Bravo to the re-instatement of front desk employees in residence halls of Palo Verde East, Palo Verde West and San Pablo. Last week, it came out that the University’s decision to “streamline” residents’ access to front desks failed. Students realized that less eyes meant easier access to the dormitories for shady figures. We salute University Housing for taking this step, even with only several weeks left in the semester. A student’s safety should be the No. 1 priority. They responded to the student concerns about security in the dorms. It takes a lot of character to step forward and admit that a decision may not have been right.
Boo to the shortened Winter Break. Classes start Jan. 5 next semester; clearly this is an injustice. After a mind-numbing finals season students need about five weeks to detox — one week for every day of finals. Not only do people need to recoup for the next semester, but we also must make room in our brains for more knowledge. True, a shorter Winter Break means a longer summer, but would you rather be on vacation when there is a high of 70 degrees or a high of 115 degrees? Yeah, we chose the first one, too.
Bravo to the NBA’s owners and players for reaching a tentative deal that will bring back the NBA season. The players rejected a deal from the owners last month, and they had to either accept the deal or let negotiations fall apart. They chose the latter and filed an anti-trust lawsuit. But, thankfully, the NBA season will soon return, albeit a shortened one. The deal included a 49/51 percent split of revenues between the players and owners, respectively. More stringent salary caps were also set to rein in the high-spending teams. We are certainly excited to have our Phoenix Suns back.
Boo to the snow slide at the Harry Potter-esque Yule Ball. It took two and a half hours to set it up while students were left twiddling their thumbs. Yes, snow is a rare sight if you live in the Valley of the Sun, but waiting for a 5-second slide ride just doesn’t seem worth it. No amount of butterbeer could make up for the wait. Snow slide aside, the Yule Ball is a great way for Harry Potter lovers to interact, and we hope they enjoyed everything in spite of the delayed snow slide.
Bravo to NRG Ice at Cityscape for their donations to different charities around the Valley. Genesis City received one dollar of every 10 that the ice rink made on skate rentals. The organization helps underprivileged youth. The most prominent part of the program is the Genesis Academy, a charter school that serves high-school students between the ages of 14 and 21. Last year, 400 students attended the school. It is heart-warming to see for-profit and nonprofit organizations join hands to accomplish great things. Hopefully this continues year-round.
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