The Daily Texan 2019-02-21 by The Daily Texan

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

volume

119,

issue

NEWS

OPINION

LIFE&ARTS

SPORTS

Aerospace engineering professor to speak at TED conference. PA G E 2

The University needs more safe spaces for tribal students on campus. PA G E 4

New app makes affordable hairstyling more accessible for students of color. PA G E 8

Hamm Jr. finally seeing results after working for extra minutes. PA G E 6

UNIVERSITY

104

CITY

UT creates cybersecurity certificate program

Council discusses bike safety

By Hayden Baggett @hansfirm

UT is launching a Cyber Academy Defense Certificate Program in March, which is designed to prepare students for careers in cybersecurity and satisfy the demand for trained professionals in the field. The TEXAS Extended Campus, which offers noncredit online training courses to community members, is implementing the program. Karen Smid, extended campus’ director of enrollment and student services, said the program’s curriculum was developed with the United States Department of Defense and Socratic Arts, a custom-training development company. “(The courses) fit with our mission of providing career readiness training that supports students in their career goals while meeting the needs of employers,” Smid said. UT’s computer science department predicts more than three million unfulfilled jobs in the cybersecurity industry by 2021. The median starting salary for cybersecurity jobs in Austin is $86,000, according to a press release by TEXAS Extended Campus. Smid said the certificate requires the completion of two courses, which span 14 weeks and collectively cost $5,600. After receiving the certificate, Smid said students will be eligible to enroll in an offensive cybersecurity certificate program scheduled to be released later. “It is difficult to predict how many registrants to expect for a brand-new program,” Smid said. “Five people have already registered for course one. Ultimately, we hope that our programs will train at least 150 people a year to begin new cybersecurity careers.” Ray Bareiss, Socratic Arts’ senior vice president, said his company developed the program

CYBER

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eddie gaspar | the daily texan staff A white bike stands near the intersection of San Jacinto boulevard and 23rd street, near the site of where 39-year-old cyclist Anthony John Diaz fatally collided with a CapMetro bus on Jan. 28th. The city’s Bicycle Advisory Council called for CapMetro and the University to make safety changes for bicyclists at their meeting Feb. 19.

Bicycle Advisory Council recommends UT make changes to San Jac corridor. By Jackson Barton @Jackson_Brton

eading off the eight names of the cyclists killed on Austin roads since their last meeting, James Lentz said the mood at the Bicycle Advisory Council meeting felt noticeably more frustrated than normal on Tuesday evening. “There’s not really any reason why people need to die just trying to get where they need to go,” said Lentz, council member and civil engineering senior. “It’s almost like that should be a given, but it’s not.” The bicycle council, an advisory voice to Austin City Council, called on the University and Capital Metro to enact rapid changes to

the stretch of San Jacinto Boulevard between Dean Keeton Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Proposed changes include elimination of private vehicle access to the corridor and protected bicycle lanes, which separate cyclists from buses. The committee’s recommendations come weeks after a cyclist was killed on San Jacinto Boulevard, colliding with a CapMetro bus on Jan. 28. As a temporary solution, the committee recommended the immediate elimination of angled parking spaces and addition of temporary bike and scooter lanes until a permanent solution is implemented. The council asked the University to send a representative to the meeting to answer

BIKE

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STUDENT GOVERNMENT

SG candidates Lavelle, Krishnan bring fun to election season By Hannah Ortega @_hannahortega_

Through a TikTok account, customized berets and a collaborative Google document, executive alliance candidates Michaela Lavelle and Anilya Krishnan said they want to have fun with their campaign and make students laugh. “We kind of came into this a little unconventionally, I think, but we are really just out here to have a good time, be a refuge maybe for people who don’t feel represented by the other campaigns,” said Lavelle, student body presidential candidate. The duo’s platform, under the slogan “love that for y’all,” was created through a Google Doc available on Facebook. There students can write down whatever they want to see on campus. “One platform point that I really liked from our Google Doc was taking all of the sidewalks and roads out of UT and replacing them with water for gondolas … so the turtles can be free to roam from the turtle pond,” said Lavelle, psychology and humanities junior.

Before receiving student suggestions, Lavelle and Krishnan considered the issue of room reservations after experiencing problems with the system. “One (idea) that we kind of started with was changing the room reservation system to a collaborative Google Sheet so that students have access to that, and you can kind of add times that work for you,” Lavelle said. Krishnan, government and history junior, said she liked a proposal for Speedway to be replaced with an airport-like “people mover.” If there aren’t sufficient funds for the project, Krishnan said UT would provide students with Heelys. Another student-suggested platform point involves a Perry-Castañeda Library makeover. “There was a group of students and they asked me if the McCombs (building) was PCL, and I said, ‘No, PCL’s down the street and looks like a prison, you’ll be able to find it,’” Lavelle said. “So I think that it’d be fun to have it be pink.” Krishnan said they want their “campaign for the people” to put

CAMPAIGN

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eddie gaspar | the daily texan staff Michaela Lavalle, left, and Anilya Krishnan are running through a campaign of fun and laughter. Followers of the campaign can suggest campus improvements through a collaborative Google Sheet, such as replacing Speedway with a “people mover.”

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

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S N A P S H O T o f the W E E K

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WORLD

UT professor selected to be first aerospace engineering TED Fellow

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Liza Anderson (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com

MANAGING EDITOR Forrest Milburn (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com

NEWS OFFICE (512) 232-2207 news@dailytexanonline.com The Texan strives to present all information fairly, accurately and completely. If we have made an error, let us know about it. Call (512) 232-2217 or e-mail managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com.

AUSTIN WEATHER TODAY Feb. 21

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I’m having a mid-life crisis at 21.

copyright moriba jah, and reproduced with permission Moriba Jah, an associate aerospace engineering professor, will join a class of 20 visionaries from around the world to deliver talks in Vancouver this April. He will be the first aerospace engineer to ever speak at the global TED conference.

By Howard Yong @howard_yongg

Moriba Jah has been selected as a 2019 TED Fellow. He will be the first aerospace engineer to ever speak at the global TED conference. Jah, an associate aerospace engineering professor, will join a class of 20 visionaries from around the world to deliver talks on a global stage in Vancouver this April. “It’s the biggest achievement of my life,” Jah said. Since the program began in 2009. the TED Fellowship has grown into a network of influencers from more than 96 countries. Each year, thousands of people apply and 20 are selected to speak at the global TED conference. In the 2019 class of TED Fellows, 12 countries are represented and speakers will discuss topics ranging from journalism in the Middle East to advances in biotechnology. Jah’s research is part of his initiative to promote environmentalism in a resource shared by all of humanity: space. “Think of it as space sustainability,” Jah said. “What we’re doing to the oceans with plastics we’re doing to space, and I’m trying to prevent that runaway-train type of problem.” Jah and his team at UT have constructed AstriaGraph, the first knowledge graph, or visual searchable database, for tracking space debris orbiting the Earth. AstriaGraph draws data from multiple sources of information, but the largest source is the U.S.

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students at ease this election season. “I think that a lot of people, despite everything that was going on, found (Texas Travesty) campaign pretty funny last

Strategic Command, a section of the U.S. Department of Defense that is responsible for nuclear deterance, space and cybersecurity, Jah said. Others include amateur telescopes, industry contributors and commercial research laboratories. Jah’s ultimate objective is to find techniques for minimizing collisions of man-made material and pollution around the Earth’s orbit. “We’d like to present a body of evidence to people at the United Nations or even our own government saying, ‘If you want to pass space laws, policies and regulations, they should be scientifically informed,’” Jah said. “So here’s the science, rate of growth and risks.” Jah’s influence isn’t just on the international stage — he’s also a prominent leader and researcher on campus, his students said. “He’s always traveling to conferences, hosting seminars, spreading word on what we do here … and bringing problems and ideas back to inspire us,” said Justin Spurbeck, a second-year aerospace engineering graduate student. Shiva Iyer, another second-year aerospace engineering graduate student, worked very closely with Jah on constructing AstriaGraph. “Jah is very passionate and energetic … He’s given me free reign to architect projects in kind of any way,” Iyer said. “He has a good idea of what he wants from the final product but lets me put my personality into the project without micromanaging.”

year, and I think it brought light for some people when the rest of the campaign season was pretty dark for them,” Krishnan said. “We just kind of wanted to be like a middle ground there and just make people laugh during what can be a pretty serious time on campus.”

eddie gasper | daily texan staff Valeria Rivera, a third year biology and chemistry major, practices at the San Jacinto outdoor amphitheater for a Coco-themed color guard recital later this semester.

Featuring the best from the photo department.

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questions about the 2013 Campus Master Plan. Director of sustainability James Walker agreed to attend the meeting and answer questions about the plan. “We’re constantly in a state of planning, so I think this will be more input,” Walker said. “We don’t have a timeline right now for planned changes on San Jacinto, but their input certainly adds.” The 2013 Campus Master Plan calls for limits on vehicular traffic on the San Jacinto corridor while adding bike paths and a light rail. There is no timeline for these changes. “The real obstacle is … finding the drive to make these things happen,” Lentz said.

“Obviously, the hope here is that by passing a resolution, the (council) could help pressure the University to respond in a timely manner …. Whether they actually do is anybody’s guess.” Student Government passed a resolution the same evening pledging to help the Campus Bike Alliance, which Lentz is president of, by facilitating meetings with Campus Planning on establishing an official timeline for changes. Ben Solder, neuroscience senior and SG speaker of the assembly, said riding down San Jacinto Boulevard can be nerve-wracking. “You have to be constantly looking over your shoulder,” Solder said. “Sometimes the cars that are in angled parking back out pretty suddenly and might be hidden around another car. You definitely ought

to take additional precautions when biking down San Jac just because the way that the parking is set up.” Solder sponsored the resolution passed by SG last night. Walker said the University is waiting for police investigation of the Jan. 28 accident to be completed before announcing any action or timeline. Lentz said it was heartening to see the cycling community come together on the damp evening. “It’s terrible it has to be something like this to get attention paid,” Lentz said. “I hope that the University takes their responsibility to the community seriously, and they recognize their role in this and their role in preventing future deaths of students or otherwise.”

PHOTO CREDIT: TROLLING OLIVES PRODUCTIONS

Editor-in-Chief Liza Anderson

Apply now for $5000 scholarship! One scholarship will be awarded in 2019 to an outstanding college student studying media (or related field) at a university in the Austin area. Application deadline is March 1 . Visit www.awmaustin.org/scholarships for more information regarding qualifications and online application.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

WEST CAMPUS

West Campus cats find ‘purrfect’ homes By Mason Carroll @MasonCCarroll

About five years after rescuing two kittens from a flood, a local bed-and-breakfast owner in West Campus has made it her goal to help as many cats as possible and find them forever homes. Christina Huizar and her boyfriend Patrick Parker created the Cats of West Campus Facebook page three years ago to find homes for stray cats and get them neutered, vaccinated and socialized. So far, they have found homes for a 12 cats and trapped, neutered and returned many more. “Stray cats don’t have a voice, so we have to be their voice and advocate for them,” Huizar said. “We are here to show that they are smart, loving, beautiful creatures who deserve to live in peace and dignity.” Parker said one of their goals is to socialize the cats so they can find them a lasting home. The couple socialized and rescued one cat, who lived at the corner of 22nd and Nueces streets for years, right before developers tore down the apartments near where he lived. “At first I kind of felt like it was a ‘Fake it till you make it’ type situation, like we

armin panjvani | the daily texan staff Cats of West Campus co-founder Christina Huizar waits with a bag of kibble for a cat hiding in the bushes. Huizar created the Cats of West Campus Facebook page to find homes for as many stray cats as possible.

were just hanging up a shingle and pretending to be a rescue organization,” Parker said. “Now it feels more real because we really do it. Every day we’re out there feeding and socializing kitties.”

Huizar said they also want to spread awareness of the importance of the “trap-neuter-return” method and vaccination to prevent overpopulation and the spread of diseases. Parker said a cat

that has a clipped ear has been fixed and vaccinated. “West Campus and UT would be overrun with stray cats if it wasn’t for the tireless work of trappers and great organizations like

the Austin Animal Center,” Huizar said. “If we can open anyone’s heart to the worth of a feral cat, we’ll feel we have done our job.” While the group has no official members, there are

volunteers who help feed the cats and find possible foster homes. “Living in Austin is great, because everyone is so passionate about animal welfare that we constantly meet like-minded individuals on our daily cat rounds,” Huizar said. “Knowing there are other people who also care about these overlooked cats encourages us to keep doing what we’re doing.” Yu-Sheng Lo, an engineering mechanics graduate student, has been volunteering with Cats of West Campus since 2016. Lo said if the cats are happy, he’s happy. “I feel sad for cats or other animals that can’t speak for themselves,” Lo said. “Those cats need to be fed, and (feeding them) can stop them from searching through trash for food, which makes a mess.” As for the future of Cats of West Campus, they are looking to expand their foster program and get more volunteers. “I figured it would fail miserably, but it was worth a shot,” Parker said. “I told Christina if it only helped one cat, then it would be worth it. It’s been successful beyond what we ever expected because it’s helped us find volunteers and people to foster and adopt the kitties.”

UNIVERSITY

UT preserves millions of dead fish for research, data collection By Tien Nguyen @tienjpg

UT’s ichthyology, or fish collection, located at the J.J. Pickle Research Center, is an impressive source of ecological history and data collection, containing more than a million fish specimens. “Imagine a warehouse full of jars of dead fish,” collection manager Adam Cohen said. “It’s much like a library. We can check out jars to researchers around the world, and they return it back to us once they’re done using it for their studies.” Cohen said the preservation process is simple. The specimens are preserved in jars of alcohol, kept in the dark so their pigments don’t fade and stored in an environment with a stable temperature. Clark Hubbs, the first ichthyologist hired at UT in 1949, started the collection on the path to becoming what it is now, said curator Dean Hendrickson. “Hubb’s father was a very

famous ichthyologist, and he grew up running around North America collecting fishes on family vacations,” Hendrickson said. “When he came here to UT, one of the first things that occurred for him to do was to start collecting fish.” Cohen said the collection mainly focuses on freshwater fish and has many unique holdings, including the first ever Prietella phreatophila, a blind cave catfish, collected in Texas. The collection also contains extinct species, including specimens of Gambusia georgei, a tiny freshwater fish from San Marcos, Cohen said. “We have a lot of rare species, a lot of which weren’t rare when they were first collected but are now,” Cohen said. Besides being a storage space for fish specimens, the collection also plays an important role in data collection and ecological conservation, said research associate Gary Garrett. One of the major endeavors

of the collection is the Fishes of Texas project, a collaboration with one of the collection’s primary funders, Texas Parks and Wildlife. Fishes of Texas is an online database with information of every fish collected and observed in Texas dating back to the 1850s, Garrett said. Garrett said any member of the public can access the database. With Texas Parks and Wildlife, UT’s ichthyology collection uses the data to work on native fish conservation areas. “Texas is a huge state, and there are many environmental and resource issues that we’re trying to tackle,” said Garrett. “With the data, we can use algorithms to determine where we should focus our efforts, so we can help the greatest number of species and habitats.” Cohen said natural science collections are important because they give researchers insight into how species have changed over time. “Specimens are a snapshot of an environment at a

anthony mireles | the daily texan staff Collection manager Adam Cohen studies a specimen of fish submerged in alcohol from the over one million specimens available at the J.J. Pickle Research Center’s Department of Integrative Biology.

specific place and time. Every specimen has its last meal contained in its body,” Cohen said. “If you collect a fish species a hundred years ago and you have that preserved, you can go collect that

species again today and compare them.” Cohen said collections like these are establishing the baseline for what is known about species in an area. “Biologists have been

learning how to read or get information from specimens over the years,” Cohen said. “There will be things coming in the future I probably can’t imagine people will be able to do.”

RESEARCH

Researchers study impact of air pollution on public health By Kevin Lokuwaduge @QuotableCow

UT researchers are looking into the long-term effects of air pollution on public health. Corwin Zigler, associate professor in the Department of Women’s Health at the Dell Medical Center, examines the benefits of reducing pollutant emissions. “Since about the 70s … (regulations) and decisions that have been made in the policy realm have been based in science,” Zigler said. “It’s not clear that there’s any (pollution) level that’s safe. Just because (the air is) cleaner doesn’t necessarily mean that it wouldn’t be beneficial to clean it even more.” Austin air is generally clean, but pollution is not evenly distributed, said Joshua Rhodes, a postdoctoral research fellow at the UT Energy Institute. “On the east side, kind of by the big water treatment plants, sometimes our air doesn’t smell very good at all,” Rhodes said. One major source of air pollution is coal-burning power plants. Rhodes said poorer communities tend to be located near these industrial facilities, leading to increased exposure to pollution. “Poor and minority communities tend to have higher exposure

albert lee

cyber

jeb milling

to air pollution,” said Elizabeth Matsui, director of clinical and translational research at Dell Medical School. Another source of pollution is highway traffic. Matsui said people living within 300 to 500 feet from a major highway are more susceptible to health complications caused by air pollution. For example, people living near Interstate 35 will have increased exposure to air pollution compared to people who live near Mopac, because I-35 experiences more commercial traffic, Matsui said. Both Matsui’s and Zigler’s research focus on the negative health impacts of air pollution

| the daily texan staff

on the population. Specifically, Matsui’s work has associated air pollution with worsening asthma symptoms in children. Zigler said his research focuses on the correlation between pollution and heart disease in the elderly and lower life expectancy. Some methods to further reduce air pollution in Austin and elsewhere in the United States are to promote alternative forms of transportation, such as electric vehicles, biking and walking. “Even more importantly, public transportation can be incredibly helpful to reduce the load for traffic,” Matsui said. “Across the U.S., those are some approaches which have been very successful.”

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to help counter threats in the cyber landscape. He said the program’s courses will be entirely online and project based, where students operate as cyberdefenders or cyberattackers in simulations. “There’s not many threats that are bigger than the threat of cybercrime and cyberattacks from adversarial countries,” Bareiss said. “The Department of Defense saw the need to develop scalable online training to address the tremendous shortage of cybersecurity people, and so we won a competitive bid contract to develop this training.” Bareiss said the program has no prerequisites and encourages anyone interested

to apply. “Rather than the people who have the really kind of high level, pre-existing technical skills, we try to encourage people with the right personalities to enroll. By that I mean people who are intensely curious about things, people who won’t give up on a problem no matter how difficult it is and people who are predisposed towards self-directed learning,” Bareiss said. The program has been adopted by Rutgers University, Bareiss said, and Socratic Arts chose UT as its next launch site because it previously partnered with the University to implement another high-demand technical program for data analytics. “Everything from your doorbell to your car to your pacemaker to your electrical

| the daily texan staff

system to you-name-it is online,” Bareiss said. “You know the old cliché, ‘What could possibly go wrong?’ Well, a lot could go wrong, and they need people to defend these things because people are constantly probing and attacking.” Retired Navy Admiral Bobby R. Inman is the centennial chair in national policy at UT’s Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs. Inman said this development of new technology has imposed cybersecurity risks across the world and propelled the demand for cybersecurity professionals. “You’ll find that all over the country, universities, corporations and state and local governments are trying to beef up their cybersecurity because of all the vulnerabilities that have been demonstrated,” Inman said.

LIZA ANDERSON EDITOR-IN-CHIEF @TEXANOPINION

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

COLUMN

helen brown

| the daily texan staff

UT needs spaces for tribal students By Kateri David Columnist

At the start of my sophomore year, after having comfortably settled into the pace of UT life, I decided it was high-time I laid down roots and found a community. Being a Cherokee citizen from Oklahoma, I was instantly drawn to the Native American and Indigenous Collective, an organization housed within the Multicultural Engagement Center that revolves around diverse experiences. When I attended last year’s welcome event, I felt displaced — the trivia didn’t include a single tribal factoid, and the tablers solely represented indigenous peoples. It seemed like nontribal indigeneity was prioritized, relegating Native Americans to an invisible secondary role — a part of NAIC in name, not practice. Later, I emailed a student working with organization, asking to connect with fellow tribal students. I was promptly dismissed in their response, with the student adding that “many other Native students … don’t possess tribal citizenship with federally recognized nations.” But some do. A select few students, including those lacking legal recognition, identify as belonging to a tribal nation. Whether sovereign citizens or community members, we’ve inherited distinct identities — a result of geography, of genocide and relocation, of fates bound in treaties. As such, we need our own group, a space to

connect freely. According to their webpage, the collective is dedicated to “transnational and intertribal unity,” which is crucial to recognizing shared strife. Both indigenous peoples from Latin America and North American tribes were irreparably

in Latin America, in contrast, are often culturally defined. “Those treaty-guaranteed rights establish a dramatic distinction between citizens of (the United States) tribal nations and indigenous peoples from Latin America,” Cox said. Though UT is currently without

“Our sovereign status continually hangs in the balance, and the collective — due to lack of tribal representation and subtle disconnects between its two groups — is not positioned to address these concerns.”

affected by colonialism — it’s what binds us together under the category of indigeneity, along with providing a foundation for resistance. However, these groups are not interchangeable. James Cox, a professor in the Center for Mexican American Studies, said federal Indian law defines Native Americans as those possessing membership in a federally recognized tribe. Among other privileges, tribal citizens can vote in tribal elections and serve in tribal government. Indigenous identities

a tribal student organization, this wasn’t always the case. In fact, the organization was formed by merging two groups — the Longhorn American Indian Council (LAIC) and the Native American & Indigenous Student Assembly (NAISA), Formed in 1998, the Longhorn American Indian Council was a small but vibrant group. “They held a yearly powwow, but they very much thought of themselves as a social group and hosted study sessions, film screenings, speakers,” Cox said.

In the Longhorn American Indian Council, tribal students had a place to discuss their experiences and preserve their heritage — an imperative practice since less than 0.1 percent of students self-identify as American Indian. According to Tyler Durman, a Cherokee and former co-director of the council, tribal students “grow up with an invisible identity.” This was a home for them. “College is a high risk time in any person’s life,” Durman said. “But especially when you layer on an identity that’s linked to issues like poverty, addiction, even the domestic and sexual violence against Native women … it’s a lot to grapple with.” Our sovereign status continually hangs in the balance, and the collective — due to lack of tribal representation and subtle disconnects between its two groups — is not positioned to address these concerns. But I’m not advocating for a split or funding from the Multicultural Engagement Center. Rather, I think tribal students should carve out our own group. Reach out to me. If you can, go through the Multicultural Engagement Center to reach out to other self-identifying tribal students. In finding each other, we have a chance at reviving the Longhorn American Indian Council. This goal is attainable: UT Arlington has a thriving tribal association. There’s no excuse why UT can’t do the same. David is an advertising sophomore from Allen.

COLUMN

Students shouldn’t be afraid to take a semester off school By David West Jr. Columnist

It was the end of fall 2017, and I had just completed my third semester at Prairie View A&M University. I knew I wanted to transfer schools, but I didn’t know where exactly I wanted to transfer to. There were a lot of questions that needed answers I simply couldn’t provide at the time. Then it came to me — in order to get the answers, I needed to sit out to develop the questions. There are countless advantages to taking a semester off from college. It can be beneficial mentally, physically, spiritually, or in my case, all of the above. Without question, taking a semester off can encourage and foster personal growth and self-discovery. “I knew I needed time off to regroup,” said journalism senior Kennedy Williams, who sat out what would have been the second semester of her sophomore year after transferring from NYU to UT. “I needed (the time) to move into my new school stronger, with a clear mind and with more clarity on what exactly I wanted to do.” Searching for answers, I went on to spend my spring 2018 semester as an official college dropout. The first thing that comes with sitting out of college is an abundance of free time, and it must be managed both responsibly and productively. “I think students can benefit (from a semester off) if they make good use of their time,” said

associate psychology professor Juan Dominguez. “Plan your time off ahead of time. If not, you’ll spend half of the time trying to figure out what you want to do instead of spending all the time doing whatever it is that may be.” To my surprise, I spent the majority of my time introspecting rather than researching possible future colleges.

LEGALESE | Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan are those of the editor, the Editorial Board or the writer of the article. They are not necessarily those of the UT administration, the Board of Regents or the Texas Student Media Board of Operating Trustees.

Each day during my semester off, I would sit down alone and focus solely on how I was feeling and what was going on around me. In doing this, I discovered I wasn’t necessarily happy with where I was in my life. I felt I hadn’t accomplished enough and wasn’t where I needed to be spiritually. Without sitting that semester out, I would have never acknowledged those

brittany le

| the daily texan staff

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feelings and sought change. “Sitting out gave me some more hope,” said management information systems junior Daniel Waite, who’s currently taking a semester off from Arizona State University. “I’m not done pulling myself out of some stuff, but now, I can weigh my options, and I have something to look forward to.” Aside from the opportunity for introspection, taking a semester off can also be stress relieving. As college students, we’re asked to take on heavy workloads and are burdened with a variety of responsibilities. “We bring students into a college setting and tell (them they) have less than four years to find a career and this is what you’ll be doing the rest of your life,” Dominguez said. “It’s the equivalent of me telling someone to build a building with no prior knowledge.” As college students, we face this tough reality every day, and it can be mentally exhausting. Sitting out for a semester allows us to take a break from the strict deadlines and everyday lectures, giving us an opportunity to further evaluate our aspirations. “You’re taught in high school that if you want to be successful, you have to go to college, but really, there are other options,” Waite said. “Taking a break helped me weigh all of the options because college is not the only option, even though they make you think that.” Weigh all your options — nothing’s off the table. West Jr. is a journalism sophomore from New Orleans, Louisiana.

RECYCLE | Please recycle this copy of The Daily Texan. Place the paper in one of the recycling bins on campus or back in the burnt-orange newsstand where you found it. EDITORIAL TWITTER | Follow The Daily Texan Editorial Board on Twitter (@TexanOpinion) and receive updates on our latest editorials and columns.

TIANA WOODARD & JORDYN ZITMAN LIFE&ARTS EDITORS @THEDAILYTEXAN

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

STUDENT LIFE

FOOD

Bilingual students face language issues By Landry Allred @l2ndry

Instagram student bloggers eat up Austin’s famous food scene By Molly Bolf @mollybolf5

When accounting sophomore Marie Yamamoto was applying to UT, her parents were unable to help her because they lacked one thing — the ability to speak English fluently. Yamamoto’s experience is just one of many that illustrate the challenges that accompany transitioning from a bilingual household to a primarily English-speaking university. According to the Migration Policy Institute, about ella williams | the daily texan staff 15 percent of students in Texas are learning English through a few organizastudents) are here in this as a second language in tions on campus, includcountry, then for those public schools. ing the Bilingual Educaof us who have a choice, With a low percentage of tion Student Organization, (we) should make sure bilingual students in Texwhich not only helps future we’re all able to commuas, Yamamoto said it can bilingual educators but nicate (in) more than just become harder to mainanyone interested in bilinone language.” tain one’s native tongue, gual education. In Yamamoto’s case especially if it’s not EnBeatriz Valdez, the orgawhile applying to UT, Byrd glish. Yamamoto grew up said the lack of a support nization’s vice president, speaking Japanese with system is a factor that puts said that coming to UT and her parents and English at finding a bilingual commany bilingual students at school and with her sister. munity helped her maina disadvantage. However, since coming to tain her native tongue and “It speaks to us as a UniUT, she said her Japanese served as a reminder of versity (and shows the nehas deteriorated. her identity. cessity of) having a system “It’s a little bit harder “(Coming) from the to help those students so every time I go home beHispanic/Latino comthey could have the supcause I’m not around (my munity, I’ve always been port that they would otherparents) 24/7,” Yamamoto very close to my family,” wise get if language wasn’t said. “They were basically Valdez said. “Finding an a barrier,” Byrd said. the only people I spoke to organization that focusByrd said community in Japanese.” es on bilingualism was plays a large role in mainActively exposing someimportant to me because taining one’s language and one to another language cultural identity. Finding my language is part of further strengthens their my identity.” language and cognition, people who have experienced similar roadblocks Despite the challengsaid Courtney Byrd, an provides a sense of security es bilingual students associate professor in face while attending Encommunication scienc- for bilingual students. glish-speaking univer“You can look to them to es and disorders who sities such as UT, Byrd see they were able to transtudies misidentification said bilingualism is scend those challenges and of bilingual students as a gift. still maintain their use of stuttering individuals. “(Bilingual students) can their language and respect She said bilingualism is feel isolated,” Byrd said. for their culture,” Byrd tricky because people asTexas Student Media will keep you connected “But the fact that they’re said. “It’s an opportunity sociate different meanings with daily links to the news, sports and culture here speaks to the level of with it, and many think it’s for them to be empowered their talent in a way which stories shaping the by UTtheir community. differences and not a choice. is not true of other stu“For many chil- try to suppress them.” dents who get here through dren, it’s a necessity,” Students can become a monolingual port hole.” Byrd said. “If (bilingual a part of this community

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Named the second most exciting food city in America by Zagat, a dining guide, and fastest-growing food truck industry in the United States, Austin is an established culinary hotspot of the South. As a result, UT students are using this boom to create a platform of their own. As the beginning of midterm season stress accumulates and Jester City Limits fries get noticeably more stale, nothing is more appealing than a glistening snapshot of fresh gnocchi accompanied by a glowing recommendation of a new restaurant. UT student Instagram accounts @thehungrylonghorn, @tal.shaa and @the_foodgram are just a few of the food blogging pages around campus, and they aim to share the best of Austin’s food scene through pictures. Marketing senior Anthony Matthews runs @thehungrylonghorn, and his posts have four components: an overview of the dining experience with his own recommendations, the price, whether or not it’s vegetarian and/or vegan friendly

and pictures. “I always ate the same thing at the same places, and I wanted to start trying all the restaurants in Austin,” Matthews said. “So I thought, I might as well make an account and share my experiences.” Radio-television-film freshman Hannah Plotnek runs a food blogging account with a friend. The page focuses on sharing unique dishes from their travels. The account, @the_foodgram, has over 12,000 followers. “Austin has such a special food scene, and there is such a wide variety of culture here,” Plotnek said. Plotnek said she views food blogging as a hobby and a way to connect with people, rather than something with business potential. “A lot of major accounts and restaurants started noticing our posts, and would tag us in pictures and stories,” Plotnek said. “I’m not really sure how it happened, but we just kind of blew up from there.” Business freshman Talya Shalev said she turned her fashion blogging account into a food and lifestyle blog when she realized her true passion was food. The

account gave her a platform to expose her friends to unique eats in the area. “I started blogging in high school when a lot of my friends weren’t really interested in trying stuff like mussels,” Shalev said. “I like trying new things, and some of the food I’d eat was visually appealing. It interests people.” Austin’s food scene isn’t always cheap, and tabs can add up — but Shalev said students shouldn’t let this discourage them from experimenting sometimes. “I have my go-tos, like Chuy’s, but replace that with something new every once in a while — it doesn’t have to be expensive to be exciting,” said Shalev. Matthews said he looks at other food bloggers’ content and keeps a list of bookmarked restaurants he eventually wants to try. He said students shouldn’t confine themselves to places near or on campus. “Business owners put a lot of work into their restaurants, and it can be a struggle to get the college crowd,” Matthews said. “I hope to show students the variety of food here, and maybe inspire them to go out and try some of the places I share.”

andre fernadez | the daily texan staff Business freshman Talya Shalev captures a photo of her coffee for her food blog. Shalev converted her fashion blog into a food and lifestyle blog when she realized her true passion was food.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Inconsistent Longhorns try to find their way against Texas Tech By Donnavan Smoot @Dsmoot3D

ryan lam | the daily texan file Forward Guard Royce Hamm Jr. defends the lane against an Oklahoma State player during a 69-57 win on Feb. 16, 2019 at the Frank Erwin Center.

Hamm Jr.’s patience paying off for Texas ‘When I get in the game, I’m just going to show people I belong here.’ By Robert Larkin @r_larkintexas

oyce Hamm Jr. remembers the doubt starting to creep into

his mind. After playing in only one of the Longhorns’ first nine games and playing only briefly when he entered games in the weeks after, his confidence in his basketball future was starting to waver. When Hamm left high school in 2017, he was regarded as one of the state of Texas’ best high school basketball prospects. An athletic, versatile forward, he was projected as a solid contributor for the Longhorns. But two seasons into his career, he found himself at the end of the bench, watching the careers of other Longhorn big men take off. Frustrated, Hamm remembers

calling his family and friends at home. Their response spurred his season in a different direction. “They were saying, ‘Royce, you got to make a decision,’” Hamm said. “‘You have to play. Whatever you can do to help yourself get on the court, find your niche there on the team, then do that.’” Hamm decided he would make his mark by doing what his teammates wouldn’t, or what he calls “energy plays.” He would dive on the floor, block shots, play tough defense and make the plays that fans rarely see. He picked up his energy in practice too, and head coach Shaka Smart noticed. On different occasions, he has pointed to Hamm as one of Texas’ best players when they’re working in the gym. Prior to the Longhorns’ game against Oklahoma State on Saturday, Smart decided to reward Hamm’s effort with more game action. Hamm played 10 minutes, his most since Dec. 28. He recorded four points and three rebounds, but his energy level picked up the entire Texas team. “He went in the game, he got a big rebound right when he went in,” Smart said. “He gave us a lift defensively the way he played. Made his free throws. If he keeps playing and practicing like that, it

forces him out there on the court.” Forward Dylan Osetkowski works with Hamm consistently in practice, and the two lift weights together during conditioning sessions. In that training, the two have built a bond. After seeing his teammate’s hard work finally result in some quality minutes against Oklahoma State, the senior was ecstatic. “I give Royce so much credit for sticking in there,” Osetkowski said. “He knows in some games he might not play, some games he plays a little bit. Every day, he’s one of the hardest playing dudes in practice. To see him do what he does every day in a game and reap the rewards … it’s great. I love it.” With five games left, Hamm hopes to continue his upward trend and provide help for a Texas team making its final push to the NCAA Tournament. He wants to help the Longhorns realize their dreams in March and become a factor on the court. But most importantly, Hamm wants to prove that this is where he belongs. “I feel like I’m going to have a breakthrough,” Hamm said. “So when I get in the game, I’m just going to show people I belong here, and I can play at the University of Texas.”

“It sucks.” That was the statement Texas guard Danni Williams used to sum up Sunday night’s game after blowing a substantial third-quarter lead to an unranked Kansas State team. “(It was a) pretty sleepless night,” head coach Karen Aston said. “Anytime you have a performance at home … it’s disappointing. You feel as a coach that you’ve disappointed the fans.” Fortunately for Aston and the Longhorns, they have another opportunity to redeem themselves in front of the hometown fans Saturday when they host Texas Tech. Despite having nearly a week to reflect on the collapse over the weekend, Texas is trying to shift its focus toward the Red Raiders. “You have to turn the page pretty quickly,” Aston said. The Longhorns are hoping to not fall into an early hole as they did in their previous matchup with the Red Raiders, a 78-71 win

on Jan. 26, when Texas Tech jumped out to an 11-point lead after the first quarter. Texas Tech comes into this game 12–13 overall but should not be taken lightly by the Longhorns. The Red Raiders and Texas are in the top four scoring teams in the Big 12. Along with the ability to put the ball in the basket, Texas Tech will try to create a winning streak with a victory Saturday, which would finally put them at .500 on the season. In the previous matchup, turnovers weren’t as much of a problem as they usually are for Texas. The Longhorns only turned the ball over 10 times, which will be something they will try to replicate. With the loss to Kansas State, a win could shake things up for Texas to get back on track before a monumental road test against No. 1 Baylor on Monday. “I really feel like I need to play our young kids, knowing they’re going to make mistakes, knowing they’re going to provide energy,” Aston said.

Two of the young players that can see substantial playing time are guard Joanne Allen-Taylor and forward Audrey Warren. Allen-Taylor played five minutes in the previous matchup with Texas Tech. Warren was forced to leave after suffering a concussion in the early moments of the game. The injury forced her to miss three games. One of the key issues Texas will look to correct is playing with a lead and trying to close out games. Aston has stated on many occasions that the Longhorns’ tendency to take the foot off the gas pedal and let the opponent back into the game — an issue that has cost Texas multiple games. “We can’t do that in any game,” guard Destiny Littleton said. “That’s what hurts.” Now ranked at No. 19 in the country, Texas is fighting for confidence and seeding in the NCAA tournament moving forward. With four games left — and one of those games being against Baylor — every game is a must-win.

joshua guenther | the daily texan file Guard Destiny Littleton makes an entry pass to forward Jatarie White during a 69-60 loss to Kansas State on Sunday Feb. 17, 2019 at the Frank Erwin Center.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

STUDENT LIFE

Stylist-finding app to unveil

samantha dorisca

| the daily texan staff

Bridgette Bilson and Eseoghene Igbru created Goddessinme in order to connect college students with stylists fitted to their budget and needs.

Students’ app helps find cost-effective, nearby salons with services for all hair. By Trinady Joslin @trinady05

or English senior Bridgette Bilson, traveling to Houston used to be more than just a trip home. She had get her hair done back home in order to avoid the overpriced and unexperienced salons in Austin. After realizing many of her friends were just as inconvenienced, Bilson came up with a solution. She created an app that allows college students,

specifically women of color, to find affordable stylists in their area. Eseoghene Igbru, electrical engineering and math senior, contacted Bilson about the idea, and the two worked together to create Goddessinme, which will be released Friday, Feb. 22. “Going through that experience and knowing how tedious it is really helped me to see who I wanted to help and how I wanted to change the playing field,” Bilson said. The app is open to stylists of all ages, including those in college. To ensure low prices, they personally review each stylist’s listing and request a price change if they feel it’s too expensive. “We don’t want someone who’s going to charge our clients too much,” Igbru said. “Our target market is college students. We don’t want them not being able to pay for their hair.” For services such as braids or crochet, Igbru said prices can be upwards of $200 at professional

salons but even finding a salon that caters to kinkier, coarser hair is a challenge. “I really wanted to make sure my focus was on helping the right community, who is having a difficult time with this,” Bilson said. Goddessinme will allow customers to view stylists’ profiles and determine if they want to book their services, Bilson said. In addition, Igbru said the app will help promote stylists looking for clients, an issue she as a stylist has faced in the past. Biochemistry senior Victoria Uche is a stylist and plans to use the app upon release in order to find clients and connect with other stylists. “If you go through the app and see a stylist that can do a hairstyle you can’t, it’s a good way to learn from them,” Uche said. Another aspect of the app meant to benefit stylists is the lack of a rating or ranking system. In order to showcase talent, the platform will allow stylists to find a comfortable and equalizing

environment away from social media sites overshadowing stylists with smaller followings. Any concerns with stylists or the app itself will be directed to Bilson and Igbru, who said they will respond within 24 hours. “We’re expecting some mishaps, it’s a new app, “ Bilson said. “We’re here to get feedback. We want to make sure the experience is worthwhile for (users).” The plan is to expand to including men and makeup artists after gauging the response, Igbru said. “We’re starting here, and then we can then start adding in the extra stuff,” Igbru said. “(We want) to bring your goddess out in whatever section that might be.” If the app becomes large enough, moving outside of Texas may also be an option, Bilson said. “We want to expand to different states as well,” Bilson said. “There are tons of people who are looking to bring out the goddesses in themselves.”

UNIVERSITY

New classroom attendance system saves students money Say goodbye to subscription-based attendance apps — UT Instapoll is the way of the future. The Liberal Arts Development Studio has just done a huge favor for students who have ever forgotten their iClicker remote, or had to pay a subscription fee for apps such as Squarecap or Top Hat. UT Instapoll is a free classroom response system, saving students money and professors a headache, debuting on Canvas in spring 2019. Currently, there are approximately 5800 active unique students using this product in around 120 different classes. Although UT Instapoll just became available on Canvas, this idea for a classroom response system has been in the works for

approximately a year. Sarah Eichhorn, executive director of the Texas Institute for Discovery Education in Science from the College of Natural Sciences, approached Marla Gilliland, director of course development for the College of Liberal Arts, about potentially expanding the capability of this product. “We went over with Sarah to showcase the tools we use in our online course and at the time she (suggested using Instapoll in classrooms as well), because our students are required to purchase multiple tools for their classes, instead of using it the same way we use it for our online course,” Gilliland said. After recognizing the potential value of an attendance service to students and professors, Gilliland and the development studio went to work that summer to evolve this originally online exclusive feature into a useful tool for all of UT.

Eichhorn and Gilliland said that while there were a few technical hiccups in the program during this period, the studio quickly incorporated their feedback into its final version. Upon the tool’s completion, the studio decided it was time for a trial run and gathered 10 faculty members, mostly from CNS, and their 2700 students to be guinea pigs. Eichhorn said CNS was the natural choice for a trial run not only due to their size, but also the conscious effort of the college to adopt more engaging methods of instruction. “(CNS has) such a large number of large courses, and there’s a lot of research literature on effective teaching methods that point to active engagement for students,” Eichhorn said. Among professors who decided to use UT Instapoll in its debut semester was assistant

astronomy professor Keith Hawkins. In his first semester at UT, Hawkins said he felt it would be a great tool for his large astronomy course. “I’m glad it came out when it did, it’s actually a great resource to have,” Hawkins said. “There are certain things I would like to see improved, but for its first launch it’s actually really good.” Hawkins pointed to the fact that UT Instapoll is free as its significant advantage over systems such as iClicker. Physical culture and sports sophomore Micaela Arguijo said she likes UT Instapoll better than iClicker for a number of reasons. “Because iClicker is a remote, it is easier to forget, and UT Instapoll is easily accessible through Canvas and has no batteries required,” Arguijo said. “It’d be nice if all my classes used (UT Instapoll) because it does a good job of keeping students engaged.

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