The Mercury 4/24/17 by The Mercury

April 24, 2017

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EcoReps educate students about sustainability

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UTD cheer places fourth at national competition

Professors add to health care debate

THE MERCURY | UTDMERCURY.COM

Students involved in local elections Alum faces tough election to oust incumbent

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EARTH WEEK AT UTD

Res Hall North closed to all upperclassmen Growing class sizes, on-campus housing options prompts change

SRICHANDRAKIRAN GOTTIPATI | MERCURY STAFF

All 384 beds in Res Hall North will be exclusively open to incoming freshmen next semester.

SRICHANDRAKIRAN GOTTIPATI | MERCURY STAFF

Tepou Helu (left) is running for mayor of Euless and UTD student Vera Layton is supporting her mother in the election.

DONIA BOSAK-BARANI Mercury Staff

Starting next semester, Residence Hall North will be open exclusively to freshmen. As one of five residence halls on campus, North was the only one to offer beds to older students. Currently, upperclassmen occupy 187 of the 384 beds housed in North, said Ryan White, the assistant vice president for Residential Life. White said the freshman class increases in number every year, and the growing number of UTD students has prompted Residential Life to make this decision. Between University Village and the new Canyon Creek Heights — formerly known as Phase 6 and 7 — which offers 800 beds, there will be enough space for existing students to live on campus if they so desire, White said. “When we made the decision to take North and set that aside for our incoming freshmen students, we felt good about the opportunities that still persisted for those residents in North to still live on campus,” he said. “There’s still availability there now for students who didn’t apply or didn’t go through sign up. Certainly, there’s an option taken away, but there’s still an opportunity for students to live on campus who want to.” Keely Keeny, an undeclared freshman, planned on living in North next year. When she found out she wasn’t allowed

DEV THIMMISETTY Mercury Staff

Alumnus Nicholas St. John said he always felt it was his duty and calling to bridge the gap between the local government and general public. In his quest to do so, St. John is now running for city council in Fort Worth. The current city councilman for district six has a large financial advantage over St. John, and there are also two other challengers running against him. However, St. John has a plan. “The incumbent had $100,000 in his account before the campaign season even began, so it’s going to be tough to run against that,” he said. “My goal is to get 30 percent of the vote.” St. John’s strategy is to force the incumbent to receive less than 50 percent of the vote. Without the majority vote, the two candidates with the most votes would proceed to a runoff, where St. John hopes he can win with the help of his challengers. “We made an agreement where whoever goes against the incumbent in the runoff will be supported by the remaining challengers so hopefully we can get one of us to win,” he said. St. John decided to run this year because of the rise of liberal political groups in Fort Worth, he said. “With the most recent election of President (Donald) Trump, a lot of progressives are fired up. This is the first time that all the city council seats have challengers. I saw the opportunity to get behind the movement I already supported and make change,” he said. St. John isn’t the only UTD student or alumnus to get involved in politics. Political science junior Vera Layton planned to run for city council in Euless, but ended up dropping out due to work pressure and academic responsibilities. Nonetheless, she is an avid supporter of her mother, Tepou Helu, who is running for mayor of Euless. Helu, a Tongan and the first minority to run for mayor, decided to get involved in order to combat what she called the complacency of Euless. “Right now, people in Euless are comfortable where they are. They don’t really want anything to change, and we want to fix that,” Layton said. For Helu, that attitude is an obstacle to Euless becoming a big city. “We want people to get off the airport and think, ‘Wow, I should head to Euless,’’’ Helu said. “However, the complacency from a lot of people means a lack of growth. We want to build Euless into a brand, like New York and Los Angeles, etcetera.” The mother-daughter duo believes that growth in Euless should begin by making proper investments. One current city project is looking to build a riverwalk off of U.S. Highway 121. Helu’s platform is based on allocating finances towards small businesses

→ SEE ELECTIONS, PAGE 12

→ SEE HOUSING, PAGE 12

SRIKAR SUDARSAN BASKARA | MERCURY STAFF

Ethical Hackers raise money to help repeal bill reducing internet privacy

New hacking organization donates all proceeds from fundraiser to American Civil Liberties Union RUTH VARGHESE Mercury Staff

A UTD group called Ethical Hackers is donating the profits from its first annual fundraiser to protest a federal bill overturning previous Federal Communications Commission regulations protecting consumer privacy. On April 19, Christopher Franson, an information technology and systems junior and president of Ethical Hackers, raised $66 at the organization’s fundraiser

for the American Civil Liberties Union. “What’s happening with Joint Resolution 86 is it allows internet service providers to go ahead and sell anything and everything you touch, type, do, whatever you view on the internet to companies,” Franson said. The resolution still has several steps to go before it can become a law. Franson said this legislation would violate consumer privacy. “It’s kind of like telling a friend a secret and hoping that in giving them

RUTH VARGHESE| MERCURY STAFF

History junior Wania Uddin (left) and biology sophomore Hira Ali speak with Christopher Franson, the president of Ethical Hackers, at the organization's first fundraiser

“I think a big part of it is just to all the power and let them completely look at you and decide whether they change the perception of hacking. want to tell people or not, all the se- There’s a lot of a negative connotation crets,” he said. “But (if the) legisla- with it. It’s really not like that,” Perez tion is passed, it’s allowing that per- said. “It’s just good to know the way to son that you told all those things to protect yourself against things out there just sell that information to whoever and just how to use computers in a very strategic way.” they want.” Ethical Hackers Although H.J. 86 (The bill) allows teaches its memhas not been passed, a bers how to protect companion bill in the internet service themselves through Senate which had simiproviders to go hacking and wants to lar contents regarding ahead and sell any- make others aware of consumer privacy was how to deal with the signed into law April 3. thing and everyproposed legislation. Ethical Hackers was thing you touch. Franson said while founded in January waiting for the H.J. 2017. Franson said he — Christopher Franson, Res 86 to be passed or and a friend liked to ITS junior not, it is important to meet up to learn how inform people about to hack. After realizing the bill and how to that what they were doing is illegal, they decided they wanted to fight it and protect their privacy. If the create a group where they could hack le- bill does not pass, the ACLU will still use the funds for legal fees. gally and ethically. Privacy is important and this legisla“The more we got into it, it was kind of like a game of Monopoly, there was a lot of tion potentially takes that away, Perez different pieces and you have to learn how said. A future employer could see what to play it, there’s little red hotels, green someone has ever searched on the inhouses, there’s money. You can go to jail, ternet and if he or she disagrees with it, the employer may not hire the peryou can get in trouble,” Franson said. Lauren Perez, an information technol- son. Perez said people can contact their ogy and systems sophomore, and an of- internet service providers to opt-out of ficer for Ethical Hackers, said hacking can → SEE HACKERS, PAGE 12 be used as a way to protect yourself.

THE MERCURY UTDMERCURY.COM Volume XXXVII No. 37

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THE MERCURY | APRIL 24, 2017

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April 4 • A student's iPad was stolen from the Student Services Building at 2:20 p.m.

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April 19 • A student was arrested for public intoxication at Res Hall Northwest after they were found passed out in a parking lot at 11:03 p.m.

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Contributors Samee Ahmad Carolina Alvarez Donia Bosak-Barani Srikar Baskara Emilio Chavez Deepak Godavarthi Srichandrakiran Gottipati Logan Harless Mithra Kaushik Krishna Koganti Chris Lin Sam Lopez Anthony McNair Chiamaka Mgboji Nadine Omeis Shannon Ramirez Bianca Del Rio Ian Seamans Roman Soriano Nathan Steinle Matt Strack Dev Thimmisetty Kevin Vanhorn Ruth Varghese Marisa Williams

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OPINION

APRIL 24, 2017 | THE MERCURY | UTDMERCURY.COM

Democracy threatened by authoritarian ideas

Political, community involvement needed to combat growing ‘American empire’ based on imperialistic expansion NATHAN STEINLE COMMENTARY

America’s imperialist ambitions are known to be heading toward the status of empire, and together with our declining leadership in science, technology and education, the American people have become prone to accepting authoritarian practices. The United States is a dominant international power, and has gained this status over two centuries by dispersing ideological propaganda, such as the American Dream, by intervening into other nations’ affairs economically and militaristically to open its industries and resources to the world economy and by nation building through the World Bank. Such actions, among others, begin to illustrate what is called American Imperialism. Around the world, America has over 700 military bases in over 180 countries that serve as hegemonic platforms to maintain its dominance. This expansion makes America appear as an empire. However, historian Paul W. Schroeder explains the difference between empire and hegemony in his 2010 article, “Is the U.S. an Empire?” He concludes that America is not an empire yet, but our ambitions and goals are leading us there. Historian Chalmers Johnson said in his book Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic that building an American empire “will inevitably undercut our domestic

democracy and … the combination of huge standing armies, almost continuous wars … and ruinous military expenses have destroyed our republican structure in favor of an imperial presidency.” On these bases, Johnson argues American imperialism is paving a path to empire, and that democracy and empire are mutually exclusive. America’s imperial tendencies appear to be manufactured by groups with imperialist interests that systematically manipulate our governmental institutions. Such exploitations are part of a broader problem detailed by Lawrence Lessig in his book The Lost Republic in which a “dependence corruption” enables any official to become reliant on special interests. Now, even though the United States leads the world in top scientific output, according to the National Science Foundation, this is changing as new challengers in Asia rise. The NSF reports that United States is by far the largest investor in R&D, however the United States has experienced substantial declines in the last decade in its share of global R&D. Several other economies outperform the United States’ in terms of R&D intensity — that is, other countries have a higher ratio of R&D expenditures to GDP and their R&D intensities are typically growing faster than ours. America’s education system, a major avenue for learning science, is fledgling compared to other democratized nations. The United States spends more on education per student than most other nations, especially on noninstructional items, and yet our stu-

ANTHONY MCNAIR | MERCURY STAFF

dents score poorly on comparative exams. Causation is difficult to prove, but there is a correlation between the increase of American imperialism and the decrease of American scientific and educational prowess. Just like how I can be musically literate without being able to play an instrument, for the American public to be scientifically literate in any meaningful sense they need to understand basic science and be aware of advanced topics. In this sense, large swaths of the American adult population are scientifically uneducated to an unacceptable degree, because most hardly understand the basics and almost all are not aware of the advanced topics. Given America’s science illiteracy and imperial state, special interests in govern-

ment, which arbitrate what science and technology is worth funding, are likely to represent imperial interests which will use the ignorant officials to centralize government power into their hands and restrict liberties of their opponents. Our uninformed public is therefore prone to authoritarianism. Authoritarian governments generally rise when an unchecked, strong centralized power limits political freedoms. America’s government is increasingly centralized by a growing bureaucracy, which lays atop a giant web of contractors — even with separation of powers and different levels of authority political power is being concentrated. Political and community involvement is how we can prevent an American

empire and improve our education system. For instance, demand your officials to reduce America’s global military presence through principles of noninterventionism and well-funded science. It is vital to do everything possible to help yourself and those around you to be scientifically literate. Nevertheless, simply explaining facts is not usually an effective way to persuade people of a different viewpoint. As Tim Requarth at Slate explains, people need to understand the emotional aspects of science and why those facts matter to their communities. Ultimately, the combination of these problems if left unresolved will destroy our democratic republic and usher an authoritarian state in the land of the free.

Counseling Center waitlist reflects increasing student demand for help Potential online chat solution for students who are not in crisis needs approval ROMAN SORIANO COMMENTARY

CAROLINA ALVAREZ | MERCURY STAFF

A new degree plan

COMET COMMENTS

The current waitlist for the UTD Student Counseling Center has 127 people. A month and a half ago, there were 108 people on the list. The wait is only getting worse, and the center is not able to do much to ease it. From personal experience and others’ testimonies, it can take months to start seeing a counselor after the initial intake session, which takes about a week to set up. During this intake session, the student is asked if they are feeling suicidal or if they’re going through a crisis. If they are, then they are made high priority, but that still leaves many waiting and their situation can possibly worsen while they await an appointment. Offering students rapid-response men-

tal health care is incredibly important. If a student’s mental health suffers, it can negatively impact their performance in classes, as well as potentially lead to unhealthy behaviors. These unhealthy behaviors can include self-harm, drug abuse and suicide. A report released in 2015 by the Center for Collegiate Mental Health at Pennsylvania State University shows an increase in college students seeking counseling. UTD is growing at a fast rate, and as more students come in, statistically speaking, more students will need counseling. There are students that cannot receive counseling outside of the SCC, for monetary reasons or because of parents who are unsupportive of mental health issues. The UTD Counseling Center only has one psychiatrist on staff. Only he can prescribe medication. The rest of the staff is made up of psychologists, interns and practicum students. This could be part of the reason why there’s such a long waitlist. To better tend to students, another

psychiatrist may be necessary. One solution that the SCC is exploring is Therapy Assistance Online, which allows counselors to have sessions with students through video chat. This system would be used only for patients who are not high priority. Students who are in more critical conditions, such as having suicidal thoughts, would still be seen in person because that’s the best care they can receive. This system has the potential to shorten the waitlist significantly. The sessions are half the length of in-person sessions and could be easier for students to schedule. However, this system still needs to be approved by administration, and that may not happen until 2019. If UTD continues to grow at its current pace, the waitlist will only grow along with it. As the school’s student population increases, the number of staff members in the SCC should also increase to meet the rising demand. If they don’t the wait will only get worse.

How do you feel about your internet provider selling your information to future employers? HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY? Students interested in writing opinions can email editor@utdmercury.com.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

“I don’t think it would be a good thing because all the information would not accurately reflect a person because everyone has moments where they look up something stupid.”

“I would rather have my personal information kept private if possible, but I know there’s probably a need to make money so they would do whatever they need to do that.’”

“It makes me pay more attention to what I’m doing on the internet and provides that sense of accountability too, like being aware that someody else might see what I’m doing.”

Jeremiah Goossen Historical Studies Freshman

Fernando Izaguirre Computer Science Graduate

Alyssa Shrode Speech Pathology and Audiology Freshman

Letters must be 250 words or less. Students should include their full name, major and year. Faculty, staff and administrators should include their full name and title. Email letters to editor@utdmercury. com. Although electronic copies are preferred, a hard copy can be dropped off at the reception desk of the Student Media suite (SU 1.601). Please include a headshot. Authors may only have one letter printed per edition of The Mercury.

OP-EDS

Apart from your name and photo, personal info will not be published. We reserve the right to reject submissions, and we cannot be responsible for their return. We reserve the right to edit for clarity, brevity, good taste, accuracy and to prevent libel.

THE MERCURY | APRIL 24, 2017

NEWS

UTDMERCURY.COM

Entrepreneurial lab opens for student use

University uses million-dollar grant to fund effort to launch projects

BLACKSTONE LAUNCHPAD | COURTESY

The Blackstone LaunchPad is scheduled to open in April. It is located next to the IHOP in Parking Structure 3. Students will have the opportunity to work with a mentor if they participate in the program. If accepted into the program, students have the opportunity to earn money off of their projects. MITHRA KAUSHIK Staff Writer

Any UTD student with entrepre- or have already started a business can neurial ideas will have the opportuni- come and meet with mentors, co-work ty to turn them into companies using with their fellow employees or with the free resources of the Blackstone other students that they have business LaunchPad, which is scheduled to ideas that they want to work on. It will be a place for meetings,” Crowe said. open at the end of April. Located in Parking Structure 3, the UTD has been working to create a interior features an inphysical workspace for an entrepreneurial produstrial modern workgram since last summer space with a kitchenIf you have when The Blackstone ette, five offices, an the slightest Charitable Foundation open area with tables provided the university as a student workspace, inkling of inwith a $1 million grant whiteboard walls and terest in entre- two conference rooms. to fund the effort. Students will have the According to the preneurship, opportunity to work with Foundation’s website, we welcome visiting mentors in their “Blackstone Launchyou to come field of entrepreneurship Pad is a campus based to receive guidance for entrepreneurship provisit us. Let’s their startup. These mengram, accessible by over talk about it. 630,000 students globtors are local entrepreally, designed to support neurs from various fields, Get engaged and mentor students, who will share their exwith us. staff and alumni — reperience with students through workshops. gardless of major, expe— Sarah Crowe, “We also have a pretrience or discipline.” The program at UTD Project Manager ty robust mentorship is led by Bryan Champrogram that we are going to be continubers, the project director and Sarah Crowe, the project manager. ing building, and students come and “It is going to be a fully accessible, meet with mentors. It’s a specially cuopen space on campus where students rated list of mentors from the comwho are interested in entrepreneurship munity, all wakes of expositions in

town, ranging from technology to retail and sales to lawyers who can come and advise students. So it will be the physical space on campus where entrepreneurship happens,” Crowe said. The program is open to all students, regardless of their major or school. “One of our missions is to not only teach entrepreneurship but to begin to educate the students that this is not something that is located under a specific school,” Crowe said. “This is something that we want students who are in interdisciplinary studies to engineering students to ATEC students to become curious about and to feel that this is someplace that they can explore an idea or flat out learn about entrepreneurship.” The resources are completely free. “Neither Blackstone LaunchPad or the university will take any money that is earned or take your idea and claim it as their own,” Crowe said. Despite being called a program, there is no official initiation or application process. Additionally, the program will not turn away those who want entrepreneurial assistance. “If you have the slightest inkling of interest in entrepreneurship, we welcome you to come visit us,” Crowe said. “Let’s talk about it. Get engaged with us.”

approval by Goodwin and Art UTD, SG will provide the funding.

need of assistance. The button will be developed over summer, and the app is projected to be available at the start of the fall semester.

D Foreign Affairs D Leader of the Academic Affairs Committee Jonathan Schueler is continuing to work with his committee on evaluating the need for more foreign language courses. He is waiting on feedback from the School of Arts and Humanities with additional questions for the survey that will measure the interest in adding more foreign language courses and to determine if the addition to the UTD curriculum is necessary. The survey should be approved and sent out before the end of the semester.

k Murals k

SAM LOPEZ | MERCURY STAFF

The Communications Committee will be adding four to six more murals around the Student Union. Art UTD, an art club on campus, will create them and talk with Dan Goodwin, director of the SU, about the composition of the paintings. The theme is still unknown, but the murals will be interconnected in some way. The Multicultural Center will submit a mock-up of a diversity-themed mural and, upon

Outdoor Piano

Nancy Fairbank, leader of the Student Affairs Committee, met with Dean of Arts and Humanities Dennis Kratz about the addition of a mobile, outdoor piano to campus. They decided the best location would be outside of the SU. The goal is to have a piano donated. Fairbank and Dean Kratz are currently looking for a piano online and have not located one that is available. If anyone has a piano they’d like to donate, they can reach SG at sg@ utdallas.edu.

UTD App

An additional feature will be added to the UTD app, currently being developed by SG and the Office of Information and Technology. Rahul Sonwalkar, leader of the Technology Committee, is working to create an emergency button. This app feature will allow students to send a security message to police and the emergency contacts they have listed, if they feel they are in danger or in

Q Local Legislation Q Christian Filsouf and the Legislative Affairs Committee are still receiving communication from legislators pertaining to UTD on the federal and state levels, including the bathroom bill, the tuition freeze and the hiring freeze. Students can access the responses on the SG website. The name of the legislator will be paired with their response.

L Safety on Campus L Concerning student safety on campus, Filsouf said he and the Legislative Committee try their best to respond to questions from students, but it can be difficult to address all questions with immediate responses. He encourages students to reach out to the UTD Police Department with questions about their own personal safety in the case that SG is not able to address them immediately.

LIFE&ARTS KEEPERS OF THE EARTH

APRIL 24, 2017 | THE MERCURY | UTDMERCURY.COM

Students establish new sustainability program

Review: Mystery thriller New Patterson novel underwhelms with dull plot

LITTLE, BROWN AND COMPANY | COURTESY

The Black Book was published on March 27.

BHARGAV ARIMILLI RUTH VARGHESE | MERCURY STAFF

COMMENTARY

International political economy sophomore Emily Stinnett (left) and emerging media and communications sophomore Delaney Conroy showcase worm composting bins. RUTH VARGHESE Mercury Staff

UTD’s sustainability efforts have grown to incorporate a student educator component with the creation of EcoReps this semester. In 2016, Thea Junt, the associate director of facilities management for energy conservation and sustainability, and Evan Paret, the administration project coordinator for facilities management, submitted the first comprehensive Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education Sustainable Tracking Assessment Rating System, or the AASHE STARS, report and received a bronze certification for UTD. Previously, only parts of the survey were reported. The AASHE STARS reports collect data from participating schools on their sustainability efforts.

One credit of the report is the student educators program, which UTD did not have when it first submitted its data. Now, EcoReps fulfills that requirement. “It really is the next step forward to having a full sustainability program,” Junt said. “For UT Dallas, it’s the facilities side, we’re doing well, next it’s students. It seemed like a really natural step, to have more student involvement in sustainability.” Emily Stinnett, an international political economy sophomore, wanted to start EcoReps at UTD after noticing different unsustainable measures on campus, such as when people throw trash in the recycling bins or leave the lights on in an empty room. She said UTD hints at an eco-friendly culture and needs to live up to it. “One of our colors is Eco-Green. So

I thought that was really funny that we could be more green,” Stinnett said. “And we’re only going to get bigger and so I think it’s really important that we have a student position on campus … that can help facilitate telling people about the sustainability measures that we’re already doing.” Stinnett saw the success of EcoReps at other school and wanted to see that at UTD. “This is our campus and we should take pride in how green it is and we should take pride in its cleanliness and all the things that it’s doing to be sustainable, and students want to be a part of this and we have a right to be a part of this,” she said. A total of five students currently participate in the program, chosen through previous connections with

Junt and word of mouth. The common thread among all of them is their passion for sustainability, Junt said. When EcoReps was formed, the student-workers had to educate themselves on helping the environment at UTD. “It’s looking at sustainability with a whole different set of eyes and being able to do new things,” Junt said. Stinnett said she believes the student-workers will help the ecofriendly culture at UTD by clearing up misconceptions about recyclable materials. Among the projects they completed were creating shadow boxes featuring items that were and were not recyclable. The EcoReps also created a green

→ SEE ECOREPS, PAGE 7

James Patterson, author of the Alex Cross and Maximum Ride series, told the Washington Post that his latest novel, The Black Book, was his best in 20 years. If you read this expecting a fast-paced and sharp detective novel, you might be disappointed. Instead, The Black Book underwhelms with cliche dialogue and a drawn-out plot. The novel, co-authored by David Ellis, centers around a black book — a registry of clients and financial transactions — that goes missing during a police raid of a brothel. Billy Harney, a Chicago police detective who leads the raid, discovers that some of the city’s most powerful figures, including the mayor and archbishop of Chicago, are regular customers. Harney then finds himself implicated in the murders of his partner, Detective

→ SEE BLACK BOOK, PAGE 7

New ‘Furious’ film proves to be worthy sequel Latest addition to popular franchise is improvement over previous iterations despite some shortcomings LOGAN HARLESS COMMENTARY

UNIVERSAL PICTURES | COURTESY

“The Fate of the Furious” was released in the United States on April 14.

EMILIO CHAVEZ | MERCURY STAFF

In “The Fate of the Furious,” the eighth installment of “The Fast and the Furious” franchise, director F. Gary Gray and writer Chris Morgan rehash themes that made previous films a success. The movie features the non-stop, over-thetop action, cheesy one liners, fast cars and short skirts that come straight from the “Furious” blueprint. “Fate” was a worthy addition to the fran-

chise, and a major box office success. The film had the largest worldwide box office opening ever at $532.5 million in its first weekend. It avoids the trap of repetitiveness that so many blockbuster sequels can fall into and earns a place among the better half of films in the series, though whether that is good or bad is up to the viewer. The film boasts a star-studded cast, with popular actors and series stalwarts Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (Hobbs), Vin Diesel (Dom), Michelle Rodriguez (Letty) and Jason Statham (Deckard) being just a few of the many A-list cast members. For all the top-level Hollywood talent brought on — including

Oscar winners Helen Mirren (Magdalene Shaw) and Charlize Theron (Cipher) — it is the special effects team that did the heavy lifting in “Fate.” The tone of the movie is set from the beginning, with an elaborate street race between protagonist Dom and local gangster Santos, played by Don Omar, giving Dom the opportunity to do the impossible, multiple times. Dom takes “the slowest car on the island” and manages to out race Santos, overcoming a collision with a motorcycle and a flaming engine that forces him to finish the race in reverse. This scene showcases the best of

“Fate” and simultaneously everything that it lacks. In all of “Furious” movies since “Fast Five,” creative action scenes, involving cars or not, have been the most enjoyable, important and characteristic pieces of every movie. Dom’s race with Santos is cast in the same mold, taking a beautiful setting in Havana, Cuba and creating an action masterpiece, and nothing less or more. In terms of complexity, “Fate” is no different than any other “Furious” installment. You will not find deep plot and complex themes here.

→ SEE FURIOUS, PAGE 7

THE MERCURY | APRIL 24, 2017

LIFE&ARTS

UTDMERCURY.COM A

EARTH WEEK April 17-21

DEEPAK GODAVARTHI| MERCURY STAFF

RUTH VARGHESE | MERCURY STAFF

student volunteer creates items from recycled materials to donate to local agencies at Operation Upcycle during Earth Week.

TEMOC makes a pledge about sustainability for EcoReps during the Earth Fair on April 20.

NADINE OMEIS | MERCURY STAFF

Finance freshman Margarita Konstantinovna plants milkweed at one of the monarch butterﬂy waystations during the Butterﬂy Flutterby on April 21.

SRIKAR BASKARA | MERCURY STAFF

Scott Rippel talks about conservation, education and artisanship during a bee demonstration at the Texas Honeybee Guild booth at the Earth Fair.

RUTH VARGHESE | MERCURY STAFF

NADINE OMEIS | MERCURY STAFF

Psychology junior Jessica Reyes informs students about Group X at the Recreational Sports booth during the Earth Fair.

Recreational sports representatives give yoga demos and flyers on how to do sun salutations during the Earth Fair.

G Electrical

engineering sophomore Victor Le plants milkweed at one of the monarch butterﬂy waystations on campus during Butterﬂy Flutterby.

H Students

discover fresh treats, cooking demonstrations and recipes at the Pop-Up Farmer’s Market on April 20.

SRIKAR BASKARA | MERCURY STAFF NADINE OMEIS | MERCURY STAFF

(Above) UTD Community Garden representative Christina Lanier displays a seed ball-making activity at the Earth Fair.

RUTH VARGHESE | MERCURY STAFF

(Above) Thea Junt, associate director of sustainability, shows a student how to compost during the Earth Fair.

NADINE OMEIS | MERCURY STAFF

SRICHANDRAKIRAN GOTTIPATI | MERCURY STAFF

(Above) Students enjoy free snacks at the Pop-Up Farmer’s market on April 20 during Earth Week.

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map of campus showing different environmental initiatives at UTD, including monarch waystations, electronic vehicle charging stations and the windmill. The map is available online and will be an update to the green tour map in the Visitor’s Center. They’re also working on vermicomposting, where they bought worms to keep in bins filled with

dirt and organic waste. They said they want to be able to teach those interested in the process how to take part. “Vermicomposting is kind of a small scale composting. Composting is basically where you take food and organic waste … and you’re composting it into what becomes soil,” said Aasya Peera, an interdisciplinary studies senior and also an EcoRep. EcoReps also hosted its own events during Earth Week,

LIFE&ARTS which were Recycling Walk the Walk, a movie screening of The Lorax and a booth at the Earth Fair. Junt said she believes students want sustainability and she wants to be able to find a way to make it happen. “We are growing the future. The knowledge you get in college is going to serve you the rest of your life, and I want some of that to be to respect the earth, to be involved,” Junt said.

THE MERCURY | APRIL 24, 2017

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Kate Fenton and state attorney Amy Lentini. He doesn’t remember if he committed these crimes as he partially loses his memory when he is shot. The rest of the story deals with how Harney finds the black book to figure out who is behind the murders and how he exonerates himself. The story opens with Harney, Lentini and Fenton in an apartment with bullets in their heads. Harney is resuscitated while Lentini and Fenton are pronounced dead. We then jump to a flashback of the brothel raid and the futile search for the black book. The connection between these murders and the black book isn’t apparent at first, but as the story progresses, we find that someone listed on the black book is attempting to silence Harney by framing him for the murders. This isn’t made clear until much later in

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“Fate” is in so many ways like its predecessors, but it differs in one important aspect. Everything in “Fate” is bigger. The stakes — an omniscient terrorist gaining nuclear power — are higher, the crew is even bigger with the addition of Shaw, and, of course, so is the action. Hobbs has basically become a superhero, with enough strength

the plot, which makes it difficult for the reader to remain engaged. The middle of the story plods through Harney’s recovery from the gunshot wound and focuses on his relationships with his family members, including twin sister Patti, who is also a detective, and father Daniel, who is the chief of detectives at Chicago PD. The flashbacks occasionally dip into melodrama as characters like Patti deliver monologues about their idyllic childhoods and troubled careers. At times, the connection between Harney, the black book and overarching mystery feels tenuous or nonexistent. Patterson also scatters random and raunchy sex scenes throughout the first half of the plot. Harney finds himself attracted to Fenton and has a brief fling with her, before falling madly in love with Lentini. Harney’s internal monologues about choosing between Fenton and Lentini are long and redundant. The romance feels forced and awkward. Patterson alternates between

present and past tense throughout the novel, perhaps to reflect Harney’s struggle to remember what happened before he was shot. It’s engaging at first, but quickly becomes a distraction, especially as other characters begin to narrate. Simply put, the flashbacks interspersed throughout the presenttense narration are irritating. It’s only within the last twenty pages or so that the pace begins to pick up. The grand reveal of who committed the murders and framed Harney is genuinely shocking, which might make up for the boring journey. At the same time, it’s frustrating that it took so long to get to the end. Though the plot is intriguing and full of twists, Patterson disappoints with detective novel tropes that, quite frankly, make the novel difficult to digest. The Black Book is engaging enough to keep crime novel junkies interested, but falls short with uninspiring dialogue and an unnecessarily long plot.

to bend metal with a punch, curl a solid stone prison bed, throw a man over 10 feet and redirect a torpedo with one arm. Though realism and plot consistency have undoubtedly been thrown out the window of the million-dollar Lamborghini driving on Russian ice, this does not detract from the movie’s purpose. The action is undisputedly entertaining and feels fresh, and the theme of family is painted differently than in past ”Furious”

films. Dom’s betrayal pits the crew against its own, adding a more serious edge to the conflict, though Letty’s readiness to forgive ensures that “Fate” retains both its upbeat tone and impossibility. There is no question about what “Fate” has to offer. Either you want to see people fight their way out of a prison riot, babies in bulletproof cribs used as bullet shields and cars fighting submarines, or you make the mistake of asking yourself “How?”

UPCOMING EVENTS PAWS FOR FINALS De-stress during finals week by playing with therapy dogs.

April 24, 1 - 4 PM, Visitor’s Center Atrium TEA TUESDAYS Join the Women’s Center for a refreshing cup of tea.

April 25, 10 AM - 4 PM, SSB 4.300 CINCO DE MAYO RECOGNITION Celebrate the annual Mexican holiday by learning about its history and by enjoying authentic food.

April 28, 12 - 1:30 PM, The Plinth

APRIL 24, 2017 | THE MERCURY | UTDMERCURY.COM

Game of the Week

SPORTS

Transfer of power UTD baseball finds success after roster upheaval with addition of transfer students

Howard Payne vs UTD Men’s Tennis April 14, 2017 9-0 for UTD

KRISHNA KOGANTI | MERCURY STAFF

Senior Hrudhay Ravula (left) and junior Alberto Hernandez defeated Edgar Torres and Gabe Benitez (84). During singles, Ravula and Hernandez also won their match-ups against Drew Lambert (6-0, 6-0) and Torres (6-1, 6-2) respectively.

SRIKAR BASKARA | MERCURY STAFF

Barry Casey, a junior infielder, worked on his swing during a practice on the UTD baseball field on April 5. Casey, who started in all 37 games this season with a batting average of .411, is one of 13 transfer students brought in for this season to help replenish the depleted roster following the graduation of nine seniors. The team sits at third place in the ASC with three games left to play in the season, going 28-9 (16-5 ASC) on their way to a 14th place national ranking. SUMMER LEBEL Sports Editor

KRISHNA KOGANTI | MERCURY STAFF

Sophomore Mario Jelev and his partner, freshman Eric Chen, won their match against Drew Lambert and Ryan Barrett (8-4), contributing to the sweep of Howard Payne. UTD moved to a 10-3 record following the win, including going 5-0 in the ASC West division.

UTD’s baseball team, ranked 14th in the country, is seeing success this season after the addition of 13 transfer students to the roster. The Comets are nationally ranked for the first time in 10 years following a large offseason roster turnover, during which they lost nine graduating seniors. Head coach Shane Shewmake and his assistants looked for students with experience to help fill the void. “We knew we had to bring in some guys that could make an immediate impact,” Shewmake said. “Transfers do that.” During recruitment, Shewmake spoke to other coaches and looked for recommendations on players to replace

the lost starters, including pitchers, first agement on the recommendation of his and third base positions. UTD’s coach- junior college coach. “I told him I wanted a good academing staff looked for athletes who could fit in with the team both as a good play- ic school that I could go to and leave with a job,” Renteria er and as a good teamsaid. mate. We are not goAdjusting from the “We felt like as we academic and athletic exbrought them in that ing to go home pectations at junior colwe were adding some empty handed. lege to those at UTD was quality guys,” Shewa tough but enjoyable make said. If we go out, transition for Renteria. Because Division III we're going out “At the end of the schools are not allowed fighting. day, when you’re playing to give athletic scholarbaseball, you’re supposed ships, Shewmake used — Ruben Renteria, to have fun,” he said. “I the academics at UTD as a selling point for Junior pitcher come here to relax and forget about it all for a potential transfer stulittle bit.” dents. Junior pitcher For the transfers, finding the team Ruben Renteria was drawn to the school and the Jindal School of Man- chemistry was simple. They were able

to relate to each other through their junior college experiences. “When we got here, the transfers got together,” Renteria said. “It was like, ‘Oh, cool, you played here? We played against these guys.’” So far this season, Renteria has gone 8-1, with an ERA of 2.14 through 63 innings pitched. “This is probably the best I’ve played in all my life,” he said. He is not the only one contributing to the outstanding season so far, with the team batting a .349 average and a 274 RBI over 37 games played. On the fielding side, the team has a fielding percentage of .962 with only 51 errors. “A pitcher without their defense is nothing,” Renteria said. “Every time

→ SEE TRANSFER, PAGE 9

Cheer squad goes national UTD cheerleaders attend competition in Florida despite early struggles with participation numbers DONIA BOSAK-BARANI Mercury Staff

KRISHNA KOGANTI | MERCURY STAFF

On April 12, Chen was named ASC West Player of the Week following a 4-0 performance on the week. For the week following the match against Howard Payne, Ravula took the honors. The match marked Ravula’s return to play following a three-week absence.

The cheerleaders at UTD have had a hard time boosting their squad numbers, but the size of the team didn’t affect their recent competition performance. UTD Cheerleading spreads school spirit at sporting events on campus, including volleyball and basketball games, as well as chess games and special events. It is led by head coach and spirit coordinator Jason Dollar, who has been coaching the team for four years. He has witnessed the growth of the cheerleaders for an entire freshman to senior cycle. The cheerleading team recently competed in the National Cheerleaders Association Collegiate Cheer and Dance Competition in Daytona Beach, Fla. “I think the talent level at the university is getting stronger. We took the smallest team that we’ve ever taken since I’ve been here,” Dollar said. “It was a lot more about quality rather than about quantity, and I think that we’re getting there as a cheerleading team.” The squad held first place on the first day of competition, a record for UTD, but ultimately placed fourth out of 19 schools in the Division II competition. “Considering that it’s the first time ever that we’ve held the first place position at the university, even though we didn’t do as well day two, we fell in standings. To us it was a big feat be-

ing accomplished because we are just getting much better,” said Alexsandra Andino, a biology freshman. Jose Alonso, a marketing junior, joined the team after seeing UTD Cheerleading at freshman orientation. He joined his first year and will conclude his education on the squad. “Being on the team previous years, we’ve definitely increased a lot,” Alonso said. “Last year we competed in the National Cheerleading Association and that’s the year we had a perfect routine, perfect score, no mistakes. We placed sixth, but that was because that was the first year ever we switched to NCA. And this year, for the first time ever, we placed first on the first day of NCA, so it speaks numbers on UT Dallas as a whole.” Despite being a Division III school, UTD competed among Division II colleges with groups of 20 cheerleaders. UTD’s squad was the smallest crew, with only 11 people cheering. “We’re competing against teams who get scholarships and we don’t. It’s a huge time commitment to put forth all that effort, not getting a huge financial compensation from it,” Andino said. The fact that the squad is made up of only 11 people makes it more of a time commitment for individual cheerleaders. “It’s an extreme time commitment. It’s not just games, it’s so much more. You’re required to come to practice, you’re required to cheer at games, ap-

pearances. There will be days when they’ll say, ‘Hey, we need three cheerleaders for this event at this time,’ on the day of,” Alonso said. The commitment to be on the team is not one that people can easily make, which ties into the relatively small size of the squad, Andino said. “We do some pretty physically demanding things, we toss people in the air,” she said. “Once you get to the collegiate level, obviously your bodies aren’t at their peak. … It’s a lot more physically demanding, and it’s not something that someone could just pick up on the street.” The team has a summer camp, and

this past year several cheerleaders left the squad due to injury or other commitments. Dollar said it wasn’t hard to regroup because it was early in the season, but the crew has retained its small size. “It’s hard to just keep trying to build the numbers up with the cheer team and the dancers because we do have a lot of appearances and games and things like that. It’s hard to try to make it to where everybody is not having to be at everything, just so we can grow the numbers up a little bit better,” Dollar said. “In Texas, it’s hard when you don’t have football for people to think

→ SEE CHEER, PAGE 9

UTD CHEER TEAM | COURTESY

UTD’s cheer team headed to Daytona Beach for the National Cheerleaders Association Collegiate Cheer and Dance, held over the long weekend of April 4 through 8. They competed at the Division II level, placing fourth out of 19 schools. The squad has battled with low participation this year, with only 11 students cheering.

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I’m out there, the team never fails to back me up.” Shewmake said he feels the team has done well focusing on what’s in front of them this season, rather than worry about

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you have cheerleading. Those seem to go hand in hand, so it’s just been difficult.” Nonetheless, the team has seen

SPORTS

what’s down the road. “As long as we can keep doing that, we’re going to be okay,” he said. “We’re right where we need to be.” The team has ranked as high as 10th during the season, a novelty to Renteria, who has never been on a team ranked

above 20th. Moving into their last few weeks and the ASC tournament, the team has its eye on the national tournament. “The team wants it and I want it definitely,” Renteria said. “We are not going to go home empty handed. If we go out, we’re going to go out fighting.”

an influx of applications after its performance at nationals. “There are times that I do get frustrated because UT Dallas is so academically driven that it’s kind of like nobody has school spirit. But they see us walking

around in uniforms, representing them, and people are like ‘Oh, we didn’t know we had cheerleaders, that’s so awesome,’” Alonso said. “Slowly and surely, people are taking notice. We have to motivate each other.”

THE MERCURY | APRIL 24, 2017

MATT STRACK | MERCURY STAFF

10 7

APRIL 24, 2017 | THE MERCURY

COMICS & GAMES HEDGEHOG LOVE

GRANDMEMES

ORGANIZED

EMAC IS EGONE

EARTHDAY BIRTHDAY

FREE OF WASTE

SUMMER BREAK

SHANNON RAMIREZ | MERCURY STAFF

CAROLINA ALVAREZ | MERCURY STAFF KEVIN VANHORN | MERCURY STAFF

WRONG TURN

CHIAMAKA MGBOJI | MERCURY STAFF

ANTHONY MCNAIR | MERCURY STAFF BIANCA DEL RIO | MERCURY STAFF

CAROLINA ALVAREZ| MERCURY STAFF

ANTHONY MCNAIR | MERCURY STAFF

MATT STRACK | MERCURY

UTDMERCURY.COM

NEWS

Professors, student join health care debate

UTD community evaluates federal government’s attempts at reform SAMEE AHMAD Mercury Staff

Congressional Republicans are currently trying to reform health care law in the United States by repealing the Affordable Care Act and putting into effect legislation that will impact millions of students and young adults. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare or the ACA, is a federal statute signed into law by former president Barack Obama in 2010. The act represents a significant overhaul of the United States health care system and impacts more than 20 million uninsured and underinsured peoCHRIS LIN | MERCURY STAFF ple, especially young adults and Zoee Camille Fowler, an economics senior, has Type 1 diabetes and students who increasingly make said she relies on the Affordable Care Act for her health insurance. up the newly insured rate. Luba Ketsler, a professor of eco- the majority of personal bankAmong other things, the ACA mandates that every American nomics at UTD, talked about the ruptcies in the United States. 2015 census data indicates purchase a health insurance plan significance of the bill. “The reason the AHCA is im- that young adults made the most or pay a fine. It also restricts health insurance companies from portant is because this law proved significant drop in the uninsured denying insurance to people with too liberal for some of the ultracon- rate, with only 15 percent of 18 servative Repub- to 34 year olds uninsured. This is pre-existing conlicans. I think the the third consecutive year where ditions and states I am scared of AHCA is indica- young adults have made a signifthat people can the uncertainty tive of whatever icant drop in the uninsured rate. stay on their parThe AHCA kept the under 26 future replaceents’ plan until the of this situament the Repub- clause, but did not keep the indiage of 26. tino. How much licans will have,” vidual mandate. Citing governAccording to Ketsler, individKetsler said. mental overreach everything is Ketlser talked uals who urgently need health with the individual going to cost, about its effect on insurance will buy it while othmandate, Congreswhere I’ll get students at UTD ers who believe they do not sional Republicans who could lose need it will not. This will drive attempted to reinsurance. health insurance up insurance rates for individupeal the ACA and replace it with the — Zoee Fowler, either because als who need it the most. “It would cost nearly a $178 American Health Economics senior they cannot afford it or they are billion per year to subsidize those Care Act of 2017 high-risk pools for those who get too old. on March 23. The “A student could have an emer- sick often or who are at risk and AHCA failed to garner enough votes from House Republicans and gency and a medical bill could fi- what Tom Price (the Human and Health Services secretary) is sugnancially cripple them,” she said. was withdrawn. According to a 2013 study, Now, Republicans are trying to medical bankruptcies account for amass votes for new legislation. → SEE ACA, PAGE 12

THE MERCURY | APRIL 24, 2017

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gesting is only $3 billion over the next three years,” she said. The rising prices would impact people with more serious conditions. “With the absence of crosssubsidizing, which is the healthy population paying for these high-risk pools, if the sicker leave that pool, their premiums go up. The Republican plan did not do anything about rectifying the gap in subsidies,” Ketsler said. Healthy people with insurance would also suffer financially under this plan. “The Kaiser Family Foundation shows that there will be a 19 percent increase in premiums from our pocket to offset the lack of cost-sharing subsidies,” Ketsler said. The ACA mandates that insurance companies cannot deny people health insurance based on pre-existing conditions. These conditions include cancer, diabetes and asthma. Ketsler said young adults with any of those conditions would find it even harder to find affordable insurance alternatives if the ACA is repealed. Zoee Camille Fowler, an economics senior, is one of those people. She has Type 1 Diabetes and relies on the ACA for affordable insurance. “The most effective aspect of (the ACA) for me was that insurances could not turn me away or charge me higher premiums just because of my pre-existing condition,” Fowler said. With the ACA, she gets her

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this collection of data. “You get on Facebook and they know you’re on Facebook, you Google search a recipe and they know what you’re cooking. They know your home location. It’s just not safe for everyone to know all that information,” Per-

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to, it came as a shock. She was not prepared to sign up for UV housing and did not go through the process when other freshmen did. “We didn’t find this out when we first moved in, we found this out halfway through living (in North) and being accustomed to our routines, so we only had another semester to get used to the fact that we can’t live here anymore,” Keeny said. “I was not expecting to sign up, so I got stuck with one of the pricier housing (options).” White said Residential Life did notify every student of the circumstances during renewal and sign-up, although the decision may have not been made by the beginning of the school year. “When we decide on the freshman number for housing,

NEWS

own insurance and her premium, because of federal subsidies, is only $24, while her co-pay for doctors’ and specialists’ visits varies from $5 to $25. She said if she had a lapse in employer-based insurance, an insurance company could skyrocket her premiums. “I am scared of the uncertainty of this situation. How much everything is going to cost, where I’ll get insurance. It is scary because I am a full-time student and I can only work so much, so I don’t know how to afford everything without subsidies,” Fowler said. Brit Berrett, a clinical professor who heads the health care management program for UTD, said the individual mandate portion of the ACA will probably be struck down. “The mandate required that you have health insurance or you report that you do not. The goal of the ACA (is) that we find the underfunded and the uninsured and provide them with federal programs,” Berret said. The AHCA tried to strike down the individual mandate and had a less severe version where there is a 30 percent surcharge for people who do not have insurance after 63 days. Under President Donald Trump, the Internal Revenue Service has weakened enforcement of individual mandate violations by making it optional to fill out the tax line reporting one’s health care coverage. Berret had an optimistic view of how the federal government can deal with health care without this individual mandate to

rein in costs. “The federal government may award block grants to the state to expand their Medicaid coverage for those that are underfunded and uninsured and were covered under Obamacare,” Berret said. Ketsler said this would be an unsustainable model because health care costs are continually rising. “The assumption with those lump sum payments with the block grants is that the costs will not rise, but if health care costs continue to rise, those payments won’t cover health care fully,” Ketsler said. Berret also said lifestyle choices and noncompliance played a huge part in determining the demand for health care. “The single most significant determinant of health care costs is lifestyle and behavior, it is not economics, not society, not race or gender, but lifestyle,” Berret said. But Ketsler said in terms of congenital and long-term disease, students, such as Fowler, with chronic conditions can still not afford health insurance, or their costs will continue to rise and become a burden. “Without the (ACA), I would not be able to afford my medicine and my doctor’s visits. If I don’t take care of my health right now, that means down the road I can have amputations, stomach paralysis, I can go blind,” Fowler said. “With the ACA I can afford to take care of myself and stay healthy. I am thankful for that.”

ez said. “You don’t want to be the product and that’s what this legislation makes you. It makes you a product and they’re selling you.” One of the important things about the fundraiser is informing others about the legislation and how to protect themselves by handing out fliers and talking to the people who stopped

by, Franson said. “It’s good to see people getting behind a cause and taking a moment to slow down and examine what’s going on in the world,” he said. “It’s a national issue, so I think to bring it to a local level and get attention on it especially here at UT Dallas, we’re so wrapped up in other things, it’s very important.”

that’s usually dependent upon the projected growth of the freshman class. That may not have timed up — they may have moved in before we received that projection, before we were able to make a decision on what freshman housing was going to look like for fall ’17,” he said. Computer science sophomore Nicholas Straus is living in North as an upperclassman and attributes his social life to the opportunity he had to meet more people in the dorms. “I think what it takes away though is the ability for younger members of the UTD community to really socialize with older members. It’s a lot harder, but I feel like the dorms can force that in a way, which makes it a whole lot more social and active, and it gives the incoming freshmen a lot of advantages,” Straus said. Residential Life representa-

tives said they see the decision serving the best interests of the school because they will be able to house more freshmen on-campus to build a strong community of exclusively first-year students. Oncampus housing applications are still open for students who require it. “I think any time that you get as many freshmen as you can on-campus, for the freshmen students, it’s a good start to their academic career, which is why we take that charge more seriously as the freshman class grows. We try to house as many freshmen as we can that want to,” White said. “I think that with any on-campus population, it creates that collegiate atmosphere that most students want to have, which is why there is such a demand for on-campus housing.”

UTDMERCURY.COM

Richardson City Council: 2017 Elections IAN SEAMANS Mercury Staff

Municipal elections are May 6, and the race for the Richardson City Council district that partially covers UTD is about how the city will move forward with taxes, roads and the city budget. The incumbent, Mabel Simpson, is running against Cory Montfort for the two-

year term in District Four. Richardson’s form of municipal government is a council-manager system in which six representative counselors and one mayor are in charge of managing the city tax rate, infrastructure, utilities and municipal ordinances among other subjects.

The Candidates

MABEL SIMPSON

CORY MONTFORT

Mabel Simpson has served on the council since 2015. She is also on the advisory board for the Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at UTD. She founded and practices at Simpson Law and specializes in business and real estate law. Some of the issues that Simpson is most concerned with are the redevelopment of land and maintaining a balanced budget.

Cory Montfort is a founder and professional counselor at her business The Montfort Group. She graduated from Liberty University with a bachelor’s in education and earned a master’s in counseling from Southern Methodist University. This is her first time running for public office. Some of the issues that Montfort is most concerned with are communication between the city and voters and green initiatives.

The Stances Why run for city council? Simpson

“The city is aged and so much progress has been made on the (redevelopment) or repurposing of the land uses. I would like to continue that work ... and I think that I can lend my expertise to the counsel to contribute to informed decisions.”

Montfort

“I thought it was time for me to offer a skill set that is often missing in politicians, which is a master’s degree in listening and communicating.”

Infrastructure/Developments Simpson

“With the confidence the citizens had in passing the 2016 Bond Program, many of our infrastructure challenges are being able to be addressed. This bond package was very much needed for the infrastructure. However, we still have more work to do.”

Montfort

“They need to be very thoughtful about how they zone (apartments) ... and make sure we’re constructing them with good materials so that they last more than a decade and possibly can be repurposed for other things.”

How to Vote • • •

Get a voter registration form at local libraries, government oﬃces, high schools or online at votetexas.gov. Early voting for the May 6 election begins April 24 and ends May 2. Find your voting location on the League of Women Voter’s webpage. ANTHONY MCNAIR & CARA SANTUCCI | MERCURY STAFF SOURCES | MABEL4RICHARDSON, VOTE 411, THE VOTER GUIDE

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and education instead. “As far as developing Euless, I feel that we need to develop in the middle of Euless,” Helu said. “I think the riverwalk is a waste of time. Instead, we could put a shopping center and a Walmart or an office building for small businesses in the middle of Euless.” Some challenges associated with running are voter turnout and the status quo. “Even though Euless is almost 50 percent minority, none of the city council members are from a minority. That’s one reason people are interested in our stories, and we want to empower other people, whether they are minority or not, to do the same thing,” Layton said. The other issue is with the age of the voters. “Millennials are just not interested in politics, and that’s something that I want to change by showing them that we can start change in our local governments,” Layton said.

Despite this, Layton and Helu said they think she has a significant chance of winning. “People want a leader who they can look up to, and who can lead them to success. I believe that (I) can wake people up and show how important education and small businesses to making a great city,” Helu said. Both Layton — althought she dropped out — and St. John credit UTD to developing skills that could help them in an election. “When I was at UTD, I actually founded the Democratic Socialists at UTD group, and those de-bates with the Republican’s side really got me more involved with politics and made me under-stand what I need to do,” St. John said. For Layton, UTD helped her understand how the American political system worked. “I learned that even though people stress the presidential election, it’s the local elections that really make change, which is why I wanted to get involved in politics,” she said. Nonetheless, Layton, Helu and St. John are all motivated by

similar desires. “My favorite thing is when I talk to regular people and ask them what their concerns are,” he said. “To hear them be happy that someone is looking out for them is the best.” Helu and Layton agree that the people’s happiness is the ultimate goal. “I get excited when people are doing good, children are going to school, and people are opening small businesses. (People) striving to grow and be better makes me happy,” Helu said. Although Layton is no longer running, she said the political process is the most meaningful at the local level. “When you turn 18, people get excited about their right to vote, but they’re always thinking about voting in the presidential election even though real change comes from your local elections,” she said. “Voting locally is where actual change begins.” Local election voting happens the same way as presidential elections. Students can vote in their precincts at the appropriate voting center on Election Day.