1
SPORTS PAGE 5
COMICS PAGE 6
LIFE&ARTS PAGE 8
Serving the University of Texas at Austin community since 1900
@thedailytexan
facebook.com/dailytexan
Friday, January 30, 2015
dailytexanonline.com
bit.ly/dtvid
UNIVERSITY
STATE
TA task force calls for lighter workload
Abbott aims to recruit high-profile researchers
By Samantha Ketterer @sam_kett
The College of Liberal Arts TA task force released recommendations Thursday addressing issues concerning graduate TAs and assistant instructors (AIs). The recommendations include defining TA responsibilities more clearly, alleviating the amount of grading and increasing job security.
The task force distributed a survey to 1,300 current or former TAs and AIs assessing their satisfaction with current job policies. The task force received 681 survey responses. Based on the responses, the task force put together a report of recommendations, which will be passed off to chair members and committees for consideration, according to Esther Raizen, COLA associate dean for
research and graduate studies. “The College is committed, from the dean down, to making sure their recommendations are seriously considered and implemented to the degree that it’s possible,” Raizen said. The recommendations included both a contract between the TA and the professor and a TA handbook. Justin Doran, task force member and spokesman,
said both measures are intended to decrease confusion about job responsibilities and to protect TAs from excessive amounts of work. According to the report, 26 percent of survey respondents work more than 20 hours a week. “One of the things that we found is that [a majority of the] time of graduate teaching assistants is spent on grading,” Doran said. “Grading is a chore. It’s extremely time
consuming because it increases linearly with the number of students you have.” Doran said he hopes initiatives, such as the contract, will help avoid unnecessary amounts of grading. The task force will reconvene at the end of the semester to review their recommendations. The Graduate Student Assembly will look at the issue
COLA page 2
STATE
Legislator, protestors disrupt Muslim rally By Eleanor Dearman @ellydearman
State Rep. Molly White (R-Belton) drew criticism Thursday after asking Muslim visitors to the Capitol to “renounce Islamic terrorist groups” during an event UT students helped plan. About 600 people attended Muslim Capitol Day, an annual event hosted by the Texas chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, to voice their legislative priorities and advocate for religious tolerance. Rep. White, who is out of town visiting her district, instructed her staff to tell Muslim visitors to publicly pledge allegiance to American law. “I did leave an Israeli flag on the reception desk in my office with instructions to staff to ask representatives from the Muslim community to renounce Islamic
PROTEST page 2
Michael Baez | Daily Texan Staff
Muslim students and community leaders walk away from the Capitol after a rally hosted by the Council on American-Islamic Relations on Thursday morning. Thursday marked the eighth annual Muslim Capitol Day.
By Josh Willis @joshwillis35
Gov. Greg Abbott proposed the creation of a fund Thursday to incentivize universities across the state to hire prestigious faculty. Under Abbott’s new proposal, the University Research Initiative, colleges and universities across Texas would be eligible to receive a portion of the fund to recruit nationally recognized, established researchers to join their faculties. The money would come from the elimination of the Texas Emerging Technology Fund, founded by the legislature at the request of former Gov. Rick Perry in 2005. The fund, currently worth $485 million, was created to give Texas an advantage in the technology field. Fifty percent of the TETF fund would go to the Texas Enterprise Fund, a fund to attract and retain businesses in the state. The other half of the TETF would go to the Higher Education Coordinating Board to fund the University Research Initiative. According to a statement released by the governor’s office, researchers who qualify under the proposal would be either a Nobel Laureate, Academy Member or someone of an equivalent achievement level. In the statement, Abbott said he encouraged universities to recruit
ABBOTT page 2
CAMPUS
CAMPUS
Professor discusses book on black British artist histories
Students exhibit handmade furniture
By Chris Mendez @thedailytexan
According to Eddie Chambers, art and art history associate professor, black artists from Africa, South Asia and the Caribbean faced exclusion from British art galleries and museums because of their race and ethnic backgrounds. In a lecture Thursday, Chambers discussed his book, “Black Artists in British Art: A History Since the 1950s,” on the undocumented history of black British artists who included elements of their heritage into their art. Chambers said many of the artists incorporated their struggles with identity into their work because of the influence of their immigrant parents. “A generation of people who [were] born to migrant parents — primarily Caribbean migrant parents — came [to England] in the mid ’50s to late ’60s,” Chambers said. “All these tussles of retention and assimilation are present in the works of these artists.” Cherise Smith, director of
the Warfield Center of African and African American Studies, said many black British artists have not received attention for their work, even though they remain a prominent part of the British art community. “It’s important to study because it’s an important part of British culture and all of art history that has been left out until now,” Smith said. “Curators just didn’t recognize artists of color who were black and who were of Asian descent as recognizable artists.” The artists started their own exhibitions in the 1980s as part of the Young British Artists (YBA) movement, which influenced contemporary artists such as artist-turned-director Steve McQueen and Chris Ofili, who incorporates elephant dung into his paintings. “The effects of the YBA continue right up to the present day,” Chambers said. “They’ve influenced several generations of artists that’ve come up after them.”
ART page 2
By Rund Khayyat @thedailytexan
Students from the architecture school showcased their furniture pieces at an exhibition Thursday. Specialist Mark Macek taught six architecture students, many of whom had no prior experience with woodcrafting, in his wood design class. They learned about several species of wood, studied furniture design history and visited local craftsmen. “What’s unique about furniture is that humans use and interact with it,” Macek said. “Students have to be very tactile.” Architecture graduate student Grace Dixon said the course helped her learn basic woodcrafting skills and apply her knowledge to construct something practical. “I didn’t even know how to operate power tools before the course, but Mr. Macek guided us along the way,” Dixon said. Although the students plan to pursue various careers in architecture and
Griffin Smith | Daily Texan Staff
The Materials Lab showcased finished furniture pieces created by students in Mark Macek’s wood design class.
design outside of woodworking, Macek said they learned valuable skills that will help them in their respective fields. “They share a common objective, which is to learn how to build,” Macek said. “Designers need to understand the process of making their designs. The only
way to truly do this is by physically using the tools and materials.” Architecture graduate student Jordan Teitelbaum said learning about the steps that go into making a furniture piece will help him apply similar skills to architectural design. “As a designer,
NEWS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFE&ARTS
ONLINE
Check out The Daily Texan’s twitter for the latest news on and around campus.
Abbot’s higher ed plan looks promising. Page 4
Aston claims landmark victory against Sooners. Page 5
Try out for the Daily Texan.
GSA works to fix grad housing. PAGE 4
Baseball kicks season off with annual alumni game. PAGE 5
Virtual internships are increasing in popularity. Page 8 Monkies thrift store offers low-price vintage. PAGE 8
@thedailytexan
dailytexanonline.com/ employment
understanding the process of building will allow me to design in a much more intelligent way,” Teitelbaum said. Macek gave students six weeks to work on their projects. Teitelbaum said he and other students worked
EXHIBIT page 2 REASON TO PARTY
PAGE 7