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Brian Wright was officially introduced as the University of Toledo’s head women’s volleyball coach at a press conference in Savage Arena the afternoon of Jan. 16. He replaces Jason Oliver, who joined the Pro Volleyball Federation’s Grand Rapids Rise as an offensive coordinator. Oliver took over as head coach in 2018 with a program that only had two winning records in the previous eight seasons. In 2021, he led the Rockets to a 20-13 record, their most wins in 38 years, and earned the program’s first appearance at the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC). Wright is now the eighth women’s volleyball head coach in program history, coming to Toledo following time spent as an assistant coach at Ohio State, Texas Christian, and Texas. He has also coached at the club level, with 14 USA Junior National appearances on his resume. "I wanted to find a place where I can grow the program and do more with the program, but I wanted to be a part of something bigger," said Wright. "I wanted to be a part of a university that wants to grow and a community that wants to grow and get better at volleyball. That is Toledo. I think we can do something really special here and make Toledo a volleyball city and a volleyball school. I know with the time we put in, we can get the program there.” Prior to coming to Toledo, Wright spent 17 seasons coaching at the NCAA Division I level and has been to 13 NCAA Tournaments. He has been to 10 Sweet Sixteens, eight Elite Eights, and six Final Fours, and was part of the Texas NCAA Championship team in 2012. Wright announced on Jan. 14 that current assistant coaches Bethany Lokken and Jordan Armstrong will remain on the coaching staff. Lokken is entering her tenth season with the Rockets. She is responsible for the middle blockers and manages the team's serving and blocking during the matches. When off the court, Lokken coordinates Toledo's recruiting and oversees the team's community service efforts. Armstrong will begin his second seasons with the Rockets. He works with setters and oversees the offense while assisting with recruiting. "It's the right time for volleyball to take the next steps,” said Wright. “This city has the ability to support women's sports, and for three and a half months we are playing in Savage Arena. We'll play good volleyball and have a lot of fun doing it. We will have a great team to watch and will put on the best game-day environment in the MAC. We can't wait to get in front of our fans."

The Toledo women’s basketball team defeated Ohio University 80-65 at Savage Arena on Jan. 18. The victory marked the program’s third annual Justice for Sierah game, scored in front of a season-high crowd of 4,337 attendees. Toledo wore custom Justice for Sierah jerseys, which are available for auction at https://qtego.us/qlink/utjusticeforsierah through Jan. 20, with all proceeds going to the Justice for Sierah Foundation. The foundation seeks to create safe communities through education of self-awareness and self-defense for youth. Their advocacy is focused on preventing assaults and abductions, and establishing a system for quicker recovery if someone is in danger. In the game supporting the foundation, three Rockets scored in the double digits, led by graduate student Khera Goss who finished with a career-high 23 points. Sophomore Kendall Carruthers scored 16 points and three assists, while graduate student Sammi Mikonowicz added 11 points and five assists. Goss went 6-for-7 shooting, 6-6 at the free throw line, and 6-for-6 from behind the arc. This is Goss’ fourth straight game reaching double digits, and twelfth of the season. Defensively, freshman Destiny Robinson lead the Rockets with seven rebounds while Carruthers and graduate student Nan Garcia both had six. Five different Rockets had at least one steal in the game—part of 14 turnovers for Ohio. "I'm really proud of our bounce-back effort, responding after a tough game on Wednesday," said Head Coach Ginny Boggess. "Our ability to make corrections from Wednesday helped us find each other tonight and showed our mental resiliency. That was a fun game today going into a quick turnaround on Monday." The Rockets (12-4, 4-2 MAC) started behind in the first quarter, with the Bobcats (3-13, 1-5 MAC) coming out of the gate with a seven-scoring run in the first two minutes of the match. The Rockets began to close in on Ohio’s lead halfway through the first quarter, with Goss making a layup with 3:46 in the quarter to bring the score to 8-9. Two free throws from sophomore Cadence Dykstra brought the Rockets to a 12-13 margin heading into the second quarter. The teams traded baskets in the beginning of the second quarter. With 7:48 to go in the half, the two were tied at 17-17. A three-pointer from Goss started a 14-point run for the Rockets with Goss and Carruthers both scoring two points beyond the arc, giving them a 33-20 advantage with 3:03 left in the half. The Rockets continued to expand their lead outscoring the Bobcats 24-16 in the third quarter, taking a 17-point lead into the fourth quarter. Despite being outscored 21-23 in the final quarter, it was not enough to catch the Rockets. The Rockets head to Muncie, Indiana on Monday, Jan. 20 to play Ball State University. Tip-off is set for 11 a.m. and will be available to watch on CBS Sports Network. Toledo will return to Savage Arena on Saturday Jan. 25 to play Bowling Green in the Battle of I-75. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. and will be available to watch on ESPN+. "It’s going to be a fun battle and try to sell this place out," said Boggess. "We need your support. We need you to come use your voice, come get loud. I promise if you have never been to a game, you’ll fall in love with this team, and you’ll want to come back to cheer them on.”

The Toledo men’s basketball team fell to Kent State 64-83 at Savage Arena on Jan. 21. Sophomores Javan Simmons and Sonny Wilson led the Rockets (10-8, 4-2 MAC) with 19 points each, with Simmons also adding on seven rebounds. The Rockets made 23 of 49 shots from the field and 16 of the 18 shots from the free throw line. Ultimately, it was not enough to stop the Golden Flashes (12-6, 3-3 MAC), who held the lead for the entire 40 minutes of play. Kent State shot 57% from the field, making 30 of 52 shots, and 63% from the 3-point range, making 12 of 19 shots. The Flashes made all 11 free-throw attempts taken. “I thought we got our tails kicked from start to finish,” said Head Coach Tod Kowalczyk. “They put us on our heels. That’s not like us. I thought this team had found a consistency, and we obviously lost that tonight.” Cian Medley led Kent State with 22 points and seven assists, while VonCameron Davis added 19 points. “[Medley] was the best player on the field and VonCameron Davis was right there with him, those two guys,” said Kowalczyk. “We had no answer. We changed matchups on them, and it didn't help.”  The Rockets head to Bowling Green on Friday, Jan. 24 in the Battle of I-75. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. and the game will be available to watch on CBS Sports Network.

Available parking at the University of Toledo is a pressing issue on campus for students and staff members alike. Students in particular have chimed in with their opinions on the situation as it currently stands, offering their concerns and critiques regarding it as well as a few suggestions for future improvements. It is worth noting that, of the students that have responded to the line of questioning at hand, the majority of them have C parking passes, though a few of the other students that responded use other passes. Significant issues that have been mentioned by several of the questioned students included a range of difficulties from pricing to distance from campus to availability and accessibility- each of these issues having its own merit. The most talked about issue is the one of how expensive the parking passes are when compared to how many parking spots are actually available for students to access. There are about 15,603 students currently enrolled for the fall semester at UToledo, yet the majority of these students are displeased by the current parking situation. Every student interviewed commented that the number of available spots was too small compared to how much money they were paying for this service. Although some students pay up to $300 for their parking passes, many of them found that they could not even access the parking spots that they were paying hundreds of dollars to use. Several students have reported driving around campus searching for available spots for up to an hour at a time. In many of these cases, students would be forced to park in spots that were not suited for their needs and often so far from their classes and the rest of campus that paying for parking on campus barely seemed worth it to them with how much extra time they would have to spend walking. In more unfortunate cases, some students even found themselves unable to access a parking spot even after driving around for an extended period of time and would either have to resort to returning home for the day or parking in the parking lot of a nearby business instead and walking to campus. This is not only a massive inconvenience to many students attending this university but also an incredibly unsafe practice that could lead to students finding themselves in dangerous situations simply because they are trying to find viable parking so they can attend the classes they are paying so much for. This scarcity of parking spaces becomes an even bigger concern when the time for events, games, and tours comes around. These occasions lead to parking spaces being blocked off from students for entire days, making the already sparse parking options an even bigger obstacle for students to overcome on their way to classes. The frequency with which these events occur makes this an even bigger issue for students who find that there are several days a semester where parking is almost impossible for them to deal with. Days when football games are hosted on campus are the worst days for parking, students report, and several have stated that they often simply skip their classes for the day rather than struggle through a sea of other students to find a parking spot for the day. Playing into this issue is the problem of parking tickets. Students have claimed that they see the current ticketing system as a “money grab” with only a small number of students reporting that they viewed the pricing of tickets to be reasonable for the offense. Nearly every student interviewed believes that the prices for the parking tickets were unreasonably high and given out at a ridiculous rate. Prices for parking passes are already quite hefty considering how much students struggle with even finding spots to use, making some students wonder whether or not parking on campus is worth the money and the hassle of the process. Several students have even reported being ticketed unfairly, receiving tickets without deserving them. The process for receiving information regarding ticketed vehicles also frustrates many students who find that the process is too slow and difficult, many not receiving notice in the mail regarding the tickets until too much time has passed for them to attempt to argue the ticket. Fear of this issue not being taken seriously and not seeing a resolution has left students distraught. Another complaint voiced by several students was the lack of accessibility in the parking lots seen around campus. Although most of the lots do have handicap spots, there are usually only a handful of handicapped spots available and several disabled students have reported that they are not even able to use these spots. Often, this is because professors and other faculty members- both disabled and able-bodied- use the spots instead. Although the faculty members who are disabled have every right to be utilizing these spots, it is ridiculous that there are so few that most disabled students find themselves unable to use them. The fact that several students have found able-bodied people using the handicapped parking spaces and leaving none available for the people who actually need them displays a lack of respect and concern for the disabled students and faculty of UToledo. As for the positives of parking on campus, students do generally agree that they appreciate how simple the process of obtaining and paying for a parking pass was. Students find the process straight-forward and appreciate how that impacts When asked what improvements could be made to the parking situation at UT, the biggest suggestion was expanding available parking through the addition of parking structures such as the garages that were previously torn down due to safety concerns. The reconstruction of these types of structures would provide students with much-needed parking spots that they all need and would help cut down on the issues currently being faced by students while trying to park on campus. This, of course, implies adding more handicapped spaces to these new structures. The students of the University of Toledo plead to be heard and for their concerns to be seen and addressed as the serious issues that they are.

Here is my experience of being away from home so far. I hope it helps you somehow. I think I came into this country expecting a fresh start, yet I didn't expect myself to be caught off-guard when I actually got it. I didn't know that starting up a new life in a place where you have hardly any traces whatsoever would be so hard, and I guess that's where my ache to continue my life started. Most people begin a new chapter of their lives thinking that the previous ones cease to exist. Here's the reality: your old life will not vanish whatsoever. It still exists. It will be harder to remember details, but you'll find yourself staring at the walls in class retracing the roads you used to walk before. And where my ache aches the most is knowing the fact that it'll never be the same. There's the fact that I've grown so much. I've grown so much that my previous version seems more like a stranger than myself to me. I've laughed more than I have ever laughed in my life. I've cried more than I've ever in my life. That being said, the part I love the most about this journey is realizing it is continuous. Just because I've settled doesn't mean my journey stops here. This is just the beginning. That's a hopeful thought to have to beat the Sunday blues. No matter where I go in the world, I'll carry the burden or gift of my previous selves with me. I cannot let them go, even if I wanted to, because they're what makes me me. I cannot forget who I am, who I was- and it will always have a say in who I will be. Love, Ruchita.

Dear Collegian, I am a junior at the University of Toledo. I recently have become very involved on campus. I’m meeting many new people of all different majors and interests and… I’ve never been more insecure in my life. In all aspects of the word, I am insecure . I feel so idiotic and airheaded near these people. I feel myself seeing them less as my peers and more as my competition . The infuriating part about that is when compared to them, I lose every single time. I have this overwhelming urge to look and be better than them, but I'm not. How do I deal with this? — Hello, It is wonderful that you’ve become integrated within the UToledo campus, as it is a fantastic way to meet people and help develop various skill sets. Yet, there are challenges that come with these new realms of college life, as well. Insecurity is a reasonable emotion when you’re exploring new organizations, especially when there are so many bright and confident students here on campus. However, it is crucial to understand that although someone else demonstrates a certain trait, this does not diminish what you have to offer. You have already taken the initiative to join these organizations, so congratulate yourself first and foremost. You’ve demonstrated assertiveness and drive. Take a moment to acknowledge all the positive traits you possess. You have just as many qualities to offer here on campus as the student next to you — traits that make you unique and a valuable asset to this university. When we pick apart the word insecure , we can conclude that it is something felt in regard to yourself , rather than how others perceive you. It is a fault in the way you view who you are. In short, you are not giving yourself enough compassion and kindness, and are instead focusing on how you are in comparison to others. The students around you are not your competition. I like to think of each student as being on a joint team , rather than opponents. We all want to help you grow and support you along the way at UToledo. There is no reason that both you and your classmates cannot all succeed! So root for each other and lend a helping hand along the way. Rejoice in all that you are, as I assure you that you have the capacity to achieve all your goals! Keep in mind how critical it is to practice self-compassion, and remember that we are all trying to do our best — and someone else’s victory should be a victory in your mind, too. You are just as special, loved, and needed as those you’re comparing yourself to. Emily

With thousands of students living on campus each year and a two-year residency requirement, hearing the experiences of our classmates living on campus is crucial to understanding our University’s standards for life and comfort. On the web page explaining the University of Toledo’s residency requirement, they list multiple statistically proven benefits to living on campus, including higher retention. At the bottom of the page is a link to more information about requesting an exemption from residency. According to the Office of the Treasurer’s website, the price for this year’s freshmen to live on campus for two semesters ranges from $13,562 to $15,466. This is about 79% of the out-of-state tuition rate for this freshman class, and about 144% of in-state tuition. For all this money, what are students saying about their experience living on campus? I conducted two virtual interviews before creating an online survey to collect a wider array of responses. I sent my survey to over 200 students through my connections to student organizations. In total, I collected 11 responses from six dorms. Laundry is among the most common concerns of the residents I spoke with. Residents of I-House, Parks Tower, and Ottawa House alike reported stinking, smoking, or leaking washers. Multiple residents said they had to put their clothes through the dryer several times before their items were sufficiently dry. Kylee Hill, a resident of I-House who had mostly pleasant things to say about living on campus, described how other residents are often the root of laundry troubles. She reported some people closing wet washers immediately after removing their laundry, allowing odor-causing microorganisms to grow in between uses. Others frequently leave behind their lint for residents like Kylee to clean. She made a point to note that concerns caused by the residents can also only be solved by the residents, stating that maintenance workers are “not our parents.” The only complaint more common than laundry troubles was temperature regulation. Most residents complained of overheated rooms, reporting 80° heat and fixed windows, but an anonymous McComas Village resident said their room is “freezing” in the colder months of the year. All students who attend in-person classes are familiar with remarkably warm classrooms as the weather changes in the fall, but while non-residents leave campus and its unyielding heating and cooling system when class ends, residents are left to sleep in rooms that are reported to reach as high as 87°. Broken laundry machines, out-of-order elevators, and noisy neighbors are fairly standard issues, but some interviewees also reported outstanding safety concerns. An anonymous Parks Tower resident reported a bat living in their ceiling for four days before it was removed by maintenance. After their roommate left the door unlocked to use the bathroom late at night, a stranger reportedly entered this resident’s room and tried to engage in casual conversation. An anonymous former resident of Honors Academic Village reports being stalked to their dorm. When the resident called the front desk to urge the removal of the alleged non-resident stalker, they were reportedly told to stop calling. Within Presidents Hall, which is currently closed for renovations, there is a Gender-Inclusive Community that focuses on the safety and comfort of those traditionally outcast based on their gender, sex, or sexual orientation. Last year, the pride flags on display there were ripped down and replaced multiple times, and the Office of Residence Life is reported by multiple sources to have promised the community protective glass cases for their flags to avoid further incident. Now, the Gender-Inclusive Community is housed with the Arts Living Learning Community in Ottawa East, and the community still has not received glass cases. Seraph, a resident of the Gender-Inclusive Community for the last two years, felt unsafe on campus and applied for a residency exemption, but their application was reportedly denied. An anonymous resident of Ottawa reported that flyers posted by minority-centered organizations are still torn down frequently. While these issues are serious and should not be ignored, living on campus isn’t all bad. Nine of the residents I interviewed said that their favorite thing about living on campus is improved social opportunity or proximity to campus. Residents from Tucker Hall and Ottawa House commented on how recurring events hosted by the residence halls have allowed for them to easily make and maintain friends. An anonymous Ottawa West resident said, “It is a unique opportunity for a certain type of friendship.” About half of my interviewees reported that staff and RAs in their dorms were helpful, or that issues were fixed in a timely manner. At least one resident from I-House, Parks Tower, Ottawa House, Tucker Hall, and McComas Village said that their laundry machines have been fixed, replaced, or upgraded this year, and the McComas Village resident even reported that there was “no need” for the replacement. Many of these issues with living on campus are caused by other residents, such as leftover lint, closed washer doors, and rowdy freshmen in Parks, and are therefore not entirely resolvable by staff and management. On the other hand, many of these issues with living on campus are only resolvable by staff and management. Over the course of a week, I emailed the Office of Residence Life twice and, when met with no response, visited their office in person. They declined to comment on the living conditions my interviewees described. My emails were forwarded to their marketing department, and I hope to receive a response in the coming weeks. References The University of Toledo. (n.d.) Residency Requirement. Retrieved from https://www.utoledo.edu/studentaffairs/reslife/index/residencyrequirement.html . Accessed Nov 18, 2022. The University of Toledo. (n.d.) 2022-23 Housing and Meal Plans. Retrieved from https://www.utoledo.edu/offices/treasurer/housingandmealplans/ . Accessed Nov 18, 2022. The University of Toledo. (n.d.) 2022-23 UNDERGRADUATE TUITION. Retrieved from https://www.utoledo.edu/offices/treasurer/tuition/undergraduate/ . Accessed Nov 18, 2022.

As of February, the student-funded solar installation at the Health Science campus has generated more than $60,000 in revenue for the university and helped UT save nearly $30,000 on its power bills. With a price tag of $350,000, the solar park was the single biggest project approved by the Student Green Fund in the group’s history. The park was built in 2020. Established in 2012, the Student Green Fund finances various projects around campus that “promote sustainability, renewable energy, efficiency, waste reduction” as well as “educational initiatives such as conferences, workshops, public classes, and internships.” “I am really excited in having such a pivotal role in sustainability projects on campus,” said Green Fund Student Manager Olivia Onago. Some of the other initiatives paid for by the Student Green Fund over the years include the solar powered charging picnic tables, benches made of recycled materials, the hammock park in the flatlands, the rain garden near Carlson Library, and the water bottle-filling stations. “Last semester, we distributed about 80 plants at the Eberly Center to serve as emotional support plants,” Onago said. They were gone within two days. The Student Green Fund receives around $90,000 each year through a $5 fee students decide if they want to pay each semester. Between 40 and 50 percent of all students opt out of the fee, according to Mike Green, UT’s Director of Sustainability and Energy Efficiency, and advisor to the Student Green Fund. While students decide if they want to help fund the Student Green Fund each semester, the group’s student majority committee decides how the money will be spent. Students, student organizations, faculty, and staff can submit their “green” or sustainable idea to the Student Green Fund Committee. The committee then decides which projects to fund and how much money each one will receive. Individual students with project requests have gone to the Student Green Fund for support. Sustainable organizations, such as SEED or BOSEF, have secured funding from the Student Green Fund through collaborative projects. Organizations that have little to do with sustainability, such as Student Government, have collaborated with the Green Fund. For more information or to inquire about a project, contact StudentGreenFund@utoledo.edu

Dear International Student, Today, I woke up engulfed by the warmth of my cozy blanket, yet I was alarmed by the sound of silence. I was expecting to be at home, amidst the sounds of my sister typing something on her phone or my mother’s presence on the balcony, watering her beloved plants. I woke up to an empty room and felt a familiar friend crawl up my skin: homesickness. The words, You aren’t home, kept ringing in my head, repeatedly, like an alarm that just wouldn’t go off. Today was an important day for me. I had to go to the hospital to get a chest X-Ray done for a lingering cough that wouldn’t leave me alone. My doctors in India would know me by my name, and more so, by my mother’s annoying questions. They would roll their eyes with annoyance as the hypocrite in her continued to pester them with her questions. Meanwhile, I would sit comfortably in my chair eyeing the candy jar on the doctor’s desk. Flash forward to the present. Here I was, alone, at the hospital. A nurse instructed me to follow her toward the imaging center and within twenty minutes, I got my X-Ray done. I left towards the waiting room to find a place full of warmth; families everywhere brimming with love and affection. These were people, just like me. Grandpas with grey hair and checked T-Shirts came in with their daughters, looking up at them with a hint of fear hidden deep in their eyes. Everyone needs to hear tha t it will be okay, no matter how old you get. With a heavy heart, I left the hospital to be greeted by a friend who got me lunch. Soon enough, I realized that love can only be parceled no matter where you are. You find it in pockets and places where you would never expect it to be there. And sometimes, that’s enough to make a difficult day bearable. So, from a friend to a friend, here’s a quick reminder for your day: that no matter where you are, and what you’re doing: it’s going to be okay. I hope this letter finds you well and brings you the same warmth that family does in tough times. I can only say this from experience, and I come bearing gifts. Here is your packet of love for the day. I hope you use it well. Love, Ruchita

Dear Collegian, I am a sophomore at the University of Toledo and I am currently struggling to balance everything in my life right now. I work part-time and I both like and need my job, but I am already overwhelmed by my classes. I don’t know how to make my school life, work life, and social life all work together while still maintaining my physical and mental health. I feel like I can’t succeed properly in all of them at once. How can I find a balance between multiple aspects of my life? —Seeking Balance Dear Seeking Balance, Working during school while maintaining a healthy social life can be an incredibly difficult combination. Between homework and demands from everyday life, it may feel like you’re drowning in expectations. However, it is extremely important to keep in mind that your overall well-being is the most important factor here. There is quite a bit to do on your day-to-day checklist, but prioritizing what is the most important each day could be tremendously helpful. Consider creating checklists of goals and values ahead of time for each day. Be sure to incorporate tasks from each category you find valuable. This could include spending a set amount of time with friends, then setting aside some time for homework, etc. Creating a timeline throughout your week could help you haven’t tried something similar yet. Your overall health, be it physical or mental, should always be your priority. By deciding which daily events and tasks contribute to your well-being and emphasizing them, you might see improvement in your mood. You need to create a time during the day that is strictly you time. This could be a period that accommodates your availability, meaning it could only be for ten minutes or even two hours. Do what brings you joy and relaxation, even if it is just a few minutes of contentment, allow yourself to set every chore and worry to the side and enjoy yourself. You could spend this time playing video games, exercising, or eating your favorite snack. One last point: remember to breathe. This may seem very simple, but it is amazing what deep breathing can do for your body. It has the power to release tension, ease anxiety, and set you in the right frame of focus to do every goal you have set for yourself each day. You have the power to complete each task you aim to do. Just remember not to overwhelm yourself, take care of your mind and body, and breathe deeply. Reach out to those around you if you find yourself struggling further. —Emily