t h e o f f i c i a l s t u d e n t n e w s pa p e r o f t h e u n i v e r s i t y o f h o u s to n s i n c e 1 9 3 4
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Issue 110, Volume 77
Renovations cost UH $349.5 million Expenses to go to rebuild of SPECIAL REPORT UC, classrooms, Central Plant, fire alarm updates for buildings Construction Max Gardner
Every Tuesday, The Daily Cougar will discuss the University’s current and future construction plans and how they will affect the student body.
THE DAILY COUGAR
April 3: Construction overview
More than $349.5 million will be used toward the construction and renovation of several academic and student facilities around campus, as well as for some offcampus sites. One of the more anticipated is the estimated $80 million University Center Transformation project, which includes the UC and the UC Underground renovations along with the construction of two additional attachments on the north and east ends. Student fees will cover 95 percent of the money for this project. “The result will be the complete transformation of this central facility which offers financial, functional and aesthetic benefits to a Tier-One university’s campus,” said project manager Katherine Miller. “It will be the focal point for students, faculty, staff and visitors alike, and we aim for it to be the venue of choice on campus
April 10: Parking and construction April 17: Residence and dining halls Today: Building renovations Track this series at thedailycougar.com/tags/construction for all significant events.” The east addition will be two stories and expand into parking lot 1E near Melcher Hall. The ground floor will include all food service operations, a bookstore support area and a new 400seat theater for classes, movies and other events. The second floor will be composed of several meeting spaces, including two large event spaces, Miller said. Also two stories, the north addition will be constructed over the UC Underground. The first floor will house most of the student organization spaces that currently reside in there. The second floor
The Classroom and Business Building will be completed in spring 2012 and will primarily be used for business classes. | Emily Chambers/The Daily Cougar will include a new Student Government Association Senate chamber and other UC special components. An elevated walkway will connect the
north building to the UC, creating a multiuse plaza in between that will feature CONSTRUCTION continues on page 3
SECURITY
Patient information compromised
Joshua Mann
THE DAILY COUGAR The UH College of Optometry posted a notice on their website Friday saying there had been a digital security breach at one of their affiliated neighborhood clinics off-campus. On February 22, an unknown attacker broke into La Nueva Casa de Amigos Eye Clinic’s database, which contained 7,000 patient records from as far back as Jan. 2006, from somewhere outside the US and deleted the records. “We have no proof that (the) information was copied,” said Chief Information Security Officer for UH and the UH System Mary Dickerson. The information contained within the records included names, personal and contact information, medical information and insurance information. Although Social Security and drivers license numbers were not among the personal information stolen, affected patients are still encouraged to take steps to
protect themselves from identity theft, said the notice. “Please know that if anyone from La Nueva Casa de Amigos Eye Clinic contacts you by telephone about this incident, you will not be asked to provide or confirm your social security number, credit card information or driver’s license number,” the announcement said. The reason there was nearly a month’s delay between the incident and the notification, Dickerson said, was that an investigation was undertaken first to ensure the accuracy of the information sent. Also, the notification process itself “took some time to address” because of how extensive it was, she said. In response to the break-in, UH has sent letters to notify those whose information was compromised and is working with the clinic to install additional network protections. “There were many protections in place,” Dickerson said. “Unfortunately, there are many different ways that information can be compromised.”
IDENTITY THEFT
The College of Optometry posted some precautions affected individuals could take to protect themselves against identity theft. ! ! Get a free credit report and check it for any irregularities. ! ! Make a fraud alert on your credit files through a credit bureau. ! ! Visit www.ftc.gov/idtheft or call (877) 382-4357 to learn more about identity theft.
For more information on the incident or to see the complete notification letter, go to www.opt.uh.edu/news/casa-english. cfm Source: College of Optometry website
While there were measures taken to protect the data beforehand, onsite UH databases tend have a much hardier security system. “Because this was a remote clinic, some of those protections were not in place,” Dickerson said. UH is working with law enforcement, including the FBI, to investigate the breach, Dickerson said. news@thedailycougar.com
IN BRIEF NSM
Lecture to discuss obesity, muscle disease, hormones
The College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics is kicking off it’s Friends of NSM Distinguished Lecture Series with “Obesity and Muscle Disease” from 7 to 8 p.m. Wednesday in the UH Hilton Waldorf Astoria Ballroom. The lecture, given by Stanley J. Korsmeyer, a professor from Harvard Medical School, will discuss Korsmeyer’s hormone research that identifies the benefits of exercise, according to a UH press release. The lecture series will host five speakers talking about “Science Impact Health and Society.” The event is free and open to the public. — Cougar News Services
MSA
The event will feature live performances, refreshments, a film screening, games and a lecture. Today’s event will include performances and henna, and will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Philip Guthrie Hoffman breezeway. Wednesday will feature a showcase of Islamic art and architecture, an observation of Islamic prayer, games and prizes from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the PGH breezeway, followed by a screening of Jihad on Terror at 5:30 p.m. in the University Center Baltic Room. Thursday will feature a multipanel lecture titled “Before and After” on Islamic converts at 6 p.m. in the A.D. Bruce Religion Center, and Friday will be open congressional Muslim Friday prayer from 1:30 p.m. in the Religion Center. — Cougar News Services
Islamic Awareness Week to start today, end Friday
CORRECTIONS
The Muslim Student Association is hosting Islamic Awareness Week until Friday.
Report errors to editor@thedailycougar.com. Corrections will appear here as necessary.