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Issue 28, Volume 77
SPECIAL SERIES: WHERE IS YOUR MONEY GOING?
New UC to cause fee increase Joshua Mann
THE DAILY COUGAR The University will be increasing the University Center fee from $85 to $135 per semester in the fall of 2012 in order to pay for planned renovations to the University Center under the University Center Transformation Project. The renovations are expected to cost about $80 million, $77.5 million of which will come from student fees over the next 25 years, said Cameron McHugh, the Student Government Association’s administration and finance committee chair.
CAMPUS
Commstock summit holds three days of workshops The UH International Association of Business Communicators will host Commstock, a three-day event. Topics covered consist of a Social Media Summit Tuesday, Career Discovery Day on Wednesday and a Media Homecoming on Thursday. For questions and additional information about the location and times of the events, visit UHIABC’s website at www.uhiabc.wordpress. com or email uhiabc@gmail.com. — Deisy Enriquez
CAMPUS
‘Communograph’ lead artists speak at public art discussion Artists Rick Lowe and Ashley Hunt will have a public forum on art Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Dudley Recital Hall of the Fine Arts Building as a part of the exhibit, “Communograph: Mapping Through Creative Action.” Admission is free and welcomes all faculty and students including extended invitations to the public. — Karishma Sakrouja and Saniya Maya
CAMPUS
UH Health Center to give free breast cancer exams In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Health Center will offer free manual breast exams from 9:30 a.m. to noon on Wednesday and 1 to 2 p.m. on Oct. 20. All students, faculty and staff with a photo ID are welcome. For more information, call the Health Center at 713-743-5151. — Zahra Ahmed
Improvements include extra space for retail and student organizations, a complete refit of the heating and ventilation systems, and a 24 hour student lounge, McHugh said. “If we have a good UC, it brings attention to the school. Students feel more comfortable; they’re more likely to hang out there with their friends and participate in campus activities,” McHugh said. There will also be a few changes to the University Center dining. “They’re going to get rid of Chili’s, because nobody goes there; it’s a waste of money anyway,” said McHugh. “So they’re going to put something in there that actually generates revenue.”
Rather than demolishing the current University Center and building a new one, the renovations will be done in phases, so the University Center is never completely closed to students. “It’s going to take slightly longer to do it this way, but we’ll have a UC (throughout the construction),” McHugh said. The majority of students are in favor of a gradual increase in fees in exchange for better UC facilities, according to a survey taken in November 2008. “A lot of people have said that they would
BY THE NUMBERS
$80 Million
Total projected price of the project.
96.9
Percentage of the project being paid for through student fees.
$50
Increase in student fees for fall of 2012.
2012
Projected start date.
2015
Projected completion date.
UC FEE continues on page 8
NATION
Occupy Wall Street protests spread to Houston Students, Houstonians gather to rally peacefully against ‘1 percent’ Brian Jensen
THE DAILY COUGAR The 99-percenter movement reached Houston this Thursday in the form of Occupy Houston — a grassroots movement which is “dedicated to ending the corporate corruption of democracy,” according to occupyhouston.org. The protest began with a meet and greet in Market Square Park and continued with a march to JPMorgan Chase Tower before reaching its
final destination at City Hall. All protestors were then given a chance to address the crowd, which repeated the message in order to amplify the volume without a permit. Estimates of Thursday’s attendance ranged from 200 to 400 protestors, with many carrying signs displaying slogans ranging from “Reinstate Glass Steagall” and “Burn Your Credit Cards” to “I will believe corporations are people when Texas executes one” and “Bail Out Students, Not Banksters.” UH was represented by members of many student groups including the International Socialist Organization, People Against Corporate Tax Evasion, Fair Labor Action Committee and
Students for a Democratic Society. Other activist groups present included Houston Freethinkers, Houston Peace News and Infowars.com. The protest was also heavily attended by the local media, including Fox, NBC, CultureMap, Houston Chronicle, WB and a helicopter from ABC 13. When asked what the message of the occupation movement was, a spokesperson said it was “catalyzed around our frustration with corporate excess” as well as bailouts and lack of accountability among corporate CEOs, who she said “have swindled billions of Americans’ dollars and ruined their lives.” She also encouraged all UH students who
Chi Omega Donation
T
he ladies of the Chi Omega sorority, their alumni and UH faculty attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the M.D. Anderson Memorial Library Saturday. The sorority donated $25,000 to the library to establish the Chi Omega Cougar Corner, which is located in the Learning Commons. The corner includes two high-powered computers for student use. This is the first donation a Greek organization has made to the University. | Jack Wehman/The Daily Cougar