The Kaimin Cast

Bells, buses, hot water and healthy plants — through the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, it wasn't just professors and students who had to carry on. Essential workers across the University of Montana kept campus running, even when there were no students to serve. With the COVID-19 threat fading, those workers are reflecting on their pandemic experiences. On this episode, the stories of UM's essen...

Nine out of the 10 tennis players on the University of Montana men's tennis team are from outside the United States. Elinor Smith reports on the UM’s men's tennis team and the home players made far away from home.   The Second Look is reported and edited by Elinor Smith.    Questions? Comments? Email us at editor@montanakaimin.com     A podcast from the Montana Kaimin , University of Montana's ind...

Scott Blankney is a former University of Montana men's basketball player facing a big decision. After completing his last season with the team and starting in just four games, he's at a crossroads: retire from the game he loves, or continue playing overseas. Fewer than 2% of college hoopers in the U.S. move on to the NBA or WNBA after school. The international market for pro basketballers is much...

Organizations like Latino Outdoors and Here Montana are expanding access to the outdoors across the Rocky Mountain West — giving people of color opportunities to get out and recreate that may not have been there before. Elinor Smith reports on efforts to expand outdoor access to everyone. Through programs focused on community outreach and building, students of color and people across Missoula are...

Missoula is a recreationist’s dream, but for many Americans, the idea of accessing the outdoors is only a dream as well. The U.S. Forest Service says that, while people of color make up 40% of the population, nearly 70% of visitors to public lands are white.  Now, two grassroots organizations in Missoula are aiming to narrow that spread. Here Montana and Latino Outdoors Missoula are headed by two...

The University of Montana's Women Entrepreneurship and Leadership Lab was one of 34 grantees to win the Google Impact Grant for Women and Girls in collaboration with the Blackfeet Community College and the Salish Kootenai College. With the money, WELL is starting the Native Women Launch Program.   On this episode of the Second Look, Elinor Smith speaks to representatives from the colleges about th...

In honor of Women's History Month, the Kaimin's print edition is celebrating women in business in Missoula and beyond. While women have historically faced obstacles to business ownership, U.S. census data shows gains in women entrepreneurship, and in Montana, 46% of small business owners are women as of 2021.   On this episode, an interview with one UM grad and entrepreneur who got her start with...

Reports of drug-facilitated assaults rose drastically this semester at the University of Montana, leading to important questions about what to do if you or a friend believe you've been drugged while out on the town.   On this episode of the Second Look, Elinor Smith has a step-by-step breakdown of how to treat and prevent the effects of "roofie" drugs.   The Second Look is reported and edited by E...

On Feb. 9, University of Montana students received an alert email warning about increased reports of drug-facilitated assaults at Missoula bars, more commonly known as "roofies." So far this semester, the Student Advocacy Resource Center has received 10 reports of roofies assaults — five times the amount they normally receive, raising concerns about student safety and awareness. On this episode, K...

The University of Montana officially rescinded its campus-wide mask mandate on March 3, nearly two years after the COVID-19 pandemic shut down campus.  Administrators say the change is due to a rapid plunge in new cases in Missoula. It also comes after pressure on Montana colleges from the Commissioner of Higher Education to roll back pandemic-era policies.  On this episode, UM students chime in o...

As COVID-19 cases plunge in Missoula from an Omicron peak in early February, the University of Montana is making big changes to its long-standing pandemic policies. As of March 3, students and staff are no longer required to wear masks indoors.  While the change may mark a turning point in the pandemic, the effects of COVID-19 adaptations are lingering. In a recent survey of UM professors by the U...

Long before Monte was a twinkle in the University of Montana's eye, an eclectic collection of mascots represented the school, including a series of live bears, a guy in a chicken costume, Ronald McDonald and other oddities with little resemblance to the backflipping bear we know and love today.   On this episode of the Second Look, audio reporter Elinor Smith breaks down UM's wacky mascot history....

The University of Montana announced it had ended its mask mandate for all indoor spaces on campus besides classrooms and labs on Feb. 24. The rest of campus will follow a week later, on March 3.  Kaimin Cast host Austin Amestoy has the update. A podcast from the Montana Kaimin , University of Montana's independent, student-run newspaper.

When the University of Montana's now-iconic mascot Monte was introduced in the early 90s, it was an experiment in permanence for the University. Prior to Monte, UM had had few long-term mascots, and even some disastrous stints with live bears. But with Monte, UM finally struck mascot gold, with major thanks to the many performers to don the suit through the years. From motorcycle rides across Wash...

After welcoming an international, virtual audience in 2021, the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival is returning to Missoula with more films and audience interest than ever — and a hybrid option to boot.  On this episode of the Second Look, the festival's six-year director reflects on the changes administration has made and the hope they have for this year's event. The Second Look is reported and ed...

After moving online for the first time in its 19-year history in 2021, the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival is back in full force. The 10-day event will see more than 200 artists descend on Missoula as their nonfiction films are premiered for an audience of thousands. While films are shown on subjects from around the world, nine are featured in the "Made in Montana" category. On this episode, con...

After a pandemic lull, the queer community has reemerged in full force with a drag show thrown by the Lambda Alliance and the Women's Resource Center at UM's University Center. That's given LGBTQ students the chance to explore identity in a group setting for the first time in years — and the party's just getting started. On this episode of the Second Look: how Missoula's queer community comes toge...

Last year, the Montana Legislature passed a series of bills targeting queer people based on their identities. One law now bans transgender women from participating in women's sports, while a second permits discrimination toward LGBTQ people on the basis of religion.  But ahead of Valentine's Day, queer people in Missoula say the city remains an inclusive and welcoming place, and that love and frie...

When UM sophomore Alex Crisp quit his job as an RA in Jesse Hall last fall due to stress and burnout, he left behind a cohort of residents who say he made a real difference in their lives — building relationships, supporting them through difficult times and drawing the entire floor closer. On this episode of the Second Look: a dive into the impact resident assistants make on students long after th...

In late 2021, a letter circulated among University of Montana administration, students and media outlets containing a plea for help. It said the resident assistants living and working in the dorms need more support. Alex Crisp, a former RA, wrote the letter following a series of incidents in UM's Jesse Hall that led him to quit the position early. He cited, "Ridiculous hours, unsafe conditions, to...

Missoula College student and mother-of-three Nereyda Calero says it felt like her world was ending when the Trump administration announced in 2017 it would rescind the "Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals" program, or "DACA." The policy, established under former President Barack Obama in 2012, protects immigrants brought to the United States illegally as children from deportation and allows the...

Nearly 10 years ago, former President Barack Obama announced a program designed to protect undocumented immigrants brought into the United States as children. The policy — Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or "DACA," — went into place in June 2012. By 2020, more than 600,000 former childhood arrivals had secured protection from deportation and the ability to work in the United States. But th...

Maria Bustos retired last semester along with 15 other professors in the University of Montana's College of Humanities and Sciences. After a more than 30-year career, she decided to step down from her tenured position in the Spanish department and enjoy time with her loved ones — that, and the University offered her an early retirement package. The cuts came as part of UM's plan to slim down the C...

From the minds behind the Kaimin Cast comes an all-new segment: The Second Look. Sometimes, after the mics are muted and the interview's over, you still have questions. The Kaimin Cast offers rich storytelling and in-depth reporting from the journalists of the Montana Kaimin, University of Montana's independent, student-run newspaper. But this semester, the story doesn't end on Thursday. The Secon...

The University of Montana has long had a reputation as Montana's premier liberal arts school with a College of Humanities and Sciences that educates 42% of the university students. However, that same Humanities Department has endured 68% of UM's budget cuts since 2015, with 15 professors in the school accepting an early retirement package last semester. The hits to the humanities have left some de...