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Robertson Stadium parking lots close for game day In preparation for the Friday night football game against Central Florida — which will be nationally broadcasted through ESPN2 — UH Parking and Transportation and Houston Athletics will close the Robertson Stadium parking lots beginning at 11 p.m. today. Lots 12A, 12B and 15F will remain secured throughout Friday and only people with a Houston football parking pass will be able to access these lots. Faculty and staff with a parking permit for lot 15D will be allowed to enter that lot until 11 a.m. Friday, but they must move their car by 5 p.m. A flagged area in lot 9B will be available for faculty and staff with a lot 15D or 15F parking permit. — Sara Nichols/The Daily Cougar
UH event to raise awareness of human trafficking The UH Dept. of Residental Life and the Houston Rescue & Restore Coalition will host a human trafficking awareness event at 6:30 p.m. today in the ballroom of Oberholtzer Hall in the Quadrangle. MSNBC anchor Richard Liu will be among the guest speakers at the Call for Student Activism event. Liu has reported on child trafficking and exposed the issue from Ghana to the brothels of Indonesia. The evening will consist of a reception, fair trade and art exhibit. Admission is free for the public. — Paulina Lam/The Daily Cougar
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Issue 53, Volume 76
Thursday ®
November 4, 2010
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Group tackles debt issue UH student joins national blogging competition in an attempt to solve finances Ashley Evans
THE DAILY COUGAR Debt is a four-letter word that is all too familiar to most Americans, especially young adults. UH Graduate College of Social Work student Steven Hayes is no exception. In order to solve his financial woes, Hayes is one of five contestants from across the US participating in a “Money Makeover” contest. The finalists were chosen based on
video submissions that detailed their need for a money makeover and their short-term financial goals. “Although all the students chosen were in different places and stages in life, they all had similar issues managing their finances,” said financial literacy and consumer advocacy manager for Higher One Mary Johnson. “What made Steven’s video stand out was that he talked about taking time to re-examine his lifestyle and find ways to do things for free.” The contest, sponsored by Higher One and the New York Stock Exchange’s Money Sense, was created with the goal of helping students learn how to better manage their money and achieve financial freedom. The top five videos submitted were
chosen to be featured bloggers on Higher One’s Game Time site and the contestants received $500 to put toward their goal. The finalists submit weekly blogs detailing their journey to financial freedom and in November. The person with the most votes and the most improvement will receive an additional $1,500 reward. Hayes said that his debt crisis is the result of travel and entertainment expenses and he is currently taking steps to change those spending habits. “I got rid of my extra cable channels and used the money I would have spent on my cable bill towards my credit card bill instead,” Hayes said. “I also stopped MONEY continues on page 3
Debate team all rank in contest Weekly meetings leads to victory in Colorado Travis Masterson
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ON CAMPUS Semi-Annual Career Fair It’s that time of the year to get your career in shape by attending the career fair! Come by the UC Houston Room from 5 to 8 p.m. and visit with employers from various industries. The fair is open to all majors. Be sure to dress professionally and bring copies of your resume!
AROUND TOWN An Evening with Heart Seattle rock band Heart will play tonight at the House of Blues at 9 p.m. Heart has seen several different lineups, but two members, sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson, have been constant members of the band since its inception in 1973. Find more campus and local events or add your own at thedailycougar.com/calendar
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The UH Mock Trial Debate Team all ranked at the mock trial competitions after extensive preparation. The team showed the extent of their efforts at the Air Force Academy’s first annual Thunderbird Invitational in Colorado Springs, Colo. on Oct. 21. This was the team’s first competition of the season. “This year, we’ve been meeting every week to review the case and detail our strategy. With the help of our attorney coach and UH Law Center grad Elise DeBroeck, we were able to structure a very strong case,” captain Joe Mendoza said. “For the month heading up to the debate, we met twice a week to practice our examination questions and statements.” Every member of the team was ranked at least once at the competition, and some ranked five out of eight times. Mendoza ranked every time, which led to his winning of the competition’s Outstanding Attorney Award. “I’m humbled to have been the one to win it, but I can’t stress enough that it was a team effort,” Mendoza said. “Our team worked very well together, so it’s not my award. The DEBATE continues on page 3
The University Center Transformation Project presented their plans of a newly built and renovated facility to the SFAC committee at Wednesday’s meeting in the UC. | Jario Razo/The Daily Cougar
SFAC continues to see increase Hiba Adi
THE DAILY COUGAR The Student Fees Advisory Committee continued their four-day long session on Wednesday to discuss various campus groups’ budget requests. The Wednesday meeting followed the previous day’s trend — showing that most organizations and departments asked for more money than last year, with the exception of two. Frontier Fiesta is a student-run, studentled festival hosted by the University to promote the scholarship, community and education of UH students, faculty, staff and the Houston community, as stated on its website. The organization asked for $209,420, which is slightly less than last year’s request. According to their presentation, the most consistent area in funding is the Frontier Fiesta Committeemen program, which encourages prominent alumni and community members to sponsor the event through small donations.
“We’re working hard and we definitely want to provide the caliber of what the event should be, and for the whole University to participate,” Director of Productions Joseph Boudreaux said. “We’re definitely passionate.” The Academic Achievers asked for $262,923, which is around $20,000 less than last year. The group receives other funding through alumni and fundraising. “The center has to work with the very little money we get from the school and make it last,” program manager Rebeca Trevino said. “Our sole fundraising event last year was not very good, but this year it was a lot better.” The Athletics department asked for $32,934,348, which is more than they asked for last year. According to the presentation, the challenging economy and “the John and Rebecca Moores Endowment are likely not to give way proceeds for the third straight year. The $2,308,000 in operating revenue provided by this endowment reflects an enormous challenge for athletics to balance an increased SFAC continues on page 3