SERVING THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN COMMUNITY SINCE 1900 @THEDAILYTEXAN | THEDAILYTEXAN.COM
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2018
VOLUME 118, ISSUE 112
N E WS
O PI N I O N
S P ORTS
LIFE&ARTS
SG approves proposal to provide a more inviting college atmosphere for transfer students. PAGE 3
The Editorial Board weighs in on Student Government races that affect everyone. PAGE 4
McCarty, Atkins shine in seniors’ final regular season game at the Frank Erwin Center. PAGE 6
Columnist B. Jones explains why losing your virginity isn’t that scary. PAGE 8
Black Progression: A talk with Brenda Burt
UNIVERSITY
UT Regents approve well-being intiatives
UNIVERSITY
By Maria Mendez @ mellow_maria
on campus.” It was this sense of community that kept black students strong amid the racial tensions and adverse climate at the University, which had only been integrated two decades prior, Burt said. Aside from African-American students cultivating a more inclusive culture and embracing their own heritage, Burt said she also observed the importance of allies when it came to the advancement of African-American students on campus. “It wasn’t just the black students (helping each other out), there were white students as well insuring that all students were represented on the campus,” Burt said. “It only takes one, and if their voice was heard, you had an ally.” Burt said she vividly remembers some allies to the black community in the 1980s, which included the Student Government and Sharon Justice, the former dean of students. “Student leadership was tight back then,” Burt said. “Whether you were in the Texas Union, president of an organization, SG — whoever you were, they all came together and they all looked at the campus saying, ‘Hmm, what’s missing, what can we improve?’” The students took action on their observations and would even host meetings with top leaders on campus to initiate tangible results for their proposals. “They would then meet and have their
The UT System Board of Regents allocated almost $7.4 million to promote students’ mental health, safe alcohol consumption and sexual assault prevention across UT institutions during a meeting Tuesday. The Board, which governs all 14 UT institutions, first approved $5.995 million of endowment funds for mental health, student safety and alcohol-related education for the next three years. The regents also allocated another $1.4 million to continue studying sexual assault at UT institutions through the Cultivating Learning and Safe Environments, CLASE, program. While presenting the funding proposal, Wanda Mercer, UT System associate vice chancellor, said suicide is the second leading cause of death of students, and alcohol is their drug of choice. “Mental health issues (and) the issues of alcohol are really the issues our students are grappling with in our System,” Mercer said. “The top three impediments to academic success are stress, anxiety and depression.” UT-Austin will help lead the implementation of existing and new student wellness initiatives, Mercer said. The Moody College of Communication and Dell Medical School will create a $227,000 new System-wide health communications campaign on alcohol and consent, and a $266,800 program to engage male students in sexual assault prevention will be developed from UT’s MasculinUT campaign. The approved funds will ensure the future of System-wide programs such as bystander intervention initiatives and mental health technology-based programs, including a web-based alcohol safety and sexual assault prevention training required of first-time students, the Thrive at UT app and televised counseling services. The funds will cover some of the costs of an intervention program for high-risk drinking students and Centers for Students in Recovery at UT institutions, which received $1,595,500. Chris Brownson, UT’s vice president of student affairs and director of the Counseling and Mental Health Center, said UT-Austin and the UT System
BLACK page 2
REGENTS page 2
Current UT African and African Diaspora Studies lecturer 1984 – Present
katie bauer | the daily texan staff Brenda Burt, lecturer in the Department of African and African Diaspora Studies, has been a part of black students’ acclimation on UT’s campus since 1984. Burt helped establish and direct the Multicultural Engagement Center.
UT-Austin Student Demographics (1984–1985)
Black Other 3.2% 3.3% 3.2%
Brenda Burt discusses increased representation and resources for UT’s African-American students By Wande Isola
Hispanic 8.7%
@ thedailytexan
F
Foreign 6.8%
White 78%
Compared to 3.9% black-only and 0.7% black (2 or more) students in 2016–2017.
rena li | the daily texan staff Editor’s Note: This is The Daily Texan’s third installment of The 5% Project in collaboration with the UT-Austin chapter of National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ).
rom hosting welcome seminars to lecturing in the classroom, Brenda Burt has seen it all when it comes to black student affairs at UT. Now a lecturer in the Department of African and African Diaspora Studies, she made her first appearance on the 40 Acres in 1984. Throughout her career at the University, Burt has dedicated a large part of her time working to better the lives of black students. “I began my involvement by personally going to programs that students were a part of in ’84,” Burt said. “I wanted to find out what the climate was like and who were the administrators working with students as well.” In 1984, Burt was hired as the director of undergraduate and alumni relations for the Department of African and African Diaspora Studies — a position she held for 34 years. Since 2013, she has also been an adjunct assistant professor in the same department. Throughout her exploration into UT’s campus climate, Burt said she has made many observations, such as that in 1984, the black population at the University made up 3.3 percent of the 47,973 students enrolled. “The black community back in the day was like a fist,” Burt said. “They were tight, they loved each other and they looked after each other. This community began as soon as students stepped foot
CAMPUS
Student group hopes to end sexual violence By Megan Mechaca @meganmenchaca13
Taking up action against sexual assault, the UT chapter of It’s On Us began its first steps toward ending sexual violence on campus by holding its first meeting Tuesday. Forty-four percent of students at UT who experienced sexual harassment had been assaulted by peers, according to a report last year by UT’s Institute on Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault. It’s On Us, a national initiative to address sexual assault on college campuses, reports on their website that only 20 percent of
female student victims, between ages 18 to 24, report such assault to law enforcement. The UT organizers of It’s On Us hope to change these numbers. “The goal of It’s On Us is to change the conversation about sexual assault on campus by teaching people about bystander intervention, how to prevent sexual assault and what to do if it happens to you,” said Brianna Torres, Plan II and English sophomore and the group’s campus organizer. It’s On Us was created by President Barack Obama and the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault in 2014. With a sponsorship from
UT’s Title IX Office, the group was formed last semester, but meetings began this week. Breall Baccus, confidential advocate and prevention coordinator for the Title IX Office, said as advisor, she wants to support prevention efforts on campus. “We have some really wonderful organizations on campus who are working to combat sexual assault,” Baccus said. “But we know that students get engaged in different ways and that there’s always students looking to participate who may not have found what’s best for them yet.” During the first meeting, prospective members discussed
SEXUAL VIOLENCE page 3
brittany mendez | the daily texan staff Breall Baccus, confidential advocate and prevention coordinator for the Title IX Office, writes down preventions, resources and issue areas found on campus with regard to sexual assault Tuesday at the Union.