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The University of Texas at Arlington Magazine The University of Texas at Arlington Magazine SPRING 2017 Brilliant Impact Alumnus and senior lecturer Carlos Donjuan colors everyday journeys PAGE 40 SPRING 2017 DEPARTMENTS 3 Campus Buzz IT’S A BIRD! IT’S A PLANE! See the most popular photo in 5 the Fort Worth Star-Telegram ar- Mav Roundup chives, housed in UTA Libraries’ Special Collections. PAGE 19 SPRING 2017 7 Postcard 8 Well Read Contents 11 Talk FEATURES 12 Scene 15 Crash Course 16 Chat 16 Gallery 18 Collected 21 Top Prof 22 Sporting Mavs 51 Class Notes SOLAR STORMS When space weather flares, UTA 55 researchers Extra! Extra! Serving Those Beyond the Stars Local Color are there. In Memoriam Who Served PAGE 34 Get an inside look at Research at UTA runs the Carlos Donjuan, senior The Shorthorn, a training UTA puts veterans first. gamut from the smallest lecturer and alumnus of ground for generations of Read about how the cell to distant planets. the Department of Art journalism excellence. University became No. 1 in Here, we explore the re- and Art History, shares his Texas for serving veterans search that’s being done work and his vision for 56 and their dependents. beyond the stars. more vibrant, connected The Explainer communities. ii The University of Texas at Arlington Magazine PHOTO BY NASA Spring 2017 1 Editor’s Letter Follow UTA Magazine Connect with UTA on Facebook at across all social media facebook.com/ channels with the utamagazine. handle @utarlington. The University of Texas at Arlington I have the best Magazine section! The VOL. XL MavBrass saxes f you’vE followEd the course SPRING 2017 are having a great CAMPUS BUZZ of your alma mater over the last few #UTArlington men looking EDITOR years, you’ve seen the rising trajec- Amber Scott time cheering tory. You’ve probably heard some good at halftime of the #NIT ART DIRECTOR on the teams! key phrases—and read them right Brody Price #foreverarlington tournament @collegepark here in this magazine: Carnegie ASSISTANT EDITOR #sunbelt Classification R-1 “highest research Jessica Bridges —@curviehawkins activity.” Fifth in the nation for diversity. —@eyeswithpridesir I EDITORIAL Global enrollment of over 57,000 (and CONTRIBUTORS counting)! Best for veterans. Best for Herb Booth More please #handmade #clay- class #artmajor #messyhands nurses. Best for engineers. Best for, well, Bre’ana Davis Hillary Green —@sparrowberryartwork just about anyone who is looking for Brent Ingram Going excellence in higher education. Louisa Kellie home As we set about planning a new slate Richard Kilwien Teresa Newton tonight of issues, we decided it was time that our SOMETHING’S… Tommy White magazine reflected some of the incredi- Teresa Woodard Schnyder much more ble changes our University has seen over ART CONTRIBUTORS optimistic with the the recent past. It’s been seven years since Melissa George world and with our previous redesign—we last debuted I DON’T KNOW. Joel Quintans a new look in 2010. And a lot has changed ASSOCIATE VICE myself. Thanks PRESIDENT FOR since then! So, first up, a new name. We MARKETING for inspiring that went shorter and bolder: UTA Magazine. DIFFERENT. Marc Witter optimism, Next, a cleaner and more modern design. Not a runner yet, but not stopping anytime VICE PRESIDENT FOR soon. #keepgoing #almamater UNIVERSITY @FareedZakaria We wanted to show you dynamic imagery As an alumna, I couldn’t be more —@rawanderlusted COMMUNICATIONS #maverickspeakers that conveys the life and growth happen- proud of this University. As the editor of Lynne T. Waters ing all the time at UTA, both on campus this magazine, I am thrilled to be able —@rtalias PRESIDENT Thank you for an awesome season @utamavs and in the local and global communities to use this publication as a platform to Vistasp M. Karbhari You made all of us at @utarlington very proud we touch. communicate the innovative ideas, the —@vistAsPKA«rbhAri Undergrad Editorially, we wanted to continue spirit of progress, and the unique drive UTA Magazine is published students telling the stories that bring you the that defines this awesome community. two times a year by Univer- sity Communications for all Yes! Well done men. workshop. larger picture of UTA and everything this So, please, kick back and enjoy this alumni, as well as for faculty, University stands for. In the following issue of UTA Magazine. When you’re done, staff, and friends of the Uni- Great season! Second pages, you’ll read about groundbreaking email us at [email protected] and versity. Reproduction in whole —@REPMAttKrausE or in part without written floor, research. You’ll learn about our incredi- let us know what you think! As a bonus, permission is prohibited. College of ble faculty and outstanding students and if you include your favorite UTA memory, alumni. And yes, you’ll probably come you could be included in an upcoming The comments and opinions » ACES Architecture, expressed in this magazine across some brag points here and there. issue. Happy reading! And GO MAVS! do not necessarily represent Symposium Planning (Hey, is it really bragging if we’re just those of The University of poster on and Public pointing it out for your general informa- Amber Scott Texas at Arlington or the staff of UTA Magazine. Copyright using a Neural Affairs tion? Can we help it if we shine a little (’01 BA, English) © 2017, The University of Texas brighter than the rest?) Editor at Arlington. An equal op- Network to —@ILIAYAZDANPANAH portunity/affirmative action employer. identify proteins. It’s going great! —@leilei683 2 The University of Texas at Arlington Magazine uta.edu/mag Spring 2017 3 Updates from the Mavericks who shape the UTA community Mavnear and far PrinGtimE on thE utA campus has an energy unlike Roundupany other. While everything blooms lush and green and the squirrels begin their rampant Sforaging, students are out in droves: cooking and selling hamburgers for fundraisers, competing in intramu- rals, studying under shady trees, or, like these guys, hanging out in stacked hammocks between classes. 4 The University of Texas at Arlington Magazine uta.edu/mag Spring 2017 5 MAV ROUNDUP VOL. COME ONE, COME ALL cultural focuS The Native Amer- BETTER CHEMO ican Student Association held its MASSIVE 22nd annual Powwow in March, an DRUG UPGRADES event celebrating American Indian New research into thiopurine drugs could culture and heritage. Proceeds ben- improve chemotherapy for cancer patients LEARNING UTA biochemists have created new hope proteins and suppresses the cells’ im- UTA’s MOOC courses efit the Native American Student for the large number of patients depen- mune response. The study also demon- enhance online education Association scholarship fund. dent on thiopurine drugs by discovering strated that thiopurine’s disulfide bonds how these drugs work. can affect vascular functions. UTA recently expanded its catalog This knowledge could lead to an “Up to now, no one has known exactly of Massive Open Online Courses, or improvement of those drugs, which are how the thiopurine immunosuppres- MOOCs, with two new courses. One commonly used to treat autoimmune sive process works,” says Jongyun Heo, trains educators on the practical appli- disorders and cancers, but are also asso- associate professor of chemistry and cations of emerging technologies like ciated with side effects like cardiovascu- leader of the study published in the Jour- social media in K-12 teaching and learn- lar disease and hypertension. nal of Biological Chemistry. “We are hoping ing. The other helps online instructors The researchers showed that thiopu- that this discovery also creates an oppor- of college courses replicate classroom rine drugs connect with Rac1 proteins tunity to improve thiopurine drugs and connectedness. within the immune system’s T cells via a to design new chemotherapeutic agents More than 3,100 students from 139 disulfide bond. This bond deactivates the for autoimmune disorders.” countries have participated in the first MOOC to date, titled What Now? Emerg- ing Technologies and Their Practical Ap- plication in K-12 Teaching and Learning, which continues to be available for self- guided learners. Participants learned about the practical applications of new technologies such as smartphones and tablets, social media, big data and Following learning analytics, telecommunications, Mavericks Postcardas they travel wearable technology, and a variety of ad- ditional educational tools for their daily the world work as K-12 educators. The second course, Humanizing IN CONTROL Online Instruction: Building a Com- munity of Inquiry, was a four-week Micro-MOOC made available in Novem- GAME ON ber on the Canvas Open Network to all Innovative study allows kids to make a those who were interested. This course game of practicing self-control helped online instructors of college and university courses replicate within Asking kids to harness their seemingly To that end, Dr. Spann and her team an online environment the sense of endless supply of energy can be an are studying the ideal physical and connectedness and community that exercise in futility. Children have lim- mental states for practicing attention engages and retains classroom-based ited attention spans and perhaps even and self-control by combining comput- students. Cornell University and Prin- less self-control. er-game testing with ongoing simul- cess Nourah University in Saudi Arabia “Attention and self-regulation are taneous analysis of heart rate and skin For two weeks Seoul, in June, UTA will are also participating in the course. critical for academic success and general activity. Spann is conducting the study host the 2017 South Korea Melanie Mohler “MOOCs really set UTA apart as a health and well-being,” says Catherine in collaboration with the Fort Worth ExxonMobil (far left) and Bernard WHO: Melanie Mohler, Languages and Area language.