UTA In The News — Wednesday, May 18, 2022
Russian athletes in the U.S.
Brian Whitmore, assistant professor at UTA’s McDowell Center for Global Studies and an expert on Russian-American relations, spoke with The Washington Post about Russian athletes in the U.S. speaking out against Vladimir Putin—in particular, Washington Capitals hockey star Alex Ovechkin. “This regime is ruthless, and Putin has shown himself to be very vindictive,” Whitmore said. “All Russian athletes, they’re in a very compromised position if they speak out."
$1.5 million dollar gift
UTA alumnus Edward Perez Jr.'s gift of more than $1.5 million will create two endowed scholarships—one for students in the College of Nursing and Health Innovation and another for students in the College of Science, U.S. Fed News reported. Both scholarships will be named the Edward and Dorothy Perez Scholarship Fund in honor of Perez and his late wife, Dorothy.
Workforce development
Former UTA senior director of corporate relations turned higher education consultant Jim Shea was featured in Inside Higher Ed with an opinion piece about workforce development. “Companies [need] easily accessible degree and certificate programs that would allow their employees the opportunity to deepen their knowledge in their career field of choice,” said Shea. He went on to say the state universities can and should provide this and that it’s “an ethical responsibility that they are failing to meet."
Esports in North Texas
UTA’s varsity esports teams and student-led club are a part of a growing scene of competitive video gaming in North Texas, Local Profile reported. The magazine based out of Collin County said North Texas is experiencing “exciting growth” in the non-traditional sport in terms of business, professional teams and education.