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Sophomore finds inspiration from son on field Sports | Page 4
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Wednesday, April 4, 2012
News 1, 2 Arts&Life 3 Sports 4 Views 5 Classifieds 6 Games 6
Volume 99 | Issue 42
ntdaily.com
The Student Newspaper of the University of North Texas
Students take shelter from storm Room and board fees to increase NICOLE BALDERAS Senior Staff Writer
PHOTO BY TYLER CLEVELAND/VISUALS EDITOR
TAMS students, including freshman Prathibha Juturu (right), wait on the bottom floor of McConnell Hall after a tornado warning was issued for Denton County on Tuesday afternoon. Two tornadoes spun violently through the Dallas-Fort Worth area causing “considerable damage,” the National Weather Service reported. The Storm Prediction Center placed northern Texas under a “slight” risk for severe weather and tornadoes Tuesday.
UNT announced back-toback tuition increases last week, calling for a 3.95 percent spike in undergraduate tuition for both fall 2012 and 2013 and a onetime increase of $25 per credit hour for graduate students in fall 2012. In addition to tuition increases, a net increase of 3.6 percent to room and board rates combined was approved. Separately, the increases were 3 percent for room and 4.76 for board rates. “In fall 2011 a request was made for a 2 percent increase in room rates and a 3.5 percent increase in board rates,” said Tom Rufer, associate vice president of Auxiliary Services. “With that we added new flex dollars to the meal plan in effect. A seven-day meal plan increased by $45, but students were given $75 in flex dollars so we gave back to the students more than we increased.” Rufer, who heads decisions regarding the allocation of room
a nd boa rd funds, said he hopes that services such as these will be available to students from current TOM increases. RUFER “ W e ’r e starting to see some inflation back into the economy,” Rufer said. “Some vendors are starting to increase their cost for supply and delivery. Most of the early information that we’re getting is anticipating gas prices, and we’re trying to budget for that.” According to a book let outlining each item of business that UNT administrators presented to the Board of Regents last week, market prices have risen 9 percent for beef and 5 percent for chicken - two of campus dining’s most widely used protein sources. Coupled with food cost increases is the increase in gas prices.
See FEE on Page 2
City council delays food ordinances discussion NICHOLAS CAIN Intern
The Denton City Council approved several proposals at its bi-monthly meeting last night, but the passing of new proposed food ordinances was delayed. Discussion of the new ordinances, which would include more locations for food trucks to be stationed within the city, was postponed after questions arose during a closed-door work session earlier in the day. Food trucks are currently allowed in designated spots, including parts of the UNT campus. “Some of the other members of the council who had not known too much about the new food
ordinances had questions about the many things that were being looked at,” City Councilman Kevin Roden said. “Hopefully once we work through these issues we can bring it back at a later meeting.” The council unanimously approved four considerations involving the Citizens Board Advisory Committee, which would oversee the dispersion of several million dollars to reimburse bonds and other obligations owed from the city, some of which date back to 2003. About $49 million was proposed to go back to the “City of Denton Certificates of Obligations, Series 2012,” which would cover fund activ-
ities through electric, water and wastewater as well as general government activities. Another $42 million was proposed to go toward the “City of Denton General Obligation Refunding and Improvement Bonds, Series 2012,” which would authorize the issuance of the funds to certain bonds. The council meeting also covered agenda items such as the appointment of board members to a bond advisory committee for the 2012 street bonds and announced t he Nat iona l Communit y Development Week, which will held April 9-13.
PHOTO BY PATRICK HOWARD/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Mayor Mark Burroughs issues a proclamation for the National Community Development Week with Sheryl English, GeSee CITY on Page 2 rard Hudspeth and John Siegmund at the Denton City Council meeting Tuesday evening at City Hall.
Research centers look to Aston resigns, accepts prevent disease disasters deal with Longhorns HOLLY H ARVEY
BRETT MEDEIROS
Faculty and students at UNT’s epidemiology laboratories are researching how to best respond to disease disasters and prevent outbreaks from wreaking havoc. Epidemiology is the study of the control and circulation of diseases. Researchers at the Computational Epidemiology Research Laboratory (CERL) and the Center for Computational Epidemiology and Response Analysis (CeCERA) are working to create detailed models of how infectious outbreaks such as malaria occur and how to respond effectively to disease emergencies, according to computer science and engineering graduate student Jorge Reyes-Silveyra, who works at CERL. “Our role would be to create models that are capable of telling people what an outbreak can look like and to help in the decision-
For the second consecutive offseason, the Mean Green will begin a nationwide search to find its next women’s basketball head coach after UNT Athletic Di rector R ick V i l la r rea l accepted the resignation of Karen Aston on Tuesday, effective immediately. On Tuesday, Texas introduced Aston as its fourth women’s basketball coach in program history. “I would like to thank North Texas and everyone involved in t he program for giving me the tremendous opportunity to coach —Rick Villarreal t he Mea n Green,” Aston sa id i n a statement. “I UNT Athletic Director will always be grateful to Rick Villarreal and [UNT President] V. Lane Rawlins was relieved of her dut ies for giving me the chance March 17. In her only season as head to coach and be around a great program with great coach, Aston guided the Mean
Senior Staff Writer
Senior Staff Writer
GRAPHIC COURTESY OF CECERA
An emergency road map is simulated on RE-PLAN. Created by the CeCERA, REPLAN allows public health professionals to examine traffic flow, personnel supply and parking around points of distribution, or PODS. making,” Reyes-Silveyra said. Computer models use variables such as the type of disease and the period of time that a disease is infectious in a human to model how an outbreak spreads. Variables such as gender and the strength of an immune system can affect how people are
infected, Reyes-Silveyra said. “If two people get the same disease, they may react very differently,” Reyes-Silveyra said. “One might not even get sick, and the other may be in bed for 10 days.”
See CENTERS on Page 2
kids. North Texas is a special place that I will always hold dear to my heart, and I wish them nothing but success and the best moving forward.” Aston was introduced as the UNT women’s head coach last April after Shanice Stephens
“...we are appreciative of the strides she [Aston] made in out program...”
Green to a 15-16 record. The tea m w e n t 5 -2 5 in Stephens’ final season in the 20102011 season. KAREN U n d e r ASTON A ston, t he team had the second biggest year-to-year turnaround in UNT history. This will be Aston’s second st ay w it h t he L ong hor n s a f ter she spent 1998-2006 as an assistant head coach under then-head coach Jody Conradt. “While we are disappointed to lose her [Aston], we are appreciative of t he strides she made in our prog ra m in a short amount of time,” V i l la r rea l sa id. “We w ish Ka ren well a nd w ill beg in work immediately finding the next head coach to continue our ascent.”
Inside City faces fines for chemical spill News | Page 2
Students get physical with Jazzercise Arts & Life | Page 3
This week’s nods and shakes Views | Page 5