Lighting the Path on the Track

Lindsay Gomm, UVU student with her mother and grandmother

Friday, August 3, participants, volunteers and cancers survivors will celebrate the fight against cancer and raise funds at Relay for Life’s overnight event on UVU’s track.

The event will starts at 6 p.m. and features two special events, honoring cancer survivors in the survivors lap, and the luminary ceremony which will light the way along the track to remember those who have lost to cancer, those currently fighting for cancer and those who have overcome cancer.

“This will be my first event. The biggest thing I’m looking forward to is the luminary ceremony,” said Brooklyn Bowcut, event coordinator and student. “It’s where they have everyone decorate a bag and they put a candle in it. I’m really excited for that because my family will be there and we’ll have a bag made up for my grandma. I’m sure I’ll be crying.”

She explained that her grandmother had ovarian cancer and lost her life to stomach cancer seven years ago. Bowcut mentioned she herself has pre-skin cancer and her mother has pre-colon cancer polyps.

According to the American Cancer Society, half of men and one-third of women in the U.S. will develop cancer in their lifetime. Bowcut said this statistic is a serious matter.

“I think everyone should be concerned with those odds,” said Bowcut. “Someone you know really close to you will get cancer. We’ve got to get rid of it.”

Lindsay Gomm, 22, student and aspiring nurse agrees with Bowcut. Gomm was in fifth grade when her mother was diagnosed with large cell, Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma cancer.

“You go through something like that, especially at a young age, and you wonder, ‘is my mom going to be there when I go on my first date, when I graduate high school, when I get married?’” Gomm said, teary-eyed. “We didn’t understand exactly what was happening, or why it was happening.”

Gomm explained that her families laughter and continued support helped her mother battle cancer.

“My mom had to go through chemotherapy. She lost all her hair, that was hard,” said Gomm. “My mom had really long, pretty dark hair and she chopped it really short so it was easier when it would fall out. Just seeing her like that, and then seeing her bald was a really big shock.”

Gomm and her sister decided to cut and donate their hair in honor of their mom. Her brother and mother’s brothers all shaved their heads for her as well.

“I think it made her feel really good. She didn’t feel like she was alone,” said Gomm.
Gomm’s grandmother was recently diagnosed with Ductal Carcinoma In Situ Breast Cancer. Gomm, her grandmother and her mother all plan on attending the event. Gomm’s advice to others in her shoes is to stay positive, never give up and always be a support.

Last year the Relay for Life event in Provo/Orem raised about 10,000 dollars. They hope to break the record this year. The event will have live entertainment, early morning zumba, yoga classes and concessions. A beat-up car was also donated, and participants can donate money to hit the car with a sledgehammer.

“If people want to come, they don’t have to register, they can just show up,” said Haley Smedley, Community Relations of the American Cancer Society. “It will be something they will not forget.”

Smedley said everyone is welcome to come and participate in recognizing their survivors, to stick around for the luminary ceremony, and to bring a little cash with them.

To assure safety UVU police will be at the event and will have a light tower to provide light throughout the evening. They will also have first aid on hand to help those that may need assistance.

One in a Dozen!

As I went to accept my scholarship for the UVU Review, I realized that I had to scholarships that were awarded to me. I called the scholarship office to make sure the additional one was mine. The second one was titled, Salt Lake Tribune Scholarship. I was confused because I did not apply or submit my information to the Salt Lake Tribune.

I asked my editor and chief, and I also asked one of our main coordinators for the paper. I then called the scholarship office and they said, "Yup, that money is yours," I was overwhelmed because I stress and worry about money all the time! I told myself that if I did not get a scholarship this fall that I could not go back to school this semester...I was so relieved. I asked how I got the scholarship and I was told it was from the committee of college humanities.

I started crying, I cried for about ten minutes--it was so rewarding to feel like my hard work is starting to pay off! I looked into the Salt Lake Tribune scholarship, they typically give the scholarship to the one student at each university. The fact that I was picked out of all the students here at UVU gave me utter shock. The student who received this award last year was a senior student and our prior editor and chief for the review, Andrea Whatcott (recently married, now Andrea Noordhoff). She now works for Deseret News.

I then called my journalism teacher, Scott Carrier and asked him if he knew anything about it. He made me laugh, he was so nonchalant about it. He asked me if I got it, I told him yes and started crying. I said, "Thank you so much." I could barely get the words out. He responded, you earned it. Just hearing that response from him made my world. I really look up to him, I consider him my mentor. He told me he was asked for a list and he put me down as number one out of the students here on campus.

I have learned that hard work does pay off, and it is also very important to build relationships with your professors or those that you look up to. I was told that now I have received this scholarship that I must write a thank you letter (of course I will!). I've enclosed the letter which I wrote to the donor of my scholarship.

Dear Donor, 

When I realized that I was chosen to receive the Salt Lake Tribune Scholarship, I was both humbled and 

grateful that someone selected me to receive this award. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your 

generosity. 

  

I am the youngest of four children and  have spent most of my life living in Wichita, Kansas. I moved  to 

Utah two years ago in hopes of attending Utah Valley University. I then worked at a law firm and saved my money 

for one year so I could get in state tuition and afford to pay the next two semesters of my education. Thanks to 

the donation that I have received from you and others, I will have the opportunity to attend UVU for two more 

semesters. If it were not for this generosity, I would have had to return to back to working full time and saving 

money instead of continuing my educational pursuits. 

I was able to intern my senior year in high school with a local ABC affiliate news station for over five 

hundred hours. This internship blossomed into several opportunities which included working for a sports radio 

station and with multiple radio stations at Clear Channel Communications. On my eighteenth birthday, I was able to 

work for the same news station I interned for as a floor director for several months. 

After my first year of college, I decided to move to Utah. I then learned that it was a lot harder to find a job 

in the media market. When I started attending UVU, my teacher, Scott Carrier struck the match and inspired me to 

pick up my pen and paper and to start writing stories for the UVU Review and to try print media. I enjoyed writing 

various stories for the paper, which included controversial issues such as animal research, occupy wall street, social 

media etiquette, and students dating their professors. I then created a newsblog which I later turned into a website 

Newsinyourbackyard.com. I also used my experience from the radio industry to help the UVU Review launch their 

first podcast, The Wolverine Minute. 

In the spring, I applied for a position in the UVU Review with the news editor position in mind. When I 

received the phone call that I got the position, I was overjoyed. At that time I also worked with Deseret Connect and 

was honored to have several articles published in the weekend edition of Deseret News. 

The reason I enjoy journalism is because the work I do is a service to those in the community. I grow and 

learn from each story I write and make new friends every step of the way. My ultimate goal is to have a media outlet 

that covers state-wide positive local news in a talk show format. In the meantime, I plan to finish my education at 

UVU and would enjoy to find a position exercising any of the media skills that I have learned. I am doing my best to 

be a well-rounded journalist, and I am trying to get experience in all realms of media. 

I appreciate your trust and investment that you have put into my education. It is nice to feel like my hard 

work is starting to pay off. This scholarship is a milestone in my career, and I assure you that I will continue to 

improve and strengthen my skills to become the journalist that I can be. 

Sincerely, 

Emily N. Stephenson

Risk for Summer Infernos Raised by Lack of Moisture

Dan Cather (on right) helps Wildland students understand the importance of teamwork during an exercise for the Fireline Leadership class. Photo courtesy of Andrea Hossley

As firefighters quench flames, Utah continues to be at a high risk for fires. There are eight active large wildland fires in the state that has burned over 176,000 acres, these wildland fires have long term effects on the land. Dan Cather, UVU’s Utah Fire and Rescue Academy Wildland Coordinator, explained that this could be a start to a dry fire cycle.

“We have not had a very eventful fire season for the last few years, we’ve had wet summers and wet springs,” said Cather. “Fire seasons go in cycles, we’re in the cycle of no moisture, and a lot of fires. You will go three or four years that it will be wet, and you’ll go a few years without moisture, it’s a cycle.” 

Cather has been a wildland firefighter since the 1990’s and is currently the wildland coordinator of the Utah Fire and Rescue Academy. Cather has involvement with all wildfires in the area including the Quail Fire, the Herriman Fire, and the Dump Fire.

According to Cather, wildland fires have long term effects. These effects include, flood potentials, an increase likelihood for drought, and a loss of minerals.

“The fire burns so hot that it can actually sterilize the ground, it removes the minerals and the essential elements out of that soil,” said Cather. “It takes a very long time for an area to rejuvenate and be able to come back.” 

When a wildfire happens firefighters will have cultural resource advisors come out and help devise a mitigation plan, they then decide what type of vegetation will help with the land. Cather explained that this is a long term process. 

Wildfires also have a deep impact on the firefighters physically and mentally. Cather mentioned that there are stress debriefing teams that will come in and help, so firefighters can talk and vent to a third party. 

“With your crew, you can do a lot of the venting together,” said Cather. “This is my family away from home, we get to know each other, we get to live together for two days, and then your off for four and your back.” 

UVU offers a basic wild land class and they have agencies come in and hire students to work on their crews. Cather estimated that there are about 30 students that are currently doing summer college credit internships helping wildfire crews. He said the top three things students learn is fire behavior, self discipline, and hard work ethics. 

“If they don’t have good self discipline or work ethic, they’ll get washed,” said Cather. He explained that wildland firefighters need to be physically fit and adaptable to live in extreme conditions. 

“If you like camping, it’s an ideal job, if you don’t like getting dirty then it’s not the ideal job,” said Cather. “You can go many days without a shower, you can go many days with moderated food, you’ll have water but it will be lukewarm water, it’s not like you are going to be able to go to the 7/11 and get a slurpee, you’re going to be living on that mountain.”

Cather said that wildland firefighting is a good way for firefighters to earn money during a busy fire season. He explained that there are a lot of things that a person can benefit from firefighting and that it is one of the hardest jobs he has ever had.

“I think by going out and doing wildland fires, it’s allowed me to see who I am, realize hard work ethics, and be able to handle and manage extreme conditions,” said Cather. “There’s nothing better then being out in nature and being able to see the serenity of the nature. I’ve traveled all over the country and I’ve been in many parts of the country that most people would never see.”

UVU Loses 38 Faculty

As the student body increases at UVU, so does the faculty. This coming fall semester, UVU will gain and lose faculty. According to Academic Affairs, the school will be losing 38 faculty members this coming fall. However, there are no approximate numbers on what new faculty members should be expected this upcoming semester.

According to Karen Cushing, administrative assistant for Academic Affairs, faculty growth has stayed the same with faculty growth and there has been no real growth or decline, stating that it is all based on the budget.

From 2008 to 2012, UVU has gone from 453 full time faculty  members to 553. When asked about what staff to expect in the fall, Kathren Brown, assistant vice president of Academic Affairs stated that they truly do not know what to expect until fall begins. Brown mentioned that some faculty members are still thinking about whether or not to stay or return.

Eugene Seeley, associate dean of Woodbury School of Business said that they’ve had seven new faculty members this fall. Seeley further explained that they have had difficulty trying to fill their positions and usually only fill a half to three-quarters of their positions each year because of the shortage of PhDs and their budget. He mentioned that they have made several offers to applicants but only one offer was accepted.

“Some said it just wasn’t enough money, it’s often a challenge,” said Seeley. “When they [applicants] come for an interview we usually are upfront about what the salary is so we don’t waste everyone’s time.”

According to Seeley, the Woodbury School of Business adds about two to three positions per year and that last year they had about 65 full time faculty members.

The School of Arts is planning on filling eight positions, and have already had four applicants sign to be a part of this fall semester. According to E. Linda Moore, assistant to the Dean of the School for Arts, the numbers of majors are increasing and their needs for additional faculty are as well. Moore mentioned that they have had a good amount of success when trying to fill positions.

“We still get some pretty incredible faculty applying, faculty with excellent qualifications,” said Moore. “It’s really important that our faculty have great resumes, that they have actually performed, conducted, and danced. They can’t just have a degree.”

The School of Health and Science mentioned that they will fill about nine positions this fall, and have already had four applicants sign. Kerri Howlett, assistant to the dean of Health and Sciences mentioned that they are consistently growing and they are pleased with their faculty.

“We’re able to find good high quality faculty. Our faculty could be anywhere, and they chose to come here,” said Howlett. “We have faculty with us, who are world renowned faculty.”

According to Academic Affairs, it will be hard to know what to expect this coming fall until the semester begins. However, each school at UVU is excited to welcome their hard-earned faculty members this coming fall.