Plus: A look at ‘the far-reaching assault on Utah’s public lands’
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Students on campus pictured on Monday, April 22, 2024.
Happy Saturday, and welcome to Inside Voices, a weekly newsletter that features a collection of ideas, perspectives and solutions from across Utah — without any of the vitriol or yelling that’s become all too common on other platforms. Subscribe here.
Many of Utah’s college students went back to campus this week. And, according to one local professor, they’re not in for the best experience.
“As students return to campus they’ll find far fewer international students (thanks to President Donald Trump’s disdain for most foreigners and their fear of ICE), frozen research grants (defunding everything from climate to cancer to community research), closed cultural centers (some, like the University of Utah’s Women’s Resource Center, have been around for more than 50 years), shrunken general education opportunities (who needs the liberal arts?) and hundreds of departments closed, majors and minors cancelled and faculty careers cut short (they were deemed ‘inefficient’ in USHE parlance),” writes Eric C. Ewert, a professor in and chair of Weber State University’s Department of Geography, Environment & Sustainability.
In his op-ed published this week, Ewert goes on to explain how “strong-armed mandates by the ever-meddling Utah Legislature” has caused life on campus to “suffer in myriad ways.”
Read his criticism — and his promise to students.
And let me know: Are you an educator or college student? How have recent changes to higher education in Utah impacted you?
A Quick Note
I wanted to take a moment and offer a small, temporary programming update: I’m going on maternity leave!
For the next few months — while I welcome a new bundle of joy and adjust to a new sleep-deprived schedule — my talented colleague, Tribune’s Newsletter Editor Sam Morse, will be taking over Inside Voices.
We’ll still be sharing local perspectives in our Voices space, albeit at a slightly slower pace.
Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding and, in the meantime, I’m welcoming any and all parenting advice!
Utah Voices
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Ralph Menzies speaks with Jasmine North, Federal Public Defender Mitigation Investigator, during his commutation hearing at the Utah State Correctional Facility in Salt Lake City on Friday, Aug. 15, 2025.
The following excerpts come from op-eds recently published in The Tribune.
How reporting on murder shaped one Utahn’s views on the death penalty
“Life imprisonment without the possibility of parole would significantly reduce appeals and spare victims’ loved ones some of the anguish that is now part and parcel of capital punishment in this country,” writes former reporter Christopher Smart. “If Ralph LeRoy Menzies had been sentenced to life without parole, the spectacle we are now witnessing wouldn’t be taking place and that would be better for everyone.” Read more.
Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ is ‘a far-reaching assault on Utah’s public lands’
“The scope of what’s now at risk is staggering,” writes Walt Dabney, the retired superintendent of Canyonlands National Park. “A recent review shows that across the Intermountain West, 8,060 miles of hiking trails, 4,525 miles of bikeable singletrack, 396 miles of paddling routes and 928 distinct climbing areas encompassing more than 5,000 routes are newly vulnerable to leasing. These are not anonymous acres in forgotten corners of the map — they are the beating heart of outdoor recreation economies in Utah, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming and Montana.” Read more.
Utah’s young students are dealing with ‘the fallout of adult cowardice’
“Division itself is not the problem,” writes former educator Lucy Cortez. “Our children are often more capable of handling conflict with nuance, courage and compassion than we are. The problem is us. We model fear instead of dialogue, control instead of trust. We’ve taught our children — not through lessons but through example — that disagreement should be avoided, weaponized or silenced.” Read more.
It’s up to Utahns ‘to defend their right to oversee their own government’
“Voters must take to their phones, their email accounts, the Legislature’s own websites, the United States Postal Service, public demonstrations and any other lawful means of instructing their elected officials to obey the will of the people as expressed in the 2018 Better Boundaries Initiative, and as backed up by state courts,” writes The Salt Lake Tribune editorial board. “Otherwise, they can expect their legislators to obfuscate, legislate and litigate away the people’s right to oversee their government.” Read more.
Share Your Perspective
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Judge Dianna Gibson holds a hearing on Utah’s congressional maps process, in Salt Lake City on Friday, Aug. 29, 2025. Judge Gibson previously ruled — based on a decision last year by the Utah Supreme Court — that the Legislature had violated voters’ constitutional right to make laws when legislators repealed Proposition 4, the citizen-passed Better Boundaries initiative.
This week, a judge threw out Utah’s congressional maps and ordered the Legislature to draw new districts that comply with the 2018 voter-backed Better Boundaries initiative, which sought to ban partisan gerrymandering.
In the next week or so, we’ll be sharing perspectives from those involved in the decision. But I want to hear from you: What do fair voting districts look like to you? How do we create them?
From Bagley’s Desk
I’m always looking for unique perspectives, ideas and solutions that move our state forward. Learn more about our guidelines for an op-ed, guest essay, letter to the editor and more here, and drop me a note at [email protected].