FALL 2012 the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Mysterious Maya

FALL 2012 THE UNiVERSiTY OF TEXaS aT SaN aNTONiO INSIDE Unraveling a Mystery More than two dozen UTSA students braved the Belizean jungle to dig up clues that may one 16 day unlock ancient secrets of the Maya. On Tougher Turf By the time UTSA officially moved into the Western Athletic Conference, university officials had already 22 accepted an invitation to join Conference USA.

Williamson, UTSA’s You’ve Got The Paseo 9 record-breaking long- a Friend jumper—and hero. What Lies Student coaches are 4 Beneath available to assist After the worst oil other students in community spill in the Gulf of finding and utilizing Mexico, signs of a tools in the library. Back Shed larger, hidden impact 28 Startup Sharing are found beneath 10 One alum’s dissertation the ocean floor. Business is becoming a business UTSA’s Institute that may someday save for Economic Forever lives. 6 Roadrunners Development provides assistance It’s not easy leaving 30 class notes to governments UTSA, and for this Profile of Kim D. throughout Latin group of retired Denver ’88, deputy America and the faculty, it was assistant secretary Caribbean. impossible. of the Army for Lipstick procurement; H-E-B ¡Viva Mariachi! nutritionist Letty 7 12 Effect A mariachi class Holmbo, E.M.B.A. ’04; When it comes to about the history and Brian Woods, M.A. ’88, choosing a mate or evolution of the genre Ed.D. ’12, San Antonio’s attire, hormones may will put students’ newest superintendent; play a bigger part knowledge into plus other campus and than once thought. music. alumni news. Dressed for Roadrunner 8 Success 14 Sports ON THE COVER: A close look at the frieze, or decorative Sports briefs, plus band, on El Castillo in Xunantunich, Belize. El Castillo is The University Career the second largest structure in ancient and modern Belize. Center offers students get to know Tyler interview training— ON THIS PAGE: UTSA graduate student Sarita and a wardrobe. Turcotte gazes out over the jungle from Temple 4 at one of the largest Mayan archaeological sites, Tikal, in Guate- mala. The Maya have been the dominant culture in Mexico and Central America for more than 3,000 years. fall 2012 Sombrilla 1 Photos courtesy of Eleazar Hernández the best articles I have seen proud. Make the change. printed in Sombrilla in the nKiRU ARAh seven years I have been here Buffalo, N.Y. at UTSA. I say this because this article truly captured bullfrogs and our students’ experience on Fall 2012 this trip. I was particularly butterfl ies VolUmE 29, NUmbEr 1 LETTERS moved by the editor’s note Sombrilla EDIToR’S NoTE San Antonio in a small-city Sombrilla about your experience in Fall 2011 THE uNIVERSITy OF TEXAS atmosphere, spells nothing AT SAN ANTONIO Spring 2012 Atlanta. I would like to write some- THE Sombrilla but success for San Antonio More importantly, the stu- Another fabulous issue! thing about my daughter PRESIdENT Oh, how i miss college and for UTSA. Congrats on this, and on all dents who have read the eLiSABeTh MARie Terri Matiella, who you fea- ricardo romo the CASE awards—y’all do article, and seen the interac- cUADRoS ’11 tured in Sombrilla Magazine. The day I graduated from college was one of the happiest Here, everywhere I look, I see orange and blue shirts. amazing work! tive map and video refl ec- PubLISHER ANd San Antonio I am incredibly proud of her of my life. It wasn’t so much out of a sense of completion, As I pass through the John Peace Library, I see students Anne PeTeRS tion, are amazed that their VICE PRESIdENT FOR and her two younger sisters, of achieving a life goal. It was much more basic—I was fi - clustered in study rooms, challenging each other and then Staff “little trip” is getting so much Rachel and Sarah. They are EXTERNAL RELATIONS attention. They were already nally leaving. laughing it off when the stress gets too high. The movement my life and have provided marjie french making History I love Sombrilla. Photogra- proud of the fact that they me with precious grand- No more all-nighters spent at the nearby open-all-night I love having lunch under the Sombrilla, where the had this opportunity to go pancake house, trying to fi gure out the difference between sounds of diverse cultures mingle. As students at one ta- “Sixty to 70 percent of stu- pher Mark McClendon went children. I do not get to see EdITOR on the trip, and you have dents who graduate from above and beyond the call them as much as I would lety laurel a rock and a mineral. No more semester projects begun ble play my favorite ’80s songs, students at another table made them even more UTSA stay in the community of duty by participating in like to, but I see them in my the day before they were due and fi nished 15 minutes be- speak with animation in a language I wish I knew, because proud as this is something and continue to contribute,” “The Movement” as well as heart every day. ASSOCIATE EdITOR fore class was to start. No more worries about whether it really sounds like they’re having fun. documenting it. The stu- they will be able to share according to campaign DonnA SASSeen Guillermo Garcia the C I got on my Fundamentals of Math fi nal (yes, math Students on skateboards whiz by. Couples hold hands with family, friends, former chair Jim Bodenstedt ’96. dents saw him as a friend San Angelo, Texas teachers and each other for was a tough one for me) would be enough to pass me out on the way to class. I hear snatches of conversation about What does that mean? It and resource, asking for his dESIGN dIRECTOR a lifetime. of the class. physics and the most recent football game. And I feel so shows that the City of San perspective. Tom Palmer My heartfelt thanks to you, Forever young I was fi nally free. much pride; I feel so connected. Antonio is highly educated, Thank you all so much for Vincent and Mark for telling Sombrilla PHOTOGRAPHERS which draws companies your partnership and sup- It’s been 12 years since I slid my purple and white tassel our story and sharing it with Patrick ray dunn, like USAA, Valero and Toy- port throughout the years. Winter 2010 to the left, and I’ve never looked back. My only connection our alumni and supporters. mark mcClendon ota. Having more corpora- eDnA A. DoMÍnGUeZ Just a note to Paul Kattapong, to the place that was home and hell had been the monthly Staff MARLon AnDeRSon who you featured in the Win- tions in turn creates jobs; loan statement I consistently received (and still do). Staff ter 2010 issue of Sombrilla. CONTRIbuTORS Nostalgia is a fi le jobs create spending and But recently that has changed. saving. Spending creates a I received my copy of Som- I worked with this joyous david flores, Judith lipsett Wow. You brought me to I’m homesick for college. healthy economy and sav- brilla in the mail yesterday, man in Nellingen, West Ger- tears. It’s so powerful. Thank WEb dESIGNER I look back and remember the all-nighters spent at that removes the ing creates a stable fi nan- and I have to commend many, in the mid-1980s. His you! Kristina leh the 24-hour pancake house only pretending to study, the cial market where fi nancing you and [writer] Vincent T. optimism and love of learn- YVonne PenA rough edges from the is an option because banks Davis on the great work with ing were a daily pick-me-up nights spent goofi ng around with my friends, thinking Staff WEb SPECIALIST are confi dent in the econo- the article on “The Move- for all. You still look 39, Paul! about that semester project I really should start—but that MARY Ann YeDinAK maria Corral my. San Antonio is known to ment.” I had no idea that it I’ll certainly start tomorrow. good old days. would have such an impact Indianapolis, Ind. —mARTIN LuTHER KING JR. be a large little city. Pairing Opportunity of a I even giggle about my performance as a young Evita on me reading it with Mark Sombrilla Magazine a Tier One university with Lifetime in my musical theater class, where I pranced around the —dOuG LARSON, WRITER McClendon’s pictures. is published two times a military city, not to men- Chukky, keep the Nigerian I have to say, this is one of a year by the offi ce stage with a suitcase. My prof told me he hated the perfor- tion the importance of Port fl ag fl ying. You are doing us of University Communications, mance so much that he passed me so I would never have I feel the energy that comes from being on a thriving UTSa, one UTSa Circle, to take his class again. college campus. San antonio, Texas 78249. Oh, how I miss college. So maybe I am reliving my college days after all, but in it is mailed without charge to ‘‘ I fi nd as I get older and the gap widens between my an even better way. There are only deadlines, no exams. Write back! alumni, faculty, staff and Go onLine! undergrad experience and me, I feel more connected to Even better, there’s very little math. We’d love to hear from you! friends of The University of my alma mater. I follow the football team and I even fl y a And my closet is becoming crowded with all the or- need more information? check out these UTSA websites: Texas at San antonio. How do you think we’re doing? Phone: (210) 458-6155 fl ag outside my home. The person I was a dozen years ago ange and blue shirts and paraphernalia I am accumulat- For back issues of To discover ways to Chat with us! We’re Got any comments about the Email:[email protected] would never recognize the person I am today. ing. I take my sons to football games, and every one of us Sombrilla, go to give back, go to on Facebook. I kind of bleed purple—and I like it. has our special game-day shirt. We regularly chant “Go stories you’ve seen here? Con- utsa.edu/sombrilla giving.utsa.edu facebook.com/utsanantonio I still have those nightmares where I realize on the day ’Runners” and even my 3-year-old knows the Roadrunner tact us at [email protected]. of the fi nal exam that I never attended math class. But now hand sign. To be removed from the For campus news Check out the latest Go mobile: I think that if I could, I would choose to make that night- So, maybe I bleed orange and blue, as well as purple. Or mail your letters to Som- Sombrilla mailing list, ’’ and events, visit sports stats and utsa.edu/mobileapp mare come true if it meant going back to college and living I think I need to buy another fl ag. brilla Editor, Offi ce of University receive Sombrilla Online utsa.edu/today information at only or update address the good times all over again. Maybe. utsa.edu/athletics For everything else, Communications, UTSA, One information, send a message Or maybe I don’t have to. I work at a university, and For The Graduate go to utsa.edu to [email protected]. with an offi ce at the Main Campus, I’m fully immersed in Saludos, UTSA Circle, San Antonio, Texas School, go to Reconnect with old the culture, the life, the rhythm of the place. I’ve discov- utsa.edu/graduate classmates at 78249. Letters may be edited for ered that I don’t have to travel hundreds of miles to my utsa.edu/alumni length or clarity. alma mater just to experience school pride. Lety

2 Sombrilla www.UTSa.EdU fall 2012 Sombrilla 3 esearchers looking at tiny worms, algae and the impact on the ecosystem emerged. other microscopic organisms among grains In her portion of the study, Sharma-Srinivasan Rof sand at the water’s edge have developed found that while there had been more than 70 dif- a remarkable, if incomplete, picture of the sub-sur- ferent species of nematodes in the sampled Gulf What lies beneath face impact on sea life caused by the BP oil spill, waters before the accident, only about six species the most devastating ever to take place in the Gulf were found afterward. More than two years after the worst oil spill in the Gulf, signs of a of Mexico. “Some worm [species] turned out to be very re- larger, hidden impact are found beneath the ocean floor Now-clean beaches off the Louisiana and Ala- sistant to the oil, maybe able to eat fungi that were bama Gulf Coast that were heavily impacted by the able to break down the hydrocarbons,” while other By Guillermo Garcia April 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil platform blowout species were not, she said. stand in sharp contrast to the biological changes The scientists noted that they still don’t have below the surface, a federal study concludes. a clear picture of how long the spill’s impact will The study of DNA from organisms like coastal be felt, whether the microscopic organisms’ diver- intertidal nematode worms, some as small as one sity will return to pre-spill numbers, or whether the 2.31 billion millimeter, was led by researchers from the Uni- shoreline will be repopulated by new organisms. versity of New Hampshire, along with scientists What is known is that microorganisms like nem- gallons of from Auburn University and UTSA. It was funded atodes are critical to maintaining a healthy marine oil were by a $200,000 grant from the National Science habitat. They are “the machinery that keeps the Foundation. ecosystem working,” Bik said. released The yearlong project was part of the govern- “In this instance, the worms act as a sort of min- into the ment’s time-sensitive, post-disaster study of the er’s canary,” Sharma-Srinivasan said, adding that damage caused by the massive oil leak occurring the microscopic organisms are a crucial element in ecosystem. more than a mile below the surface, which took the complex food chain and play a major role in key three months to cap. ecosystem functions like nutrient recycling. “Recovery is taking place, there is no doubt, but She noted that a cursory view of the surface wa- at what pace, and what is the process of that re- ter fails to reveal what apparently has been occur- covery, we just do not know,” said Jyotsna Sharma- ring far below. Srinivasan, a research assistant professor in UTSA’s “If people look at the Gulf waters and see no oil Department of Biology. on the surface, they often conclude the area has re- Official government estimates indicate that over covered to its original state, but that often is not the an 89-day period, about 2.6 million gallons of oil a case,” she said. “The oil sinks below the sediment day poured out of the sea floor as a result of a meth- and may affect the entire ecosystem.” ane gas explosion far below the seabed. Some esti- Nematodes, like other microscopic organisms, mates calculated that significantly more than 2.31 play a critical role in the ecosystem by serving billion gallons were released into the ecosystem in as food for fish and shrimp, which are a valuable a huge, dark plume that eventually made landfall source of revenue for the area’s fishermen. The along the upper Gulf Coast. worms also serve to keep the system healthy by Samples from beaches around Alabama’s Dau- eating bacteria and decaying matter, contributing phin Island and Mobile Bay were collected shortly after the blowout but before the plume made land- to the decomposition process that is vital to the fall. Five months later, a second set of samples was ecosystem’s overall health, she said. They also in- collected after the coastal beaches were cleaned. troduce carbon and other important minerals back Samples were also collected from Grand Isle, off into the food chain. the Louisiana coast, during a period in September “What struck me was that you wouldn’t have A diverse 2010 when those beaches were heavily oiled. known there was an oil spill—most of our sample mix of Holly Bik, the study’s lead author, took a spoon- sites looked like normal beaches,” said Bik, who at ful of pre-spill sand from each beach and extracted the time of the study was a researcher at the Uni- organisms millions of DNA genetic barcodes from every or- versity of New Hampshire, but who now works at ganism in that spoonful, Sharma-Srinivasan said. the University of California–Davis. “But when we has been “We then sequenced a specific ‘barcode’ region analyzed the genomic data, there seemed to be all wiped of DNA from our samples and compared these piec- these biological repercussions going on.” es of DNA to online databases to determine what The research was published in the journal Pub- out, and species were living on each beach,” she added. lic Library of Science ONE. The research team concluded that the oil had In their report, the scientists concluded that the only a few caused “massive harm to the microscopic crea- “marine habitats experienced visible, heavy im- species of tures in coastal sands” and that a diverse mix of pacts following the [spill], yet our scant knowledge those organisms that existed before the spill has of [what was there before the spill] has precluded a fungi and been obliterated, replaced by only a few species of thorough assessment of this disturbance.” nematodes fungi and nematodes. Yet, the study reported, based on the research- “Shrimp and oysters were deeply impacted— ers’ analysis of organisms before and after the have their spawning grounds were destroyed—and the massive spill, “our data suggest considerable ini- juveniles were wiped out,” she said. tial impacts across Gulf beaches may be ongoing, replaced But it was not until the DNA sequencing samples despite the disappearance of visible surface oil in them. THE PA StrollA AroundSE CaOmpus were taken from the worms that a clearer picture of the region.”

Fall 2012 Sombrilla 5 ThE PaSEo !

“Your mayor here, Julián Castro, gave a total shout out to menudo during his [Democratic National Convention] speech. That was amazing. Forever Although I do have to say part of me wishes, Roadrunners instead of menudo— ¡ most Americans know Viva what menudo is—but They may be retired from the university, but Retired he could at least given Faculty Association members’ love for UTSA lives on a plug to guisados or puffy tacos, or some- By reBeCCA lutHer thing like that, maybe Mariachi! something a little more ver box lunches from Jason’s Deli, 10 tion to UTSA and my profession is still strong,” Performance class will get students out San Antonio.” retired faculty members shared their she said. —Gustavo Arellano, war stories of a nascent university, one Indeed, this is true of many of the group’s of the classroom and onto the stage AUThoR oF TACO USA AnD O The nATionALLY SYnDicATeD where job interviews were conducted in the founding members. Dewey Davis, who holds By Guillermo GArCiA coLUMn “ASK A MeXicAn,” president’s temporary offi ce in the athletics the distinction of being the fi rst faculty mem- during his Sept. 12 lecture at the building and where many of the students were ber hired in 1971, has long been a familiar Downtown Campus older than the faculty. face at university events with his wife, Ruth. hether perform more frequently, to get out there and play the music That luncheon would turn out to be the fi rst Martinello has been called upon frequently to formed at in public,” said lecturer Michael Acevedo, a well-known meeting of the UTSA Retired Faculty Associa- serve the school in various capacities and cur- W restaurants or at local mariachi performer who plays on the San Antonio tion, which was formally established in Septem- rently serves on a subcommittee to develop an family gatherings, River Walk as well as other venues. ber 2011 by a memorandum of understanding academic inquiry course that eventually will be weddings or other Begun as regional folk music in the 18th century, most with the university. required of all freshmen. Professor emerita of church ceremonies, likely in the state of Jalisco in southwestern Mexico, “ma- But even before the paperwork was drawn education Gillian Cook, who retired in 1998, is mariachi has evolved riachi” refers to the type of music—played on guitars, up, the members of the RFA were making their a docent at the Institute of Texan Cultures. And over the last century violins and trumpets—as well as to the musicians and the presence known on campus by attending and Judith Walmsley, who retired in 2010, still has a into the music most band that perform the music. hosting faculty functions and by knocking on lab and offi ce in the Department of Chemistry closely associated with While mariachi groups in middle and high schools doors to get answers about available benefi ts and is on campus more days than not. Mexico’s cultural heritage. have been popular since the 1960s in the American South- beyond insurance and retirement programs. And they give more than time. To date, more This fall, a mariachi class west, particularly in the San Antonio area, “you can prob- NOW (Their happiest discovery to date? That all re- than 40 emeritis faculty have donated money to dealing with the history, evolu- ably count on one hand the number of university mariachi tion and tradition of the iconic tired faculty can obtain a campus parking per- UTSA, with average giving of more than $37,000. programs,” Acevedo said. musical genre switched gears mit at no cost.) Having a program to recognize RFA members’ UTSA’s community ensemble will serve to educate THEN and has become a performance- Getting retired faculty back on campus, support for students through endowed scholar- both the students and the general public on the various FROm TOP TO bOTTOm: based course. dewey davis, professor emeritus of education mariachi styles, Frego said. It will also help strengthen where they invested so much of their profession- ships and other means is one thing Martinello Previously, the course “dealt and interdisciplinary studies, was the first students’ mastery of the music while expanding their rep- faculty member, hired in 1971. he retired al lives, is the impetus behind the RFA. hopes the association can accomplish. Another with the academic understanding ertoire, which could lead to more musical engagements, //in BrieF// in 1986 and has spent time traveling to 49 “We can be a service organization for the uni- RFA priority project—one they plan to begin this but not the performance aspect,” states, canada and ireland. Acevedo noted. versity and a social organization for ourselves,” fall—is to collect and document their own oral said David Frego, chair of the De- High Praise “Usually in high school or middle school, mariachi The UK-based Times marian martinello, professor emerita of inter- said RFA president Marian Martinello. “I see our histories of the university’s early days. partment of Music. “Now we will [students] will learn a few songs that they play repeat- Higher Education disciplinary learning and teaching, retired in group as having unlimited capabilities. It’s only One item on the RFA wish list will come to be going for the real-life experi- magazine ranked 2000. Since retirement, she has written two edly,” Acevedo said. “One of the course goals will be UTSa among the top books on historical inquiry and is working on limited by our imagination, and collectively we fruition soon: When members lamented the loss ence that is so much more viscer- al, that grabs you by the heart, be- to signifi cantly expand both different techniques and 400 universities in the a novel for young adults about a San Antonio have a phenomenal imagination.” of the university’s faculty-staff dining room a de- world, one of only 70 chili queen. the number of songs in their repertoire, because [a For most of the two dozen RFA members, re- cade ago as a venue to form collaborations with cause the students will be learning U.S. public universi- mariachi’s] bread and butter comes from how many Judith Walmsley, professor emerita in the tirement didn’t mean they quit working. It meant colleagues across disciplines, they were invited technique,” and then performing ties to be included. songs you know.” The 17,000 aca- Department of chemistry, retired in 2010. the luxury to choose only the projects they want- to give input into a new faculty center to be con- what they have learned, he said. She continues to serve on several commit- “We hope to develop a com- Acevedo performs with a group on the San Antonio demic peers from 137 ed. RFA member and professor emeritus Charles structed in the John Peace Library. countries who were tees at UTSA. She also continues to work on munity ensemble that will rep- River Walk and also serves as the mariachi and orches- research projects. Field continues to mount exhibitions of his land- The center, due to be completed sometime surveyed ranked the resent the university, but will tral director at the Northside Independent School District’s university on teaching, scape paintings; his former colleague in the De- in 2013, will be a space where both retired and Jim broderick, professor emeritus and former also become an integral part of Sam Rayburn and Pat Neff middle schools. international outlook, chairman and division director of the Depart- partment of Art and Art History Jim Broderick, current faculty can connect formally and infor- the community’s cultural and He noted that his goal with the college-level course is to industry income, re- ment of Art and Art history, began his tenure search and citations. the group’s treasurer, works as a consultant to mally, and, as Broderick said, enjoy “the intense develop enough interest so the university could someday at UTSA in 1983 and retired in 2003. he is musical roots,” Frego said. Times Higher Educa- a visual artist with an exhibition record span- universities and independent colleges of art and pleasure…of a high-level of conversation with offer a minor in mariachi music. PaTriCK raY dUNN raY PaTriCK The one-credit-hour class tion also ranked UTSa ning 40 years and is now directing his studio design. Martinello has published two books on extraordinary people”— another perk of having attracts many non-music ma- While Frego said there is still work to do before a minor 53rd among 100 efforts to drawing, painting and photography. historical inquiry since she retired in 2002 and is an association of retired scholars. jors, Frego noted. is created, “there is a great desire to go down that road. But universities worldwide that are less than 50 completing a young adult novel. “I love that,” said Broderick, “and I hope to be The course’s goals will in- fi rst we need to build up critical mass, get more students years old. “I may have retired, but my sense of connec- doing it until my last gasp.” clude “getting students to per- interested in it to create a need for more classes.”

6 Sombrilla www.UTSa.EdU fall 2012 Sombrilla 7 ThE PaSEo

! “It’s as simple as this: If we admit them, we are going to graduate them.” —Ricardo Romo, talking about UTSA’s new graduation rate improvement plan at his Oct. 3 State of the University address

by THE NumbERS 50% freshmen from the class of 2016 that graduated in the top 25 percent of their high school classes

by THE NumbERS 75% Dress for Success increase in research funding center provides interview training and a wardrobe from 2006 to 2011 By Guillermo GArCiA he student was in a panic. A senior about to graduate, he had a job interview in two hours, but he didn’t have Tthe proper attire. That’s where the Career Closet in the University Career Center came in. “We quickly found him a nice charcoal suit, he checked it out and was on his way,” recalls Audrey Magnuson, director of the Career Center. An idea born of need last December—getting stu- You’ve got a Friend dents professionally dressed for job or internship interviews—is proving successful this year. Student coaches help their peers navigate the stacks The Career Closet loans out high-quality suits By Guillermo GArCiA to students who would not otherwise have the clothes to make the right impression on or students tackling college-level research projects for raise their hand during class or don’t fully understand a potential employer, said Magnuson. the fi rst time, the library can seem daunting. But the their assignment, “all the research tools are not going to “It has been just unbelievably successful, and the students’ feedback has been very FUTSA Libraries now has a staff of fi ve student coaches be very helpful,” said Bryce Hower, a senior engineering positive,” she said. available to assist other students in fi nding and utilizing major from Houston and one of fi ve students selected to EXAmPLE A With a $2,000 UTSA Family Fund grant, Magnuson tools like electronic databases to help in their research proj- be coaches. //in BrieF// dON’T dO THIS! was able to buy several men’s business suits in com- ects and class assignments. “Some students may look up things on Google or Wikipe- Monkey dia, but not know how to utilize library resources for deeper no jeans, sweats, T-shirts, muscle mon sizes as well as women’s skirts and jackets. The program, known as the Peer Research Coaches, is Business shirts, ball caps or pajamas. Save “The idea came from my counselors, who were the fi rst of its kind, said Library Dean Krisellen Maloney. It information gathering, so we will teach them how to fi nd anthropology doctoral student anne Kwiatt those for home. Stow your MP3 encountering a number of students who just did not is funded by a $50,000 Hearst Foundation endowment, part and use those resources,” he said. “And for us, it is satisfy- spent the summer in player away and turn off your cell have professional-quality clothing they could wear to of a $150,000 donation to the university by the media chain. ing to know we actually helped a student learn something.” Singapore researching phone—texting can wait. interviews, job fairs or etiquette dinners,” she said. Separately, local insurance fi rm USAA has donated $45,000 Maloney noted that the fi ve student peers—she hopes to long-tailed macaque Leave your flip flops for the beach. Since the fall semester, between 75 and 100 stu- over two years for the program, Maloney said. have eight by fall 2013—are paid a salary, but unlike work- monkeys in their urban dents have taken advantage of the free service. habitat, observing their EXAmPLE b “We know that students are more likely to go to other study students, they won’t have just one task to complete. behavior and studying Shirts are available in common sizes, and ties are students when they have questions, so we designed this “We expect that the coaches will also be informing us their diet, following her also part of the loaner outfi t. The only thing the service dO THIS! program to have [the coaches] available within the library, about student behavior, and they will work on the Facebook receipt of a National Keep it conservative. Men should does not provide is shoes, she said. Science foundation both at the information desk and roaming throughout the team to help us formulate our message in a way that the wear a suit, tie and dress shoes. “We are able to offer an extended service to our fellowship. an element Subdued colors like gray, navy library,” she added. students will understand,” Maloney said. of her eight-week-long students, so they will have the confi dence they need,” East asia and Pacifi c and black are best. women should Magnuson noted. “Now we help [students] with the Maloney noted that as many as 10,000 students daily use The coaches will also “assist us in usability studies, to also wear a suit with pants or skirt. Summer institute complete package, putting their résumé together, help- the John Peace Library on Main Campus, but she said that help us understand what students need from the libraries,” research focuses on colors should mimic the men’s ing them with interview practice and getting them pro- the coaches would also be rotating to the Downtown Cam- she added. collecting detailed data palette. Leave the spike heels and about how urbanization fessionally dressed for the interview.” pus library. The library has already begun using social media to let opt for professional flats or low has affected the heels. With more than 200 electronic and other databases students know about the new resource. As the program de- monkeys’ diet and how And remember: brush your hair Web Extra: available at the Main Campus library, students have a diz- velops, the greater depth of student research papers as well it affects their social and teeth. Go to utsa.edu/sombrilla/closet to watch a zying array of educational aids to draw from. But if they as the quality of students’ experience on campus will be structure and behavior. video about the Career Closet. don’t know such assistance is available, are too timid to measures of its success. PHoToS bY PaTriCK raY dUNN raY PHoToS bY PaTriCK 8 Sombrilla www.UTSa.EdU fall 2012 Sombrilla 9 ThE PaSEo

by THE NumbERS $4.2 m grant from the U.S. Department of education for The Academy for Teacher excellence in the college of education and human Development. The grant will be used to in an effort to increase a win-win-win situation,” said Cliff Paredes, director of Dominica, Belize, Jamaica and Barbados. The initiative increase the number of the International Trade Center, which hosts the federally partners the university with the Organization of American culturally and linguistically Sharing diverse students who funded program. “This program accomplishes that.” States, the U.S. Department of State Mission to the OAS, and opportunities for small want to teach science, The expansion into Latin America and the Caribbean is the Caribbean Export Development Agency. technology, engineering and funded by the U.S. Department of State and the Agency for Paredes said that one of the more exciting projects is in mathematics at schools with businesses—the criti- International Development. The U.S. government has com- El Salvador, whose economic infrastructure was ravaged by diverse student populations. Business mitted $1.9 million over the next three years to support the a more than decade-long civil war. A cooperative, founded cal backbone of many university’s efforts in Central America and the Caribbean, and run by women living in rural, economically depressed Paredes noted. areas, formed a business to manufacture and market fruit by THE NumbERS Micro-entrepreneurs in Latin He said the program is modeled after the Small Business liquor that they bottle and sell. of Latin america’s and Development Centers’ program, which nationally “has been “The women produce and sell, for $6 apiece, wine in a America receive boost from the wildly successful. In 35 years, there have been 1,100 centers very nice wine bottle,” Paredes said. “They have created a $112m created across the United States, and for every dollar the stable source of income where they literally had nothing, The amount reached by the Caribbean’s emerg- the university’s fi rst-ever international Trade center government invests in the program, it receives almost two not even electricity. They have gone from living at subsis- capital campaign. That By Guillermo GArCiA in tax revenue.” tence level with little hope and no opportunity to where represents 93.9 percent of ing economies—UTSa’s Focusing on one-on-one assistance provided free of we now have a group of empowered women who are suc- the campaign’s $120 million charge, the SBDC programs were created by the federal gov- ceeding to the point that they are getting their daughters goal, which is scheduled to institute for Economic ernment’s Small Business Administration to provide techni- involved in a growing business.” close in December 2015. cal and managerial assistance to U.S. small businesses. Paredes noted that “these are truly transformation- “This SBDC model is essentially part of a national net- al programs, and what UTSA has done in hosting the development (iEd) has work which provides core services for small business start- regional center is something that has not been attempted, ups as well as established businesses,” Paredes said. He much less accomplished, by any other university. The suc- expanded its effort to noted that the program’s mission is to promote growth and cess this program is accomplishing is something that will boost productivity—and revenue—by improving a small outlive me and all of us here, and it is something that the provide expert assis- business’s management. university is proud of.” The university began hosting the South-West Texas Bor- der SBDC Network in the mid-1980s. Through that system, tance to foreign gov- some 10 centers were set up to serve 79 counties in the southern and western parts of Texas to undertake market ernments in that part research tailored specifi cally to individual clients wanting to start or expand their small businesses. //in BrieF// of the world. With the successes on the 1,250-mile Texas-Mexico bor- World-Class der, offi cials decided to expand the effort beyond the U.S. Partners UTSA’s International Trade Center, which began in 1992, The College of Public Basing it on the model used in the U.S., the is the largest and most successful trade assistance organiza- Policy has been named the lead part- IED’s International Trade Center is expanding tion in the state. It helps companies join and become com- ner of the Sa2020 its outreach services beyond Mexico, into the petitive in the global marketplace through technical trade Government account- Caribbean and Central and South America. consulting, customized market research and training. ability and Civic The program’s aim is to facilitate trade op- The program is fl ourishing. Beginning with Mexico, the Engagement focus portunities by setting up assistance networks center has assisted in the launch of 108 SBDC programs out- area, one of 11 areas outlined in mayor side the U.S., including 10 in El Salvador and, most recently, for micro, small and medium-sized businesses Julián Castro’s plan to and then link them to each other and to exist- a pair of pilot projects in Colombia. transform San antonio ing networks throughout the Americas via an “The program in Mexico has mushroomed,” Paredes into a world-class city online trade platform. said. “Since 2003, when a university in Guadalajara ap- over the next eight proached us, a network has been created that has assisted years. In doing so, the program will help Latin The college has American governments promote the growth, or helped create tens of thousands of small businesses supported Sa2020 innovation and competitiveness of their small that account for hundreds of thousands of jobs, many in by hosting discus- business sector and help their business peo- rural areas.” sions about increas- Negotiations are ongoing and a memorandum of un- ing and improving ple benefi t from international trade. civic engagement and It will empower residents to generate a sta- derstanding has been signed with Brazil that offi cials are government account- ble source of income for themselves, more tax hopeful will generate new trade opportunities between that ability and creating a country and the United States. one business that benefitted from the institute for Eco- Citizens’ bill of rights revenue for their government and expanded nomic development’s expansion into latin america and Earlier this year, UTSA also assisted in launching the Ca- and responsibilities market and trade opportunities for U.S. busi- the Caribbean is a cooperative developed in El Salvador. to improve citizen- nesses, offi cials said. ribbean Small Business Development Center, a project to run by women living in economically depressed areas, it government relations. “Seldom is there an opportunity to create create small business assistance networks in Saint Lucia, manufactures and markets fruit liquor.

10 Sombrilla www.UTSa.EdU fall 2012 Sombrilla 11 marK mCClENdoN Durante and fellow researchers focused their studies on 2007, jerk is not likely to stick around.” when massive layoffs and widespread home foreclosures bat- Durante is quick to note that tered the economy during what has been termed the nation’s women are not consciously toughest economic period since the Great Depression of 1929. aware that they are interested in a Results from an examination of the behavior patterns of more cad to snag his good genes; they than two dozen unmarried undergraduate students between the are only aware of the strong at- ages of 18 and 24 confi rmed that women’s consumer preferences traction to this type of man. change during economic recession, Durante said. There’s also the erroneous be- It’s all to fi nd a well-off mate, but fi nding that perfect mate is lief that women can change their also impacted by hormones. partners, she said. In separate studies, Durante and researchers from the Univer- “Women tend to over-perceive sity of Minnesota and Singapore Management University found their ability to ‘change’ the sexy that when women ovulate, they “nonconsciously” gravitate to- cad and turn him into what would ward men who tend to be womanizers and rogues, even while be a good dad—a stable, depend- seeking a stable, long-term relationship. able mate who will be a good Ovulating women are most receptive and more attracted to father to their children and be the prototypical “cad,” who “is likely to be unfaithful and who there to help change the diapers often is not looking for the long-term, stable relationship” that at least half of the time,” Durante women say they prefer, Durante said. said. To determine that, the researchers chose as study participants For decades, scientifi c re- 318 women, aged 18 to 39, with an income range from $15,000 search—often used by marketers a year to more than $150,000, and included college students as hoping to boost sales of clothing, well as successful businesswomen. Most of the women did not beauty products and jewelry— have children; some were married or in relationships while oth- has shown that leading up to the ers were not. Most importantly, all were normally ovulating at time women begin ovulating, the time they were tested, but only women who were not taking they become more attracted to either hormonal contraceptives or prescription medication were men with chiseled, symmetrical Kristina Durante, assistant professor in the college of Business, chosen to participate. faces and deeper voices, whom is the author of several thought-provoking studies on how women’s hormones affect everything from the way they dress to Their job was simple: interact through an online video chat Durante laughingly referred to as the men they choose. with men who were introducing themselves as potential dating “the George Clooney type.” partners and determine which they found more appealing. Durante noted that “the big- To get the right contrast, the researchers hired an actor to picture overview [for the attraction to the cad] provides an an- play both a typical cad and a dad. With the help of a Hollywood swer to why some women keep pursuing the ‘wrong’ guy. The screenwriter, Durante crafted the cad scripts to portray “a man hormones associated with ovulation may be leading women to who was charismatic, confi dent, charming but who came across deceive themselves about this type of man.” as somewhat unreliable [likely to be someone who would not Durante’s research also found that “very often, the friends of when it comes to choosing a mate, the decision make a reliable long-term partner],” she said. “We crafted the the woman have much sharper insight about the cad than the dad script to portray a man who was reliable, dependable, less woman herself. Perhaps we should start to listen more closely for women often comes down to hormones confi dent and charming but who was explicitly seeking a serious when our friends think our boyfriend is the jerk we don’t see.” By Guillermo GArCiA relationship and [wanted to] have kids one day.” There may be signifi cant variance in women’s attraction to

PHoToS marK mCClENdoN / PHoTo illUSTraTioN Tom PalmEr PHoToS marK mCClENdoN / PHoTo illUSTraTioN One clip shows a confi dent, raffi sh man in a black pullover the cad, depending on the level of circulating estrogen, but that who looks straight into the camera and boldly suggests that the point remains far from clear, she said. female on the other end join him for what he promises will be a The professor’s provocative fi ndings have been covered by good time. such media outlets as Business Week, Cosmopolitan, USA Today, ristina Durante doesn’t fl inch when the media It is that fundamental shift leading up to and including the fi ve The next shows a man wearing a white polo shirt, who, while Fox News and CNN, and has garnered both praise and criticism. describes her research as an examination of “The days a woman is ovulating that is of keen interest to marketers of never looking directly at the camera, acts low-key and in an unas- Even though Durante acknowledges that her research has the KLipstick Effect.” the multibillion-dollar beauty care industry. suming voice says that while he has “never been good at the dat- capacity to stir up controversy, she nonetheless points out that She is a UTSA assistant professor and the co-author of a series Durante and her fellow researchers also discovered that a ing thing,” he is nonetheless looking for a committed relationship. much of her scientifi c research examines behavior that operates of thought-provoking studies on how women’s hormones affect similar shift in women’s behavior happens during tough econom- The women viewing the videos were led to believe the two at the nonconscious level, noting: “we are not always aware of everything from the way they dress to the men they choose. ic times. men were twins, although Durante noted that the roles were the real reasons behind our choices.” Durante, who joined the faculty in 2011, draws on evolution- Looking at how social and biological factors infl uence con- played by the same actor. But she defends both her research topics and the methods ary psychology to examine women’s behavior and the hormonal sumer behavior, they found that with a sluggish economy, wom- Participants consistently showed signifi cantly more interest in she uses to arrive at her conclusions. mechanisms that guide their decision-making. en tend to, as she puts it, “nonconsciously do their clothes and the cad than the potential dad. And they wrongly predicted that “My research is based on a solid theoretical framework,” she The change in a woman’s behavior during ovulation—when cosmetics shopping at Macy’s instead of Wal-Mart,” while also the rake would be a better partner and future father. said. “It’s been embraced by marketers for its insight into some of she is most fertile—can be a dramatic departure from the spending more on clothing, jewelry and beauty enhancers. Durante acknowledged the cad versus dad conundrum. the nonconscious and often overlooked motivators behind our way she normally walks, talks, dresses and makes decisions, Durante said the studies’ implications have the potential to “It is a paradox, especially with younger women,” Durante conscious decisions. Hormones are hormones and we have the Durante’s studies found. It has more to do with science than signifi cantly alter how marketers tailor and refi ne their pitch to said. “We want the ‘nice’ guy who wants stability and a long-term ability to override them. They are very subtle motivators. These with a woman’s stereotyped fi ckle nature, she said, noting that it buyers of beauty products. relationship. But we still pursue, and get our hearts broken by, the are not absolutes.” comes down to hormones. The reasoning is as basic as it is Darwinian. guy who is not so nice but is attractive and charismatic.” At a time of the month when a woman is most likely to become “When economic times are tough, there is greater competi- How does she explain this behavior? pregnant, the estrogen fl ooding her body can profoundly impact tion for a well-off mate, and since there are fewer of the well-to- “When we are our most fertile, we are attracted to the highly Web Extra: her physically, emotionally and intellectually, triggering uncon- do potential mates, women justify—in response to the recession masculine, socially dominant man with the symmetric face who To view an extended interview with Kristina Durante, scious shifts in her behavior. Durante is particularly focused on cues—spending on that Chanel lipstick that we’d not ordinarily is exuding confi dence because those are the desirable genes we and watch a cad and dad wooing women, go to how these behavioral shifts alter women’s spending patterns. get,” she explained. want to pass on to our children, even when we ‘know’ that the utsa.edu/sombrilla/lipstick.

12 Sombrilla www.UTSa.EdU fall 2012 Sombrilla 13 WAnnA Be liKe miKe: ThE PaSEo Michael Jordan is his OFF THE FIELD: FAVorite SAyinG: inspiration. “i like to look “Hard work beats talent at people who started rAGin’ CAJun: when talent doesn’t work ! out average and became Growing up in East Texas, hard.” —Kevin durant Williamson developed a taste something great.” “I believe that espe- for Cajun food early in life. cially now, a college His favorite dish? alligator tail. SPoRTS BRieFS WHen not runninG degree is more valu- trACK, you can catch able than ever. Times a 72.17 stroke average Williamson playing beach are tough, but, trust me, during the fall campaign, volleyball at his apartment they’re a lot tougher for registered a runner-up complex. it’s his newest people who don’t have showing at the lone Star guilty pleasure and a great sport for a jumper, he said. a college degree.” invitational to guide the —Ricardo Romo, at his Oct. roadrunners to seventh 3 State of the University address place.

FOOTbALL UTSa opened its second year of play with fi ve SPoTLiGhT consecutive victories and picked up its fi rst-ever road and football bowl Tyler Williamson Subdivision win with a JEff HUEHN, UTSa aTHlETiCS By lety lAurel 33–31 come-from-behind Junior outside hitter McKenzie victory in the season Adams became the first player to lots of vegetables and fruits. opener at South alabama. earn two wAc Player of the week It was the day before the national champion- The roadrunners later awards during the season. ship meet, and Tyler Williamson, UTSA’s re- “This sudden fascination with nutrition won their fi rst-ever waC cord-breaking long-jumper, wanted nothing is what has really elevated my level of ath- game, 35–14, on Sept. more than to go to bed early. Instead, when leticism,” he said. “With track, everybody is 29 at New mexico State. fall with a four-under-par his boss asked him to take an extra shift as about the same athletic ability, so it’s a mat- 68 in the second round of an attendant at a San Antonio neighborhood ter of who works harder, who takes care of the Golfweek Conference pool, he grudgingly agreed. their bodies the best. You have to train your WOmEN’S GOLF Challenge. The decision saved a 3-year-old’s life. body to be like a refi ned machine.” Junior fabiola arriaga Williamson was in the middle of his shift Williamson has experienced a shift in at- opened the fall with a VOLLEybALL on June 3 when toddler Jaden Muhlenbruch titude lately, which has also affected his per- pair of top-fi ve fi nishes The roadrunners opened and her 71.17 stroke the 2012 campaign by was found unconscious at the bottom of the formance. It wasn’t only saving a boy’s life average for the month of winning 13 of their fi rst pool. After the boy was pulled out of the wa- that gave him a new perspective. It was the //in BrieF// JEff HUEHN, UTSa aTHlETiCS September led the waC 20 matches, including six ter by a neighbor, Williamson used CPR to realization that being a good person and liv- Scholarly The Roadrunners women’s cross country team successfully defended its and was tied for fi fth- of their fi rst 10 waC con- resuscitate him. ing life the best way possible is the only way Recognition UTSA Ricardo Romo classic title Sept. 14. best in the nation. The tests. Junior outside hitter “I felt really lucky that I was there,” he to earn respect. Three UTSa professors and an alumnus Torreón, mexico, native mcKenzie adams became said. “I felt like he was really lucky, too.” “I just want to be better than the person have been selected for CROSS COuNTRy the Herb wimberly inter- placed fi fth at the season- the fi rst player to earn two Williamson was certifi ed in CPR while in I was yesterday,” said the Houston native. 2012–13 fulbright The women were victori- collegiate in las Cruces, opening dale mcNamara waC Player of the week high school. He didn’t remember much, but “You can be a great athlete and a terrible Scholar grants, the invitational before tying ous at their fi rst three N.m. Junior ryan werre awards during the season he let instinct and training take over. person and people won’t respect you.” largest international a school record with a and the roadrunners exchange program meets to open the 2012 opened the 54-hole event “It was scary, but one of the most reward- He grew up with his grandfather always 54-hole score of 212 at set a program record for in the world. UTSa season. The roadrun- with a season-best four- ing things was to see how precious life is,” reminding him to “live between the ditches,” associate professor of ners were led by two-time under-par 67 and fi nished the Golfweek Conference largest margin of victory the 22-year-old said. or choose a straight and narrow path. history wing Chung Ng western athletic Confer- with a two-under 69 en Challenge en route to a in the rally-scoring era will teach at Hong Kong Early the next day he was bound for “It didn’t really hit me until my junior year ence (waC) athlete of the route to tying for seventh tie for second place. She (since 2008) after netting baptist University. John Des Moines, Iowa, to compete in the NCAA [in college] that what he means is if you alexander, associate week alyssa diaz, who place. one week earlier, set a personal best and an 18-point win in the professor of architec- fi nished as the squad’s senior Stanton Tondre, scored the lowest round of second set against UT Outdoor Track and Field Championship. He want to reach your goal, you can’t really de- ture, will research and top performer four times. who led the squad with any conference player this arlington on oct. 6. didn’t do as well as he had hoped, but he’s viate,” Williamson said. “He still reminds me teach in italy, while meanwhile, the men had been working hard in the off-season, train- every now and then.” Kimberly Cuero, as- a three-meet winning SOCCER ing at least two hours a day and watching After graduation, Williamson hopes to sociate professor in the UTSa opened waC play department of interdis- streak in the middle of what he eats to maintain fi ve percent body snag a job as a college track coach. He’s also at home and scored a pair ciplinary learning and the season, and mike fat. He said he’s never been in as good shape toying with the idea of running profession- Teaching, will spend her medrano was UTSa’s top of 1–1 ties against Se- year abroad in Colom- attle and idaho on Sept. as he is now. ally. Eventually he’d like to earn a master’s bia. additionally, music fi nisher at every event “I’m pushing harder than I have in the degree in nutrition and become a dietician. leading up to october’s 28 and 30, respectively. graduate aaron Carter past. I’m getting really good right now,” he “I want to help people,” he said. “I want Cohn ’11, will spend his waC Championships. The roadrunners later year in Nigeria. claimed their fi rst league noted. “I think this year is going to be a really to be an inspiration to people about how to The fulbrights offer mEN’S GOLF victory on oct. 7 when good year for me.” eat right. And I want to let people know not advanced research, The roadrunners fi nished JEff HUEHN, UTSa aTHlETiCS they posted a 2–1 tri- For this prediction, the senior kinesiology just how to be good athletes but how to be university teaching, and umph at San Jose State. primary and secondary the fall season on a strong Senior Stanton Tondre registered a runner-up showing oct. 16 at the major credits his strict diet of lean meats and good people.” school teaching oppor- note by placing sixth at Lone Star invitational at the hyatt hill country Resort to guide the Roadrunners to seventh place. tunities worldwide.

PaTriCK raY dUNN 14 Sombrilla www.UTSa.EdU fall 2012 Sombrilla 15 Unraveling a Mystery Nearly By Guillermo GArCiA pHotoS CourteSy oF 2,000 years eleAZAr HernÁndeZ before Christ was born, the jungle lowlands of Central America gave birth to a civilization that would introduce the Western Hemisphere to its ﬁ rst fully developed writing system, amazing art and architecture, a complex calendar and a startlingly accurate astronomical system based on precise mathematics that used

the concept of zero. >>

El Castillo in Xunantunich, belize, is one of the 16 Sombrilla www.UTSa.EdU country’s most important archaeological sites and fall 2012 Sombrilla 17 the second tallest building in ancient belize. THE MAYA CLASSIC PERIOD, the civilization’s high-water mark that lasted for more than 600 years, gave rise to cultural and artis- tic achievements and learning that deﬁ ned it as one of the ancient world’s Anthropology assistant professor M. Kathryn Brown walks with children most advanced from the Lacandon indian tribe from the Metzabok village of chiapas in southern Mexico. They had little contact with the outside world before Rachel Vara, one of more than two dozen UTSA students cultures. the 1940s, and there are only between 650 and 1,000 tribe members who participated in the summer fi eld school, clears dirt left. For more than two decades Brown and Jason Yaeger, professor of and debris from around a human bone found at a burial anthropology, have led summer fi eld school digs at Maya sites in the site at Xunantunich. But after six centuries of Mopan River Valley of Belize. PhoTo coURTeSY oF JASon YAeGeR spectacular growth and unpar- alleled achievement, the civilization over the next 100 years was totally transformed as it dealt with jungle bugs and fi re ants, exploring two distinct Maya time mAyA FLOuRISH IN mESOAmERICA The Maya expanded trade routes extending northwest to massive population loss, a reorientation of periods. Around A.D. 200, the Maya, already numbering in the mil- present-day Mexico City and south to Panama. They used the economy and the crumbling of the no- Yaeger’s research focuses on the changing relationships lions, populated a vast area of Mexico’s Yucatan Penin- maize—from which they believed the gods made humans— tion of divine kingship. between two Belizean cities, Xunantunich and Buenavista, sula and Central America within the larger area known and cocoa beans as currency in return for jade, shell orna- How did such a great civilization de- and documenting how competition between the two impact- as Mesoamerica. ments, obsidian and other precious metals. velop in the tropical rain forest, and what ed the people who lived in the nearby countryside during At the civilization’s height, the Maya were busily expand- They were also highly skilled farmers, draining swamps caused the fundamental changes leading the Maya Classic Period, from roughly 250 to 900 A.D. ing a string of powerful city-states containing elegant, elabo- and clearing large tracts of forest for terraced fruit orchards to its collapse? Brown, who earned her M.A. at UTSA in 1995 before rately painted palaces, temples with vaulted ceilings and and gardens in which they grew maize, cacao (chocolate), As with any good scientifi c who-done- completing her doctorate at Southern Methodist University, pyramids, some nearly as tall as the length of a football fi eld. chilies, beans, squash, tomatoes, avocados and pumpkins. it, there is no clear answer. But Jason is heading fi eldwork at Xunantunich as part of the Mopan Remnants of many pyramids are popular tourist sites today. The Maya’s system of government was both earthly and Yaeger, professor of anthropology, and M. Valley Preclassic Project, focusing on a time period starting There are also troves of valuable archaeological sites long divine. They were ruled by men who were considered to Kathryn Brown, assistant professor of an- less than a millennium before Christ. While much is known buried under centuries of earth. be human representations of the gods. Those god-kings thropology, have dedicated their careers about the Classic Period, relatively little is known about the “We have a great deal of information about the Classic used elaborate rituals to display their majesty as they com- to trying to solve the puzzle. Preclassic Period, she explained. Period, but Preclassic buildings are often deeply buried and missioned written records in pottery, stone and elaborately A single catastrophe didn’t cause the Brown remains amazed at the Maya’s ability to build diffi cult to excavate,” Brown said. “Recent research is dis- painted murals to describe their military triumphs and other collapse, Yaeger said. Instead, he points elaborate architecture using simple tools. She noted that like covering that the ancient Maya developed a complex civili- signifi cant events. zation much earlier than we previously thought.” to a combination of culture, climate and many of her students, the archaeology bug bit her during her They paid the price of leadership: during special events, fi rst fi eld experience. One hallmark of the civilization’s complexity was its so- the environment as the likely culprits. the leaders used stingray barbs to cut themselves, drawing For Yaeger, his fascination with the Maya came early in phisticated perception of the passage of time, and of past But the mystery lingers. royal blood to be offered to the deities. That’s one reason the pair has been life, when as a middle-schooler he visited Chichen Itza, one and future. Time was crucial for the Maya, not only to know Brown likes to tell her students that it was a great life to be leading summer excavations in the of the best-known sites in the Mexican Yucatan. when to plant crops, but also to determine the best time to a Maya king—except on bloodletting days. sweatbox known as the Belizean jun- “I was amazed at the massive pyramids, the militaristic art wage war and to make other decisions. The Maya also offered animal and human sacrifi ce, espe- gle. Along with more than two dozen and the hieroglyphic writing, all of which was so different They believed in recurring cycles of creation—and cor- cially children, young women and slaves, but also captured UTSA graduate and undergraduate stu- from anything I experienced as a farm boy growing up in responding destruction—so they plotted and tracked an warrior captains from rival cities, in a constant effort to ap- dents, Yaeger and Brown are working rural Michigan,” he said. era that lasted more than 5,000 years. This calendar, known pease the gods. to dig up clues that may one day un- “Maya civilization is so different from Western civilization as the Long Count, set their creation cycle as having begun They created what they termed “tree stones,” large stone lock ancient secrets. in terms of technology, religion and environment,” Yaeger more than 3,100 years B.C., more than a millennium before As they have for the last two noted. “And yet there are many parallels—archaeologists their fi rst settlements were established along the Mexican slabs known as stelae on which they carved complex hiero- decades, the professors spent this spend their careers understanding the similarities and differ- Pacifi c Coast. The calendar also looked far into the future, glyphic texts about their gods, their mortal leaders, their ge- past summer in the humid Mopan ences among civilizations, which helps us better understand December 2012, when this era ends and the next one begins. nealogy and their military conquests. The slabs were built River Valley, home to jaguars, our species and our own civilization.” The Maya also had an understanding of mathematics that not only to celebrate signifi cant events of the day, but also was more advanced than the Egyptians, Greeks or Romans. for posterity. It allowed them to monitor the movement of the sun, moon, Over the years, archaeologists have poured over rem- stars and planets via the many observatories they built to nants of this lost culture, carefully piecing together bits of bone and slivers of ceramic to fi ll in the blanks of history. >> ceiba trees are common in Belize. Some can grow higher than mark the equinox and solstice. 230 feet, and feature huge buttress roots that can be taller than the average person. The Maya believed the trees connected the underworld, earth and the heavens. fall 2012 Sombrilla 19 unique, like a burial. But for many it is the simple excitement of being the first person in 1,000 years to see a wall or touch a piece of broken pottery that they’ve excavated.” Hernández has his own puzzle. Not far from the burial site lies a large ramp dating from around 600 B.C., one of the first Preclassic ramps to be discovered in Belize. Because of its location, Hernández said it might have served as a meeting point where the population would gather for important festivals. His task is to determine the ramp’s physical dimensions and the possible reason for its construction. While steps at tall buildings and pyramids were commonplace, large ramps are rare at Maya Preclassic sites, Brown said. The Maya did not use wheels for transport, Hernández said. “So why was there such a large ramp there? Was it used to control water flow or to channel water away from the structures during the rainy season? [The questions of] why is it there, what are its dimensions and what sort of purpose did such a structure serve [are what] I will help explore next summer,” he said. Most of the structures that Brown and her students are excavating date from the Preclassic Period. Brown calls Xunantunich “an interesting research location,” because it has a large Preclassic ceremonial center that had been abandoned by A.D. 250. The site was later reoccupied, and a larger, more impressive ceremonial site was constructed in the Late Classic Period just up the hill from the abandoned location. The site is one of the largest Maya ceremonial centers yet discovered in Belize. It also is the country’s longest established archaeological park; Anthropology professor Jason Yaeger with Sebastian Salgado-Flores, a Phd student, the first organized dig there was in the early 20th century, but Europeans at an abandoned Maya shrine in southern Mexico. The shrine is filled with pottery first visited the site in the mid-1800s. The area also contains El Castillo shards. Photo courtesy of M. Kathryn Brown (The Castle), a 43-meter-tall pyramid complex that is the second tallest building in ancient or modern Belize. Student Diggers Brown said Xunantunich was strategically located along important “The more I know about the Maya, the more I am amazed at what they river trade routes that provided a link between some of the ancient Ma- were able to accomplish,” said Eleazar Hernández ’12, first-year anthro- ya’s largest, most important city-states and the Caribbean Sea. pology doctoral student who joined Yaeger and Brown in 2011 and again “River systems were critical for transportation and trade routes,” this summer in Belize. “Their architectural prowess is amazing.” Brown noted. “But also water sources were crucial for planting, and pe- Hernández, who holds a master’s degree in art history with a focus riodic flooding was important, creating good silt that was productive for on the Maya, was invited by Brown to attend the summer field school agriculture.” at Xunantunich after researchers thought they might be on the verge of Brown said she is especially interested in understanding the develop- uncovering a sacred ceremonial mask. ment of public buildings in the area because so few Middle Preclassic “Unfortunately, we did not find a mask, but I did find my future,” pyramids have been excavated, in part because the Maya custom was to Hernández said with a grin. “Once I had the opportunity to see every- build in layers, placing newer structures atop older ones. thing that goes into Maya archaeology, I was hooked. I had only seen One of Brown’s goals at the site is to determine the size and form of Maya architecture and artifacts in books or museums. Now I am front specific structures and to analyze construction techniques used by the and center, excavating and working at a Maya site with people who will ancient architects. Extraordinary mathematicians, they were also profi- be my lifelong friends. Some of us have built up a special bond while we cient engineers, building large rainwater reservoirs and cisterns. are there.” And they did it all without the use of metal tools or beasts of burden, Brown said she became hooked in 1986, when as an undergraduate Brown noted. she participated in uncovering a burial site at San Juan Island, off the coast of Belize. Descendants Remain “Excavating the burial site allowed me to connect with the human Descendants of the Classic Maya still live today scattered over 150,000 side of the ancient Maya past and made me want to learn all that I could square miles in Mexico’s Yucatan as well as in Belize, El Salvador, Gua- about not only the individual, but the society to which he belonged,” temala and Honduras. Roughly 6 million people speak Mayan today. she said. Some Maya eke out a subsistence living, others are merchants and That sense of discovery—being the first to touch something that was manufacturers, while others are government ministers and professors. last touched by Maya hands millennia ago—was renewed this summer. Yet their ancient forefathers were a commanding presence in the As her students painstakingly dusted away dirt, inch by inch, they hit jungles, swamps and mountains of Mesoamerica for nearly 3,000 years, the proverbial archaeologist’s jackpot—a burial site. Two skeletons were from about 1,200 B.C. to the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in the found face down, with the heads facing south. One had a ceramic snuff early part of the 16th century. In fact, the last independent Maya king- bottle in its hand, a personal item of the deceased. dom—Tayasal in Guatemala—wasn’t conquered until 1697. While such critical information as the sex, approximate age and gen- “The Maya is a success story, with regard to human ingenuity,” Brown eral health of the individuals is still being analyzed, it is clear they were said. “They were incredibly adaptive and they tamed and transformed people of some importance because of the location of the burial site. the lowland jungle environment into a productive agricultural landscape “The excitement and awe that our students experienced last summer filled with large and impressive cities.” ignited an interest in archaeology that they will carry forever, whether It is hard to imagine that such an advanced civilization could rise from they become archaeologists or not,” Yaeger said. such a harsh jungle environment, she said—but it did. “Students usually get bitten by the archaeology bug in their first field The Maya not only survived, but also thrived like no other civilization Lotte Jensen (left) and Amy Jennings (right) carefully excavate a burial site experience,” he added. “Sometimes they find something unusual or before—or since. to remove bones that may have been buried for more than 1,000 years. The undergraduate students participated in the month-long UTSA field school at Xunantunich in the Mopan River Valley of Belize.

20 Sombrilla www.utsa.edu Fall 2012 Sombrilla 21 It was Roman dramatist, philosopher and politician Seneca who said that luck is what happens when preparation meets ON TOUGHER TURF opportunity. >> Conference uSA will offer a new set of rivals, traditions and possibilities PATRicK RAY DUnn RAY PATRicK 22 SombrillaBY www.UTSa.EdUDAVID FLORES fall 2012 Sombrilla 23 “The stakes have gone up . . . It’s going to be a ﬁ ght. It’s going to be a climb. It’s going to be a tough transition.

There will be no free lunches.” —football coach larry Coker

eneca walked the Earth centuries before college that conference. The Roadrunners will join C-USA at the start of “That changed the dynamics quickly,” Romo said. “Basically, ured that if we proved ourselves football became virtually a secular religion in the the 2013–14 school year and pay a $2 million membership fee. where they wouldn’t have paid any attention to us for two or and you’re competitive and United States, and long before the dollar’s allure “The stakes have gone up,” Coker said, referring to the FBS three more years, all of a sudden they said, ‘We want you guys.’ you’re recruiting better, I thought changed the landscape of conference alignments competition the Roadrunners will face. “It’s going to be a fi ght. And they came after us. We always thought Conference USA we would be very attractive in five acrossS the country. But if he were alive today, Seneca undoubt- It’s going to be a climb. It’s going to be a tough transition. There would be a great conference for us. We always felt they had the years.” edly would give UTSA a wink and a nod for being prepared will be no free lunches. We’ll be the underdog in a lot of those kind of teams we would want to play. It’s perfect for us because Instead the invitation came with- when Conference USA came knocking at the door of the Road- games. of the geography.” in two years. runners’ fl edgling football program. “It’s going to be a huge challenge for us, but there’s a hunger The three other schools joining UTSA in C-USA football are C-USA Commissioner Britton If anything, the Roadrunners, President Ricardo Romo and for football here. I think we have an affordable ticket to games, North Texas, Florida International and Louisiana Tech, making Banowsky left no doubt about what Athletic Director Lynn Hickey have demonstrated that there’s and the atmosphere at the Alamodome, the tailgating and every- it a 14-team conference. North Texas and Florida International he thought of UTSA and San Anto- nothing as fortuitous as being in the right place at the right time. thing else, has made UTSA football an event.” are departing the Sun Belt Conference, and Louisiana Tech is nio when he welcomed the Road- And standing ready to seize the moment. Conference offi cials could not help but be impressed by leaving the WAC. runners into the conference. “We have people like Dr. Romo and people like Lynn, and the the fact that UTSA set NCAA single-game (56,743) and season- UNC Charlotte and Old Dominion (Virginia) also will join “We’re so impressed by the work community has been so proactive in putting our brand out,” said average (35,521) attendance records for a fi rst-year program. C-USA, but their football teams won’t compete in league play that’s being done at UTSA and UTSA football coach Larry Coker. “It’s like the Conference USA The Roadrunners play their home games at the 65,000-seat until 2015. the community of San Antonio,” people said, ‘Wow, yeah, boy, San Antonio is a great city and Alamodome. Current C-USA schools are Alabama–Birmingham, East Caro- Banowsky said. “I have been in Tex- they’ve got this [Alamodome] and good attendance, and people “The attendance had to catch everybody’s attention,” Coker lina, Marshall, Rice, Southern Mississippi, UT El Paso, Tulane as for a long time, so I know how backing the program.’” said. UTSA would have ranked fi rst in the WAC and second in and Tulsa. dynamic and vibrant that commu- After fi nishing 4–6 in its inaugural season last year as an in- C-USA in average home attendance. While the ante will go up for UTSA, the Roadrunners stand to nity is and how much it has to offer. dependent in the NCAA’s Football Championship Subdivision, UTSA is among four football-playing schools moving to make more money in C-USA than by staying in the WAC because “As we introduced the possibility to the other members in the formerly Division I-AA, UTSA gained membership to a pair of Conference USA in the 2013 season, offsetting the departures of of TV revenue and other payouts. conference, people were really taken aback by the potential Football Bowl Subdivision conferences in an 18-month span. Houston, SMU, Central Florida and Memphis, which are bound “[C-USA] has always had a reputation of keeping athletics and and wonderful opportunity that a relationship with not only the UTSA is on track to become a full-fl edged FBS member in for the Big East. academics prioritized correctly,” Hickey said. “Conference USA city of San Antonio but, more importantly, UTSA, is.” 2014. No other NCAA athletic program has gone from having no Hickey said the move to the new conference will affect all of is a nationally recognized brand, so the opportunities we’re go- Banowsky said San Antonio would be a “wonderful venue” football team to full membership in the FBS, formerly Division UTSA’s 17 sports. ing to have from ESPN, FOX and CBS Sports are going to be a for the C-USA football championship game (Alamodome) or the I-A, in just four years. “This is not just about football,” she said. “We will see in- new way of life for us. league’s postseason basketball tournament (AT&T Center). The Roadrunners accepted an invitation to join the Western creased visibility regionally and nationally, which will help our “When you look at the map, the group of schools that we’re Landing either event would be a boon for San Antonio, which Athletic Conference in November 2010. The offi cial move into recruiting, our fundraising and our branding.” going to be able to compete with will allow our fans to be a part has hosted three Big 12 football championship games. The city the conference was July 1. By then, the Roadrunners had al- Romo said the Big East’s raid into C-USA essentially altered of this. We’re going to have new rivalries, but we’re also going to also has been the site of three NCAA men’s basketball Final ready begun talks with C-USA and accepted an invitation to join the direction of the entire UTSA athletics program. be able to keep some of our old rivalries. It’s a win-win because Fours and two women’s Final Fours. While San Antonio has it’s the best of everything.” been mentioned as a site for C-USA championship events, no se- C-USA will be divided into two divisions, with the winner of rious discussions have been held. Any negotiations would have each meeting in a conference championship game. League of- to be put on hold for at least a year, since UTSA will compete in fi cials haven’t announced the division alignments yet, but UTSA the WAC throughout the 2012–13 school term. is expected to be in the same division with North Texas, Rice, UTSA competed in the Southland Conference from 1991 until UT El Paso, Tulsa, Louisiana Tech and Tulane. the end of the 2011–12 school year. While UTSA won’t start C- UTSA safety Mauricio Sanchez, a sophomore who graduated USA play until next year, Coker said the Roadrunners already from Warren High School in San Antonio, said the Roadrunners’ are benefi tting from being associated with a bigger conference. quick rise to the FBS ranks has given them a sense of urgency. “There’s no doubt that it’s raised our profi le and it’s made a “It’s a big challenge, but that’s what champions are made of,” difference in our recruiting,” Coker said. Sanchez said. “You have to have a goal in place and do whatever Coker, who led Miami to the 2001 Bowl Championship Series it takes to reach it. We’ve been working hard because we know national title, said he had never seen the landscape of college we’ll be going against tougher competition.” football change as drastically as it did during this offseason. While Coker expressed surprise that a conference invitation That Texas A&M would leave the Big 12, and rival Texas, to de- came so quickly, he said UTSA’s preparation and the lure of San fect to the Southeastern Conference was inconceivable just a Antonio and the Alamodome accelerated the Roadrunners’ as- few years ago. But that was before the dominoes started falling cent to the FBS. and conference realignments trumped decades of tradition. “Five years is kind of the magic figure,” he said. “I fig- “I could never imagine an A&M going to the SEC or a Missouri going to the SEC,” Coker said. “Then you’ve got West Virginia Cross country (left) and volleyball (top right) are among the 17 sports coming to the Big 12. It’s really been unbelievable. It’s really left programs at UTSa that will join C-USa. an opening for us.” PHoToS bY JEff HUEHN And UTSA was ready to fi ll it. >>

fall 2012 Sombrilla 25 MARSHALL UNIVERSITY OLD DOMINION

EAST CAROLINA UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF TULSA

THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHARLOTTE

LOUISIANA TECH THE UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA OF NORTH TEXAS AT BIRMINGHAM

UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI

RICE UNIVERSITY

TULANE UNIVERSITY

FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY THE RETURNING CLASSMEN: THE NEW CLASSMEN: CONFERENCE EAST CAROLINA UNIVERSITY TULANE UNIVERSITY Each new member will join the league in all sports for 2013. The metro area population LoCAtion: Greenville, N.C. LoCAtion: New Orleans, La. of the newcomers, including UTSA, is nearly 18 million. enroLLment: 27,816 enroLLment: 11,911 THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA CoLorS: Blue and red SPortS ProGrAmS: 12 mASCot: Pirates mASCot: Green Wave AT CHARLOTTE In 2011, the football team won the WAC mASCot: Big Blue CoLorS: Purple and gold CoLorS: Olive green and sky blue MEMBERS LoCAtion: Charlotte, N.C. Championship and participated in the CoLorS: Slate blue, silver, Cerulean blue enroLLment: 25,063 Poinsettia Bowl. The women’s basketball Old Dominion is responsible for 32 team MARSHALL UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF TULSA SPortS ProGrAmS: 16 team has participated in 27 NCAA and individual national championships. LoCAtion: Huntington, W. Va. LoCAtion: Tulsa, Okla. mASCot: 49ers Tournaments, advancing to 13 Final Fours, Old Dominion accepted membership enroLLment: 13,814 enroLLment: 4,100 2013-14 CoLorS: Green and white playing in eight national championship into C-USA effective July 1, 2013. With the mASCot: Thundering Herd mASCot: Golden Hurricanes Football will begin competition play in games and winning three national titles. exception of football, all of the universi- CoLorS: Green and white CoLorS: Old gold, royal 2013, with a full conference schedule in ty’s teams compete at the Division I level. blue and crimson the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision. THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS RICE UNIVERSITY LoCAtion: Denton, Texas THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT SAN ANTONIO ROADRUNNER SPORTS LoCAtion: Houston, Texas UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY enroLLment: 35,694 enroLLment: 30,474 UTSA competes in 17 men’s and women’s sports: enroLLment: 5,760 AT BIRMINGHAM LoCAtion: Miami, Fla. SPortS ProGrAmS: 16 SPortS ProGrAmS: 17 mASCot: Owls LoCAtion: Birmingham, Ala. enroLLment: 48,000 BASEBALL SOCCER mASCot: Mean Green Eagle mASCot: Roadrunners CoLorS: Blue and gray enroLLment: 17,543 SPortS ProGrAmS: 18 CoLorS: Green and white CoLorS: Orange and blue BASKETBALL SOFTBALL mASCot: Blazers mASCot: Panthers The $78 million Apogee Stadium opened In their fi rst season of football in 2011, the CROSS COUNTRY TENNIS UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CoLorS: Forest green and CoLorS: Blue and gold in 2011. UNT has approximately 336,000 Roadrunners averaged 35,521 attend- FOOTBALL TRACK & FIELD MISSISSIPPI old gold It is one of the fastest-growing universities LoCAtion: Hattiesburg, Miss. living alumni, with 216,000 living in the ees for their games at the Alamodome. GOLF VOLLEYBALL in the United States. enroLLment: 16,000 UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO Dallas-Fort Worth area. UTSA is an NCAA Division I program in mASCot: Golden Eagles LoCAtion: El Paso, Texas LOUISIANA TECH UNIVERSITY a market that reaches more than 880,000 CoLorS: Black and gold enroLLment: 22,000 LoCAtion: Ruston, La. OLD DOMINION television households and has more than LoCAtion: Norfolk, Va. 1.8 million people aged 12 or older living Web Extra: mASCot: Miners enroLLment: 11,743 Who should be the next big Texas rivals? Go to CoLorS: Dark blue and orange SPortS ProGrAmS: 16 enroLLment: 24,466 in the greater metropolitan region. utsa.edu/sombrilla/rivals to read what people are saying. with silver accent mASCot: Bulldogs

26 Sombrilla www.UTSa.EdU fall 2012 Sombrilla 27 Back Shed Startup ! “When you hear the Lifesaving technology born out of dissertation name Taiwan, sometimes do you think of By lety lAurel Thailand instead? No? That’s because of our ordan Kaufmann does all her work in a nondescript You have to jump on it while it’s there. So I fi gured, why not?” hard work in the past shed in her backyard. Shortly after she got her doctorate, Kaufmann won the half century so now J Fully equipped with an air conditioner and a fan, the University of Texas Horizon Fund Student Investment Com- people know Taiwan. shed has everything Kaufmann believes she needs to create petition, which provided $50,000 in seed funding for devel- Only 23 countries recog- the next generation of cardiovascular stent-grafts that may oping TESAR. nize Taiwan as its own someday save lives. With the money, she is working in her shed to get the busi- country and all of them “I fi gure if all those software startups can begin in a ga- ness off the ground. Her next goal is to get the technology are small countries. rage, this one can start in a shed in my backyard,” she joked. into humans. One hundred and sixty In May, Kaufmann launched Cardiovate, a technology “If we can do that, I will mark that as a success,” she said. something countries startup that will create the stent-grafts to prevent post-sur- “If we can get anything past that, I will be ecstatic.” don’t recognize us, so gery aneurysm leakage. Kaufmann is working with College of Engineering Dean Kaufmann, who received her Ph.D. in biomedical engi- Mauli Agrawal and Steven Bailey, division chief for cardiol- we’re both a country neering from UTSA in 2012, was sitting at breakfast one day ogy in the School of Medicine of UT Health Science Center and we’re not a country, in 2007, brainstorming dissertation topics with her profes- San Antonio, to refi ne the manufacturing of TESAR. but we are doing very sors, when the subject of aneurysms came up. They expect to make the product available for licensing well as a semi-country.” There are shortcomings in the current technology, they in 2013. Ideally, it would then be available for use in vascular —daniel Liao, TAiPei DiRec- realized. Stent-grafts are tubes supported by metal mesh surgery after federal government evaluation. ToR GeneRAL AnD AMBASSA- that are inserted into arteries, most commonly to support “It could be on the market in fi ve years,” said Agrawal, DoR at a Sept. 12 lecture hosted areas that have weakened, or aneurysms. Those that treat adding that the marketing of the technology will depend on by the East Asia Institute aneurysms can migrate. Blood travels around them, which regulatory agencies in different countries around the world. can cause the aneurysm to rupture, leading to death. “So much technology dies coming out of the university,” So why not create a stent-graft that will encourage tissue Kaufmann said. “You did all this work, you have fi ve or six by THE NumbERS growth? years of your life spent on this one little thing and then it “We looked at it from a tissue-engineering perspective,” doesn’t go anywhere. But to be able to say, ‘Hey, it’s got a 2,136 she said. shot of being able to go somewhere,’ that’s pretty cool.” record number of A typical graft is inserted into the artery and latches on But the plan could still fail, which is something she admits international students with barbs pitted into the artery wall. But Kaufmann decid- scares her. enrolled in fall 2012. They represent 85 countries. ed to see what would happen if she brought the wall to the “Most startups fail,” she said. “You have the odds stacked graft, coaxing tissue development between the two. against you. They fail for some random thing that you never It took almost six years to create a unique scaffold to pro- saw coming and you have no control over. It’s a little scary mote tissue formation. Called a tissue-engineering scaffold that you can put all this [time and effort] into it and it can for aneurysm repair (TESAR), it builds a tissue barrier be- all fall apart.” tween the blood and the graft after it is implanted. Once the But Agrawal doesn’t think that’s going to happen. scaffold is in place, the aneurysm stops expanding and the “Jordan is an example of the new breed of UTSA engi- risk of rupture decreases. neering student. She is highly intelligent, innovative and mo- After new tissue is in place, the scaffold degrades and is tivated,” he said. “I am confi dent she will make Cardiovate safely reabsorbed by the body. successful and, most importantly, take this technology to “It was a very long process to get here,” Kaufmann said. the folks who need it—the patients.” It wasn’t until after the animal studies came back with Kaufmann is used to taking chances. She has always pre- better results than traditional grafts that she allowed her- ferred getting involved with projects from their inception. //in BrieF// self to celebrate. “I think you get to do a lot more that way. I like projects “I thought, hey, this might actually be something. It was that I can start instead of jumping on someone else’s.” another First Yvonne Katz ’74, a pretty cool.” A lover of puzzles and problem solving, she knew from former school super- Her dissertation completed, she decided to turn the tech- an early age that her future would involve engineering. But intendent who earned nology she had developed into a business. it was watching a classmate in elementary school who was her master’s degree in “Everybody graduates and then works for some big com- unable to run with her friends because of juvenile arthritis UTSa’s fi rst graduating class, has made a $1 pany. That’s the recommended way of doing things, to go to that had her thinking about medical technology. million commitment work for somebody and learn the ropes and then go do it “I started thinking, how can we get her to where she can to support the offi ce yourself,” she said. “But I thought the opportunity was there, run without hurting?” she said. “I don’t think it occurred to of alumni Programs and if you let technology sit for too long, it becomes obsolete. me until years later that that was my fi rst inclination that I and students who are pursuing careers could do something in this fi eld.” in education. UTSa What drives Kaufmann is the knowledge that she can oPPosiTe: Jordan Kaufmann, Ph.d. ’12, transformed her dis- will dedicate the dr. sertation topic into Cardiovate, a technology startup that will have a lasting effect on someone’s life. Yvonne Katz alumni create stent-grafts to prevent post-surgery aneurysm leakage. “It’s this idea that you can have an impact, whether it is Center later this year making something for a friend who can’t run or something to celebrate the nearly four decades of sup- inseT: Called a tissue-engineering scaffold for aneurysm like I’m doing now for aneurysms,” she said. “It’s kind of unitinG our Alumni repair (TESar), it builds a tissue barrier between the blood port she has given to commuNITy and the graft. neat to be able to have that infl uence and be able to do UTSa. something.”

fall 2012 Sombrilla 29 MARK MccLenDon MARK community

//in brief// From Labs to class notes the Market has joined Fossil Exhibits Taking research find- 1975 International, a trade show and ings observed in labo- \\ EMILY CAMILLE INESS, event marketing firm, as lead ratories in San Antonio M.A. in bicultural-bilingual creative manager. and turning them into education, and a children’s \\ TODD JOYNER, B.B.A. in drugs to treat disease book author and retired management, is president and is the focus of the Center for Innovation educator, has penned Pongo the CEO of Great Northern Project in Drug Discovery be- Brave River Cat, Pongo el Gato Development, LLC in Houston. ing built at both UTSA Valiente del Rio. \\ BARCLAY C. TRIMBLE, and the UT Health B.B.A. in accounting, has been Science Center San appointed as superintendent for Antonio. 1980 the Outer Banks Group—Cape Doug E. Frantz and \\ SYLVIA REYNA, Hatteras National Seashore, Stanton McHardy in M.A. in education, Wright Brothers National the UTSA Depart- has been named Memorial and Fort Raleigh ment of Chemistry are chief of school National Historic Site. building a medicinal chemistry core facility leadership for the in laboratories on the Dallas Indepen- 1991 Main Campus. dent School Dis- \\ Ruben MICHAEL “Several top- trict after serving FLORES, B.A. in political tier universities have as chief of admin- science, was named president of established centers istration for the Palo Alto College by the Alamo dedicated to the Colleges Board of Trustees. discovery and develop- Fort Worth Inde- ment of new drugs that pendent School will treat devastating District. human diseases,” said 1992 Frantz, whose vision \\ CARL MUNIZ, B.B.A. in was a driving force in 1981 accounting, is the controller the center’s formation. \\ JOE IZBRAND, B.A. in at Bartlett Cocke general “The most successful political science, has been hired contractors in San Antonio. of these enterprises as the chief communications Patrick Ray Dunn have included faculty officer at UTSA. and research staff who 1994 bring pharmaceutical \\ JOHN ENGATES, B.B.A. Dishing it Up industry experience to in accounting, chief technology the table.” 1982 \\ JOHN P. McMURRAY, officer of Rackspace in San Letty Holmbo, E.M.B.A. ’04 Patrick Ray Dunn M.B.A. in business, has been Antonio, delivered the Day 2 appointed to the Vericrest keynote address at the 11th Letty Holmbo knows her cleaning up than she did that loves all kinds of jobs Financial Inc. advisory board. International Cloud Expo way around a kitchen. On cooking. and ideas,” she said. She Honorable service conference in Santa Clara, Calif. a recent Tuesday, she flitted “My daughter, she’s a also loves mentoring peo- \\ LORENA GONZALEZ, around a mini-kitchen on superwoman,” said her ple who are interested in Kim D. Denver, B.A. ’88 M.A. in bicultural/bilingual the set of San Antonio’s CBS mother, Georgina Stewart. nutrition and dietetics. 1985 studies, is the Urban Strategies It was Kim D. Denver’s 45th birth- He has overseen contracts for ma- the opportunity came.” \\ ELLEN BROOKER, B.A. in affiliate news show,Great “I don’t know how she does Holmbo’s passion for nu- history, was honored as the 2012 Director of National Hispanic day. He was on his ninth day at his jor weapons systems, base logistics Opportunity arrived in the form Day SA, giving instructions everything.” trition was recently recog- Dynamic Woman of the Year at Initiatives, and received the new job in Washington, D.C. and support, construction and wartime of an internship with the Army a Chickasaw Nation Arts and 2012 Inspiration Award at the on how to prepare the per- Indeed, Holmbo juggles nized by Today’s Dietician, delivering his first testimony before operational contracting in Iraq and right after Denver graduated from Culture Awards ceremony in San Antonio Hispanic Chamber fect pork tenderloin and being a mom of three—the which named her one of Congress. Afghanistan. UTSA with a B.A. in business admin- Oklahoma in October. of Commerce’s 3rd Annual chutney. youngest, Aaron, is a year the top 10 dieticians in the Women’s Awards Luncheon. by the numbers “If you ever thought about cram- “Testifying before Congress is an istration in 1988. The internship led While the pork sizzled, old—with her full-time job country. ming for a test or studying for a final, honor,” he said. “It’s a humbling ex- to a career in contracting in Arkan- Holmbo explained the ben- as culinary corporate di- She graduated from Taft this was [like] that to some exponen- perience. It’s something that I would sas and Florida, and then, in 2008, 1986 efits of eating beets. Two etitian for H-E-B Grocery High School in San Anto- 5th \\ BRIAN ST. JOHN, M . F. A . 1995 tial power,” he said. have never thought I’d be doing.” to a job with the U.S. Army Corps UTSA’s national ranking in art, has been named the \\ CHRIS HUMAN, B.B.A. in of her children, Ashton, 6, in San Antonio. She devel- nio and earned a bachelor for the number of Denver, who was appointed a year Denver grew up on the Southeast of Engineers. Two years later, San Antonio Art League’s accounting, has been named and Isabella, 8, watched on ops recipes for company- of science degree in nutri- undergraduate degrees ago as deputy assistant secretary of side of San Antonio. After graduat- he was appointed to his current posi- Artist of the Year for 2012, the vice president/commercial loan nearby bleachers in the stu- wide marketing materials, tion from the University of awarded to Hispanics, the Army for procurement, has now ing from Highlands High School, he tion. organization’s centennial year. officer for Southwest Securities dio with their grandmother. such as My Texas Life. She the Incarnate Word. Later, according to FSB’s San Antonio office. The Hispanic testified twice before Congress about enrolled at UTSA. He worked at two “It certainly is a challenging posi- Her kids are the inspira- also oversees corporate she earned her Executive Outlook in Higher contract oversight in Afghanistan. local banks while attending school, tion, but I would tell you that it has tion for many of her reci- nutrition programs, does M.B.A. from UTSA. Education Magazine In his role, he manages the Army’s and thought his future career would been an honor knowing that I would 1987 pes. Holmbo makes sure occasional TV spots, and “I always loved cooking, \\ LAURA LOZANO, B.S. in 1997 procurement mission, which last be in business or law. be able to make an impact across the \\ ROB KILLEN, B.A. in political to tell the audience that her develops programs for and I love food, so I fig- by the numbers mechanical engineering and year included nearly 470,000 con- “I can remember at the earliest Army and also on behalf of our tax- M.B.A. ’98 from Our Lady of the science, and his wife Melissa, are son created the day’s fea- community nutrition out- ured, why not?” she said. tracts and awards valued at more age, I clearly wanted to be in lead- payers, too,” he said. Lake University, has been named the parents of Emily Caitlin Killen, tured beverage, hibiscus reach efforts. Outside of “What I really love about who was born in May. 7th than $125 billion, or about 23 percent ership in some capacity,” he said. “I “You can serve in many careers business director of border lemonade. H-E-B, she provides nutri- being a dietician is the ver- \\ PETE PEREZ, M.S. in national rank among security and State of Texas for of total federal spending. He directs treated every day like I was building and never be able to have the op- environmental management, In minutes the live broad- tion consultation for the Au- satility in whatever you do. Hispanic Serving Motorola Solutions. the evaluation, measurement and my résumé. Whether it was in school portunity to serve in this capacity. has been named acting director cast is over, and Holmbo, tism Treatment Center and You can find whatever fits Institutions for having eight improvement of more than 270 Army or in my job or profession, I wanted So that’s why I say it’s certainly an of the Regional Business hair falling out of a po- volunteers at her church. your personality and your undergraduate alumni contracting offices worldwide. to make sure I was ready whenever honor.”—Lety Laurel Directorate for the U.S. Army nytail, spends more time “I’m one of those people family.”—Lety Laurel serving as Peace Corps 1989 Corps of Engineers Southwestern volunteers \\ ROLAND BENAVIDES, B.F.A. in art and design, Division. >>

30 Sombrilla www.utsa.edu Fall 2012 Sombrilla 31 commuNITy \\ mArVin e. WAlKer, B.S. in kinesiology, has been named assistant coach for the Binghamton University women’s basketball team in New York. 1998 \\ niCK JoHnSon, B. A . in psychology, is the owner //in BrieF// of Alibi’s Sports and Spirits Water, Water, bar at Sunset Station in San anywhere? Antonio. Nearly 600 million people around the world face a water 2004 shortage. That \\ Andy WAltmAn, number is expected to B.A. in communication, is dramatically increase. vice president at VIP Staffi ng So nearly three dozen and is on the board of UTSa researchers directors of the San Antonio will collaborate on Manufacturing Association. water-related issues under the aegis of UTSa’s new water 2005 institute of Texas. \\ moiSeS CruZ, B. S. They will provide in civil engineering, and data, information dieGo GorGAZZi, B. S. PATRicK RAY DUnn and technology, and in civil engineering ’02, policy solutions for recently started their fi rm, A-1 decision makers and TAKinG The heLM companies developing Engineering LLC, to provide short- and long-term structural engineering briAn WooDS, m.A. ’88, eD.D. ’12 water sustainability services in San Antonio and strategies. South Texas. In some ways, Brian Woods is student needs. side superintendent John “Typically, we think \\ dereK SCHriVer, just like any other parent. Being at the helm has its Folks, who is now a senior of water shortages B.B.A. in accounting, M.S. He wonders whether his challenges, but they aren’t lecturer in the UTSA College in accounting ’07, along as problems that af- 8-year-old son is getting an unique to his district, he said. of Education and Human De- fect only third-world with CHriS CArmonA, countries,” said mauli B.B.A. in accounting ’02, appropriate education or is School districts across the velopment. agrawal, dean of the have started a CPA fi rm in just being taught what’s need- state took a signifi cant hit af- “Education today is an espe- College of Engineer- San Antonio called Schriver ed to pass a test. ter the Texas Legislature cut cially complicated business ing. “However, water Carmona Carrera PLLC. He thinks about whether $5.4 billion out of public edu- with all the accountability and scarcity is a major issue for South Texas, his son gets enough exposure cation last year. As a result, testing and school fi nance [is- where the land is arid 2006 to music and other creative Northside reduced its budget sues],” Folks said. But Woods and the population \\ lAurenn GArCiA, elective courses, and about by $61.4 million and eliminat- has intelligence, common continues to grow. B.B.A. in accounting, M.S. whether he is learning to be a ed almost 1,000 positions. sense and strong communi- locally, farmers, city in accounting ’07, is now at residents, businesses, team player. The district stands to lose cation and decision-making Phillips 66 in Houston. energy producers, the But unlike most parents, even more if a federal budget abilities, he added. oil and gas industry \\ AleXAnder SAmmonS, B. S. in Woods, superintendent of stalemate results in across- Woods, who got his start and natural species all San Antonio’s Northside In- the-board cuts as part of a teaching social studies in vie for water, leading chemistry, and chief to a unique spectrum technology offi cer at dependent School District, federal defi cit-reduction deal. 1992, never imagined he’d be ENRICHING EXPERIENCES of technological, social Soloshot Inc., noted that the state’s fourth largest, sees “For a superintendent, when superintendent. His training and political issues.” the San Antonio startup has his concerns multiplied by al- you talk about the things that through UTSA’s educational Mauricio Sanchez created an automatic, robotic most 100,000. you have to worry about, leadership program prepared San Antonio cameraman to allow for hands-free fi lming. Still, his goal is straightfor- budget and fi nance are in the him to tackle the job, he said. Game Changers Business Major ward—high-quality educa- top two or three in any con- Now that he is leading Future Coach tion for all. versation,” Woods said. The Northside, he will be busy Mauricio Sanchez, a first-generation college student from San Antonio, was recruited 2010 “Across all the dozens of vast majority of Northside’s tackling fi nance problems, by other universities in Texas, but he knew that being part of the first UTSA Football \\ JoHn pAtriCK ways that we measure stu- budget—87 percent—goes to keeping the quality of edu- SmitH, B.S. in biology, team, in his hometown, could, in his words, “be something special.” has joined the staff of San dent performance, we want staff. “So when you’re talking cation high and advocating Antonio-based The Playhouse to keep making progress. about big cuts, it impacts your for public education. But the “This community has given me big–time support,” he says. “I get to play a sport I love as a scenic technician. We want to have success,” ability to keep people on who driving force behind all his and focus on getting a good education. Being at UTSA has changed my life and I am he said. help kids, and it impacts our actions is clear: “You have to When Woods accepted ability to do those things that make the most of what you blessed to have this support.” 2012 the superintendent’s post are above and beyond what have, you do absolutely what \\ JeSSiCA BAtteS, M.F.A. Through the We Are UTSA—A Top-Tier Campaign, the university is seeking funds to build this summer, he inherited a the state requires.” you think is in the best inter- in art, has an exhibition of facilities that Mauricio and his teammates—along with athletes from all 17 Division I new works combining cloth school district with a boom- But if there is anyone who est of the students as your pri- and clay at the Blue Star ing population, a shrinking can tackle these challenges, ority in decision making.” teams—need to ensure their success on the field. Slated for a new athletic complex are Contemporary Art Center in budget and a wide variety of it’s Woods, said former North- —LETY LAUREL urgently needed competition and practice venues for track and field, soccer, baseball, San Antonio. softball, tennis and football. Such facilities will ensure UTSA remains competitive with new conference peers. Community investment will make the facilities a reality.

Make an investment in UTSA today. Visit WeAreUTSA.com today to learn more. We are opportunity. We are progress. We Are UTSA. 32 Sombrilla www.UTSa.EdU

12-20250 Sombrilla Mauricio Ad FINAL 02.indd 1 10/30/12 2:10 PM The university of texas Non-Profit Org at san antonio US Postage One Utsa Circle San Antonio, Texas, 78249 Paid San Antonio, TX Permit No. 2474

NOW & THEN Jean Schnitz, former president of the Texas Folklore Society, has performed at the annual Texas Folklife Festival since 1981. The festival, held at the UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures, marked its 41st anniversary this summer.