GO COOGS! 713-GO COOGS for More UH Events: 2009-10 Basketball Schedule
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0073040572 NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 5910 UNIVERSITY ADVANCEMENT HOUSTON, TEXAS 306 McELHINNEY HALL HOUSTON, TEXas 77204-5035 CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED Get Your Tickets Today! GO COOGS! 713-GO COOGS www.uh.edu/athletics For more UH events: www.uh.edu/calendar 2009-10 BASKEtbALL SCHEDULE 12/06 vs. Texas A&M- 01/09 vs. Tulsa TV 02/16 @ UCF TV Corpus Christi 01/13 vs. UTEP 02/20 @ UAB 12/14 vs. Troy 01/16 @ East Carolina 02/24 vs. Memphis 12/19 vs. Mississippi State TV 01/20 vs. UCF 02/27 @ SMU 12/21 vs. The Citadel 01/23 @ Memphis TV 03/03 vs. Rice 12/23 vs. TCU 01/30 vs.Marshall TV 03/06 @ Tulane 12/29 @ Louisiana Tech 02/03 @ UTEP TV 01/01 @ UTSA 02/06 vs. Southern Miss TV 01/03 @ Iowa State 02/09 @ Western Kentucky 01/06 @ Rice TV 02/13 vs. SMU Tell us what you think: www.uh.edu/magazine At The University of Houston Magazine, our goal is to create a publication you’ll be proud to receive, read and share with others. Your involvement as an engaged reader is critical to our success. As we strive to continue to improve the magazine, we want to hear from you. Please help us by going online at www.uh.edu/survey to take a brief survey about your thoughts on The UH Magazine. We want to know whether you prefer the print or the online edition, what sections you most enjoy, what sections you don’t prefer and suggested improvements for our online edition. We look forward to hearing your ideas. THE U NIVER SI T Y OF FALL 2009 HOUSTON Magazine 02/16 @ UCF 02/20 @ UAB 02/24 vs. Memphis 02/27 @ SMU 03/03 vs. Rice One Step Closer 03/06 @ Tulane to Tier One • innovative research • academic excellence • top-notch faculty p. 14 CAMPUS EVOLUTION: TRANSFORMING THE CAMPUS LANDSCAPE p. 4 THE U NIVER SI T Y OF HOUSTON Magazine FALL 2009, VOL. 4, NO. 1 PUBLISHERS Michael Rierson Vice President for University Advancement Karen Clarke Associate Vice President for University Relations EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF UNIVERSITY MARKETING & BRANDING (Interim) Elisa Crossland ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF MARKETING Liz Selig MANAGING EDITOR Jo Anne Davis-Jones (’79) GRAPHIC DESIGN Watson Riddle / Chris Adams CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Richard Bonnin Mike Emery Kelli Ferrell Eric Gerber (’72, M.A. ’78) Oscar Gutiérrez (’67) Michelle Hillen Angela Hopp (’00) Lisa Merkl (’92, M.A. ’97) Marisa Ramirez (’00) PHOTOGRAPHERS Thomas Campbell Pathik Shah Tom Shea, Cullen College of Engineering Cover Photo: Science and Engineering Research and Classroom Complex CHANCElloR AND PRESIDENT Renu Khator UNIVERSITY of HoUSTON SySTEM BOARD OF REGENTS Welcome W. Wilson Sr. (’49), Chairman ture atrium Jim P. Wise (’66), Vice Chairman C Nelda Blair (J.D. ’82), Secretary ite Nandita Venkateswarran Berry (J.D. ’95) ch r Tilman J. Fertitta a Jarvis V. Hollingsworth (J.D. ’93) of Kristen Lindley e G Jacob Monty (J.D. ’93) Mica Mosbacher Carroll Robertson Ray (J.D. ’02) Send address and e-mail updates to: University of Houston Colle . Hines Donor and Alumni Records d 306 McElhinney Hall Houston, Texas 77204-5035 www.uh.edu/magazine Send feedback to: [email protected] The University of Houston Magazine is published by | Gerald the UH Division of University Advancement. O The University of Houston is an EEO/AA institution. T 9593 | 11.2009 | 75,000 TheCopyright University © 2009 of Houston by the University Magazine of H ouston.| 4 PHO Message from the President As we near the end of the fall 2009 semester, the the most significant in terms of construction in UH University of Houston campus — both literally and history — doubling any previous decade. figuratively — is a changed place. The intangibles can’t be seen or touched, but they are real Since 2000, we also have renovated more than nevertheless. Foremost, there is a campuswide feeling 919,000 square feet, or more than 15 percent of the of celebration stemming from the twin legislative entire campus, and we have more than 541,000 successes related to our drive to attain Tier-One status. square feet of existing space scheduled to be renovated in the next two to three years. Including The tangible changes are seen all across campus. Calhoun Lofts, we now have housing for 5,208 The East Parking Garage that popped up seemingly students. By the time phase one of the undergraduate overnight during the summer opened for business in housing facility on Wheeler is completed, the total September. Work is well under way on phase one of students in residential housing will climb to 6,294. the undergraduate residential housing on Wheeler, Phase two, to be built adjacent to the phase one scheduled to open next summer. And Cemo Hall, facility, will bring the grand total to 7,294. the second building for the Bauer College of Business, soon will be finished. Then, our goal of housing 25 percent of our students on campus and in affiliated housing — approximately The ribbon-cutting ceremony to symbolically open 10,000 students — will be closer to reality, transforming Calhoun Lofts, UH’s premier housing development for the University of Houston into a new kind of urban mostly graduate and professional students, was held residential campus commensurate with our soon-to-be in August. Several hundred students already are Tier-One status. living there. As the campus changes all around us, and as we The complexity and speed of campus construction celebrate a spectacular 2009 in terms of enrollment, during the past few years, especially during the past research grants and awards and fundraising, I can few months, is nothing short of remarkable. Let me repeat with great conviction the new UH slogan share some facts with you. launched on the first week of the fall semester — “You are the Pride!” Prior to 2000, the total square footage of our buildings was under 6.1 million. Since that date, we have increased our usable space for classrooms, labs and study halls by almost 30 percent, making this decade Renu Khator For the past several months, I have had the privilege of working with some of the most esteemed leaders in Texas, including former Lt. Gov. Bill Hobby, the Greater Houston egents Partnership and others, to help support the effort to increase r the number of Tier One universities in our state, including the University of Houston. The opportunity to establish the National Research University Fund — a constitutionally dedicated fund available to the state’s seven emerging research universities — is a rare chance to provide a pathway for steady funding that would help elevate UH. NRUF would provide funding similar to that which has raised Texas A&M University and The University of essage from the Texas at Austin to Tier One status. Creating more research m powerhouses among our state’s universities would undoubtedly change the landscape of higher education in Texas forever. The University of Houston already meets several criteria necessary to be ranked Tier One. Key among those is a university’s amount of research expenditures. While we Photo by Pam Francis are ahead of the pack in this category among the seven universities, we still need to double our research expenditures Creating more research to about $150 million a year. The NRUF will help UH attain that powerhouses among our goal in four to five years and qualify for the Tier One ranking. state’s universities would At UH, research is the principal, but by no means the only beneficiary of this fund. Academic programs, student success undoubtedly change and — in the long run — the value of a UH degree will be enhanced by the ripple effect that will flow from the Tier One the landscape of higher designation. For the local and state economies, the benefits are more tangible. Economists estimate that every $10 million education in Texas forever. in research expenditures creates 334 new jobs, adds $8.6 million to the regional economy and generates $13.5 million in local sales. I was privileged to travel to Austin many times during the last legislative session, along with Chairman Welcome W. Wilson, Sr. and Chancellor Renu Khator, to present our case for Tier One funding. I look forward to continuing to work with them and other state leaders as the university continues to advance toward its goal of becoming a nationally competitive Tier One university. Nelda Blair (J.D. ’82) Secretary UH System Board of Regents The University of Houston Magazine | 2 Inside 4 Building Boom Transforms UH Landscape Campus Evolution — THE MakingS of A Tier-One Campus 8 Igniting Creativity and Innovation UH Arts Programs Have Local, National and Global Connections 14 No Matter How You Spell It, TRIP & NRUF Bring UH Closer to Tier One HOUSTON’S UNIVERSITY IS READY FOR THE CHALLENGE 20 New Energy Research Park Energizes March to Tier One Land ACQuisition Opens Doors to New Partnerships 14 IN every issue 1 Message from the President 2 Message from the Regents 13 Community Connections 17 Making an Impact 22 Faculty Honors 4 8 20 24 Play-by-Play 26 Giving Matters www.uh.edu/magazine 3 | www.uh.edu/magazine Building Boom volution e Transforms UH Landscape FRom THE VERY BEGINNING, THE UNIVERSITY of HoUSTON HAS followED Campus Two PRINCIplES: MAXIMIZE EXISTING RESOURCES, WHILE STRIVING foR INNOVATION. by Michelle Hillen The University of Houston Magazine | 4 Campus evolution Before the first brick was laid for the university’s first building, the 110 swampy acres donated Building Boom for the permanent campus had to be drained and landscaped by 250 part-time national Youth Administration Workers.