years such as Florida, Colorado, Iowa and others. These states are consistently treated as more important because they have an undecided voter base.

To put this disparity in perspective, according to FairVote, 91.48 percent of general-election campaigning in 2016 occurred in just 12 states, 11 of which were battleground states, according to Politico and The Hill.

According to the campaign for the National Popular Vote, battleground states receive, on average, 7 percent more federal grants than “solid” states.

To have any political affiliation in Florida is significantly more beneficial than having any political affiliation in California or Alabama because those races

are already overwhelmingly decided in favor of a certain candidate before anyone even goes to the polls.

This system, regardless of how it is posited, allows some voters more voting power than others. It is an archaic system that assumed information could only travel as fast as a horse, and where the state and federal governments are both bidding for power.

This problem is not fixable via a constitutional amendment.

A constitutional amendment would require a two-thirds majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

But, there may be another solution to this problem.

The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact is a proposed agreement between states, which if signed by enough states so as to guarantee that signees together hold over 50 percent of

the national electoral votes, will have signees cast their electoral votes according to the national popular vote rather than the statewide popular vote.

As a result, every voter in America would have a direct say on at least 270 electoral votes, regardless of whether their state signed the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact or not.

This would effectively institute a nationwide popular vote for the presidential candidate system within the electoral college, utilizing its own parameters to render it meaningless.

As of today, it has been elected into law by 16 jurisdictions and needs only 74 more electoral votes in order to go into effect.

If Texas were to pass it, that number would drop to 36.

Anna Baker is an English junior who can be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com

Chirag Mangnaik is a liberal studies freshman who can be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com

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