Health
Track the spread of measles in Texas
Audio recording is automated for accessibility. Humans wrote and edited the story. See our AI policy, and give us feedback. Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news. The number of cases reported in Texas’ historic measles outbreak has risen to […]
:focal(0x0:850x570)/static.texastribune.org/media/files/677a8e7528a374b2e3016d867c1d8961/measles-tracker_lede.png){kind=tracking}
Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.
The number of cases reported in Texas’ historic measles outbreak has risen to 624 cases in 26 counties, as of April 22. Of those, 64 patients have been hospitalized and two school-aged children have died since the outbreak began in January.
More than half of the cases so far have occurred in Gaines County, where the first case was reported on Jan. 29. As of Tuesday, 27 more cases have been reported since the state’s last update on Friday. Bailey, which has two cases, is the latest county to be added to the outbreak list, bringing the total to 26.
The Texas Department of State Health Services updates the number of infections and other details about the West Texas outbreak every Tuesday and Friday. By mid-April, the state health agency’s response to the outbreak, which includes a public awareness campaign, testing and vaccination clinics, has cost $4.5 million.
The most effective way to prevent contracting measles is to obtain two doses of the the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, which research has shown time and time again is safe. Side effects are mild and rare, according to health experts.
It is not known how the outbreak began. But this region includes pockets of high numbers of unvaccinated individuals.
What is measles?
Measles is a virus that spreads through respiratory droplets passed through the air by breathing, coughing and sneezing. It is one of the most contagious viruses transmissible between humans — 90% of unvaccinated people will get measles if they are exposed. People infected with measles are contagious four days before they begin showing rash symptoms, and the virus can stay active in the air for up to two hours, making hospitals, schools and day cares especially high-risk.
People infected with measles can experience high fever, cold symptoms like a cough or runny nose, watery eyes and a rash all over the body. While most people recover at home, it can lead to serious complications and even death, especially among young children, pregnant women and those with compromised immune systems.
Patsy Stinchfield, the former president of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, worked in pediatric medicine for 45 years. She oversaw three measles outbreaks in Minnesota during her career, and said they were among the sickest children she ever treated.
“They come into the emergency room and they are literally ragdolls hanging over their parents’ shoulders, limp, dehydrated, miserable,” she said. “They’re barely even crying, because they’re so dehydrated they don’t have tears.”
How do you prevent measles?
There is an extremely safe vaccine that is over 97% effective in preventing measles. The MMR vaccine protects from measles, mumps and rubella, while the MMRV vaccine also protects against varicella, or chickenpox.
Most people receive the first dose when they are 12 months old, and a second dose when they are around 5 years old, although that can be shifted earlier if there is an active outbreak.
If you are not fully vaccinated, or are unsure if you are fully vaccinated, you can get the first shot now and achieve a significant degree of immunity within two weeks. The second shot, which delivers 97% immunity, can be given 28 days after the first shot, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
If you are unvaccinated and believe you’ve been exposed to measles within the last 72 hours, getting a vaccine can lessen the impact of the illness. People who cannot receive the vaccine, such as infants, pregnant women and severely immunocompromised people, may be treated with immunoglobulin within six days of exposure to lessen symptoms.
Once someone has contracted measles, the only treatment is managing symptoms and preventing more serious complications, such as pneumonia.
Since the measles vaccine was not a requirement to attend school until 1980, some older adults are questioning whether they have immunity.
Dr. Peter Hotez, the dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, has pointed to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendation that if people are unsure of their immunity, they should first check their vaccination records.
If there’s no record of measles immunity, individuals should get vaccinated with the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine. According to the CDC, there’s no harm in getting another MMR vaccine, even if you may already be immune to measles.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says outbreaks are more likely when the vaccination rate in a community falls below 95%.
Can you get sick if you’re vaccinated?
A small percentage of people who have been infected in this current outbreak report being fully vaccinated, according to DSHS.
While people who are fully vaccinated can still contract measles, they are not at risk for severe illness and are much less likely to spread the virus. According to the CDC, people with both vaccine shots, those who have previously had measles or those who were born before 1957 are presumed immune from measles.
Has anyone died during this outbreak?
On Feb. 26, a school-aged child, who was unvaccinated, died after being hospitalized the week prior, according to state officials. The child’s family lives in the outbreak area.
On April 3, an unvaccinated 8-year-old girl, who also lived in the outbreak area, died of measles, according to hospital officials.
State officials have not confirmed when the last person in Texas died from measles prior to 2025.
Where else in Texas have there been measles cases this year?
There have been four additional cases of measles this year that are not being counted in the above totals because they are not considered part of the West Texas outbreak. Two cases were reported in Houston in January, one was reported in February in Rockwall County involving an adult who had traveled internationally and another was reported in February in Austin involving an unvaccinated infant who became infected while traveling overseas. The baby’s parents were vaccinated and local officials do not believe anyone else locally had been exposed.
Austin officials said it was its first measles case in 24 years.
“The time we have been preparing for is here,” Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said during a news conference. “I want to emphasize to everyone listening that vaccination remains the best defense against this highly contagious and deadly disease.”
Watson said there is an effort to raise the vaccination rate in Travis County, including through low-cost or free programs like Shots for Tots, Big Shots, and mobile clinics. Travis County had the lowest percentage of kindergarteners with the measles vaccine — 89.6% — among Texas counties with at least 100,000 people, according to 2023-24 state data.
“We are here to simply say measles can kill, ignorance can kill, and vaccine denial definitely kills,” U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett said during the news conference.
Do we know how measles arrived in Gaines County?
Texas Department of State Health Services officials say they do not know that information yet.
I thought we fixed measles. What happened?
The measles vaccine is one of the great achievements in modern medicine. It is so effective, and was so widely adopted, that the U.S. declared measles eliminated in 2000. But as anti-vaccination sentiment increased, vaccination rates dropped and the disease made a resurgence.
While the vast majority of children in the U.S. get the MMR vaccine on time, certain communities have shied away from it for religious or cultural reasons, creating pockets of vulnerability for the virus to take hold. In 2017, Minnesota saw a measles outbreak in their growing Somali community, and in 2019, measles tore through the Orthodox Jewish community in New York City and neighboring counties, eventually infecting more than 650 people.
In Texas, the virus has concentrated in the Mennonite community in Gaines County. One of the county’s local public school districts, with only 143 students, has the highest school vaccine exemption rate in the state — 48% of Loop school district students have conscientious exemptions from required vaccinations. In 2023-24, less than half of all Loop kindergartners — 46% — were given the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, according to state data.
Two other school districts in Gaines County had higher vaccination rates. Seagraves, with 512 students, had 94% of its kindergartners vaccinated against measles and Seminole, with 2,976 students, had 82% of its kindergartners vaccinated.
In tight-knit communities with low vaccination rates, a measles outbreak should be “somewhat expected,” said Kathleen Page, an associate professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
But vaccination rates have been dropping nationally and in Texas, well beyond these communities that have traditionally abstained, leaving a wider swath of the population open to infection. In 2019, almost 97% of Texas kindergartners were vaccinated against measles, compared to 94% in 2024, according to the CDC.
When was the last time Texas had a measles outbreak?
In 1992, Texas had an outbreak that grew to 990 cases. That was the last outbreak larger than this. Although in 2013, there was an outbreak with 27 cases and in 2019, an outbreak with 23 cases.
This is a 99.9% decrease from the pre-vaccine high point, in which almost 86,000 Texans got measles in 1958.
What do we know about Gaines County’s Mennonite community?
The tight-knit Mennonite community in Gaines County, mostly centered around the town of Seminole, have been hardest hit. Members of this Anabaptist religious order aim to maintain separation from the modern world, in language, school and dress.
They settled in West Texas from Mexico in 1977, drawn there because “large blocks of land were available, population was not concentrated, and private schools were not heavily regulated,” according to the Texas State Historical Association.
Many of the families home-school or send their children to small private schools, and do not maintain regular contact with the health care system, Texas Department of State Health Services spokesperson told Anabaptist World. Mennonites, and their Anabaptist brethren, the Amish, had very low uptake of the COVID vaccine.
Who is most vulnerable to measles?
Infants under the age of 12 months who haven’t yet been vaccinated, pregnant women and immunocompromised children are extremely vulnerable to measles and should take extra precautions during an outbreak.
In Ector County, where an infant fell ill with measles, health department director Garcia commended the family for taking action to get their child tested.
“A lot of times measles can be hard to detect as a parent,” Garcia said. “This mother did everything I would do – she took him to the doctor, and as he didn’t get better, she took him back. That’s when they did the testing.”
These vulnerable populations are not protected by the vaccine the way most children and adults are, so they’re relying on everyone else to keep them safe, Stinchfield said. Especially when it comes to babies, “they’re voiceless,” she said.
“They can’t say, ‘Everyone get vaccinated.’ They don’t get a say, but they’re the ones that are the first to suffer the consequences,” she said. “The community around them are the ones that are supposed to put those shields on and encircle them and protect them by protecting themselves.”
How bad can measles symptoms get?
Dozens of Texans have been hospitalized with measles in Texas. Some have been able to be treated in Gaines County, while others have been sent to Lubbock for a higher level of care, Albert Plinkington, CEO of the Seminole Hospital District, told Texas Standard.
Many people hospitalized for measles can be treated for dehydration and fever, and then sent to recover at home. But in serious cases, children may need higher levels of care. Stinchfield said she had a patient end up on a ventilator in the intensive care unit for 15 days. They survived, but will have lifelong medical complications due to the damage to their lungs.
“Those of us who have stood next to that child in an ICU fighting measles, need to express to parents how devastating it is for the parent and how much regret they have,” she said.
What are state and local agencies doing to manage this?
The Texas Department of State Health Services is working with the South Plains Health District and Lubbock Public Health, as well as local hospitals and health care providers, to manage the outbreak. The state is assisting with contact tracing, in which they try to identify who may have been in contact with someone who tested positive, and letting them know they have been exposed.
They are encouraging unvaccinated people who have been exposed to isolate for 21 days, and if it is within 72 hours of the exposure, get vaccinated to offset some of the symptoms. The South Plains Public Health District is offering measles vaccines at their clinic in Seminole. Approximately 100 people had been vaccinated in recent days, a DSHS spokesperson said in February.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also announced on March 4 that officials were in Texas to help local leaders respond to the outbreak. Those extra personnel will provide support for one to three weeks.
Suddenly standing up a measles response takes a huge amount of time and effort from state and local health authorities. It can cost between $2.7 million and $5.3 million to respond to a measles outbreak, according to the CDC, compared to the relatively negligible cost of vaccinations.
“If you were to put this in front of ‘Shark Tank,’ they’d say, ‘Wow, this is the best deal. We definitely need to do something that is so successful, so cost effective and averts spending money that we don’t want to spend, and saves lives. Let’s go for it,’” she said. “That’s the way that our legislators need to think about this as well.”
By mid-April, the state health agency’s response to the outbreak, which includes a public awareness campaign, testing and vaccination clinics, has cost $4.5 million.
Disclosure: Texas State Historical Association has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.
Tickets are on sale now for the 15th annual Texas Tribune Festival, Texas’ breakout ideas and politics event happening Nov. 13–15 in downtown Austin. Get tickets before May 1 and save big! TribFest 2025 is presented by JPMorganChase.
Health
Formula One Driver Yuki Tsunoda Joins Neuro Gum to Lock In at 200 MPH
LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Formula One driver and motorsport rising star, Yuki Tsunoda, has teamed up with Neuro Gum Inc., the leader in functional gum and mints. Tsunoda joins an elite group of competitors, leaders, and creatives who use Neuro to fuel peak performance while prioritizing brain health. Currently competing in the Miami Grand Prix, 24-year-old Tsunoda […]
LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Formula One driver and motorsport rising star, Yuki Tsunoda, has teamed up with Neuro Gum Inc., the leader in functional gum and mints. Tsunoda joins an elite group of competitors, leaders, and creatives who use Neuro to fuel peak performance while prioritizing brain health.
Currently competing in the Miami Grand Prix, 24-year-old Tsunoda is accustomed to a taxing travel and training schedule. Vocal about the pressures of professional motorsports, this season, he is investing more in his mental health in order to perform at the highest level. The ability to maintain focus and alertness while minimizing stress and anxiety is critical for these athletes who train and perform under intense physical demands that often require split-second decisions and tremendous stamina.
“I’m really excited to join the team at Neuro. It’s a unique and innovative product that can easily fit into my daily routine and helps me perform at my best. With 24 races around the world, staying sharp and focused during every session is essential, and using Neuro plays a strong part in this. I also love that the brand reflects Japanese heritage, with both Kent and Ryan having roots in Japan – that connection makes it even more meaningful to be part of the team,” said Tsunoda.
The partnership kicks off at the start of Asian & Pacific American Heritage Month (AAPI). Japan-born Tsunoda and Neuro founders Ryan Chen and Kent Yoshimura found a deeper connection in a shared ethos and culture.
“At Neuro, we’ve always admired those who exemplify excellence, resilience, and community spirit – qualities that Yuki Tsunoda embodies on and off the track,” said Ryan Chen, Founder of Neuro Gum. “Sharing a common mindset to perform your best and win every day, with the shared heritage of rich Japanese values, has made this partnership deeply meaningful to all of us. We’re honored to be a part of Yuki’s journey, and excited to share more of this story with the world going forward.”
Neuro offers a range of functional gum and mints designed to support cognitive well-being. Neuro’s Memory & Focus Gum combines American Ginseng (Cereboost®), L-theanine, and B-vitamins to improve working memory, sharpen focus, support stress management, and balance mood without sugar or the accompanying crash. Crafted with science-backed ingredients to support various aspects of brain health and productivity.
Tsunoda is among a growing roster of top performers across music, art, sports, health, and wellness who trust and choose Neuro to enhance their cognition, mood, and performance, including Steve Aoki, Justin “J.Flo” Flores, and Kanak Jha. The partnership underscores Neuro’s mission to help talented people cognitively unlock and realize their full potential, and alongside the folks performing at the top of their game, inspire focus worldwide.
To learn more about Neuro and to stay informed on all that’s to come from its partnership with Tsunoda, visit http://neurogum.com and NeuroGum on Instagram.
About Neuro
Founded in 2015 by co-founders Kent Yoshimura and Ryan Chen on a dive trip in Catalina, the two college friends were looking for a more sustainable way to be more productive each day. Neuro is revolutionizing the gum and mint category by using innovative, science-backed formulas to support memory, calm, and sleep. Made with a patented cold-compression technology, Neuro’s gum and mints maintain optimal absorption and bioavailability while using the most sustainable, high-quality ingredients. The fastest-growing brand on TikTok in 2024, Neuro fuels people all around the globe to live their best lives. For more information, visit neurogum.com.
Health
Miami Heat's Kevin Love Discusses Launch Of Athlete Mental Health Program
Miami Heat veteran Kevin Love continues to use his voice away from the court. His organization, the Kevin Love Fund, announced the release of the Athlete Mental Health Program. The program is dedicated to developing safe environments and conducting activities to fuel better mental health for athletes. It features mental health professionals, sports psychologists, and […]
Miami Heat veteran Kevin Love continues to use his voice away from the court.
His organization, the Kevin Love Fund, announced the release of the Athlete Mental Health Program. The program is dedicated to developing safe environments and conducting activities to fuel better mental health for athletes. It features mental health professionals, sports psychologists, and former athletes in a collaborative effort to improve mental awareness in the sports world.
Love’s Fund describes the program as an “evidence-based curriculum created to help athletes explore their identities beyond sport and strengthen their mental and emotional well-being.”
Love expressed his personal journey that fuels his passion for this ongoing movement. He sat down with Miami Heat On SI to discuss the program.
“I’ve spoken a lot in the past about my identity and who I am being so tied to sports, and so much of this is about that identity development,” Love said. “It’s helping athletes explore who they are outside of the sport, and helping them stay present and balanced.”
He discussed the importance of athletes exploring their identities and value outside of their athletic products.
“Being able to have that understanding that we are more than the sport that we play is incredibly important,” Love said. “I think has allowed me to empathize with others who might feel the same.”
LeBron James’ Early Exit Keeps Miami Heat Tenure Atop The List
Miami Heat Veteran Downplays Value Of Cavaliers’ Darius Garland
Jayden Armant is a graduate of the Howard University School of Communications and a contributor to Miami Heat on SI. He can be reached at jaydenshome14@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @jaydenarmant.
Health
The Human Behind the Athlete
I answered the phone to the sound of the outdoors—a calm but welcoming voice on the other line. “The Pacific Northwest grass is different than in Miami,” NBA star Kevin Love said, speaking from his parents’ home days after the Miami Heat lost to the Cavaliers in Game 1 of their playoff series—a game Kevin […]
I answered the phone to the sound of the outdoors—a calm but welcoming voice on the other line. “The Pacific Northwest grass is different than in Miami,” NBA star Kevin Love said, speaking from his parents’ home days after the Miami Heat lost to the Cavaliers in Game 1 of their playoff series—a game Kevin sat out for personal reasons.
I asked him to paint a picture of the human behind the Kevin Love Fund (KLF)’s newly announced Athlete Mental Health Program, a project poised to impact more lives than his NBA career ever could. Kevin described himself bundled in a hoodie and sweatpants despite the Oregon sun. Shoes and socks off, he laughed. These weren’t his usual interview questions.
The Kevin Love Fund Story
I told Kevin I wanted to focus on the stories behind the KLF and Athlete Mental Health Program’s creation—the moments that led him here. While his story’s been shared before, he returned to themes of unpacking expectations and trauma.
“I felt like I had to hide. I had to go into myself and try to compartmentalize. I asked myself, am I going to be exposed? Are people going to find things out about me that I’m not ready to tell?”
In March 2018, Kevin published a first-person essay—Everyone Is Going Through Something—recounting his panic attack and mental health journey. The response was overwhelming. Readers opened up, sharing their own struggles. That moment revealed something bigger at stake.
Inspired, Kevin founded KLF, a nonprofit built on the belief that education is most powerful when it models vulnerability. Healing, he believes, begins when people are empowered to find identity beyond sport.
KLF now transforms how we understand and talk about mental health—especially in athletics. Through storytelling, education, and evidence-based tools, KLF helps athletes and communities navigate both the high-pressure world of sport and the often-overlooked transition beyond it.
The Athlete Mental Health Program Story
On May 1, 2025, the KLF launches a free, evidence-based mental health program for athletes to foster identity beyond sport. The Athlete Mental Health Program includes lessons on identity development, tools for performance anxiety and stress, and creating conversations around mental and emotional well-being in sports. Built with input from sport psychologists, educators, and former athletes, it equips coaches and broader sports communities to support the whole person—not just the competitor.
The KLF Athlete Mental Health Program is grounded in over a decade of research on reciprocal vulnerability—the idea that when adults model emotional openness, youth are more likely to engage in meaningful mental health conversations (Dutro, 2009; 2011; 2019; Foster, 2022).
The Athlete Mental Health Program is now freely available to educators, coaches, trainers, and anyone supporting student-athletes. For more information or to access the curriculum, visit: https://kevinlovefund.org/
A Story About Success
When I asked Kevin to share a story that reflects the Fund’s success, he hesitated, deferring to his publicist for the “numbers.” But then he smiled.
He recalled the 2018 article: “If I could help even one child managing the same expectations I had at 13 or 14, it would be worth it.” KLF continues to honor that vision—ensuring no athlete feels alone in their mental health struggles the way he once did.
The publicist later shared the numbers: KLF’s SEL curriculum has reached over 130,000 students and 1,900 educators across 1,200+ schools and programs in 32 states and 19 countries.
A Story About Regret
When I asked Kevin to share a story about regret, he didn’t flinch.
“There are things I’ve said or done that I’d take back,” he said. But more often, regret stemmed from what he didn’t do.
He recalled a teacher who once urged him to take a different path. Years later, he wrote that teacher a letter—acknowledging the truth in their advice.
“My regret is that I didn’t act sooner to help myself heal. Whether because I was young, shaped by a hypermasculine culture, or raised by a father born in 1949 who didn’t know another way. Vulnerability wasn’t modeled—it was avoided.”
He reflected on the generational silence around emotion. “I wish I’d been comfortable enough in my skin to realize vulnerability could be a superpower.”
A Story About Being on the Right Path
Kevin said he knew he was on the right path once his story was accepted—celebrated, even.
He paused on the word “celebrated,” aware of its weight. “I’m a product of sharing my story—just like DeMar DeRozan was. It’s healthy to celebrate people who take a chance for the greater good.”
One moment sealed it. At games, kids started holding signs—not about basketball, but mental health. Kevin asked security to bring those families to him. “I’d ask, How did you get here? Why did you make the sign?” And the stories he heard—stories of resilience and shared pain—shifted something in him.
“That’s when I knew this was bigger than basketball. It changed the trajectory of my life.”
An Untold Story
“This whole process—expressing some, not all (yet), of my mental health struggles—has made me more comfortable in my own skin,” Kevin said.
He told a lesser-known story from his early days with his now-wife. His social anxiety was so severe, he couldn’t go out—not even to dinner. “My wife can tell you—when we first started dating, I couldn’t go to a restaurant.”
It wasn’t just discomfort. It was agoraphobia—fear of public embarrassment or collapse. “At any moment, I could fall apart disproportionately to the situation.”
His world shrank: gym, then home—places he could control. But over time, he did the work.
“I’m flawed. I’m still working on it. I’m not a finished project. But I’m more settled now. I’m human. Just a guy—not just an athlete.”
That acceptance, he said, lets him engage in life in ways that once felt out of reach.
A Story (Almost) Told Too Late
I didn’t ask what he’d tell his 13-year-old self—he offered it anyway.
“Nothing haunts us like the things we don’t say. I wish I’d spoken my truth sooner. I let things get to a place that felt life-threatening.”
Silence nearly cost him everything. But breaking it? It opened doors—for himself and others. “Speaking up helped me see red flags before spiraling. Vulnerability isn’t weakness—it’s often the first step to saving a life.”
The Final Story
At the start of the interview, I told Kevin I wanted to reveal the human behind the KLF Athlete Mental Health Fund. I wanted to move beyond the headlines and game highlights. And I did.
But what lingered most wasn’t just the curriculum, or the program reach, or the quotes.
It was the image of Kevin barefoot in his parents’ Oregon yard—finding peace. Not as an NBA champion. Not as a mental health advocate. Just a guy who’s still doing the work, showing up, and reminding the world:
“Athletics can be a defining part of life—but it should not define your entire identity.”
Shortly after the interview, Kevin’s beloved father, Stan Love, passed away at the age of 76. May he rest in peace.
Health
Bailey Student
One of the most storied athletic locations at UConn is about to begin a brand-new era. Starting this spring, Guyer Gymnasium on Hillside Avenue will be fully overhauled, along with along with renovation of smaller spaces in the connecting Hugh S. Greer Field House and Wolff-Zackin Natatorium. Together, they will be known as the Bailey […]
One of the most storied athletic locations at UConn is about to begin a brand-new era.
Starting this spring, Guyer Gymnasium on Hillside Avenue will be fully overhauled, along with along with renovation of smaller spaces in the connecting Hugh S. Greer Field House and Wolff-Zackin Natatorium. Together, they will be known as the Bailey Student-Athlete Success Center, named in honor of Trisha Bailey ’99 (CLAS), whose lead gift is among the largest from any UConn graduate.
The project was kicked off with a groundbreaking ceremony on April 23 featuring Bailey, student athletes, coaches, Board of Trustees Chairman Dan Toscano, UConn President Radenka Maric, Director of Athletics David Benedict, and others.
“Congratulations, coaches. Congratulations, students. Congratulations, alumni,” said Maric. “Congratulations to our staff and everybody who supports our athletics and our university. This is the day that you waited for, for a long time.”
The project will bring athletics, research, academic support, sports medicine, and other programs together in one facility to build upon each other in support of the student success journey, one of the mainstays of UConn’s Strategic Plan. If all goes as scheduled, the new center will open in Spring 2027.
“The Bailey Student-Athlete Success Center will transform the college experience for young men and women who wear the Husky uniform,” said David Benedict, director of athletics.
Bailey, a former track athlete at UConn, founded Bailey’s Medical Equipment and Supplies after her time in Storrs. She quoted her grandmother at the ceremony: “’Dream so big that not even you can believe that these dreams can come true,’” said Bailey. “What does that mean? It means that when you dream, you need to go beyond what the dream looks like.”
Also on April 23, UConn announced a transformative $15 million commitment from longtime supporters Denis and Britta Nayden that will establish The Nayden Center for Academic Excellence within the Bailey Student-Athlete Success Center. At the core of this transformative project, the 12,000 square foot academic center will become the home for holistic development, academic accomplishment, and well-being for every student-athlete at UConn. This comprehensive space will facilitate learning, testing, meeting, tutoring, and all academic activities.
The gymnasium will be renovated to house UConn’s Student-Athlete Success Program (SASP), which supports student-athletes with tutoring, study spaces, post-graduation career or academic planning, and other academic services.
It will also house offices, support spaces, locker rooms, team meeting areas, and other spaces for women’s field hockey, women’s rowing, women’s tennis, women’s swimming & diving, women’s cross country, and men’s and women’s track & field.
“Thanks to Trisha Bailey’s anchor donation, the vision of a student-athlete success center took hold, and became real,” said Nayden ’76 (BUS) ’77 MBA. “I’ve seen the drawings, and I have no doubt that the new facility will be state of the art, beautiful and impressive. But what attracted us, and what was really impressive, is everything that would occur inside.”
Other speakers included former field hockey coach Nancy Stevens, men’s tennis coach Glenn Marshall, and student athletes Chioma Okafor ’26 (BUS, ENG) and Travis Roux ’25 (BUS).
The construction will turn the field house into a LEED-certified building and add an estimated 50 to 60 years of active use to the complex. The improvements help UConn take another step in its Sustainability Action Plan and will help UConn reach carbon neutrality by 2030.
New space will be created for the UConn Department of Kinesiology, strength and conditioning rooms, rehabilitation and recovery areas and hydrotherapy and biomedical analysis.
The field house, named for longtime men’s basketball coach and athletic director Hugh Greer, opened in 1954 and was the home of the men’s and women’s basketball teams until Gampel Pavilion opened in 1990.
“We want everyone to achieve excellence. This will be a learning center, a financial literacy center, a personal development center, a mental health center, a tutoring center, a nutrition center,” said Nayden. “It will be a social center. It will be a hub of life.”
Health
Mental Health Awareness Month
Our always-on, digitally driven society has turned our devices into both lifelines and sources of tension. As May spotlights Mental Health Awareness Month, it’s a perfect time to address a growing challenge of our time: the overwhelming presence of technology in our daily lives. The statistics paint a concerning picture: we unlock our smartphones approximately […]
Our always-on, digitally driven society has turned our devices into both lifelines and sources of tension. As May spotlights Mental Health Awareness Month, it’s a perfect time to address a growing challenge of our time: the overwhelming presence of technology in our daily lives.
The statistics paint a concerning picture: we unlock our smartphones approximately 150 times a day, and workers switch between different apps and websites nearly 1,200 times a day. This constant digital juggling is taking a serious toll on our well-being and productivity.
Here are five evidence-based strategies, curated by InboxArmy, to help you manage digital overload and reclaim your focus and peace of mind.
Photo by Alexander Shatov on Unsplash
1. Schedule Focused Deep Work Sessions
According to research, 60.6% of people are unable to do just 1-2 hours of deep work without distraction. Even brief interruptions of 4.4 seconds can triple the error rate on your main task, and it takes an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to fully refocus after being distracted.
Block out dedicated distraction-free periods in your calendar for deep work. During these sessions, put your phone in another room, close any unnecessary browser tabs, and let your colleagues know you’re unavailable. Research shows that even the mere presence of a phone can lower your cognitive capacity, so creating physical distance from your devices during focused work can significantly boost productivity.
2. Implement a Notification Detox
People deal with an average of 63.5 notifications per day. Receiving a notification, even without checking it, can severely disrupt concentration.
Take control of your notification settings by disabling non-essential alerts, batch-processing emails at designated times, and using “priority only” modes for truly urgent communications. When 73.2% of workers report feeling overwhelmed by constant interruptions, reducing digital noise can significantly lower stress, uplift your mental health, and improve focus.
3. Create Technology-Free Zones and Times
Digital habits deny our brains important downtime, reducing our capacity for deep thinking. With 59% of smartphone users checking social media within 5 minutes of bedtime and 40% checking their phones within 5 minutes of waking up, many of us never truly disconnect.
Establish clear boundaries with your devices by designating certain rooms, especially bedrooms, as device-free zones. Implement a digital sunset 1-2 hours before bedtime and create screen-free meal times. The benefits can be substantial; a previous study reported that 93.6% of participants who tried sleeping without their phones would consider continuing the practice due to improved sleep quality.
4. Practice Single-Tasking
People spend approximately 59 minutes per day looking for information trapped within tools and applications, and 45% say that context switching makes them less productive. Taking a break to check your phone during problem-solving can make you 19% slower and 22% less effective at the task.
Embrace single-tasking by working on one task at a time, grouping similar tasks together, and closing all unrelated applications when working on a specific task. People often struggle to fully focus on a single task or person, but intentionally practicing single-tasking can strengthen their attention muscles and reduce the stress of divided attention.
5. Schedule Regular Digital Detox Periods
Heavy internet users are five times more likely to suffer from depression, and constant digital connectivity has been linked to increased anxiety levels.
Incorporate regular digital detox periods into your routine, starting with small, manageable periods, such as a screen-free morning, and gradually extending them to longer periods. Plan offline activities you enjoy and connect face-to-face with friends and family (67% of people from the UK actually prefer in-person meetings). Over three-quarters of American families committed to taking a digital detox after lockdown, recognising the benefits of periodically disconnecting.
Take the Digital-Detox Challenge
This Mental Health Awareness Month, pick one of these five strategies to implement today. Share your experience with #DigitalDetoxChallenge and inspire others to join you. Small, consistent changes can transform your relationship with technology, and your well-being will thank you.
story credit: InboxArmy.
About InboxArmy: InboxArmy is a premier email marketing agency dedicated to ensuring your messages reach the right audience. Leveraging innovative technology and strategic insights, InboxArmy empowers businesses to boost engagement and drive campaign success.
Sources:
Britons spend more time on tech than asleep, study suggests – BBC News
Digital Detox Facts | Internet Addiction Facts | Time To Log Off
44 Smartphone Addiction Statistics for 2025 [INFOGRAPHIC] | SlickText.
The science is in: Interruptions Kill Productivity and Increase Stress (with sources) | WorkJoy
GUEST POST: Can Digital Detox Improve your Learning Abilities?
Know some top athletic performances? Seeing some great teams in action?
We can use your help, and it’s simple. Witness some great performances? Hear about top athletes and top teams in our area?
Athlete of the Week and Team of the Week:
Nominate an athlete or team: HERE
**********************************************
Pancakes or Waffles! We feature top area athletes with our world-renowned feature. Send us your nominations for who you’d like us to interview HERE
College Athlete Roundup! We want to recognize student-athletes from the area who are competing at the college level. Send us information on college athletes from the area with our simple form HERE
Where are they Now? We feature athletes and difference makers from the past, standouts in sports who excelled over the years and have moved on. Know of a former athlete, coach, or difference maker who we should feature? Know of a former standout competitor whose journey beyond central Wisconsin sports is one we should share? Send us information on athletes and difference makers of the past with our simple form HERE
Baked or Fried! We also feature difference makers throughout central Wisconsin: coaches, booster club leaders, administration, volunteers, you name it. Send us your nominations for who you’d like us to interview HERE
Health
Youth Council Raises $200K to Fund Mental Health Programming
(PHOTO: Rye Youth Council (RYC)’s annual spring benefit on April 24, 2025 raised over $200K to support its mental health programs. The RYC Board of Directors. Credit: Anja Porto.) Over 275 people came out for the Rye Youth Council (RYC)’s spring benefit, the Help Helps Soiree, at The Apawamis Club last Thursday. The group honored […]
Over 275 people came out for the Rye Youth Council (RYC)’s spring benefit, the Help Helps Soiree, at The Apawamis Club last Thursday. The group honored Dr. Eric Byrne, outgoing superintendent of Rye City schools, for supporting its programs and services and expanding mental health support for students across the District. The group raised over $200,000 to help sustain and grow its prevention, intervention, and mental health and wellness programs that elevate youth mental well-being and support families in the community.
“RYC serves as a vital resource our our entire community, collaborating with schools, healthcare providers, local business, and government partners to promote the social and emotional development of our youth, strengthen their resilience and support their mental health and well-being,” said RYC Board Member and Psychotherapist Marnie White, LCSW.
Rye High School junior TJ Neeves took the stage, sharing a presentation he created and narrated to thank Dr. Byrne for making inclusion his mission, “that sparked something larger and encouraged others to create more accessible programming.”
Lisa Dominici, RYC executive director, thanked the group’s staff and lauded their prevention and youth development efforts through initiatives like the Peer to Peer and the Student-athlete Mental Health programs. The evening highlighted RYC Restore, the clinical counseling and therapy service for children ages 5-22.
Rodney Childers Gives Career Update After Abrupt Spire Motorsports Exit
Road America Track President Says Track Is “Not Waiting Around” for NASCAR Return
NASCAR takes streaming to the next level with latest announcement
Christian Carlee is Destin Chamber Person of the Quarter
University of Utah Athletics
UCLA
Miami Grand Prix F1 race will continue in South Florida until 2041
Cleetus McFarland eyeing the 2027 Daytona 500 for Cup debut?
AMDRO® Pest Control Solutions Teams Up with Brandon Jones for NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series at Texas Motor Speedway
Final Four FULL REACTION 
Houston rallies to stun Duke, face Florida in title game | SportsCenter
D-backs vs. Yankees Game Highlights (4/1/25) | MLB Highlights
Speedo Extends Partnership With German Swimming Federation (DSV) Through 2029
Super League Acquires Supersocial, Expanding Brand Partnership Portfolio and Bolstering Business Growth
Media and Entertainment, Esports and Gaming Content Creation Concentration, B.S.
ESPN Digital & Social 2025: No. 1 in March
-
College Sports2 weeks agoFormer South Carolina center Nick Pringle commits to Arkansas basketball, John Calipari
-
Rec Sports7 days agoDeputies investigating incident that caused panic at Pace youth sports complex
-
Fashion7 days agoThis is poetry in motion.
-
High School Sports1 week agoAppling County football to forfeit all 10 wins from 2024
-
Sports2 weeks agoSports Roundup
-
NIL2 weeks agoPatriots Legend Rob Gronkowski Makes Surprising Career Move
-
College Sports1 week agoLehigh wrestlers prepare for wrestling U.S. Open
-
Fashion2 weeks agoWatch Saudi Arabian GP free live stream
-
NIL7 days agoSave Like a Pro: NIL money isn’t free cash—taxes take a bite! Set aside part of …
-
Sports1 week agoHow to watch Yahoo Sports' NFL Draft Live show