Utah

Dickson: A salute to Utah women

Published

2 years ago

May 12, 2024

I have been a mother for the last one third of my life. The first two thirds, until I was 40, I could not not claim that title. On this Mother’s Day, I want to salute all of the women of our state, whether they have children or not, whether they care for children or not.

From where I sit, our communities and our lives are so intertwined. I am able to be a radio announcer and college professor because of the dozens of teachers and mentors who inspired me. Some of those people were women. Some of those women were mothers. ALL of them had a profound effect on my life.

I have had a firsthand look at the hard work of teaching in K-12 this year as a substitute teacher in the Jordan and Salt Lake school districts. In the nearly 40 different jobs I’ve had in my life, I have never seen any profession work harder. I’ve never felt that kind of stress in any other setting.

I acknowledge that daily stress and physical and psychological demands are common to many jobs, both in and out of the home, and it is for that reason that I want to salute all Utah women on this day.

Research on challenges Utah women face

I read a research brief recently entitled Eleven Major Challenges Utah Women Face. It was done by the Utah Women and Leadership Project, founded and directed by Dr. Susan Madsen.

“3,500 people participated in the study,” Madsen explained. “2,433 gave qualitative answers. They wrote sentences and paragraphs. From those detailed responses, 11 topics rose to the top.”

The top one was lack of recognition, undervalued. That included things like sexism, bias and discrimination. Over a thousand people said that in Utah. Nearly a third of the respondents to the survey said this was a challenge for them.

Today I address that challenge directly, one I have certainly felt at different times in my life. I want to tell these women how much I appreciate you. I value what you do, what gets you up in the morning, the smile you give to others, the way you add to the neighborhood you live in, the way you encourage people on social media. My life would be so much less colorful without you.

Harassment

I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that 1 in 10 respondents in the survey, 355 women, said they are experiencing abuse, assault or harassment today. Look around your neighborhood, your workplace. One out of every 10 women is experiencing this abuse TODAY!

“They asked the question, ‘If you reported a sexual harassment in your organization, do you trust that your organization would do something?’” Madsen explained. “The response was no. The organizations are going to cover. They’re not going to really care about their employees. We have some interesting data to support what we’re talking about.”

This ought to be a wakeup call to HR directors all over the state. It ought to be a wakeup call to all of us. There is harassment and abuse going on right in front of us. Why aren’t we seeing it? Why aren’t we stopping it?

Beyond flowers

Giving flowers on Mother’s Day is lovely, I sent my mother flowers every year until she passed 15 years ago. I am grateful to my own children and husband for wanting to love me in this way.

I just want to add something to this ritual. The women you encounter every day are all contributing to the quality of your life. Whether they are mothers or not, whether they are teaching your children or not. (Of course, the same is true for men. Gratefully men don’t seem to feel the same lack of recognition.)

Thanking the women you work with, the women you encounter every day, for what they do will cost you absolutely nothing. It isn’t subject to inflation, it applies across political parties and t is merely a gesture of gratitude and compassion that will go a long way to enriching all of our lives.

Thank you for reading – and Happy Mother’s Day.

Dickson: Mother’s Day gifts we moms really want

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Utah

Why Utah Represents Arizona State’s True Turning Point

Published

4 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Why Utah Represents Arizona State’s True Turning Point

Arizona State basketball is at a crossroads. After back-to-back road losses to Baylor and TCU, the Sun Devils are suddenly fighting just to stay above .500.

Now, with Utah coming to town Saturday afternoon, this isn’t just another conference game. It feels bigger than that. It feels like the moment that decides whether this season still has life or if it quietly fades away.

The Danger of Falling Below .500

All season long, Arizona State has had one strange pattern.

Every time they dropped to .500, they responded with a win. They never let things spiral.

But now they’re sitting right on the edge again.

A loss to Utah would push them below .500 for the first time all year. That might not sound dramatic, but it matters for team morale.

Teams feel that shift. Confidence changes. Urgency changes. And with only a few games left before the Big 12 Tournament, there isn’t much time to recover.

That’s why this Utah game feels different.

Feb 21, 2026; Waco, Texas, USA; Baylor Bears guard Isaac Williams (10) scores a basket over Arizona State Sun Devils guard Anthony Johnson (2) during the second half at Paul and Alejandra Foster Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Chris Jones-Imagn Images | Chris Jones-Imagn Images

Utah Is Playing Better — Especially on Defense

When these two teams met a few weeks ago, Utah was struggling.

Since then, they’ve improved. They’re still built around their top scorers, who combine for around 40 points per game, but the real difference lately has been defense.

Utah has started putting together more complete defensive performances. They’re contesting shots better. They’re finishing possessions. They’re not folding as easily in the second half.

That matters because Arizona State’s biggest issue right now isn’t effort, it’s physical depth.

Feb 21, 2026; Waco, Texas, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Bobby Hurley disputes a call with an official during the first half against the Baylor Bears at Paul and Alejandra Foster Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Chris Jones-Imagn Images | Chris Jones-Imagn Images

The Real Niche Problem: Guard-Heavy and Worn Down

Here’s something that doesn’t get talked about enough: Arizona State’s roster balance is off.

Because of injuries, especially the likely season-ending absence of Marcus Adams Jr., the Sun Devils are extremely guard-heavy right now. More than half of the available players are guards. That creates matchup issues, especially against physical teams.

We saw it against TCU. They got to the free-throw line 36 times.

They won the physical battle. Even when their best scorer struggled, they still controlled the game inside.

ASU just doesn’t have the same frontcourt depth.

With only a few true bigs available and some undersized forwards playing bigger roles than expected, the team can get worn down.

Late in games, that shows up in missed rebounds, second-chance points, and tired legs.

It’s not about hustle. It’s about bodies.

Why Saturday Truly Matters

If Arizona State beats Utah, everything changes.

Suddenly, you’re heading into Senior Night against Kansas with momentum. Win that, and you’re talking about a possible 7–11 conference finish and a much better Big 12 Tournament matchup.

From there? Anything can happen.

But if they lose Saturday, the math and the hope get much harder.

That’s why this game isn’t just about Utah.

It’s about belief. It’s about roster limitations. And it’s about whether this team has one more push left in them before the season runs out.

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Utah

Utahns first or eroding the Utah way? House OKs measure cracking down on illegal immigration

Published

16 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Utahns first or eroding the Utah way? House OKs measure cracking down on illegal immigration

SALT LAKE CITY — A controversial Utah proposal to crack down on the presence of immigrants in the country illegally that had seemed stalled gained new life Friday, passing muster in new form in a relatively narrow vote.

In a 39-33 vote, the Utah House approved HB386 — amended with portions of HB88, which stalled in the House on Monday — and the revamped measure now goes to the Utah Senate for consideration.

The reworked version of HB386, originally meant just to repeal outdated immigration legislation, now also contains provisions prohibiting immigrants in the country illegally from being able to tap into in-state university tuition, certain home loan programs and certain professional licensing.

The new HB386 isn’t as far-reaching as HB88, which also would have prohibited immigrants in the country illegally from being able to access certain public benefits like food at food pantries, immunizations for communicable diseases and emergency housing.

Moreover, Rep. Trevor Lee, R-Layton and the HB88 sponsor, stressed that the new provisions in HB386 wouldn’t impact immigrants in the country legally. He touted HB88 as a means of making sure taxpayer money isn’t funneled to programming that immigrants in the country illegally can tap.

Rep. Lisa Shepherd, R-Provo, the HB386 sponsor, sounded a similar message, referencing, with chagrin, the provision allowing certain students in the country illegally to access lower in-state tuition rates at Utah’s public universities. Because of such provisions “we’re taking care of other countries’ children first, and I want to take care of Utahns first. In my campaign I ran and said Utahns first and this bill will put Utahns first,” she said.

If we stop young folks who have lived here much of their life from going to school and getting an education, it is really clear to me that we have hurt that person. It’s not clear to me at all that we have benefitted the rest of us.

–Rep. Ray Ward, R-Bountiful

The relatively narrow 39-33 vote, atypical in the GOP-dominated Utah Legislature, followed several other narrow, hotly contested procedural votes to formally amend HB386. Foes, including both Democrats and Republicans, took particular umbrage with provisions prohibiting immigrants in the country illegally from being able to pay in-state tuition and access certain scholarships.

As is, students in the country illegally who have attended high school for at least three years in Utah and meet other guidelines may pay lower in-state tuition, but if they have to pay out-of-state tuition instead, they could no longer afford to go to college.

“If we stop young folks who have lived here much of their life from going to school and getting an education, it is really clear to me that we have hurt that person. It’s not clear to me at all that we have benefitted the rest of us,” said Rep. Ray Ward, R-Bountiful.

Rep. Hoang Nguyen, D-Salt Lake City, noted her own hardscrabble upbringing as an immigrant from Vietnam and said the changes outlined in the reworked version of HB386 run counter to what she believes Utah stands for.

“I fear that what we’re doing here in Utah is we are eroding what truly makes Utah special, the Utah way. We are starting to adopt policies that are regressive and don’t take care of people. Utahns are one thing. Citizens are one thing. People is the first thing,” she said.

Rep. John Arthur, D-Cottonwood Heights, said the measure sends a negative message to the immigrant students impacted.

“If we pass this bill today, colleagues, we will be telling these young people — again, who have graduated from our high schools, these kids who have gone to at least three years of school here — that you’re no longer a Utahn,” he said.

If we are compassionate to those who come the legal way and we are compassionate to those who already live here, that does not mean that we lack compassion for others in other ways.

–Rep. Kristen Chevrier, R-Highland

Rep. Kristen Chevrier, R-Highland, said the debate underscores a “fallacy” about compassion. She backed the reworked version of HB386, saying Utah resources should be first spend on those in the country legally.

“If we are compassionate to those who come the legal way and we are compassionate to those who already live here, that does not mean that we lack compassion for others in other ways,” she said.

The original version of HB386 calls for repeal of immigration laws on the books that are outdated because other triggering requirements have not been met or they run counter to federal law.

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.

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