The Jan. 28, 2024 fight for the NFC Championship title came down to the San Francisco 49ers and the Detroit Lions, as they battled it out at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, the home field of the 49ers. Things were not looking good for quarterback Brock Purdy and the 49ers, as they found themselves at a 17-point deficit by halftime, but they persevered and performed a miraculous comeback, outscoring the Lions 27-7 in the second half. The 49ers clinched the NFC Championship with a final score of 34-31, advancing to the Super Bowl.

The Kansas City Chiefs faced off against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore for the AFC Championship game. Many people doubted the Chiefs’ ability to stop the Ravens’ explosive offense, but the Chiefs’ defense, coached by Steve Spagnuolo, was able to put pressure on quarterback Lamar Jackson and hold the Ravens to 10 points, tied for their season low. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes along with tight end Travis Kelce made an unstoppable duo, with Kelce scoring the first touchdown of the game to give the Chiefs an early lead. The game ended with a final score of 17-10 with the Chiefs claiming the AFC Championship title and moving on to compete in the Super Bowl yet again.

As Super Bowl LVIII approaches, we can look back and see what happened the last time the Chiefs and the 49ers competed against each other in Super Bowl LIV. Patrick Mahomes became the Chief’s starting quarterback in 2018 and has since led his team to the Super Bowl in four of the previous five seasons, winning two of them. Super Bowl LIV was Mahomes’ first appearance in the Super Bowl, and though the Chiefs were down early, Mahomes’ offense scored 21 unanswered points in the 4th quarter to win 31-20. 

This will be a challenging matchup between two teams led by talented young quarterbacks and two of the league’s top ten defenses, with both teams proven to be able to handle comeback situations. Chiefs fans hope to see their team win their second consecutive Super Bowl, while the 49ers aim to win their first Super Bowl since the 1994 season. Super Bowl LVIII will be played at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada on Feb. 11 at 5:30 p.m. (CT) with Reba singing the National Anthem and Usher performing for the halftime show.

On April 7, 2023, Tupperware Brands released a statement regarding recent efforts for financial assistance, partners and investors.

Tupperware Brands Corporation wrote, “In addition, the Company is reviewing its real estate portfolio for property available for potential dispositions or sale-leaseback transactions, and is exploring right-sizing efforts, monetization of fixed assets, cash management, and marketing and channel optimization, to preserve or deliver additional liquidity.”

The following Monday, shares for the company dropped nearly 50%. Reportedly, the company is struggling to appeal and stay relevant to younger generations. Although there was a comeback in Tupperware during COVID-19 pandemic, sales fell again after quarantine from around $500 million to $300 million in the past 3 years. On top of this, Tupperware’s stock price dropped from $97 per share to $1.26 per share in just 10 years.

“Tupperware has embarked on a journey to turn around our operations and today marks a critical step in addressing our capital and liquidity position,” said Miguel Fernandez, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tupperware Brands.  “The Company is doing everything in its power to mitigate the impacts of recent events, and we are taking immediate action to seek additional financing and address our financial position.” 
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) sent a notice to Tupperware Brands for not filing its Form 10-Kannual business report. Tupperware Brands has been given six months to file the report to become compliant again.

Nearly three years into the COVID-19 pandemic, responses from institutions of higher education remain ever-changing. Just ahead of the fall 2022 semester and amid declining local cases, William Jewell College released its 2022-23 Health and Safety Guidelines in July and announced a major revision on Sept. 01.

Compared to Jewell’s previous COVID-19 responses, Vice President for Finance and Operations Daniel Holt explained that this year’s shortened guidelines feature only the most efficient and accurate measures to support community health.

“You will find a much shorter list of guidelines than what was released with Operation Safe [Campus] and Operation Resurgent Campus,” Holt said. “This is intentional, as our community has learned from the past two years the best practices that keep the Jewell community safe and the most frequently asked questions.”

Despite the decline in local cases, some students remain at risk for transmission due to exposure during travel or athletic events. This semester, various small outbreaks affected groups of students, but were ultimately contained as everyone followed appropriate guidelines. Overall, a key point in Jewell’s guidelines encourages students to use campus resources such as the Student Health Center when situations regarding potential exposure and isolation arise.

According to nurse practitioner Courtney Cooper, MSN, FNP-C, CEN, and registered nurse Christina Graskemper, BSN, CPN, the Student Health Center is a centralized resource for students who may need additional support during the pandemic and otherwise. Employed through The Liberty Clinic, Cooper and Graskemper work the majority of their hours at the Student Health Center and provide in-person and telehealth services to students on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 1 to 4:30 p.m.

“We provide education to all students regarding when to test and quarantine guidelines,” they said. “We coordinate with student life and dining services to make sure the students that test positive have what they need during the quarantine period. We [also] work with the professors and athletic department to help the students maintain a good academic standing.”

Cooper and Graskemper maintain that services provided at the Student Health Center align with up-to-date policies and recommendations set by Jewell and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In addition to guidance on testing, they currently offer free, self-administered COVID-19 tests to students who are experiencing symptoms.

“According to the CDC, if a student is having symptoms, [they] should test immediately,” Cooper and Graskemper explain. “[However,] a negative test does not rule out a COVID-19 infection. There is a chance that you can test too soon, which means you tested before the virus was detectable. Therefore, if we have a student in the Health Center who has been sick for less than 24 hours that tests negative, we recommend re-testing once they have been experiencing symptoms for more than 24 hours. …If you have been exposed to COVID-19, but are asymptomatic, you should wait five full days before testing.”

Regardless of vaccination status, Jewell’s guidelines state that everyone should follow the same isolation procedure if sick; however, additional masking requirements are reliant on whether an individual experiences symptoms or not. 

The guidelines are based on a timeline established by the CDC with day zero defined as day that symptoms arose or the day that an individual took the test, whichever occurred first. Importantly, the CDC notes, the day that a positive test result is received may not necessarily be the same day that the test was performed.

As soon as an individual receives a positive test result, Cooper and Graskemper add, they must immediately begin following appropriate guidelines and notify anyone that they were in contact with over the previous two days.

“Individuals need to quarantine alone for days 1-5,” Cooper and Graskemper state. “If symptoms are improving after day five, [they] may be out in public only if wearing a well-fitted mask. [They] need to wear the mask in public for days 6-10. On day 11, you are allowed to be mask-free. If your symptoms are not improving after day five, you are to continue to quarantine at home for the full 10 days.”

Similar to those with symptomatic infections, Jewell’s guidelines instruct individuals experiencing no symptoms to isolate themselves for days 1-5. However, in accordance with updated CDC recommendations, they are no longer required to wear a mask during days 6-10 – a change reflected in the updated version of Jewell’s guidelines that were released on Sept. 01.

In either circumstance, if symptoms develop or worsen at any point, the CDC recommends restarting isolation at day zero. Students who need to isolate but live with a roommate should notify Student Life for temporary housing — a positive COVID-19 test is no longer required for this process.

The Student Health Center also recommends that students check in with their health care provider if they need relief from COVID-19 symptoms during the isolation period. 

Listed in the 2022-23 guidelines and reiterated by Holt, Jewell’s response to COVID-19 is largely dependent on local transmission and infection rates: “In the event of a surge of infection on campus and strain on local healthcare capacities, strategies from previous guidelines may be implemented,” the guidelines document states.

As of late-October, the Clay County Public Health Center reports transmission of COVID-19 in the county remains low with a seven-date case rate of about 63 per 100,000 people. Similarly, the Missouri Department of Health notes low community levels in all of the state’s seven regions. Both health departments state they use the CDC’s guidelines for categorizing and responding to low, medium and high community levels.

Summarizing the week of Oct. 21, the CDC reports 80.9% of U.S. counties and territories are experiencing low community levels. Although many Omicron variants are circling the U.S., the CDC remarks that they still make up a small minority of cases and are being monitored closely.

In the event that Clay County advances to a medium community level or higher, Jewell’s guidelines recommend that individuals at higher risk of COVID-19 symptoms wear a mask as needed. However, with community transmission expected to continue declining, Jewell anticipates a partial return to normalcy this year, writing in the guidelines document that the 2022-23 experience “will resemble pre-pandemic semesters with an increased mindfulness of personal wellbeing.”

It’s nearly been one year since the day the world seemed to break – March 13, 2020. While the coronavirus had been ravaging elsewhere for months, it was on this day that Americans were hit with the seriousness of the virus

One year ago, I was in Oxford having potentially the best year of my life. We were coming up on a six-week break, during which I was still holding onto the hope I would be able to travel around the United Kingdom by the end of the break. At the very least, I was convinced I could wait out the pandemic in Oxford. The thought of returning home permanently was devastating.

Within days that fear became my reality as I booked a last-minute flight when the U.S. started closing its borders. In my last few days in Oxford, I took these pictures desperately trying to hold on to the idyllic life I’d been living.

Pictures from my last few days in Oxford.

After realizing the pandemic was far worse than I thought, I was suddenly whisked away back to the U.S. – maskless – on an over 12-hour journey. In what I now consider a stroke of genius, I took the following hourly selfies during my trip back. Please enjoy the utter depression on display in this gallery.

Photos from every hour of travel back from Oxford to Kansas City.

After arriving home, I completed a two-week quarantine and after that, frankly, I remember next to nothing of the following several months. Something about living through so much turmoil, constant change but also no activity, despair and numbness have warped time. Even this sentiment feels cliche because everyone experienced it.

In reviewing the pictures I took from March to August, I was struck by how few photos I had from the year and how few I had genuinely positive memories about. I’m confident that if I knew how the year would pan out after March 13, I would have been broken. Yet, I also know there were times during the spring and summer of COVID-19 that I remember fondly. I remember walking to Hammerhand, enjoying the sun, working, completing coursework and generally keeping myself as busy as I possibly could.

Pictures throughout the year.

I’m trying to find the silver linings of the year, but, frankly, the more I try to remember the good, the more I just reminisce on pre-pandemic times. I didn’t expect so much of the so-called new normal to feel so truly normal, but I really can’t say I have much positive to say about it all. 

So far, the year just feels like I’ve been stuck in time. After a year of so much growth, sensory overload and independence, this year seemed to transport me back to middle school. I’ve had the chance to pseudo-observe my own growth and I’ve concluded that I am so damn ready to be past the worst of this. It feels as though the entirety of the end of my college experience has been blurred. I wish I had some positive conclusion to this walk down memory lane. I don’t. I’m just sad for all that has been missed, all the lives lost, the senselessness of the year, the unendingness.

Personally, I am ready to move on to the next chapter of my life. I see my graduation and plans to move and go to grad school as an end to all the sameness, stress, anxiety and fatigue. I’m hoping this isn’t just another naive delusion that just keeps me going. 

Pictures from throughout the year.