University Communications » Internal Communications » TrailBlazer » TrailBlazer 06-12-2012

Preserving history: William Blair Jr. followed his career with the Negro Baseball League with one as a Dallas civic and business leader and founder of the Elite News. UT Arlington's Special Collections Library will hold his extensive collection of newspapers, photos, and personal memorabilia.

Special Collections acquires donations from Negro League ballplayer, Dallas publisher

The Special Collections Library has been named the repository of an extensive collection of newspapers, photos, and personal memorabilia from William “Bill” Blair Jr., a former Negro League baseball pitcher, a Dallas civic and business leader, and founder of the Elite News.

Blair, who is 90, signed the deed of gift last week at the Central Library.

Ann Hodges, special collections program coordinator, negotiated acquisition of the William Blair Collection with W. Marvin Dulaney, chair of the Department of History, and Brenda McClurkin, the library’s historical manuscripts archivist. The records hold particular importance for the North Texas region, Hodges says.

“The acquisition of the William Blair Collection greatly enhances Special Collections’ holdings of African-American archival materials,” she says. “This collection will allow us to preserve the story of a living legend in the African-American community for generations to come.”

Dr. Dulaney says the acquisition is another signal that the University intends to be a focal point for African-American studies. He helped plan the new UT Arlington Center for African American Studies, which officially launches this fall.

“We want to be a repository for major African-American items and let people know this is where items of importance should go,” Dulaney says. “The Blair Collection fits into UT Arlington’s mission to promote African-American history, studies, and research about issues of significance to all African Americans.”

Read more about the William Blair Jr. Collection.

Schnavia Smith Hatcher

Director named for African American Studies

UT Arlington has named Schnavia Smith Hatcher, a University of Georgia associate professor of social work, as director of the new Center for African American Studies. Her first day will be July 1.

As director of the center, Dr. Hatcher will work to enhance students, faculty and staff members, and the community's understanding of African Americans’ unique social circumstances and heritage.

The center, a collaboration between the School of Social Work and the College of Liberal Arts, will be the only one of its kind in North Texas and the third in the state.

Read more about Hatcher and the Center for African American Studies.

Going up Workers put finishing touches on lower levels of construction in the College Park District. Watch the progress in action on the construction webcam.

Discount tickets reserved for students for Passion Pit performance Sept. 14

Discounted tickets for 500 students are reserved for the Passion Pit concert at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Sept. 14, at College Park Center.

Tickets go on sale at noon Friday, June 15. UT Arlington students are eligible for a $5 discount on one ticket while quantities last.

Passion Pit has won praise for “Take a Walk,” the first single from its upcoming Gossamer album, available July 24.

Read more about the Passion Pit concert.

Internet/network outage June 22

The Office of Information Technology will replace critical security hardware that will require the campus network to be shut down 8 p.m.-midnight Friday, June 22. The outage will affect all network communications outside of the campus. Efforts will be made to limit the down time to minimize disruption.

Mindful Moments takes break

Mindful Moments takes a break from its weekly programs June 13 and 20. The free Wednesday program returns June 27, 12:15-12:45 p.m., in Room 219 of the Health Services Center.

Nursing programs reaccredited

The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education has awarded a 10-year accreditation to two key College of Nursing degree programs.

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing and Master of Science in Nursing programs were reaccredited, and the Doctorate of Nursing Practice program has received a five-year accreditation from the commission, the longest available because it is the first time the program was evaluated.

Read more about the College of Nursing accreditation.

Sign up for summer bootcamp

Maverick bootcamp is back for the summer. This intense one-hour workout is sure to get your heart racing and your muscles burning.

Each session will meet twice per week for four weeks. A minimum of 20 participants will be required for the class to make. A maximum of 30 participants can register.

Session I is 6:30-7:30 a.m. June 11-July 6. Session II is 5:30-6:30 p.m. June 12-July 5. Both meet on the west lawn of the Maverick Activities Center, with an indoor location of Room 133 in the MAC. The cost is $50 per session.

For more information, see Campus Recreation.

Pools offer cool respite from summer heat

Cool off this summer at the indoor and outdoor swimming pools. Both pools are located at the Physical Education Building.

Current students have free access to the pools. Summer memberships may be purchased by faculty and staff. Guest passes may be purchased and are valid at the outdoor pool only.

For more information, visit uta.edu/aquatics.

Special served up for UT Arlington license plates

A buy-one-get-one-free deal is available for the official UT Arlington license plate. The bargain is offered through June 30. Go to myplates.com/go/uta. For assistance, call 888-7MY-PLATES.

Campus to get advanced weather radar system

A weather radar system to be installed soon atop Carlisle Hall promises faster, more precise information about severe weather and flash flooding that may save lives by giving people more time to take action.

The system is a collaborative venture of the Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere, a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center, and the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

Read more about the weather radar system.

Campus is headquarters for state College Radio Day

UTA Radio will help recruit and spread the word about this year’s College Radio Day after being named the event's state headquarters. College Radio Day is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 2.

College Radio Day began last year with the goal of raising awareness of the many college and high school radio stations that operate around the world by encouraging people who would not normally listen to college radio to do so for one day.

UTA Radio will help recruit stations to add to the growing movement and schedule its own special event. Currently, 16 Texas college stations are part of this year’s event.

Meningitis vaccination documentation required

All new students and those who were not enrolled in the spring term will not be able to register for summer II session through today, Tuesday, June 12, if they have not filed proof of meningitis vaccination. Other registration blackout periods are scheduled July 9-19.

As of January 1, 2012, incoming Texas college students and students returning after an absence of at least one fall or spring semester who are under 30 years old must submit documentation of immunization against bacterial meningitis.

You must have received the vaccine within the past five years and no less than 10 days before the start of your first session at UT Arlington. Students who fail to meet this requirement will be dropped from courses and will not be able to register during the blackout periods listed above.

UT Arlington has contracted with Magnus Health SMR to collect student vaccination records, verify the documents, and maintain the records in compliance with federal privacy laws. You will receive your Magnus Health SMR username and password via your UT Arlington email address.

To be able to register, send vaccination documentation to Magnus at service@magnushealthportal.com or call 1-877-461-6831. The hold will be released approximately one day later.

For summer II term, the vaccine deadline is Saturday, June 30, and the documentation deadline is Monday, July 9.

Thursday, June 14

Rembrandt Lecture Beth Wright, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and professor of art history, lectures on "Rembrandt the Dutch Master" as part of the Rembrandt: An Evolution of Etchings exhibit. 6 p.m., Arlington Museum of Art, 201 W. Main St.

Gallery 76102 Opening reception for the annual juried competition, 897 Square. Features 25 artists who live and/or work in Tarrant County. Free. 6-9 p.m., Gallery 76102, Fort Worth Center.

Outdoor Movie: Mirror, Mirror Enjoy free popcorn or buy soft drinks and snacks at the concession stand. Bring a blanket or chair for the lawn seating. Children under 17 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Free. 9 p.m., west lawn, Maverick Activities Center. EXCEL Campus Activities.

Thursday, June 21

Rembrandt Lecture Nancy Palmeri, associate professor of art and art history, lectures on "What Is an Etching?" as part of the Rembrandt: An Evolution of Etchings exhibit. 6 p.m., Arlington Museum of Art, 201 W. Main St.

Outdoor Movie: 21 Jump Street Enjoy free popcorn or buy soft drinks and snacks at the concession stand. Bring a blanket or chair for the lawn seating. Children under 17 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Free. 9 p.m., west lawn, Maverick Activities Center. EXCEL Campus Activities.

Ongoing

Planetarium Molecularium is a magical, musical adventure into the world of atoms and molecules. 3:30 p.m. Sundays, during June only. Planetarium.

(For an expanded list of events, see the UT Arlington Calendar.)

Catch this: Romain Martin placed second in the decathlon last week at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.

Martin second in NCAA decathlon

Multi-event specialist Romain Martin posted the best NCAA finish by a UT Arlington athlete since 1991, as the junior claimed runner-up honors in the decathlon at last week's NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.

Martin surged from eighth place into second on the final day with a gutsy performance in the final five events. His score of 7,956 points edged the third-place finisher by one point. Boise State's Kurt Felix won the decathlon with 8,062 points.

It was the highest placement by a Maverick athlete at an NCAA meet since McClinton Neal won the 1991 crown in the 400-meter hurdles.

Martin was the lone UT Arlington representative at the meet, and his performance boosted the Mavericks into the 33rd spot in the men’s team scoring, ahead of all Southland Conference competitors.

Beck signs contract with Rangers

Outfielder Preston Beck signed a contract with the Texas Rangers last week after being drafted in the fifth round of Major League Baseball’s first-year player draft.

Beck, who will report to the minor leagues this summer, earned All-Southland Conference honors, leading the league in home runs (14) and runs batted in (71).

Baseball season ends at NCAA Regional

Losses to Dallas Baptist and Baylor eliminated the Maverick baseball team from the NCAA Regional June 1-2 in Waco.

The Mavericks lost 10-0 to Dallas Baptist and led Baylor before falling 11-6 in the double-elimination tournament. It was the first NCAA post-season berth since 2006 for the Mavericks.

The 36-25 record this year was the best since the team went 37-25 in 2003.

Movin' Mavs in 'People' magazine

Movin' Mavs Anthony Pone and Blake McMinn are pictured on page 81 of the current issue of People magazine as they participated in the 2012 Warrior Games.

Pone and Dallas Wheelchair Mavericks star Chuck Allen also are pictured on page 4, along with former Movin' Mav player and Per4Max representative Daniel Fik.

Tennis players net academic honors

Maria Martinez-Romero and Yauheni Yakauleu each earned Student-Athlete of the Year honors for women’s and men’s tennis in the Southland Conference.

Both compiled 3.6 GPAs to receive the academic award. Martinez-Romero has a double major in broadcast communication and Spanish, while Yakauleu is majoring in information systems.

Entries due Wednesday for softball, sand volleyball, tennis

Entries for intramural softball, sand volleyball, and tennis are due by Wednesday, June 13.

Entries for 3-on-3 basketball and racquetball open Wednesday, June 13, and are due by Wednesday, June 27. Entries for the poker tournament open Thursday, June 14, and are due by Thursday, June 28.

See intramural sports for more information.

(For more sports news, go to utamavs.com, uta.edu/movinmavs, or uta.edu/campusrec.)