The Daily Texan 8-11-11

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THE DAILY TEXAN Serving the University of Texas at Austin community since 1900

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Thursday, August 11, 2011

BREAKING DOWN BUDGET CUTS

How do you think UT budget cuts will affect you?

Editor’s note: This fall, the effects of a $92 million cut from the 2011 state Legislature will become apparent with larger class sizes, fewer TAs and less-than-pristine grounds. For our final paper of the summer, we reached out to administrators of offices, colleges and schools to begin to understand past and future cuts and learn how students will be involved in decisions. The stories in this paper only brush the surface of the myriad ways budget cuts will unfold, and we’ll keep you informed with continued reporting in the fall.

UNIVERSITY COPES WITH FEWER FUNDS “The Staff Council is very concerned any time members of our staff are laid off.

We hope that the administration will continue to diligently seek cost-cutting measures that will avoid staff layoffs within the University in the future.”

— Then-Staff Council Vice Chair Joe Gregory after learning that 273 fulltime staff members would be laid off in preparation for budget cuts.

JULY 2010

OCTOBER 2010 “There is a lot of tension, uncertainty and fatigue because we’ve been dealing with this [economy] for a number of years.”

— Then-Human Resources Director Julien Carter regarding budget wariness and staff layoffs.

“I started school at Brown, and I transferred here because of the Center for Mexican-American Studies. We’ve agreed that this organization needs to be a student initiative, because we’re in these courses and these centers, and we’ll fight to keep them in place.”

— Then-Mexican-American studies senior Diana Gomez after the formation of The Students Speak, an organization designed to respond to $1 million in cuts to ethnic and identity studies centers.

NOVEMBER 2010

NOVEMBER 2010 “I think if I were in their position, it’s exactly what I would have done. But I always thought we [adjuncts] brought a certain vitality to the [classrooms].”

— Former adjunct professor Michael Whitney after learning his contract with the College of Communication would not be renewed for the spring semester.

“I wish I could say we have budget plans that will avoid all layoffs, but I can’t say that.”

— President William Powers Jr. after learning the Legislative Budget Board had recommended $93.2 million in cuts to UT. MARCH 2011

DECEMBER 2010 “This is not the final resting place for any of the cuts. We’re beginning a consultative process with all the centers so we can hear from faculty and students.”

— College of Liberal Arts Associate Dean Richard Flores following a protest by members of The Students Speak in response to cuts to ethnic and identities studies centers.

APRIL 2011 “We cannot risk excellence. If [higher education] is tarnished because of inadequate funding, then there will not be such a demand for it.”

— State Senator Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, during a Q&A with The Daily Texan.

Budget director Mary Knight spoke with The Daily Texan to address administrative plans to deal with a reduction of state appropriations over the next two years. Total permanent cuts amount to $92 million or $46 million per year — about 17.5 percent of UT’s state funding.

The Daily Texan: What should students expect to be different when they return in the fall?

Mary Knight: They may see things like library hours reduced, and there could be some larger class sizes. But course availability is a priority. Some of the maintenance on campus may be reduced. Things like trash pickup in the offices and overall maintenance of the campus may look a little bit less kept over time. I think the important things are being maintained for the students.

DT: What is the process of planning and implementing cuts?

MK: Each college and each vice president has a five-year plan that considers the budget reductions and state appropriations. There is also a lot of room for doing things more efficiently and doing things better.

We’ll be doing more work with fewer people. There will be an impact, but we’re trying to maintain the academic and research missions as much as possible and make cuts in other areas.

DT: What funding sources is the administration seeking to make up for reductions in state appropriations?

MK: The Board of Regents recently passed an increase in allotment from the Available University Fund, but that increase is not a permanent increase, and the cuts are permanent. We get an extra $22 million for this year, but for the 201213 year, that may not be there. And with the market reductions we’ve seen this week, the [fund] is significantly impacted by that, so that fund may fall.

Eric Larsen Biochemistry junior

“More online homework instead of personally graded homework, and that makes it more difficult when you’re struggling for those extra points to get the A.”

JULY 2011 “We are collaborating with other universities across the nation to define the public research university of the future. But some things never change, such as our commitment to education and to nurturing the people and the research that changes the world.”

— President William Powers Jr. in an email to the campus in response to criticism of UT research. Powers said research funding is critical in the face of state appropriations cuts.

Quotes are taken from previous Daily Texan articles.

UT budget director answers questions about future plans

By Audrey White Daily Texan Staff

“What we are dealing with here is fewer grant dollars for all of our students and quite frankly, that means we will have to offer them more forms of loan dollars to help them fund their education.”

— Tom Melecki, the director of the Office of Student Financial Services, shortly before the office released financial aid packages that reflected cuts to state grant programs.

JUNE 2011

Alica Baumhoer Chemical engineering junior

“I signed up for a chemical engineering class and two weeks ago they took me out of the class because they said there were scheduling conflicts, and they didn’t have as many classes any more because of budget cuts.”

BUDGET CUTS BY THE NUMBERS

Computer sciences junior

$92 million

“Losing scholarships would really hurt me financially.”

Andrew Nunez

State cuts in 2011 legislative session for the 2011-13 biennium

17.5 percent

Cut of state funds, which make up general revenue

$22 million

One time increase in funding from the Available University Fund

$835,000

Permanent cuts to the College of education for 2011-12

$3.5 million

Permanent cuts to College of Liberal Arts for 2011-13

17 percent

Decrease in operational budget for the College of Engineering ning made in this process?

MK: It’s been huge. For 2010-11, we already reduced $29 million because we were planning for this.

We’ve been planning for almost two years. The deans and vice presidents have made thoughtful reductions, they’ve assessed priorities, they’ve met with the provost multiple times.

They’re really going through a significant detailed process.

DT: How can students impact budget cuts when it’s such a complicated process?

MK: Get involved in the process.

The college councils are available if they’re particularly interested in improving their college. There’s Graduate Student Assembly, and there are all kinds of student positions within Student Government, including legislative outreach. The Tuition Policy Advisory Committee is starting up soon, and there will be public forums on those. If students are interested in their tuition rates, they should come and talk about it and get their DT: What impact has pre-plan- voices heard.

Andrew Torrey | Daily Texan file photo

Tamara Valdez shows support for fighting budget cuts at a The Students Speak rally on the West Mall.

The Students Speak plans to campaign against budget cuts in the fall.

The Students Speak organizes, prepares agenda for next year

By Diego Cruz Daily Texan Staff

A student-led group continues to organize for increased University funding even after many students, faculty and staff have resigned themselves to nearly $100 million in legislative budget cuts.

The Students Speak, a decentralized student-formed group, gives a voice to students who protest against the budget cuts affecting their edu-

cation, said Mexican-American studies senior Bernardino Lucian Villaseñor.

“We’ve been against all budget cuts on campus because we don’t have to take this,” Villaseñor said. “The Legislature has continued to reduce our funding, and students are the ones who have to pay the costs with higher tuition.”

The group first met last fall after finding out the Academic Planning and Advisory Committee of the College of Liberal Arts

recommended large budget cuts to ethnic and identity studies programs without seeking student feedback, Villaseñor said.

He said the group has not met over the summer but will reorganize in the fall. Villaseñor said students have been watching the administration over the summer after many received financial aid packages as much $1,000 smaller than they expected.

The Students Speak

Nasheb Ismaily Computer sciences

“It’s really hard to come to campus and find computers that are open and have the programs we [computer science majors] need.

It’s really hurting us. We have to do a lot of work from home. Three or four years ago there was someone in the [computer] lab 24/7. Now, if something happens, you’re kind of screwed.”

ON THE WEB: Watch video of students responding to the cuts at bit.ly/cutsvideo

SPEAK continues on PAGE 2

Liberal Arts, Natural Sciences find ways to tighten belts

By Victoria Pagan Daily Texan Staff

UT’s two largest schools, the Colleges of Liberal Arts and the Natural Sciences, chose to tackle required budget cuts in very different ways, and both stand by their tactics.

The College of Liberal Arts offered a second round of retirement incentives to eligible professors last month in direct response to

continuing budget cuts that started in 2009, said Assistant Dean for Business Affairs Jamie Southerland.

The college offered 38 packages as the first step in cutting the $1.5 million dollars still needed to reach the college’s goal of cutting $3.5 million by 2013, Southerland said.

Southerland said by the end of this process the college will have reduced its budget by another

$500,000 and reduced its number of instructors by 10 percent.

He said the college has also saved $400,000 by reducing staff beginning in 2009.

“It is becoming more and more painful to make these cuts,” Southerland said.

Southerland said the college began cutting from its budget in 2009 by implementing recommendations from the faculty-led Academic Planning and Advisory

Committee. He said the cuts were made by reducing staff, teaching assistants, assistant instructors and lecturers by offering the first round of retirement packages and by reducing liberal arts’ academic centers’ budgets.

Southerland said the faculty committee’s recommendations showed their priorities on teaching and research over

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NEWS

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Schools take different approaches to budget cuts

The Daily Texan Volume 112, Number 21

CONTACT US

Editor’s note: Some colleges and schools did not return requests for comment by press time. We will continue to reach out to them for information.

By William James Gerlich, Matt Stottlemyre, Katrina Tollin, and Huma Munir

Main Telephone: (512) 471-4591

Education

The College of Education will lose $835,000 in funding for the year 2011-12. The cuts will impact the college’s departments, faculty and students as it prepares to reduce unnecessary services and academic programs, said Marilyn Kameen, the college’s senior associate dean.

“We are really scaling back on hiring faculty, especially tenure track,” Kameen said. “We are not doing any hiring right now.”

Tenure or tenure track faculty members will be teaching more classes each semester, Kameen said. If a professor was teaching two classes a semester in the past, he or she will teach at least four per semester in the future, Kameen said. The college has to

Editor: Viviana Aldous (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com Managing Editor: Veronica Rosalez (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com News Office: (512) 232-2207 news@dailytexanonline.com Sports Office: (512) 232-2210 sports@dailytexanonline.com Life & Arts Office: (512) 232-2209 dailytexan@gmail.com

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The Texan strives to present all information fairly, accurately and completely. I f we have made an error, let us know about it. Call (512) 232-2217 or e-mail managingeditor@dailytexanonline.com.

Roderick Hart, dean of the College of Communication, said he will meet with the provost on Aug. 30 to discuss a five-year budget plan for the college.

Hart said he does not have a clear idea of how much the college will be losing for the next few years, but reductions are inevitable because the budget is not increasing.

He said the college’s administration will have to decide if it can afford to replace the position of every faculty member that leaves.

If the number of students stays constant and the college keeps losing faculty members, it has the potential to dilute the quality of education being offered, Hart said.

Business

COPYRIGHT

As one of the top business schools in the nation, the McCombs School of Business may drop ranks this April once the next biennium’s budget cuts are factored in, administrators said.

Arthur Allert, assistant dean of the undergraduate programs at the McCombs School of Business, said the administration is trying to keep cuts from affecting the academic excellence of the school, but that the budget cuts have been transformative, and not in a good way.

The main change students

Copyright 2011 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.

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Another area that might be impacted is buying new technology and equipment, he said. The College of Communication is a very equipment intensive college and technology tends to be perishable. It is not clear if the college will have enough money to replace every broken camera or piece of equipment, Hart said.

“Another category of expense is facilities and maintenance,” he said. “We have a new building that we are helping to pay for.”

He said the college has been encouraging faculty to bring in more external funds in research that will create additional revenue for the budget. Hart said he has been engaged in philanthropic efforts for years even though that is only part of his job.

“I worry about it more than anything,” Hart said. will notice is an increase in class size. Undergraduate classes were capped at 65 students, with an average class size of 49, but this fall class sizes will increase to a maximum of 70 students.

To balance the budget, the office eliminated an academic advisor and an administrator last year. The school also transferred two employees to the department of business centralization, resulting in four employee positions vacant at the school.

The undergraduate school lost about $200,000 in addition to the cost of the four employees within the undergraduate school.

Architecture After losing three prominent professors in the past year, the School of Architecture’s answer to balancing a difficult budget has been to replace two positions with entry-level professors and leave one vacant.

K e n t B u t l e r, t h e s c h o o l ’ s a s s o c i a t e d e a n o f re s e a rc h , passed away in mid-May and administrators said his loss will affect research moving forward this upcoming year.

The architecture program, which was ranked fifth in the nation, dropped to seventh this past year after the budget cuts were made. Steiner said you cannot lose the caliber of faculty that has been lost within the past year and also have less funding for graduate students and still be ranked as highly as before.

“We are not able to offer as many competitive packages to our graduate students now because of these cuts,” Steiner said.

“Graduate assistantships will be

Graduate The Graduate School is absorbing its share of the University’s budget cuts by not filling vacated positions, downgrading positions and cutting back on print materials for new students.

Assistant Dean John Dalton said the school is an administrative unit and is only responsible for scheduling a small number of specialty classes that don’t fit into other college or school programs.

Four positions — an associate dean, the director of communication for the school, a tech position and a human resources position — have been vacated and not filled since the first cuts began in 2009, Dalton said.

Geosciences Compared to other schools on campus, the Jackson School of Geosciences has managed to keep its head above water despite harsh budget cuts.

J.B. Bird, spokesman for geosciences, said the school faced a reduction of several staff members within the dean’s office, but did not have to cut faculty or

Ryan Edwards | Daily Texan Staff

The School of Architecture is dropping in rank after budget cuts forced them to fill vacant positions with entry-level faculty. cut back, which will also impact our research abilities.”

Administrators said the teaching budget was cut to balance the budget as well, which will have an immediate effect on the students. The number of courses

He said other positions’ titles and salaries have been downgraded when possible as employees leave the University and their spots have to be refilled.

“The crux of what we are doing is staff based, and those are the most difficult cuts to make,” Dalton said. “People still here are doing more work for the same pay.”

He also said the school has reduced the cost of printed material for incoming graduate students by moving much of the material online. The school was able to reduce the book-length material that cost $13,000 to print each year to a single frontand-back page that costs $775 each year.

the courses offered to students.

Research will also not be affected by the cuts, since most of the school’s research funding comes from outside sources such as the National Science Foundation, Bird said.

The school’s rankings are also not expected to change in any way, Bird said, leaving the school in good shape for the future.

will decrease and class sizes are expected to increase.

“It’s been painful to make the cuts we’ve made, but we’ve been able to make them in a systematic way with good planning and coordination,” Steiner said.

Engineering The Cockrell School of Engineering will bring in 15 tenure and tenure track faculty members through next year, said Dean Gregory Fenves.

Although there have been reductions in staff, adjuncts, teaching assistants and lecturers in the past year, the school is continuing a moderate growth path for faculty hiring, he said.

The school has lost 17 percent of its operational budget in a year and a half, Fenves said, and these reductions primarily targeted staff and administration.

“In our supplemental budget, [there is a] 10- to 15-percent reduction in funding for adjunct professors and teaching assistants,” Fenves said.

Some of these reductions took place last year and some will take effect on Sept. 1, he said. These reductions have made it possible for the School of Engineering to absorb budget cuts and hire toptalent faculty that are expected to bring in more money in external research funds, Fenves said.

Fenves said the school has had a slight reduction in student advisers in the career services area but most of the reductions do not impact students.

ONLINE: Read more about cuts to colleges and other areas of the university at dailytexanonline.com

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outreach. He said they will make more recommendations in the fall.

“We will try to spread the remaining cuts over two [years] in hopes that the economy will rise and appropriations will begin to

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Texan Ad Deadlines

maximize teaching loads, because it is not able to replace adjunct or clinical professors that retire or leave, she said.

The kinesiology department will eliminate its aquatics course, because it is too expensive and is not a requirement for any major, Kameen said. The kinesiology department will also hire fewer fulltime faculty and use more doctoral students to teach courses, she said.

The college will reduce the size of doctoral programs because some of them are too expensive to run, Kameen said.

Some academic programs are headed by one person and department chairs are looking to merge those with other programs, Kameen said.

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reappear,” Southerland said.

Southerland said budget cuts have been more difficult for the college to make because the college under Dean Randy Diehl has always been efficient and didn’t have much excess.

Southerland said they were the first college to begin making cuts and the first college to consider and implement advice from the student-run College Tuition and Budget Advisory Committee.

“We’ve been at the forefront of this and have been leading the way to making constructive cuts,” Southerland said.

Former College of Natural Sciences Associate Dean David Laude remains focused on the potential for growth despite necessary cuts.

Laude stepped in as Interim Dean on Aug. 1 after Dean Mary Rankin retired.

Laude said although budget cuts are a reality that come with the position, he does not feel it is appropriate to focus on the negatives when the college is experiencing a time of growth with three new buildings opening this year.

“In fact, we need to be looking at all of the great possibilities that exist,” Laude said.

He said offering retirement packages to good professors is never an option.

He said the school has only

Emilia Harris | Daily Texan Staff

Interim Natural Sciences Dean David Laude hopes to promote growth despite a climate of cuts.

made a handful of layoffs since the initial budget cuts in 2009, and he believes the number of faculty members will shrink naturally when members retire and the college chooses not to replace them.

“We make it a priority to recruit, hire and retain good faculty,” Laude said. “In the last decade

SPEAK continues from PAGE 1 organized a rally and protest on campus last December as well as a march to Capitol in March, said member and computer sciences senior Ruben Fitch.

“I do sincerely believe that the budget cuts can be reversed. It will just take sustained creative organizing on a scale much larger than we’ve currently been able to accomplish,” Fitch said.

Women’s and gender studies senior Teri Adams began attending group meetings shortly after they

started to speak out against cuts to the Women’s and Gender Studies Center.

The group chose to remain independent from the University in order to freely oppose the legitimacy of budget cuts without being subject to guidelines and regulations normally followed by student groups, Adams said. After the Academic Planning and Advisory Committee’s initial recommendations, liberal arts administrators and President William Powers Jr.

we have increased the size of our faculty by about 50 members, and we’ve seen research dollars and rankings go up.”

Laude said the college is always looking for innovative ways to decrease their spending, such as embracing technology and using it to replace costly resources. He said the college cut nearly $300,000

from its budget by eliminating photocopy charges and minimizing travel.

“We reduced our records office by 50 percent while getting more done by automating everything in the office,” Laude said. “It’s an appreciation for the way the world is changing and embracing cost saving transformations.”

adjusted the plan and reduced cuts to several centers, including the centers for Mexican-American and African-American Studies.

“Students have traditionally been on the vanguard of social change movements, so we have a really important role to play in arming ourselves with the ideas necessary to interpret the information of what’s going on out there,” she said.

As a mother of two with a parttime job and six years at UT, Ad-

ams said the current model was not financially viable for many students who have other responsibilities outside of their studies.

She said the UT System Board of Regents caused many of the problems but were unaccountable to students because Gov. Rick Perry appoints the board.

“I don’t feel like they’re at all in touch with the reality of people’s and students’ lives, and yet they have ultimate power over us,” Adams said.

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World&NatioN

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Thursday, August 11, 2011 | The Daily Texan | Reese Rackets, Wire Editor | dailytexanonline.com

Young rioters end up in courtrooms

Woman avoids jail time after feeding wild bears The Associated Press

UKIAH, Calif. — A woman who turned her rural Northern California home into a spa for wild bears won’t go to jail after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of feeding big game.

After Lynne Gravier entered her plea in Mendocino County Superior Court on Monday, Judge Richard Henderson set her sentencing date for three years from now, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

If Gravier stays out of trouble and stops feeding bears, prosecutors agreed to drop the charge then.

Gravier, 77, known as the “Bear Woman,” set up a plush hangout for her furry friends at her 40-acre Laytonville property, complete with a kiddie pool and a buffet of cornmeal and peanut butter sandwiches, sometimes laced with glucosamine to ease the arthritis pain in older bears.

Authorities who raided the property in response to neighbor

After clampdown by police, debate erupts over origins of unrest in London youths

complaints last August found a total of 15 black bears who regularly relaxed inside Gravier’s house and on her deck. She also fed 18 cats, three dogs, 40 peacocks and other wildlife out of her home, which was covered in filth.

California Department of Fish and Game wardens called it the worst example of bear feeding they had ever encountered.

Gravier’s supporters protested her prosecution, defending her as an animal lover. But neighbors complained that she drew in bears that terrorized the community by breaking into homes, ransacking feed sheds and chasing livestock.

“This lady may have thought she was doing a good thing,” Mendocino County District Attorney David Eyster told the Chronicle.

“We don’t want to bash her, but we have to get her attention and get her to recognize that her feeding the bears was causing a problem for the neighbors and, frankly, is dangerous.”

By Meera Selva & Paisley Dodds The Associated Press

LONDON — Young rioters clogged Britain’s courthouses Wednesday, each one painting a bleak picture of a lost generation: a 15-year-old Ukrainian whose mother died, a 17-year-old who followed his cousin into the mayhem, an 11-year-old gangster arrested for stealing a garbage can.

Britain is bitterly divided on the reasons behind the riots — some blame the unrest on opportunistic criminality, others say conflicting economic policies and punishing government spending cuts have deepened inequalities in the country’s most deprived areas.

Many of the youths themselves struggle to find any one plausible answer, but a widespread sense of alienation emerges from their tales.

“Nobody is doing nothing for us — not the politicians, not the cops, no one,” said a 19-year-old who lives near Tottenham, the London neighborhood where the riots started.

Britain also has one of the highest violent crime rates in the EU and alarmingly high youth unemployment — roughly 18 percent of youths between 16 and 24 are jobless and nearly half of all young black youths are out of work.

As the government battles colossal government debt with harsh welfare cuts that promise to make the futures of these youths even bleaker, some experts say it’s blinkered to believe the riots have only been a random outburst of violence unrelated to the current economic crisis.

Nearly 1,200 people have been arrested since the riots erupted Saturday, mostly poor youths from a broad section of Britain’s many races and ethnicities.

Lynne Gravier visits her former home last year in Laytonville, Calif., as a wild bear wanders onto the property. The San Francisco Chronicle has reported that Gravier pled guilty Monday in Mendocino County to a misdemeanor charge of feeding big game.

Brant Ward Associated Press

Karel Prinsloo | Associated Press

Youths throw bricks at police in north London. Nearly 1,200 people have been since arrested riots began Saturday.

In Tottenham, most residents are white but blacks from Africa or the Caribbean account for around a quarter of the ethnic mix. It’s also home to Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Asian immigrants. The rage has appeared to cut across ethnic lines, with poverty as the main

common denominator.

There’s a history of racial tension in many of these neighborhoods, and the riots themselves were triggered by the fatal police shooting of a black man in Tottenham.

Economists at the Centre for Economic Policy Research say such cuts

promise more unrest.

“There’s usually something that sparks these things off,” said HansJoachim Voth, a research fellow at the center. “The question is why is it that in 90 percent of these cases that nothing happens? Why is it that some places just end up like a tinder box?”

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OPINION

Thursday, August 11, 2011 | THE DAILY TEXAN | Viviana Aldous, Editor-in-Chief | (512) 232-2212 | editor@dailytexanonline.com

Voices around Austin: Geographical representation Editor’s note: The Austin City Council and various neighborhood groups are currently exploring options for creating single-member districts to elect members of Austin’s city council. Currently the council’s six members are elected at-large via citywide elections. Under the four current proposed versions of changes, the city would be divided into six geographical districts. We have asked campus and community leaders to weigh in on the proposed changes. For more opinions on the proposed changes, visit bit.ly/dt_editorial.

The question: What effects would implementing geographical representation, or single-member districts, have on Austin’s city government, and do you support such a move?

MAYOR LEE LEFFINGWELL You can’t pick up a magazine or newspaper these days without coming across an article that sings Austin’s praises.

It’s true that we’ve got a lot of bragging rights as a city, but it’s also true that we’re not without our blemishes. One of those is evident every time we have a local election: Almost no one shows up. In a city that often seems about to burst with civic pride, voter turnout in city elections has recently been as low as 7 percent. To me, that’s a proverbial canary in the coal mine; when citizens stop participating in elections, it’s a clear signal that the vital connection between the people and their elected representatives is in jeopardy. To reinvigorate local elections and reboot Austin’s representative democracy, it’s time for bold action.

Earlier this year, I laid out a range of proposed changes to Austin’s charter, the city’s version of a constitution, to go before voters next year. Perhaps the most significant proposal was to begin electing City Council members from geographic districts. More specifically, I’ve proposed changing to a mixed system that would add geographic (district) representation but also preserve at-large (citywide) representation. A mixed system has several important merits. District elections, conducted at the neighborhood level, would put a renewed emphasis on grassroots campaigning and activate a whole new group of voters. At the same time, a mixed system would improve city government overall by ensuring that all citizens have representatives with an intimate understanding of the issues and concerns in their area of town while also preserving a broader, citywide perspective at City Hall. I know that some people believe we are served perfectly well by our all at-large system and that others believe my proposal doesn’t go far enough. What I know is that the current level of disinterest in local government is dangerous.

If we do nothing, or fail to agree on reform, we put our city’s future at risk.

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4 Courtesy of the city of Austin

Courtesy of the city of Austin

Under draft plan A, West Campus, Hyde Park and most of UT’s campus would fall in District 4, while Riverside would fall in District 2.

Under plan B, the district in which the UT campus would fall, District 4, would include a larger number of residents than that of plan A.

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PECK YOUNG, DIRECTOR OF THE AUSTIN COMMUNITY COLLEGE CENTER FOR PUBLIC POLICY AND POLITICAL STUDIES The only fair form of representation on the Austin City Council was geographic representation. Long before I was taught in urban history and sociology classes that people in cities cluster by their socioeconomic, ethnic and racial groups, I knew this had occurred in my hometown. With the end of legal segregation, Austin is less racially and ethnically divided, but it remains socially and economically segregated. Therefore, if all segments of the tapestry that makes up our city are to be heard at City Hall, council members must be elected from all parts of Austin.

We have a de facto single district system now. Four zip codes (03, 31, 04, 01) have provided 62 of the 117 council members and mayors elected since 1971 when voters started electing mayors. That is, 53 percent of all elected city officials have hailed from an area about the size of one singlemember district. If you don’t live in “The District” — most of Austin doesn’t — your chances of electing a member of the council are very poor. Since 1971, South Austin, which constitutes 40 to 45 percent of Austin, has had 17 percent of all the city’s elected officials.

Finally, two federal judges have said we are the only city in Texas that lets at least one African-American and Hispanic get elected at-large. The truth is no Hispanics were elected in the mid-1980s. Further, we have never let more than one African-American be elected. Finally, the candidates minority communities vote for routinely lose. The minority council member is anyone the whites like. Therefore, in fact the minorities are represented in appearance, not fact.

All these problems in a city of approximately 800,000 would be solved by a system of geographic representation that allowed people from all over town and all socioeconomic, ethnic and racial neighborhoods to elect whomever they wished. Then we would have more than one single-member district. We would have what radical James Madison thought up: fair geographic, one man one vote, representation.

TERRELL BLODGETT, UT PROFESSOR EMERITUS IN URBAN MANAGEMENT Austin voters have turned down single-member districts (SMDs) at least five times — and with good reason.

(1) SMDs narrow the focus of council members to their own district to the detriment of the interests and vision of the city as a whole. In SMD cities, it is more difficult to get majority council support for citywide projects. Cities are more than the sum of their individual neighborhoods.

(2) SMDs raise false hopes for individual citizens who feel that such a system guarantees not only a hearing but solutions for their neighborhood problems. They guarantee only that a citizen will have one council member to hear his or her case. With seven or nine members on the council, one can readily see that this hardly guarantees any action on an individual’s requests.

(3) SMDs reward citizen inaction. I agree, central Austin should not control the council as it does now. There is nothing in the present system that prevents any area of the city having a council member who lives in their area — all it takes is to run a qualified person and then get out and vote for him or her.

(4) Finally, some decry developers and the public safety association heavily influencing elections now. SMDs will not cure that; any special interest will be able to put less money into a district race and still have undue influence on that race.

SMDs are not the answer; they are the problem in many cities. One variation that eliminates some of the objections: Require council members to live in different geographical areas but be subject to citywide vote.

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3

3

4 Courtesy of the city of Austin

Courtesy of the city of Austin

Under draft plan C, West Campus, Hyde Park and most of UT’s campus would fall in District 6. Riverside would fall in District 2.

Under plan D, the district in which the UT campus would fall, District 4, would include a larger number of residents than that of plans A or B.

JOHN LAWLER, SG REPRESENTATIVE AND CENTRAL AUSTIN NEIGHBORHOOD PLANNING ADVISORY COMMITTEE BOARD MEMBER Aside from the broader positive effects, such as racial equality and greater personalization between candidates and their electorate, the move to implement single-member districts will most definitely have a profound impact on student participation. The primary benefit of single-member districts is the positive impact it has on minority representation. As a university student, a minority population in the Austin area, having a council member specific to my geographic region will bridge the ever-widening gap between students and their municipality.

The movement for single-member districts provides a rare opportunity for Student Government to take a bold stance on a municipal issue. Simply having a district drawn out for a UT student will not guarantee a UT student will win the seat. If we are serious about gaining representation on City Council and throughout all levels of Austin city government, we will have to focus our voter registration efforts on a more local level.

We as UT students often forget how large of a stakeholder we are in the Austin community. Some estimates put the general student population, including St. Edward’s, Austin Community College and Huston-Tillotson University, at about 100,000 individuals — I’ll remind you the Austin population is about 800,000. Yet our record of voting in local elections is abysmal at best. If we’re serious about this, we’re going to have to get out the vote and make our voices heard where they speak loudest.

City and neighborhood issues such as this are the ones we as student leaders should be focusing more on. As the city of Austin and UT become more and more entwined, we’re going to have to face the fact that the decisions made at City Hall can impact us more than those at the Capitol.

CHRIS BRADFORD, AUTHOR OF THE AUSTIN CONTRARIAN I oppose single-member districts because I believe they will create a parochial city council. City Council is already overly tuned to the concerns of a handful of central Austin neighborhoods. Voter turnout in city elections is appallingly low, and elections are dominated by central Austin voters.

The councils they elect, not surprisingly, cater to their prejudices. Central Austin neighborhoods, for example, are notorious for opposing infill development and urbanization, the only viable strategies for maintaining an ample supply of housing in the central city and curbing sprawl on the city’s periphery. They often elect councils willing to do their bidding.

This is a real problem, but single-member districts are not the solution.

Geographic representation encourages the practice of “ward courtesy,” an informal agreement among council members to defer to the council member whose district would be affected by the vote. It makes a lot of sense, from the council members’ point of view, to let each member call the shots in his or her district. But it turns wards into little fiefdoms, and it gives council members a de facto veto of zoning changes in their districts.

Because so much often depends on a single council member’s vote, the system invites backroom dealing, at best, and outright bribery and corruption at worst.

In Austin, “ward courtesy” would stifle badly needed infill development in central Austin. Central city residents would elect council members who don’t like change, urbanization or outsiders parking on “their” streets. These council members naturally would exercise their veto to block developments that rile their constituents, even when the developments are good for the city as a whole. Austin needs a less, not more, parochial city council.

AUSTIN NEIGHBORHOODS COUNCIL The function of any elected representative is to gauge the political will of the people, to mediate differences among constituencies to form fair and effective public policy and to ensure that the bureaucracy carries out that policy. In city government, effective representation ranges from determining why a pothole hasn’t been repaired to setting long-range priorities for citywide infrastructure improvements. Over the past 10 years, as members of the Austin Neighborhoods Council (ANC) have participated in the city’s neighborhood and comprehensive planning efforts, it has become clear that the roles of our city council and city administration have been reversed. The task of gauging the political will of the people has fallen increasingly to city staff, and citizens find that they must negotiate the terms of public policy directly with staff. At the end of the process, city staff presents recommendations to City Council, and there is little opportunity for citizens to communicate directly with an elected representative.

Several years ago, ANC identified Austin’s at-large election system as a significant factor in this disconnect. Because our at-large city council members each represent the entire population (almost 800,000 people), none of them can provide effective constituent services. Austin is the largest city in the United States without district representation. If truly representative and participatory, such election systems ensure that district voters’ interests are represented and that each district has equal weight on the council. The cost savings of running district election campaigns (versus citywide campaigns) would foster more grassroots candidates and participants, which in turn makes the electoral process more competitive and increases voter turnout. Geographic districts are not a panacea for all that ails our city; however, they do promise a substantial improvement.

To that end, ANC supports geographic representation on Austin’s City Council, and we are currently asking our members to review plans for election systems with six, eight and 10 districts.

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.

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FINAL EXAMINATION SCHEDULE, SUMMER SESSION 2011 SECOND-TERM AND WHOLE-SESSION CLASSES SATURDAY, AUGUST 13 - MONDAY, AUGUST 15 FINAL EXAM SCHEDULES ONLINE Students can access their final exam schedules for current classes online. Go to http://registrar.utexas.edu/services/ and select “Finals for a Student.” A public display of final exam information by unique number is also available via the Web site listed above.

Final exam information online supersedes the printed exam schedule below.

INDEX OF FINAL EXAMINATION TIMES Class Meeting Time MTWTHF 7:00 – 8:30 AM MTWTHF 8:30 – 10:00 AM MTWTHF 10:00 – 11:30 AM MTWTHF 11:30 – 1:00 PM MTWTHF 1:00 – 2:30 PM MTWTHF 2:30 – 4:00 PM After 4:00 PM

Final Examination Date Saturday, August 13 Monday, August 15 Saturday, August 13 Monday, August 15 Saturday, August 13 Monday, August 15 Saturday, August 13

Time 7 – 10 PM 9 – 12 noon 9 – 12 noon 2 – 5 PM 2 – 5 PM 7 – 10 PM 7 – 10 PM

The final examination date and time for a class is determined by the class meeting time as listed in the above index.

Final examinations for classes that meet at times not listed in the above index are normally scheduled with classes meeting at the indexed time that most closely corresponds to the beginning day and time of the class. For example, the exam for a class that meets TWTH 1:00 - 3:30 PM will be at the same time as exams for classes that meet MTWTHF 1:00 - 2:30 PM. If the beginning time of the class is halfway between two standard class beginning times, the class will be grouped with those meeting at the later time. For example, the exam for a class the meets WTHF 9:15 - 11:30 AM will be at the same time as exams for classes that meet MTWTHF 10:00 - 11:30 AM. Questions about the final examination schedule should be directed to the Office of the Registrar at 475-7600.

FINAL EXAMINATION POLICIES Note: Classes for nine-week and whole-session courses do not meet on final exam days for first term courses. However, classes for second term and whole-session courses do meet on final exam days for nine-week courses. When a conflict between a scheduled final exam and a class occurs, the student should consult the course instructor(s), department chair(s), and/or college dean(s).

In accordance with Policy Memorandum 3.201, class-related activities, with the exception of office hours, are prohibited on designated no-class days and during the final examination period. These dates are set aside for students to prepare for and take scheduled final examinations. During this period, papers and projects are not to be due, review sessions are not to be scheduled, quizzes are not to be given, and there are not to be any other class-related activities, with the exception of office hours.

The final examination days for second-term and whole-session classes are Saturday, August 13, and Monday, August 15.

There are no designated no-class days in the summer session.

There is no University policy that provides relief to students who have three examinations scheduled the same day; in that situation, students may seek the assistance of the course instructor(s), department chair, and/or dean of the college.

The following final examination policies are taken from General Information, chapter 4: Examinations should begin promptly at the scheduled hour and should not continue beyond the three hours allocated in the official schedule.

No final examinations may be given before the examination period begins, and no change in time from that printed in the official schedule is permitted. An instructor with a compelling reason to change the time of an examination must obtain the approval of the department chair and dean of the college or school in which the course is taught before announcing an alternative examination procedure to the students.

No substantial examinations may be given during the last week of class or during the no-class days preceding the final examination period. An examination counting for more than thirty percent of the final course grade is considered to be substantial.

A change in the room assignment for a final examination may be made only with the approval of the registrar.

With the approval of the department chair, an instructor may choose not to give a final examination. However, if an examination is given, all students must take it and no exceptions may be allowed except pursuant to a uniform exemption policy announced to the class.

For good cause, an instructor may give a student permission to take an examination with a different class section than the one in which the student is registered.

For good cause, a student may petition his or her academic dean for permission to change the time or place of an examination from that specified in the official schedule. If permission is given by the dean and the instructor, no penalty (such as a reduction in grade) may be assessed.

In a course extending over two semesters, when the subject matter is continuous, the second-semester final examination may include the subject matter of the first semester.

A student may address complaints related to the final examination procedures in a course to the chair of the department or the dean of the college or school in which the course is offered, or to the Office of the Ombudsperson.

GRADE REPORTING Submission of Grades to Registrar. Faculty are required to submit grades according to the following schedule and policies: For classes having a final examination on: Saturday, August 13 Monday, August 15

Grades are due by 10:00 am on: Thursday, August 18 Friday, August 19

- Final grades for classes that have regularly scheduled meeting times but no final examinations are due at the same time they would have been if examinations had been scheduled.

- Final grades for classes with no officially scheduled meeting times are due on Thursday, August 18.

Final grades should be submitted online by the instructor of record by going to “Grade Reporting” on the Web at http:// registrar.utexas.edu/staff/grades/. Online grade submission is available at all times during grade reporting except for short periods of routine maintenance.

Grade Reports to Students. Grade reports are available to all students, except in the School of Law, at the end of each semester and summer session on the Web at http://registrar.utexas.edu/student/grades/. Printed grade reports are mailed to students who have had a change in scholastic status, earned University Honors, or requested a mailed copy prior to the end of the semester or summer session through the Web site listed above. Grade reports are mailed to the student’s permanent address on file in the Office of the Registrar; however, at the student’s request or if the permanent address is outside the United States or its territories, reports are mailed to the local address.

AHG ART ATT BAT BEL BEN BIO BRB BTL BUR CAL CBA CDL CMA CMB CPE CRD DFA ECJ ENS EPS ETC FAC GAR GEA GOL GRG GSB HMA HRH JES

Applied Computational Engineering & Sciences Building Anna Hiss Gymnasium Art Building and Museum AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center Batts Hall L. Theo Bellmont Hall Benedict Hall Biological Laboratories Bernard and Audre Rapoport Building Battle Hall Burdine Hall Calhoun Hall College of Business Administration Building Collections Deposit Library Jesse H. Jones Communication Center (Building A) Jesse H. Jones Communication Center (Building B) Chemical and Petroleum Engineering Building Carothers Dormitory E. William Doty Fine Arts Building Ernest Cockrell Jr. Hall Engineering-Science Building E. P. Schoch Building Engineering Teaching Center II Peter T. Flawn Academic Center Garrison Hall Mary E. Gearing Hall Goldsmith Hall Geography Building Graduate School of Business Building Hogg Memorial Auditorium Rainey Hall Beauford H. Jester Center

Monday, August 15 9:00 - 12:00 noon

Classes meeting MTWTHF 10:00 - 11:30 AM

Classes meeting MTWTHF 8:30 - 10:00 AM

Grades for these classes are due at 10:00 AM on Thursday, August 18.

Grades for these classes are due at 10:00 AM on Friday, August 19

ACC ACF AMS ANT AST BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO CC CE CS CH CH CH CH CH CH CHE CSD E EE EE EE ECO EUS FIN GRG HDF HIS HIS JPN JPN KIN KIN KOR LAT LEB LIN M M M M M M M M MNS MUS PS PHL PHL PHL PSY PSY SOC SPN SPN SPN SPN SPN SPN SSC WGS WGS WGS

ACC BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO CC CH CH CH CH ECO ECO ECO ECO ECO ECO ECO ECO FR GOV HIS ITL KIN KIN LAT M M M M PS PHR POR SPN SPN SPN SPN

s380K s329 s315 s301 s301 s311C s311C s325 s325 s349 s349 s360K s370 s370 s478L s301 w387G s341 s431 s431 s431 s431 s431 s431 s372 s341 s316K w319K w319K w362K s304K s346 s357 s304E s304 s322M s343W s507 s412L s314 s354 s507 s312K s380 s306 w408C w408D w408D w408K w427K s328K s340L s361K s354C s302L s304 s318 s318 s318 s301 s341K s308 s601D s601D s610D s610D s611D s611D s306 s301 s301 s345

71325 92131 81735 81935 89720 90355 90360 90405 90410 90443 90444 90455 90490 90495 90540 82648 77155 91365 91150 91153 91155 91157 91160 91165 76865 73065 83770 77330 77335 77440 83405 84130 71620 84741 91575 85635 85660 82335 82340 75600 75640 82400 83015 71480 86380 92195 92215 92225 92235 92325 92550 92555 92570 92040 79330 92870 87375 87380 87385 87740 87777 88675 89140 89145 89155 89160 89170 89175 93305 89435 89445 89480

GSB 2.120 RLM 5.116 BIO 301 SAC 5.172 RLM 15.216B WEL 2.308 WEL 2.308 RLM 6.104 RLM 6.104 ECJ 1.204 ECJ 1.204 RLM 5.104 JGB 2.218 JGB 2.218 BIO 411 WAG 420 ECJ 7.202 PAI 2.48 WEL 1.308 WEL 1.308 WEL 1.308 WEL 1.308 WEL 1.308 WEL 1.308 CPE 2.220 CMA A3.112 MEZ 1.306 RLM 7.104 RLM 7.104 ENS 115 JGB 2.324 WEL 2.304 UTC 3.102 GRG 102 GEA 105 PAI 4.42 WEL 2.304 RLM 5.118 RLM 7.112 AHG 22 BEL 602A MEZ 1.204 WAG 308 UTC 1.116 WEL 2.256 ECJ 1.202 CPE 2.208 CPE 2.208 PHR 2.110 RLM 4.102 RLM 6.116 CPE 2.214 RLM 5.124 S06 201C MRH 2.634 RLM 6.114 WAG 302 WAG 302 WAG 302 NOA 1.102 NOA 1.126 BIO 301 BEN 1.126 WEL 3.266 BEN 1.104 MEZ 2.118 BEN 1.102 BEN 1.106 UTC 3.104 BIO 301 GEA 105 WEL 2.304

***

Saturday, August 13 2:00 - 5:00 PM Classes meeting MTWTHF 1:00 - 2:30 PM Grades for these classes are due at 10:00 AM on Thursday, August 18.

ACC ANT BIO CHE EE EM ECO ECO GOV KIN LAS MUS OM PHL PHL PHL PSY PSY RHE SPN SPN VTN

s380K s302 s318M s322 w325 s311M s304L s329 s328L s349 s337M s307 s335 s321K s321K s321K s308 s333N s330C s601D s610D s612

71335 81940 90375 76860 77340 76395 83410 83455 85357 75630 86122 79335 71880 87391 87392 87393 87755 87772 88070 89147 89162 82460

GSB 2.126 SAC 4.174 RLM 7.112 CPE 2.220 ENS 115 WRW 312 UTC 1.118 WAG 201 WEL 2.312 BEL 602A WEL 2.312 MRH 2.634 GSB 2.122 WAG 302 WAG 302 WAG 302 SEA 2.108 SEA 3.250 PAR 104 WAG 308 BEN 2.104 WEL 4.224

***

Saturday, August 13 7:00 - 10:00 PM

BUILDING ABBREVIATIONS ACE

Saturday, August 13 9:00 - 12:00 noon

JGB JON LBJ LTH MBB MER MEZ MRH NHB NMS NOA PAI PAR PAT PHR PRC RLM SAC SEA SRH SSW SUT SZB TNH UTA UTC WAG WCH WEL WIN WMB WRW

Jackson Geological Sciences Building Jesse H. Jones Hall Lyndon B. Johnson Library Laboratory Theatre Building Louise and James Robert Moffett Molecular Biology Building Microelectronic and Engineering Resource Center (PRC) Mezes Hall Music Building East and Music Building/ Recital Hall Norman Hackerman Building Neural Molecular Science Building North Office Building A T. S. Painter Hall Parlin Hall J. T. Patterson Laboratories Building Pharmacy Building J. J. Pickle Research Campus (10100 Burnet Road) Robert Lee Moore Hall Student Activity Center Sarah M. and Charles E. Seay Building Sid Richardson Hall School of Social Work Building Sutton Hall George I. Sanchez Building Townes Hall UT Administration Building (1616 Guadalupe St.) University Teaching Center Waggener Hall Will C. Hogg Building Robert A. Welch Hall F. Loren Winship Drama Building West Mall Office Building W. R. Woolrich Laboratories

Classes meeting MTWTHF 7:00 - 8:30 AM, and after 4:00 PM. Grades for these classes are due at 10:00 AM on Thursday, August 18.

ANS s341M B A w380N HIS s341M ***

82130 70895 85650

GEA 114 ATT M1048 GEA 114

s381 s206L s206L s206L s206L s206L s206L s365R s365R s306M s302 s310N s318N w391 s420K s420K s420K s420K s420K s420K s420K s320L s507 s330K s329U s507 s326K s326K s507 s325K s346 s358K s362K s303 w338 s612 s601D s610D s611D s327G

71340 90325 90330 90335 90340 90345 90350 90475 90480 82660 91125 91130 91145 91030 83415 83420 83425 83430 83435 83440 83445 83450 84305 85360 85640 84530 75615 75620 83005 92545 92560 92565 92575 92855 93745 88865 89135 89150 89165 89220

UTC 3.102 PAI 4.42 PAI 4.42 PAI 4.42 PAI 4.42 PAI 4.42 PAI 4.42 WEL 2.308 WEL 2.308 WAG 201 WEL 1.308 WEL 2.224 WEL 2.224 WEL 2.246 JGB 2.218 JGB 2.218 JGB 2.324 JGB 2.324 JGB 2.324 JGB 2.324 JGB 2.324 WAG 420 BEN 1.108 MEZ B0.306 PAI 4.14 WAG 101 BEL 602B BEL 602B WAG 112 RLM 6.114 RLM 5.116 RLM 6.124 RLM 5.124 RLM 5.126 PAI 2.48 BEN 1.122 MEZ 2.122 BEN 1.124 BEN 2.104 MEZ 2.118

***

Monday, August 15 2:00 - 5:00 PM Classes meeting MTWTHF 11:30 - 1:00 PM Grades for these classes are due at 10:00 AM on Friday, August 19.

ACC AMS BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO BIO CC CL E EE FIN GOV GRC GRG HIS HIS INF LAS M M M M M M M MAS PS PS PHL PSY PSY PSY REE SPN

s310F s315C s301L s301L s325 s325 s344 s344 s359K s359K s160L s373 s373 s303 s305 s316K w411 s367 s310L s311 s319 s314K s343M s322T s319 s305G w408L w408L w408M s316L w427L s362K s316 s303 s304 s312 s301 s319K s332 s335 s328

71305 81737 90315 90320 90415 90420 90435 90440 90445 90450 90460 90515 90520 82655 83177 83765 77310 71625 85340 85120 84745 85615 85655 81010 86120 92510 92255 92265 92275 92540 92330 92580 84045 92860 92875 87370 87745 87760 87765 88165 89225

GSB 2.126 BUR 208 RLM 5.104 RLM 5.104 BUR 116 BUR 116 WEL 2.246 WEL 2.246 PHR 2.114 PHR 2.114 BME 2.310 WEL 2.256 WEL 2.256 WEL 2.304 BUR 208 WEL 3.502 ENS 109 GSB 2.124 WEL 1.308 BUR 208 GRG 102 GEA 127 UTC 4.112 UTC 2.102A GRG 102 CPE 2.218 CPE 2.208 CPE 2.208 CPE 2.214 RLM 5.124 RLM 4.102 RLM 6.122 GEA 127 RLM 6.104 RLM 7.104 GAR 0.132 NOA 1.116 NOA 1.102 SEA 2.108 UTC 4.112 SAC 5.102

***

Monday, August 15 7:00 - 10:00 PM Classes meeting MTWTHF 2:30 - 4:00 PM Grades for these classes are due at 10:00 AM on Friday, August 19.

ACC ANS CS CS E EE EE EM GRG HIS ME PS PS PHL PHL PHL ***

s311 s340M w307 s315 s342 w316 w339 s319 s360G s340M w384Q s303 s304 s322 s322 s322

71307 82125 91255 91360 83790 77315 77375 76400 84760 85645 78153 92865 92880 87405 87410 87415

GSB 2.122 GAR 1.126 PAI 3.02 WEL 2.312 PAR 301 ENS 116 ENS 115 WRW 102 GRG 302 GAR 1.126 ETC 2.102 RLM 5.114 RLM 5.104 WAG 302 WAG 302 WAG 302

SPTS P6

SPORTS

6

Thursday, August 11, 2011 | THE DAILY TEXAN | Trey Scott, Sports Editor | (512) 232-2210 | sports@dailytexanonline.com

TEXAS’ 10 MOST IMPORTANT LONGHORNS

8

First-year starter poised for breakout season Editor’s Note: The Daily Texan will introduce one important Longhorn football player each issue. Here is No. 8 of the Texan’s 10 Most Important Longhorns.

By Christian Corona Daily Texan Staff

Being tabbed a five-star recruit and regarded as the best at your position coming out of high school can sometimes be more of a burden than cause for excitement, but Jackson Jeffcoat is making sure he realizes his potential.

After racking up 259 tackles and 25.5 sacks in high school, Jeffcoat earned a spot on the Parade High School All-American squad and was considered the nation’s top defensive end prospect. With his father coaching defensive linemen at Houston and twin sister having already committed to play basketball at Oklahoma, it was never a sure thing that Jeffcoat would play for Texas. But he eventually decided to suit up in burnt orange, announcing his intentions less than a week before Signing Day. Jeffcoat had 15 tackles, six for loss, and 2.5 sacks last year and would have had more if he hadn’t missed four games with a high ankle sprain. Now that Jeffcoat begins his first season as a full-time starter, Texas will need him to stay healthy. “[Jeffcoat] was playing great,” said head coach Mack Brown. “He was so good in the [Texas] Tech game until he sprained his ankle, and he just wasn’t effective the rest of the year.”

The Longhorns will need Jeffcoat to be effective this year, especially because he plays the position most responsible for making a quarterback’s life difficult. Five of the other nine Big 12 squads brought back their starting quarterbacks, with those five gunslingers having combined for more than 20,000 career passing yards.

“It’s a glamour position in this defense and for sure in this league,” said defensive coordinator Manny Diaz. “The first thing that they can do is rush the passer. It’s a hard duty. It’s a special skill. Everybody can’t do it. The second thing ... is that they have got to be able to drop into coverage. Our defensive ends can stand up. They can play in space.”

Even though Jeffcoat started only two games in 2010, he managed to display his ability when it mattered. When Justin Tucker hit a 22-yard field goal against Oklahoma, he made it a 21-10 ballgame. On the ensuing possession, Jeffcoat stripped Sooners signal-caller Landry Jones. Eddie Jones fell on the loose ball to set Texas up in the red zone but was called for offsides, negating the play.

“I think [Jeffcoat] has improved,” Diaz said. “His strength and condition level has gotten better, which is what you’d expect.”

SIDELINE MLB MARINERS

RANGERS

PHILLIES

DODGERS

ANGELS

YANKEES

JACKSON JEFFCOAT Defensive End

SOCCER USA

MEXICO

WHAT TO WATCH Broncos @ Cowboys

JEFFCOAT continues on PAGE 7

BASKETBALL

FOOTBALL

Longhorns add state champion, top-100 recruit to Class of 2011

Finger injury not slowing Jones down

By Sameer Bhuchar Daily Texan Staff

Texas has been known for its reliable point guards in the last decade, and now the Longhorns are hoping their newest commitment can continue that trend.

St. Augustine High School senior and point guard, Javan Felix, committed to the Longhorns on Tuesday, fulfilling his lifelong dream of playing ball on the Forty Acres.

“Texas is my dream school,” Felix told the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

“It has always been my dream school.

For me to get a chance to go there, I just felt like I had to do it.”

Felix is the reigning Class 5A Player of the Year in Louisiana and a twotime All-State selection. He led his high school to a 31-6 record and a Class 5A state championship this season.

The shooting guard-turned-point is ranked 71 on the ESPN Top 100 recruits, and he is listed as the ninth best at his position. Scouts say he is a natural point guard with an impeccable ability to direct floor traffic but lacks the bursting speed fans are accustomed to seeing in top collegiate point guards.

The New Orleans native is not only a top basketball player. Felix is a full academic qualifier as well.

“They’re getting a smart kid and one that’s a true point guard,” St. Augustine head coach Clifford Barthé said. “He’s a leader. He understands how to play the game. Rick Barnes will probably do the same thing I did with him and that’s give him the keys to the car and let him drive it because he knows how to run a team.”

Felix joins 6-foot-10 Cameron Ridley of Richmond, Texas, as the Longhorns’ second committed recruit, and he was Texas’ first choice at point guard.

By Hank South Daily Texan Staff

SPORTS BRIEFLY

Is it a bird, or is it a plane? Neither — it’s Cayleb Jones.

The 6-foot-3 Longhorn commit certainly stood out at Wednesday morning’s Austin High School football practice, showing off the raw ability that made him Rivals.com’s No. 3 wide receiver in 2012.

The Austin High senior recently returned from a 7-on-7 tournament in Florida, where he suffered two bone chips in his left ring finger. So what does the top receiver in the state do? Simple, he just catches balls one-handed now.

“I’m not even trying to catch with my [left] hand, because I don’t want to mess it up,” he said.

Jones will lead his Maroons through a final season, and then come to the Forty Acres ready to contribute immediately as a freshman, as the overall newness of the program has opened up new opportunities.

“I just want to be that guy they can go to to get a first down,” Jones said. “I want to be accountable, and do what needs to be done.”

RECRUIT continues on PAGE 7

Texas volleyball picked to win Big 12 title in preseason poll

Andrew Edmonson | Daily Texan file photo

Austin High senior wide receiver Cayleb Jones, who is nursing a finger injury, catches a pass in practice. Jones will play for Texas next fall.

Holes need to be filled as season opener draws near

By Trey Scott Daily Texan Staff

With the beginning of football season a mere 24 days away, head coach Mack Brown and his coaching staff are taking a hard look at their team. Fall camp started last Friday and every unit is making noise; from the quartet of quarterbacks to the shorthanded receiving corps to the remarkable group of linebackers. Here’s the latest on the Longhorns as they prepare for their season opener.

The coaching staff hopes the quarterbacks begin to separate themselves soon: “We’ll start putting guys in more 1s and 2s and position groups and see how they

Date: Aug. 11 Time: 7:30 p.m.

Where: Cowboys Stadium

operate,” said co-offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin. “We’ll see what they can do from there.”

• Despite the recent loss of Malcolm Williams, Harsin isn’t too worried about the receivers: “We’ve got depth at that position,” he said.

“Right now where we are, we’re just getting some of those young guys up to speed, and we’ll start to see how they fit in and who’s going to be our top two or three guys.”

• Harsin is especially impressed by sophomore wideout Mike Davis: “He’s been great,” Harsin said.

“He practices hard, he’s out there to compete and he’s prepared when he comes out there. Mike has a lot of physical tools.”

• Offensive line coach Stacy

Searels is fostering competition: “Coach Searels is moving them around, and he’s done a really nice job of that. He’s putting them in different positions and different scenarios,” Harsin said. “We’re mixing and matching and seeing how guys compete.”

• Defensive tackle Desmond Jackson has received two Roy Miller comparisons in the span of a week, and defensive coordinator Manny Diaz says he has no fear in starting a true freshman at the position: “We’re an equal opportunity employer.”

• Alex Okafor looks like the star of the summer: “I’m not sure if he knows how good he can be,” Diaz said.

• Texas’ linebacking corps has the confidence of Diaz: “There’s an old adage that your seniors have to be your best players,” he said. “It just so happens that two of our three linebackers are seniors. Between Emmanuel Acho and Keenan Robinson, our leadership has been outstanding. They have a chance to be a really good tandem, but we’re coaching them to be dominating players. They want that.”

• It looks like a tango between Carrington Byndom, Adrian Phillips and freshman Quandre Diggs for the starting corner spot: “We like the way our corners have been progressing throughout the summer,” Diaz said. “We feel like we have a three-man race right now.”

For the third time in four years, Texas was picked to win their conference. And if the last two times the Longhorns were the Big 12 favorite are any indication, it bodes well for them.

In 2008 and 2009, Texas found themselves atop the Big 12 preseason coaches’ poll. Between those two seasons, they went a combined 37-3 in conference play, winning a share of the Big 12 title in ‘08 and winning it outright in ‘09. The Longhorns advanced to the Final Four each of those two years as well, coming within a set of taking home a national championship in ‘09 before Penn State won their third consecutive NCAA title and 102nd straight match.

Last season, Texas went 27-6, including an 18-2 mark in Big 12 play, won 20 matches in a row at one point, and advanced to their third straight Final Four. The Longhorns welcome back five starters from that team, including preseason Big 12 Player of the Year Rachel Adams, and bring in the nation’s best recruiting class, a group that includes Khat Bell, the preseason Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.

With Nebraska, who won 11 of 14 conference championships during their time in the Big 12, competing in the Big 12 now, Texas’ chances of finishing atop the Big 12 standings the way they find themselves atop the preseason poll, are even better.

Texas begins their season on their home floor against Pepperdine on Aug. 26.

— Christian Corona

SPTS P7

SPORTS 7

Thursday, August 11, 2011 NBA

Recently retired Yao Ming may join Hall as contributor

By Chris Duncan The Associated Press

HOUSTON — Retired Houston Rockets center Yao Ming could enter the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame as early as next year — not as a player but as a contributor to the game.

John Doleva, the president and CEO of the Hall, said Tuesday that Yao has been nominated by a member of the Chinese media, and his credentials will be considered by an international panel. As a contributor, Yao would bypass the usual five-year waiting period for retired players.

The 7-foot-6 Yao retired in July after leg and foot injuries ended his eight-year NBA career. The eighttime All-Star averaged 19 points and 9.2 rebounds in the NBA. He’ll also be remembered for his global impact on the league, almost single-handedly expanded its reach throughout Asia.

Doleva said a panel of seven “experts on the international game� will consider Yao’s credentials, and six of the seven will have to approve Yao’s election. The panel is only allowed to select one individual, and Doleva said Yao will

be facing about 12-15 other candidates for induction next year.

The deadline for nominations is Nov. 1. Doleva says a member of the Chinese media contacted him to ask about the categories available for individuals and submitted a formal application this week on Yao’s behalf. “It has to go through the process,� Doleva said. “There is no guarantee when someone is nominated that they will be elected in their first year. That’s kind of what makes the process work. The committee takes a look at the pros and cons.�

Yao can certainly make a compelling argument.

His charisma and popularity helped spike merchandise sales and prompted record TV ratings for games after the Rockets made him the top overall pick in the 2002 draft. NBA commissioner David Stern called Yao “a transformational player and a testament to the globalization of our game.�

Yao also donated $2 million to set up a foundation to rebuild schools destroyed by the earthquake in Sichuan province in May

2008. He carried the Olympic torch through Tiananmen Square and his country’s flag during the opening ceremonies at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Former Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy, now a television analyst, said Yao deserves Hall of Fame consideration, not just for his statistics but for his unprecedented impact on the game. Van Gundy coached Yao from 2003-07. “He’s been one of the greatest ambassadors to ever set foot on an NBA floor,� Van Gundy said. “This guy touched so many people and really opened doors in China, not only for himself but for so many others.�

Doleva said Yao could make more history if he’s inducted as both a contributor and as a player. He’ll first be eligible as a player with the class of 2017. “There are examples of people who have been elected as players and then elected as coaches,�

Doleva said. “But there has never been anyone elected as a contributor and then elected as a player or a coach. That’s not to say it can’t be done; there are no rules against it.

But it would be the first time.�

SLUG continues from PAGE 6 The Texas football program is in a time of transition, with a lot of coaching changes to go with some recent attrition, most notably at the wide receiver position where the Longhorns have lost four players since the spring. “You would never be able to tell there were any problems at UT with how fast things are moving,� said Jones, who recently stopped by to check out a Texas practice. “Guys are just carefree and they want to play.�

Austin High has a history of accomplished receivers who

Houston Rockets center Yao Ming works his way around Jazz center Mehemet Okur in a 2007 game.

Injuries forced the former No. 1 overall pick and eight-time All-Star to retire. Ming, 30, played his entire NBA career for Houston. He finishes as the Rockets’ sixthleading scorer with 9,247 points and second-leading shot-blocker with 920 blocks.

Douglas C. Pizac Associated Press

SLUG continues from PAGE 6

Jones keeps in contact with, most notably his cousin Emory Blake, who was last seen catching a touchdown pass from Cam Newton in the BCS title game. Jones calls them his “best friends� and says he keeps in contact with all of the standouts that have come before him. In two years of varsity play, Jones has caught 17 touchdowns to go with 1,910 receiving yards. And he has a shot at the state’s alltime receiving record — with 154 career receptions, he’s less than 100 away from Jordan Shipley’s mark of 252.

Such gaudy statistics and hype surrounding the fourstar recruit means there may be high expectations for him early on. So, it’s a good thing Jones is already getting good practice, as he has to deal with the pressures of playing high school football in the same city he will play college ball, and the increased spotlight that comes with it. “I guess there’s pressure now, but it’s nothing like it will be,� he said. “I just have to work hard, and hop ef u l ly it wi l l all show.�

Jeffcoat will have plenty of chances to make plays this season. His athleticism and playmaking ability will come in handy after the Longhorns recorded only 31 sacks last year, 17 coming from players who are n’t re tu r n i n g ( w it h l a s t year’s starting defensive ends Sam Acho and Eddie Jones responsible for 15 of those 17).

Like Jeffcoat, Alex Okafor was a highly touted high school prospect and embarks on his first year as a starter. Together, they make one of the

best pair of defensive ends in the nation.

If not for Jeffcoat’s pedigree, Texas might not have the luxury of such a dynamic duo. Jeffcoat’s father, Jim, was a firstround pick out of Ar iz ona State before enjoying a dozen seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, recording over 100 sacks while helping Dallas win Super Bowl XXVII, a contest that saw the elder Jeffcoat notch 1.5 sacks. It’s no wonder his son was athletic enough to be a three-sport star at Plano West

and an immediate and reliable contributor on the Longhorn defensive line.

Tons of blue-chippers fall by the wayside as they fail to live up to expectations brought on by stellar, accolade-filled high school careers. Many were responsible for Texas’ lackluster 2010 season. Jeffcoat might not end up with 25 sacks over 250 tackles before his Longhorn career is over like he did in high school, but Texas can count on him to be a spectacular pass rusher and not be disappointed.

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8 LIFE&ARTS

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Internet ages, Top Chef in Texas MOVIE and Gwyneth Paltrow gets sick

continues from PAGE 10

from one stunning image to another before it eventually crescendos into a hallucinatory barrage of sex and death. While many of the stylistic and narrative flourishes in the film’s latter half work better as ideas than in practice, it’s still hard to fault Glodell for aiming too high with his climax.

In fact, even while “Bellflower” has its narrative issues, the film is an undeniable achievement for Glodell, who took do-it-yourself to another level by building not only a flamethrower and heavily reinforced car for the film, but by constructing many of the cameras used in filming. The film is drenched in a bleak, sweaty, high contrast atmosphere, made all the more intense by Glodell’s odd, precise use of light and compo-

Bellflower

Evan Glodell

Genre: Drama Runtime: 106 minutes For those who like: “Mad Max,” “Super”

Grade: Bsition. As the film gets more dislodged from reality, its images become increasingly surreal and gorgeous.

Glodell certainly doesn’t stick the landing with “Bellflower,” but the film is still a singular, personal piece of work that showcases an

PIZZA continues from PAGE 10

actors and as characters. We shot it toward the end of the schedule, and we were anticipating it so much, it was a release to be able to do it.

DT: Can you tell me about your role in the next Woody Allen film, “The Bop Decameron?”

Einsenberg: I’m not sure if I

can say anything, but I know he’s in it. But I have no idea who he’s playing, because they only send me my scenes. I’m very curious to see, because I think he’s the greatest actor. I love watching him in movies, and I think people underestimate his acting skill be-

intriguing, pleasantly twisted way of looking at humans and their interactions. The film is an enthralling debut that frustrates as much as it satisfies, but it’s also a promise of very good things to come from Evan Glodell — as long as he stays behind the camera.

cause they think he’s playing himself, but if you’re on a set and realize what it’s like to do it realistically, it takes a lot more than just being himself. I love his acting, and I hope we’re in a scene together. “ 3 0 M i nut e s or L e s s” opens tomorrow.

FUNK continues from PAGE 10

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and the Mighty Five, the project began to come together. Little added a crucial female perspective, which was important because the musical involves two women, or alien women as Little specified, competing for the love of a robot. Spencer was later cast as Zonn Atomic, one of the lead characters.

“I think Austinites are going to have amazing amounts of fun at this new kind of show,” Webb said. “It’s going to be a crazy time.”

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Webb moved back to Austin last August, and upon reuniting with Aulie, they began writing the script over the course of a year.

“It was fun, at the end of our session we’d decompress and think about what we had written and come up with new ideas for next time,” Webb said. “We didn’t want to gloat, but we were kind of patting ourselves on the back. It wasn’t as hard as we had thought it would be.”

Although Webb has a degree in theater management from the College of Santa Fe and Aulie is a founding member of local improvised comedy troupes You Me & Greg and Parallelogramophonograph, they didn’t have any formal playwriting experience. But collaborating on Google Documents with the help of Little Greg Spencer (another Westwood High School graduate and improvisational comedian)

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Webb, who was living in New York City in 2010, had been planning on moving back to Austin to start a new kind of theater company that put an emphasis on audience interaction. Christiana Little, Webb’s roommate who he met in Austin, was dating one of the members of Mighty Five and introduced him to the group’s music. Webb said that when he heard their sound, he knew he could use it to facilitate the kind of audience-involved musical he wanted to create.

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Life&Arts

Thursday, August 11, 2011 | The Daily Texan | Julie Rene Tran, Life&Arts Editor | (512) 232-2209 | dailytexan@gmail.com

MOviE REviEW

BellfloWer

Do-it-yourself movie ‘Bellflower’ succeeds, but lead disappoints

By Alex Williams Daily Texan Staff

Ryan Edwards | Daily Texan Staff

Jesse Eisenberg sits down to talk about his new movie, “30 Minutes or Less,” in which he plays a pizza delivery driver who gets a bomb strapped to his chest and told to rob a bank.

Jesse Eisenberg discusses his latest film

By Alex Williams Daily Texan Staff

In “30 Minutes or Less,” Jesse Eisenberg stars as Nick, a withdrawn pizza delivery boy who has a bomb strapped to his chest by small-time criminals played by Danny McBride and Nick Swardson. With only a few hours to rob a bank before the bomb goes off, Nick enlists his friend Chet (Aziz Ansari) to help him stay alive.

“30 Minutes or Less” reunites Eisenberg with director Ruben Fleischer. The two worked together on 2009’s “Zombieland,” which Eisenberg followed up with an OsON THE WEB: car-nominate d p e r forSee video of mance in eisenberg serving “The Social pizza at home Slice.

Network. ” bit.ly/home_ The Daislice ly Texan participated in a roundtable interview with Eisenberg just before he handed out slices of pizza at Austin’s Home Slice on July 11 to promote “30 Minutes or Less.”

The Daily Texan: What is it like playing someone who is constantly panicked?

Jesse Einsenberg: It’s a strange balance between the dramatic sit-

uation that my character is in versus the movie as a whole, which plays comedically and lighthearted.

Ruben, the director of this movie, asked me to just play the scenes as realistically as possible and keep in mind I’m in a comedy, so if something funny occurs to me, I can say it. I was lucky to be surrounded by the funniest people in the world, who kind of took the burden of making the movie funny off me a little bit so I’m able to maintain the dramatic situation with my character.

DT: Tell me about the development of the dynamic between you and Aziz Ansari.

Eisenberg: Aziz was cast before me. When I auditioned, it was with him, so I had to kind of adjust myself to his pace. He’s very quick and uses a lot of random cultural references. I like improvisation, but I’m not as up-to-date. He called me Wayne Brady in my audition, and I didn’t know who that was. I had to do a lot of crossword puzzles to get up to speed before we shot the movie. But it took the burden off my shoulders. I was worried about having to be funny in what would be a very dramatic situation, so I felt unburdened by him because he’s so naturally funny, even

when he’s not trying to be funny. He’s just got a funny way about him and naturally funny speech patterns, so it felt more comfortable than it would have if I was with somebody who was playing it more dramatically.

DT: What drew you to this project?

Eisenberg: I loved the script when I read it. It’s rare to find a script that’s genuinely funny and has a character that is credible. In most movies, especially most comedies, the characters change based on the whims of the plot. This character was really driving the plot. In the first part of the movie, he’s kind of living a mundane life and he’s kind of a depressive and he doesn’t engage, but when he gets this bomb strapped to him it forces him to re-evaluate his life and to grow up a little bit. It’s very character-driven even though the framing of the movie is funny.

DT: Did you do any of the driving yourself?

Eisenberg: I ended up doing a lot of the driving because the director wanted to shoot this movie without a lot of computer-generated driving effects. Most chase scenes now, with the technology available, would be done without

the actors really there, but he wanted to do this kind of classic style that would mirror the movies that these guys liked — “Point Break,” “Lethal Weapon,” even “Heat.” To shoot it in the way that they would have shot it, which means putting the actors in the car and putting stunt drivers in 20 cars surrounding the actors and having a single camera just drive next to that scene and shoot it practically.

DT: What was your favorite scene to shoot?

Einenberg: The bank robbery scene in the movie was really challenging but also our favorite. It was logistically challenging because so many things go wrong. The idea is that these regular guys, this elementary school teacher and this pizza guy, have to rob a bank and in their heads, they think they’re Mel Gibson and Danny Glover, but in their bodies, they’re me and Aziz.

There’s this great disconnect between what they think they’re doing and what’s actually happening, so they end up kind of looking ridiculous. It was a challenge to shoot because there were so many things to account for, but it was so fun because we were gearing up for it, as

pIZZa continues on pagE 8

ONLINE: check back tomorrow afternoon for the review of “30 Minutes or less” at bit.ly/dt_lifearts Cd REviEW

Watch the throne

Kanye West, Jay-Z collaborate to produce ‘Watch the Throne’

By Christopher Nguyen Daily Texan Staff

After Kanye West and Jay-Z announced a collaborative album last year, one titled Watch the Throne no less, it seemed there would be a reemergence of the decadent ‘90s rap culture when Puff Daddy and Ma$e would stroll on stage in gaudy, neon jackets like it was nobody’s business. Surprisingly, however, the two rappers have made an album that is relatively low on the empty boasting and high on introspection and their idiosyncratic psyche.

On “Murder to Excellence,” they tackle the divide between violence and poverty and the rich lifestyle in the black community, while the Nina Simone-sampling “New Day” has them wondering about their future families. Rather than sounding saccharine, the song reveals a vulnerability of being a father with the baggage of fame. With his self-deprecation in check, West wryly raps, “I mean I might even make ‘em [my son] be Republican / So everybody know he love white people” as Jay-Z remotely thinks, “And if the day comes I only see him on the weekend / I just pray we was in love on the night that we conceived him.”

Kanye West & Jay-Z Watch the Throne

Genre: Rap For those who like: Clipse, Lupe Fiasco

The characters of “Bellflower” only have one thing on their minds: the end of the world. With their grimy apartments and impulse-driven existences, they practically exist on the fringes of society, and it’s telling that the scene which introduces main character Woodrow (writer-director Evan Glodell) to love interest Milly (Jessie Wiseman) is a bug-eating contest in a grungy bar.

Wo o d r o w lives with best friend Aiden (Tyler Dawson), and the two drink, hang out and build weapons they can put to use in a post-apocalyptic landscape. Inspired by the “Mad Max” films, the duo builds flamethrowers and hell-mobiles, and their friendship is one of the true bright spots in “Bellflower.”

It’s a lived-in, well-written pairing that has all the authenticity of the pair’s real-life, years-long friendship. Aiden is a vibrant, funny character, and Dawson brings a charm to each of his scenes.

Glodell, on the other hand, lacks chemistry with most of the cast. His scenes with Dawson are all too brief, and while he has his moments in the rest of the film (mostly in its first half), Glodell’s scenes with the rest of the cast tend to find him struggling to

make his character compelling or sympathetic.

Woodrow’s relationship with Milly starts off equally charming as the two go on an extended first date that becomes a cross-country road trip compelled by their own impulses; some good, some bad.

Unfortunately, these scenes also showcase some of Glodell’s weaknesses as an actor, as his character alternates being charming and irritatingly whiny.

The film’s second half, which p u t s Wo o d r ow t h r o u g h an emotional apocalypse that proves to be just as dangerous to the people around him as the literal one he’s been preparing for. This section is nowhere near as engaging as what comes before, throwing the delicate characters the film has been building out the window for long scenes of supposed friends beON THE WEB: ing terriJudge the acting ble to each for yourself in this other and “Bellflower“ trailer wallowing bit.ly/dtbellin their own flower angst.

Frustrating as it can be, the second half is hypnotizing, setting the audience adrift in the narrative to bounce

...the second half is hypnotizing, setting the audience adrift in the narrative to bounce from one stunning image to another.

MOVIE continues on pagE 8

Courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories

Woodrow (Evan Glodell) and Milly (Jessie Wiseman) share an intense moment in “Bellflower.”

Round Rockers reunite for funk space odyssey

By Aaron West Daily Texan Staff

A high school reunion is, for some, a bunch of people who don’t have much in common anymore rehashing the good old days. But for two graduates of Westwood High School in Round Rock getting together again led to writing and producing a cosmic-themed theatrical dance party about love, revenge and booty-shaking.

“Mighty Five’s Infinite Funk Odyssey,” an interactive space musical that opens at The Blue Theatre on Aug. 18, is the collaborative cre-

ation by Phil Aulie and Xaq Webb.

The musical tells the story of the electro-funk band Mighty Five and their adventures in Dimension F, a funky reality whose entire existence is dependent upon a non-stop dance party and the Funkatronic Energy it creates. Webb wrote the script with Aulie after listening to and being inspired by VORTEXX, a concept album by Mighty Five.

“The music is just so danceable and the heavy electro-synth has a tinge of comedy to it,” Webb said. “And the lyrics had that same self-aware, hyper-aggressive awesomeness attitude. I couldn’t

stop laughing.”

For “Infinite Funk Odyssey,” Webb uses the electro-funk sound and cosmic themes of Mighty Five’s music while adding an interactive element of his own design. The interactivity, which begins with audience members wearing lights and costumes that the cast distributes before the show, peaks at the end of the performance when the musical morphs into a dance party that not only saves Dimension F from destruction, but also blurs the boundaries between actor and audience.

FUNK continues on pagE 8

grade: B+ This contrast between the two plays throughout the album: West, the precocious, smart-ass kid and Jay-Z, the wise, arrogant father. In these roles, West ends up outshining Jay-Z. He has a knack for witticisms that burst against Jay-Z’s less showy lyrics.

And for better or worse, it’s what makes the album feel, from the music to the themes, like a West album featuring Jay-Z. Even sonically, West, who shares production credit on the large majority of songs, continues to refine the layered sounds from his last album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Children chant ominously against a clambering, clattering beat on “Murder.” The kickdrum and synths jitter and bang relentlessly on “Why I Love You.” Yet, West and Jay-Z never forget an ear

for hooks; Beyonce owns the chorus of “Lift Off ” while R&B singer Frank Ocean’s smooth, emotive vocals add a dynamism to a couple of songs. The producers are fearless and audacious, mixing together a variety of sounds into a captivating result so much so that they lift even the most flaccid songs on the album.

Coming together, Jay-Z and West may not have created the perfect album. Their flaws that have always exited — Jay-Z’s lazy writing and West’s lack of musical and lyrical restrain — still appear on Watch the Throne. But there’s still something awe-inspiring about listening to two superstars at the height of power, willing to revel in their weakness and strengths. You can’t help but watch the throne, waiting for the next beat.

Allen Otto | Daily Texan Staff

Clint Gilfillan and Greg Spencer rehearse their roles as the Funk Warriorz from Dimension F as part of “Mighty Five’s Infinite Funk Odyssey” on Tuesday night.