serving the university of texas at austin community since
@thedailytexan |
thedailytexan . com
1900
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2018
volume
119,
issue
NEWS
OPINION
LIFE&ARTS
SPORTS
Students, professors and researchers launch a “how-to” app for voting. PA G E 2
Students can do their part to combat climate change by conserving water. PA G E 4
SAGE Studio provides new opportunity for disabled artists to display their work. PA G E 8
Fans get first look at Longhorns basketball ahead of start of regular season. PA G E 6
47
CITY
Clery report shows uptick in drug abuse violations across Austin
STUDENT LIFE
PARTY’S OVER
By Megan Nguyen @ultravioletmegs
UT’s annual Security and Fire Safety Report recorded a 32 percent increase in the number of drug arrests and a 29 percent increase in the number of disciplinary referrals from 2016 to 2017. An increase in referrals could indicate that the UT Police Department is gravitating more toward helping those with a drug problem, addiction research professor Jane Maxwell said in an email. “Referrals are definitely a public health approach to intervene with someone who is exhibiting harmful behavior to himself or his roommates or others, and the intervention can be a powerful tool to recognizing a problem and behavior change,” Maxwell said. The safety report, required each year under the Clery Act, includes all crimes reported to campus police, other law enforcement and university officials, such as the University’s Office for Inclusion and Equity. “Our highest numbers regarding drug arrests are off-campus, and I would attribute that to (UTPD) being more proactive with our increase in patrols west of campus,” UTPD Assistant Chief Don Verett said. “Our university community had asked us to be more proactive off campus, off Guadalupe and West Campus. Just because the arrests go up may not mean there’s more drug use, but rather that we’re enforcing more and being more proactive.” Drug overdose deaths reached a record high in 2017, and there has been a steady rise in overall illicit drug use among college students since 2010, with consistent increases in marijuana
DRUG
page
U T F R AT S R E S T R I C T HARD LIQUOR.
eddie gaspar
| the daily texan staff
By Sara Schleede @saraschleede
Hard liquor will be banned from all fraternity events, unless served by a third party vendor, beginning Jan. 1. “I don’t think Greek life is ever going to be the same,” Interfraternity Council President Peter Driscoll said. “This is a very significant departure from the past.” The proposal was introduced to the IFC executive board Sept. 18. A vote on the proposal was postponed to Sept. 23 and again to Oct. 3 before fraternity chapter presidents approved the ban Wednesday with a vote of 19-1-0.
“It took feedback,” said Max Harberg, IFC vice president of communications and advertising junior. “It was a collaborative process. We were trying to come to a change together versus the higher-ups coming up with something that everyone else had to deal with.” Drinks with more than 15 percent alcohol by volume will be banned from being consumed on chapter property. Fraternity members who are 21 or older may own any type of alcohol, but they must consume it off chapter premises. Punishment for individuals violating the ban will be decided on a chapter by chapter basis, while organizations found in violation of the policy
FRATS
page
3
2
CAMPUS
Animal Make Safe rescues bats trapped in campus buildings By Gracie Awalt @gracieawalt5
With spooky season in full swing, students should look out for bats stuck in campus buildings or injured on the sidewalk. Every year in October and November, the largest urban bat population in North America consisting of 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats begins their winter migration from Austin to Central America and Mexico. The Animal Make Safe program within the UT Office of Campus Safety is available 24/7 to remove and rescue bats. Carin Peterson, Animal Make Safe training & outreach coordinator, said bats can enter buildings through ventilation ducts, open windows or open doors and can crawl under the cracks of closed doors if their heads fit through the bottom. “Bats get curious, and they can just get
jeb milling
lost,” Peterson said. “They follow airflow patterns, so they may be attracted to something that’s drawing them to that space and then they can’t get out.” Peterson said if a bat is found sleeping inside a building during the day, an Animal Make Safe staff member will catch the bat with a coffee can and release them at night.
STEER CLEAR!
TEXAS TEXAS ATHLETICS ATHLETICS GAMEDAY GAMEDAY CLEAR CLEAR BAG BAG POLICY POLICY
| the daily texan staff
If the bat is found flying inside a building, a large net is used to catch the bat. She said one time a flock of bats was found in a basement on campus and this method had to be used to remove them. If a student encounters a bat, they should never touch them because some have rabies, Peterson said.
“If there is one laying on the ground, somebody might mistake the bat for a leaf or a piece of litter if it isn’t moving,” Peterson said. “Sometimes when people see them crawling, they think it’s a mouse because they’re so small.” Peterson said the migration periods and the month of June, when baby bats are born, are when Animal Make Safe receives the most calls for rescues. Peterson said after 18 years of targeting and repairing buildings prone to house bats, the overall trend of bats seen in campus buildings has decreased. Injured bats are taken to the Austin Bat Refuge, a nonprofit organization that rehabilitates them. “The bat arm bones can be broken when people swat at them with an object out of fear,” said Dianne Odegard, director and co-founder of Austin Bat Refuge. “We see
APPROVED APPROVED BAGS BAGS
•• Bags Bags that that are are clear clear plastic plastic and and do do not not exceed exceed 12” 12” xx 6” 6” xx 12” 12” •• One-gallon clear resealable plastic storage bags One-gallon clear resealable plastic storage bags •• Small Small clutch clutch bags bags or or purses purses that that do do not not exceed exceed 4.5” 4.5” xx 6.5” 6.5”
PROHIBITED PROHIBITED BAGS BAGS
•• Backpacks, fanny Backpacks, purses, purses, diaper diaper bags, bags, cases cases (camera, (camera, binocular, binocular, etc.), etc.), fanny packs, printed pattern plastic bags, reusable grocery totes, mesh packs, printed pattern plastic bags, reusable grocery totes, mesh or or straw straw bags, duffle bags, large totes bags, duffle bags, large totes
TexasSports.com/clearbag TexasSports.com/clearbag
BATS
page
2