UTA In The News — Monday, February 22, 2021
New social work/nursing home
The University of Texas at Arlington is building a new home to teach and train the next generation of social workers and health care professionals, the Fort Worth Business Press and Targeted News Service reported. UTA leaders broke ground on Feb. 9 on a $76 million facility that will usher in critical advancements in the field of health care, bringing together the University’s celebrated School of Social Work and the College of Nursing and Health Innovation’s Smart Hospital.
Understanding the grid
Wei-Jen Lee, a professor in UT Arlington’s Electrical Engineering Department, talked about the Texas power grid during a campus panel discussion, the National Review and WBAP 820 AM reported. He spoke of a 1990s study that said connecting Texas’ grid to neighboring grids might have made the overall network less resilient because of the state’s generation of power. Lee also is director of UT Arlington’s Energy Systems Research Center.
Using robots
UT Arlington’s College of Nursing and Health Innovation is using telepresence robots to help students learn remotely, KJTL Fox 18 in Wichita Falls, Texas reported. UTA is tripling its fleet of robots thanks to funding from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s Nursing Innovation Grant Program. The telepresence robots are helpful when students and professors need to work remotely but utilize a clinical learning space. The story first appeared on KXAS NBC 5.
Op-ed talks about equity
Hannah Lebovits, UT Arlington assistant professor in the College of Architecture, Planning and Public Affairs, co-wrote an op-ed in PA Times about examining social equity in the COVID vaccine distribution. PA Times is the online magazine for the American Society of Public Administration.
Study shows similarities between migratory bird, humans
Luke Frishkoff, UT Arlington assistant professor of biology, is one of the co-authors on a study published in Ecology Letters, Bioengineering.org reported. It also demonstrates that people have similar climatic preferences to the yellow warbler, a migratory songbird.
Plenty of candidates to consider
Arlington residents have plenty of candidates to consider when deciding mayoral and council seats this spring, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported as filing for municipal office closed recently. Brent Boyea, UT Arlington political science associate professor, said the crowded mayor’s race could be attributed to incumbent Jeff Williams’ popularity, as well as the higher turnover in city hall due to term limits.