P1 GET ORIENTED The Daily Texan Orientation edition The Daily TexanÕs Orientation Edition publishes for each of the six sessions this summer Serving the University of Texas at Austin community since 1900 Session 4 Ñ June 27-29, 2011 @thedailytexan facebook.com/dailytexan >> Breaking news, blogs and more: dailytexanonline.com University of Texas at Austin welcome to the WHATÕS inside Page 6 Students actively participate in on-campus clubs and organizations throughout the year. Page 9 Find out just what you need to do to obtain (and pay for!) student tickets to this Longhorn football season. Page 12 Planning on bringing your bike this fall? Read about bicycles on campus, cycling initiatives and how to keep your bike from getting impounded. Page 14 It wonÕt necessarily help you get to class on your first day, but check out the map to start familiarizing yourself with campus. Page 16 Designers in the College of Natural SciencesÕ textiles and apparel program create winning looks for the divisionÕs annual senior fashion show. Lauren Gerson | Daily Texan Staff Students prepare to run the flags across the Cotton Bowl field last October during halftime at the annual Red River Rivalry game against Oklahoma. Longhorn fans celebrate at a tailgate before UTÕs game against Wyoming last September. school spirit abounds Danielle Villasana Daily Texan Staff About this edition The Orientation Edition is an advertising supplement of The Daily Texan. It is intended to be a dual introduction to The Daily Texan, UTÕs student newspaper, and the University itself. This edition is produced by Texas Student MediaÕs special editions office. Texas Student Media is a department in UTÕs Division of Student Affairs. In addition to The Daily Texan and its special editions, it houses these student-produced media entities: Texas Student Television, KVRX 91.7 FM, Texas Travesty and the Cactus Yearbook. For more information on Texas Student Media, visit utexas.edu/tsm/. Derek Stout | Daily Texan Staff Above, UT basketball players Jai Lucas, left, and Jordan Hamilton get ready for a game against Texas A&M on Jan. 20. Left, Texas softball players cheer during the teamÕs 5-1 win over Wisconsin in February. The Longhorns had scored 43 runs in three games at that point in the season. Lauren Gerson | Daily Texan Staff Band Director Robert Carnochan leads the Longhorn Band in front of the Tower at last fallÕs Gone to Texas event. Thomas Allison | Daily Texan Staff column A freshmanÕs guide to UT Dear freshman, I hope this column finds you in good health since over the course of this next year, you will never feel as good as you do now. ThatÕs okay, though; in fact, it is actually a good thing. The goal of freshman year is to feel significantly worse in May than you do right now Ñ it means you lived. With that in mind, IÕve compiled a few ideas that are meant to maximize your time here and en¥sure a wholesome experience. First off, did you get a sweet new TV to hook up to your Xbox 360? Have you set up a Skype account so you can talk to all your friends from high school? Has Starcraft II taken up the last two weeks of your life? Great, now turn it off Ñ all of it. This is the most important rule, the one on which all others is founded upon: Spend as little time in your dorm room as possible. UT is a huge campus, and the only way to avoid being a number is to go out and explore. Meet new people, join a club or hang out at Gregory Gym. It doesnÕt really matter if you actual¥ly do anything in the club or at the gym, just go. Dorm rooms suck, and if you are really that concerned with By Jonathan Rienstra Daily Texan Guest Columnist Originally published Aug. 27, 2010 On the Web Stay informed this summer with daily updates. dailytexanonline.com GUIDE continues on page 2 Photo illustration by Jeff Heimsath | Daily Texan Staff the sweet set-up in your room, you would be better off saving your tu¥ition money, living at home and go¥ing to community college. Secondly, and this is also in the spectrum of meeting new people, do not get a girlfriend or boyfriend two weeks into the first semester. It is tempting, I know. YouÕre away from mom and dad now and the allure of getting a significant other and playing grown up is strong, but do not do it. For starters, you are liv¥ing free now Ñ embrace it. The first semester is all about exploration and meeting new people, two things that happen less frequently when youÕre planning movie night with your boyfriend. The odds are that you will have rushed into that relationship to begin with and it probably wonÕt last the semester, let alone the year. When thatÕs over, youÕll be single and ready to mingle, only nobody will know you because all youÕve done for the last three months is hang out with your now-ex. Have fun with being indepen¥dent for the first time in your life by not settling down too quickly. Find a guy or gal you like? Sweet, good for you, but donÕt rush it. See how things go and, if in January things are still working out, then think about the next step. Or not. YouÕre in college after all, where education is as much about what takes place outside the classroom as it does inside one. Which brings me to my next rule: For the love of God, do not spend all your time in the library. I get it, grades are important. That goes without saying. That starts with go¥ing to class and then studying. But if you spend all your time studying, youÕre missing the point of college. It is about the education of a person and that includes all the stuff that comes with being independent for the first time. If grades are all youÕre concerned about, stay home and take online courses. You are in Aus¥tin, the greatest city in America. Em¥brace it. Go out and explore. Hit up Sixth Street. Go walk around Mount Bonnell. Make friends with some¥body who has a boat and go out on Lake Austin. Just donÕt become a drone, wasting the best four years of your prime in the PCL. My friend has this saying he picked up from teammates at Notre Dame: Whenever someone is drag¥ging or being a real party pooper, he will hit them in the arm and ask, ÒAre you f*@^ing sleeping?!Ó It usu¥ally works to wake up anyone who was f*@^ing sleeping, and thatÕs a good thing. Do not f*@^ing sleep, ever. There is plenty of time to sleep when youÕre old, but now is not that time. You are young Ñ your im¥mune system is strong Ñ so stay up until the sun rises because there will soon be a day, four years from now, when you will be waking up before the sun rises and going to work. So donÕt sleep, not now, when you have so much to learn and so many new people to meet. Oh, but naps are OK. In fact, take frequent catnaps because theyÕre the only thing that will keep you alive. I hope these words find you in good health and may your health deteriorate during the next nine months. Because if you are as healthy in May as you are now, youÕve wast¥ed a year of your youth and that would be a shame. Rienstra is a journalism junior. P2 2 ORIENTATION EDITION June 27-29, 2011 GUIDE Ò The Daily Texan Ò YouÕre in college after all, where education is as much about what takes place outside the classroom as it does inside one. Orientation Editions 2011 continues from PAGE 1 CONTACT US Main Telephone: (512) 471-4591 Editor: Viviana Aldous (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com Managing Editor: Veronica Rosalez (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com News Office: (512) 232-2207 news@dailytexanonline.com Retail Advertising: (512) 471-1865 joanw@mail.utexas.edu Classified Advertising: (512) 471-5244 classifieds@dailytexanonline.com ¥Ñ Jonathan Rienstra, journalism junior The Texan strives to present all information fairly, accurately and completely. If we have made an error, let us know about it. Call (512) 232-2217 or e-mail managingeditor@dailytexanonline.com. Erika Rich | Daily Texan Staff Student Government Liberal Arts representative John Lawler stands with a poster to help newcomers navigate their way around campus during the first week of class last fall semester. UT BRIEFLY UT Athletics reveals name, logo for new ÔLonghorn NetworkÕ ESPN Senior Vice President Burke Magnus and UT athletics directors DeLoss Dodds and Chris Plonsky announced the name and logo for the 24-hour television network at the LonghornsÕ annu¥al spring football game during the weekend. The aptly named Longhorn Net¥work will be dedicated to cover¥ing all Texas athletics events, along with a variety of other content, in¥cluding original series and studio shows, historical programming and academic and cultural happenings. The networkÕs logo incorporates the traditional Longhorn silhou¥ette on a backdrop of orange and black. ÒWe plan on bringing great Longhorn content to fans right from the launch, which will drive demand for LHN from view¥ers, advertisers and affiliates,Ó said Dave Brown, vice president of pro¥gramming for ESPN, including the Longhorn Network. The website LonghornNetwork.com is the broadband companion to the television network and will broadcast live games not offered on TV due to scheduling conflicts. GetLonghornNetwork.com de¥buted, along with the logo, to serve as a place where fans can get infor¥mation on how to get the network in time for its August 2011 launch. ÒWe are the first individual school network and we are look¥ing forward to developing a chan¥nel that the University of Texas and Longhorns everywhere can be proud of,Ó Brown said. Ñ Joe Layton Originally published April 5 COPYRIGHT Copyright 2011 Texas Student Media. All articles, photographs and graphics, both in the print and online editions, are the property of Texas Student Media and may not be reproduced or republished in part or in whole without written permission. RECYCLE! RECYCLE! ¥ P3 W/N 3 orientation edition June 27-29, 2011 Texas loses Playboy ranking as No. 1 party school By William James Daily Texan Staff Originally published April 15 UT has lost its place as PlayboyÕs No. 1 party school to the University of Colorado at Boulder and now ranks 5th. The decision is based off factors such as male-female ratio and proximity to recreational hot spots. UT has a Òwork hard, party hardÓ ethos, but the University no longer holds the Playboy Mag¥azine No. 1 party school title. PlayboyÕs editors, who consid¥ered feedback from readers, stu¥dents, alumni and campus rep¥resentatives, ranked UT fifth. They also looked at factors such as male-female ratios on campus, academics, proximity to recre¥ational hot spots and athletic re¥cords, according to a statement from the magazine. Meagan Heeren, a senior en¥gineering major and Alpha Del¥ta Pi sorority member, said she thinks UTÕs rank dropped mainly because of UTÕs rough football season this past fall. Heeren said her sorority main¥tained frequent social events this year, and she went to more parties this year than she did before. ÒWe party hard, but I guess we didnÕt party hard enough this year for Playboy,Ó Heeren said. April Tieu, a student as¥sociate in Student Activities and Leadership Development, said she did not see a signifi¥cant drop in activities or so¥cial events registered on cam¥pus, and she blamed the lower ranking on difficult economic times. ÒItÕs possible we are not ranked first anymore because of the heavy workload students receive at UT or because of finan¥cial problems our economy is fac¥ing,Ó Tieu said. Absolute TexxasÕs vice presi¥dent, Amanda Jarman, also said that the social organization held the same events it did last year, and she is not sure what made UTÕs ranking drop. PlayboyÕs 2011 top party school went to the University of Colo¥rado at Boulder. Editors noted the school is the Òhome to reefer madness,Ó housing more than 50 medical marijuana dispensaries. Every April, more than half of CUÕs 24,000 undergraduates par¥ticipate in the Ò4/20 smoke-out on school grounds,Ó according to the magazine. Boulder is also a top beer drinking school, pos¥sessing four breweries within its city limits. Second place went to Pennsyl¥vania State University, followed by Arizona State University and University of Western Ontario, the first Canadian university to make PlayboyÕs list. The rankings will be published in PlayboyÕs May edition, which will also include Òthe best (and worst) of everything on campus this springÓ with categories such as ÒBest Naked PartiesÓ Ñ Yale University Ñ ÒCoolest CourseÓ Ñ University of California, Berke¥leyÕs ÒThe Sociology of SeinfeldÓ Ñ and ÒHottest SororityÓ Ñ San Diego StateÕs Alpha Phi. Allen Otto Daily Texan Staff ¥ RECYCLE your copy of The Daily Texan P4 EDIT 4 ORIENTATION EDITION June 27-29, 2011 University gaining widespread social media presence By Allie Kolechta Daily Texan Staff Originally published Jan. 21 Although only about 6,000 peo¥ple follow UT on Twitter, a website recently ranked UT one of the top-10 most influential college Twitter accounts in the U.S. along with uni¥versities like Stanford, Syracuse and Harvard. Klout.com rated UT 10th out of the top 10 most influential univer¥sity Twitter feeds earlier this week. The website rates the influence of Twitter feeds on a scale of one to 100 based on 35 factors including num¥ber of tweets, retweets and how often tweets are used in Twitter conver¥sations. UTÕs Twitter account opened about two and a half years ago, and website administrators have posted about 600 tweets to date, said Nyleva Corley, manager of web and new media in the Office of Public Affairs. ÒWe were interested in tak¥ing advantage of what was a new channel at the time to reach out to students,Ó she said. ÒWe thought they would gravitate to a social media platform like Twitter, and we were interested in experiment¥ing with it.Ó The account currently has 6,627 followers, and that number is steadi¥ly growing, Corley said. The account posts at least one and no more than seven tweets a day. ÒIt really captures the pulse of whatÕs happening on campus,Ó she said. The Stanford Twitter page, which topped the Klout.com list, has more than 23,000 followers. Major news days on campus are the busiest days for UTÕs Twitter feed, said Samantha Stiles, public affairs specialist and a primary author on UTÕs account. On Jan. 19, the Twit¥ter account was bustling with activity because UT announced a $300-mil¥lion contract with ESPN to create a Longhorn TV network, Stiles said. Twitter administrators posted three tweets with details about the new net¥work between noon and 1:30 p.m. ÒWeÕre able to align tradition¥al outlets with social media outlets,Ó she said. ÒThe Twitter account is a great outlet for patting ourselves on the back.Ó The Twitter account is not linked to UTÕs Facebook account, but the two work together to keep UT stu¥dents informed through their so¥cial media outlets, she said. Tweets are released at intervals throughout the day to inform followers without spamming them, she said. ÒA lot of our tweets are from pro¥spective students that are excited about coming to UT,Ó she said. ÒI like to tweet a message back to them and say ÔCongrats, welcome to the Long¥horn family.Õ A pretty popular hash tag is ÔhookÕem.ÕÓ The Student Government Twit¥ter account and the UT account are not officially affiliated, but the SG ac¥count makes an effort to channel the UT account through its Twitter, said SG administrative director Nathan Bunch. UTÕs account and student accounts can become primary sources of in¥formation in times of crisis, like the Sept. 28 incident when Colton Tooley shot off several rounds with his AK-47 in the Perry-Castaneda Library be¥fore taking his own life. Campus and student Twitter accounts helped stu¥dents inform each other of the situ¥ationÕs status and where to take shel¥ter, said Bunch, who runs SGÕs Twitter account. ÒWeÕre a generation that is often criticized for our use of social media, but thatÕs what helped us keep each other safe,Ó he said. ÒWeÕre not used to getting information in tradition¥al ways, and social media is a method that the University can take advantage of to get information out there faster.Ó Students volunteer to clean up Waller Creek More than 100 students gave up sleeping in late on Saturday morn¥ing to pull aluminum cans, plastic bags and discarded clothes out of Waller Creek. The Environmental Health and Safety Office and the Texas Nat¥ural Science Center came togeth¥er for the biannual Waller Creek Cleanup. Waller Creek runs from North Austin, through the city and cam¥pus, into Lady Bird Lake down¥town. Trash from the streets wash¥es down storm drains and into the creek. Carin Peterson, the eventÕs co¥ordinator and training and out¥reach coordinator for the Envi¥ronmental Health and Safety Of¥fice, said the 115 volunteers was an average turnout for the popu¥lar event. ÒLittering is a big problem in Waller Creek,Ó Peterson said. ÒWhat happens is, itÕs not just campus litter that ends up in the creek. Because the creek flows down to Town Lake, we get a lot of trash from beyond campus that comes down.Ó The groups of volunteers fo¥cused on the portion of the creek that starts at Dean Keeton Street and flows down to MLK Boulevard. ÒLittering is a huge problem on campus and our department is [a steward] of the creek and itÕs im¥portant to keep the creek clean,Ó Peterson said. ÒThe creek is a place where students, faculty and staff can enjoy themselves and re¥lax. Because itÕs part of the larger water system in Austin, we want to help keep it clean.Ó Psychology senior Jose Porras has attended the event twice. ÒI feel that in my encounters with volunteer activities around the campus, this has been one of the most rewarding and one of the ones where I feel I make the most direct impact on my cam¥pus,Ó Porras said. He said UT students are not aware about what type of impact littering can have on the environ¥ment. ÒI feel that you can never have enough awareness or help around the campus Ñ especially one of this size and one with so many students,Ó Porras said. According to wallercreek.org, animals like the Great Blue Heron and the Roseate Skimmer dragon¥fly rely on the creek to survive. ÒI care about how UT looks and the environment,Ó said accounting senior Sara Shih, who attended SaturdayÕs event. ÒYou always see trash in Waller Creek. It could be so beautiful if we took care of it.Ó By Lauren Giudice Daily Texan Staff Originally published Nov. 8, 2010 Stephanie Meza | Daily Texan Staff Emily and Ethan Doucette play along Waller Creek after a group of volunteers with the Environmental Health Center cleaned up trash on a Saturday last fall. P5 5 orientation edition June 27-29, 2011 First-year students, transfers may get more time to Q-drop Longhorns spring into service First-year students may gain peace of mind with the option to drop a course after the last class day if the administration accepts a Sen¥ate of College Councils resolution. The University Academic Policies and ProceduresÕ current policy only allows a student to drop courses af¥ter the mid-semester mark for non-academic circumstances, such as se¥vere illness or mental stress follow¥ing a family memberÕs death. The new resolution will permit first-year students, including transfer students, to drop a course up until the final exam. Senate of Col¥lege Coun¥cils president-elect Carisa Ni¥etsche said Facul¥ty Council is cur¥rently discuss¥ing the resolution and will have to approve it before it is implemented. ÒIt could po¥tentially mean that a student could drop a course after a class has already ended, as long as they havenÕt completed the coursework,Ó Nietsche said. She said although the adminis¥tration has already begun discuss¥ing the resolution, implementation will depend on how they prioritize it. The policy may go into effect as soon as the fall semester, she said. The policy prohibits students from using the exemption after they have completed all of the coursework because it is not meant for students whose final exams will determine whether they will fail the class, said resolution co-author Ashley Adamo. Radio-television-film junior Rhea Fluker said she could have benefit¥ed from the policy as a second-se¥mester transfer student. She said she realized too late that she need¥ed to drop one of her courses or she would fail it. ÒAt this point, I couldnÕt handle the course load anymore, but by the time I realized that, there was little I could do to not fail the class. It was the Fri¥day after the Q-drop date,Ó she said. Fluker said she checked with her advisers and met with her profes¥sor multiple times to see if there was any way she could have dropped the class to ÒsalvageÓ her grade point av¥erage, but there were no options. ÒIf I could have dropped it last minute, I defi¥nitely would have benefited because it would have eased the blow to my GPA and stress levels,Ó she said. The College of Natural Sciences, the School of Ar¥chitecture and the School of Nurs¥ing are currently the only schools with the one-time exemption policy in place, and each has their own im¥plementation guidelines. The one-time exemption pol¥icy could be especially beneficial for first- or second-year students in a five-year program such as the one at the School of Architecture, said Jeanne Crawford, assistant dean for the schoolÕs undergraduate programs. ÒThere are those times when something is going on in the stu¥dentÕs life, and they might not be aware of drop policies or they forget them, so we always allow them that one exemption during their time at UT,Ó Crawford said. ÒI would say for those students, it certainly helps when it comes down to dropping or receiving an ÔF.ÕÓ By Ahsika Sanders Daily Texan Staff Originally published April 6 Ò It could potentially mean that a student could drop a course after a class has already ended ... Ò Trent Lesikar | Daily Texan Staff Sophomore Stephen Bourne hands out stickers during AprilÕs Spring Into Giving event on campus. ¥ÑCarisa Nietsche, Senate of College Councils president-elect By Molly Moore Daily Texan Staff Originally published April 14 Students dug in their pockets to help support the Student Emer¥gency Fund at the first-ever Spring into Giving campaign. Students Hooked on Texas, a group devoted to community ser¥vice and fundraising for UT, spon¥sored the full-day event on Greg¥ory Plaza on Wednesday to raise money for the Student Emergency Fund. The cause brought togeth¥er student volunteers from sever¥al University colleges and philan¥thropic societies. The fund helps students stay on track academically in times of cri¥sis, said Christa Lopez, the coordi¥nator of Student Emergency Ser¥vices in the Office of the Dean of Students, which sponsors the fund. ÒWe help students sustain their progress at UT,Ó Lopez said. ÒSometimes, without these funds, the students would have to leave the University, delaying their ed¥ucation a semester or a year. We help them make it to their gradua¥tion on time.Ó The Student Emergency Fund, which started 10 years ago, is available to any UT student fac¥ing a Òtemporary financial hard¥ship resulting from an emergen¥cy situation,Ó according to the Dean of Students website, which is also where students apply for aid. On average, amounts given range from $25-$150 and have previous¥ly helped students pay for hard¥ships, including medical tests and treatments and plane tickets to at¥tend an immediate family mem¥berÕs funeral. Party on the Plaza, the Hearts of Texas, Texas Parents, in addi¥tion to yesterdayÕs event, provide most of the donations to the fund, but anyone can contribute by go¥ing to the Dean of Students web¥site. All of the money raised goes toward students who apply for fi¥nancial help. ÒThereÕs such a direct, imme¥diate benefit with the Emergency Fund, as every dollar raised goes to help someone experiencing a personal crisis,Ó said Julie Lucas, the assistant director of Students Hooked on Texas. For this yearÕs Spring into Giv¥ing campaign, a group of five alumni have pledged to match student donations dollar-for-dol¥lar by each donating up to $5,000, Lucas said. They will renew this pledge annually for the next four years. Lucas said they wonÕt know the total amount raised this year until Friday. Ò[With $3,000-$4,000 current¥ly in the fund] and the 50,000 stu¥dents at UT, we obviously canÕt help everyone,Ó Lopez said. ÒSo for students that may be OK financial¥ly, we encourage them to give back to their friend who needs a lit¥tle help or their classmate who is homeless and living on the street. Even if someone doesnÕt think that giving a dollar will help, that dollar becomes two. And you never know who or how you are helping.Ó Students interested in applying for a grant from the Emergency Fund can find the application on the Office of the Dean of Students website. The application must be accompanied by sufficient docu¥mentation of financial hardship. ÒIn times of crisis, itÕs already so stressful, and to know that there is some backup from the Universi¥ty takes some of that pressure off,Ó said applied learning and develop¥ment freshman Sumayya Pirbhai, who volunteered at the event. P6 UNIV 6 ORIENTATION EDITION June 27-29, 2011 COLUMN At UT, thereÕs an organization to fit any studentÕs interest Our University sits on more than 400 acres of land and is home to more than 50,000 stu¥dents who make up nearly 1,500 active student organizations on campus. Quite understandably, it is very easy to get lost in the crowd. I came to UT in 2008 as a transfer student from the British Virgin Islands, and I must ad¥mit that I was incredibly over¥whelmed by the vastness of the campus and the number of peo¥ple I had to dodge as I navigated my way around. I needed to find a way to connect and somehow feel like part of a community. Af¥ter three years of making posters, going to meetings and planning events, IÕve been involved in 12 organizations, all of which have enhanced my overall experience here. Getting involved on campus is vital to getting to know this Uni¥versity, meeting people and feel¥ing connected. When you attend a college this large, there is real¥ly nothing better than finding a group of people with whom you share common interests. An add¥ed benefit is that it looks great on your resume to have committed to an organization for significant periods during your college ca¥reer. If you are new to the on-cam¥pus involvement scene, I sug¥gest two things to consider when deciding what organizations to join. First, think about what you like to do and then see if thereÕs a group that shares your interest. And at UT, chances are you will find one. For example, if you like community service, you can join the Longhorn Unit of Volunteer¥ing, or if you love animals, you can join Students Against Cruel¥ty to Animals. You are certainly more likely to stick with a group that you actually want to be in. As a point of reference, one of the first groups I joined at UT was the Caribbean Students As¥sociation. They could obvious¥ly provide me with the sense of community that I really needed. Second, I suggest branching out to an organization that you may not have considered join¥ing. It is really easy to spend your four (or more) years at UT stay¥ing in your comfort zone. How¥ever, it would completely de¥feat the purpose of college if you never try anything new. Maybe go to the Malaysian Student As¥sociation and learn something about that culture, or check out some moves at Texas Taekwon¥do. YouÕd be surprised what you can learn to love. If you are still unsure about which organization or group to join, I would also suggest attend¥ing the University-wide Forty Acres Fest event for which I am this yearÕs co-chair. This yearÕs Forty Acres Fest is next week and is one of the larg¥est student-run events on cam¥pus. While the event ends with a huge concert featuring Big Boi, one of the main highlights will be the more than 200 student organizations on site to show¥case what theyÕre all about. The event also features a ton of free entertainment. I would stop by the Main Mall on April 2 to see which group is waiting to wel¥come you. By Destinee Hodge Longhorn Life Staff Originally published March 25 in Longhorn Life, an advertising special edition of The Daily Texan Stephanie Bathurst | Longhorn Life Staff Senior Destinee Hodge served as co-chair of the 2011 Forty Acres Fest. She has been involved in 12 organizations as a Longhorn. For more information about which student group is best for you, visit the Office of the Dean of Students while youÕre on campus, at the Student Services Building room 4.104, or online, at deanofstudents.utexas.edu/sald/studentorgs/index.php. Longhorns get involved Shiyam Galyon | Daily Texan Staff Students line up in preparation for the start of a flag football game at the Texas Capitol last fall. One of the students organizes flag football games at the Capitol each night before the Texas Longhorns play at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Flag football draws a diverse group of students, many of whom do not know each other prior to each game. Ashley Shew talks to sociology senior Emily McDuff at the Volunteer Fair this spring about the opportunities offered by the Council on At-Risk Youth. Ryan Edwards Daily Texan Staff Mylan Torres | Daily Texan Staff Biology senior Mitzi Aguilar stirs liquid nitrogen into a bowl containing milk and a powder mix to create ice cream at the Natural Sciences WeekÕs Star Party on the Rooftop Observatory of Robert Lee Moore Hall last September. Plan II junior Courtney Lee, secretary general for Central Texas Model U.N., encourages her peers to donate food and money for World Food Day last October. Shannon Kintner | Daily Texan file photo Former quidditch club member Cate Boyle scores on teammate Jacob Adlis during a spring 2010 scrimmage. The club finished second in its first-ever regional championship in April 2010. Jamaal Felix Daily Texan Staff P7 St/LCL 7 orientation edition June 27-29, 2011 Discouraged fans put hope in the hex at annual rally By Allie Kolechta Daily Texan Staff Originally published Nov. 23, 2010 The same red candle that has il¥luminated the Main Mall during hex rallies for more than 20 years lit the night for about 2,000 stu¥dents at this yearÕs event on Mon¥day. The Texas Exes student chap¥ter hosted the annual Hex Rally preceding the Texas A&M game. This is the 25th anniversary of the rally, and students gathered to light red candles to hex the Ag¥gies, said finance and advertising senior Valerie Nguyen, president of the Texas Exes student chapter. ÒSeeing 2,000 people with red candles is a really powerful im¥age,Ó she said. ÒEveryone is real¥ly crazy about Texas football, and itÕs really cool to see that manifest itself.Ó The rally started when UT stu¥dents, frustrated by an 18-year losing streak against A&M, ap¥proached a local fortune teller in 1941 and asked her what the out¥come of their game against the Aggies would be, Nguyen said. The fortune teller told them light¥ing red candles and singing the Eyes of Texas three times would ensure a Longhorn victory Ñ and UT won that game, she said. After the Õ60s, students discon¥tinued the rallies as a form of re¥bellion against school tradition. The then-Spirit and Traditions Board established an official UT Hex Rally, which has been held on the Main Mall ever since, said Jim Nicar, director of campus re¥lations for the Texas Exes. ÒThe Hex Rally has created a sense of community,Ó said Ni¥car, who has been to all 25 ral¥lies. ÒNot only do you get to show your Longhorn spirit, you get to be a part of something on this campus.Ó This season, the Longhorns have won five out of 11 games. This discouraging season should only spur Longhorn fans to get more excited for the Hex Rally, said Taylor Nyberg, student re¥lations coordinator for the Texas Exes student chapter. ÒIf anything, it should just bol¥ster the spirit,Ó she said. ÒThis is to put a hex on the Aggies and support our Longhorn football team.Ó The event is open to the com¥munity as well as students, she said, and they often see high school students, alumni and resi¥dents of the Austin area who come out to support the Longhorn foot¥ball team. ÒItÕs put on by students, but itÕs for the whole community,Ó Ny¥berg said. ÒItÕs a really cool event, because no matter who you are, you can come and show your Longhorn spirit.Ó Alpha Phi Alpha, the Longhorn Band, Redefined Dance Compa¥ny and others performed Mon¥day night. After watching the UT-A&M football game every year, becom¥ing a part of the tradition is an¥other reason to be excited to be a Longhorn, said journalism fresh¥man Carly Ortel. ÒIÕve been watching this game for years,Ó she said. ÒTo finally be a part of everything is really ex¥citing.Ó Andrew Torrey | Daily Texan Staff English freshman Nicole San Martin lights a candle as part of the Hex Rally on the Main Mall in the fall. 2010 marked the 25th anniversary of the rally since it was revived in 1986. Flawn center continues 4th floor upgrades Campus renovations, such as the one at the Flawn Academic Center, have restricted walkways students frequently use. Construction has left campus walkways and entire floors of the Flawn Academic Center blocked off since summer 2009, and offi¥cials say the disruptions will not end until next July. A construction crew is in the process of upgrading fire alarm and communication systems, as well as renovating the third and fourth floors to make room for new office space. Between 25 and 40 construc¥tion workers are on site five days a week and at night to minimize noise and disruptions, said Bob Rawski, regional program man¥ager for the UT System. He said there were some fire and safety improvements that they needed to make to bring the building up to code. ÒThe fire sprinklers, for in¥stance, really dramatically im¥prove the building for the occu¥pants,Ó he said. ÒThat was one of the drivers of the project and the other was to renovate those floors to make them more effi¥cient for use.Ó According to the UniversityÕs construction advisory website, the project was initially slotted for completion in winter 2011. The FAC is one of sever¥al buildings undergoing con¥struction as part of an overall plan to update and improve the UT campus. Rawski said much of the reno¥vated space will be used to house several new vice presidentsÕ offices. Patricia Clubb, vice president for University Operations, said factors such as school needs, fac¥ulty recruitment and student population are all taken into ac¥count to determine the timing of construction. ÒBig capital projects take years to materialize,Ó she said. ÒEvery¥thing gets factored in so thereÕs no one thing that will put one project in front of another one.Ó Clubb said small projects all over campus, such as the Tower, the communication, liberal arts and Hackerman buildings and the stadium are all individually funded. ÒEvery project has a funding profile, and there can be many different sources of funding that go into one project and each of them is built,Ó Clubb said. The $22 million total cost for the FAC renovations came from three different sources, said Dan¥iel Tovar, project manager for the FAC construction site. He said $20 million of the projectÕs fund¥ing came from interest on local funds and money distributed to the University but not designat¥ed for educational use. The third floor of the FAC re¥cently reopened to the public, but construction continues with ren¥ovation on the fourth floor. By Ahsika Sanders Daily Texan Staff Originally published Dec. 1, 2010 Jeff Heimsath Daily Texan Staff P8 NEWS visit dailytexanonline.com for up-to-date summer news P9 SPTS 9 orientation edition June 27-29, 2011 How to get tickets Andrew Torrey | Daily Texan Staff The Longhorn football team emerges onto the field at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium for the 2010 seasonÕs game against Baylor. The first step in getting access to those all-important UT games is to pur¥chase a Longhorn All-Sports Package when you first register for classes. If you do not purchase it then, you may buy one at the stadiumÕs box office. This sports package costs $80 for the school year and will get you into all games as long as there is still space available (with the exception of football and basketball). Football A student-reserved-seat season ticket costs $60 in addition to the price of the LASP. There are only a limited number of season tickets available to students. Student-reserved-seat season tickets are located in the east side lower deck, east side upper deck and north end zone of the stadium. Ticket orders are filled according to the priority system. One guest season ticket may be purchased at full price adjacent to the student season ticket. Tickets may be purchased at TexasBoxOffice.com. Students with an LASP who do not have tickets can get into home games via the football ticket draw. The draw is a per-game distribution of tickets at the Athletics Ticket Office for football games. As long as seats are available, each LASP holder may draw a ticket upon presentation of a valid LASP ID. No guest tickets will be available for purchase unless tick¥ets remain after the designated draw period. Oklahoma and Away Games: Only those students who purchase both the LASP and the student season ticket are eligible to receive tickets for the OU game and other high demand away games, initally. LASP stu¥dent season ticket holders have the first opportunity to purchase Tex¥as-OU tickets at full price through the student season ticket order pro¥cess. For other high demand away games LASP holders who do not pur¥chase the student season ticket will only be eligible to purchase tickets to these games if tickets remain after student season ticket holder requests are processed. Basketball Students may purchase an O-Zone pass for basketball games that gives them guaranteed seats. This can be purchased on top of an LASP. Students with an LASP can get into the games for free as long as there are spots avail¥able. Some big games may have a draw ahead of time. Baseball ¥ Softball ¥ Volleyball ¥ Soccer ¥ Tennis As long as seats are available, these sports are free for students who have an LASP and who present a valid UT ID upon admittance. Cross Country ¥ Golf ¥ Rowing ¥ Swimming & Diving ¥ Track & Field Regular season events are free and open to the public. Looking for more? Visit the Student Orange BloodsÕ fan site for additional information about tickets, promotions and scheduling at texassports.com/sports/sobs/tex-sobs-body.html. P10 SPTS 10 ORIENTATION EDITION June 27-29, 2011 Students get back on saddle with TexasÕ equestrian club For neurobiology junior Ethan Galis, the prospect of giving up his passion for riding horses upon attending college was dif¥ficult to imagine. Instead, Galis found a way to fill that void: the University of Texas polo club. ÒI was really missing that horseback riding aspect in my life,Ó said Galis, who is also the clubÕs vice president. ÒStarting to play polo opened so many op¥portunities. I wouldnÕt be here today without polo.Ó The state of Texas has always had a love affair with American sports. Baseball, basketball and football stars are born and bred every day in the Lone Star State. A game of prestige, Europe¥ans and Latin Americans usual¥ly make up the competitive polo circuit. But UT polo team mem¥bers are out to prove otherwise. ÒItÕs hard to start playing and not get addicted to the sport,Ó Galis said. ÒAfter picking up that mallet for the first time and hit¥ting it, the rush I felt ... It was awesome.Ó The sport of kings, polo is a worldwide phenomenon, com¥monly associated with exclusivi¥ty, extravagance and privilege. The sport is played outdoors with teams made up of four players. Home to the biggest field in organized sports, a polo field is 300 yards long and 160 yards wide. Matches usually last around two and a half hours, di¥vided into six periods known as chukkers. ÒThe game is extremely popu¥lar on the East Coast,Ó Galis said. ÒA lot of those kids are kind of being born with a mallet in their hand. They get into the competi¥tion and just kill.Ó Similar to golf, players are re¥quired to have a handicap indi¥cating their value to the team. A two-goal handicap or high¥er usually indicates professional status; a 10 handicap is perfect. Founded in 1997, what makes the UT polo club unique is that many of its members have never picked up a mallet before enter¥ing college. Daunting as it may seem, Galis assured that alter¥nating between keeping balance and swinging a mallet is an ex¥perience everyone is bound to get over. ÒIÕd say 95 percent of the game is balance on a horse,Ó he said. ÒIf you can ride a horse, in majori¥ty, you can play polo. The smarts will eventually come.Ó For American polo play¥ers, the collegiate level tends to serve as the stepping stone be¥tween amateur and professional play. For junior polo club social chair Morgan Tennant, the team means everything. ÒItÕs been a huge part of my college experience,Ó Tennant said. ÒThese people are like fam¥ily, and the horses are like our children.Ó The team features female and male junior varsity and varsity squads that compete against oth¥er clubs and collegiate teams. Tex¥as TechÕs team won regionals this spring, while Texas A&MÕs squad won the national title last year. But because the sport is so under the radar in the United States, getting the clubÕs name known across a campus of thou¥sands of people has been tough. ÒItÕs just hard because itÕs so small to get the exposure out there,Ó Tennant said. ÒWe wel¥come anyone, horse experience or not.Ó Polo is played year-round with the most competitive season coming in spring. In what will be the squadÕs biggest match of the season, the polo club is hosting its spring benefit Saturday to in¥clude two matches, the tradition¥al divot stomp during halftime and a floppy hat contest. In conjunction with the Ken¥tucky Derby, Tennant hopes it will draw anyone who has even a remote interest in equestrianism or the game of polo. ÒThe match is going to be real¥ly upscale, like most polo match¥es,Ó Tennant said. ÒBut contrary to thought, itÕs also laid-back and fun.Ó The combination of competi¥tion and social gatherings leaves Galis and Tennant encourag¥ing anyone to get involved. Ga¥lis, who hasnÕt ruled out a profes¥sional career after college, lives and plays by this short phrase: ÒA polo handicap is your ticket around the world.Ó By Alexandra Carreno Daily Texan Staff Originally published May 6 Photos by Ryan Edwards | Daily Texan Staff Top left, Sophomore Morgan Tennant rides Tino in a training run at the polo arena in Kyle, Texas. Preparing to run a horse involves wrapping their shanks to warm the poorly insulated muscles, tendons and ligaments. Above, Tennant ties up the horse team for their feeding. On practice days, horses arenÕt run on full stomachs to avoid potentially life threatening colic. ¥ RECYCLE HAVE A GREAT ORIENTATION! Try out The Daily Texan will hire in all departments this fall. Come sign up in the basement of HSM. Questions? E-mail us at managingeditor@dailytexanonline.com your copy of The Daily Texan P11 SPTS 11 orientation edition June 27-29, 2011 Annual fair showcases initiatives for greener campus Students and staff showed off their green expertise at the second annual Sustainability Fair on Thursday. About 12 organizations, includ¥ing the Department of Housing and Food Service, showcased different programs to demonstrate how UT is moving forward with environmental initiatives. DHFS presented its commitment to environmentally friendly cleaning, which includes the use of Green Seal certification cleaning chemicals and microfiber mops and rags, which are more absorbent. The greener cleaning practices have reduced water use by 80 percent and required less frequent mop and rag replacement, said DHFS environ¥mental specialist Meagan Jones said. DHFS also presented its new sus¥tainable food program, which has provided organic food for the Kin¥solving Dining Center on Saturday nights since June 2010. The depart¥ment also maintains three organ¥ic food plots at the UT Communi¥ty Garden, and representatives said they hope to begin an organic food plot at Jester Center. ÒWeÕre just excited about getting the program started,Ó said Scott Mey¥er, DHFS associate director. ÒPart of our mission is to educate the stu¥dents about the project, and thatÕs what weÕre excited about.Ó While DHFS described its contri¥bution to student living, the Office of Environmental Health and Safe¥ty presented its plan to promote re¥sponsible laboratory maintenance. They are promoting safer chem¥ical disposal through a program called Green Laboratory Practices, said Carin Peterson, office training and outreach coordinator. The pro¥gram is trying to get 30 campus labs involved by May 6, she said. ÒWeÕre trying to reduce our haz¥ardous chemical waste stream,Ó Pe¥terson said. ÒThe labs involved are helping us out. It is our main initia¥tive at the moment.Ó Students groups, such as the En¥gineers for a Sustainable World, put their own spin on sustainability at the fair. The organization showcased its recycling initiatives and a pro¥gram that would allow the University to reuse rainwater, such as watering the UT Community Garden. While UT already has a recycling program, the campus is not recycling enough glass, said Daniel Huang, a chemical engineering freshman who represents the group in the Student Engineering Council. ÒYou see paper, you see plastic, you see compost, but you donÕt see glass,Ó Huang said. Electrical engineering sophomore Richard Edwards, the councilÕs vice president of membership, said sus¥tainability is an important facet of all academic disciplines. ÒSustainability is not just an engi¥neering thing but a universal thing,Ó Edwards said. ÒSustainability would be encompassed in all majors be¥cause it applies to everybody.Ó By Jake Hong Daily Texan Staff Originally published March 4 Lizzie Chen | Daily Texan Staff President of Engineers for a Sustainable World Zachary Willhoit discusses the importance of solar power at the 2011 Sustainability Fair. visit dailytexanonline.com For WEB Exclusive STORIES VIDEOS PHOTO GALLERIES & MORE @dailytexanonline.com Pick up The Daily TexanÕs Welcome Back Edition on stands when you return to campus, Aug. 22. [Fall classes begin Wednesday, Aug. 24.] P12 CLASS 12 ORIENTATION EDITION June 27-29, 2011 Safety forums, UT event raise awareness for Bike Month By William James Daily Texan Staff Originally published May 4 Austin drivers could see some relief from usually hectic traffic throughout May as citizens par¥ticipate in National Bike Month. To kick off the month, UT Parking and Transportations Services is hosting Bike to UT Day today, where breakfast will be available at five guard kiosks to encourage participants. To ensure a smooth month, the Center for Sustainable De¥velopment held a forum about bicycling on campus Tuesday af¥ternoon, where six panelists dis¥cussed how education, safety and infrastructure improvements can make bicycling on campus a bet¥ter experience for everyone. An audience of 30 spoke about problems bicycle riders face when riding on campus. Alan Bush, a graduate student in community and regional planning, said three separate groups have to work to¥gether to make UTÕs transporta¥tion systems run smoothly: bicy¥clists, pedestrians and automo¥bile drivers. ÒA solution can be found [to ease transit problems],Ó he said. ÒIf we create a study to find out how much of the problem deals with lack of driversÕ education or a poor infrastructure, then we can focus on those issues and see if new laws should be made for bikers.Ó Many of the panelists, includ¥ing Eileen Schaubert, a Mellow JohnnyÕs community outreach coordinator, said UT should of¥fer cycling education during freshman orientation to famil¥iarize students with accessible routes and following the road rules on campus. ÒThe UT administration does not take cycling serious¥ly enough because it is not fixed in the campusÕs infrastructure,Ó Schaubert said. Tom Wald, executive director of the League of Bicycling Vot¥ers, said the University needs to focus more attention on bicy¥clists to ensure their safety by in¥creasing cycling education. ÒBicycling is not considered a very accepted, core part of how the administration considers students getting to school,Ó Wald said. ÒBetween students and the University, millions of dollars could be saved if people rode their bikes instead of driving.Ó Some universities around the country, including the Univer¥sity of California, Irvine, start¥ed using bike-sharing systems, a program similar to car2go, to decrease automobile transpor¥tation City Council member Chris Riley said the city is like¥ly to get a bike-sharing system within the next couple of years, which would take more cars off the streets. Desiree French, a panelist and Orange Bike Project coordinator, said once the city gets the bike-sharing system, UT might also consider such a system. French said students should write a pro¥posal to the UT Green Fund committee to start a bike-shar¥ing program. The Green Fund allots money to members of the University for environmental and sustainability projects. bikes on campus Bringing your bicycle with you this fall? There are a few things you should know about having your bike on campus: ¥ Registering it: UTÕs Parking and Transportation Services department now requires that everyone with bikes on campus register them. So, put that on your to-do list. ¥ The Orange Bike Project: A prod¥uct of the Campus Environmental Center, the program has access to used bikes, tools and also provides a space to work on bikes. Students can even Òcheck outÓ bicycles for the semester. ¥ The Kickstand: Located on Speed¥way Plaza, this is the UniversityÕs new bike hub, your one-stop shop for helmets, locks and other bicy¥cle gear. Shannon Kintner | Daily Texan Staff A cyclist zooms past a stop sign while riding his bike through campus. The University held a forum Tuesday afternoon to discuss how to make the campus a safer place for cyclists, including ideas for bike-sharing and outreach programs. For more information about biking to, from and on campus, visit utexas.edu/parking/transportation/biking/. University begins partnership with law school in Mexico City UT law students can earn a dual law degree from the UT School of Law and from the Instituto Tecnol—gico Aut—no¥mo de MŽxico in Mexico City through a new program currently accepting ap¥plications. Law school Dean Lawrence Sager and Jorge Cerdio, dean of the Department of Law at the Institute, spent several years developing the program, which aims to increase the number of lawyers who are able to practice in both countries. ÒIn a globalized world, there are more and more legal transactions and interactions,Ó said UT Law Professor Ar¥iel Dulitzky. ÒEstablishing these types of programs is an idea to prepare first-rate lawyers, both in Mexican law and U.S. law.Ó The deans also decided to create the program as a way to strengthen ties be¥tween Texas and Mexico. ÒWe donÕt only share the border, but we share a common heritage, histo¥ry, traditions,Ó Dulitzky said. ÒThere are a lot of economic interactions between Texas and Mexico, and many Texan law firms have partners or offices in Mexico, so it was very easy for us to make that connection.Ó The program will allow participating students to earn their Juris Doctor de¥gree from UT and the Mexican equiva¥lent, a Licenciatura en Derecho, from the Institute. Once students receive both de¥grees, they will be eligible to sit for the bar exam in the U.S. and apply for a li¥cense to practice law in Mexico. It is the first program that links a top-tier U.S. law school to one in a Latin American country. ÒI really think itÕs a terrific opportuni¥ty for students in the program, as well as for citizens in the country, because weÕll be able to achieve greater levels of collab¥oration,Ó said Assistant Law School Dean Kirston Fortune. Students can apply for the program now, and each school will begin offering coursework for students from the other in fall 2012. Students who begin at UT must complete two years at UT and four semesters at the Institute, while students who begin at the Institute must complete four years at the Institute and two years at UT. Second-year law student Aparna Tal¥luri said although she will not apply to the program, it is a great opportunity for students to learn more about other cul¥tures and thereby further improve their knowledge of the law. ÒBecause business is crossing national borders, our legal system has to, as well,Ó she said ÒIf youÕre dealing with policies abroad, you need to be well aware of their policies and law[s] in order to be the best lawyer you can be for your client.Ó By Shamoyita DasGupta Daily Texan Staff Originally published March 9 P13 COMICS 13 orientation edition June 27-29, 2011 Meet Austin, your new city New Student Activity Center opens doors The product of years of planning will debut today with the opening of the Student Activity Center. The $68 million building fea¥tures a black box theater, auditori¥um, study lounges, meeting rooms, dance halls and new food options, including a Taco Cabana and Zen. Former Student Government Vice President Marcus Cisneros, who was in office in 2006-07 when students passed a referendum to add the $65-per-semester tuition increase that will pay for the center, said it was important that the cen¥ter reflect what students wanted. ÒWe asked ÔWhat do you want, what do you like, and what do you need?Õ And we tried to put that to¥gether to make the best building possible,Ó said Cisneros, who was on the planning committee. The students involved in the planning process worked with the Campus Environmental Cen¥ter and the Students with Dis¥abilities Agency to make sure the building was both environmental¥ly sound and easily accessible to all students. ÒWe worked with students with disabilities to make sure that every space was accessible by wheelchair and accommodating to students with different needs,Ó Cisneros said. ÒWe also wanted our building to have elements of sustainability and efficient energy usage.Ó The center is held to high envi¥ronmental standards with flower gardens and the cisterns to collect water and reduce the buildingÕs wasted resources. The University is seeking a silver LEED certifica¥tion for the building, which would indicate high levels of efficiency and sustainability, said UT sustain¥ability director Jim Walker. Cisneros said perhaps the most important element of the center was making it activity-driven with expanded facilities. ÒStudents who didnÕt have a space to conduct certain dance practices, for example, now have a space to do that,Ó he said. SAC director Crystal King said she hopes students embrace the center as a special place and make it their own. Student Government President Scott Parks said the centerÕs many new features and convenient loca¥tion will soon make it a new high traffic area. SG offices are moving from the Student Services Building to the SAC this month. ÒI think that the Student Activi¥ty Center will be a really nice com¥pliment to the Union that we al¥ready have,Ó he said. ÒIt will be a more vibrant, flexible space for all different kinds of student groups to meet and hang out.Ó In addition to SG, the center is now home to the Office of the Dean of Students, the Multicultural Information Center and the Gen¥der and Sexuality Center, among other organizationsÕ offices. By Ahsika Sanders Daily Texan Staff Originally published Jan. 18 Shannon Kintner | Daily Texan Staff The state Capitol Building sits in downtown Austin. With more than 50,000 students at UT, the city is home to hundreds of thousands of young people. ItÕs also named the ÒLive Music Capital of the World.Ó Census data reveal increased diversity, young people in Texas Capitol By Donovan Sanders Daily Texan Staff Originally published April 15 Austin is growing more diverse, and more students are migrating to the University area, said a city demographer. Ryan Robinson, a city demog¥rapher, analyzed the 2010 census figures and presented his findings to a group of about 60 people on campus Thursday. AustinÕs total population is now more than 790,000, according to the census. Austin is the 14th-largest city in the country, one spot up from where it ranked in 2000. International immigration played a major part in the cityÕs population boom. The cityÕs white population is aging and re¥maining stagnant, while the His¥panic population is surging. Fif¥ty-seven percent of the cityÕs pop¥ulation is now Hispanic, and one in two children born in Austin is Hispanic. ÒEven when jobs were falling, international immigration contin¥ued to grow,Ó Robinson said. ÒJob creation, quality of life relative to competing cities and an extreme sense of [home] are some other things that might have sparked a population growth.Ó Robinson said he also found an increase in people living around the University because students moved from the East Riverside area to the West Campus area. ÒIf UT wasnÕt doing as well as it was today, the population in West Campus wouldnÕt be as prominent as it is today,Ó Robinson said. The black population in the main parts of the city went down. Robinson said he noticed an in¥crease in the black population in Austin suburbs, which may sug¥gest that an increased number of black residents are moving from the city to surrounding areas. The census also showed how different racial groups inhabit¥ed different parts of Austin and which parts were the wealthiest. Slowly, East Austin is losing its previously black majority, while West Austin remains predomi¥nantly white, and North Austin is seeing a more concentrated group of Hispanics. ÒI find this information very enlightening with regard to how the city is becoming more divid¥ed and look forward to seeing how the city will respond to the results,Ó said Drew Blair, a retired economics professor from St. Ed¥wards University. UT President William Powers Jr. and other Longhorns cut the ribbon outside the Student Activity Center for its grand opening in February. Jono Foley Daily Texan Staff P14 ENT 14 ORIENTATION EDITION June 27-29, 2011 Map by Creative Services office | Texas Student Media Check out whatÕs going on with TEXAS STUDENT MEDIA The Daily Texan: dailytexanonline.com Texas Student Television: texasstudenttv.com KVRX 91.7 FM: kvrx.org Cactus Yearbook: cactusyearbook.com Texas Travesty: texastravesty.com RECYCLE! RECYCLE! RECYCLE! RECYCLE! RECYCLE! P15 ENT 15 orientation edition June 27-29, 2011 Amenities, perks and services rolled into your student fees Ryan Propes | Daily Texan Staff Allen Otto | Daily Texan Staff A student takes advantage of the free climbing wall in Gregory Gymnasium as a part of RecSportsÕ celebration of Love Your Body Week. Gregory offered free classes and events for National Recreational Sports & Fitness Day. Andrew Torrey | Daily Texan Staff Top, A UT community member reads in the pool at the Aquatic Complex at Gregory Gym, which is free to use with a UT ID. Above, A curator explains a new exhibit, ÒLine,Ó this spring at the Blanton Museum of Art. The Blanton is one of four on-campus museums free to students, faculty and staff. Left, The Forty Acres UT shuttle buses take riders around the perimeter of campus for free with an ID. ID holders can also ride city buses for free. RecSports celebrates Ôfitness weekÕ with free events, programs Gregory Gym and the recreational sports center offered free classes Wednesday to celebrate National Recreational Sports & Fitness Day. Sarah Jordan, who oversees group ex¥ercise programs at Gregory Gym, said the dayÕs events were part of Love Your Body Week. ÒRecSports partners with UT Health Ser¥vices this week to promote positive body image and fun fitness,Ó Jordan said. In addition to free TeXercise and cycling classes all day long, there were 15-minute class demonstrations ranging from Zumba dance to fencing. The gym also offered free rock climb¥ing, which staff members said had a great turnout. Corporate communications senior Alex Rios came to the rock wall as part of the national fitness day. ÒIÕve never climbed before, and I saw a sign that said there was free climbing from 2 to 5 p.m. for national fitness day so I want¥ed to check it out, try it,Ó he said. Ñ Erika Rich Originally published Feb. 24 Daily Texan file photo STudent perks ¥ Gregory Gym: In addition to the weight and cardio areas in the gym, Gregory boasts exercise classes, a rock climbing wall, racquetball and basketball courts, an indoor track, locker rooms and more. The gym also features a state-of-the-art outdoor aquatic center with pools and a hot tub. ¥ Museums and centers: Take advantage of the four museums and five centers, all of which hold some of the most sought-after collections in the world. ¥ Cap Metro and UT shuttle buses: With your UT ID, you can ride all the buses in the city for free. Addi¥tionally, you can ride any of Capital MetroÕs six trains for free with your ID. ¥ University Health Services and the Counseling and Mental Health Center: UHS offers low-cost check-ups, appointments and prescriptions, with a pharmacy on site. The CMHC provides free counsel¥ing and stress-relieving classes. ¥ Libraries: With 15 libraries on campus, there is no need to get a public library card or membership to a video store. Rent movies and check out books right here for free. ¥ Legal Services for Students: UT provides legal consultation and situation-dependent representation to students for free or at low cost. P16 ENT 16 ORIENTATION EDITION June 27-29, 2011 Creme de la Couture By William James & Julie Rene Tran Daily Texan Staff | Originally published April 22 In an industry where designs are pre¥dominately geared towards women, two senior designers broke the mold with outstanding menswear collections at the 2011 textiles and apparel senior fashion show, ÒInnovation,Ó on Thursday night at the Frank Erwin Center. Despite having no for¥mal training in menswear from College of Natural Sciences, designers Colton Gerard and Christopher Pham swept the awards with their well-made and sophisticatedly styled collections. A packed Erwin Center watched and ap¥plauded as 23 textiles and apparel senior fashion designers debuted more than 100 looks. Following the runway show, super¥lative awards were distributed to deserving students by panelists which included fash¥ion designers, writers, boutique owners and experts alike. The Best Collection award went to Gerard. The collection, titled ÒHeritage,Ó was well re¥ceived by the audience, especially by Stephen MacMillian Moser, fashion icon and Austin Chronicle columnist, who gave Gerard a standing ovation. His looks featured rugged, detailed jackets which incorporated many natural elements including rabbit fur, dis¥tressed leather and toggles made from deer antlers. Honorable mention for Best Collec¥tion was awarded to Pham. Though his all-American adaptation of aristocratic blue bloods was not as original, PhamÕs sophis¥tication and taste shone through the gar¥ments. The pieces also resonate with the personality of Ralph Lauren, for whom Pham interned last summer, Among other sponsors, the Universi¥ty Co-op sponsored the event and is sell¥ing three designersÕ garments in their store. Pham, Elise Romero and Megan Mehl won the Most Marketable and Creative award, and their dresses will be sold in the Co-op starting today. Awards were also present¥ed to Sophia Al-Banna, Angela Saenz, Kal¥gari Ferris and Heidi Mashaka for being the most creative. Other standouts of the evening included an impeccably constructed line of mono¥chromatic silks and androgynous lines from Jessica Bird and three adaptations of deli¥cate white pieces by Al-Banna. By far one of the best garments that walked the runway was BirdÕs leather creme jacket, which surpasses the workmanship of a fashion student. Her line looked and felt expensive; it was as if her garments were pulled off Bergdorf Goodman. The delicate piping down the shoulders and arms con¥trasted against the masculinity of the jacketÕs structure, proving BirdÕs wide range in aes¥thetic and construction. While Bird lured the crowd in with her dynamic mixed con¥struction of fitted and flowy, the movement in Al-BannaÕs pieces had pizazz. BirdÕs col¥lection won Most Marketable, and Al-Ban¥na took Honorable Mention for Best Brid¥al Wear. Each designer also showcased formal and bridal attire, and Bird was awarded Best Evening Gown for her modern champagne-colored silk gown which featured golden piping that wrapped around the hips and extended to the floor. One of the panelists and owner of Black¥mail Boutique, Gail Chovan, said that she was impressed with how far the show had come since she originally started judging it 10 years ago. ÒIt is great to see guys that are design¥ing for guys that use fashion-forward think¥ing and have strong technical skills,Ó Cho¥van said. Allen Otto | Daily Texan Staff A model posed in one of designer Colton GerardÕs contemporary adaptations of military uniforms. GerardÕs collection, ÒHeritage,Ó won Best Collection at this yearÕs textiles and apparel fashion show.