This summer marks the 50th anniversary of the passage of the education amendments to the Civil Rights Act and the historic section of Title IX that guaranteed gender equity.

The following year, the MSHSAA held its first state women’s basketball championship.

Almost half a century later, there are still vestiges of gender inequality playing out at this time of year.

During the regular season — with a few exceptions — the girls play on Mondays and Thursdays while the boys play on Tuesdays and Fridays. As for the playoffs, starting with the district championship game, the boys’ and girls’ playoff games are held on the same night.

From an organizational perspective, it makes sense for the MSHSAA to schedule playoff games for boys and girls together on the same day at the same location.

On nights when the District Championship is played, the doubleheader creates an eerie moment when a girls’ team and their fans party while the boys’ teams wait to take the field and the fans try to find seats.

It’s almost like a weird rock concert my dad remembered going to where Beach Boys fans booed a young actor named Billy Joel.

Sometimes it works when only two schools are represented in the two finals, but that’s not always the case.

The MSHSAA has changed the schedule in recent years, which changes the boys playing ahead of the girls every two years in the Sectional and Quarterfinal playoffs. These games, however, do not crown a champion and there are no post-game ceremonies.

That’s not to say the state’s playoff schedule is perfect, especially starting this year with the two biggest classes not having sectional playoffs and going a week between games.

As with any large organization that uses bylaws and voting as a means to effect change, those changes can be slow and tricky.

The first MSHSAA Women’s Basketball State Championship was held at Northwest Missouri State University’s Lamkin Gymnasium with a 2,500 capacity. The boys, meanwhile, played at the new Hearnes Center at the University of Missouri with 13,600 seats.

At this time there were three classes for boys (S, M and L) while Northeast Nodaway beat South Shelby 41-35 in the 1973 Women’s Championship game.

The boys and girls held separate tournaments at different times, but that changed when the state finals were combined to be played at the same location.

In the third year, the Women’s State Playoffs were split into two classes, and in 1977 they were increased to three. It was four in 1979 and increased to five in 2003 with boys as schools added girls’ teams.

Although this is the second year with six classes, it is the first time that the number of districts in the two largest classes has been halved.

In the MSHSAA Basketball Handbook released before this season, the Basketball Advisory Committee, made up of coaches from across the state, recommended a change to the district tournament schedule.

The committee recommended that “in even years, the Girls’ District Tournament (plays) on Saturday, Tuesday and Friday; and the boys (game) … Monday, Thursday and Saturday with Wednesday as the catch-up date and reversal in odd years.

MSHSAA, however, leaves control and direction of the tournament to the host and schools in each district.

Weather can be a factor, as it has been this season and most years in the northern part of the state. But the regular season can end earlier, with the first rounds starting earlier.

This year, for example, up to four girls’ matches and four boys’ matches were played in the first round on Saturday while the semi-finals were on separate days.

With six classes and the playoffs split between small and big schools over different weeks, there are too many overlapping games.

If the smaller schools play a sectional playoff on Wednesday, do the larger schools also have to play a district semifinal that day? Instead of dividing the sections by class, can we do it by gender with two smaller classes in one place and the larger class not on neutral sites?

Breaking up district championship games — with the girls playing Thursday and the boys playing Friday — and having a 7 p.m. pipe puts them on a level playing field. It may also allow more fans to have the opportunity to attend the 6 p.m. whistleblower and bring student-athletes home a little earlier, especially in remote districts.

The only downside is that fans will have to buy two tickets instead of one to watch both finals.

Which makes me wonder why the district doubleheader has gone on for so long.

4:05 p.m. ET – SI Sportsbook Fun

With kick-off time less than an hour away, how about placing some fun bets with boosted odds at SI Sportsbook?

Here is a bet involving only the Bengals-Titans game:

• Bengals -3.5, over 47.5 points, Joe Mixon anytime TD (+450, boosted by +400)

If you prefer bets that involve multiple games, here are some potential options:

• Ja’Marr Chase and Davante Adams both score (+300, boosted from +250)
• Julio Jones and George Kittle both have over 49.5 receiving yards (+350, down from +300 previously)
• Titans and Packers both win (+150, boosted from +115)
• Joe Burrow and Aaron Rodgers both have over 300 passing yards (+700, up from +650 previously)

You can also bet on the future odds of players having the most passing, receiving and rushing yards during the divisional round. Here are the odds for players of this game:

• Cathie Wood’s expectation of a 20% gain in her flagship Ark Invest fund did not come true this year.
• Instead, Ark Invest’s Disruptive Innovation ETF fell by more than 20% in 2021, which is its worst return since its inception.
• Wood now expects the growth-oriented ETF to show a compound annual growth rate of up to 40% over the next 5 years.
• Sign up for our daily newsletter here, 10 things before the opening bell.

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It has been a difficult year for investors at Ark Invest’s flagship Disruptive Innovation ETF, with the fund on track for its worst year of performance since launching in 2014.

This is after the ETF generated record returns of 150% in 2020, helping Ark Invest raise more than $ 17 billion in assets under management in its flagship fund. The ETF is down 21% in 2021, while the S&P 500 is up around 30% year-to-date.

Ark Invest’s low returns in 2021 likely surprised Cathie Wood, who forecast a five-year compound annual growth rate of 20% in December 2020. She now expects even higher returns going forward, with a recent blog post describing his opinion that the fund could generate a five-year compound annual growth rate of up to 40%.

But Wood’s prediction for a 20% gain in 2021 appeared to be correct earlier this year, with the fund rising 25% at its peak in February. Since then, a decline in work-from-home stocks and unprofitable tech names have taken a heavy toll on its performance.

The stocks that most affected Ark Invest’s performance were Teladoc and Zoom Video, both of which are down around 50% this year and lowered the fund by 550 and 386 basis points, respectively, according to the data. by Koyfin.

Those losses far exceeded Ark Invest’s best-performing position, Tesla, which is up more than 56% year-to-date and increased the fund by 286 basis points.

And it’s not just Ark Invest’s flagship ETF that has had a rough year, with five of Ark’s six active ETFs generating negative returns so far this year. The worst performing fund Ark Genomic Revolution ETF, down around 33% year to date, while the Ark Autonomous Technology and Robotics ETF is the best performing fund, up around 3%.

ZURICH, Dec.22 (Reuters) – Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) has laid off staff and imposed financial penalties on a number of people following a review of the collapse of its channel funding funds supply linked to Greensill, the bank said on Wednesday.

Earlier this year, Switzerland’s second-largest bank opened the investigation after the $ 10 billion collapse of supply chain finance funds that bought banknotes issued by Greensill, the UK financial firm that filed its balance sheet in March. Read more

Credit Suisse said it has shared its preliminary findings on the Greensill affair with regulators.

“Based on the preliminary findings of the investigation which have been shared with regulators, Credit Suisse has taken action regarding various individuals,” the bank said in an emailed statement.

“These actions include termination of employment and severe financial penalties via compensation adjustments. External investigations are still ongoing.”

Swiss financial blog Inside Paradeplatz reported on Wednesday that Credit Suisse had fired two managers in its asset management division due to the findings of the investigation.

Credit Suisse declined to comment on the number of employees affected by its latest actions. The bank did not appoint any staff.

In July, Credit Suisse published a separate external study on another scandal that rocked the bank at the same time. This blamed a “lackadaisique” attitude towards risk and a “lack of responsibility” for the bank’s $ 5.5 billion loss to the Archegos investment fund.

Credit Suisse declined to comment on the release date of the Greensill investigation findings.

Reporting by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi. Editing by Jane Merriman

Our Standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Preston City Council today approved a site near the downtown bus station for the new youth zone.

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Built as part of the £ 20.9million Towns Fund project, the Preston Youth Zone will see a facility created for Preston youth between the ages of eight and 19.

The site, adjacent to Lord Street, meets the criteria for locating successful youth zones by providing a prominent but neutral location, easily accessible by public transport and of an adequate size for the proposed development.

Read more: The new Preston Youth Zone will be built on land opposite Preston Bus Station

John Chesworth, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Preston City Towns Fund, said: “The approval of the land by Preston City Council and the continued partnership with OnSide is the next critical step in creating a much needed youth zone for Preston.

“This is an important project within the framework of the Cities Fund investment program.

“It is essential that Preston has the capacity to support young people, provide them with a safe space, provide skills and advice as well as create more jobs and volunteer roles in the downtown area.

“We will work closely with OnSide and our partners to ensure this great space is created for Preston. “

Read more: Two roads in downtown Preston closed due to urgent construction work at Preston Guild Hall ‘dangerous’

The national charity OnSide, which has a network of 14 similar youth zones across the UK, has been working with local Preston partners for several years to develop a youth zone in Preston.

They successfully submitted a proposal as part of the Preston Towns Fund offer which was accepted by the UK government earlier this year.

The Preston Youth Zone will offer young people advice on skills, career and employment. It will also be an opportunity to discover new passions, to make friends and to thrive in an inclusive, welcoming and exciting environment.

Read more: St David’s Church on Eldon Street to make way for assisted housing development

The facilities will include:

• Four-court sports hall
• 3G outdoor kick pitch
• Gym, boxing and martial arts
• Music room with integrated recording studio
• Arts and Crafts Space
• Climbing wall
• Dance studio
• Sensory room
• Educational kitchen
• Rooms for carrying out projects in areas such as business and employability.

Read more: Preston Architects to Help Restore Historic Main Street in Kirkham

The Youth Zone aims to support around 4,000 young people. It will also create 70 permanent jobs, including 35 full-time equivalents.

Councilor Matthew Brown, Head of Preston City Council, said, “The Youth Zone is a high priority for our city. I am proud that the board can step in and provide the necessary land in a good location to allow this exciting project to move forward.

“This project will support youth, give them access to positive activities to do in their community and improve their health and well-being, boost their aspirations into adulthood, and support community cohesion and a vibrant downtown Preston.” .

“While this is a vital next step, we continue to look to Lancashire County Council for much needed support for the ongoing income costs of the Youth Zone. “

Read more: Hollywood Bowl announced as first tenant of Animate cinema and entertainment complex

Preston Youth Zone is one of six projects included in the Harris Quarter Towns Fund’s investment program.

The Regeneration Program, which focuses on culture, recreation, housing, infrastructure, community and education through downtown regeneration, is part of the City of Preston Investment Plan.

While some of the initial funding will come from the Towns Fund, OnSide will raise funds for the remaining construction and operating costs from a range of trusts, grants, private sector contributions and philanthropy.

Read more: Childcare home planned for Sharoe Green

Guy Topping, Chairman of the Preston Youth Zone Committee said, “This is a really exciting step for the Preston Youth Zone.

“We have been passionate about delivering this product for several years now. It will be a place that the young people of the city deserve.

“I want to thank everyone who participated in the Towns Fund Bid and the board that brought us to this point and I urge everyone in Preston to support the project.”

Read more: See the latest news and headlines from Preston

Are you excited to discover the new Youth Zone? Let us know in the comments below

Fiji’s international border reopened to tourists on December 1, to public relations fanfare. It’s been 20 long months for the country, where tourism was the biggest industry before COVID-19 hit.

Everyone in the tourism business has been working on the reopening for months. In our agrotourism micro-business in Savusavu on the island of Vanua Levu, we have finalized our COVID-safe protocols and built up stocks of chocolate before the return of international visitors.

We survived the tourism shutdown. Most of the other companies we work with as part of the Duavata Sustainable Tourism Collective – a group of small tourism operators in Fiji, who have based their businesses on values ​​of responsible and sustainable tourism – have also weathered the storm.

I speculated earlier this year that small tourism businesses are more vulnerable to sudden loss of income than much larger businesses. But I realized that I was at least partly wrong.

Many small tourism businesses in Fiji, especially those based on respect for the environment and Fiji’s cultural heritage, do not do it for the money. If you take the money away, it’s difficult – very difficult – but we still have the other pilots and the motivation for what we’re doing.

Duavata members took this opportunity to focus on some of these other interests. As the big resorts and other big businesses made a purely economic decision and put their businesses on the back burner, we’ve been busier than ever – just doing things different and, in many ways, more rewarding.

The Duavata Conservation Leadership Program is a big name for a simple idea developed in response to the disruption of international tourism. Several of Duavata’s members have reoriented their tourism experiences to attract young Fijians. For example, groups of young people spent a day snorkeling in Natewa Bay, learning its ecology from marine biologists at Ocean Ventures. Another day they visited our cocoa farm and heard about the benefits of agroforestry. They tasted our chocolate and considered the benefits of various farms that include high value crops, but don’t destroy the basic ecology to grow them. They returned home with stories to tell, and we were thrilled when community elders requested the same experience for themselves a few weeks later.

The German Embassy in New Zealand deserves special mention, as the forward-looking donor who helped launch the program. Thanks to their financial support, we received much needed funds to pay staff and bills, while the young people had a fun and hands-on learning experience.

The program has been successful and will continue alongside international tourism in 2022. The next phase will place more emphasis on community tourism and exchange visits between communities that are currently working to develop tourism experiences. In the spirit of social enterprise, Duavata companies plan to integrate these kinds of activities into their regular work as their profitability improves.

These activities are all very much in line with the recommendations of a 2020 International Finance Corporation (IFC) study on tourism in Vanua Levu after COVID. The report notes that “the policy directions of all major global and regional development agencies underscore the need to focus tourism revival efforts on ‘rebuilding better’, with an emphasis on a more sustainable tourism sector, inclusive and resilient. “

While small, sustainable tourism businesses have been occupied at the grassroots level, progress has also been made at higher strategic levels. The Strategic Framework for Sustainable Tourism in the Pacific was developed during the period 2020-2021 and was endorsed by Pacific Tourism Ministers a few weeks ago. On September 27, World Tourism Day, Fijian Minister of Trade, Tourism, Transport and Commerce Faiyaz Koya confirmed Fiji’s commitment to sustainable tourism.

Progress has been made up and down, but there seems to be some kind of vacuum in the middle – at the operational level of most of the tourism industry. No new policies for more sustainable tourism have been put in place, and with a potentially huge influx of tourists over the coming months, there are concerns that provisional steps towards sustainable tourism may be lost in the race for economic recovery. .

This concern is not unique to Fiji. Coastal residents of New South Wales in Australia are concerned about the environmental impacts of a higher volume of cruise ships returning to their bays. They ask why the two-year hiatus has not been better used to address areas of conflict between the cruise industry and locals.

About a year before COVID, we saw the huge cruise ships arrive in Savusavu Bay, eclipsing the city. Even then, a cruise ship in town created tensions. As hundreds of tourists took to the streets for just a few hours, small business owners nearly came to blows in their efforts to capture some of the commerce. Ironically, there wasn’t a lot of cash on hand anyway – most of the tourist dollars were diverted by players higher up the chain long before the visitors arrived. We learned that our own tour, for which we charged F $ 25 (around A $ 16.50), was being sold on board for up to A $ 110.

When the cruise ships return to Savusavu, will it be back to this “business as usual” (rather shameful)? The IFC report recommends measures “to improve community benefits, focus on higher value-added expedition cruises, and reduce anxiety around cruise tourism.” Some form of regulation, or a code of conduct, could also help.

International tourists are back, and are welcome – but let’s hope the little shoots of sustainable tourism nurtured over the past year and a half aren’t trampled on in the rush to resorts. The pressure is very strong for businesses to recoup lost revenue, and occupancy rates are reportedly high for months to come, as vacation-hungry tourists encounter desperate airlines and resorts in a frenzy of offers and offers. Now would be a good time to push through a practical policy in support of a more sustainable tourism industry in Fiji.

GREEN BAY, Wisconsin – Sometimes they’re intentional and other times they’re improvised. But whatever the driving force behind some of Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ memorable catchphrases and catchphrases, they generally turn out to be good.

This season brought another: Week 6, when Rodgers beat the Chicago Bears for the fifth time in a row and the 22nd time in 27 starts.

When Rodgers screamed his entire existence he owned the Bears and still owns them, it went viral thanks to the Fox TV camera in the Soldier Field end area which captured the video and sound.

It was very much in the character of the self-confident Rodgers, who faces the Bears again on Sunday night at Lambeau Field (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC).

“I still own you”

BAD MAN. @ AaronRodgers12

: #GBvsCHI on FOX
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/lHghsq962t

– NFL (@NFL) October 17, 2021

Rodgers said this week he didn’t regret what he said after his 6-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter of their 24-14 win over the Bears on Oct. 17.

But he made it clear this week that he was talking to Chicago fans, not Bears players when he said, “All my fucking life I own you. I still own you. I still own you.”

He said it was caused by a woman in the stands giving him a middle finger with both hands.

Packers running back Aaron Jones said at the time: “What can you say? He’s right.”

“Shhh”

The 2012 season had started badly. The Packers were 2-3 heading into a prime-time game with the Houston Texans 5-0. Their offense stuttered and Rodgers threw four interceptions in the first five games.

After a six touchdown performance in a 42-24 win, Rodgers gave a post-game interview to NBC’s Michele Tafoya, who asked, “What do you think you said to the critics tonight? “

Rodgers just let out a sound, “Shhh. “

Rodgers may have gotten the idea for his reaction from a Pizza Hut commercial he shot earlier that year. This ad showed him silencing someone and saying, “Less talking, more eating.”

Rodgers said after the game, “It’s almost better when people have a bit of doubts about us, I think. We sort of come together. People tried to tear us apart this week and we stuck together and found our motivation. “

Regardless of the inspiration to silence the critics, it started a five-game winning streak in which Rodgers threw 17 touchdowns and just one interception. In total, the Packers have won nine of their last 11 games to finish 11-5 and win the NFC North for the second straight season.

“RELAX”

In 2014, the Packers started 1-2 for the third straight season. In the previous two, they bounced back to qualify for the playoffs.

Rodgers hasn’t seen this year differently.

Yet on the outside there seemed to be more angst and panic – perhaps because Rodgers himself was starting slowly. He failed to even throw 200 yards in two of the first three games and was on track for the lowest completion percentage of his career to date.

On September 23, two days after a 19-7 loss to the Detroit Lions, Rodgers delivered a message on his weekly radio show on ESPN Milwaukee.

“Five letters here just for everyone over there in Packer-land: RELAX,” Rodgers said as he slowly read the letters one by one. “Relax. Everything will be alright. “

The Packers lost just twice more in the regular season to finish 12-4 and reach the NFC Championship game, where they lost in overtime to Seattle. Rodgers won the second of his three MVPs for this season.

“Hold the table”

On November 23, 2016, Rodgers told media gathered in his locker for his regular midweek press conference that despite their 4-6 record and four-game losing streak, he believed they could “win the table. – which means winning the rest of their games.

It wasn’t so much a prediction as it was a message to the rest of his team.

“It’s an expression of confidence,” Packers coach Mike McCarthy said at the time. “That’s a statement he made. I read it like everyone else. I think it just shows what’s going on internally, but the point is we have to win the next game. We all understand. this part. “

It became a galvanizing moment. Six straight wins to end the regular season have earned them the NFC North title. Two more playoff wins put them in the NFC Championship game, where they lost to the Atlanta Falcons.

“Beautiful mystery”

In the days leading up to last season’s NFC Championship, Rodgers was asked if this might be his last best shot at a second Super Bowl with the Packers, given they had just named Jordan Love as his possible replacement.

“Hopefully there will be more opportunities, but I don’t know,” Rodgers said at the time. “I mean, really not. This stuff is out of my control. My future is a beautiful mystery, I think.

After the Packers lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC title game, Rodgers threw himself into the roster with an unknown future, starting an offseason filled with speculation about his return.

This included the April report that he was unhappy with the organization and did not want to return to the Packers, which was not resolved until the day before training camp opened in July.

ANNA Duggar stays with her husband Josh as her child pornography trial continues.

It comes as news broke that Josh’s sister Jill and brother Jedidiah may take a stand in his Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) bomb lawsuit.

Jill and Jedidiah are expected to testify in the case, however, it is not clear whether it will be for the prosecution or the defense.

Former 19 Kids and Counting star Josh Duggar was charged earlier this year with two counts of downloading and possessing child pornography.

Josh, who has pleaded not guilty, has been charged with possessing sick images of CSAM which were “the worst of the worst” authorities have ever seen.

Josh’s trial is expected to last until early this week. If found guilty, he faces up to 20 years in prison.

Read our live blog on Josh Duggar’s essay for the latest news and updates …

Yet as Noihsaf grew so did the problems. Posts usually disappear whenever an Instagram upgrade occurs. And it’s hard to get help, according to Lindello, who set up a backup account to deal with the challenges. Earlier this year, she became a paid advertiser, giving the platform $ 500 to see if it would result in better attention to her issues, but the recent outage, which began on November 1, proves that this is not the case. Although Noihsaf is an LLC, Lindello’s attempts for years to have the brand “verified” on Instagram with a blue check mark, a process she heard would provide access to troubleshooting help, have not been approved.

“Instagram is promoting itself as this community builder and supporter of small business and that’s exactly what we did. We have built this amazing and robust community. And now we are completely punished, ”Lindello said, speculating that“ maybe we are being overlooked because we don’t have the advertising funds like these big companies do ”.

Obtaining individual human support has been particularly difficult, said Lindello. Some Instagram employees referred her to Facebook’s help center, which then referred her to Instagram.

A spokesperson for Meta emailed Ad Age the following statement: “We know it can be frustrating to go through any kind of disruption as a small business. We strive to make our tools simple and easy to use and to offer free self-service advice for all businesses. Additionally, all advertisers can get 1: 1 support through chat concierge or messaging channels by clicking “SUPPORT” from our help resource page. ”

Still, small business advocates say the platform is simply not set up to offer support at a level that would help a company like Noihsaf or its peers grow their businesses. Jones said Instagram simply lacks the infrastructure from a customer support standpoint to help small brands that depend on it for revenue generation.

“They are not put in place in any capacity of support from a customer service perspective for any of the small or large businesses that depend on them,” she said. “If they were really working with the intention of maintaining a strong engagement of businesses large and small on their platforms, they should have genuine customer service that they needed to engage with on a regular basis,” she added, noting the accessibility of customer support. operations at Square and Squarespace, for example.

Jones urges her clients, which include creative founders and entrepreneurs such as wedding designers, florists, ceramists and executives in the film and television industry, to avoid what she calls “co- addiction ”with social platforms. She estimates that she spends between 30% and 40% of her time helping clients navigate the effectiveness of these platforms and explore alternatives.

In Lindello’s case, that means creating Noihsaf’s own website, a project she has been working on for several months. The membership-based site will function on its own, like a Poshmark, without relying on Instagram, which Lindello can continue to use as a marketing tool for content and designer interviews, for example. Its site is expected to roll out in beta later this month, with the expectation that it will be fully operational by January 1.

“People are logging in and checking Instagram just to watch Noihsaf Bazaar – we’ve totally powered the machine,” she said. “There are many factors involved in the change of platform, but the most important is that we cannot provide the level of service to our community, we cannot continue to grow our community on Instagram. From day one we were at their mercy.

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