SERVING THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN COMMUNITY SINCE 1900 @THEDAILYTEXAN | THEDAILYTEXAN.COM
17, 2018
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY
VOLUME 118, ISSUE 82
Welcome back. The new semester brought some changes, implemented one step at a time. PAGE 3
photographer carlos garcia| daily texan staff Three girls walk out of the University Co-op and cross the newly painted intersection on Guadalupe as they preparing for the new semester on Monday afternoon.
CITY
UNIVERSITY
City comes together to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day By Brianna Stone @bristone19 Martin Luther King Jr. would have celebrated his 89th birthday on Monday. Instead, the Austin community celebrated his life and legacy at the annual city-wide MLK Celebration. Organized by the Austin Area Heritage Council, members of the community gathered at the MLK statue on the UT campus before marching to the Texas Capitol and then on to Huston-Tillotson University for a festival. “All of us can do more, and we can take inspiration from leaders of previous generations, especially from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,” UT President Gregory Fenves said. “(King) sacrificed everything for justice and equality. He set the standard. He taught us how to listen, be brave and sacrifice. His greatness changed this country forever, and on this day every year, we pause to express our gratitude to him.” Fenves said the positive actions of the community members in attendance are part of the solution to issues that are still being faced today. Several other UT faculty were in attendance at the opening program — Brenda Burt, African and African diaspora studies professor, gave the opening remarks, while Leonard Moore, interim vice president for diversity and
photographer angela wang | daily texan staff Economics senior Jackson Stephenson scrapes ice off his windshield Tuesday night in the Hancock Center parking lot. The University of Texas and much of the city of Austin closed down due to cold weather.
Classes begin after “snow” day Severe weather allows students one extra day of winter break. By Anna Lassmann @annalassmann
T
he first day of class and all University events were canceled due to extreme winter weather conditions. Students spent the canceled class day sleeping in and watching the “snow”. Grace Allen, economics and international relations sophomore,
said she has stayed bundled up in her dorm for most of the day but went outside briefly to throw snow and ice into the air. “I thought this ‘snow day’ was the perfect way to start classes, honestly,” Allen said. “Even though it didn’t snow as much as I wanted it to, I’m glad UT isn’t making people drive on the icy roads.” The last time the University closed for winter conditions was Jan. 28, 2014, and the last time the University delayed start due to winter conditions was Dec. 8, 2017. Unlike Allen who grew up in Texas and has not experienced much snow, Rachel Nguyen,
human development and family sciences senior, visits New York every winter and is used to icier conditions. Nguyen said she stayed inside all day with the heater on. “I think the ‘snow day’ and classes being cancelled was exactly what I needed,” Nguyen said. “I know that we just had a month off for winter break, but I think that UT made the right decision to cancel classes.” Temperatures quickly dropped into the 30s Monday night around 10 p.m. as the cold front came through, with freezing temperatures beginning around 1 a.m. Tuesday and remaining in the mid
to upper 20s throughout the day. Hazardous road conditions developed early Tuesday morning as ice-covered roads and bridges led local law enforcement to advise people to stay off roadways. The freezing temperatures are likely to persist through part of Wednesday, UT’s chief meteorologist Troy Kimmel predicted. “I advise people to bundle up and to use extra caution when you’re walking and driving,” Kimmel said. Laurie Lentz, communications manager for University Planning, Energy and Facilities, said the
WEATHER page 2
MLK page 3 CITY
Dunkin’ Donuts opens on the Drag after two years By Chase Karacostas @chasekaracostas
photographer angela wang | daily texan staff Finance and math senior Justin Park, left, and accounting senior Chris Liu, right, order ice cream at the combined Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin Robbins.
6563/Energy Institute; Process color
It actually happened. A Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin-Robbins hybrid opened last month near the intersection of Guadalupe and 24th Streets next door to Einstein Bros. Bagels. There’s been a “Dunkin’ Donuts Coming Soon” sign above the entrance for close to two years, but it wasn’t until several weeks ago that management placed a “help wanted” sign outside. New and returning students can now look forward to stress-eating donuts and coffee as they run late to their
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exams at Hogg Auditorium — or Hogg Building. On Twitter, many students found it hard to believe the donut shop was really open. After about six months of walking past the sign, nursing senior Sam Allega said the thought of the store ever opening seemed comical. “I was shocked,” Allega said of the store’s opening. “I didn’t think it was ever going to show up. I thought they abandoned plans to finish it.” Allega said he wished the shop had opened sooner. Now in his final semester at UT, most of his classes are on the opposite end of campus from the Drag, making a donut or coffee run nowhere
near as convenient as it would have been when he was taking lower-division classes on the west side of campus. Sylvia Gomez, the store’s general manager, said part of why it took so long to open is because of the permitting process surrounding the building’s historical value. In 1936, the Varsity Theater opened across the street from the Texas Union as one of the first suburban theaters in Austin. Five decades later, the theater closed in 1990. In the years since, the building housed businesses such as a record store and a coffee shop. Now,
DUNKIN’ page 2
Jan 29 – Feb 2, 2018
ETTER-HARBIN ALUMNI CENTER AUSTIN, TEXAS