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Wednesday, April 1, 2015
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SYSTEM
Grand jury calls for Hall’s removal By Jordan Rudner @jrud
A grand jury investigating UT System Regent Wallace Hall declined to indict him for possible violations of student privacy laws but issued a report calling for his removal from office. A Special Investigation unit of the Travis County District Attorney’s Office asked the grand jury in October to consider whether there was probable cause to indict Hall for violating student privacy, failing to disclose material information on his original regent application or exceeding
his role as regent with massive open records requests to the University. Although the grand jury declined to indict Hall, they did take the unusual step of issuing a public report condemning Hall’s actions. “Based on the information we reviewed, we are appalled at the Regent’s unaccountable and abusive behavior,” according to the report issued Tuesday morning. Over the course of the last several years, Hall filed requests for more than 800,000 pages of documents as part of personal
investigations he launched into UT administrative practices. University administrators said the documents cost more than $1 million to prepare. The report condemned Hall’s conduct when making these requests. “Hall never divulged what purpose or goal he had padlocked in his mind before launching this immense barrage of records requests, rapid firing them in a fashion seemingly intended to deteriorate the systems in place,” the report said. “Based on the size of the
HALL page 2
Texas House discusses $210 billion state budget @ellydearman
Xintong Guo | Daily Texan file photo
UT System Regent Wallace Hall was not indicted for possible violations of student privacy laws. The grand jury investigating him issued a public report condemning his actions.
McRaven shoots down campus carry By Josh Willis @joshwillis35
UT System Chancellor William McRaven spoke in depth about his stance against campus carry at a conference Tuesday. McRaven, a retired fourstar admiral in the U.S. Navy, said campus carry has little support from the UT System universities. “I’m a big second amendment guy, you know; I’m a strong supporter,” McRaven said. “But my position today — I’m an educator. As I look across the students and the faculty and the administrators and the staff and their concerns that they have voiced to me about this creating an unsafe environment with more guns on campus, it’s hard for me to support campus carry when I see their concerns.” Bridget Guien, economics freshman and communications director for College Republicans, said campus carry has the potential to protect students. “Campus carry will improve
Ellyn Snider | Daily Texan Staff
UT System Chancellor William McRaven spoke about campus carry at a conference Tuesday morning. Despite his military background and support of the second amendment, McRaven does not support campus carry.
POLICE
STATE
By Eleanor Dearman
CAMPUS
MCRAVEN page 2
bit.ly/dtvid
The Texas House of Representatives started its discussion of an approximately $210 billion budget Tuesday. At print time, the discussion over HB 1, which lays out the House’s proposed state budget, was over eight hours long, and legislators had discussed roughly 100 of the more than 350 filed amendments. The House had not yet reached a discussion on article three, containing higher education budget information. Rep. John Otto (R-Dayton), appropriations chair, said he and the subcommittee chairs reviewed every amendment in preparation for the floor discussion. “There are amendments, obviously, that we will oppose, and we will state why we oppose them [or] move to table,” Otto said. “There are amendments here we will accept. There are amendments here where we will tell members we’re going to let the will of the House speak.” At the bill’s second reading, legislators discussed public education, border security, the wage gap and abstinence education, among other topics. The discussion started with debate over a public education amendment that Otto filed. The amendment, which ultimately passed, would give public schools $800 million in funding, contingent on the passage of HB 1759. HB 1759 would disperse
BUDGET page 2
CAMPUS
APD tickets minors at RoundUp Campus water use increases By Wynne Davis
By Samantha Ketterer said. “We have to bring in the
@wynneellyn
Despite a recent sound ordinance in West Campus, more tickets were issued for underage drinking than for noise complaints during RoundUp last weekend. Officers of the Public Assembly Code Enforcement (PACE) team, which works to reduce City Code violations, issued 68 tickets for minors in possession of alcohol and two tickets for violation of the City’s noise ordinance that restricts outside music to 75 decibels, according to APD Sgt. Alfred Trejo. “In the past, we may have let noise complaints slide because we’re focusing more on underage drinking,” Trejo said. Trejo, who represents APD on the PACE team, said the team went to approximately
@sam_kett
Lauren Ussery | Daily Texan Staff
Austin-Travis County EMS responds to an emergency situation during a RoundUp event Saturday night.
12 parties in West Campus and shut down three of them. “The parties that are getting shut down are not so much related to the noise ordinance, but that when the police are showing up, no one’s complying, or they’re overcrowding their parties,” Trejo said. “They
weren’t controlling the number of the people the fire marshal originally told them they could have.” Chemical engineering freshman Drishti Wadhwa attended RoundUp for the first time as
ROUNDUP page 2
Each minute, almost 13,000 gallons of water pump through pipes at one of four chilling stations on campus. This is just a fraction of the approximately 700 million gallons of water the University uses yearly. The Weaver Power Plant, which single-handedly provides power and air conditioning to campus, uses over half of that amount. Power plant manager Clay Looney said overall water usage in the power plant, which operates campus cooling towers and chiller systems, is only going to increase as the campus expands. “We’re not like a neighborhood where you can say, ‘Oh, we’re only going to water the lawns on Tuesdays and Saturdays,’ or something,” Looney
water to satisfy the needs of this campus, and I think everybody understands that.” The campus chiller systems and cooling towers alone made up roughly one-third of the University’s total water usage in 2012–2013. The chilling stations work to send chilled water to the towers, where the water is evaporated to cool equipment that air conditions campus. “It’s a pretty effective way to cool things off, but you do need to keep making up fresh incoming water to keep that process going,” Looney said. In a separate “chilling process,” the plant sends chilled water through tunnels to more than 160 campus buildings, where it is received and used as a cooling medium. Because of the ongoing drought in Central Texas, Austin City
Name: 3626/House Ads; Width: 60p0; Depth: 2 in; Color: Process color, 3626/House Ads; Ad Number: 3626
COOLING TOWER WATER BREAKUP IN 2014 265 million gallons: Domestic and irrigation water. 59 million gallons: Reclaimed and treated sewage water. Over 47 million gallons: Recovered water, and excess water gathered on campus.
Council set a goal of reducing water use to 140 gallons per capita per day by 2020. As a result, the University has worked to conserve water in many different aspects, largely through irrigation techniques, according to Mark Jordan, Water Conservation Program Coordinator for the City of Austin
WATER page 2
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Wednesday, April 1, 2015
FRAMES featured photo
thedailytexan
Volume 115, Issue 127
CONTACT US Main Telephone (512) 471-4591 Editor-in-Chief Riley Brands (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com Managing Editor Jordan Rudner (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com News Office (512) 232-2207 news@dailytexanonline.com
Xintong Guo | Daily Texan Staff
Noel Escobar, owner of Texas Custom Boots, makes a pair of boots Tuesday afternoon.
Multimedia Office (512) 471-7835 dailytexanmultimedia@ gmail.com
BUDGET
continues from page 1 state funding for public school maintenance, operations and debt. Rep. Mary González (DClint) filed an amendment, which did not pass, to study and report data on the gender wage gap in Texas. “Women in Texas continue to face wage inequality,” González said. “Don’t you believe that your daughters, your wives, your grandchildren should all be paid equally?” According to journalism assistant professor Mary Bock, the gender pay gap is a result of factors such as women working fewer hours to care for children, or traditionally female jobs paying less than traditionally male jobs. “It is such a complicated
Sports Office (512) 232-2210 sports@dailytexanonline.com Life & Arts Office (512) 232-2209 dtlifeandarts@gmail.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 email managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com.
COPYRIGHT Copyright 2015 Texas Student Media. All articles, photographs and graphics, both in the print and online editions, are the property of Texas Student Media and may not be reproduced or republished in part or in whole without written permission.
CORRECTION In the Tuesday, March 31, 2015 edition of The Daily Texan, a photo that ran with the story “Softball season begins, teams battle for intramural playoffs” incorrectly identified the person in the photo. The photo is of government senior Teddy Garber.
TOMORROW’S WEATHER
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Let the games begin.
MCRAVEN
continues from page 1 safety on campus by providing students a way to defend themselves against robberies, assaults [and] public shootings,” Guien said. McRaven said he understands the argument in favor of campus carry but does not feel there is enough evidence to support it. “I’ve had a number of folks tell me, ‘Well, you know, if somebody had been at Virginia Tech when that tragedy occurred, and somebody was carrying a weapon, could you have stopped that tragedy?’” McRaven said. “It’s hard to disprove a negative.” While the bill is intended
issue, that a study might help us get a handle on what’s going on in Texas specifically,” Bock said. González filed another amendment, which would increase funding for colonias, housing communities generally located on the border, by about $345,000. The funds would be moved from the Department of Public Safety budget, which receives more than $565 million in the current proposal, an almost $94 million increase form the current budget. This amendment also failed. About seven hours into the reading, legislators began a discussion on abstinence funding in the state. Rep. Stuart Spitzer (R-Kaufman) proposed an amendment that would transfer $2.5 million from funds dedicated to HIV and STD prevention to an abstinence
education program. At the reading, Spitzer said abstinence is the only way to guarantee safe sex and HIV prevention. The conversation got personal when Spitzer told his fellow representatives he was abstinent until marriage. “[My parents] established that in me, and I hope to establish that in other children, so they can do the same thing,” Spitzer said. Rep. Chris Turner (DArlington), who opposed the bill, said it was a mistake to take money from funds working to prevent sexually transmitted diseases and HIV. “I think abstinence is a valid program, but money to STD and HIV are equally valid as well,” Turner said. The amendment passed 97–47.
to increase safety, Student Government President Kori Rady said students don’t currently take issue with campus security. “It doesn’t seem like students are complaining about their safety on campus,” Rady said. “I don’t think we have a broken system here, and, if it’s not broken, why try to fix it?” According to a bill filed in the Texas Senate, SB 11, concealed weapons will be allowed on campus but restricted in certain locations, including hospitals, dorms, grade schools, preschools and sporting events. McRaven said he worries about restricting movement on campus in order to facilitate concealed carry. “I think what will happen
over time [is] we will begin to have a little bit of a barricade mentality. … You’re going to have to check your gun at certain areas where you’re not allowed to carry those,” McRaven said. McRaven said gun culture is tolerated in Texas, but faculty recruited from outside of Texas might not be as receptive to guns on campus. “This to me is really about safety on campus, but one of the things we also need to consider is how you recruit great faculty from outside of Texas,” McRaven said. “We in Texas have a gun culture, and I think most of us understand that. I’m not sure that’s well understood or well appreciated by faculty outside of Texas.”
ROUNDUP
continues from page 1 a member of Texas Bluebonnets. After attending multiple events, Wadhwa said she had a good time but was surprised at how many drunk people she encountered. Wadhwa said it wasn’t clear to why a party she attended was shut down. “I went to Zeta Psi, and it got shut down for some reason,” Wadhwa said. “I wasn’t really sure what happened, but they were like, ‘Please exit,’ so then we all just went to Whataburger.” After attending RoundUp last year and going to multiple parties that were shut down for capacity issues, rhetoric and writing senior Sierra Vela said she decided to opt out of the festivities this year.
Vela said she lives in West Campus near three fraternity houses and tolerates the occasional weekend party but said she tried to stay out of her apartment because of the noise she knew the weekend would bring. “RoundUp is a special time of year since the noise tends to be day and night for the entire weekend,” Vela said. “The times I was in my apartment
HALL
continues from page 1 University’s open records request staff, his deadlines were unreasonable.” The grand jury also accused Hall of hypocrisy in his campaign for transparency. “Regent Hall demonstrated neither accountability nor transparency in his actions,” the report said. “His refusal to speak with the Legislative Committee or the Grand Jury implies a disregard for the transparency and accountability for his actions.” UT System spokeswoman Jenny LaCoste-Caputo declined to comment on the grand jury’s report. In a rare public interview at The Texas Tribune Festival in 2013, Hall defended his actions to state Sen. Kirk Watson (D-Austin). “[UT is] the flagship, and it should be the leader for all of our institutions,” Hall said. “I find that there’s a lack of accountability in a lot of what we see.” A year later, he again denied any wrongdoing. “It would be nicer if they closed the file and moved on, but I’ll go through the
NEWS
over the weekend, I could hear one party or another. Bad country music and lots of random mass screaming during the day then rap or whatever at night.” Besides RoundUp, Vela said she normally has issues with noise at the beginning and end of semesters. “I will say that the frats do a pretty decent job of keeping the noise down during the week, which I appreciate,” Vela said. In order to focus on the issue of underage drinking, Trejo said his team only issued tickets to fraternities if it received multiple 911 calls about the noise. “Specific to the sound ordinance, for the most part, every fraternity that had a band outside was, basically, in violation,” Trejo said. “We took the sound meter with us and measured.” Most fraternities were issued warnings for their noise but almost all of them had outside entertainment that was over the City’s limit, Trejo said. “There’s no way you can keep a band down to 75 decibels outside,” Trejo said. “We really didn’t see anyone making attempts to push their bands inside unless we told them to.” process,” Hall said at the Tribune Festival in 2014. “I am very comfortable with all the actions that I took with those documents.” In May, board chairman Paul Foster publicly asked Hall to resign. “I do not believe you have violated any current board rules or policy, and I do not think a vote on your service is appropriate,” Foster said. “I urge you to take a selfless step to benefit the UT System and resign from the board.” In July, after over a year of investigation, a House Select Committee on Transparency in State Agency Operations formally censured Hall. The committee had previously determined there were sufficient grounds for Hall’s impeachment but declined to draft specific articles of impeachment in favor of the censure. At the time, state Rep. Carol Alvarado (D-Houston), committee co-chair, said pursuing Hall’s impeachment was not off the table. “A vote of censure is not a vote against impeachment,” Alvarado said. Hall’s term is set to expire February 2017.
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continues from page 1 This issue of The Daily Texan is valued at $1.25 Permanent Staff
Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Riley Brands Senior Associate Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Noah M. Horwitz Associate Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Olivia Berkeley, Cullen Bounds, Olive Liu Managing Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Jordan Rudner Associate Managing Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brett Donohoe, Jack Mitts News Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Julia Brouillette Associate News Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . Anderson Boyd, Danielle Brown, David Davis Jr., Chanelle Gibson, Adam Hamze, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Natalie Sullivan Senior Reporters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Wynne Davis, Eleanor Dearman, Samantha Ketterer, Jackie Wang, Josh Willis Copy Desk Chief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Taiki Miki Associate Copy Desk Chiefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Liza Didyk, Matthew Kerr, Kailey Thompson Design Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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Water Utility Department. “We’ve been working with UT for a number of years,” Jordan said. “We’ve reduced their water use over the past few years, whether they participate in our [City conservation] programs or not.” The cooling towers’ main conservation attempts are through “purple pipes,” named for their distinctive color. The pipes carry treated sewage water purchased from the City of Austin. Looney said conservation efforts, such as using reclaimed water, help keep water usage at a level that doesn’t rise too steeply. The chilling stations also use “recovered water,” which is gathered around campus for free through groundwater collection, pool overflow and other efforts. “When you have this much water usage, [an alternative water source] ends up saving a lot of water,” said Mike Manoucheri, associate director at the power plant. A new chilling station will accompany the building of the Dell Medical School and will primarily use reclaimed water. Following the building of this chilling station, which is slated to be the most efficient on campus, a third chilling station will make the switch to reclaimed water. “By using reclaimed water and being proactive about aggressively adopting those kinds of practices, we’re doing what we can to minimize fresh water makeup,” Looney said.
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RILEY BRANDS, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / @TexanEditorial Wednesday, April 1, 2015
EDITORIAL
Liberal Arts dean shouldn’t have given Regnerus a pass As another gay marriage case goes before the Supreme Court, Mark Regnerus has once again been spared further university scrutiny for his New Family Structure Study. Since 2012, the associate sociology professor has courted controversy for publishing observed differences between the children of parents who had a same-sex relationship and children living with both biological parents that suggested that the latter do better than the former in life. The criticisms have focused mainly on flaws in the study’s methodology, which established no causal link between the parents’ sexuality and the observed outcomes. Ethical concerns also include Regnerus’ alleged misuse of his findings in court and failure to stop misuse and misrepresentation of his findings by conservative groups such as Focus on the Family and the Heritage Foundation. In early March, College of Liberal Arts Dean Randy Diehl wrote a letter, obtained by the Texan through an open records request, to Robert Crosnoe, chair of the sociology department. In the letter, it is revealed that despite objections from key figures in the college, no action will be taken on the ethical concerns raised about the NFSS, and Regnerus’ post-tenure, or six-year performance, review rating will remain “exceeds expectations.” The twists and turns this story has taken are sometimes convoluted, but the potted history, at least as it pertains to this letter, is thus: When Regnerus’ post-tenure review committee met in 2013-2014, it determined that his performance “exceeded expectations” based on his publication record. However, then-department chair Christine Williams disagreed, citing the controversy surrounding the methodology and conclusions of the NFSS. This disagreement triggered a collegelevel review, which in this case involved seeking “expert guidance” from Marc Musick, the college’s senior associate dean for student affairs as well as a noted sociologist himself. Diehl asked Musick to prepare a report, which addressed both methodological and ethical issues, including Regnerus’
use of his study in legal briefs and testimony against gay marriage and his half-hearted attempts to correct the public record on his findings. Because Diehl felt that the post-tenure review committee was not an appropriate venue to discuss ethical concerns, he deferred to Robert Peterson, associate vice president for research, and his supervisor, Juan Sanchez, vice president for research. They did not believe that the charges leveled met the standards of scientific misconduct and declined to investigate. The post-tenure review committee met again in January of this year and was tasked by Diehl with considering only methodological problems. Based on this charge, the committee found the following, as summarized and endorsed by Diehl: “Valid methodological concerns have been raised. … A key one is this: Because the design of the study ensured that the parental samesex relationship variable was confounded with the family structure stability variable, it is not possible to conclude that the different life outcomes between the two groups were caused by the parental relationship variable.” Diehl, citing this finding and
Regnerus’ original caution that the article did not deal with same-sex marriage legal rights, agreed that “no policy implications about same-sex parenting should be drawn from the study.” But the fact is Regnerus did use those findings in court. While we are cheered by the committee’s findings and Diehl’s endorsement, we are disappointed that he didn’t act on the serious ethical dilemmas caused by Regnerus’ reckless misuse of his study, not only because they don’t even give Regnerus a slap on the wrist, but also because his assertion that post-tenure review committees should not concern themselves with ethical issues sets a dangerous precedent and is also inconsistent with the University’s Comprehensive Periodic Review Guidelines. Section 10 of the guidelines states that “incompetence, neglect of duty, or other good cause” may be used to to initiate “appropriate disciplinary action.” That is to say that Diehl could have seized on the opportunity to review Regnerus’ ethical standards. But he shamefully chose not to Instead he chose the path of least resistance. Diehl sees it differently, of course.
He wants to close this chapter of the college’s history so that it can move on. He closes the letter by saying, “I am concerned that recent events and the strong feelings they have evoked have tended to disrupt the strong level of collegiality that has characterized the Department of Sociology over the years. Accordingly, I hope that you will take steps to restore harmonious working relations among all of your faculty and, in particular, to re-engage Professor Regnerus in the life and work of the department.” We don’t fault Diehl for having the impulse to keep the peace, but it should have been outweighed by the blinding scientific errors and ethical lapses demonstrated by Regnerus. Regnerus’ post-tenure review decision is final. However, for years now, Regnerus has turned a blind eye, and contributed directly, to the perversion of his findings by right-leaning activists. Diehl shouldn’t repeat his mistake. Instead of sitting idly by, he should take real action and more forcefully condemn not just the methodological, but also the ethical, shortcomings of Regnerus’ work.
Regnerus and the New Family Structure Study March 2014:
Fall 2013-Spring 2014:
August 2012:
UT conducts an initial inquiry into allegations by gay rights advocate Scott Rose and finds no evidence of scientific misconduct on Regnerus' part.
June 2012:
Regnerus' article becomes publicly available and is later published in Social Science Research in July 2012. In this article, he asserts that the study is not intended to undermine or affirm gay marriage.
January 2013:
Regnerus files an amicus brief with the Supreme Court defending the traditional definition of marriage as a heterosexual union.
November 2012:
Regnerus addresses methodological criticisms in a special issue of Social Science Research. Tells the Texan he is not concerned with "the legal value" of the NFSS.
Departmental review committee gives Regnerus "exceeds expectations" in his seventh-year tenure evaluation. Christine Williams, then-department chairperson, dissents, giving "does not meet expectations." Disagreement initiates college-level comprehensive review.
March 2013:
LGBT activists obtain emails indicating that in 2010, prior to Regnerus' beginning the study, Regnerus' funding agency, the Witherspoon Institute, wanted the study to influence future Supreme Court cases.
Regnerus testifies against gay marriage in an adoption case in Michigan. Judge Bernard Friedman dismisses his testimony as "not worthy of serious consideration," determining from depositions and testimony that Regnerus "obliged" his funders' desires for a study that would challenge the scientific consensus on gay parenting. The UT Sociology Department distances itself from his statements at trial.
October 2013:
Regnerus testifies about the NFSS' results in a briefing to conservative Hawaiian lawmakers.
July to November 2014:
Senior Associate Dean Marc Musick issues report reviewing the NFSS. Juan Sanchez and Robert Peterson decline to investigate. Regnerus responds in writing to criticisms. Questions if report is part of a "near-orchestrated effort" to force his voluntary resignation.
January 2015:
Comprehensive Review Committee final meeting.
March 2015:
Dean Randy Diehl issues letter stating no further action will be taken on the Comprehensive Review.
Timeline by Alex Dolan
COLUMN
FIRING LINE
Selection of Fenves for president signals promising new beginning By Claire Smith Senior Columnist @clairseysmith
As a third-year student, I would argue that current University President William Powers Jr. plays a large yet figurative role in the student psyche. As the leader of the University, Powers has not only been a symbol to students but also our primary advocate. While I am sad to see Powers go, I do not mourn. Though the media coverage of the search for Powers’ successor has billed Greg Fenves, our likely next president, as a last resort, we would be wrong to judge him so soon. Powers did not become a campus symbol overnight. To discount Fenves’ appointment as anything other than fitting would be grossly inappropriate considering the scope of his University achievements. In his short tenure as provost and executive vice president, Fenves has united University department heads and invested himself in on-campus innovations. Fenves spearheaded an administrative innovation called “Campus Conversations” that has bridged the gap between faculty leaders in the humanities and sciences and given a greater voice to students. This speaks volumes about his respect for all colleges and people on campus. Fenves has also taken an active role in the creation of the Dell Medical School, the success of which will take UT to the next level as a top-tier national institute.
In his short tenure as provost and executive vice president, Fenves has united University department heads and invested himself in on-campus innovations.
Before becoming provost, Fenves led impressive and dogged campaigns for University improvement as dean of the Cockrell School of Engineering. He oversaw the creation of a master facility plan, which outlined six new buildings for the engineering school and played a key role as the school pursued fundraising for the Engineering Education and Research Center. As engineering dean, Fenves also raised more than $350 million for the University’s $3 billion capital fundraising campaign, more than any other college. As a result of his many accomplishments, Fenves was invited to join the National Academy of Engineering, which is the highest honor awarded to engineers in the United States. Additionally, Fenves’ close relationship with Powers, the man in the Tower, has set him up for success. In his year and half as provost, Fenves has worked closely with Powers and is likely far more capable of taking over in June than any of the other finalists, UT-Dallas president David Daniel and Andrew Hamilton, former vicechancellor of Oxford University. Fenves has been part and parcel to Powers’ mission over the last year and a half. This may be a point of contention for UT System Regent Wallace L. Hall Jr., who voted against appointing Fenves on Friday and remarked to reporters after the vote, “I guess our tagline is, ‘What starts here stays the same,’ as opposed to ‘What starts here changes the world.” Regents Brenda Pejovich and Alex Cranberg joined Hall in voting against Fenves. Though Hall, who is known to have tangled with Powers over admissions practices, fundraising and other matters, may disagree with the board’s choice, it should be a comfort to students. Fenves has had the fortune of getting to work closely with Powers and learn the ins and outs of the job without muddying his hands with the controversies that have plagued Powers’ last years in office. There is no one better equipped to smoothly transition into the president’s office. It is clear to me that Fenves has gone above and beyond in terms of counting accomplishments, and I expect him to be as duty-bound a president as he has been in every other aspect of his service to the University of Texas. Smith is a history and humanities junior from Austin.
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.
Texas Tennis fan got it right I would like to briefly comment on the Firing Line submitted by Bobby French, identified as a Texas Tennis fan and resident of Austin, which appeared in Tuesday’s Texan. First and foremost, I wish to absolutely agree with the sentiments expressed by Mr./ Ms. French. It is difficult to understand why the “powers that be” would divert home tennis team matches (both male and female) to venues that are not reachable by UT shuttle or any other buses. As a fierce and longtime fan of our home team, I am troubled that a majority of students who might wish to attend, but have no car, cannot do so. The original courts have been demolished to make way for a parking garage, which I lament although I support the medical school.
However, one correction I would like to make to the letter published: I personally asked UT’s athletic director, Steve Patterson, what the future would bring and was told a new tennis stadium would be built at the Intramural Fields location, which is accessible via UT shuttle and several other bus routes. That being said, I cannot more eloquently express the writer’s own words, so I will repeat them: “The University should be ashamed of the way the Texas tennis teams and their fans have been treated this season.” My only question is: where has Coach Mike Center been all this time? On the road? — John Stephen Taylor, government alumnus, in response to the Tuesday Firing Line titled “Texas Tennis deserves proper home.”
GALLERY
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ONLINE
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GARRETT CALLAHAN, SPORTS EDITOR | @texansports Wednesday, April 1, 2015
TEXAS
TEXAS A&M-CC
VS.
BASEBALL
Islanders leave Texas’ offense stranded By Jacob Martella
Freshman second baseman Joe Baker had the big hit in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game with a one-out double. However, Texas stranded him to send the game to extras where Texas A&M-Corpus Christi pulled off the upset.
@ViewFromTheBox
Texas rallied from a threerun deficit late Tuesday night to force extra innings, but, in a swift response, Texas A&MCorpus Christi plated three in the top of the 10th to pull off the upset. For the majority of the game against the Islanders, the Longhorn struggled at bat. Texas was retired in order three times, including once on only seven pitches. The offense finally struck gold in the latter innings, scoring twice in the seventh inning and once in the ninth to force extra innings. However, in the top of the 10th, the Islanders struck for three runs to steal a 6–4 win. “We gave them opportunities by not getting our outs on time and by giving them extra bases,” head coach Augie Garrido said. Garrido made changes to the batting order, looking to shake off a poor performance at the plate at Nebraska over the weekend, where they scored three runs in three games. Senior second baseman Brooks Marlow became the second different leadoff batter for the Longhorns, while junior left fielder Ben Johnson, the usual leadoff hitter, and senior right
Ellyn Snider Daily Texan Staff
fielder Collin Shaw moved to the third and fourth spots, respectively, in the batting order. But those changes made little difference, initially. Islander’s junior pitcher Garrett Harris and senior reliever Tyler Schnuriger had little trouble with the Longhorn’s lineup, combining to allow only three hits in six innings. But in the seventh, the offense finally woke up. With one out and runners at the corners, freshman third
baseman Bret Boswell singled to center to get Texas on the board. Two batters later, with runners again at the corners, sophomore first baseman Tres Barrera scored on a wild pitch to bring Texas to within one. Down to their final at-bats, the Longhorns, again, managed to manufacture a run. With one out, Boswell drew a walk, and then junior pinch runner Taylor Stell, who stole second base, replaced him. With a 1–2 count, freshman designated
hitter Joe Baker doubled to left to tie the game. “They turned it up,” Garrido said. But Texas couldn’t keep the game tied in the top of the 10th. After loading the bases, freshman pitcher Connor Mayes gave up an RBI ground out and a pop out that landed in right field, allowing the Islanders to retake a 6–3 lead. The Islanders built their early lead by making the most of its chances. In the third, Corpus
Christi worked a two-out walk and a hit by pitch and then took the lead on a single. Two innings later, two throwing errors put runners on second and third for the Islanders with one out before a successful squeeze bunt. Texas resumes Big 12 play this weekend, traveling to face Oklahoma State in a threegame series. Garrido said the biggest thing they need to establish is “playing hard for nine innings” going forward.
SOFTBALL
Top of the order guides Longhorns By Jason Epsetin @jwepstein96
Ellyn Snider | Daily Texan Staff
Freshman Connor Mayes is part of the new corps of Texas pitchers. Because of an exodus of three Longhorn pitchers to the draft, the pitching staff’s ERA is higher than last year’s.
Offense, pitching fail to synchronize for Texas @DrewLieberman
Reaching the College World Series is not the goal for Texas. It’s an expectation. The Longhorns have made 35 appearances in the program’s storied history, 12 more than the University of Miami, which ranks second. Since 2000, eight Texas squads have finished their seasons in Omaha, which alone would tie the University of Florida for the 17th most in the country. After missing the NCAA Tournament in 2012 and 2013, the 2014 Longhorns nearly played for the national title as part of a surprising run to Omaha. Texas’ season ended in the 10th inning of an elimination game against the eventual champions, Vanderbilt, on a walk-off infield single with two outs. The nature of the loss, combined with the returning talent and incoming freshmen, made many believe that the year’s team had the ability and grit to play for the championship that eluded its 2014 counterparts. The Longhorns returned seven of its nine players in its starting lineup and added some touted freshmen, such
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By Drew Lieberman
SIDELINE
as first baseman and catcher Michael Cantu. With so much returning experience, the Longhorns were expected to produce a fairly potent offense. Instead, through 28 games, the Longhorns have scored 233 runs, which equates to 5.07 per game, just over one-half a run better than the 4.46 it averaged in 2014. In last weekend’s disastrous series in Lincoln against the Nebraska Cornhuskers, the Longhorns mustered only 12 hits in 105 at-bats, while scoring three runs in 33 innings. In three games, Texas’ team batting average dropped nearly 20 points, from .270 entering the weekend to .252. However, the bats have given fans some reasons to be optimistic, such as the team’s slugging percentage, which sits at .395, up from the .353 it hit a year ago. This is a result of the 2.96 bases hits the team is averaging per game, after only averaging 2.03 such hits last season. In contrast, Texas’ pitching staff has suffered significant losses to the MLB Draft and graduation, with senior righthanded pitcher Parker French as its only returning weekend starter. After two months of
the season, the starting rotation seems set, as junior righthanded pitcher Chad Hollingsworth and sophomore right-handed pitcher Kacy Clemens are settling in as the other weekend starters. The staff ’s ERA is currently 2.67, down from 2.25 it posted a season ago, but it’s been performing better as of late. However, Texas has been unable to get its hitting and pitching clicking concurrently. As a result, the Longhorns have already lost 11 times in 28 games. Texas didn’t suffer its 11th loss until its 41st contest a season ago. This year’s team has battled adversity from the start of the season, while the 2014 team’s struggles came in the form of dropping seven of nine during a crucial stretch in conference play from mid-April to early May. Texas just needs to win enough to secure a tournament bid, as it’s converted three of its four trips into College World Series appearances since 2009. This team has enough talent to reach the College World Series for the 36th time in program history, and it very well might start with a strong showing in this weekend’s series at Oklahoma State.
Coming off of a sweep of No. 22 Kansas to open conference play, Texas looks to continue its momentum Wednesday against Houston at Cougar Softball Stadium. Texas (23–9, 3–0 Big 12) enters the matchup against Houston (17–17, 2–0 AAC) with both teams undefeated in their respective conferences. The Longhorns boast a 7–1 record on the road, while Houston struggles with a 9–8 record at home. The Longhorn lineup leads Texas’ strong offensive performance this season. Sophomore leadoff hitter Devon Tunning is batting .279 on the year while accumulating a teamhigh 26 walks — over a fifth of the team’s total. Second in the order, sophomore outfielder Stephanie Wong leads the team in batting with a .368 average and has reached a base safely in a career-long streak of w15 games. “Those two are seeing the ball very well right now,” head coach Connie Clark said. “I’m really pleased with our offense, and our ability to make needed adjustments has been tremendous.” Despite the Longhorns’ road record and strong lineup, they have struggled in opening innings on several occasions this season.
Texas is 9–8 in games when recording a scoreless inning. On the other hand, Texas is 10–1 when scoring more than one run in the opening frame. In last weekend’s three-game series against Kansas, this early momentum played a huge role. In the first game, along with a series of walks, a couple of singles and a three-run homerun in the first inning helped the Longhorns jump to a quick 4–0 lead over the Jayhawks. The next game, the Longhorns took another 4–0 lead in the first, leading to another victory. “We started off hot, and I think that was pretty significant to set the tone for the game,” Clark said after Friday’s victory over the Jayhawks. On Friday, Texas gave Kansas starting pitcher Alicia Pille her first loss of the season after she started 18–0, and, in the second, the Longhorns’ opening burst led to Pille’s removal from the mound with just one out in the game. “Coming into Friday at someone else’s place, you have the leadoff come out and get on and wreak havoc — that’s one thing,” Clark said. “To do it a second-straight day, you saw a little of the air come out of the tires across the diamond. Kansas certainly kept battling, but to get the momentum is important.”
Daulton Venglar | Daily Texan file photo
Sophomore shortstop Devon Tunning has been setting the plate for Texas as its leadoff hitter. She is hitting .279.
Mack Brown @ESPN_CoachMack
Congrats to Coach Rick Barnes soon to be named the HBB Coach @ Tenn. They got them a good one. Good luck going forward my friend!
SPORTS BRIEFLY Tennessee introduces Rick Barnes as coach
The University of Tennessee has officially hired Rick Barnes as its new head men’s basketballcoach, according to a statement the school announced Tuesday. In his farewell press conference Sunday, Barnes hinted that he wouldn’t be unemployed for long. “Will I coach again? Yes. Sooner than you might think,” Barnes said. The first reports leaked Monday that he had been hired to be the next coach of the Volunteers, and it was made official the next day. But the conversation between Barnes and Tennessee started earlier than that, according to Tennessee athletic director Dave Hart at an intrwoductory press conference later Tuesday. Tennessee began courting Barnes on Saturday, the first day they were allowed to talk to him. Hart flew to Austin on Sunday, and, as soon as Barnes wrapped up his farewell press conference, they got on a plane to Knoxville. “Rick Barnes is an elite basketball coach in every respect,” Hart said in a statement. “Rick brings an extremely impressive track record of excellence, as well as much-needed stability, to our men’s basketball program. This is an exciting day for our Tennessee family.” Hart also quipped that he would “dance in the streets” if he took Tennessee to 16 tournaments in 17 years. Barnes’ new contract with Tennessee is for six years, at $2.25 million per year with incentives, according to multiple reports. In addition, Barnes will get his $1.75 million buyout from Texas. His new contract is similar to his $2.55 million per year base salary he received at Texas this past year. The hiring comes just two days after Texas let go of Barnes. “I fully expect this to be my last job,” Barnes said. —Evan Berkowitz
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KAT SAMPSON, LIFE&ARTS EDITOR | @thedailytexan Wednesday, April 1, 2015
THEATER & DANCE
Dancers bring trees to center stage at festival By Emily Gibson @emgeemtee
Although the employees of Austin’s Parks and Recreation Department’s Urban Forestry Division aren’t classically trained in dance, they’re the stars of Forklift Danceworks’ latest production, “The Trees of Govalle.” The Urban Forestry Division will perform “The Trees of Govalle” on April 11 and 12 as part of Fusebox Festival. The festival opens Wednesday and celebrates art from a variety of mediums, including music, visual arts and theater. Forklift’s dance focuses on the Urban Forestry workers and the trees in East Austin’s Govalle Park. “By utilizing the stories of community members and featuring performances by neighborhood artists … ‘The Trees of Govalle’ will celebrate the area’s rich history and tell stories of some of Austin’s longtime residents,” according to a press release from Forklift Danceworks. Forklift Danceworks has a 14-year history of telling
often-overlooked stories through dance, said founder Allison Orr. In the past, they’ve worked with sanitation workers, baseball teams and firefighters. “We make dances with people who aren’t dancers — or who aren’t thought of as dancers — but who work in a skillful and artful way,” Orr said. Choreographer Krissie Marty said she and Orr usually find their subjects while driving around Austin, but “The Trees of Govalle” began when the Urban Forestry Division approached them. She said they received an email with the subject line: “Interested in trees?” “We would approach communities and ask them to collaborate,” Marty said. “But, now, we’ve gotten a bit of a following, and organizations are starting to come to us.” Orr and Marty both trained professionally in dance, but they intentionally work with people who aren’t practiced dancers. Marty said this redefines the idea of dance and who can perform.
“We define dancing as a design in space and time, not in having predetermined steps,” Marty said. “I ask people, ‘What is your definition of dance and dancers, and why do you define them that way?’” In “The Trees of Govalle,” the forest is the performers’ stage. Orr said the dance showcases the often-unnoticed dedication the Urban Forestry Division puts into caring for the thousands of trees across Austin. “We get to show this amazingly hard and challenging work that people do in our community,” Orr said. During the process of choreographing “The Trees of Govalle,” Orr said the Urban Forestry Division employees worked closely with the Forklift team. “We got [the Urban Forestry Division] involved in the process,” Orr said. “So these workers aren’t just performing. They are creating right alongside our team.” While creating the dance, Marty took movements the workers already knew, such as
Ellyn Snider | Daily Texan Staff
Urban Forestry Division employee Maurice Segura practices rappelling down a tree for “The Trees of Govalle” on Tuesday afternoon. A choreographed climb to music, “The Trees of Govalle” tells the stories of its performers as a part of Fusebox Festival.
tree climbing, and turned them into choreography. She said the performance highlights the work the arborists do but in a theatrical way.
“We’re taking the movements that these workers already know and are familiar with and highlighting the beauty and elegance in them,” Marty said.
The last round of tickets will be released when Fusebox Festival opens Wednesday. The show is free to attend but requires a reservation.
FILM
Three films to catch in theaters, one to avoid in April By Katie Walsh @katiehwalsh_atx
Movie studios typically release their biggest films during the summer, which leaves April out in the cold. A look outside the major studios, however, reveals several promising films set to release during the underappreciated spring month. True Story National Release April 17 Where: Violet Crown Jonah Hill and
Date: James
Franco switch gears from the ridiculous humor of their last collaborative effort “This Is The End” to a dark psychological thriller entitled “True Story.” Based on actual events of the early 2000s, “True Story” follows an ex-New York Times journalist (Hill) who finds himself involved with a convicted murderer (Franco) who has mysteriously assumed his identity. Ironically, The New York Times said in a 2013 article that the film’s portrayal of events is not wholly true but rather relies on the dramatics
of Hollywood. Roar National Release Date: April 17–23 Where: Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar Drafthouse Films is re-releasing this hidden gem from 1981 for one week in Austin. “Roar,” the self-proclaimed “most dangerous film ever made,” follows a wildlife preservationist who lives among a pack of untamed animals, including lions, tigers, cheetahs and elephants.
ALUMNI
Alumna to discuss field of robotics By Megan Kallus @megmayumi
Alumna Andrea Thomaz spends most of her work days watching a robot set the table or stack blocks. Thomaz researches artificial intelligence and robotics. She directs the Socially Intelligent Machines Lab at Georgia Institute of Technology, which creates robots that communicate like human beings and learn from human demonstration. These types of robots have potential for future use in hospitals and businesses, where a person could train robots to carry out important tasks in fast-changing environments. Although Thomaz’s lab is in Georgia, she spent her childhood in Texas. Born and raised in Houston, Thomaz earned a B.S. in computer and electronic engineering from UT. In 2006, she received her Ph.D. in robotics from MIT. “I first got interested in studying robotics after taking a class in artificial intelligence at the very end of my time at UT,” Thomaz said. “I loved it because it was an area that combined knowledge about things like algorithms and speech recognition. The problems are all multifaceted.” Thomaz specializes in creating socially intelligent robots. On Wednesday, she will give a talk at UT’s W. R. Woolrich Laboratories about her major project involving Simon, a learning robot. More Wall-E than the Terminator, Simon is a baby-faced, large-eyed robot that can learn simple sorting and household tasks from human teachers. “Simon is meant to be an accessible service robot,” Thomaz said. “The idea is that, hopefully, in the near future, machines like Simon will be in businesses and homes, and people will be talking to [the robots] on the regular. We
Photo courtesy of Andrea Thomaz
UT alumna Andrea Thomaz directs a robotics lab where she specializes in developing robots that learn from human teachers. She will speak on campus Wednesday about her work with socially intelligent robots.
observe how successfully [the robot] learns from people and then adjust the algorithms.” Part of Thomaz’s challenge is achieving more human-like communication with robots. When creating dialogues between people and robots, she said she has to consider the human side of the equation along with the robot’s. “You need to have a good understanding of human speech patterns and teaching methods,” Thomaz said. “You need to consider things like the natural movements that people make when they speak and how that affects communication. All of that needs to come together.” Sonia Chernova, director of the Robot Autonomy and Interactive Learning Lab at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, worked on researching robot learning techniques with Thomaz. Chernova said Thomaz’s research makes robots approachable to the average person. “[Thomaz] is one of the pioneers in research on robots learning from demonstration,” Chernova said. “Her research is exciting because it creates the opportunity to empower everyday people to interact with some of the most advanced technologies that we have today.”
As a leading researcher in a traditionally male-dominated field, Thomaz has noticed a gender gap in the tech world. But Thomaz thinks that the issue can be addressed through more outreach to women interested in tech. “There are definitely more men than women working in robotics right now,” Thomaz said. “But diversity shouldn’t always have to be a problem.” Thomaz participates in several ventures to support women in tech. She mentors female Ph.D. students and teaches workshops targeted at female researchers. “I think it’s just a matter of time before we see critical numbers of women studying robotics,” Thomaz. “There are already so many great women doing wonderful things in research and becoming very successful.” Thomaz said the path in the tech world doesn’t always have to be straightforward. She said her diverse educational background contributed to her love for the multidisciplinary area of robotics. “I think that it’s okay to try new things and change [your] mind about where [you] want to go in life,” Thomaz said. “I was lucky to discover my passion for robotics.”
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