Week of March 17, 2020 www.usustatesman.com (435) 797-1742 TSC Room 118 Free single copy
so·cial dis·tance noun
1. the perceived or desired degree of remoteness between a member of one social group and the members of another, as evidenced in the level of intimacy tolerated between them. Example: “The university will otherwise remain open and employees will continue business as usual as much as possible, with an emphasis on social distancing.”
How COVID-19 is affecting campus life — and the world
PAGE 2
WEEK OF MARCH 17, 2020
NEWS
‘It definitely feels emptier than normal.’ By Alison Berg NEWS CONTENT MANAGER
Editor’s note: This story is part of an ongoing series documenting campus growing emptier by the week. It’s 12:03 p.m. on Friday.
As the sun beats down and a slight breeze stirs the 54-degree
March day, four students stand on the Utah State University quad passing around a football.
The quad sits between six campus buildings and, on days like
Friday where the weather climbs above 45 degrees, is packed
with students studying, playing games, socializing and enjoying the sun — especially around noon.
But after a series of emails telling students all campus events
until April 8 would be canceled, and classes would be moved on-
line due to a potential COVID-19 outbreak, a normally crowded
campus of at least 20,000 students shrank to sparse groups of students spread out through the 450-acre campus.
Emily Harris, Renae Curtis and Sarah Flint sat at a table in the
TSC Hub — USU’s food court. On another Friday at this time, one would be hard-pressed to find a spot.
But on this day, the three friends sat at a table with no one in a
20-foot vicinity of them.
“It doesn’t feel real,” said Harris, a sophomore studying elemen-
tary education. “The virus thing feels like a fever dream. It doesn’t feel real.”
The three students were among the few on campus Friday af-
ter the series of coronavirus announcements. While campus was
noticeably emptier, many students continued their daily routines -- minus attending classes.
Homework at the library, hot chocolate at the Quadside Cafe and
dining at the Aggie Marketplace were all part of Danielle Weinerman’s everyday life.
Fears of catching or spreading a virus and warnings to avoid
large crowds didn’t stop her from an afternoon visit to the Marketplace.
“It definitely feels emptier than normal,” Weinerman said. The
Marketplace was about half full, which an employee said is “pretty standard” for a Friday at 3 p.m.
Weinerman is a freshman living in the Living Learning Commu-
nity on campus. Her diet revolves around her campus meal plan, and she “hasn’t figured out” what she’ll do if USU Dining Services closes their operations.
“I can go grocery shopping and home (Pleasant Grove) isn’t too
far, but I haven’t really thought about it,” she said.
USU Dining Services director Alan Anderson did not immedi-
PHOTO BY Savy Knapp One Utah State University student sits alone in the Taggart Student Center Hub studying on her lap top. The student was one of just a few in the Hub on Friday, March 13, just two days after all students received an announcement that their classes would be temporarily canceled and then moved online.
ately return a request for comment, but dining services locations
— which include all campus cafes, dining halls and concession stands — were open during normal business hours Monday.
Additionally, USU emailed all students Monday asking on-cam-
pus residents to “return to their permanent homes,” and alert-
ing students the Aggie Recreation Center and Fieldhouse will be closed beginning Tuesday.
Students should expect tuition increase in 2020-2021
STATESMAN FILE PHOTO
President Noelle Cockett speaks to students at Truth in Tuition. By Taylor Cripe NEWS STAFF WRITER
Students should expect a 2.8 percent increase in their tuition,
Utah State University President Noelle Cockett said at a town hall in the Taggart Student Center Ballroom Wednesday morning.
The meeting was held just hours before the university shut down
many of its facilities due to the Coronavirus Disease or COVID-19.
This will be the fourth year in a row USU has raised tuition,
following a 3.1 percent increase for the 2019 to 2020 school year.
However, USU Student Association Executive Council President Sami Ahmed stressed there is some misunderstanding surrounding the process of raising tuition.
“I think some of the misunderstanding we have about tuition
is we think it’s university administrators sitting in a room going,
‘Where can we go on vacation this year, let’s raise tuition,’” Ahmed said. “As we’ll see, that’s really not true.”
The meeting, which was broadcasted for USU campuses state-
wide, was focused on transparency and informing students about what’s happening to their tuition dollars. A tuition meeting is required by the state, Cockett said. She also said any public insti-
tution planning to raise costs must explain their decision-making process.
Tuition increases will be $91 a semester for students with resi-
dency. Current resident tuition is $3,274. Increases for non-resi-
dents will be $295 a semester. Non-resident tuition is currently $10,543.
“If you look at this year’s percentage of 2.8, you see this is the
lowest increase in 20 years,” Cockett said. “This is the lowest increase we’ve ever done.”
Tuition increases will be used for USU salary increases, faculty
promotions, internal service fees and need-based scholarships.
The biggest plot of money will be going toward salaries for fac-
ulty, advisors and facilities. According to Cockett, the state legis-
lature decides how much state employees can earn as an increase.
However, the state only provides 75 percent of the funding for higher education salary increases and asks colleges and universities to take 25 percent of salary increases out of tuition.
Lake said one of his initiatives as chairman of the University Stu-
dent Fee Board for 2019 to 2020 year was to make fees easily
visible for students. As a result, he helped create a student fee page under the “MyUSU” portal.
“We are making great strides in making student fees more trans-
parent,” he said.
USU freshman Kaylee Loveridge said she felt like Cockett cov-
The second big expense will go toward promotions, which is
ered everything she wanted to know and the presentation was
two times in a professor’s career that they are actually promoted,
“As much as I don’t want tuition raised, I can understand the
not covered by the state, Cockett said. She added there are only which is why it’s essential they get those raises.
“We want to reward and adjust their salary to say, ‘You are tru-
ly someone we want, we respect and we value,’” Cockett said.
helpful.
importance of salary raises and stuff like that,” Loveridge said. “I would want that as an employee.”
Loveridge said she would point out how important promotions
“These are very big moments in our faculty’s lives.”
are to other students who might be angry at the increase, and
the state legislature. The internal service fee, or Utah’s risk man-
funding.
The third expense, the internal service fee, is also not covered by
agement office, is USU’s insurance policy. “Just like all insurance companies, from time to time, they raise the premiums,” Cockett said. “That is what’s happening to us this year.”
how the school shouldn’t want professors to leave over lack of
Students in USU Eastern, Moab and Blanding campuses will also
get a 2.8 percent increase.
However, students with 65 or fewer credits on those campuses
The final expense, need-based scholarships, was “a hard lesson,”
will get a 3.5 percent increase, resulting in a $61 change for res-
“When you raise tuition, if you don’t add more money to the
age is to compensate for the fact that tuition in Eastern, Moab and
she said.
scholarship budget, need-based students will not be covered,” Cockett said. As a result, USU is now hoping to backtrack and fully fund scholarships that didn’t get funding in the past.
USUSA Executive Council Vice President Dexton Lake also pre-
sented an increase in student fees for the 2020 to 2021 school
year. The fees include a $1 per student increase that will go toward the library, a 49 cent increase for Counseling and Psycho-
logical Services and a $2.97 increase for the Student Health and Wellness Center.
idents, and a $183 change for non-residents. The higher percentBlanding is nearly half of USU.
The final decision on tuition increases will be made by the Utah
State Board of Regents on March 26. — taylorcripe@gmail.com @cripe_taylor
0WEEK OF MARCH 17, 2020
PAGE 3
STUDENT LIFE
Students react:
Universities worldwide shut down due to COVID-19 By Sydney Dahle STUDENT LIFE CONTENT MANAGER
Schools all over the world are becoming ghost
towns. All of this because of the rapid transmission of the novel coronavirus and COVID-19, the latest global pandemic that has sent the world into a panic.
@billye_wilson
On Thursday, Utah State University joined the
increasing number of schools taking preventative measures when president Noelle Cockett
#QuarantineAndChill would be trending lmaooo
after March 10, as well as cancel all events and
@GuymonKimberly
8. On Monday, an email from the Divison of
All of my reading of YA dystopian novels when I was 12 has prepared me for 2020
announced USU will switch to online classes
suspend university travel through at least April Student Affairs encouraged students living on campus to return home.
@andisthinks
USU is not alone in these steps. Other schools,
like Harvard and Stanford universities, have told students to leave campus entirely.
Niyonta Chowdhury-Magana, a USU student,
explained her frustrations about having to cancel the events she co-organized. “The Interna-
tional Banquet, The Bengali New Year, Bangla-
desh Education Night, Global Picnic. Canceled,” Chowdhury-Magana said. “My radio show I had already prepared episodes for got canceled.
Six organizational weekly/monthly meetings
I’m part of got canceled. Events I was looking
forward to — Powwow, Fiestas Americas, Aggie Radio events — all canceled. ”
At the University of Missouri, junior Evie
Stone was forced to come home from her study abroad in Japan early, despite classes at Sophia University continuing.
Universities across the globe are switching to online classes to help prevent the spead of COVID-19.
“Mizzou is choosing to cancel my classes and
force me to take an involuntary gap semester,
which will cost me thousands of dollars in tui-
PHOTO COURTESY Pexels
trains are crowded instead of traveling downtown.”
Shannon Hussey, a Southeast Missouri State
tion and fees that I can only assume they do not
student, is in a similar situation. Her study
reach out to me to ask about how I was feeling
have the needed credits to graduate early.
plan on reimbursing.” Stone said. “They didn’t about the conditions over here, or what I felt
abroad has been canceled, meaning she won’t “The university has left a lot of student work-
was in my best interest; they made a blanket
ers in the dark. I don’t think they realize that
good in my case. I live 95% of my day the same
said.
decision that is causing much more harm than
as I did before coronavirus, the other 5% being
if we don’t work, we can pay the rent,” Hussey
see “Students react“ PAGE 6
that I choose to eat near my house when the
How immunocompromised students are protecting themselves from COVID-19
PHOTO COURTESY OF Darcy Ritchie
Julia Chilvers, pictured one from the right, spending time with her friends at an Aggie football game. By Darcy Ritchie STUDENT LIFE STAFF WRITER
Julia Chilvers is a student at Utah State Uni-
versity receiving chemotherapy treatment for
juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. The coronavirus poses a much more serious threat for Chilvers compared to other students.
“[Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis] is an autoim-
mune disease, and the chemotherapy lowers my immune system, so I have a harder time
fighting disease,” Chilvers said. “I can’t fight off even just a common cold.”
As someone especially at risk during this
pandemic, Chilvers has been closely controlling
mised student at USU. Griffiths has Hashimoto’s
“It’s important to take precautions to protect
relies on the preventative actions of other
her immune system to attack her thyroid gland.
come in contact with.”
who she comes into contact with. Her health students.
“Always wash your hands. Use hand sanitizer.
Make sure if you are sick to just stay home,”
Chilvers advised. “It just puts others at risk.”
thyroiditis, an autoimmune disease that causes “My immune system is already in panic mode
at all times,” Griffiths said. “That’s why it’s harder when I get sick.”
Griffiths stated that students tend to dismiss
Chilvers wishes students would take the risk of
the severity of the virus due to its high recovery
“Don’t take it as a joke anymore. It’s really
for those who are immunocompromised.
the virus more seriously.
important for others to be as safe and healthy because I’m doing all I can do,” Chilvers said. “I’m really relying on others to also do that.” Brynn Griffiths is another immunocompro-
rate for young people, which can be dangerous “The virus may not seem like a big deal to
you personally. However, I guarantee that
every person has somebody in their life who is
immunocompromised or elderly,” Griffiths said.
yourself, but also to protect the people that you USU has cancelled all university events and
travel until April 8 and moved classes online to support the efforts of public health officials in slowing the spread of COVID-19.
In a press conference Thursday, March 12, uni-
versity president Noelle E. Cockett addressed
USU’s decision to take these preemptive measures to slow the spread of disease.
“We are working toward implementing actions
see “Compromised“ PAGE 6
PAGE 4
WEEK OF MARCH 17, 2020
SPORTS
‘In the blink of an eye’
v
c
An early end to a great season — and several seniors’ tenure with the Aggies
w
c
c
h
the season was the March 7 win over San Diego in
Las Vegas that almost didn’t happen. A scheduling conflict at the Thomas & Mack Center pushed the
weeks ago that there was not gonna be a Marchp Madness tournament, I cannot imagine a better
cellations to prevent further spread of COVID-19.
such a good way.”
MWC tournament up a week — just before can-
“This is the one year in 10 years that the Moun-
The adversity faced just to get to that game, and
that he earned and wins that he helped earn, giveT
win all the better for the seniors.
“I wasn’t sure I thought we could do it — to be
able to beat a team like that and finish the way we did,” Merrill said, “I know that a lot of people,
The Utah State men’s basketball team’s aspira-
tions for a magical run in the NCAA tournament
faded away quicker than one can say, “This is
March,” as it was announced Thursday that due
to the COVID-19 pandemic the men’s and wom-
en’s basketball tournaments — along with all
other NCAA activities for the spring — were can-
celed. The abrupt end to the season also meant
an abrupt end to the college careers of Sam Mer-
rill and Diogo Brito. But it wasn’t before their
2-year run that brought Aggie basketball back to
prominence ended with their own “one shining
moment,” despite the cancellation of the NCAA
tournament.
The initial shock of the tournament’s cancella-
tion and the season ending was devastating for
the seniors.
“The turn of events just happened in a blink of
an eye,” said senior guard Diogo Brito. “To just
terminate the season there, it was really hard. I
was just not ready for it.”
Senior guard Sam Merrill agreed.
“It was tough, not only knowing that we weren’t
Morrill — the coach from 1998 to 2015 — amassing 402 wins, including seven conference cham-
pionships, eight NCAA tournament appearances and 14 straight 20-win seasons, from 1999-00 all the way to the 2012-13 season.
In 2013, the Aggies joined the Mountain West
conference, a deeper and more talented league than USU had ever been in. Morrill would coach
two seasons in the Mountain West where he strug-
gled to win, before he retired. His replacement, Tim Duryea, struggled even more in his three sea-
sons as coach, having a 47-49 record and no 20-
win seasons. After years of winning and success, the Aggie basketball program was mediocre.
So as Merrill and Brito began their junior season
Mexico.”
to happen,” Merrill said.
Utah State has a proud basketball history, with
(including this year) 22 NCAA tournament ap-
pearances and 17 conference championships.
win in program history. And to do it on that stage, to punch a ticket to the dance with a game-win-
ning Sam Merrill-dagger — and especially with
cluding the 2018-19 season win over Nevada and
the 2019-20 wins over LSU, Florida and New Mex-
ico. “I know there’s a lot of things that I will forever remember and will always hold dear,” he said.
The two will move on with their lives — both
what we know now, with it being the last shot he
hoping to have successful professional careers —
win in school history.
spent it with is something they will treasure forev-
ever took as an Aggie — may just make it the best “Just rewatching the game or looking back at
highlights, and right next to SDSU there’s a 30-1,
but their time at Utah State and the people they er, in their words.
“I felt like we grew together and we did this to-
and it’s just like — they were so good,” Merrill
gether,” Merrill said of Brito and Abel Porter. “[We]
real, they just had everything...In hindsight, and
I’m gonna miss those guys for sure.”
said. “They had a real chance to win it all, like for knowing what we know, you couldn’t ask for a better way to go out.” Brito agreed.
have put a ton of work and had so much fun and
@jacobnielson12
their winning ways.
Winning a share of the conference title last year,
pionships and NCAA tournament appearances, “We worked so hard as a group and as a team to
Smith and the staff and these fans, it’s something
back to Utah State.”
The win over the previously one-loss Aztecs tied
a 1960 win over No. 5 Utah as the highest ranked
his career. As a junior and senior, his team went an
out to flip the script and bring the Aggies back to
over, and some are asking what contributions did
— I played a small part in helping Utah State get
astounding 28-0 when he scored double digits, in-
“We beat the No. 5 team in the country,” he said.
preseason Mountain West ranking, the team set
get back to where we wanted to go,” Merrill said,
Merrill said, “For me, I just hope my legacy is
“It proves a lot about this team.”
With a new coach in Craig Smith and a No. 9
It is a harsh reality that these men’s time spent
legacy ultimately be?
the Aggies, proving he was a vital role player in
appearance dating back to the 2010-2011 season.
it’s safe to say that goal was accomplished.
they make to USU basketball, and what will their
Brito finished 10th all-time in games played for
thinks things came in full circle.
the Mountain West — and no NCAA tournament
later it finally hit that that was it, that my career
dawning an Aggie uniform is really over. But it is
but I’m not sure I ever thought was actually goingp
sons in which they failed to win 20 games — all in
and back-to-back conference tournament cham-
had just ended.”
announcer Scott Gerrard made that proclamationa after Merrill’s game-winner in Las Vegas. s
in 2018, this is what they faced: five straight sea-
going to play in the tournament and have that
opportunity,” Merrill said, “But about 30 minutes
some level of entrance into the discussion of them greatest Aggie of all-time. Utah State play-by-playt
“For anyone to say that, and for me to even be ins the conversation is something I dreamt of as a kid,
With all the ups and downs this season, Brito
Merrill was a kid going to Aggie games, with Stew
Utah State history. The buckets Merrill hit, the statsg
I know that a lot of our fans lost faith in us after
we lost four out of five and then lost again at New
By Jacob Nielson SPORTS STAFF WRITER
s Merrill will finish his Aggie career with 2,197i
points all-time, second most in Mountain West ands
the way the team managed to win it, made the
They were especially impressive during the years
way of finishing the season,” he said. “It ended int
tain West has moved their tournament up and turns out it was a blessing for us,” Merrill said.
PHOTO by Isaac Brekken/AP Photo Senior guard Diogo Brito celebrates with head coach Craig Smith and teammate Alphonso Anderson after the MW title game on March 7.
“This is the way I’m gonna put it: If we knew twow
“and to have been able to do that with Coach that I’ll never forget.”
Beating both No. 12 Nevada and San Diego
State in Brito and Merrill’s junior years, then this season — beating two teams that would have
made the tournament, Louisiana State University
and Florida, were marquee victories not soon to be forgotten in Cache Valley.
But what some consider the crowning jewel of
Utah State senior guard Sam Merrill smiles during the team’s game against New Mexico on March 5.
PHOTO by Chantelle McCall
SNOWBASIN .C OM | 8 01-620-1000
WITH PURCHASE OF 2020-21 SEASON PASS
YOUNG ADULT PREMIER (AGES 19-26): $539
0WEEK OF MARCH 17, 2020
PAGE 5
NCAA and MW cancel spring season By Dalton Renshaw SPORTS CONTENT MANAGER
Thursday, the Mountain West announced
via a press release that all spring sports are
canceled, effective immediately, including
winter championships. The NCAA has also
cancelled the men’s and women’s basketball
championships, which Utah State University had earned an automatic bid to compete in. THE MOUNTAIN WEST
According to the release, the Mountain West
owill be taking precautionary measures to hprevent the spread of COVID-19.
r “Given the current status of COVID-19, nthe Mountain West Board of Directors has
suspended all spring sport competitions 7indefinitely. The health and well-being of
dstudent-athletes, as well as the campus and sgeneral communities, is of utmost priority.
eTherefore, the Board has determined the emost prudent course of action is to align with
ythe recommendations of public health care nand government officials to help limit the
spread of the virus,” the conference said in a nstatement.
, Teams that are currently on the road are gpermitted to return home when their compe-
tition is over, but may finish out the series.
Any teams that have yet to depart have been ordered to suspend travel immediately.
Currently, men’s tennis, women’s tennis,
outdoor track and field, softball, gymnastics
and men’s golf are all in season and were all set to compete in the next two weeks. THE NCAA
On Friday, the conference released a state-
ment which outlined its plans to offer spring sport athletes “eligibility relief” for all Division I student-athletes who participated in
spring sports. Further saying, “Details of eligibility relief will be finalized at a later time.”
Thursday, NCAA President Mark Emmert and
the Board of Governors canceled the Division I men’s and women’s 2020 basketball tour-
naments, as well as all remaining winter and spring NCAA championships.
Only a couple hours after the Mountain West
decided to suspend activities, the NCAA made the decision to cancel all spring championships, taking the decision out of the hands
of the Universities on whether or not their
teams would compete. It was previously stated by the Mountain West in its press release, that it would be left to “institutional discretion” on if they would compete.
The National office of the NCAA is shown in Indianapolis, Thursday, March 12, 2020.
The Utah State men’s basketball team se-
cured an automatic bid to the NCAA tourna-
ment by winning the Mountain West Tourna-
ment on Saturday, defeating No. 5 San Diego
PHOTO by AP Photo/Michael Conroy
State to take the crown. The team ends the season with a 26-8 record.
@dren_sports
r
n
-
d
-
r
How has Coronavirus affected the world of sports?
A timeline of events that were postponed or canceled due to COVID-19
h
—
y
-
-
]
d
Photo by Chantelle McCall
PAGE 6 “Students React” FROM PAGE 3 In addition, Hussey has type 1 diabetes, which makes her a
high-risk patient if she were to test positive with the virus.
“It’s scary to think that either my friends or I could show any
symptoms and quite literally die,” Hussey said.
At Whittier College in California, senior Isabella Zonni was told
that classes would not resume after spring break, which she and her peers are currently on.
“I was supposed to be flying out to Europe, which won’t be
happening anytime soon,” Zonni said.
The University of Texas at Austin just extended spring break by
a week and is going fully online, encouraging students who can to leave campus. At the University of Dayton in Ohio, students were seemingly protesting the changes by standing on top of
cars and throwing objects at police. According to Flyer News,
Dayton’s student paper, it was not a protest, but “one last party” before the campus closed down. On the opposite end of the
spectrum is Harvard University, which is forcing students to
WEEK OF MARCH 17, 2020 leave campus, including student housing, by March 15.
either.
Harvard’s school paper The Crimson he would be in a similar
handling it well,” Renner said. “They’re taking action early
Satoshi Yanaizu, an international student from Japan, told
situation even if he did leave campus.
“The town I’m from, we have like 70 cases already, the same as
“The cases are increasing every single day, but I think they’re
instead of waiting for it to get worse.”
Erica Williams attends the University of Hertfordshire in Hat-
the entire state of Massachusetts,” Yanaizu said. “If I go back, I
field, England, where there will be no classes until after Easter
even worse.”
as of Monday.
have no guarantee I will be in a safer environment, It might be In addition to international students, low-income students
as cases across the U.K. have increased to 1,391 with 35 deaths While panicked citizens are out buying hand sanitizer and
are also being affected. The Crimson recorded that nearly 20%
toilet paper in bulk, students at universities across the world
transportation home, and finding temporary housing or plac-
connected and help those who need it most.
of students are on full financial aid. The sudden need to find
es to store their belongings will be difficult, if not impossible.
Fortunately, Havard students have taken matters into their own
hands and have started working on finding classmates places to
are being affected in similar ways. Now is the time to stay alert,
@dillydahle
stay and offering rides if needed.
On the other side of the world is Austrian senior Gretta Renner.
The government came in and shut down all universities without warning, giving the staff very little time to prepare. Not only
can people not enter the campuses, but students are not leaving
“Compromised” FROM PAGE 3 rather than wishing we had been implementing more precau-
tions,” Cockett said.
Griffiths has mixed feelings about the university’s course of
action, but she recognized the benefit for immunocompromised students like herself.
“I think it’s very inconvenient in some ways, and makes the
semester feel kind of empty. However, I feel safer knowing that
I can complete my classes from home and ensure that I can control the environment and protect myself,” Griffiths said. “I think it sucks, but I am glad that the university was willing to make that decision to protect the students.” —darcy.ritchie@aggiemail.usu.edu @darcyrrose
@UtahStatesman
2
(your brain) 2 It’s science. Read more, get smart. usustatesman.com UtahStatesman web print
smart
0WEEK OF MARCH 17, 2020
PAGE 7
EMPTY The Taggart Student Center, usually bustling with students, was quiet on Monday, following precuations announced to prevent COVID-19. Photos by Savy Knapp
you are what you read
We’ve got your back. usustatesman.com
UtahStatesman web print
smart
PAGE 8
WEEK OF MARCH 17, 2020
OPINION
GRAPHIC CREATED BY Keith Wilson
CLOSED BY CORONAVIRUS
This graphic does not necessarily reflect the opinions of its designer. Additionally, the opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the designer’s, either.
By Scott Froehlich OPINION COLUMNIST
tions, rather than wishing we had been implement-
than one-third of the nation’s coronavirus cases,”
ment programs, etc.) the college will create alter-
Whether you are excited or agitated by this news,
However, it wouldn’t take much for a small town
What is important to recognize is that USU, in coor-
ing more precautions.”
Why Utah State’s response to the COVID-19 pan-
demic was justified
In case you have been living in a bubble, Utah
State University, along with other colleges and
schools around Utah, recently took precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19. On that note,
if you have been living in a bubble, then consider yourself ahead of the curve.
The actions taken by USU since March 11 in-
cluded canceling all on-campus events, canceling
non-essential travel and announcing a transition
from in-person instruction to online classes for the remainder of the semester. The commencement cer-
emony for 2020 graduates is still up in the air, with a decision coming April 1.
President Noelle Cockett assured students that the
university is “working toward implementing ac-
the university took appropriate action and has the best interest of students in mind.
When the university made its decision, the cases
according to a recent article in the New York Times.
like Logan to see a drastically exponential outbreak
dination with the state of Utah, takes this pandemic
Numbers aside, it was crucial for USU to be pro-
during an address to the state, saying that “Utah is
if someone does contract COVID-19.
of COVID-19 in Utah seemed relatively low and far
active in protecting its biggest assets: the students.
Lake City and Summit County. However, when tak-
any given day, a single instance could spread like a
from Logan, with the numbers split between Salt ing into account the number of infections across the country and the rate by which they have grown, the
question isn’t if the virus would spread in Utah — but when.
And it didn’t take long.
At the time of this article’s publishing, the num-
ber of patients infected with COVID-19 in Utah is 21, with the latest diagnoses marking the first com-
munity transmissions in the state. On the surface, it doesn’t seem as dire compared to, say, California or New York, whose total cases “account for more
native assignments to compensate for those classes.
With the amount of people who attend classes on wildfire, and we would be on full lockdown. Sure,
it will be unfortunate to have to sacrifice campus
events, as well as athletic activities, but it is better to be safe than sorry.
There is good news for Aggie students as some fa-
cilities on USU’s campus will remain open, which
means people will have access to the library and TSC.
Although the transition to online-only classes will
affect many students with non-traditional course curriculum (off-campus internships, work place-
seriously. Gov. Gary Herbert echoed this sentiment
a proactive state, and a prepared state.” Students
also must realize that there is an abundance of mis-
information regarding the gravity of the situation.
Many government and medical websites have ded-
icated their time to provide accurate and extensive
information to the public. So while you are holed up
in your dorm, apartment or other form of housing,
take advantage of those resources and practice safe
social distancing. It may not seem like it now, but
these are the steps we need to take in order to ensure everyone is prepared for the worst.
Scott Froehlich is a junior who is studying print jour-
nalism.
What a global pandemic can tell us about ourselves By Taelor Candiloro OPINION EDITOR
Editor’s note: This column was
pared down for the print edition.
To read the full article, go to the Utah Statesman’s website.
It’s a question we all want the
answer to. What will happen with the coronavirus?
We crave the power of proac-
tivity that information affords us over our futures. But the rapid
spread of a global pandemic is quickly revealing to us that pro-
activity starts long before the first case is discovered.
Other countries have been ac-
tive in combating the spread for weeks now. Testing in South
Korea has not hampered public movement too much, but has in-
stead provided the government
this stimulates our economy, but
control of organizing a pandemic
guage into a $8.3 billion spend-
pay for it?”
on how the virus transmits, what
testing more available? Unironi-
they were waiting for the private
government intervention in the
nist movements of the 1960s ar-
ing the vaccines or drugs — de-
personal is political.’ We are not
with much-needed information works and what doesn’t as far as preventative measures and what a potential vaccine would need to be successful. Its ability to quick-
ly address and slow the spread
of coronavirus is attributed to its single-payer healthcare system,
something professor of Health Care Management at Berkeley Stephen Shortell identified as a
key distinguisher between the
does it save lives? Does it make cally, in a congressional testimony given last week, Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) Director Robert Redfield defended the lack of agency
proactivity by stating: “I guess I anticipated that the private sec-
tor would have engaged.” But it hasn't. Mostly because it’s not really the private sector’s job.
perity is allocated to protect cor-
porate shareholders. Sure, you
could make the argument that
Republic remarked with snark: “How odd that these companies, whose only responsibility is to
children and families. It can fill the void made present by the lack
of universal healthcare. However, instead of working with
lawmakers to combat the crisis, our government officials most in
ing package that would prohibit case that companies were keepveloped with taxpayer money —
behind a paywall too high for the average American to climb.
When Bernie Sanders suggests
their shareholders, had failed to
that Medicare for All would allo-
this administration.”
man dignity, to the 27.5 million
make up for the incompetence of World nations are already la-
us more vulnerable than other
workers and allocate benefits to
virus, short-term economic pros-
ence, Alex Pereene of The New
testing, protect public health
Economic relief is, apparently,
While Americans die of corona-
absence of corporate interfer-
beling our pitfalls as symptoms
provide paid leave, establish free
not for those most vulnerable.
sector to intervene. In the logical
Legislation has the ability to
U.S. and other developed nations.
response openly admitted that
of systemic problems that leave
countries. Not only have the requirements for coronavirus test-
ing hindered our progress toward assessing the scope of infection here at home, but pharmaceuti-
cal companies and their lobbyists have worked hard to insert lan-
cate not only opportunity, but hupeople operating without health
insurance in America, he is often met with a barrage of questions about payment. However, when corporate interests see a dip due
to the administration’s failings to cope, they are met with over $1
trillion in stimulus, not questions. Where are the droves of moderates who declared during this pri-
mary season, “But, how will we
Second- and third-wave femi-
ticulated this tension for us: ‘the
only our politics, but we are also the fallout we reap when our pol-
icies fail us. So, when it comes to coronavirus, what will happen is already happening. We are being
forced to reckon with decades of legislative movements and so-
ciopolitical paradigms that have placed us in this very position,
and the questions we choose to ask ourselves will drastically
change the political landscape in this country as we know it.
Taelor Candiloro is an under-
graduate transfer to the Anthropology department at USU.
0WEEK OF MARCH 17, 2020
PAGE 9
since 1902
STUDENT MEDIA
Student-run newspaper for Utah State University since 1902. Reporting online 24/7. Printed each Tuesday of the school year.
THE BOARD Alek Nelson managing editor
editor@usustatesman.com 435-797-1742
—————— Alison Berg news manager TO PLAY: Complete the grid so that every row, column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 to 9. There is no guessing or math involved, just use logic to solve.
news@usustatesman.com
—————— Dalton Renshaw sports manager
SOLUTION FOR : 03/10/2020
sports@usustatesman.com
—————— Sydney Dahle student life manager life@usustatesman.com
—————— Daedan Olander opinion manager
opinion@usustatesman.com
—————— Savannah Knapp design manager
design@usustatesman.com
—————— Chantelle McCall photo manager
CLASSIFIED ADS Automotive DONATE YOUR CAR TO UNITED BREAST CANCER FOUNDATION! Your donation helps education, prevention & support programs. FAST FREE PICKUP - 24 HR RESPONSE - TAX DEDUCTION 1-855-5072691 DONATE YOUR CAR, TRUCK OR BOAT TO HERITAGE FOR THE BLIND. Free 3 Day Vacation, Tax Deductible, Free Towing, All Paperwork Taken Care Of. CALL 1-855-4082196 Donate your car, truck or van. Help veterans find jobs or start a business. Call Patriotic Hearts Foundation. Fast, FREE pick-up. Max tax-deduction. Operators are standing by! Call 1-866-983-3647 Building Materials METAL ROOF/WALL Panels, Pre-engineered Metal Buildings. Mill prices for sheeting coil are at a 4 year low. You get the savings. 17 Colors prime material, cut to your exact length. CO Building Systems 1-800-COBLDGS (ucan) 3of5 Health & Nutrition Portable Oxygen Concentrator May Be Covered by Medicare! Reclaim independence and mobility with the compact design and long-lasting battery of Inogen One. Free information kit! Call 877-691-4639 Miscellaneous
DISH Network. $59.99 for 190 Channels! Blazing Fast Internet, $19.99/mo. (where available.) Switch & Get a FREE $100 Visa Gift Card. FREE Voice Remote. FREE HD DVR. FREE Streaming on ALL Devices. Call today! 1-866360-6959 INVENTORS - FREE INFORMATION PACKAGE Have your product idea developed affordably by the Research & Development pros and presented to manufacturers. Call 1-877-649-5574 for a Free Idea Starter Guide. Submit your idea for a free consultation. DIRECTV - Switch and Save! $39.99/month. Select All-Included Package. 155 Channels. 1000s of Shows/Movies On Demand. FREE Genie HD DVR Upgrade. Premium movie channels, FREE for 3 mos! Call 1-833-599-6474 Frontier Communications Internet Bundles. Serious Speed! Serious Value! Broadband Max - $19.99/mo or Broadband Ultra - $67.97/mo. Both Include FREE Wi Fi Router. CALL For Details! - 1-866-307-4705 HughesNet Satellite Internet - 25mbps starting at $49.99/ mo! Get More Data FREE Off-Peak Data. FAST download speeds. WiFi built in! FREE Standard Installation for lease customers! Limited Time, Call 1-844-294-9882 Earthlink High Speed Internet. As Low As $14.95/month (for the first 3 months.) Reliable High Speed Fiber Optic Tech-
photo@usustatesman.com
nology. Stream Videos, Music and More! Call Earthlink Today 1-844-240-1769
— ————— Klaus VanZanten video manager
video@usustatesman.com
COMIC BY Steve Weller
HAVE A STORY TIP OR IDEA?
DIRECTV NOW. No Satellite Needed. $40/month. 65 Channels. Stream Breaking News, Live Events, Sports & On Demand Titles. No Annual Contract. No Commitment. CALL 1-844-435-3985
CONTACT OUR NEWSROOM:
435-797-1775 OR EMAIL: EDITOR@USUSTATESMAN.COM
Personals Meet singles right now! No paid operators, just real people like you. Browse greetings, exchange messages and connect live. Try it free. Call now: 844-400-8738 Want To Buy FREON WANTED: WE pay CA$H for cylinders and cans. R12 R500 R11 R113 R114. Convenient. Certified Professionals. Call 312-500-8625 or visit RefrigerantFinders.com (ucan)2of4 Yard & Landscaping Eliminate gutter cleaning forever! LeafFilter, the most advanced debris-blocking gutter protection. Schedule a FREE LeafFilter estimate today. 15% off Entire Purchase. 10% Senior & Military Discounts. Call 1-844-909-2398
/UtahStatesman
@UtahStatesman
Dental Insurance Get the dental care you deserve with dental insurance from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. It can help cover the services you’re most likely to use —
Cleanings
X-rays
Fillings
Crowns
Dentures
Preventive care starts right away Helps cover over 350 services Go to any dentist you want – but save more with one in our network No deductible, no annual maximum
Call now to get this FREE Information Kit!
1-888-919-4729 dental50plus.com/utah Product not available in all states. Includes the Participating Providers and Preventive Benefits Rider. Acceptance guaranteed for one insurance policy/certificate of this type. Contact us for complete details about this insurance solicitation. This specific offer is not available in CO, NY; call 1-888-799-4433 or respond for similar offer. Certificate C250A (ID: C250E; PA: C250Q); Insurance Policy P150 (GA: P150GA; NY: P150NY; OK: P150OK; TN: P150TN). Rider kinds B438/B439.
6154-0120
PAGE 10
WEEK OF MARCH 17, 2020
Letter from the editor
Dear Aggie family, First of all, thank you for spending your time reading and in-
teracting with the Utah Statesman. We could not do what we do
without our readers, and we hope you will continue to engage in the public sphere with us.
As you know, this past week has been full of rapidly changing cir-
cumstances and daily (sometimes hourly) updates. These changes
have affected members of the USU community, including those at USU Student Media. Due to these changes, the Statesman will be making some adjustments moving forward.
Following this edition, the Utah Statesman will become a dig-
ital-only publication for the time being. This does not mean we will produce less content, it just means it will be distributed through different means.
To stay up to date on campus news, please check our website,
www.usustatesman.com. This site will be updated regularly to ensure our readers have the most recent news and information. You
can also sign up for our email newsletter on the site by hovering
over “Contact Us” and clicking “Subscribe!” Be sure to follow us on social media, too, including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
We hope you will continue to share your thoughts and stay in-
formed as we press through this time of difficulty and uncertainty. Stay safe and go Aggies!
Sincerely,
Alek Nelson
Utah Statesman Managing Editor
A true Scotsman washes his hands. USU shared this graphic on social media.
GRAPHIC COURTESY Utah State University