Author: Arden Berry

It’s staycation weekend, which means it’s time to take a rest from two weeks of labor and scout out the Waco scene. Here are some activities to get you out, about and away from that assignment you’ve been stuck on.

Before you start replacing your for-fun reading time with doomscrolling, there are easy reads to take your mind off classwork without completely taking it over. For the student finding themself burnt out on reading, I have a few books that will get you through the semester.

As Baylor’s first concert of the fall approaches, seats are slowly but surely snatched up from the Foster Pavilion ticket map. But for some students, the price can be a deterrent.

What began as a personal project for Naomi Canale, Baylor library information coordinator, expanded into “Being Held,” a collaborative exhibit between her and artists Spencer Welch and Ellen Mote. The exhibit’s opening reception will be 5-7 p.m. this Thursday at Art Center Waco.

With the first week of classes almost out of the way, it’s time to put down the syllabi and take a breather. Here are some local events to try out before your classwork gets too crazy.

Baylor Theatre is back this fall with three mainstage shows: a classic book adaptation, a thriller and a dark comedy. Tickets will be available for all three shows beginning Sept. 1 on the Baylor ticket website.

Not all study music is created equally. Fortunately, through the years, I have developed a list of music to check out depending on what kind of assignment you are working on.

While Foster Pavilion dominates the fall concert schedule, Jason Cook and his team are in talks to fill larger venues in the spring.

As schedules fill with coursework and summer fun turns to studying, Waco continues to offer a variety of events that students can attend for an escape. With that in mind, as your syllabi pile up, The Lariat has a different kind of weekly schedule to fill your free time with.

From the familiar frequencies of Foster Pavilion to the bumping beats of the new Baylor Backyard Live series, the fall semester is packed with concerts.

The La Fiera de Ojinaga and Los Pescadores del Río Conchos concert has been been rescheduled, but the new date may allow for an outdoor community event.

Before Baylor’s stop on the Turning Point USA tour, which started 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, volunteers in white Turning Point USA shirts with black text reading “Freedom” lined the aisles while pop songs and red, white and blue lights filled the room.

The world and the feelings it inspires are often big, complicated and scary. A poem can take one of those feelings and distill it into something more palatable.

There is a first time for everything, and no one is perfect at a new thing right away, so you should not expect yourself or anyone else to get everything right immediately.

Dr. Ed Rogers, assistant director, training director and senior psychologist for the Counseling Center, said too much exposure to negative news affects one’s mental health. These effects occur because the human brain struggles to distinguish between remote and current threats.

The HHS website cites the prevalence of unhealthy Americans under these guidelines as a reason for introducing the flipped pyramid. According to the website, the new guidelines focus on prioritizing protein, avoiding highly processed food and sugars and allowing healthy fats.

First-year Baylor students are required to live on campus in one of Baylor’s dorm communities, meaning all these students will inevitably have to manage living with limited space. However, not all dorm spaces are created equal.

“We’re seeing not only the upper respiratory elements, but also seeing some lower gastrointestinal manifestations, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea associated with it,” Hess said. “So it seems to be sort of hitting both above the belt and below the belt, so to speak.”

After being on break, students find new obstacles they must adjust their sleep schedule around.

April showers may bring May flowers, but December weather and Seasonal Affective Disorder can arrive together. For students going through finals this season, SAD poses a unique challenge.

The Board of Regents approved the addition of “Pro Mundo” to the university motto in May 2024. Over a year later, its impact radiates throughout research across campus.

Lisa Bardach and Kou Murayama conclude that extrinsic rewards are useful entry points for engagement that can become intrinsically rewarding through motivational transformations, though later extrinsic rewards can disrupt this process and undermine long-term engagement.

According to a recent Gallup poll, 47% of U.S. adults are concerned about affording healthcare in 2026, the highest percentage since West Health and Gallup began polling for this measure in 2021.

According to the NeuroMental Wellness Facebook page, the services listed include meditation, yoga for kids, adults and beginners and sound therapy.

The Baylor Modern Languages and Cultures department will bring caroling groups from 11 different languages to unite Christmas on Fifth Street in global harmony as part of its Holiday Carols from Around the World tradition.

“We’re really trying to foster and create a new community for students to come to that’s more peer-to-peer rather than peer-to quote unquote ‘adult,’ so it’s more of a comfortable connection,” Villalon said.

To raise awareness of their diverse nutritional services, the Peer Nutrition Advisors (PNA) have launched an Instagram page.

I had a routine every morning. I’d turn on the light, get out of bed, make my bed, put on my clothes, go to the bathroom and head downstairs. This routine was so ingrained in me that I could literally do it in my sleep, and I know this because I did so multiple times.

Whether it’s eating turkey in the U.S., lighting lanterns on campus, watching a harvest parade in Germany or cooking yams in Ghana, communities near and far celebrate their harvest and community throughout the fall season.

“We want as many students as possible to be able to engage in meaningful service,” Sarah Walker, senior coordinator for service at Baylor Spiritual Life, said. “It’s a very tangible way of living out your faith.”