From Pointe to PT
A former dancer works to prevent the sorts of injuries she once suffered By Sarah Komar Originally published Jan. 3, 2024, in Secret Structures When Megan Wise was growing up in Ocala, Florida, dance was her life. She was born into a family of dancers. She started her first ballet class when she was four…
Photo essay: “Day 111”
Photos and text by Sarah Komar On Aug. 4, the more than 1,700 union nurses staffing Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, New Jersey, went on strike. The nurses, members of the United Steelworkers Local 4-200, were not seeking a pay hike or a new benefits package. They wanted to compel the hospital,…
Dancers’ Wellness Has Become a Higher Priority. But There’s a Long Way to Go.
By Sarah Komar Originally published Oct. 12, 2023, in Columbia News Service In August 2021, during her first musical theater audition since emerging from COVID-19 lockdown, Lia-Shea Tillett was executing a turning jump when she heard a pop and felt pain shoot through her left leg. The dancer, 27 at the time, crumpled to the…
How a Small New York Theater Succeeded After the Pandemic
By Sarah Komar Originally published Sept. 15, 2023, in Labor New York Since the COVID-19 pandemic ground performing arts to a halt in March 2020, bad news has kept coming for American theater. Following Broadway’s fall 2021 reopening, there have been just 16 weeks in which attendance met or exceeded 90% of pre-pandemic levels. At least 35…
U.S. Army Confronts Mental Health Problems
How one daughter survived her veteran father’s PTSD and what research suggests should be done to help others By Sarah Komar Originally published Nov. 2, 2022 in New Lines Magazine On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, as smoke billowed from the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, U.S. Army Maj. David Komar helped evacuate the daycare center…
Two years into COVID-19 pandemic, local school districts face troublesome bus driver shortages
Sarah Komar, Editor-in-Chief Originally published March 8, 2022, in The Arkansas Traveler Nearly two years after the COVID-19 pandemic forced public school closures nationwide, Northwest Arkansas districts are experiencing an ongoing bus driver shortage that has forced route consolidations and cancellations, causing some students to arrive at school or home hours late. Districts across the…
Through His Eyes
For one blind student — and other UA community members with disabilities — living, learning and working in an environment long reported to be inaccessible and hostile to disability can feel like a “new battle every day.” By Sarah Komar When I met Mark Marinoni outside his residence hall on a gloomy Tuesday afternoon in…
Nurses flock to travel positions as national nursing shortage deepens
Sarah Komar, Editor-in-Chief Originally published Jan. 25, 2022, in The Arkansas Traveler As a years-long national nursing shortage that was accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the mass exodus of registered nurses from staff roles to higher-paying travel positions is compounding the problem. Several factors have contributed to the ongoing and projected shortage, including a large…
For some who left workforce, current incentives not enough to prompt return
Sarah Komar, Editor-in-Chief Originally published Dec. 1, 2021 in The Arkansas Traveler When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it offered an unexpected growth opportunity for one Northwest Arkansas resident — but pursuing it meant quitting her job. Another resident who lost his job at the beginning of the pandemic said he wants to return to the…
Lingering Symptoms Affect COVID-19 Survivors’ Lives Months After Infection
Sarah Komar, ArkansasCovid.com Originally published Nov. 5, 2021 on arkansascovid.com Skye Harris, a healthy, happy 18-year-old Rogers native, was enjoying a vacation in Washington, D.C. in June when her head began hurting and she started feeling like she had a cold. On her way to a walk-in clinic, she collapsed, and lost her ability to…
‘It takes a toll on us’: Local business owners grapple with labor shortages despite offering incentives
Sarah Komar, Editor-in-Chief Originally published Nov. 2, 2021 in The Arkansas Traveler Raising entry-level wages to $15 an hour, offering new benefits and pouring time and resources into recruiting are among the strategies Northwest Arkansas small business owners have tried to attract employees in recent months. Despite their efforts, many are struggling to fill open…
Housekeepers, desk workers ditch area hotels as managers attempt to fill in labor gaps
Sarah Komar, Editor-in-Chief Originally published Oct. 29, 2021 in The Arkansas Traveler Amid a national labor shortage, housekeepers and other essential workers are quitting their jobs at Northwest Arkansas hotels in droves, leaving the businesses short-staffed and putting intense stress on remaining employees. Many workers have left hospitality — which includes food and beverage service,…
Arkansas restaurants struggle to retain staff as workers flee hospitality business
Sarah Komar, Editor-in-Chief Originally published Oct. 22, 2021 in The Arkansas Traveler As a months-long nationwide labor shortage continues to rock the hospitality business, restaurateurs in Northwest Arkansas are doing what they can to adapt to new challenges. Despite a volatile pandemic year when U.S. unemployment hit a record high 14.8%, according to the Congressional Research…
Students, faculty say professor was denied reasonable accommodations for disability
Sarah Komar, Editor-in-Chief Originally published Sept. 7, 2021 in The Arkansas Traveler. Three days before the start of the fall semester, an assistant professor in the UofA’s Counselor Education and Supervision Program sent an email to students enrolled in her fall courses notifying them she would be unable to teach the classes. Since then, outrage…
Honoring Cadence: a Daughter’s Legacy, a Mother’s Mission
After losing her 14-year-old daughter to suicide, a mourning mother is determined to shine a light on the scourge she believes contributed to the tragedy. And through her advocacy, she is finding healing. By Sarah E. Komar FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.— For the first seven months after it happened, Kimberly Isham was heavily medicated, taking a cocktail…
How a Fayetteville Backyard Became a COVID-free School With Nature in Charge
A Fayetteville mom had been dreaming of creating a more enriching educational environment for her homeschooled children. Then, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, so she teamed up with three other women to formulate an unconventional plan. By Sarah E. Komar FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — In a backyard just blocks from downtown Fayetteville, there is an educational utopia…
As Financial, Food Needs Fall Through Cracks, Community Rises to Meet Them
As the COVID-19 pandemic and accompanying economic disaster drag on, many need help beyond what the government and charities can provide. That’s where mutual aid comes in. By Sarah E. Komar FAYETTEVILLE, Ark — When Candace Green was fired as part of pandemic-related cutbacks in October, she felt scared and alone. The 45-year-old single mother…
In Fayetteville, One Everyday Leader is Focused on the Future
When Jewel Hayes noticed a need in the Northwest Arkansas community, she decided to meet it — but her most important contribution might simply be living an open, joyful life. By Sarah E. Komar. FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.– Jewel Hayes knows exactly who she is, and she is living the life she wants. Four days a week,…
Answering the Call: First-Time Head Pastor Breathes New Life Into Historic Congregation at Spiritual Standstill
Sarah Komar, News Editor Originally published Jan. 17, 2021 in The Arkansas Traveler Dressed entirely in pastoral black and sitting at a long, mahogany-colored desk in her sunlit office on a mid-December Sunday afternoon, Rev. Dr. Joanne Walker Flowers has an undeniably captivating presence about her. She is flanked on one side by vibrant poinsettias…
Tom Cotton’s Lone, Third-Party Opponent Shakes Up U.S. Senate Race
Sarah Komar, News Editor Originally published Nov. 1, 2020 in The Arkansas Traveler. Ricky Dale Harrington Jr., an even-keeled, soft-spoken, Bible-quoting prison chaplain, is not what many would consider a traditional candidate for political office. And yet, he might be the only hope for Arkansans looking to unseat the man once described by The Intercept as…
Friends, Family Remember Deceased Student as Loyal Friend, Hero
Sarah Komar, News Editor Originally published Oct 21, 2020 in The Arkansas Traveler. Two weeks after Chase Reel was killed in an attempted burglary, the former UA student’s loved ones are reflecting on Reel’s life and the lessons it taught them about love, loyalty, heroism and gratitude. The UA junior died of a gunshot wound…
UA Theatre, Local Theater Companies Cope with COVID-Related Challenges
Sarah Komar, News Editor Originally published Sep 7, 2020 in The Arkansas Traveler. After COVID-19 forced the UA Department of Theatre and NWA’s local theater companies to cancel productions this spring, the organizations have adapted and innovated, determined that the show must go on. When the pandemic hit in March, TheatreSquared, the Arkansas Public Theatre,…
Australians Grieve, Protest As Destructive Wildfires Sweep Continent
Miranda Stith, News Editor, and Sarah Komar Staff Reporter Originally published Jan 24, 2020 in The Arkansas Traveler. Massive fires have raged across Australia since Sept. 2019, leading some in Fayetteville to worry for their friends and family and grieve for the widespread loss of life, property and biodiversity in their home country. The 2019-20…
Students Struggle to Adjust to Changing Mullins Library
Sarah Komar, Staff Reporter Originally published Nov 5, 2019 in The Arkansas Traveler. Since 85% of David W. Mullins Library’s materials were moved to offsite storage in 2018, checkouts have fallen and students are feeling the effects of a transforming library. Having worked at a library as an undergraduate student and at Dickson Street Bookshop…
Sarah Komar 