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NASA’s final countdown Last mission launched; impact on the future of University unknown Joshua Mann
The Daily Cougar
NASA’s space shuttle program has launched five shuttles on 135 flights since the original launch of the Columbia in April 1981. Each shuttle was designed to last 100 launches, though none of them flew more than 39 times. | Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
NASA’s final shuttle mission, STS-135, was completed without any major problems, and the Atlantis along with its crew
EDitOr’s nOtE Welcome back, Cougars — glad to see you’ve braved the heat and decided the first day of class is important. The Daily Cougar has had a busy summer, and just like the parking lot situation on campus, we’ve made important changes. First of all, we are only going to print the first four days of the school week. However, we are still going to stay true to our name. We wouldn’t keep the Daily in The Daily Cougar for no reason. We will still be putting out new Web content on Fridays and on the weekends to keep you as informed as possible. Even in this economic downturn, we’re still hiring skilled copy editors, cartoonists, photographers and staff writers. If you feel like you have something to contribute, don’t hesitate to apply. We expect our website and social media presence to be stronger than ever this semester. It’s our goal to provide you with what you need — therefore, if you have a question, just ask. Whether you’re a part-time student or you live on campus, let us know if you see something interesting; that’s why we exist. You can tweet, Facebook, email or call us if you know something we don’t. And please, don’t be afraid to come into the newsroom in the UCSatellite and talk to us face-to-face. We love uninvited guests. — Jack Wehman, Editor in chief
returned to Earth 13 days later on July 21. “Today, Americans across the country watched with pride as four of our fellow citizens blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center in the Space Shuttle Atlantis, and America reached for the heavens once more,” President Barack Obama said in a statement on July 8, shortly after the final launch of NASA’s Space Shuttle
program. But as the Atlantis rolled to a stop, Americans were left with a question: What’s next? In the long term, Obama has charged NASA with the mission of leaving Earth’s orbit and ultimately sending Americans to Mars, but in the meantime thousands of NASA employees NASA continues on page 2
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Houston welcomes Walker as new VPSA
Admin brings studentcentered approach to UH Julian Jimenez
The Daily Cougar
Active summer for Coogs
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speech pathology graduate student leads children through language exercises as part of Project TALK. Learn more about this and see what Cougars have been up to this summer on page 12. | Courtesy of Ramsay McCoy
After being confirmed at a UH Board of Regents meeting on Aug. 17, a seven month search has come to an end as J. Richard Walker stepped up as the new Vice President for Student Affairs for the University. “I’m very excited to be a part of the UH community,” Walker said. “I’m very impressed with the students, faculty and staff and their enthusiasm for being a Tier One University,” Walker said. Walker brings 29 years of experience to Houston, with an extensive resume that includes administrative positions at both public and private institutions. He previously served as the
J. Richard Walker served as associate vice president for student affairs at the University of Miami for the past eight years. | Courtesy of The Michigan Daily Associate Vice President for Student Affairs at the University of Miami, the campus where he has worked since 1987. He spearheaded a number of student-centered initiatives at Miami, which includes the design and development of a $68 million Student Center Project that expanded the campus Student Activities Center and University Center. “To me it is about enhancing the student learning experience WALKER continues on page 6
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