January 2008 Newsletter
A message from Dr. Lamas
Dear Mavericks,
Welcome back to another semester at UT Arlington! The fall saw a great deal of exceptional events and activities, but great things are also ahead of us in the coming months.
For instance, the Rihanna concert in Texas Hall sold out at a record pace. The MAC hosted a debut of the basketball teams and mascot, and Student Congress selected Blaze as the name for our new mascot. Two campus traditions, Oozeball and Bed Races, had a record number of participants, and Gabriel Iglesias performed at another sold-out comedic act by EXCEL. Two programs saw record attendance growth: the 3rd annual Parents Weekend welcomed more than 330 visitors, and participation at Leadership Retreat jumped to about 200 students.
The Movin’ Mavs are currently ranked nationally at No. 3 after having finished fifth in the nation last year. The men are 7-2 and undefeated in their region. All-American Aaron Gouge received a tribute from the Arlington City Council before the team defeated Alabama and Arizona.
Several of our departments had great accomplishments to speak of: Phase II and final construction of the MAC is almost done! The grand opening ceremony of the new campus landmark will be March 28. Moreover, the Office for Students with Disabilities was commended for its exceptional increase in HUB vendor purchases.
Inroads of Dallas-Ft. Worth (an intern placement organization in conjunction with Multicultural Affairs) named UT Arlington as Academic Institution of the Year for the fourth consecutive time. A successful Greek Life recruitment – of more than 500 participants – ended with the largest formal Interfraternity Council participation in years. In addition, at the invitation of Student Congress, the mayor and city council of Arlington held an open meeting on campus.
I’m also proud to announce that a faculty colleague, Dr. Victoria Farrar-Myers, was nominated by the division and was given the Outstanding Faculty Award by the Texas Association of College and University Student Personnel Administrators.
This semester is sure to be full of activity. The following are just some of the major events that we’re working on.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Jan. 18-21 Black History Month February Lecture by Spike Lee Feb. 9 Homecoming Feb. 11-16 Women’s History Month March Dancing in the Mirror (Diversity Series) March 4 Spring Fest Concert March 29 Semana de Cultura April 7-11 The Big Event April 12 See the full calendar of events on our Web page.
I look forward to seeing many of you at these events and out on campus throughout the spring semester!
Best Regards,
Dr. Frank Lamas
Sharing the Dream of Dr. King
UTA will once again join with the City of Arlington in hosting a weekend-long celebration of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday. The celebration kicks off with the annual “Sharing the Dream” Banquet on Friday, Jan. 18, in the UC Bluebonnet Ballroom, where Texas Rangers Manager Ron Washington will be the keynote speaker. Multicultural Affairs will co-host Saturday’s Spoken Word Slam Poetry Night at 7:30 p.m. in the Bluebonnet, featuring live jazz, performances by the award-winning Fort Worth National Poetry Slam Team as well as HBO Def Poets.
For other events and ticket information, go to our Web site at www.uta.edu/multicultural. Slam Poetry Tickets are also available in the Multicultural Affairs Office in University Center.
Associate professor receives statewide honor
Dr. Victoria Farrar-Myers, political science associate professor, recently received a statewide award based on her work with Student Affairs.
She was given the Texas Association of College and University Student Personnel Administrators Faculty Member of the Year Award at the Fall 2007 Conference co-hosted by the Southern Association for College Student Affairs and TACUSPA. Dr Farrar-Myers was the second distinguished faculty member to receive this recently established honor.
Dr. Farrar-Myers was nominated by Student Affairs, specifically by the Office of Student Governance and Organizations, because of her outstanding leadership the past five years as faculty advisor for Freshmen Leaders On Campus. Her tireless dedication and contributions to the enrichment of student experiences at UT Arlington is also evidenced in her advising the Graduate Student Senate, service on Student Affairs committees such as the Leadership Consortium (Leadership Center), and as a faculty mentor for the Leadership Commonwealth Freshman Interest Group.
She is the consummate faculty partner for the Division of Student Affairs and clearly deserves this recognition and expression of appreciation for her dedication, contributions and support.
New staff
Bari Crow joined the Office for Students with Disabilities as a part-time receptionist. She comes from the Department of Sociology and she has more than 10 years working as a support staffer at the University.
Demarice Dumerer comes to the Office for Students with Disabilities with her master’s in vocational rehabilitation counseling. She is also a certified rehabilitation counselor with more than 11 years experience.
Jane Minardi is the new advertising business coordinator in Student Publications. She has 30 years bookkeeping experience, mostly in the retail business, and she has called Arlington home for the past 26 years.
Wayne Smith is joining the Office for Students with Disabilities. He has a master’s in rehabilitation services administration with an emphasis in counseling and more than 20 years experience. He is also a licensed professional counselor, certified rehabilitation counselor, certified brain injury specialist and is trained as a sign language interpreter.
Anza Stewart joined Student Publications as the new administrative assistant, replacing Peggy Lofland who will retire Jan. 31. She came here from Student Enrollment Services, where she has worked since October 2006. She moved here at that time from Syracuse, N.Y.
Jennifer Kim
Student Profile: In each issue of the newsletter, a student in one of the departments in Student Affairs will be highlighted to show the contribution students make in the division.
Jennifer Kim has been employed with The Leadership Center as a peer leadership trainer since June and has been a wonderful asset to the center.
As peer leadership trainer, Jennifer teaches the Foundations of Leadership course where she works with students interested in learning more about leadership as well as developing their leadership skills. Jennifer is active in the Leadership Academy and serves on the executive board as our peer leadership advisor. Jennifer assists both the director and the program coordinator of The Leadership Center with many of the daily tasks of running the center as well as helping with the many events and programs the center offers.
Initiative, time management and professionalism are just a few qualities needed to be a successful peer leadership trainer, and Jennifer has proven she has all three and much more. She is an excellent representative of The Leadership Center and has proven herself as a leader and continues to grow personally and professionally in her position.
Jennifer is a chemistry major; she is an extraordinary student who will surely go far in life.
Campus Recreation
Department Profile: In each issue of the newsletter, a different department within Student Affairs will be highlighted to show what it does and how it’s helping build better students.
The Department of Campus Recreation provides a diverse span of recreational and leisure opportunities for students, faculty and staff through six component areas: Informal Recreation, Intramural Sports, QUEST University Wellness, Sport Clubs, Aquatics and Spirit Groups.
Informal Recreation creates opportunities for students, faculty, staff and other eligible members to drop in the Maverick Activities Center and/or the Campus Recreation Fields Complex to independently participate in recreation and wellness activities. Basketball, table tennis, racquetball, weightlifting, volleyball, badminton, softball, football, soccer and much more are available. The MAC (pictured) is a new, state-of-the-art $34.5 million recreation facility where the University community can meet, relax, work out and continue to be engaged in UT Arlington’s campus life.
Intramural Sports provides opportunities for joining in recreational and competitive activities. Divisions for men, women, and co-recreational teams are offered in team activities and in many individual and dual sports. Activities include flag football, bowling, soccer, golf, table tennis, billiards and many more.
QUEST University Wellness is designed to enhance personal wellness and to promote healthy lifestyles. Various programs are offered through QUEST including group exercise classes, fitness testing, personal training, massage therapy and nutrition assessments.
The Sport Clubs program is here to serve individual interests in different sports and recreational activities. Some clubs may represent UTA in intercollegiate competition and/or conduct activities such as practice and instruction. Membership guidelines vary. Current clubs include men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s volleyball, martial arts, roller hockey, lacrosse, football, billiards, triathlon, tennis, Ultimate Frisbee, Aikido, wrestling, rugby, fencing, bass anglers. New clubs are always welcome.
The Aquatics program provides swimming. The indoor and outdoor pools, located in the Physical Education Building at 801 Greek Row, allow for lap and recreational swimming all year long.
The Spirit Groups include the cheerleaders, dance team and mascot. The Spirit Groups show support for athletic teams and lead the University community in spirit. The groups also represent UTA at a collegiate national championship during the year.
Department news
Student Publications
Forty-eight dedicated student journalists came back from vacation a week early to get started on the spring semester of The Shorthorn. They are trained on the facets of their individual jobs and given assignments for the first week by their student editors. All this is done so that the campus can have all the latest news by the time school begins.
The paper will be ably led this semester by editor-in-chief Cassie Smith, who was news editor in the fall. Thanks to her work last semester, staff retention went up and a group of beginning reporters received excellent training and leadership in their jobs. She’s already begun leading the paper by ensuring more staff creates videos for TheShorthorn.com and that copy editors learn page design so that they can be more prepared for the job market.
Also, Colleen Hurtzig will be The Shorthorn’s new retail ad manager this semester. Colleen, a marketing junior who recently interned at KXAS-TV, will lead a staff of around 10 advertising representatives this semester.
Along with the daily paper that runs Tuesday through Friday, The Shorthorn will publish four special sections this semester, including a new Bridal Guide that will run Jan. 30. The guide is the prelude to the first ever Shorthorn Bridal Show, which will take place in the UC Bluebonnet Ballroom Feb. 6. For more information, contact Ad Manager Penny Billheimer at billheimer@uta.edu.
Student Activities
EXCEL Campus Activities is pleased to announce that the spring movie series will be moving back into the Lone Star Auditorium in the MAC. All movies will begin at 8 p.m. Complimentary popcorn will be available while supplies last, and candy and sodas can be purchased. The next showings are:
Jan. 25: Dan in Real Life
Feb. 8: Spike Lee’s Inside Man
Feb. 29-March 1: Enchanted
EXCEL also put together a terrific line-up for this spring’s Friday Night Live concert series held in UC Bowling and Billiards.
Feb. 1: Green River Ordinance
March 7: Battle of the Bands
April 4: The Vanished
All concerts are free to UT Arlington students with MavExpress ID along with all-you-can-play bowling and billiards for $1 and free food. All concerts begin at 8 p.m.
UTA Volunteers and the Leadership Center will present The Hunger Banquet at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 7 in the UC Bluebonnet Ballroom. This presentation will leave you with a greater understanding of global hunger and poverty and the motivation to do something about it. Each guest will receive a ticket assigning them to a high, middle, or low-income level and be served a corresponding meal.
Student Governance & Organizations
As the semester ends and 2008 begins, Student Governance would like to offer congratulations to the newly elected Student Congress senators and UTA Ambassadors, who will begin their terms this Spring. During the fall elections, the 2008 Homecoming Court was also elected:
Men
Travis Boren
Tolu Opeloye
Genaro Rivera
Women
Yvette Luevano
Linda Nguyen
Ashley Thomas
Be sure to attend the Homecoming Coronation ceremony, scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 16 during halftime of the men’s basketball game at 4 p.m. in Texas Hall to learn who was voted UT Arlington’s 2007-2008 Homecoming king and queen.
All students, faculty and staff are encouraged to participate in UT Arlington’s annual Activities Fair Day. This year’s spring event will be held Jan. 23 in the University Center’s Palo Duro Lounge from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sign-ups are located online.
The UTA-HOSTS! Peer Mentoring Program will soon begin its annual recruitment of mentors for Fall 2008. Jennifer Lopez and Molly Alfers would appreciate members of the division encouraging students they work with to become mentors. They will gladly attend meetings of your student organizations to talk about the program. Call 272-2293 to make arrangements.
Under the direction of Student Congress, a portion of the technology fee is now available to non-auxiliary departments for funding technological needs. Student Initiative Fund for Technology applications are available in the Student Congress office (Lower Level, UC) and online (www.uta.edu/sc). Applications will be accepted no later than 5 p.m., Feb. 8.
Office of Student Judicial Affairs
The office is preparing for a busy spring semester based on fall statistics. SJA received more than 320 referrals during the fall, compared with 210 during fall 2006. In addition, the office adjudicated about 290 allegations of student misconduct during fall 2007, compared with 170 in fall 2006. Even with the increase in referrals, the top three violations continue to be alcohol violations involving minors, scholastic dishonesty, and inappropriate or disruptive behavior.
In an effort to respond to each allegation appropriately, Tami Tucker and Andrea Barefield will stay current on the best practices in the field by attending the national conference for the Association of Student Judicial Affairs in Clearwater Beach, Fla., next month. Andrea will also join a few colleagues in their presentation “Journey of Collaboration: Understanding the Relationship between Judicial Affairs and Residence Life.”
SJA is seeking full-time faculty and staff to be university hearing officers. They are not utilized on a regular basis but serve an important role when utilized. It is our goal to keep a diverse group of faculty and staff trained to ensure an impartial hearing officer when needed. If you are interested or would like additional information, please e-mail tami@uta.edu by Jan. 18.
Relationship Violence and Sexual Assault Prevention Program
The RVSP Program seeks to promote education and awareness of sexual assaults, dating violence and stalking on campus through prevention and intervention efforts.
Throughout the spring, the program will host a number of training seminars and educational awareness opportunities related to the diversity of students to better assist students impacted by sexual and/or relationship violence. The training sessions will be held Feb. 28 and March 27.
Mark down on the calendar that April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and the RVSP Program will host a number of activities throughout the month including a clothesline project, movie nights, denim day and other various activities. If you are interested in learning more or volunteering, please call Lisa Andrews at 272-0260 or e-mail landrews@uta.edu.
Apartment and Residence Life
The staff was busy during the fall, providing a variety of programs and events for on-campus residents. The resident assistants in Apartment and Residence Life provided more than 100 programs and events for residents in their communities. The Residence Hall Association made some new and exciting structural changes and had a successful semester as a result. The halls also welcomed a new Trinity House residence director, Joshelin Kantor. We ended the semester with our traditional Late Night Breakfast event, providing a finals study break to more than 500 students each night. We are all looking forward to a great spring semester.
New Maverick Orientation
New Maverick Orientation is in full swing planning for this summer’s entering freshmen. After a thorough selection process, 18 Maverick orientation leaders have been hired. They are an energetic bunch that accurately represents the diversity of students at UT Arlington. They have already started training and even worked at the spring New Maverick Orientation session. The leaders will continue to train weekly in preparation for the summer orientation sessions. Their names can be viewed at http://www.uta.edu/orientation/ol. Please make it a point to congratulate them.
New Maverick Orientation has placed a bid to host the 2009 National Orientation Directors Association Region IV conference in Arlington. We are excited about the possibility of bringing this annual conference to the campus and surrounding communities. The conference typically hosts about 250 people with the majority being undergraduate students who work as orientation leaders on campuses within a five-state region. If the bid is accepted, the Hilton Arlington will host most of the conference with a few sessions held on campus. This conference is a great opportunity for recognition for both our department and our division.
Multicultural Affairs
Multicultural Affairs will kick off a new initiative called Maversity as part of our diversity training efforts. Maversity is a series of interactive workshops open to all students interested in developing leadership skills. Workshops provide students a chance to engage in dialogue on a variety of diversity and cultural issues. Complete details are available at www.uta.edu/multicultural.
UT Arlington will proudly participate this month in the Southwestern Black Student Leadership Conference at Texas A&M University. Through an application process, 27 student leaders were selected to represent their peers and learn more about important issues facing the black community today.
The Multicultural Mavericks will proudly host a series of new and exciting student-initiated activities along with traditional events in honor of Black History Month. Featured events include the BHM Quiz, Trailblazers Luncheon, Homecoming Step Show, N Word Forum, Fat Tuesday, Food for the Soul Day, and An Evening of Distinction. Additional events will also be held in conjunction with BSA/NAACP Week. The month will mark the inception of a new BHM Career Shadowing Program, where students will be mentored by members of the UTA African American Alumni Chapter. For a complete listing of events or to register, please visit our Web site. You can also log on to learn more about joining Multicultural Mavericks.
Leadership Center
The Leadership Center is looking forward to the spring semester with new programs and events being offered to all students interested in leadership. Listed is a sample of programs and events The Leadership Center will be offering this spring:
Feb. 18: Youth Leadership Arlington Conference
April 3: Networking Etiquette Hour with Career Services
April 29: Leadership Recognition Ceremony
Date TBD: Field trip to the Susan G. Komen Headquarters in Dallas
Please contact program coordinator Cathy Souders if you would like more information about The Leadership Center and its programs or events at cvera@uta.edu.
Office for Students with Disabilities
In addition to gearing up for the spring semester, the office is currently preparing for the Workforce Recruitment Program in conjunction with UT Arlington’s Department of Career Services. This program works by finding qualified college students with disabilities through offices like ours and inviting them to interview with the program’s recruiter who will be coming to campus Feb. 14. Students interested in participating should contact Penny Acrey at pacrey@uta.edu.
Campus Recreation
UT Arlington’s new mascot debuted Oct. 12 at the Maverick Madness opening to the basketball season at the MAC. After campus-wide voting, the mascot’s name was revealed Nov. 12 as Blaze. During halftime of the men’s basketball game, Blaze received his No. 07 jersey from President James Spaniolo. Blaze constantly roams the stands entertaining the crowd.
New this semester, Campus Recreation will offer private yoga sessions. Private lessons will be available to one to two participants at a time. Participants will be taught by a registered Yoga Alliance teacher with 12 years experience. Sign up at the services & information desk at the MAC or visit www.uta.edu/campusrec for more details.
Everything is on schedule with the renovation of the MAC’s Phase II. The November and December rain impacted the outdoor court construction, but the building should be ready for the phase’s March grand opening. Included are five fully renovated racquetball courts, a multipurpose room, a 15,000-square-foot gymnasium for indoor soccer and basketball, four outdoor courts for basketball and sand volleyball, and we are investigating the installation of a low-ropes course and a rock-climbing wall. Stay tuned for future updates.
Calendar of events
Please see our full calendar of events Web page.
Select upcoming events: “Sharing the Dream” Banquet Jan. 18 An Evening of Spoken Word Slam Poetry Jan. 19 Movie: Dan in Real Life Jan. 25 Friday Night Live featuring Green River Ordinance Feb. 1 Black History Month Quiz Feb. 4 Movie: Spike Lee’s Inside Man Feb. 8 An Evening with Spike Lee Feb. 9
Welcome to the Division of Student Affairs newsletter for staff members. This newsletter is published periodically throughout the year to keep people informed about what’s happening throughout the division. Enjoy.
Staff: Chris Whitley, Lisa Nagy, John Hillas, Tom Gormley