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Issue 147, Volume 75
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Board of Regents
Board elects all-female officers Members Ray, Blair and Mosbacher take office in September
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By Ashley Evans The Daily Cougar
For the first time in the University System’s history the Board of Regents has elected all female regents to fill the positions of chair, vice chair, and secretary of the board. UH Law Center alumna Carroll Robertson Ray will serve as the board’s chair. Fellow Law Center
alumna Nelda Luce Blair will serve as vice chair. Journalist and philanthropist Michele (Mica) McCutchen Mosbacher will serve as secretary. Ray, a board member since 2008, will be one of only four women elected to the position.
She will be taking over for threeterm chair Welcome W. Wilson, Sr., for whom Ray holds an enormous amount of respect. “He was a great leader and we are very appreciative for all he has done,” Ray said. Ray currently chairs the board’s
academic and student success committee and says her main goal as chair will be to assist Provost John Antel and his staff in continuing to implement programs which help students reach their see REGENTS, page 8
ATHLETICS
Stadium, arena revamp approved Plans for state-ofthe-art athletic facilities estimated at $120 to $160 million
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By John Brannen The Daily Cougar The dawn of a new era is underway for UH sports after the Athletic Department announced last week plans to build a new football stadium and to renovate Hofheinz Pavilion. “People are excited about it, we’re excited about it. It’s a vision for our department,” Athletic Director Mack Rhoades said. In February, Rhoades called upon international architecture firm AECOM to conduct a $250,000 feasibility study for the University. The department presented the results to the UH System Board of Regents and UH President Renu Khator last week and received the green light to pursue the project. Rhoades said the announcement is greeted with jubilation but there is much to be done. It is estimated the plans will cost anywhere from $120 to $160 million. “We’re going to have to raise quite a bit of money. We’re going to work hard over the next 12 months to do that and hopefully make this vision a reality,” Rhoades said. The move sends a statement to the UH community that the Athletic Department seeks to restore the University’s athletic prestige. “We want to be competitive see ATHLETICS, page 8
Kendra berglund The Daily Cougar
Light rail construction begins
M
etro’s Southeast Corridor extension entered its first phase as crews began digging up utility lines along Wheeler this week. The lines will be moved in preparation for actual construction. Almost 200 faculty, staff, students, and community members packed a conference in May in an effort to voice last-minute concerns with both Metro and City of Houston officials over Metro’s light rail expansion.
New minor merges arts, cultural studies Cougar News Service Beginning this fall, the Honors College will offer a new minor that will focus on the historical, cultural and philosophical factors of art. The program, Creative Work, will be opened to students of all majors. “The Creative Work minor combines fine arts interests with cultural studies such as history or philosophy,” said John Harvey, the Director of UH’s Center for Creative
Work, in a press release. “It’s a minor that’s interested in the study of how art is made.” Harvey will teach Poetics and Performance, which will serve as the foundation course for the program. According to the same press release, other courses include Artists & Their Regions, which explores art and literature within Texas and surrounding areas and, starting Spring 2011, a course titled The City Dionysia, a Greek theater and
philosophy class will be offered. “This minor will provide students with a coherent framework that connects art forms to other studies,” Harvey said in a press release. “It’s completely interdisciplinary. g g John Harvey Students can apply courses to this minor from a range of subjects including women’s
studies, business, music, English, the sciences and more. At the end of four years, students will have an understanding of how all of these topics are integrated with regard to creative works.” Approved courses for the minor include those from the Interdisciplinary Art curriculum, such as Selected Topics in Interdisciplinary Arts and Collaboration Among the Arts. For a complete list of courses visit http://tinyurl.com/2f498nr