Valley Field closure impacts student life

From Wellness, Page 1

USD junior Emily Nash is involved in a sports club as the General Manager of the Women’s Club Lacrosse team. Nash spends her time alongside the team coach, to ensure everything operates smoothly. When she was notified of the Valley Field’s upcoming closure, Nash had concerns about what the change would tangibly mean for the Women’s Lacrosse team, especially for the team’s player count.

“The main concern, especially for club sports that are competitive, is that if we don’t have all of the players to practice as a full team, then we are not going to get better, which pushes us off, and then we won’t make it to playoffs,” Nash said. “Our goal is to make it to playoffs, to advance to higher levels and to eventually push our club forward.”

Due to the abrupt change in plans, teams were given approximately a month and a half to adjust to the new scheduling hours. The playing time options were extremely limited for the Women’s Lacrosse team, moving some of their practices to weekend days. With no room left open for discussion, the solidified decision created conflict for the girls.

Nash explained the procedure that her team went through

Student Wellness Center to take its place

to secure practice times.

“There is no process; we are just given a slot. There is no raffle, there is no drawing from a hat, there is nothing of that. They give practice times, and we have to do it. We can’t really find a way to move it,” Nash said. “It is not ideal for any USD student [to practice on the weekend]. If you go to college, you know that Friday, Saturday and Sunday are very hard to get students to show up.”

Gomez also addressed how some of the new schedule changes will look for current teams.

“We understand that going from two fields down to one will have an impact on our student experience. When we learned about the new building location, Campus Recreation, Athletics and other campus partners worked hard to come up with a schedule,” Gomez said. “For Campus Recreation, we combined some intramural sport league play days, we reduced some lowenrollment intramural sports, and for sports clubs, we are now requiring all clubs to share a field, versus clubs having an entire field to themselves for practice.”

All club teams are expected to cut down their hours to accommodate the surplus number of teams now practicing on the Manchester Field. USD junior

Elle Kallsen of the Women’s Club Soccer team is also affected by this change, and she shared her thoughts on what this new schedule and practice constraints could mean for her team.

“Less practice means less time to prepare for games. Three practices has allowed us to bond as a team and get a lot of touches on the ball. Now that we are down to only two [practices] a week, we’re going to have to compensate,” Kallsen said. “We are going to have a conditioning and fitness day, so that we can still try to achieve our goals and be in good shape to win as many games as we can this season.”

It is not just players being affected by the changes; coaches are scrambling to make the new time changes work. Nash advocated for her coach, who must also adjust to an unplanned shift while balancing her work outside of coaching the club USD Women’s Lacrosse team.

”My coach is having a difficult time, because she is also coaching other teams, and so she would love it to have later practices, but we can’t because that’s when intramurals play,” Nash explained. The construction will also have a huge impact on Valley residents. Primarily a first-year living area, the Valley is home to a large portion of the first-year class and some upperclassmen.

USD first-year Gabbie Arellano lives in San Juan and hopes the disruption will be minimal for residents and sports teams.

“I am both excited for the new Wellness Center, considering I love rock climbing, yet also sad to see the Valley Field go, knowing many events and practices were held there… I would hope they do construction mostly while we — students — are at classes or on breaks.”

In a separate email sent by the University of San Diego, the university warns about the possible impact of construction noise. The email states that in order to help combat this, ear plugs will be available at Mata’yuum Crossroads. It also emphasizes the additional study spaces available to students throughout campus.

USD first-year Ari Payomo is concerned about the noise that the construction will create for the students living in the Valley on campus.

“I’m in San Juan, and in my opinion, I’m not really excited about the construction, only because of how much noise it will most likely make. I think that it should happen when students are away/on break, so it does not disturb anyone in the Valley when they are studying, relaxing, or trying to sleep in their dorms. The new Wellness Center sounds exciting itself, but the construction will cause some inconvenience to the students in the Valley,” Payomo said. While the new building will bring beneficial additions to the overall well being on campus, there is no question that the disruption is causing noticeable frustration. With construction to begin during the school year and continue until the fall of 2024, it is unknown what exactly this will look like for students living in the valley and those participating in field sports. For detailed information regarding construction implications, visit www.sandiego. edu/university-operations

From MSU, Page 1 go back or drop out,” Grutter said. Grutter also revealed that the question of when classes will resume has yet to be answered.

“We’re basically completely in the dark and just have to hope that those [who are] making decisions are going to do what’s best for us, but honestly who even knows what’s best for us? We need to go back. We need to get back to our community and work towards healing all together, but then there’s the fear of having to relive that experience and knowing that this can happen in the places you feel at home is so heartbreaking,” Grutter explained. “Michigan State is now going to be the safest college campus in the country, because they have to. Because we experienced the unimaginable. Because 40,000 students are afraid to even step foot in a classroom. An action so simple as requiring I.D. scanning to get into buildings could have stopped this, and these actions will only be taken now, after the fact.”

The reverberations of yet another tragedy on a college campus echo throughout the country, and USD is no different. USD junior Abby Soderquist shared how the shooting made her feel.

“It’s horrifying, and you never think that it’s going to be you. We think we’re protected, and everyone who has been affected by school shootings has also thought that it was never going to happen to them. It’s very unsettling to walk around campus.”

USD sophomore Maria Nesheiwat expressed concern about how prepared USD’s campus is in the event of a shooting

“It’s scary to think about because I don’t even know the protocols if it happened here,” Nesheiwat said. “USD has been my home for almost two years and it makes everyone reflect on how easily that could all change.”

USD junior Claire Madsen mentioned that she has never heard a faculty member explain what to do in a school shooting.

“I have never heard an instructor or professor talk about anything like that, and I think this is definitely something that should be talked about because I feel like a lot of times there is definitely conversations about stuff that happens, but I have personally not had an experience where a professor relates it to our campus and what we would do in a similar situation.”

James Miyashiro, Assistant Vice President for Public Safety, commented on the recent concern about safety on our campus and what measures are in place to best protect the community.

“Everyone should continue to be vigilant of their surroundings.

Know where you can go (exits, entrances and other escape areas). Call, text, or tell someone anytime you see, hear, or even sense a dangerous situation. Learn the three main steps during an active shooter and other emergencies such as Run, Hide & Fight (information is available on the DPS website). Students may also request training in active shooter and other emergencies.”

The risk of school shootings an undeniable reality nationwide. Having to remain vigilant and aware of the signs and protocols to best protect yourself and others is a bleak and terrifying reality that Generation Z college students are facing today.