University of Houston Magazine Spring 2015

A PUBLICATION FOR ALUMNI, FRIENDS

& SUPPORTERS

SPRING 2015

UH PROGRAM HELPING LOCAL

BUSINESSES FLOURISH

HONORS COLLEGE’S COMMUNITY

BUILDING EFFORTS FOR EVERY SEASON

THE UH

COASTAL CENTER: SAVING PRAIRIE

GRASSES AND DONATING SEED

TOM HERMANThis award-winning coach is determined to lead the Cougar football team to monumental victories.

Spring 2015

PUBLISHERRichie HunterVice President for University Marketing, Communication and Media Relations

EDITOREric Gerber (’72, M.A. ’78)Executive Director/University Communication

MANAGING EDITOR Keidra Gaston (’04)

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Enita Torres (’89)

ART DIRECTOR Alese Pickering (’98)

GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Damisi Delaney (’11) Katie Horrigan Tom Newton

PHOTOGRAPHERS Jon Shapley Jessica Villarreal

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Richard Bonnin

COPY EDITOR Shawn Lindsey

WRITERS Shannon Buggs Melissa Carroll Robert Cremins Mike Emery Ken Fountain Jeannie Kever John Kling Lisa Merkl (’92, M.A. ’97) Kristina Michel Jessica Navarro Francine Parker Marisa Ramirez (’00)

CHANCELLOR AND PRESIDENTRenu Khator

UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON SYSTEM BOARD OF REGENTSTilman J. Fertitta, ChairmanWelcome W. Wilson Jr., Vice ChairmanBeth Madison (’72), SecretaryDurga D. Agrawal, MS (’69) and Ph.D. (’74)Spencer D. Armour III, (’77)Jarvis Hollingsworth, J.D. (’93)Paula M. Mendoza, UH-Downtown (’95)Asit R. ShahPeter K. Taaffe, J.D. (’97)Roger F. Welder

Send address and email updates to: University of Houston Donor & Alumni Records5000 Gulf Fwy Bldg 1 Rm 272Houston, Texas 77204-5035

uh.edu/magazine

Send feedback to: [email protected]

The University of Houston Magazine is published by the Division of Marketing, Communication and Media Relations. Printed on Recycled PaperThe University of Houston is an EEO/AA institution.04.2015 | 70,000 Copyright © 2015 by the University of Houston

4 Leadership∙ A message from the President∙ Introducing a trio of UH’s newest

college leaders∙ Getting to know Regent Durga Agrawal

10 Making an ImpactRecycling abandoned bikes, producing community-targeted produce, ADVANCING the role of women as STEM leaders and diving into UH’s new Subsea Research Center – it’s all here, in brief.

14 Campus Affairs∙ The University Center is bigger and

better and boasts a new name.∙ UH Opera Program celebrates 30

passionate years.

18 Learning & Leading ∙ Doctoral candidate trades engineering

and asphalt for some ‘touching’ consumer research.

∙ An apt app keeps campus communityin the know.

∙ The Provost’s Prize will award $5,000a year to winners of this new literary contest for all undergrads.

∙ The Student Athlete DevelopmentDepartment makes a point of helping Cougars succeed off the field.

∙ The new UH head football coach wasa shoe-in for the job.

∙ UH Honors College makes communityengagement a year-round pursuit.

INSIDE 32

28 Going Coastal The former site of WWII military base, the UH Coastal Center has evolved into a remarkable, if somewhat obscure, research complex – and one of the country’s premier preserves for prized coastal prairie grass.

32 Innovation & Insight∙ A UH microfinance program gets

community members on the right track when it comes to business.

∙ New state of the art wine lab at theHilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management has everybody saying, “Cheers!”

∙ Physicist Zhifeng Ren has been makingtremendous progress in energy and nanomedicine research.

38 On the Faculty∙ Husband and wife researchers have

earned international recognition.∙ Professors Emeriti: Lawrence Curry

42 Alumni & Friends∙ The Cougar 100 event introduces a

bold new approach to celebrate UH alumni businesses.

∙ News and announcementsfrom UH Alumni.

52 Branching Out Hurricane Ike took down as many as a third of the trees on UH’s verdant campus. As restoration efforts grow, two “sacred” trees have been joined by many leafy newcomers.

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A digital version of this publication, with additional content,

is available at

uh.edu/magazine

4 UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON Magazine • SPRING 2015

Here at the University of Houston, we often talk about the importance of community. It is mentioned prominently in our official Mission Statement, in our Strategic Principles and in our UH Goals. And we have two different offices with “community” in their titles.

It may just be one of the most frequently used terms at UH, exceeded perhaps only by Go, Coogs! Of course, to be accurate, we should probably be using the word “communities.” Since there

are so many ways to define a community, there are multiple communities. For example, we refer to our own “campus community,” indicating the 50,000 faculty, staff

and students who work and live within the 700 or so acres that make up UH. But if you expand that geographic focus slightly, we are talking about the historic Third Ward neighborhood that enfolds us, another vital community we are proud to be part of. Widen that focus even more and the community is Houston, the nurturing metropolis that has given our University its name … and so much more. And, as a state university, we are an integral part of this sprawling, pluralistic community called Texas.

Sometimes, a community is identified not by geography but common interest. At UH, for instance, we have a group conceptually united by their passion for knowledge, a community of scholars. Our researchers are members of the scientific community. It can also be defined in

ethnic or cultural terms, such as the Asian-American community.

Unfortunately, another way to define a community is by common deficiencies – the socio-economically challenged, the under-educated or the medically under-served.

At any given time, there are numerous communities UH feels a genuine affinity for – along with a commitment to support them to the best of our abilities. Our affiliation with Houston, for instance, drives this University to produce skilled workers and talented leaders in the areas that are crucial to our city – energy, health and the arts. Our identification with a burgeoning Hispanic community has led us to qualify for official status as a Hispanic-Serving Institution. Our awareness of our neighbors’ need for better medical resources has been a key factor in current plans to significantly expand the University’s community-based health care initiatives.

While those are high profile examples, UH’s commitment to community service takes many forms, often unheralded. You will find inspiring evidence of that throughout the pages of this magazine. Campus-grown organic produce is donated to local food pantries. Abandoned bikes at UH find their way to deserving kids all around Houston. A research complex shares its prized prairie grass seed with preservationists across the country. A microfinance program teaches under-served community members how business works and assists them in acquiring startup funds.

As I write this, UH has just been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction – the highest federal recognition a university can receive for community service. It is the University’s second year in a row to be so honored. That is wonderfully gratifying. But, in the end, we don’t perform such service for the promise of applause and appreciation. We have come to understand that in helping the community, we are helping ourselves. We understand that we are the communities.

With warm regards,

RENU KHATORPRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

LEADERSHIP

SPRING 2015 • UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON Magazine 5

WHAT HIS FRIENDS CALL HIM Len

QUOTABLE

“It’s really important to look at all options and

make sure we’re producing a really good crop

of students from all different backgrounds,”

Baynes said. “It’s really thinking of all of this like

a businessman, of ways to extend the strengths

into other areas, so we can weather the storm.”

— Houston Chronicle

BIGGEST SURPRISE ABOUT HOUSTON? “Hardly anything. My older brother, John, who

is my godfather, retired and moved to Houston

about five years ago. And I have nieces here, too.

So, I have been back and forth for years. I guess

the surprise is why it has taken me so long to

move to here.”

DID YOU KNOW? His parents immigrated to the United States from

St. Vincent and the Grenadines. St. Vincent is a

volcanic island about 150 square miles in size with

about 150,000 residents. In the United States,

they worked in the garment district of New York

City as a presser and a seamstress, bought a two-

family home in Brooklyn and eventually opened

several women’s ready-to-wear shops in Bedford

Stuyvesant and Harlem.

DEAN LEONARD BAYNESUH Law Center

rmed with a business background and a deep commitment to community outreach and creating job opportunities for students,

Leonard M. Baynes assumed the reins of the University of Houston Law Center in fall 2014 as its ninth dean.

He is bringing both of those interests to bear during his tenure. In one of his first official acts, Baynes initiated a “Community Service Day” at a neighborhood food bank before students even attended their first class. And he will need to draw on his business acumen and fundraising skills to cope with the new realities of law school finances.

Baynes came to the Law Center from St. John’s University School of Law, where he taught business organizations; communications law; regulated industries; and perspectives on justice, race and the law. He was the inaugural director of The Ronald. H. Brown Center for Civil Rights and Economic Development at St. John’s, for which he raised approximately $1.6 million from various sources in an eight-year period.

Baynes holds a B.S. degree with a double major in finance and economics from New York University and an M.B.A. and J.D. from Columbia University.

Polished and in his own words, “very deliberative,” Baynes answered a few questions about his plans for the Law Center:

Q. Where does the Law Center need to be in five years?I envision that the Law Center will move steadily into the top ranks. It will improve bar passage and employment rates for current students. It will continue to provide (and increase) value to its alumni. It will continue to attract and enroll a diverse group of well-credentialed students and law faculty who are not only noted scholars, but also talented teachers. It will continue to instill in its students the value of public service and remain a forum for discussion of important global, national and local issues.

Q. What are your long-term goals for the school?The Law Center requires a new building.

The UH Law Center is a world-class institution in a world-class city, and it requires a world class building! It needs to reflect our aspirations, hopes and dreams. A new building will facilitate the recruitment and retention of outstanding students, faculty and staff. A new facility will enhance our already strong reputation and raise our national rankings. A new building will support the latest technology and equipment with appropriate space for additional simulation courses, clinical programs and other experiential learning so that our graduates are more practice-ready for the legal marketplace. The University has engaged Dini Spheris, a well-regarded fundraising consultant, to help us assess the potential support. This commitment is significant progress and “unsticks” the building discourse. –J.T. Kling

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FAMILY AFFAIR“I am blessed to have an incredible family. My

wife, Julia, supports me in everything I do—

including relocating the family to Houston—and

our two wonderful teenage daughters are an

inspiration.”

GIVING BACK In addition to receiving countless awards for

service and teaching, Reynolds has paid it

forward as a volunteer leader on numerous

committees. Of note, he is on the editorial

board of all the leading hospitality journals and

has served on the board of International CHRIE

(Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional

Education) for almost a decade, including stints

as vice president and president.

THE WRITE STUFF Reynolds is ranked 15th among the world’s

most prolific hospitality-management authors,

contributing more than 50 articles in such

journals as the Academy of Management

Learning and Education, the Advanced

Management Journal, the Cornell Hospitality

Quarterly, the Journal of Hospitality and

Tourism Research and the International Journal

of Hospitality Management. He is author (or

co-author) of five textbooks, with his latest in its

10th edition.

FUN FACTReynolds has a lifelong interest in martial arts

and has moonlighted for the past decade or so

teaching Taekwondo through the Washington

State University Student Rec Center.

ennis Reynolds is a scholar, seasoned hospitality executive, prolific researcher and author, gifted teacher and, now, the next dean of the Conrad N.

Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management. He is expected to begin July 1.

Bringing a blend of real-world experience and academic acumen, Reynolds is currently wrapping up his final semester at the Washington State University School of Hospitality Business Management, where he serves as the Ivar Haglund Endowed Professor of Hospitality Management and director of the Wine Business Management Program. He specializes in global service-management issues and has lectured on this subject around the world.

Reynolds, a former J. Thomas Clark Professor of Entrepreneurship at Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration, is also a two-time graduate, earning his doctorate and master’s degree there. He received a B.S. in hotel, restaurant and institutional management from Golden Gate University.

Along with his considerable experience in higher education, Reynolds has the industry background needed as the dean of one of the top hospitality programs in the world. He’s served as an operations analyst for Food & Beverage Investigations, a regional operations manager at SODEXO USA and vice president and general manager of North American Operations for Nutrition Management Services.

He took a few moments to discuss his plans:

Q. What attracted you to Hilton College and the University of Houston? First and foremost, the faculty was a major draw. They have a collective reputation for excellent research, as well as great prowess in the classroom. Adding to that, the reputation of the quality of graduates throughout the industry certainly influenced me. Finally, the collegiality and the overarching culture within the college and the University provided a wonderful opportunity and strongly attracted me.

DEAN DENNIS REYNOLDSConrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management

Q. What do you hope to accomplish as dean? My primary goal is to extend the global reach and reputation of Hilton College. Added to this, I hope to see us enhance our graduate education programs while maximizing the undergraduate experience, including innovative educational platforms that will help prepare our graduates to be successful leaders in the global hospitality industry. I also want to expand our industry relationships in Texas, the United States and the world. Of course, that mission includes ensuring the college’s financial future. –Deborah Maurer

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A VERY HONORABLE MENTION

Dettlaff was recently inducted into the 2015 class

of Fellows of the Society for Social Work and

Research and is the chair of the Commission on

Educational Policy for the Council on Social Work

Education, which develops the policy that guides

social work education.

SEEING RED

A self-described “movie buff,” Dettlaff is also

passionate about some sports. “I’m a big fan of

college football,” he says, “so I’m very excited

about becoming a Cougars fan and attending

football games in the new stadium on campus.”

A TEXAN BY DEGREES He earned both his graduate degrees at The

University of Texas at Arlington – a master’s

degree in social work and a Ph.D. – as well as a

bachelor’s at Texas Christian University.

CHILD CARE

Dettlaff serves as director of the Center on

Immigration and Child Welfare, a coalition of

individuals and organizations focused on the

needs of immigrant children and families involved

in the child welfare system. He is also the editor

(along with Rowena Fong) of the 2012 textbook

“Child Welfare Practice with Immigrant Children

and Families.”

GOING THE DISTANCE

“I enjoy running and am looking forward to being

in warmer weather (not Chicago!) to be able

to run outside more often,” he says. Although

he runs “primarily for fun and fitness,” Dettlaff

says he’s ready to step up the pace. “Running a

marathon is a goal of mine, so participating in

the Houston Marathon in 2016 would really be a

wonderful opportunity.”

DEAN ALAN J. DETTLAFFGraduate College ofSocial Work

or the first time in a decade and a half, the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work (GCSW) will have a new leader. Professor

Alan J. Dettlaff of the University of Illinois at Chicago has been selected to serve as dean of the GCSW.

Dettlaff comes to Houston by way of Chicago and the Jane Addams College of Social Work, where he has served as an associate professor since 2012. A former supervisor at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in Fort Worth and case manager at the AIDS Resources of Rural Texas in Weatherford, Dettlaff has research interests in children and minorities in the

child welfare system, as well as training the next generation of child welfare professionals.

Dettlaff succeeds Professor Ira Colby, who led the college for 15 years. Colby stepped down in 2014 to pursue research and return to the faculty. Professor Emeritus Paul Raffoul, formerly the associate dean for administration and information technology, has been serving as the college’s interim dean.

“I’m very excited to welcome a young, ambitious and nationally known social work educator as our new dean,” Raffoul said. “His research on issues such as immigrant Latino children complements works ongoing at the college and will further build our reputation as a highly ranked social work institution providing a quality education to diverse populations.”

Working busily to prepare for a May 16 start date, Dettlaff took a few minutes to discuss his plans.

Q. What persuaded you to become dean? Well, the Graduate College of Social Work is a nationally recognized program in a Carnegie-designated, Tier One research university. The faculty, staff and students

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have demonstrated tremendous success, and this position offers an incredible opportunity to build upon their accomplishments.

Q. Any immediate objectives? I’m looking forward to learning the culture of the college and meeting with the faculty, staff, students and members of the Houston community. My hope is that we will all then move forward together to enhance the national prominence of the college. –Marisa Ramirez

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REGENT DURGA AGRAWALAfter Growing Up in Rural India, He Earned a Ph.D. in Engineering at UH and Now Serves on the Board that Oversees His Alma Mater’s FutureBY ERIC GERBER

Durga Agrawal was appointed to the UH System Board of Regents in 2013 and will serve through Aug. 31, 2019. Currently, he is vice chair of the Academic and Student Success Committee and a member of the Endowment Management Committee. He earned his Ph.D. in industrial engineering from the University of Houston.

Agrawal is president & CEO of Piping Technology & Products Inc., a company providing products and services for industrial and construction needs. He is a director of the Agrawal Association of America and a member of the India Cultural Community and Industry Trade Advisory Committee (ITAC, U.S. Dept. of Commerce/USTR). He is also a member of the National and Texas Societies of Professional Engineers and is an adviser to the UH Department of Industrial Engineering. He serves on the Cullen College of Engineering Leadership board and

is also a past member of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. He serves on the board of directors of Asia Society Texas and on the Board of Visitors at MD Anderson Cancer Center.

Q. You were raised in a village in central India with no electricity and attended a high school many miles away, occasionally staying overnight. Can you share a little more about that?I grew up in a large family with three brothers and three sisters. My parents played a major role in teaching me the values of giving and being a kind person. Also, I learned business skills by working in our family business. I am very thankful to my parents for their vision in sending me abroad for studies.

My high school was 13 miles away from home. There were times in the rainy season when we would have to cross the rivers by boat because of flooding. Sometimes the level would be so high, we had to spend the night nearby until the water went down for the boats to cross.

Q. You began attending UH during the late 1960s. What are your strongest memories of the campus then?The professors at UH were very courteous, friendly and had a lot of respect for foreign students. Dr. Rhodes, Dr. Donaghey, Dr. Dawkins and Dr. Elrod were amazing professors, totally dedicated to teaching. They put their hearts and souls into educating every student, including foreign students with strong language barriers. They made it a wonderful experience for me.

UH was a unique place where I was able to continue my studies and support my family. UH makes this possible – to go to school and have a part-time job. UH creates hardworking, critical thinkers with a ‘can do’ attitude. I had no idea Houston would become my home when I arrived from India in 1968 with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Delhi College of Engineering. My eldest daughter, Anu, continued the family legacy and also received her engineering degree from UH and is now on the Engineering Leadership Board at the Cullen College of Engineering.

Q. Drawing on your experience serving four years on the Texas Higher

LEADERSHIP


Education Coordinating Board (THECB), what are the greatest challenges facing higher education? At THECB, I learned a lot about Texas higher education goals and the impact higher education has on the economy. There is a huge shortage of engineers in the country, and it’s vital to stay aggressively focused on STEM education. I do believe that higher graduation rates and advanced degrees have a direct impact on improving local economies.

The goal of THECB is to promote access to higher quality education across the state with the conviction that access without quality is mediocrity, and that quality without access is unacceptable.

I believe that online education is going to be a very important and efficient tool for educating students; most of the degree programs can be designed to have a major component of online courses in conjunction with the traditional curriculum.

I feel I played a pivotal role in improving the nursing program for students seeking their Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) in Texas. We approved the DNP at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) and UT Health Science Center in Houston.

Current challenges faced by THECB are getting tuition revenue bonds (TRB) approved and establishing an acceptable performance-based funding program that would create an incentive fund for universities to improve their graduation rates and keep all universities and educational institutions in Texas satisfied.

Q. You were a significant donor to the Multidisciplinary Research and Engineering Building (MREB), which will be completed in 2016. What prompted that donation? My wife, Sushila, has played a critical role in supporting me in every aspect of my life. Without her incredible hard work, patience and support I could not have completed my degrees and started our business. Sushila and I have been very fortunate and encouraged by our passionate and supportive family and friends to make this gift – we simply want to give back to the University that has given us so much. UH has a very special place in my heart, and I have been providing endowments, scholarships and internships for new generations of UH students for many years. I hope our gift for

the new building will encourage additional donors and attract high-caliber students, especially since many UH students are from the Houston area and will most likely stay here upon graduation to pursue their careers. Research has shown that bachelor degrees in engineering have more economic impact than bachelor degrees in any other discipline. The College of Engineering has seen an increase in enrollment over the past several years. So, the MREB will help secure more research funding, graduate programs and other student opportunities. The MREB will put UH on the map as an engineering center for education and research in Texas.

My own message to the students is to always be optimistic; one can achieve any goal with hard work, persistence and determination. As alumni, we must keep the torch of knowledge, excellence and innovation growing and glowing.

Q. You’ve played a key role in Houston’s growing Indo-American community, helping direct such organizations as India House and the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce. How would you characterize that community, and how does it fit into the overall makeup of our city?I am happy to see how India House Inc. and the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston have been serving the community at large in the Houston area. The India House medical health clinic’s recent partnership with Harris Health System has been a big success serving the community. Other services offered at India House are a yoga and meditation program, dance classes, urban youth program, cricket, craft classes, computer classes etc. The Indo-American community in Houston is very innovative, hardworking, generous and business-minded. Our community has helped create a richer culture in Houston by supporting projects with MD Anderson, Museum of Fine Arts, Rice University, Asia Society and many religious projects.

In the past 15 years, the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce has taken many business delegations to India, and provided support and advice for individuals, businesses and governments in the United States and India. The chamber has helped the leaders in medicine, the arts, education, energy, commerce, IT, social services and finance.

Q. Then-President George W. Bush once introduced you to the Indian Prime Minister as “my good friend from Texas.” Have you remained in touch with the former president?That was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for both me and my wife. I was delighted to see that President Bush introduced me to the Prime Minister of India as his good friend from Texas.

Q. What is one thing people might be surprised to learn about you?I have been practicing yoga for the last 15 years. As a result, I have more energy today than I had five years ago. My family and I have benefited a lot from Pranayam – that is, focusing mind on body during the deep breathing exercises. I have found that a daily yoga regimen stretches muscles and joints and massages organs. It also promotes optimum blood supply, flushing out toxins and providing nourishment. The best part is the relaxing posture, also known as the body scanning or “Shavasana” meditation (a meditation lying down) at the end of class. For those who do not already practice yoga, I highly recommend it— yoga promotes delayed aging and increased energy. Dr. Lorenzo Cohen at MD Anderson Cancer Center is doing research funded by National Institutes of Health on cancer patients using “Yogic,” deep breathing exercises with the mind focused on body from ancient Indian Scriptures.

Durga Agrawal with his wife, Sushila at their Houston area home.


WELL REDCougar Supporters Flock to UH System Day at the Capitol

exas legislators were seeing red – literally – on Feb. 23. On that date, hundreds of Cougar faculty, staff, students, alumni and supporters converged on Austin for UH System (UHS) Day at the Capitol.

Busloads of Coogs ventured from Houston to the Texas Capitol to meet with legislators and offer details on the UHS Legislative Agenda. The delegation included the

Cougar Advocates for Texas (CATS) comprised of members of the UH community and representatives from UHS universities (UH, UH-Clear Lake, UH-Downtown, UH-Victoria).

CATS delegates departed campus at the crack of dawn for a daylong visit to the Capitol. Upon arrival, they headed directly to the offices of state senators and representatives, sharing the UH story and their vision for its future.

“This was a great opportunity for UH alumni and students to speak directly with legislators about the incredible things that are happening at the University,” said Jason Smith, UH System vice chancellor of governmental and community relations. “Together, we helped share the vision for the future of our University. The energy and passion of our alumni and students clearly made a positive impression on the legislature today.” – Mike Emery

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UHS LEGISLATIVE AGENDA ITEMS INCLUDED:

Tuition Revenue Bond Projects (TRBs) TRBs can assist in enhancing campus infrastructure

by funding capital construction projects.

Higher Education Fund (HEAF)UH delegates recommended the reauthorization

of HEAF for the next 10 years, with a 50 percent

increase (from $262.5 million to $393.75 million) to

assist in expanding academic facilities.

Health and Biomedical Services Center 2Additional funding for this state-of-the-art facility

will assist in supporting UH’s growing health

sciences program. This center will include amenities

such as primary care clinic, nursing and physical

therapy programs, the College of Pharmacy, Center

for Drug Discovery/Research and the Division of

Research. The center’s scheduled date of completion

is November 2016.

CATS volunteers, including UH alumni, students and community supporters, along with the other UHS campuses met with legislators and their associates at the state Capitol to advocate key points that would help advance the UHS and the State of Texas.

MAKING AN IMPACT


UH Center ADVANCING Women inSTEM FieldsA new Center for ADVANCING UH Faculty Success, created with a $3.3 million grant from the National Science Foundation, is working to increase the number of female faculty members in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), as well as to make sure they have opportunities to move into leadership roles.

The five-year grant is part of the foundation’s national ADVANCE program, intended to increase the number of women in academic science and engineering. At UH, the center will strengthen female faculty recruitment in STEM fields, especially women of color.

UH President Renu Khator serves as principal investigator for the grant while Paula Myrick Short, senior vice president for academic affairs and provost, is director of the new center.

The center’s goals are considered especially important as more women and minorities enter the workforce, creating a need for more women and minority STEM role models.

“It’s so important that we ensure women are given the opportunity to succeed as faculty members in all disciplines, not just for the University of Houston, but for everyone’s future,” Khator said.

The UH center established an ADVANCE Regional Network, consisting of five Texas-based current or former ADVANCE institutions: Prairie View A&M, Rice University, Texas A&M University, The University of Texas-Pan American and UH. Other activities include training for faculty search committees, mentoring for junior faculty members and workshops on inclusion and diversity. – Jeannie Kever

or Torey Powell, Graduate College of Social Work (GCSW) alum and Army reservist, public service is in his nature. It is a quality cultivated

through experiences with Houston nonprofit organizations and the Texas Legislature. And in the future, Powell hopes to work professionally with fellow veterans.

During a 2010 deployment to Afghanistan, Powell volunteered at a combat-stress clinic. “Connecting with soldiers returning from combat was an experience that will always resonate with me,” he said.

Returning stateside, he pursued a master’s degree in social work in hopes of helping veterans and applied for a program to further propel him toward that goal.

The Presidential Management Fellows program (PMF) is a competitive program for graduate students seeking management positions within federal agencies. Those selected spend two years in a government appointment where they receive training in leadership, management and policy (and full salary and benefits). When the assignment is complete, Presidential Management Fellows are eligible for permanent positions.

From 7,000 applicants, Powell made the short list. He was invited to Washington, D.C., for evaluations, writing assessments

ENLISTING CHANGEUH, Graduate College of Social Work Alum Wants

to Use His Degree to Help Fellow Veterans.

Fand interviews. In the end, he was one of 200 finalists selected for a 2014 PMF position.

He credits opportunities at the GCSW with helping him stand out. For example, through fieldwork with the college, Powell helped establish the mission, brand and nonprofit status at the Southeast Houston Transformation Alliance in Houston’s OST-South Union community. He also pursued an internship with the GCSW’s Austin Legislative Internship Program for social workers interested in public policy.

An issue that drew his attention was a regulation that prevented the remains of cremated veterans from being released to anyone but next of kin. Powell worked on a bill analysis that allowed nonprofit organizations to claim remains. Written by State Rep. Jose Menendez, the bill is now law.

“Long hours spent analyzing bills, combined with the amazing policy professors at the GCSW, taught me that social workers can influence legislation for the greater good,” he said.

Powell will serve a two-year assignment in Alaska as a Presidential Management Fellow, after which he plans to follow through on his goal to help veterans. “With a social work degree, you can create any career you want,” Powell said.

– Marisa Ramirez


UH Tapped to Lead Subsea Research Center BY JEANNIE KEVER

GETTING IN DEEP

trengthening its reputation as “the Energy University,” the University of Houston will lead a key national research center for subsea engineering and

other offshore energy development issues, including research and technology to improve the sustainable and safe development of energy in the Gulf of Mexico.

The work is intended to reduce the risk of offshore accidents, oil spills and other deep-water disasters.

The Subsea Systems Institute is being funded by the RESTORE Act (Resources

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and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States), resulting from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The initial $4 million in funding, to be split with a second center led by Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, will come from money given to Texas by BP after the 2010 oil spill. Total funding will depend on civil penalties levied in court.

The Subsea Systems Institute (SSI) will be led by UH, working with Rice University, the Johnson Space Center, Texas Southern University, Houston Community College and Lone Star College. It will serve as a liaison for industry and government regulators, testing and validating equipment, helping standard-setting institutions with neutral third-party knowledge and other best practices, developing new materials and science-based policies and overseeing workforce training.

It also will train future subsea engineers to work at depths and temperatures previously unexplored, capitalizing on the University’s experience operating the nation’s only subsea engineering program.

UH President Renu Khator had set getting a national research center as a goal in her annual address last fall – and this institute meets that objective.

“We are grateful for this grant, which is the culmination of years of work to establish UH as a vibrant and comprehensive partner with the energy industry,” Khator said.

SSI is one of two Centers of Excellence established in Texas with funding from the federal RESTORE Act, which requires that the five states along the Gulf Coast affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill create the research centers. The Houston-area Congressional delegation offered strong bipartisan support for UH as the lead institution for the center focused on offshore energy.

Ramanan Krishnamoorti, chief energy officer at UH, said the University’s location in the heart of the energy industry makes it a logical place for the Institute.

“A center focused on prevention is the right thing to do,” Krishnamoorti said. “A center in Houston is the right place to do it, and UH, Rice and NASA is the right team.”

Rooted in the CommunityUH Community Garden

The University of Houston is growing something other than

bright, young minds on campus.

Since 2009, UH’s Campus

Community Garden has been

producing organic vegetables that

help feed Houstonians. Located

at Wheeler Avenue and Cullen

Boulevard (next to Cougar Woods

Dining Hall), the garden occupies

600 square feet of campus space

and grows a variety of fruits

and vegetables – arugula, Swiss

chard, radicchio, carrots, beans,

cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes,

sweet potatoes, herbs, melons

and more.

Harvested produce is donated

to local food pantries that serve

families in need. In 2014, UH

donated more than 800 pounds of

food to organizations, including Star

of Hope Mission and Manna House.

The Campus Community Garden

is overseen by UH’s Office of

Sustainability – particularly the

student garden coordinators, but

it depends on the helping hands of

community partners and volunteers

to sustain its growth.

Urban Harvest is one of the

garden’s biggest supporters.

The local nonprofit organization

is committed to expanding the

presence of community gardens

throughout the city. It also delivers

educational programming aimed

at helping these gardens thrive

in urban environments. Members

of the Urban Harvest team offer

gardening classes at UH and serve

as consultants for the garden’s care

and maintenance.

UH’s garden also benefits

through the support of the campus

community and volunteers from

local organizations (including

YES Prep and UH’s Metropolitan

Volunteer Program). Through

special gardening events, volunteers

learn more about gardening

from members of the Office of

Sustainability staff while actually

working with the crops – harvesting,

watering, planting and other tasks.

While the Community Garden

produces healthy items, it also

serves as an informal outdoor

classroom to learn more about

sustainable agriculture said Sarah

Kelly, program manager for the

Office of Sustainability.

“The garden promotes healthy

living,” she added. “It helps get

people outside and connects them

with nature. Most importantly,

the experience of working in the

garden provides them with an

opportunity to see where their food

is coming from.”

With continued support from

both the Cougar community and

neighborhood volunteers, Kelly is

confident that more good things

will sprout from UH’s soil.

“It’s crucial to keep gardens like

this one thriving,” she said. “The

University is in a food desert with

few outlets offering fresh produce.

A lot of good can come from our

garden. By partnering with our

neighbors, we can continue to make

a positive impact in Houston and

perhaps even inspire the creation of

more gardens in the community or

on campus.” –Mike Emery

WHEEL DEALAbandoned Bikes at UH Finding New Riders

ikes are a popular and convenient mode of transportation at the University of Houston. Too often, however, abandoned bicycles are left chained to racks across campus.

Now, these unattended and unused bicycles are finding new riders thanks to an innovative partnership between UH’s Department of Public Safety (UHDPS) and Facilities Management. Both departments oversee the University’s bicycle abatement program. This initiative – started in 2013 – collects deserted bikes and donates them to local charity organizations.

Craig Whitfield, UH Facilities manager, identifies and tags the abandoned bicycles. UHDPS and Facilities Management staff members then begin the process of cutting locks and taking the tagged bikes to the campus impound lot. Bikes not claimed after 60 days are then donated to local organizations, including the Self-Help for African People Through Education (SHAPE) Center, Humble Independent School District, Chain Reaction Ministries and Light House Baptist Church. How can you tell if a bike is “abandoned?” Whitfield identifies them by wear and tear – rusted chains, flat tires, broken pedals, missing parts. More times than not, bikes have been left on campus simply because they are in need of repair, he said.

“Removing these bikes contributes to the beautification of the campus and frees up space on the racks,” Whitfield said. “Also, having unattended bicycles often breeds theft on campus. Abandoned bikes are more likely to be stolen because no one will notice. ”

To help address the root problem and reduce the number of such broken down bikes, a repair station was installed last Fall at Cougar Village 2. The station is available to all bike-riding Coogs and includes air pumps, tools and a bicycle stand. Facilities Management is also exploring a possible program that would help teach campus bicyclists how to make simple bike repairs.

Cougar riders are encouraged to register their bikes with UHDPS. When bikes are registered, UHDPS records serial numbers and descriptive information. This is helpful when recovering stolen or missing bicycles on campus. Bikes can be registered in person at the UHDPS station on Wheeler Avenue or online at uh.edu/police. –Mike Emery

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CENTER OF ATTENTION Several Years and $80 Million Later, the UC Has Completed Its Amazing Transformation – It’s Bigger, It’s Better and It Has a New Name

ince it first opened in 1967, the University Center, affectionately known as the UC, has served as the heart of student life on the University of Houston campus. Now, with the Phase II completion of the UC Transformation Project on Jan. 21, the UC – re-

christened as the Student Center – has opened its shiny new doors to the next generation of Cougars.

The 306,000-square-foot facility includes a renovated Houston Room for large functions, a retail corridor, featuring the student-run Shasta’s Cones & More ice cream shop, five dining options – including Freshii, Starbucks and Chick-fil-A, a renovated and expanded games room, a 450-seat theater, the World Trade Center Monument and Reflection Garden and the newly created Student Center North building, which serves as home to many student organizations and campus resource centers. Inside, there is a special ambience, as busy as a beehive in some areas, as relaxed as a luxury resort in others. Some students wander through the two-level bookstore, checking out texts and admiring the historic Chicano Movement mural, while a handful of others sprawl across the expansive flight of wooden risers that serve as a staircase. Some scramble, late for an organizational meeting, while others kick back in the food court, biding their time till their next class begins or the movie in the nearby theater starts.

The grand opening was a powerful moment for people like UH alum Nicole Sopko, who served on the UC Master Planning Committee

and as one of two co-chairs for both the UC Referendum and New UC committees. Sopko had been dreaming of this moment since the transformation was first proposed in 2007.

“This project that we started my freshman year is now alive, flourishing and is what the students chose,” Sopko said. “It’s our Student Center, and it’s nothing short of awe-inspiring.”

Student support was paramount to the completion of the $80-million renovation and expansion. From the project’s inception

and throughout its progression, students served in leadership roles, providing key feedback to the Transformation Project’s architects, University administrators and other key stakeholders. In 2008, they also voted for an increase in student fees to help pay for the project. According to

Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs Keith Kowalka, 95 percent of the UC Transformation Project was supported by student fees.

“The name change to the Student Center was actually requested by the students. It symbolizes that this was a student-led and student-funded project,” said Kowalka.

However, the University Center’s student roots run far deeper than its latest incarnation and the Transformation Project that led to it. Students have been playing a pivotal role in the overall progression of the UC since the 1950s.

UH President Walter W. Kemmerer initiated the first action to establish the University Center in 1952. In 1956, the University surveyed the student body, seeking its opinion on what amenities

The grand openingof the 306,000-square-

foot renovated Student Center was on

January 21, 2015.

BY KRISTINA MICHEL

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CAMPUS AFFAIRS


should be included in the new building. Students also participated in focus groups with faculty, administrators, alumni, consultants and architects. Funding for the building’s construction, which began in 1965, also came from student service fees, much as it did for this most recent renovation and expansion.

Not only was the UC originally designed and built for students, it also has been regulated to a large extent by students. The Student Program Board (then known as the University Center Program Council) and the University Center Policy Board helped drive activity and programs at the center and created rules and regulations governing the facility’s use. To this day, these two student leadership groups continue to impact daily operations and policies.

The UC opened on Feb. 13, 1967, with a week of concerts, seminars and exhibitions geared to the student body. At the dedication ceremony in March, then-UH President Philip G. Hoffman said, “The University Center begun in February of 1965 is now complete. Be it dedicated to you.”

From then on, the UC was the central hub of student life on campus, a place of activity and diversion from the daily grind and demands of academia. They gathered at the cafeteria downstairs, called The Cougar Den, to eat and play cards, or at the games room

to take a break from studying for finals to play billiards or bowl. Students dressed their best for formal receptions, gatherings and performances in the Houston Room.

Something new was happening at the Arbor every day, whether it was students debating politics and discussing current events, one of UH’s many Greek organizations entertaining audiences with a step routine or the entire campus rallying together to cheer on the football team for its upcoming homecoming game. That link between the UC and student life grew even stronger

with the addition of the UC Underground and the UC Satellite in 1973.

Many alumni carry fond memories of their time at the UC, including UH alum Jonas Chin, who was vice president of the Student Government Association when the

UC Transformation Project was in its infancy. “Many of us Cougars have a story or two

about the old University Center. In a campus as diverse as we are, the UC was always a place where we all came together to share experiences,” said Chin.

Today, students have an expanded and enhanced facility in which to share their experiences and create new ones, a facility built by students for the entire UH community to enjoy. “It’s an exciting time for our community,” said Chin. “The Student Center is truly a place that Coogs built.”

eat, relax, shop

Action450 seat theater

Strikerenovated games room

TreatsShasta’s Cones & More

Delishawesome dining options

Shopnew retail corridor

Spacious306,000 square feet


a training ground for new talent and the opportunity for genuine hands-on experience that can be found in only a precious few venues.

“A typical opera school might do one or two operas a year,” Ross says. “We do four productions every year, because our students don’t want to sit on the sidelines. They want to get on stage. I love the challenges we’ve been faced with, and so do the students. When they’re challenged by the work, they embrace the work. And that’s a good thing.”

The roots of opera instruction at UH run deep, going back to 1977 when Houston Grand Opera partnered with the UH School of Music to develop the Houston Opera Studio.

“Originally, it was a training program developed when oil money was plentiful and composer Carlisle Floyd was here at UH and David Gockley was at HGO,” Ross recalled.

Floyd and Gockley, the opera company’s general director from 1972 to 2006, launched a program to shape young artists with potential into well-rounded professionals capable of performing in all genres of opera and music theater. Studio students received vocal coaching from HGO company members and took language training and acting lessons from UH faculty.

Eventually, however, the programming needs of a professional opera company building its reputation for world-class, cutting-edge opera no longer neatly aligned with the academic mission of a university-based school of music awarding baccalaureate, master’s and doctoral degrees.

In 1986, the Houston Opera Studio moved off campus and was rechristened the HGO Studio – and, at UH, the University Opera Theatre was born.

In its first season after the split, the University Opera Theatre produced one opera

with costumes, a few props and a piano in the 300-seat Dudley Recital Hall. The

following academic year, the fledgling college opera company presented a complete season of three fully produced operas with an entire orchestra in the 1,500-seat Cullen Performance Hall and the 600-seat Lyndall Finley Wortham Theatre.

And the year after that, the University Opera Theatre scaled up to four operas – a pace that it maintains today.

ARIA KIDDING? UH Opera Program Celebrates an Amazing 30 Years of Providing Students With First-Hand Experience and Houston with First-Rate Productions

he University of Houston has been hitting the high notes with its opera program now for three decades. As it celebrates its upcoming 30th season, its longtime director revealed the simple secret for success behind such a complex and challenging enterprise.

“Our primary goal has always been to get our students on stage,” says Buck Ross, who has held the reins since his arrival in 1985 to help UH launch its own opera program.

Yes, it is admirable to be applauded for frequently tackling new and innovative works, praised for staging lavish, high-quality productions with limited resources and commended for the sheer abundance of presentations. But, in the end, the most lasting reward has been providing

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Opera Theatre students, in dress rehearsal for the 2014-15 season of Frau Margot

BY SHANNON BUGGS

CAMPUS AFFAIRS


Ross says. “We don’t have the budget to be in the commissioning business as this point. What we do provide are second productions of pieces that composers often find are harder to get performed again than the original commissioning was to get.”

UH, for example, was the first university to produce Ricky Ian Gordon’s “The Grapes of Wrath,” Robert Aldridge’s “Elmer Gantry” and Daron Hagen’s “Amelia.” Such boldness did not go unnoticed. UH’s versions of “Il Postino” and “Amelia” won first place awards from the National Opera Association, the membership organization for academic institutions and small regional opera companies.

Not only has the innovative “second show” strategy made the Moores Opera Center a strong contender for awards, it also allows its season to complement the Houston Grand Opera repertoire and offer Houston arts community even more contemporary opera choices.

“We have created a program centered on serving the students,” Ross says, “and establishing a culture of believing we can do something that conventional wisdom says shouldn’t be able to happen – what could be more operatic than that?”

months before the Moores Opera House’s grand opening.

For that very first production, a big, splashy opera with plenty of parts for lots of eager students was needed so as many people as possible could say they were there when it all started. That’s when Ross hatched the idea that embodied the same creative inspiration that first launched opera training at UH.

He decided to re-stage “The Ghost of Versailles,” an ambitious two-act opera commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera (The Met) that premiered in Manhattan in 1991. The Met’s production featured an eye-popping extra-large chorus, onstage orchestra and special effects.

“The Met, with all of its resources, could do that, and people got the mistaken impression that the opera was too big to do by anyone else,” Ross says. “But, we showed that it could be done on a smaller scale.”

That success led to the school carving out a niche for itself that benefits curious and appreciative Houstonians looking for what’s fresh in opera.

“The majority of what we’ve done these past few years is the second productions of shows that had big professional premieres,”

The 2014-2015 production of The Tales of Hoffmann

In the mid-1990s, Rebecca and John J. Moores donated a substantial gift toward the construction of an on-campus opera house that could elegantly frame the large-scale productions the opera theatre was becoming known for. As a thank you, the name of the opera theatre and the school were changed to the Moores Opera Center and the Moores School of Music.

Opened in 1997, the Moores Opera House seats 800, mimics the interior design of Old European theaters and contains the largest installation in the UH art collection. “Euphonia,” by the world-renowned artist Frank Stella, is a collage of abstract imagery that covers the 100-foot-long barrel vaulted ceiling of the opera house. It’s a hall that blends contemporary and classic aesthetics visually and acoustically.

“It’s one of the finest opera houses in the nation and, for a university theater, it is extraordinary,” says Moores Opera House manager and set designer Thom Guthrie. “It is close to acoustically perfect. You can concentrate on the quality of the singing and not have to compromise the music to get more volume.”

Guthrie was hired to handle the daily logistics of the theater’s operation just a few


LEARNING & LEADING


Ato me. Finding courage to let go of something you are good at but not in love with is not easy,” Izadi said.

Still, her natural curiosity and innate passion for the study of people led her onward.

“I had to pursue what I craved,” she said, “and I was ready to risk whatever it took.” Izadi began auditing classes in different departments and attended a Ph.D. lab meeting in UT’s psychology department. “It was then I realized there was a concentration in marketing called consumer behavior.”

With that in mind, she began looking into top doctoral programs in marketing and found Bauer College’s offering, with students conducting research recognized by leading academic journals and alumni teaching in schools across the globe.

Most impressive, Izadi said, was the obvious interaction students in the program had with faculty and the scholarly community. She was drawn in particular to Professor Vanessa Patrick, Bauer’s director of doctoral programs and a marketing researcher with a background in microbiology and biochemistry who studies the psychology of consumer mood and emotion.

“The most important criterion for me was to select a mentor with similar interests,” Izadi said. “I fell in love with her work.”

Izadi, who joined Bauer’s program in 2012 and plans to graduate in 2017, has conducted research with Patrick on the effectiveness of handwritten labels on consumer ratings of products. Together, they have worked for more than two years to produce four studies. And Izadi’s intriguing work was recently spotlighted at Bauer’s inaugural Graduate Research and Scholarships Project Day (GRaSP) event.

s a child in Tehran, Anoosha Izadi looked to the stars for answers. Now, as a doctoral candidate in the University of Houston’s marketing program,

Izadi continues to find inspiration as she dreams of big ideas, with an unexpected focus on consumer research.

Growing up in Iran, her earliest memories are a blur of movement — “I was very active, into sports and mischief,” she said. “I had a free spirit and was sensitive to being controlled, always standing for what I believed.” At home, Izadi was encouraged to speak her mind. Her family also valued education and discourse, so she knew she would pursue higher education, even if she wasn’t sure exactly which field best suited her.

“When I was younger, space fascinated me, and I dreamed of becoming an astronaut,” she recalled.

Her eventual path to studying consumer behavior in UH’s C. T. Bauer College of Business doctoral program had an unconventional beginning. She received an undergraduate degree in civil engineering at The University of Tehran in 2009, then earned a master’s in transportation engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, where she studied asphalt microstructure and completed a thesis on image processing.

But, preparing for a doctoral program aligned with her undergraduate and master’s coursework, she found herself seriously conflicted. Izadi always had an interest in social sciences, but without any academic experience in that realm, she felt again like a child staring into a dark sky, full of questions.

“It seemed too far and even unreachable

Doctoral Student Switches Paths, Trading Engineering and Asphalt for ‘Touching’ Consumer Research at UH

FROM TEHRAN TO TEXAS

“Basically, we wanted to know why handwriting is more effective than typewriting. We found that handwriting leads to higher haptic engagement, meaning individuals viewing

a product with a handwritten label are more likely to pick it up, open it or simply touch it,” the 28-year-old Izadi explained. This is because individuals see handwriting as an “anthropomorphized stimulus,” she added, thereby developing a more emotional and personal connection to a product – not all that unlike a certain student who decided to trade the study of asphalt for the study of people.

BY JESSICA NAVARRO

LEFT: Anoosha Izadi holds a jar of hand-labled Keemun tea leaves, part of her consumer behavior study; THIS PAGE: The study shows individuals feel more connected to products with handwritten labels.

We found that handwriting leads to higher haptic engagement, meaning individuals viewing a product with a

handwritten label are more likely to pick it up, open it or simply touch it.


ince the school color is red, it’s not a surprise the latest version of a mobile information app for UH students is called Redline. But the ambitious developers – students themselves – also want the name to suggest revving a car engine to its top speed, known as “redlining.”

“When students want to engage with UH, we need to make it as easy, seamless and powerful as possible,” explains Matt Dulin, director of the Center for Student Media, who oversees the development of the UH Redline app with an advisory board that includes students.

“It makes this a one-touch experience, with UH information that much closer and more easily available,” Dulin said. “A student can easily see what event to attend that evening or which organizations to join.”

Dulin says a robust calendar feature on the UH Redline app pulls events from the UH calendar with the option to save the event to the students’ calendars, so they can receive a reminder along with alerts.

“A visual tie on the app links to ongoing events like Frontier Fiesta, homecoming and graduation, and sends alerts,” said Dulin. “An example of an alert might be, ‘Hey, don’t miss Frontier Fiesta that’s happening right now’ or ‘Cat’s Back is happening now, tap here to find out more’. These are not emergency notifications, but promotional messages with the intent of generating an instant response.”

In addition to a calendar feature, alerts, maps and shuttles, UH students have access to The Cougar, COOG Radio and UH social media platforms, says Robert Birkline, the team leader for Business Solutions in Technology Services and Support, who oversees UH student Ryan Thompson in building and updating the UH Redline app.

“Similar to the way UH adopted social media six years ago, we are trying to be in tune with our student population now,” says Birkline. “It’s important for there to be an official mobile application for UH on the students’ smartphones to keep them engaged with student life.” Developed and launched by a UH student-fee-funded initiative within the Student Government Association (SGA), the first phase of the UH Redline app launched in January 2014. The current version launched in February.

Dulin worked with former SGA president Cedric Bandoh, who spearheaded the grant proposal for UH Redline app, on housing the app in the Center for Student Media to keep the focus on UH students and to continue to expand it for future generations.

“We’re committing to an annual update cycle,” said Dulin. “We’re letting the new version of the UH Redline app sit for a short window, but fairly quickly we’ll ask students for feedback to tell us what needs to be fixed and what needs to be improved and refreshed for the next update.”

The latest version of UH Redline can be downloaded for free at uh.edu/digital/apps.

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REVVING UP STUDENTS WITH UH REDLINE APP

BY MELISSA CARROLL

Keeping Cougars Tuned in and Turned on to Campus Events

LEARNING & LEADING


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READY … SET … WRITE!New Provost’s Prize Awards $5,000 Each Year for Winning Undergrad Compositions

ood writing, it’s been said, is its own reward … but University of Houston undergraduates now have the chance to win a considerable cash award as well.

Starting this fall, the Provost’s Prize – worth $2,500 – will be awarded each semester to the winner of a creative

writing competition open to all UH undergraduate students. That’s right – not just English majors and creative writing majors. All undergrads.

Developed by UH’s nationally acclaimed Creative Writing Program (CWP), the Provost’s Prize will recognize the best prose (in the fall) and poetry (in the spring) written by undergraduate students regardless of their major. The idea is to encourage students of all stripes to develop their creative capabilities.

“We are the ‘House that Innovation Built’ and innovation demonstrates itself in many unique ways,” said Provost Paula Myrick Short, whose office is sponsoring the competition. “My hope is this award will inspire our students to explore their own innovative creativity and share their imagination with all of us.”

To be eligible, students must be enrolled at UH during the time of submission and notification of the award. Only one entry is allowed per student. Entries of no more than 10 pages (double-spaced for prose) and containing no more than one piece of writing will be accepted. Entries must be submitted to the Creative Writing Program office by Sept. 1 for the prose competition and by Feb. 1 for the poetry competition.

Winning entries will be published in the fall and spring editions of the University of Houston Magazine. Honorable mentions will be listed. Submissions also may be posted on the University’s website with permission of the writers.

“The Provost’s Prize recognizes the importance and centrality of the arts in a meaningful undergraduate education. It also encourages UH undergraduates to become part of a nationally acclaimed writing community,” said James Kastely, director of UH’s Creative Writing Program. “UH is blessed with an exceptionally talented creative writing faculty, and both UH graduate students and undergraduate students are routinely doing very fine work. This award is yet one more indication of the University’s support for the creative work happening at UH. We hope all undergraduates who have an interest in creative writing will take this award as an opportunity to pursue it.”

Graduate creative writing students will conduct the first round of judging, identifying finalists for each competition. Faculty members in the CWP will select the recipients of the Provost’s Prize.

“The Provost’s Prize will shine a bright light on undergraduate writing at UH,” said Audrey Colombe, creative writing professor and faculty adviser for Glass Mountain, UH’s undergraduate literary journal. “Spring and fall, our students get a remarkable opportunity, and we get to read the results and say ‘Wow!’”

For more information, visit uh.edu/provostprize.


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LEARNING & LEADING

GAME CHANGERS The Student Athlete Development Department Keeps the Cougars Winning in the Classroom and in the Community

victory in the Armed Forces Bowl on Jan. 2 – can’t happen without academic victories as well, and the Student-Athlete Development team reinforces this philosophy to Cougar players.

“When we extend an offer to attend the University of Houston to a potential student athlete, we are informing the young man or woman and their family that we intend for them to achieve not only their highest athletic aspirations, but their highest academic aspirations as well,” UH Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Mack Rhoades said.

For every spectacular play on the field, there must be an equally remarkable feat in the classroom or the community. That is the standard that Cougars are held to and one that is intended to benefit them long after they’ve departed UH.

“We provide great resources for these students, but we also reinforce accountability,” said Maria Peden, associate athletics director for Student-Athlete Development. “Our athletes know that if they’re not making it happen in the classroom, they won’t make it happen on the field.”

The Academic Center for Excellence (ACE) and the Learning Support Services Program (LSSP) are vital to the department and student athletes.

ACE assistant directors are assigned to each of the 17 UH sports teams. They review syllabi and class schedules, monitor student athletes’ grades and update coaches on each player’s academic standing, as well as upcoming tests or important projects. ACE also is charged with coordinating tutors for student athletes, as well as study hall sessions.

LSSP complements ACE by delivering additional support to athletes. The program works with those who might require assistance with time management, academic focus or studying.

While both these resources support student athletes to offset the demands made of them as they represent the school at events across the country, it should be noted UH accommodates all students with similar support mechanisms, including Learning Support Services and the Center for Academic Support and Assessment, both of which offer tutoring services.

The efforts of both ACE and LSSP have no doubt proven effective. In fall 2014, student athletes posted the second-highest cumulative

ehind Cougar players and coaches is another University of Houston team that is geared toward high scores and winning. This team, however, is committed to the victories that happen off the field.

UH’s Department of Student-Athlete Development focuses on Cougars’ performance in the classroom and the community. Comprised of academic

counselors, tutors and coordinators, this team helps players balance their demanding schedules and offers resources aimed at bolstering academic performance. It also provides student athletes with access to professional development and leadership tools.

“We’re student athletes,” said junior football player Trevon Stewart. “But the keyword is student. That comes first.” Stewart is among the many players who frequently visit Student-Athlete Development’s offices and facilities. Located in UH’s Athletics and Alumni Center, the department is typically buzzing with activity. Coogs from all sports can be found meeting with counselors, participating in tutoring sessions, studying or relaxing briefly in a student lounge.

Conference championships and high profile wins – like UH’s breathtaking, last-minute

BY MIKE EMERY


grade point average, following a fall term – 2.89. Still, the available resources and support are only half the story. The players’ academic successes also are determined by their own hard work.

“We try to breed self-reliance and independence in our athletes,” Peden said. “Not everyone relies on our support mechanisms … but they’re still helpful. Even our straight ‘A’ students will take advantage of the tutoring services to maintain those high grade point averages.”

Among those ‘A-list’ players is senior Logan Piper. A punter for the football team and an accounting major, Piper is among 88 student-athletes on UH’s latest Dean’s List.

While his rigorous football schedule and academic load keep him busy, he still finds

a new environment. Sophomores are taught experiential leadership – or how to lead by example. Juniors explore vocal leadership – or discovering their professional voices. By student athletes’ senior years, they’re being prepared to serve as mentors and lifetime members of the Cougar community.

To assist Cougar athletes in their post-UH endeavors, the Career Development Program offers a range of resources. These include the Real World 101 Series, workshops focused on interviewing, networking and résumé building. Also available is the Cougar Career Mentor Program that connects student athletes with local professionals. Another networking and learning opportunity is Legacy Night, in which graduating seniors hear from student athlete alums on their own transition from college to professional careers.

The program also is taking student athletes into the professional community. A pilot mentoring program for the women’s basketball team, for example, is connecting players with more than 30 business leaders in Houston. Players shadow professionals at organizations such as Radio One, the City of Houston and CenterPoint Energy.

“It gives them a chance to see what these industries are really like,” said Kassen Delano Gunderman, director of Student Athlete Services. “Many of them discovered that certain career paths weren’t what they expected, and they were encouraged to consider opportunities in these areas.”

Putting it into perspective, Rhoades said, “With every one of our student athletes, we look to inspire excellence today, while preparing leaders for life.”

LEFT: Logan Piper became a tutor to support his fellow Cougar athletes.

THIS PAGE: Alexis Dunn exercises her new study habits.

3.55softball

3.39tennis

3.31baseball

3.22soccer

3.10swimming & diving

TOP 5 GPAS FOR UH TEAMS

time to contribute his talents as a tutor, helping students with math and accounting. His experiences as an athlete – previously splitting time between baseball and football – have been helpful in working with his peers, he said.

“Believe me, I understand what student athletes go through,” he said. “We all are faced with time constraints because of games, practices, events, classes and other things. Sometimes, it’s hard for them to make a tutoring session, so we work with them to make sure it gets done – even if I’m tutoring over the phone.”

Among the students benefitting from Student Athlete Development’s academic services is senior softball player Alexis Dunn. A kinesiology major, she has experienced the challenges of juggling class, practice and games (both on the road and at home). Both tutoring and study hall have helped her focus and re-adjust her studying strategies.

“Before tutoring, I didn’t completely understand my class material,” she said. “Tutoring gave me the extra attention I needed to be successful in my classes and taught me how to improve my study habits. Study hall is also a key component in my academic success, because it gives me a quiet and helpful environment to do my homework and review concepts I learned in tutoring.”

In addition to supporting Cougars’ academic efforts, Student Athlete Development also aims to hone skills that can be applied long after they’ve left the University. The Houston Leadership Academy and Career Development Program deliver guidance and resources aimed at grooming the student athletes to become professionals and leaders.

The Academy was launched four and a half years ago at the request of Rhoades. It is the only such program in the American Athletic Conference.

“The Academy supports student athletes through the struggles of leadership,” explained Sasha Blake, the Houston Leadership Academy’s director. “It helps bridge the gap between academics and athletics.”

The Academy connects with students from the time they enter UH and delivers guidance throughout their academic journey. Workshops – led by Blake – are strategically designed to address specific leadership traits. For freshmen, the Academy offers insight on personal leadership – helping students recognize their potential within


LEARNING & LEADING

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TAKING BIG STEPS New Coach Tom Herman Has Plans to Put the Cougar Football Program on a Path to ChampionshipsBY DAVID BASSITY

t started with an old pair of shoes from Goodwill. Well, half an old pair of shoes from Goodwill.

One year after giving up his early dream of becoming a sports talk radio host in Los Angeles and moving halfway across the country to central Texas to follow a new dream of coaching college football, Tom Herman returned to his one-bedroom apartment in Seguin, where he was the wide receivers coach at tiny NCAA Division III Texas Lutheran University. An important part of his plan to move up the coaching ladder was a box of old shoes from Goodwill.

Herman would mail a shoe, along with a handwritten note letting the recipient know that he was trying to (ahem) get his foot in the door, shipping them to head coaches at NCAA Division I (now called FBS) universities all across the country, just hoping for a shot at advancing his career.

This clever bit of shoemanship set Herman on a long but rewarding path through the collegiate ranks.

Fast forward to December 2014 … After seven stops in his career, including

a prominent role as offensive coordinator for the national champion team of Ohio State, the peripatetic Herman arrived in Houston, assuming the head coach position at the University of Houston. He made it sound like he’s ready to put away his traveling shoes.

“There has been an absolute transformation of this university in just the last five or six years under the leadership of President Renu Khator and Mack Rhoades (vice president for intercollegiate athletics),” he said, noting in particular the construction of the new TDECU Stadium on campus. “You

couple that with being in the City of Houston and the unbelievable high school football played around here,

Tom Herman was named UH head football coach in December 2014. He is the 13th head coach of the football program.


and throughout the great state of Texas, and I’d say that just screams out loud about our ability to go win championships.”

It’s exactly that kind of passion that got Herman’s foot in the door at UH.

“When I met him the first time,” recalled Khator, “I knew he had fire in his belly, and he wants to win even more than I want to win. That’s the kind of person I like to have on my team.”

That fire in the belly – and a penchant for developing high-powered offensive strategies – initially took Herman from Texas Lutheran to The University of Texas then to Sam Houston State, Texas State and Rice before leaving the Lone Star for Iowa State. His three years in Ames, Iowa, put Herman atop Ohio State Head Coach Urban Meyer’s list of offensive coordinator candidates. In a career field that is often based heavily on personal connections, Herman’s star began to shine even brighter after being hand selected by Meyer, a three-time national champion coach, with whom Herman had no previous connections.

His ability to cultivate not only successful football players, but also successful young men was a selling point for Meyer – not to mention the University of Houston, which recruited him while he was still serving at Ohio State.

So, prior to taking the reins at UH, Herman still had unfinished business at Ohio State – winning a national championship. With an agreement between Herman,

Rhoades and Meyer, the new UH head coach was able to continue serving as Ohio State offensive coordinator for two more games in the first College Football Playoff.

Despite having to rely on a third-string quarterback, Herman and Ohio State secured wins over Alabama and Oregon to capture the 2015 national championship. The title instantly gave Herman, already winner of the 2014 Frank Broyles Award given to the nation’s top assistant coach, even more credibility on the recruiting trail for UH. It was a task he was eager to embrace, posing for a photo with a UH cap and flashing a “Go, Coogs!” sign even as confetti fell to the field after Ohio State’s victory over Oregon in the championship game.

In some ways, all the little steps Herman made throughout his career led to a perfect two-month storm that included reaching the pinnacle of college football and being named head coach of a promising program at a Tier One institution.

“I’m proud of my humble beginnings,” said the 40-year-old Herman, who was born in Cincinnati and raised in California. “And all the stops along the way have allowed me to realize it’s the little things that matter.

“When I met him the first time, I knew he had fire in his belly, and he wants to win even more than I want to win.” – Renu Khator

It has also allowed me to realize that to be successful with limited resources, you need to be creative and can’t make excuses. You can’t decide to throw your hands up in the air and say, ‘it can’t be done’. ‘No’ is not acceptable. ‘I can’t’ is not an answer. Those words are banned from our vocabulary in the Herman household. When you start from humble beginnings like that, it really teaches you the value of finding ways to get things done,” he said, espousing this as a personal philosophy for his family (wife, Michelle, two sons, Maddock and Maverick and daughter, Priya) and his athletic credo as well.

It may not take a rocket scientist to coach a winning a football team, but being a member of Mensa – which Herman is – sure doesn’t hurt. And a master’s degree in education (from UT-Austin) rounds out the impression of an intelligent, well-educated individual who’s been successfully putting those “smarts” to work on and off the football field.

While no one can absolutely guarantee a winning football program, there’s no coach who will be working harder – and smarter – to make it happen than one Thomas Joseph Herman. And, in that respect, you could say he’s a shoe-in.


LEARNING & LEADING

HONORABLE INTENTIONSHonors College’s Community Building a Year-round Commitment

t the heart of the University of Houston is a center of undergraduate excellence called the Honors College. An Honors education encompasses both great books and grand challenges; it inspires students not only to read and reflect but also to act and create—to build contacts and community within the college itself, across the entire campus, and out into the city and the world.

This ongoing commitment to community-building is not confined to the neat parameters of the academic calendar; it’s a continuing effort that happens year-round, one whose initiatives are emblematic of the “four seasons” of Honors:

SUMMER OF APPSIn 2014, research professors Dan Price and Peggy Lindner organized the first “Summer of Apps,” a project that combines tech-savvy with service. More than a dozen students from the UH chapter of the Bonner Leaders Program, which is sponsored by the Honors College, created mobile device apps that, according to Price, “help small nonprofits that don’t really have the budget for their own technology.” One of those nonprofits is Houston’s own SHAPE Community Center, for which the students designed an app that improves the coordination of volunteer hours and opportunities.

The Summer of Apps reflects Price and Lindner’s philosophy of “putting data analytics in student hands” — and not just in the hands of UH students. Price recruited Honors alumna Blair Ault (’10) to teach in the Summer Leadership Institute (SLI) run by another of the college’s community partners, Workshop Houston. “Inspired by the Summer of Apps at the college level, SLI was housed in the Honors College,” Ault explained. “Ten high school students took on the challenge of learning the skills needed to create their own mobile app. It was a lot of fun to work on campus and take the students on walkabouts to engage them in conversation about their own college aspirations.”

FALL OF MENTORINGIn a few short years, those aspirations will become realities, and some of those SLI students may well be returning to campus as Honors students. If they do, they’ll be able to take advantage of the college’s smart and caring Mentorship Program, started in 2010 by Brenda Rhoden, now assistant dean for student affairs.

Rhoden shares a vision of student persistence and retention with program coordinator Franco Martinez (’10). “Students can have difficulty transitioning from high school to college, and may need some additional support in that first year to learn the ins and outs of higher education and become fully integrated into the Honors Community,” Martinez said.

That support comes in the form of a cohort of 18 peer mentors, who go through a rigorous selection and training process. Two student “mentor executives” assist Martinez

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BY ROBERT CREMINS & MARY DAHDOUH


in preparing the mentors for their important role, which begins at a two-day retreat in late August. The mentors are the lead counselors at this off-campus event that welcomes incoming freshmen.

“Honors Retreat is a huge part of getting students involved in the community,” Martinez said. Through the fall semester, mentors stay connected to their charges by inviting them to other events, such as “dinner with the profs,” Undergraduate Research Day and the Honors Organization Fair. They also give good counsel during weekly meetings and “check-in” hours.

The experience is so successful that many first-year mentees apply to be the following year’s mentors.

Mentor executive Beth Knuppel’s opinion exemplifies the ownership these volunteers take of the program. “I want to ensure that every student who enters the Honors College knows they have not just joined a college, but also a family that will support them every step of the way,” Knuppel said.

WINTER OF SERVICEThe aforementioned Bonner Leaders are another cohort of Honors students who display commitment to giving back to

the community. This January, with the establishment of the Coog City Cares group, they had a new way of contributing to the University of Houston’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. The group is the brainchild of sophomore Grace Schwarz. “Coog City Cares is the name of a core team of Bonners that collaborates with the MLK Day of Service committee,” Schwarz explained.

Schwarz and her colleagues are especially focused on the bond between the University and its neighbors: “We want to unite the student body and the Third Ward into one supportive community.” Like many students, Schwarz has found the experience of doing volunteer work to be transformational: “Before, Coog City Cares service was a hobby,” she said. “Now, it’s my lifestyle.”

SPRING OF SCHOLARSEvery April, the Honors College has a chance to meet and greet many members of the next class ready to embrace great books and grand

challenges. It comes at a large orientation event known as Scholars Invitational. Hosting several hundred high school seniors requires the involvement of

UH Honors College students give back to the community by packing up donated pet food at the Houston Food Bank during the MLK Day of Service in January.

An Honors education encompasses both great books and grand challenges; it inspires students not only to read and reflect but also to act and create.

not only numerous members of the Honors College staff but also several dozen student volunteers.

According to Sarah Bhojani, this all-hands-on-deck effort is certainly worthwhile: “It brings the majority of our incoming class together. I think the Scholars Invitational is just building community from the start. Students are thrown in this situation together in a large group, and not only are they connected with each other, they’re also getting to connect with peer advisers, upperclassmen who have taken classes and have been there, done that before them.”

The invitational is a hit with the young scholars who attend. “They love the idea of being able to lock down their fall classes in April. They love the idea of getting to know colleagues — peers they are going to be in classes with — of starting those relationships, friendships and getting to know us: the faculty and staff of the Honors community,” Bhojani said.

In April, the weather is heating up quickly in Houston, a sure sign of the long, hot summer ahead, but also a sign that in the Honors College, another year of community service and community-building is getting underway. Honors continues to be a college for all seasons.

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Once the Site of a WWII Base, the UH Coastal Center Serves as a Special Research Facility and One

of the Country’s Key Prairie Grass Preserves.

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oday, this is the site of the University of Houston Coastal Center (UHCC), a remarkable research facility the size and significance of which seems to be matched by the lack of awareness of it by the public and, for that matter, the University community. Even those quite familiar with all things UH often find themselves flummoxed by references to the “UHCC.”

Despite its intriguing background and considerable potential, the UHCC has remained a little known and relatively under-utilized resource for nearly four decades. Now, there are those who hope to bring about change.

Located about 35 miles down the Gulf Freeway from the main UH campus, the center occupies nearly 1,000 acres where the historic Camp Wallace military installation once stood. In operation since the early 1970s, the UHCC has been tasked with supporting environmental research on the Texas coast by providing UH (and other) researchers access to field sites, equipment and facilities. Scientific activities include studies of air quality and micrometeorology, geophysics, invasive species and prairie ecosystems, climate change and wetland ecology. The UHCC also seeks to broaden public awareness about science and the environment by supporting outreach activities with public groups and educational activities. More importantly, perhaps, it enjoys the distinction of being one of the country’s premier preserves for exemplary coastal prairie grass.

UH acquired this large parcel in the 1960s after the federal government declared the post-military land surplus and, in effect, donated it to the University. At the time, some envisioned it as a suitable site for the UH System institution planned for this general vicinity. However, that campus – UH-Clear Lake – was eventually built closer to Johnson Space Center. So, in the early 1970s, UH established a coastal research center here instead. Glenn Aumann, a young professor of ecology and animal behavior newly arrived at UH, was named director – a position he held from 1971 to 2010, keeping the center going about its business in a steady, if unspectacular, fashion.

After that, Steve Pennings, a professor in the Department of Biology and Biochemistry, assumed the director duties with Professor Barry Lefer, of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, serving as assistant director.

ON A CRISP SATURDAY MORNING, PENNINGS IS SHOWING me around the place. In the car, we follow the crumbly but still serviceable patchwork of asphalt roads that crisscross the acreage. Quickly, we find ourselves in the back brush, surrounded by overgrown trees and shrubs on both sides of the road.

“Parts of this place are still pretty rough,” Pennings says, with a mixture of apology and pride.

He’s taking me to see two of the more prominent remnants of the Camp Wallace days. Here is the foundation of the large movie house. On the sloping concrete floor, you can see where row after row of seats were once anchored, accommodating audiences of servicemen enjoying Betty Grable and John Wayne. Farther along, Pennings points out massive pillars and beams, part of the central depot where troop and supply trains arrived and departed. Even shrouded by the abundant brush, their size is impressive.

Here and there are chalky pockets of crushed oyster shell, remnants of parking lots and walkways from the military encampment. While Pennings and others at the center make use of them as a ready source of landscaping material, the biologist in him would just as soon not have it here. The calcium from the shells leaches into the soil and plays havoc with the pH. But trying to excavate and remediate all that is a herculean task. The impact of 10,000 people and 400 buildings at Camp Wallace had a severe impact on this land – and the center routinely finds itself fighting a rearguard action trying to ameliorate those lingering effects. Chinese tallow trees, once widely planted to provide quick growth and shade, ran amok and, as an invasive species, compromised much of the valued native habitat. Reclaiming it is a major undertaking … and, for the most part, not undertaken.

“OK, slow down,” Pennings says, “it’s right about … here.” We’ve come upon a scraped-out cavity that’s been transformed into a

fair-sized pond. “Had an alligator calling that home for a while,” Pennings recalls. The

wildlife at the center comes and goes, but usually includes coyotes, bobcats, feral hogs, armadillos and, of course, birds, all manner of birds. By rough count, there are also about 400 species of plants and 600 species of insects.

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G O I N GC O A S T A L

Those with a vivid imagination can close their eyes and envision what it must have been like three-quarters of a century ago when World War II was

underway. There would have been the syncopated thrum of marching soldiers doing close order drill and the sharp, shouted commands of men training on

anti-aircraft guns. A military train huff-huffs across the base toward the depot, bringing supplies for the 10,000 GIs and civilians living and working here.

Off to another side, there’s the unmistakable but unexpected sound of German being spoken – hundreds of POWs being detained at the camp. Floating

silently above all this, like something out of a dream, a silvery blimp glides by, on its way to patrol for U-boats in the nearby Gulf of Mexico . . .

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We swing by a couple of unobtrusive oil and gas drilling operations – they’re privately leased, and UH doesn’t own the mineral rights – and Pennings says off-handedly, “Maybe we should get our petroleum engineering students out here for some practical experience.”

AFTER TOURING THE CENTER’S RUSTIC BACK 40, WE CIRCLE back to what amounts to the Spartan facility’s base of operations, where most of the long-term research activities have been set up. Across from a big, banked drainage channel that runs through much of the property are a couple of 200-foot high micrometeorology towers and a support trailer that transmits the collected air quality data, serving as part of H-NET (Houston Network of Environmental Towers). There are also four peculiar barrel-shaped devices that regularly produce loud whirling, whistling audio signals that project into the air, helping Lefer and colleagues analyze ozone, pollution and other atmospheric characteristics.

Over there, Professor Rob Stewart, director of the Allied Geophysical Lab at UH, has drilled a pair of 430-foot-deep wells into the coastal soil, accommodating various monitoring instruments. He and his students have been investigating well-logging and seismic issues. Also making good use of this special resource, earth and atmospheric sciences’ Bob Wang has established four real-time, high-rate GPS stations as part of a larger network that analyzes regional subsidence.

At the heart of the center is a squat, metal building, constructed in the 1970s and clearly showing its age. It serves as a combination lab, classroom and administrative office. Aerial photos of the property from different eras are thumbtacked to the walls, and cluttered shelving holds jars, boxes, beakers and gizmos.

“This place really needs to be fixed up,” Pennings says; then explains continuing challenges in getting that funded.

Along with the longer term projects like the towers and wells, the

center hosts a parade of other researchers and scholars, not all from UH. (Non-UHers pay a nominal use fee.) A University of New Mexico researcher is maintaining plots of sunflowers, part of a study about how hybridization between related species accelerates the evolutionary process. Professor Evan Siemann from Rice University and his collaborators in China are using the UHCC to understand the rapid spread of invasive Chinese tallow and methods to restore sites invaded by it. Two years ago, San Jose State researchers set the place on fire – under controlled conditions – to study how wildfires move across a prairie. And there’s a steady procession of UH graduate students drawing on the center’s resources for their theses and dissertations.

WHILE THOSE VARIOUS RESEARCH PROJECTS ARE SIGNIFICANT, UHCC’s most valuable resource may well be the land it sits on. About 300 acres are coastal tallgrass prairie, a highly endangered habitat, with less than one tenth of one percent remaining nationwide. Today, such swards are few and far between, and the particular strains of grass at UHCC are among the best specimens extant. What’s growing here is virtually the same as what covered vast areas of this region centuries ago.

“I’m told this is the highest quality coastal prairie in the country,” Pennings says. “This central area, we’re pretty sure, has never even been plowed.”

To those passionately interested in recovery projects, the UHCC grass is highly prized. As a community service and ecological commitment, UH allows the seeds from this pristine patch to be harvested by the Native American Seed company (for a small percentage of the modest proceeds) then made available to organizations and individuals engaged in prairie restoration and native plant projects all across the country.

“We mow the grass each year,” Pennings explains, recreating the natural wear and tear it experienced by grazing herds of buffalo two centuries ago. In the spring, they let it flourish and it comes

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HE’S JOKING, BUT NOT COMPLETELY. IN RECENT YEARS, AS UH has worked ambitiously to achieve Tier One status as a research university, there has been speculation the low-key UHCC might be measured against a new benchmark and perceived by some as impractical.

“We’ve been trying to expand the research and ramp up the courses offered out here,” Pennings says, quietly but with clear meaning.

Fortunately, a significant effort is already underway to improve the center and raise its profile.

Patrick Peters, the professor with the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture who oversees a well-known Design/Build class, isn’t exactly the cavalry riding to the rescue, but may be the next best thing.

Each year, Peters’ student group designs and constructs projects for regional nonprofit organizations, giving the students an invaluable opportunity to see their ideas evolve from concept to construction. The UH Coastal Center has captured his imagination, and Peters has committed his class’ expertise and enthusiasm to helping enhance the facility.

“The Coastal Center is an intriguing place, one with a compelling history that begins with its former Native American inhabitants, extends through its use as Camp Wallace during WWII and, now, as a center of advanced research to support our highest aspirations for sustainable research and education,”

Peters says. “There’s something very special about that. We’re lucky to have this place.”

With that in mind, Peters and his talented students are now designing a master plan for the center, analyzing the existing features and offering proposals for what could be included in the future. One of the possibilities, for example, is professor Max Shauck’s proposal to use UHCC’s expansive grounds as a prototype for developing simple, biomass-fueled “green” airports in under-developed communities around the world.

Along with such conceptual support, Patrick’s class members are also rolling up their sleeves and providing some sweat equity to improve the site.

Most notably, they are relocating the “ReFRAME x FRAME” edifice, an earlier Design/Build project that has been on display in Hermann Park as part of the centennial celebration, to UHCC. The striking solar-powered structure was constructed from reused office cubicle materials with additional steel components. Serving as a model “green” building and informal Visitor Center, it will also provide much welcome shade to those working at the seismic wells at UHCC during Houston’s brutal summers. Use of the UHCC by other courses in biology and earth and atmospheric sciences is also increasing rapidly.

WHETHER UHCC WILL REMAIN A NOVEL footnote in UH’s history or begin an important new chapter remains to be seen, of course. “The untapped potential here is tremendous,” Pennings says. He looks up at the sky, where blimps were once such a common sight and you have to wonder … if that really happened, who’s to say what else might?

OPPOSITE: Director Pennings at the scruffy metal building that serves as the center’s base of operations THIS PAGE: A greenhouse (top right) is one of several research amenities. Planning improvements, architecture students (top left) tour the property. Grass seed and all manner of botanicalmaterial fill countless jars (above).

flowering back with a vengeance, tall and sturdy and beautiful.

A little less than a third of the UHCC acreage is devoted to the precious prairie grass. Pennings and others would love to considerably expand that. But, reclaiming the prairie from the scrubby, insistent forest that has overgrown it then re-establishing the coastal grass would be arduous, requiring a lot of muscle and money. The center is short on both.

Maybe, someone suggests, each Greek fraternity and sorority chapter at UH could sponsor its own 10-acre plot, clearing the land and planting the grass. Pennings smiles and says, “Hey, we’re open to anything. Have them give me a call.”

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MICROFINANCE AND MENTORS AT UH PROFIT THE COMMUNITYProfessor Saleha Khumawala Says It All Begins With Education

INNOVATION & INSIGHT

onica Valadez needed $5,000 for a better sewing machine and an upgraded workspace. Mostly, though, she needed a mentor.

Valadez, owner of Moniva Inspired Creations, was among 32 fall graduates from a popular community microfinance program offered by the University of Houston, about half of whom pitched their ideas to microfinance companies and

other investors, competing for startup capital.The judges were wowed by Valadez’s uncommon work. “This,” one told her, “is inspiring.” Who knew there was a market for custom-designed clergy robes?

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Although the judges didn’t immediately announce their decisions, Valadez and other graduates left the program with a built-in network of mentors. And that is the more lasting prize, said Saleha Khumawala, Robert Grinaker Professor of Accounting at UH’s Bauer College of Business.

Most of the would-be entrepreneurs already have an idea for a business when they enroll in the microfinance program, ranging from lawn services to catering companies and medical billing firms. And while many think the access to loans and the laptop computers given to graduates by sponsor Capital One Bank are the biggest benefit, Khumawala sees something else.

It’s really about knowledge, she explains: financial literacy and the business plans that Bauer graduate students help these participants create for their fledgling companies.

BY JEANNIE KEVER


“At the end of the day, money is paper,” she said. “Education is the key to real empowerment.”

That’s always been at the heart of the UH microfinance program, the thing that sets it apart from other such programs.

The concept of microfinance has been around since the 1970s, when Bangladeshi economist and banker Muhammad Yunus pioneered the concept of making very small loans to villagers so they could start businesses. Students at a number of U.S. university campuses have formed clubs to make microloans to entrepreneurs in developing nations; a student club at UH briefly did the same.

But Khumawala said the need in Houston is huge – she estimates about 9 percent of Houstonians live on less than $2 a day – and a local-only emphasis allows UH students not only to work with local nonprofits and microfinance organizations but also to learn about real-world business challenges.

There is nothing like the UH program in the United States, Khumawala said, although some universities now offer mentoring programs for small businesses, and a few have even come here to study the Houston program.

Many people say the key to the UH program’s success lies firmly with its founder.

“Saleha Khumawala was a social entrepreneur before they invented the term,” said Richard Scamell, an associate dean at Bauer. “She is someone who sees a problem and wants to make things better.”

She knew immediately, for instance, that traditional microfinance – a $50 or $100 loan – wouldn’t work in a major U.S. city like Houston. So, working with partners, including Neighborhood Centers, Capital One Bank, Wells Fargo Bank and The Simmons Foundation, she created something different, starting with the idea of loans that may be small by conventional standards but are 100 times larger than the usual microloan.

The real proof of the program’s success is scattered across the city, in places such as the Sweet Luxuries Bakery.

“A year ago, I never would have dreamed my business would have grown in this capacity,” said owner Heather Davis. “It has been an amazing year.”

Davis, a UH alum, was a longtime Houston Independent School District teacher with a

dream of owning her own bakery. For years, she made treats for coworkers but planned on retiring as a teacher or school counselor, pursuing baking on the side.

Then things began to fall into place. She discovered Neighborhood Centers in Independence Heights, an agency offering a range of community empowerment programs, including renting commercial kitchens by the hour. Through the agency, she learned about the UH microfinance program and signed up for the fall 2013 session.

She already had the dream and the name for her business. The class gave her a business plan, while also conveying the discipline required to run a successful business.

LEFT: Heather Davis happily serves customers at her bakery. BELOW: Professor Saleha Khumawala, founder of the microfinance pro-gram at the C. T. Bauer College of Business

Davis absorbed the lessons. She grew her business steadily, marketing via the Internet and social media, as well as through face-to-face contact. She moved into Kaffeine Coffee on Alameda Road this spring; her products are also in a number of retail outlets, including her favorite department store, Nordstrom.

Naturally, that was a thrill, but she wasn’t living large. “You have to know how to manage yourself before you can manage your business,” she said. “I learned how to better manage my personal finances through the UH microfinance program, in order to continue sustaining self-employment.”

It’s been worth it, though, and she couldn’t stop smiling as she talked to the 2014 graduates.

“It’s a dream come true,” she said. “I have an amazing family of mentors, and Dr. Khumawala is the mother of my business.”




A ROSE IS A ROSE IS A ROSÉ ? Cheers for New State of the Art Facility to Study Wine BY MARISA RAMIREZ

his is the only one of its kind between the two coasts,” says Chris Taylor, surveying the gleaming stemware, handsome décor and state-of-the-art lab

equipment. It’s a place guaranteed to make any wine lover’s nostrils flare with delight.

Taylor is the director of the Beverage Management Program and the Fred Parks Wine Cellar at Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management. And he’s downright bubbly about the school’s new Spec’s Beverage & Food Appreciation Laboratory.

“This represents a huge commitment. We have an opportunity to make a national and global impact within the industry. We’ll be in the preeminent status in beverage management,” he says.

When you are routinely ranked among the top hospitality colleges in the country, and your university is ranked Tier One, your laboratory space to teach and train has to reflect that same standard of excellence. That’s precisely what this one does.

Specifically designed to instruct the next generation of hospitality professionals, the 2,210-square-foot, $750,000, wine-tasting lab seats up to 62 people for wine-appreciation classes and industry training. Located on the college’s first-floor, south wing, the new

facility features individual sinks, natural light and back-lit white boards used to evaluate a wine’s color. Stations also feature gridded wine-holding stations, so wines stay in the order they were distributed.

Taylor says only a handful of universities in the country have dedicated facilities to research and evaluate wine.

Still, with stadium seating providing clear views of multiple screens for presentations or videos, the lab’s multipurpose design allows it to be used in sensory evaluation of food, along with evaluation of other beverages, such as distilled spirits and coffees.

“There are some things you can’t do without the right tool. This is the right tool,” Taylor says.

The lab was constructed during the summer of 2014 and officially opened for the fall semester. The Rydman family, owner of Spec’s Wine, Spirits & Finer Foods, is the principal donor to the project.

“We’ve been committed to the college from the beginning, because we think education is important in this world. It’s as simple as that,” said John Rydman. “The beverage lab is all about education, and it gives the college a proper arena to be serious about tasting. Knowledge learned from this lab will also make students more marketable, and that’s a

win-win for them and the industry.” Funding support also comes from the

Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. With expertise learned at the Hilton

College in facilities such as the new wine lab, students will be equipped to pursue careers in pricing systems and sales, storage and cellar management, training and marketing and as sommeliers.

“I was in the first class to use the facility. It was for Dr. Taylor’s Wine Appreciation class,” says Trey Cooley, a junior hotel and restaurant

management major who is minoring in food and beverage marketing. “It helped expand my knowledge and

palate of wines from many different areas of the world. The new lab separates the Hilton College from any other program, and I know it will give potential students even more incentive to join our amazing program because we have these awesome features.”

Beverage management touches all aspects of the hospitality industry, from hotels and restaurants to events and cruise lines. A strong foundation in college can be the springboard to a successful career in the industry. Guy Stout, master sommelier and corporate director of beverage education with Glazer’s Family of Companies, says the new addition at the Hilton College is impressive.

“Spec’s has gone over the top with this tasting lab,” he says. “You’d have to go to the Culinary Institute of America in New York or to Napa to get this type of learning environment. I am an instructor for the master sommelier class each fall. The new tasting lab just makes it a better environment to teach.”

The college’s Beverage Management Program, like the industry, has grown. It began as a single wine-appreciation class in the 1980s. Today, students pursuing bachelor degrees in the hospitality industry can specialize in wine and spirits management. Additionally, any student at the University can minor in beverage management. Each area works with industry experts to ensure students’ coursework and internships are relevant to the workplace.

Future plans for the Beverage Management Program include a new beer and wine production lab. So, start getting ready for Coogs Lite and Chateau Shasta.

FROM LEFT: UH Student studies the wine’s appearance before tasting; Students are lectured on the art of wine tasting.

“T


ZSCIENTIST, TEACHER,

ENTREPRENEUR, HUMANIST

Zhifeng Ren’s Research Group Has Doubled in Size

Since He Arrived at UH Two Years Ago, Driven By the

Desire to Make a DifferenceBY JEANNIE KEVER

hifeng Ren left China in 1990 for a position as a post-doctoral research associate in upstate New York, never expecting to be at the University of Houston – or even in the United States – 25 years later.

“But you go as things happen,” he said, explaining his philosophy of research, as well as his own extraordinary path through academia. One discovery leads to another.

And what a journey it has been. Ren grew up in Nanbu County, a rural area in Sichuan province,

at a time when scoring well on national exams offered one of the few routes out of the impoverished countryside. He was assigned to study mechanical engineering at the Sichuan Institute of Technology in Chengdu, just 100 miles – but a bone-rattling 12-hour bus ride through the twisting 200-mile road – from his home.

Rigorous scholarship eventually led him to a doctoral degree in condensed matter physics from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing in 1990.

Ren came to the United States that spring, not in search of the American dream or as part of a grand plan but primarily to earn money to support his growing family, something that was still difficult to do in China at the time. His wife, Ruiping He, is also from Nanbu and joined

40People in Ren’s research group

10Patent applications filed by the group

28+Papers in peer

reviewed journals each year



him in New York after giving birth to the older of their two sons.

After nine years as a post doc and research professorship at State University of New York at Buffalo, Ren moved to a tenure-track position at Boston College, where he began gaining notice for work in a surprisingly wide range of scientific fields, from high-temperature superconductivity to carbon nanotubes.

“I didn’t plan to stay, to build a family in the United States,” he said. “I didn’t really have a plan. It was just … whatever happened.”

What happened was impressive, as Ren produced work in a diverse array of fields. Teaming up with collaborators at nearby Massachusetts Institute of Technology and other universities, Ren saw his career flourishing. He is credited as the first scientist to grow aligned carbon nanotube arrays in large scale, to make nanostructured bulk thermoelectric materials with much improved properties and to synthesize hierarchical zinc oxide nanowires.

He founded or co-founded three

Chu believed Ren could set an example for other scientists at the Center for Superconductivity and the Physics Department. The University’s top administrators agreed, and Ren arrived in late 2012, along with 19 members of his research group.

UH President Renu Khator had set a goal of increasing research expenditures to $200 million by 2020, and recruiting top research faculty was one key to achieving it. Ren’s interest in commercializing his research also made him an excellent fit for UH, which increasingly had begun to focus on transferring technology to the marketplace. His other accomplishments – including his stature as a fellow in the American Association for the Advancement of Science and as a fellow of the American Physical Society – were also important to the University, which was pushing hard in its drive to earn and maintain Tier One status.

During the next two remarkable years, Ren’s group – which has now grown to 40

arriving in Texas and was named a fellow in the 2013 class of the National Academy of Inventors and honored with the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Award in Science from The Academy of Medicine, Engineering & Science of Texas for 2014.

He hardly slowed down long enough to accept the awards and enjoy the acclaim. Why work so hard?

Mostly, he said, because he and the other members of his group simply want to make a difference in the world, whether they are investigating clean energy via thermoelectrics, revolutionizing consumer electronics with stretchable transparent conductors or breaking new boundaries in nanomedicine.

“And I like it,” he said of his long hours. “It’s the way we were raised in China. Everybody works very hard there. We didn’t have sports games. They educated us to work hard.”

For the past 25 years, Ren has exercised that work ethic here in the United States, although his collaborators have included scientists from China and his research group – like those of other academic labs – is a veritable global village, made up of young scholars from Asia and around the world. He has maintained strong personal ties to his homeland, as well, returning regularly to visit family and collaborators in China.

He and his wife also have raised money for various projects in their modest hometown over the years, starting with wells to provide clean water for the middle school and including money for student scholarships, awards for school teachers and for a community center for the village.

Ren’s older son recently graduated from MIT, while the younger is in graduate school at the University of California at San Diego. He and his wife also recently adopted two teenage daughters. They have grown up with the Western values of the United States. As a result, Ren remembers his older son vowing to never work the long hours that defined his father’s life.

As it turned out, that son founded his own tech startup, and his hours now mirror those of his industrious father. “It’s crazy,” Ren says, laughing.

Crazy, but he shows no sign of slowing down.

For Ren, there are more classes to teach, more papers to write, more grants to apply for, more reports to write and more students to advise on experiments and, most of all, more of the journey to be made.

“Zhifeng impressed me as a creative and energetic scientist, engaging in both fundamental and applied research.”

companies in the United States to commercialize his growing body of research.

Life was good. And about to get better. UH’s internationally celebrated researcher

Paul Chu was asked to speak at Boston College in 2011 on the 100th anniversary of the discovery of superconductivity. As an up-and-coming scientist, Ren had crossed paths over the years with Chu, founding director of the Texas Center for Superconductivity at UH (TcSUH) and a well-known figure in the field, but that 2011 visit changed Ren’s direction.

Ultimately, Chu convinced Ren to move to Houston, where he is now MD Anderson Chair Professor of Physics and principal investigator at TcSUH.

“Zhifeng impressed me as a creative and energetic scientist, engaging in both fundamental and applied research,” Chu said. “He had an unusual entrepreneurial spirit along with a serious social conscience.”

people, including 18 graduate students and 20 post-doctoral research associates – has filed 10 patent applications and published more than 28 papers in peer-reviewed journals each year. Ren has received more than $4.5 million in research funding, much of it from the Department of Energy (DOE), the U.S. Air Force or DOE’s Advance Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E).

He still works with faculty at MIT, mostly on energy-focused projects and other outside institutions, but he also has developed relationships with researchers at UH, including a collaboration with Chu, Xiaoliu Zhang, a cancer researcher with the UH Center for Nuclear Receptors and Cell Signaling, and assistant physics professor Dong Cai, which has resulted in a dramatic new method for extracting molecules from live cells without disrupting cell development.

Ren quickly reaped new accolades after

– Professor Paul Chu


W

ALL WORK IS THE PLAY …The International Recognition Formula for This Prolific Husband-Wife Research Team

ON THE FACULTY

hen asked what they do in their spare time, UH professors – and married couple – Oomman Varghese and Maggie Paulose share a

look of amusement and simply counter with “What’s spare time?”

It may sound like they’re kidding, but it’s no joke.

This exceptionally productive team from the Department of Physics landed a spot on the Thomson Reuters 2014 list of the most highly cited researchers in materials science, helping earn them the distinction of being among the “World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds.” They join the select ranks of those who, in the last decade, have published the greatest number of reports designated as Highly Cited Papers.

As you might expect, this dynamic duo’s prodigious research output doesn’t come easily. A peek behind the curtain into their lives reveals a life of almost complete commitment to research and writing.

While they were both born in the southern part of India in the state of Kerala – meaning, quite literally, the home of coconut trees – they met in Delhi in 1995. They were both attending the Indian Institute of Technology for their post-graduate studies. Varghese was pursuing his Ph.D. in physics when Paulose was recruited to join his group’s lab while working on her second master’s degree.

“Maggie started working with my professors, doing a six-month project as part of her Master of Technology program in materials engineering,” Varghese recalls. “That’s how we really started working together. I was a senior student helping her.”

Varghese says he initially was attracted to her values and character, finding they shared the beliefs. But he was also drawn to her complementary behavior.

“What I don’t have, she has. And what she doesn’t have, I have,” he says. “We were a good match.”

Although they weren’t thinking of that so early in their relationship, years later it turns out that this complementary dynamic plays a large part in their work success. Their corresponding strengths have proven to be very constructive. Varghese tends to focus on the purely scientific side of things, while BY LISA MERKL


Paulose zeroes in on the engineering aspects. As a result, this makes their work appealing to both theoretical and experimental researchers.

“We have a synergy in our common papers,” Varghese says. “While having our own independent papers is important to us, we collaborate significantly on research and have very good joint publications, well received by the scientific community, because of the balanced nature of our ideas. Our work is relevant both scientifically and technologically.”

Another key factor in their high citation count is the practicality of their research. It’s of utmost importance to each of them that their research should be of benefit to society. They don’t follow the mindset of just studying science for the sake of satisfying their own curiosity. Instead, they continually seek practical applications of their discoveries.

Working primarily with solid-state materials, they are actively exploring two areas to reduce the impact of human technologies on the environment.

One is solar cells, looking for a less expensive, more efficient medium to convert sunlight into electricity. Another, which seems especially appropriate to Houston, is tackling the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Their goal is to convert carbon dioxide back into gasoline or natural gas using sunlight – in essence, recycling it.

Another area of interest is developing sensors for disease monitoring, such as an extremely sensitive hydrogen sensor for monitoring or diagnosing diseases. One of their current projects is to analyze the gases in a person’s breath to diagnose cancer in its early stages.

Work in the lab has become a family affair that extends beyond the two of them. Their son, Tushar (11), is in sixth grade, and their daughter, Grishma (8), is in second grade. While many kids their ages may only catch a glimpse of life in the lab on television programs or through science celebrities like Bill Nye “The Science Guy” and Neil deGrasse Tyson, Varghese and Paulose’s kids get to see it firsthand … with their parents in the starring roles. The couple says, since they work in the same area and same place, they know who needs more time when research deadlines are looming.

“One of us is always in the lab, so we support each other to reach our goals,” Varghese says. “If I have to finish some work, Maggie will take care of the kids and duties. When Maggie has the work, I do it.”

That mutual aid approach carries through to their attitude about competition. They’re taken aback by the idea that professional competition would play any part in their marriage.

“We are not competitive,” Varghese says flatly. “Whenever we hear that question, we

wonder why we should need competition. If you have a close relationship with your wife or husband, you wouldn’t feel competitive. The other person’s success is your success. We find working together to be a blessing.”

The only other thing that equals the importance of work and family in their lives is their religion. They both grew up in faith-driven families. It’s important to them that “everything is based on God.” As descendants of Syrian Christianity, they faithfully attend their native church and were happy to find a vast Indian cultural base when they arrived to Houston in 2012.

In the end, they find strong correlations between a successful marriage and a successful scientific partnership. They agree that many partnerships, even if not married, break apart because they lack understanding and compromise. To be successful in either, they say, you need to demonstrate mutual respect. Recognizing a partner’s abilities and weaknesses and adjusting to them leads to success.

FAR LEFT: The professors view the plasma process in a material fabrication (thin film deposition) system. These materials are currently used for the development of nanomaterials for making solar cells and devices for early diagnosis and monitoring of lethal diseases like cancer. LEFT: A high efficiency perovskite solar cell developed in the lab.


BY FRANCINE PARKER

ON THE FACULTY

MAKING HISTORYLawrence Curry has been Putting the ‘Story’ in History at UH for Half a Century

PROFESSORS EMERITI


istory is filled with interesting accounts, intriguing anecdotes, ripping yarns and even a few tall tales. For nearly five decades, Lawrence Curry

has happily shared such material – plus a few of his own devising – with countless students at the University of Houston. Sometimes, those lectures even take on a life of their own.

“One time, I was explaining to my students what a “Yellow Dog Democrat” is and an old yellow dog walked up and lay on the stage,” Curry recalled. “I suspect my students thought I had set that up, but I hadn’t.”

That incident happened in the auditorium of Agnes Arnold Hall several years ago, Curry explained, when stray dogs occasionally wandered across campus. Since then, UH has changed considerably … and so has Curry.

At 80, Curry now walks a little slower, yet he remains keen and stately. He often is observed on campus with a worn UH canvas bag in hand, heading to a freshman introductory course in U.S. history. He has been teaching the class as an adjunct professor since 2006, five years after he retired with the professor emeritus title.

“I wish everybody had as much love of history as I do, but I don’t teach ‘Happy History’. You can’t really love your country unless you know your country. So, I hope I’m helping my students to see how the past has influenced the present. If they understand the sources of racism, for example, they may be able to see it more clearly,” Curry said. “If they see the conflict between local interests and national interests and how that conflict has been a constant through much of American history, they may be better citizens. I tell my students that I’m helping them to learn to think for themselves, to recognize the difference between sense and nonsense.”

Clearly, Curry is passionate, both about the subject he teaches and the University he has long served. Curry has taught close to 10,000 students during the course of his UH career, which started in 1968 shortly after he completed his doctoral studies in history at Duke University.

“Back then, you didn’t need a Ph.D. in hand to teach at UH,” Curry recalled. “I finished my dissertation in 1971. I thought I would be at UH for only a few years, but I received tenure. I’ve been happy here ever since.”

Judging by the number of accolades Curry has received, he also has been highly regarded.

He is the recipient of three teaching excellence awards, the Honors College Distinguished Service Award, the UH Alumni Association Faculty Award and the George Magner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Advising.

But Curry’s impact at UH goes far beyond the classroom. For nearly a quarter of a century, he served as associate dean for undergraduate studies in the then-College of Humanities, Fine Arts and Communication (now the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences). He also has been involved in various organizations, including the Faculty Senate and the defunct Faculty Union. He also is an officer and board member of the UH System Retirees Association.

Over the years, Curry also has become a leader, literally, in UH’s most honored tradition — commencement. He has not only served as a

H

You can’t really love your country unless you know

your country.

position, but there he was, standing in the tunnel for about 20 minutes,” Curry said. “The Secret Service was going crazy, but he shook hands with every graduate who passed him.”

Curry’s own undergraduate commencement at the University of South Carolina in 1957 was equally unforgettable; a young Massachusetts senator named John F. Kennedy delivered the speech. Curry would recall that speech a few years later while serving as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Air Force in West Germany. He was involved in one of the most tense situations in U.S. history — the Cuban missile crisis.

The night of Oct. 22, 1962, Curry was the intelligence officer on duty in the command post at Air Force headquarters in Europe. Earlier that day, Kennedy had announced the establishment of a U.S. naval quarantine around Cuba after discovering Soviet nuclear missiles in that nation. If the Soviet Union responded militarily, the U.S. was prepared to act, Curry said.

That night, Curry was responsible for the safe that contained codes to verify any classified orders the U.S. may have given to the Air Force in Europe. Fortunately, Curry said, none was received, at least not on his shift. Curry served 23 years in the Air Force — five years on active duty and 18 in the Ready Reserve — and retired a lieutenant colonel at the age of 60.

Curry often recounts his experiences with his students and, of course, his loved ones. He and his wife, Patricia, have seven children and 19 grandchildren in their blended family. The two of them enjoy the arts, both on and off campus, and are long-time season tickets holders of the UH School of Theatre & Dance. Curry also has been a football season ticket holder since 1968 and a men’s basketball season ticket holder since Hofheinz Pavilion first opened in 1969.

Looking back, Curry said he has never regretted coming to UH or teaching history — a passion that stems from his childhood. His parents, both of whom spent most of their lives working in education, inspired him to teach. But it was winning the American Legion Award for best history student in the 11th grade in his hometown of Greenville, S. C., that set him on the path to a career as an historian.

Now, after nearly 50 years at the University, Curry may yet be ready to close the chapter on his campus career.

“If I have a positive impact on two or three students per semester,” Curry said, “then I’d say that’s worth the effort.”

member of the University-wide commencement planning committee since the late 1980s, but has been a participant in the event as well.

Curry has served as marshal for every general commencement from May 1987 to May 2003 and as the college marshal 54 times since 1977. He also was the marshal at the inaugurations of three UH presidents — Marguerite Ross Barnett, Arthur K. Smith and Renu Khator.

“It’s a thrilling experience to see the accumulation of all those students who have finished their degrees and are there to celebrate,” Curry said.

Among the many ceremonies he attended, the 1994 spring commencement stands out to Curry. Former President George H.W. Bush delivered the keynote speech, which was notable enough, but the logistics of his appearance were truly memorable.

“It took us 45 minutes to get the students and platform party into Hofheinz Pavilion. The Secret Service had been assured that President Bush would not be in a vulnerable


f people didn’t know just how many successful area businesses are run by UH alums, they certainly do now — thanks to the inaugural Cougar 100.

Last year, businesses applied to be a part of the Cougar 100 based on three criteria: being owned or led by a Cougar from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2013; generating $250,000 or more of verifiable revenue in 2011 and having

operated for at least five years as of June 30, 2013. Now that it’s been launched, the Cougar 100 will become an annual tradition (and applications

for 2015 are open now). After all, there are too many fast-growing Cougar businesses to only make this list one time.

The Cougar 100 demonstrates that UH alumni are making tangible differences in diverse industries, from designing breweries to producing oil and gas to programming strategic iPhone apps. But it is not just a list, and it’s not just about recognizing successful, thriving businesses. The Cougar 100 is about leveraging Cougar alumni and community relations to support even more success among us — whether it is providing a mentor to a

Cougar 100 Begins New Tradition of Celebrating UH Alumni Businesses

COUNTING ON SUCCESS

I

BY JOELLE JAMESON

ALUMNI & FRIENDS

student entrepreneur or establishing new mutually beneficial business-to-business relationships among alumni.

In that spirit, members of the Cougar 100 are automatically included in the Cougar Business Network, which will showcase Cougar-owned businesses and support Cougars doing business with fellow Cougars. Almost 200 businesses applied to be a part of the Cougar 100, demonstrating that even in the list’s first year, there is a surplus of thriving Cougar businesses to celebrate. A complete list of 2014 Cougar 100 members can be found now on the Alumni Association website at houstonalumni.com/Cougar100.

CHEERS AND GREAT CAREERS AT THE COUGAR 100 LUNCHEON“We are calling this the ‘launch lunch,’ because we’re launching a great new partnership with the Houston Business Journal and Houston business leaders,” said Mike Pede (’89), associate vice president for alumni relations, as he


welcomed more than 700 guests to the Bayou City Event Center for the Cougar 100 Luncheon, which was held in November. Networking among the crowd of successful business owners and their employees were UH students — the next generation of business leaders.

“Cougar 100 members have proven to the city, themselves and the nation that education matters, and that your success is also our success,” UH President Renu Khator said as she introduced the most high profile business leader in the room — Tilman J. Fertitta (FS ’78). Widely known as “the world’s richest restaurateur,”

Fertitta is also chairman of the UH System Board of Regents and chairman and chief executive officer of Landry’s, Inc.

“If you want to be inspired, get to know Tilman Fertitta,” said Khator. The secret to his success, she said, is not only his intelligence and hard work: “He puts his heart and soul into everything he does.”

Fertitta had the choice of becoming a regent at any Texas university, he said, but chose UH for its rapid growth, innovation and potential. He credited Khator with the amazing transformation the school has undergone in the past few years, elevating its status to Tier One.

After decades of successful business leadership, Fertitta recounted his personal journey. “Every day is still a learning process. All I do is solve problems, just like at your business,” he said.

Now the owner of numerous restaurants, hotels and casinos, Fertitta shared the early experiences of working in his father’s seafood restaurant, selling vitamins and launching

a construction and real estate development company in his early 20s. It wasn’t easy. Fertitta’s first hotel in Galveston opened during a tough economic time. He sold it and ended up buying it again years later. “Operate at the highest level,” he said. “Nothing goes unnoticed, and don’t assume anything.” He also stressed the importance of inspiring others, especially your employees. “That’s what you always want: for your employees to believe in you as their leader.”

The changing tides of the economy keep things interesting, Fertitta said, and that challenge applied to all Cougar 100 members, no matter their trade. “It’s exciting to build a business. There’s nothing like it.”

At the luncheon, guests knew their business was on the Cougar 100 list, but did not know their ranking, which was based on growth percentage. As Mike Pede announced each business, loud cheers erupted and iconic film soundtracks played as representatives proceeded down a red carpet to receive their

award. When Over the Top Linen was called at No. 46, CEO Clara Hough (’02) was greeted with a James Bond 007 theme.

“The experience was awesome — and what a great way to walk in style,” she said. Hough runs Over the Top Linen with her husband, Christopher Hough (’00), and they also supplied the table linens for the luncheon. “I have received many accolades throughout my career, but there is something pretty remarkable about being recognized and acknowledged by your alma mater,” Hough said. “Most of our employees graduated from, or are studying at UH, and this award is a reflection of their efforts.”

Leaders of the top 10 businesses on the Cougar 100 list were ushered to the stage with the iconic “Rocky” theme song to join Khator and Fertitta in celebration.

Partnering in this exciting new initiative to celebrate Cougar businesses were PFK Texas, Bank of Texas, TDECU Credit Union, BB’s Café, Bassler Energy Services, John (’82) and Kim (’81) Clarke and the Houston Business Journal.

‘YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT YOU CAN DO UNTIL YOU TRY’ When pharmacists from McClaugherty Consulting Services were instructed to dress in their “Sunday best” for their quarterly staff meeting, they must have been curious. But ultimately, CEO and founder Larry McClaugherty (’72) succeeded in surprising them with the Cougar 100 Luncheon. All four

“It’s great to be a Cougar. Let’s all do business together. Let’s keep this city driving.” –Tilman J. Fertitta (FS ’78)

LEFT: Larry (’72) and Kathy (’79) McClaugherty of McClaugherty Consulting Services were thrilled to learn their business was on the inaugural Cougar 100 list. BELOW: Renu Khator, Chancellor, UH System, and president, University of Houston with Tilman Fertitta (FS ’78), chairman, UH System Board of Regents at the Cougar 100 Luncheon.


staff members present graduated from the UH College of Pharmacy, joining Larry and his wife Kathy (’79), who is a registered nurse and the company’s CFO. Like all of the business owners, they listened to the countdown with anticipation. They were thrilled when their business was announced at No. 61. “We’re very honored and humbled to be recognized, especially at this historic, inaugural Cougar 100 event,” McClaugherty said.

McClaugherty Consulting Services works with elder care and nursing facilities to make sure their medication administration and internal systems are functioning effectively. McClaugherty formerly worked as a consultant for larger companies, but when mergers changed their organization, he opted to start fresh.

“Everything seemed to be pushing me back to owning my own business. I have two plaques hanging in my office: one says, ‘Don’t let anyone steal your joy,’ and the other says, ‘You never know what you can do until you try,’” he said.

That “try” has certainly paid off. McClaugherty used his reputation in the industry advantageously and formed mutually beneficial partnerships with related businesses. Over 10 years, their number of partnering facilities grew from two to 50. He acknowledges Kathy as one of the main reasons the company has grown at the rate it has: “A nurse and pharmacist team works very well in this business.”

The importance of a strong team dynamic is precisely why McClaugherty made a point of bringing his staff to the Cougar 100

Luncheon. “Encouragement from their fellow Cougars is important and will inspire them down the road,” he said.

The company almost didn’t make it to the luncheon; when he started the application, McClaugherty was skeptical about providing the financial information needed to apply. Luckily, he had a change of heart.

“I’m so glad that we did it. When you enter our office, our team photo at the Cougar 100 is hanging right there. We’re extremely proud of that.” McClaugherty said he would encourage other businesses to apply — but, jokingly added, “not too many, though, since we’re going to apply again.”

A BRIGHT FUTURE FOR COUGARSThe Cougar 100 celebration of Cougars and their businesses not only is a testament to the value of a UH education and how UH powers Houston, but also provides inspiration to current students, including Ami Hazel (’15). A retailing and consumer sciences major slated to graduate in December, Hazel also plans to earn her master’s degree at UH. She recounted the well-known advice of writing your goal on a piece of paper and putting it someplace you will see every day.

“For me, that specific goal is to make it on the Cougar 100 list in the next 10 to 15 years,” she said. “The day I got home from the luncheon, I hung up the Top 100 list right beside my vanity mirror so that every morning while getting ready I see it — every morning it lights a fire in my soul. I can’t wait to watch the program grow, and one day become a part of it.”

On the Event“The event was first class. As an alumnus

removed from the Houston area I tend to forget

to look for opportunities to connect with my

school. This event certainly invigorated my

Cougar spirit!”

Jeremy Rincon (B.B.A. ’08)

Company: Clarus Glassboards, LLC

Cougar 100 ranking: #11

“The luncheon was quite large, even for Texas

standards, but they still managed to make each

and every one of us feel very special.”

Clara Hough (B.B.A. ’02)

Company: Over the Top Linen, LLC


On Cougar 100 Opportunities“The Cougar 100 is great publicity for a

company. It positions them as a rapidly growing

leader in their field.”

Daniel Vaczi (B.B.A. ’05)

Company: Adhere Creative


“It is always great to discover more successful

business leaders who are Cougars. This will

continue to build the Cougar Business Network.”

James Hong (B.B.A. ’05)

Company: Be A Champion, Inc.


On their Time at UH“You meet people from every realm of not just

the country but different cultures [at UH]. It’s

a huge community, it’s a great school and I’m

thankful that I went there.”

Miguel Adame (B.S. ’00)

Company: Adame Garza LP


“If you want to be successful, you have to suit up

and show up. I think I got that in large measure

because of my schedule in college, which created

a routine and a commitment to hard work.”

Mark Woodroof (B.B.A. ’78)

Company: Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate

Gary Greene

2014 Cougar 100 ranking: #60

For more information about the Cougar 100 and to submit your company for the 2015 list, visit houstonalumni.com/Cougar100.

What Cougar 100 Winners Say

ALUMNI & FRIENDS


CLASS NOTESNews and announcements from UH Alumni

1950s

LEE CARL (’54) has been awarded a Pinnacle Book Achievement Award by the National Association of Book Entrepreneurs for his recently published novel, “The Key.”

1960sAL LAWRENCE (’63, ’67), a former Olympian who ran track for Houston, published a memoir entitled “Olympus and Beyond: A Story of Life, Sport, and Love on Four Continents.” Originally from Australia, Lawrence has lived in Houston for over four decades and currently coaches area runners.

1970sBARBARA FERGUSON (’72) was selected for inclusion in Texas Super Lawyers® 2014 by Thomson Reuters.

between Burke, Va. and Wilmington, N.C.

ELVIA A. SAENZ (’74) and Jesus “Jesse” Saenz, owners of Saenz Pharmacy & Medical Equipment of McAllen, were named the 2014 Pharmacists of the Year by the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in McAllen. Five of the seven pharmacists serving patients at Saenz Pharmacy’s six RGV locations in the Valley are proud UH College of Pharmacy graduates.

GLEN BOUDREAUX (’73, J.D. ’76), an attorney for Jackson Walker, was selected for inclusion in the 2015 edition of “The Best Lawyers in America.”

ALAN S. PAAU (’73, M.S. ’74, PH.D. ’78) retired as vice provost of Cornell University after eight years of service. He now serves as chairman of the Guangda Cooperation International Technology Center, Co. Ltd. in Shenzhen, China.

MARIA LARA-WHELPLEY (’75) was recently featured in a 12-week exhibition at Artspace, in New Haven, Conn. CT (un) Bound featured sculptural book projects that reflect the physical and conceptual aspects of contemporary book works while also making reference to the state of Connecticut.

BECKY STAROBIN (M.M. ’75), president of Bridge Records, Inc., has announced

JOAN JARVIS ELLISON (M.S. ’72) announced the publication of her first novel, “Tangled Web,” which is set on a sheep farm.

BONNIE CHARPENTIER (’74, PH.D. ’81) was the 2014 recipient of the Sherrie Wilkins Award from the Northern California Chapters for the Association for Women in Science. She received the award for going above and beyond to mentor other women in science and for being a role model for all women. Charpentier serves on the American Chemical Society’s board as a director for District VI, and she is Senior Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Compliance at Cytokinetics, Inc. in South San Francisco.

KATHLEEN M. GIACOMINI (’73), professor and department chair at the University of California San Francisco, received the 2014 Distinguished Investigator Award from the American College of Clinical Pharmacology.

DAVID HILL KELLER (’74) was named to the “Best Lawyers in America” for 2015. This is his third consecutive year to be named in the Workers’ Compensation-Employer category.

LT. GEN. ROBERT E. MILSTEAD, JR. (’74) retired in November after serving 40 years in the U.S. Marine Corps. He and his wife, SUZANNE (’77), look forward to spending much more time with their four children and grandchildren and plan to split their time


that Bridge Records received five Grammy nominations, more than any other classical label for the year.

LAWRENCE M. BASS (’74, J.D. ’78) was named to the 2015 Best Lawyers in America list by U.S. News & World Report for his efforts in the area of trusts and estates and construction litigation working for the firm Chamberlain Hrdlicka.

EARL MAXWELL (’76), chief executive officer of St. David’s Foundation in Austin, received the Libby Malone Community Leader of the Year Award from Greenlights and the Byron E. Cox Spirit of Caring Award from The Care Communities.

1980sDUANE M. HENGST (’81), P.E., was recently hired as the regional manager for the new Klotz Associates office in Fort Worth.

BOB MCCOY (J.D. ’82) was sworn in as the new judge of County Criminal Court No. 3 on Jan. 1 after eight years as the 48th District Judge of Tarrant County and 11 years as a justice on the Second Court of Appeals.

DR. CATHERINE GIBSON (M.ED. ’83, ED.D. ’05) serves as elementary superintendent for Conroe ISD.

CAROLE HARDIN-OLIVER (’83), Walgreens Houston district pharmacy supervisor, was named the 2014 Pharmacist of the Year by Texas Pharmacy Association.

RICKY A. RAVEN (’83, J.D. ’86), partner at Thompson & Knight LLP, has been elected to membership in the Fellows of the Texas Bar Foundation. Fellows of the Foundation are selected for outstanding professional achievements and a demonstrated commitment to the improvement of the justice system throughout Texas.

SAVE the DATEUNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

SATURDAY MAY 2, 2015at the

WESTIN HOUSTON, MEMORIAL CITYFor more information, visit

houstonalumni.com/awards

Distinguished Alumni AwardKen Bailey (’69, J.D. ’72)

Founding Partner, Bailey Peavy Bailey, PLLC

Aylwin Lewis (’76, M.B.A. ’90)

President and Chief Executive Officer, Potbelly Sandwich Works

Rushion McDonald (’83)

Executive Producer, “The Steve Harvey Show”

Dominic Ng (’80)

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, at West Bancorp, Inc. and East West Bank

Bill Worrell (’69)

Play–by–Play Announcer, Houston Rockets

Distinguished Service AwardLaurie Rutherford (’86, M.B.A. ’91, M.S. ’04)

Director of Enterprise Risk Management at CenterPoint Energy

Outstanding Volunteer AwardJohn T. McNabb

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, The Willbros Group;

Senior Advisor and Former Vice Chairman of Corporate Finance, Duff and Phelps Corp.

Drue DaSilva (’93, M.S. ’99)

Manager of Inside Sales, ShoreGroup

Rising Star Award for AchievementRobert Flores (’92)

Sports Journalist and Anchor, ESPN

2015 Chairs AwardUniversity of Houston Student Body

61ST

ALUMNI & FRIENDS


F. PAUL LOTT (’84), owner/president of LLW Consulting, Inc. of Sugar Land, received the 2014 Robert L. Hays Outstanding Consultant Pharmacist Award from the Texas Pharmacy Association.

REP. ROGER KANE (’86) has been re-elected to the Tennessee General Assembly, entering his second term in the House of Representatives. Rep. Kane serves on the House Committee of Insurance and Banking as well as the Education Instruction & Programs Full Committee and is chairman of the House Subcommittee on Education Instruction & Programs.

ANGELA MILLER (M.ED. ’86), Houston ISD social studies curriculum manager, was presented with the Dean’s Recognition for Collaboration Award at the College of Education Star Awards in recognition of her support of the partnership between the College and Houston Independent School District (HISD) on several grants from the U.S. Department of Education.

ALAN YORK (’86, J.D. ’89) from the Dallas and Houston offices of the trial and appellate law firm Godwin Lewis PC, was honored on the 2014 Texas Super Lawyers list of the state’s top attorneys.

CLAIRE BLONDEAU (’89, M.B.A. ’02) is now the manager of technical writing and publications at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Division of Cancer Medicine.

QUENTIN BROGDON (M.B.A. ’89, J.D. ’89), an attorney with the Law Offices of Frank L. Branson in Dallas, was selected for inclusion in the 20th edition of the Best Lawyers in America and was selected by Texas Monthly magazine as one of the Top 100 Super Lawyers in the State of Texas for 2014.

1990s

JENNIFER ALTIERI (M.ED. ’90) was a featured speaker at the 2014 International Reading Association Convention and was the keynote speaker for the 2014 Arkansas Reading Association Conference.

LANCE LUBEL (J.D. ’91) and partner Tyler G. Mercer, former senior counsel for the Valero Energy family of companies, recently announced the formation of the San Antonio Office of Lubel Voyles LLP to be located in the McCombs Plaza Building at 755 East Mulberry.

MAY J. WOO (’91), Houston area director of pharmacy for Emerus Emergency Hospital, was awarded the Texas Pharmacy Association’s 2014 Bowl of Hygeia, which is the organization’s highest honor for professional pharmacists.

ALI POLAT (M.S. ’92) received the 2014 W. W. Hutchison Medal from the Geological Association of Canada. The medal is awarded to a young individual for recent exceptional advances in Canadian earth science research. Polat is a professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Windsor.

MIKE DISHBERGER (M.B.A. ’93) celebrated the 19th anniversary of his business, Sandcastle Homes, in January.

MARCUS ALDREDGE (’94) will be publishing his second book, “David Riesman’s Unpublished Writings and Continuing Legacy,” in June.

DR. EFRAIN OLIVIO, JR. (’94, M.S. ’98, ED.D. ’14) serves as director of secondary schools in the Round Rock ISD.

Your gift to the Cougar Experience Scholarship program will promote student success and cultivate a next-generation

campus experience at the University of Houston.

Cougar Experience Scholarship

Visit uh.edu/cougarexperiencescholarship and make your gift today.

For more information, please contact Edward Davis II, Director of Advancement for Student Affairs and Enrollment Services, at 713-743-5390 or via email at [email protected]


KERRY BEYER (’94) returned to campus in February to screen his latest film, “Rogue Strike,” starring Oscar-nominated actor Eric Roberts. Although he studied business at UH, he pursued acting and began Kerosene Films, a Houston-based production company delivering independent action and horror films.

BOBBY ENGLISH (M.S.W. ’95) was named director at Optimum Personal Care, an assisted living community in the Missouri City/Sugar Land area of Southwest Houston.

CHANDRA RICHARDSON (’95) is the first learning strategy design specialist at FMC Technologies University, located within the Lone Star College building in Tomball.

JIM PARSONS (’96) received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The star of “The Big Bang Theory” was among 30 2015 honorees and received the 2,545th star on the Walk of Fame.

TRACEE KENNON (’96) won the prestigious Brown Foundation, Inc. Outstanding Nurse Award in November.

DAVID C. NELSON (’97) has published “Moroni and the Swastika,” a non-fiction account

of how some fourteen thousand Mormons survived and thrived in Nazi Germany. Nelson holds a Ph.D. in history from Texas A&M University and served six years as an officer in the United States Marine Corps. He is now an independent researcher and commercial airline captain.

DR. BERNARDO E. POHL, JR. (’97, M.ED. ’03, ED.D. ’09) was presented with the Outstanding Alumni Award at the College of Education Star Awards in November.

SHAYNA SANBORN (M.S.W. ’97) recently joined the law firm of Hoover Slovacek LLP as an associate.

JENNY DOWNING YOAKUM (’97), pharmacist-in-charge at Med Shop Total Care Pharmacy in Longview, Texas, has been elected president-elect of the nonprofit Alliance of Independent Pharmacists of Texas.

CHERYL FASULLO (ED.D. ’98, M.A. ’99) and CYNTHIA ROMAN (M.A. ’99) stand proudly in front of Cougar Canyon in Colorado.

ANNE-MARIE SUIRE (J.D. ’99), CPA, has joined the firm GBH CPAs, PC as a tax manager serving publicly traded and privately held clients.

Ways to Use Your IRA or Retirement Plan to Make a Gift to the University of Houston 4

Name the University as BeneficiaryYour retirement account administrator will have the necessary forms

Name the University as Beneficiary to Create a Charitable Gift AnnuityCreate an annuity stream for family members for life

1

Contact the Office of Gift Planning | uh.edu/giftplanning | 713-743-8680

Name a Charitable Remainder Trust as BeneficiaryBenefits family during their lives with remainder to the University

Use Your Required Minimum Distribution to Make Your Annual Gift to the University

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2000sJE’CARYOUS JOHNSON (FS ’00) wed Meaghan Chrystal Roberts in November.

TODD LADY (M.B.A. ’00, J.D. ’00), partner at Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP, was selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America 2015 for his work in the tax law practice area.

I. RICHMOND NETTEY (PH.D. ’00), associate dean at Kent State University’s College of Applied Engineering, Sustainability and Technology, has received the University Aviation Association’s William A. Wheatley Award. Nettey is the first African-American and first at Kent State to be conferred with the prestigious award. He received the award at the 2014 University Aviation Association Fall Education Conference on Oct. 10 in Daytona Beach, Fla.

GLEN URBACH (M.S.W. ’00) has been appointed the new executive director of NAMI (National Alliance of Mental Illness), the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness.

DR. XIULI WANG (PH.D. ’00) has been named a recipient of the 2014 Society of Professional Engineers (SPE) Distinguished Member and a Distinguished Lecturer of SPE 2013-14 Season.

LYDIA EVANS (’02), a Licensed Medical Esthetician, created swagessentials.com when her brother, a barber, asked her to make a product to relieve ingrown hairs and razor burn. Evans appeared on the television show “Shark Tank” in December 2014 to pitch her creation, the “SWAG bar.” The bar was included in gift bags for celebrities attending the 2015 Academy Awards.

SPECIAL EVENTS INCLUDEUHAA CELEBRITY GOLF CLASSIC

CLASS OF ’65 – 50 YEAR REUNION, CLASS OF ’90 – 25 YEAR REUNION AND

CLASS OF ’05 – 10 YEAR REUNION

HOMECOMING GAME – UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI VS. UH AT TDECU STADIUM

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION’S

HOMECOMING WEEK

Stay tuned tohoustonalumni.com/homecoming

for more information

NOVEMBER1 – 7, 2015

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MCKENNA JORDAN (’02) was included in a list of Houston’s 50 Most Fascinating People of 2014 in the Houston Chronicle.

WAYNE MILLER (M.F.A. ’02) had two poems, “Inside the Book” and “On Language,” appear in the winter 2014-15 issue of “Ploughshares,” one of the most prestigious literary journals in the country.

BEN DAY (’03) and his wife, Tasia Day, had their first child, Dorothy Kay Day, on August 23.

SHANNON MILLER (’03) is the recipient of the 2015 Coach Wooden Citizenship Cup, awarded to outstanding role models among athletes. Miller is best known as the most decorated gymnast – male or female – in U.S. history.

JULIE WALKER DIAZ (M.ED. ’04) was recently named director of Galveston County Parks and Cultural service.

VIDYA GARGOTE (M.S. ’04) published her first book of poetry, “Mute: Poems That Saved My Life!” The book is a collection of meditations and poems that guide readers to a higher state of consciousness by reconnecting them with their innermost self.

CONSTANCE ROSSITER (M.B.A. ’04) was elected to the 2015 YWCA Houston Board of Directors. A passionate advocate, she has been serving as the program director for the Human Trafficking Assistance Program at YMCA International Services for the past seven years.

ALEX C. VARKEY (PHARM.D. ’05), pharmacy operations manager at Houston Methodist Hospital, was recognized as the Gulf Coast Society of Health-System Pharmacists’ Outstanding Pharmacist.

JESSICA CRUTCHER (J.D. ’06) was recently promoted to partner at Mayer Brown LLP.

JAKE DONALDSON (M.ARCH. ’06), principal of Three Square Design Group, was one of 10 national recipients of the NAIOP Developing Leaders award, given at a 2014 ceremony in Denver.

JENTRY KELLEY (’07) achieved $1 million in sales in October 2014 with the company she founded in 2011, Jentry Kelley Cosmetics. Her company has been the make-up sponsor of Fashion Houston, the city’s fashion week, for the past three years, and Kelley regularly creates video tutorials focused on beauty tips for women on the go.

TOMMIE GARCIA (’08) has been elected to serve on the board of directors of the Texas Society of CPAs (three-year term, 2014-17) and the Houston CPA Society (two-year term, 2014-16).

DR. CHRISTOPHER G. POVICH (ED.D. ’08) serves as Woodlands High School ninth grade campus principal, Conroe ISD.

MELANIE FISK (M.B.A. ’09, M.S.W. ’09) was named vice president of Client Services at SEARCH Homeless Services, an organization dedicated to engaging, stabilizing, educating, employing and housing individuals and families who are homeless in the Houston area.

2010sJULIE B. CROSSWELL (M.S.W. ’10) was appointed to the Communities in School Advisory Committee by former Texas Governor Rick Perry.

HANNAH REBECCA GAMBLE (M.F.A ’10) recently won a 2014 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy

HAVE AN ITEM FOR CLASS NOTES? Please send to [email protected]

Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship from the Poetry Foundation.

LOVEEN BAINS (PH.D. ’11) was presented with the Outstanding Alumni Award at the College of Education Star Awards in November.

CARLOS PHILLIPS (ED.D. ’11), Gregory-Lincoln Education Center principal in Houston ISD, is now serving as an adjunct professor at University of Houston in the African American Studies department, teaching The History of Black Education.

DAVID RUSK (’11, J.D. ’14) joined Thompson & Knight LLP as an associate.

TRACY GINSBURG (ED.D. ’12) was presented with the Outstanding Alumni Award at the 2014 College of Education Star Awards.

DEBBIE Z. HARWELL (PH.D. ’12) recently had her book “Wednesdays in Mississippi: Proper Ladies Working for Radical Change, Freedom Summer 1964” published by the University Press of Mississippi.

ERIKA AGUIRRE (’13) has joined J.O., a Fort Worth-based full-service marketing agency, as a public relations account executive, overseeing all marketing, strategy, advertising and public relations for assigned clients.

CASEY MCNEIL (’14) is on the 30 Under 30 list for energy in the newest Forbes Magazine. McNeil launched the company REEcycle with three other UH students and is paving the way for next-generation clean-energy technologies.

ALUMNI & FRIENDS


ALMA JEAN “A. J.” YEOMAN was the beloved wife of 64 years of UH Coach Bill Yeoman. A. J. and Coach Yeoman were a dedicated team for every activity in which they were involved. The University of Houston football program and generations of student athletes loved the Yeoman team. In 2006, the UH Alumni Association awarded A. J. with the UHAA Chair’s Distinguished Award. A. J. Yeoman left us on Jan. 3, 2015.

ROBERT EDWARD (BOB) SHERIFF, who enjoyed a “first” career with Chevron and upon retirement in 1975, embarked upon a “second” career by joining the faculty at the University of Houston as a fully tenured professor of geophysics. In 2003, Bob retired as Professor Emeritus from the University of Houston, but maintained an office at UH for many years to stay involved with the geoscience department and attend Friday seminars each week.

Bob and his wife, Margaret, believed strongly in the value of education and endowed several scholarships for international students wishing to continue their studies in geophysics at UH. They established the endowed Faculty Chair in Applied Seismology, an endowment in Applied Geophysics, an endowed Professorship in Sequence Stratigraphy and an endowed Professorship in Geophysics at the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. Bob died Nov. 19, 2014.

LEONARD RAUCH attended UH in the late ’40s. He spent most of his life in real estate development, education and banking. In 1969, he was appointed to the Board of Regents of the UH System. Leonard was the system’s longest-serving regent, including serving two

In Memoriam

The University of Houston’s annual Day of Remembrance took place March 10 in the University Chapel. Each year a simple ceremony, open to the entire community, honors the students, faculty, staff and members of the community who passed away in the prior calendar year. A listing of the students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends who passed away last year is available on the A.D. Bruce Religion Center’s website, uh.edu/adbruce. For more information about the UH Day of Remembrance, please contact Bruce Twenhafel, manager of the A.D. Bruce Religion Center, at 713-743-5050 or [email protected].

The Bruce Religion Center was opened in the fall of 1964 and dedicated in May 1965. It celebrates its 50th Anniversary in 2015. The University of Houston community joins in remembrance of those alumni and family members who have died recently.

terms as chairman. In 1995, Governor George W. Bush appointed Leonard to be chairman of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, which oversees higher education in Texas. Leonard was chairman of the Board of the University of Houston Foundation from 1995 until his death.

Leonard received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the University of Houston in 2007. He also received the University of Houston Distinguished Alumnus Award (1980) and the Distinguished Alumnus of UH College of Social Sciences Award (1990). He received the North Houston Chamber of Commerce Pacesetter Award for Business (1991), the New Mexico Military

Institute Alumni Hall of Fame Distinguished Alumnus Award (1986) and the Exchange Club Book of Golden Deeds Award (1977). Leonard died Jan. 6, 2015.

SAM PRESTON DOUGLASS earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, with majors in management and finance at the University of Houston. He was president of the graduating class of 1954 and of the Cavaliers (Sigma Nu fraternity). Sam was also a Cougar cheerleader in 1952, 1953 and 1954.

Active in the Houston community, Sam served many years on the boards of the University of Houston Law Center and the C. T. Bauer College of Business. The Sam P. Douglass Library was installed in the University of Houston Alumni Center. He received many awards during his lifetime but was most proud to be the recipient of the Distinguished Alumni award from the College of Business and the 1989 Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Houston Alumni Organization. Sam died Nov. 27, 2014.

SHERRY LEWIS, daughter of Guy V. and Dena Lewis, was a familiar supporter of all UH Athletics programs through the years, but especially the men’s basketball team, which her father led as head coach during a Hall of Fame career from 1956 to 1986.

She studied fine arts/photography at the University of Houston. Lewis’ loyalty to UH teams and student athletes remained strong throughout the decades. You could always find Sherry cheering on the Cougars inside Hofheinz Pavilion during men’s basketball season. Sherry died Dec. 29, 2014.

JACK EVERETT STALSBY graduated from UH in 1949 with a business administration degree and major in economics. On campus, Stalsby was a founding member of The Cavaliers Fraternity, a forerunner for Sigma Nu Fraternity.

At the age of 80, Jack founded The Jack E. & Greta W. Stalsby Foundation with the intent of “paying back” and providing others an opportunity to grow and succeed in life through education. Jack enjoyed meeting the many “Stalsby Scholars” and hearing their stories. He truly loved the University of Houston and stayed very connected from athletic to alumni events. Stalsby was a Life Member of the Houston Alumni Association. He died Oct. 15, 2014.

n early 2008, the University of Houston was an unexpectedly verdant campus, pleasantly surprising first-time visitors with a lush array of trees far greater than you’d imagine at an “urban” institution. By the middle of September, that had changed dramatically.

Hurricane Ike came sweeping across the Caribbean and through the Gulf of Mexico, making landfall near Galveston. All told, its ferocious winds and storm surge accounted for nearly 200 deaths and $38 billion in damages.

BRANCHING OUTHurricane Ike Took a Heavy Toll on UH’s Trees, and Recovering Has Been a Growing IssueBY ERIC GERBER

While UH was fortunate to avoid any loss of life or serious injuries, the evacuated campus suffered considerably. Roofs were ripped off and many areas inundated. But the most visible impact was to the 7,000 or so trees. As many as a third were felled immediately by 100-mph winds or damaged so severely their demise seemed inevitable. Little was spared. “We lost our youngest trees, and we lost some wonderful 100-year-old oaks,” David Irvin, an associate vice president for plant operations, said at the time. “It will take many months to figure out how we rebuild,” he predicted.

Months? Try years. But today, the campus shows few

obvious scars from Hurricane Ike. UH’s devastated tree population has been steadily recovering, if not on a tree-for-tree basis, then in terms of overall condition.

“We may not have quite as many trees on campus now as we did then, but on the whole, the health and resiliency of what we do have is better,” said Roger Warner, UH’s resident landscape architect.

Following Hurricane Ike’s havoc, the replacement policy has relied on caliper measurement – trunk size – as the general guideline, not individually supplanting each tree that was lost. All things considered, it was determined that approach would more effectively restore the campus’ lost tree canopy in a shorter period, Warner noted.

“There were more than 200 trees planted using insurance money UH received to help restore the landscape, and about half of those were really substantial, 100-gallon replacements (about 15-20-foot tall),” said Warner, who joined UH two years after the hurricane. “Since then, we have tried to step back and evaluate the tree situation strategically with respect to our campus as a whole.”

There has been an emphasis, for example, on simplifying campus plantings in general, making the landscaping more cohesive, with similar plants and trees grouped together to allow for easier maintenance. Before that, there had been considerable leeway at times about what kind of trees were planted and where, leading to certain oddities on campus – such as the seemingly incongruous sprinkling of palms here and there.

Today, consistency is a goal. All thoroughfares around and through campus, for example, are being planted only with live oaks, developing a signature look.

But as much as UH is focusing on the future, there are some aspects from the past that can’t be ignored – the campus’ two “sacred trees,” for instance.

“We were advised to keep hands off,” said

I


Herman Taitt, the executive director of facilities management, who joined UH in October and, among many duties,

oversees Warner and the landscape team. “Not that we would want to do anything to jeopardize such remarkable specimens.”

The trees have earned their “sacred” status by virtue of their extraordinary size and age. For some, they are almost as much a part of UH tradition as the Ezekiel Cullen Building or Shasta.

One is an immense Southern Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora) that stands proudly on a modest plot squeezed in between the M.D. Anderson Library and the Student Center. It is 40 feet high and spreads out nearly 60 feet across, with bottom limbs so thick and heavy they scrape the ground. In the spring, its beautiful white blossoms perfume the air

LEFT: The Southern Magnolia near the Student Center BELOW: The Honey Mesquite behind the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center.

with their distinctively sweet scent. The first few times you encounter it, the likely response is, “Now that is some big honking tree.” But, in time, it begins to blend in with the scenery and, each day, thousands of campus regulars seem to pass it by without a second thought or the appreciation it deserves.

The other sacred UH tree occupies a far less prominent site, setting almost alone in the middle of a grassy field behind the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center. It is a huge Honey Mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa), not particularly pretty but still impressive in its own gnarly, rough-barked way. At first, it appears to be a conglomeration of smaller trees, but it’s actually a single, multi-trunked entity, spreading dramatically across nearly two-thirds of a football field in size. Its many crooked and drooping branches are covered with small, feathery leaves. In spring, the tree produces clusters of fragrant, yellow-green flowers that attract honey bees, followed by long seed pods in the fall.

“Sacred” though they may be to UH, their

importance isn’t limited to the campus. Both are listed in the Harris County Tree Registry, which ranks the area’s most notable examples of specific varieties. Among all Southern Magnolias, for instance, UH’s comes in at No. 8. And that Honey Mesquite? Well, it’s the grand champion. That’s right – the biggest Honey Mesquite in the whole county is on the UH campus.

Naturally, Warner and Taitt are pleased to have inherited those two arboreal treasures, but their more immediate concerns have to do with making UH’s entire tree inventory as healthy and hardy as possible. That means focusing on such obvious matters as water and mulch, but also battling against more invidious challenges such as soil compaction created by hordes of walk-anywhere pedestrians and drive-anywhere service vehicles.

“We want trees that help beautify our campus,” Warner says, “but we need strong trees, trees that are going to survive the next drought and the next hurricane.”


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LAST LOOK Shasta VI relaxes on a stony perch in his spacious habitat at the Houston Zoo, where he has been on duty as UH’s live mascot since March 2012. It’s a continuation of a tradition that began in 1947 when Shasta I was brought to UH. Keeping the big cats on campus continued until 1989, when Shasta V became the last Cougar resident of “Shasta’s Den,” a 10’ x 12’ enclosure near Lynn Eusan Park. Inset is a photo of two earlier Den-izens – Shasta III taking stock of the curious cub that would become Shasta IV in 1977.

Photo by Stephanie Adams, Houston Zoo

Documents

University of Houston Magazine Spring 2015