Houstonian 2014

RESEARCH

HOUSTONIAN 2014

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A MAGAZINE FOR THE GRADUATES OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

CONGRATULATIONS

TO THE SPRING 2014 CLASS GRADUATES AND BEST WISHES FOR YOUR FUTURE!

FIND YOUR NICHE

IN CLASS

WHAT SHOULD YOU MAJOR IN? MAJORS ART Art* Art History Studio Art - Graphic Design - Painting - Photography/Digital Media - Sculpture COMMUNICATION Advertising Corporate Communication Health Communication Integrated Communication Interpersonal Communication* Journalism* - Broadcast - Print Media Media Production Media Studies Public Relations COMMUNICATION SCIENCES & DISORDERS American Sign Language Interpreting COMPARATIVE CULTURAL STUDIES Anthropology Liberal Studies ECONOMICS ENGLISH Creative Writing* Literature* HEALTH AND HUMAN PERFORMANCE Human Nutrition and Foods Kinesiology - Exercise Science - Fitness and Sports - Sports Administration HISPANIC STUDIES Spanish*

713.743.4001

MINORS HISTORY* MODERN & CLASSICAL LANGUAGES Chinese French* Italian Studies* World Cultures and Literatures -Ancient Studies -Francophone Cultures Studies -German Studies -Global Cinema Studies -Middle Eastern Studies -Studies in Global Modernity MUSIC Applied Music -Brass -Keyboard -Percussion -Strings -Voice -Woodwinds Composition Marketing Teacher Certification Theory Religion PHILOSOPHY POLITICAL SCIENCE PSYCHOLOGY SOCIOLOGY THEATRE & DANCE Dance* Theatre - Acting - Playwriting and Dramaturgy - Design and Technology - Stage Management - Theater Education

AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDIES AIR FORCE LEADERSHIP ART Art History Studio Art COMMUNICATION Advertising Corporate Communication Film Studies Health Communication Interpersonal Communication Journalism Media Production Media Studies Public Relations COMMUNICATION SCIENCES & DISORDERS COMPARATIVE CULTURAL STUDIES Anthropology Global and International Studies India Studies Religious Studies ECONOMICS ENGLISH Creative Writing Literature* HEALTH AND HUMAN PERFORMANCE Human Nutrition and Foods Kinesiology HISPANIC STUDIES Spanish Spanish for Business Professionals HISTORY American Cultures History Latin American Studies HONORS COLLEGE Creative Work Medicine and Society Phronesis, Politics, and Ethics

WWW.UH.EDU/CLASS

INTERDISCIPLINARY ART MILITARY SCIENCE (ARMY ROTC) MEXICAN AMERICAN STUDIES MODERN & CLASSICAL LANGUAGES Arab Studies Chinese Studies Classical Studies French French for Business Professionals German German Area Studies Greek Italian Studies Jewish Studies Latin World Cultures and Literatures MUSIC Music Literature/History Music Theory NAVAL SCIENCE (NAVY ROTC) PHILOSOPHY POLITICAL SCIENCE Law, Value, and Policy National Security Studies Quantitative Social Science PSYCHOLOGY SOCIOLOGY THEATRE & DANCE Dance WOMEN’S, GENDER & SEXUALITY STUDIES Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Studies Women’s Studies

* Teacher Certification Available.

Please Consult the Department Advisor for More Information.

AGNES ARNOLD HALL, ROOM 320

Dear University of Houston Graduates How honored I am to share this special day with you. Your presence at our commencement ceremonies is proof positive that you faced a considerable challenge and succeeded admirably.

Yes, your families, your friends and the UH faculty and staff have all provided encouragement and support. And, for that, they deserve thanks and recognition. But you are the one who turned the dream of a college education into a reality – and to you I say congratulations.

You are not “getting” a degree – you have earned it.

You have been fortunate to attend this university as it boldly moved forward to achieve Tier One status. Now, as a Tier One graduate, you are equipped to contribute to a world that is increasingly competitive and collaborative. Your degree confirms that you are capable of innovation, of imagination and of success in whatever you choose to do.

We pledge to continue improving UH and increasing the value of your degree. In turn, we hope that you pledge to put that degree to the very best use possible. You have invested your energy and your intelligence in a noble cause – earning this degree – and I proudly applaud your accomplishment.

With warm regards,

Renu Khator

One word comes to mind: SUCCESS Graduation is a time to reflect on your journey. Think about where you started, and where you are headed.

Your first day on campus seems like only yesterday. Your college memories feel complete now that you have reached this milestone. We are proud of who you have become, and we hope that we have prepared and inspired you to take what you have learned at UH out into the world. Class of 2014, we take this time to celebrate you. Congratulations...you are what success looks like.

t u a l r a g t ions n o C Class of 2014

Justin Dugie Rebecca Cunningham Ryan Wonser Joshua Giles Anthony Hulse (Masters) John Jenkins Kelli Sims Aaron Vizcaino Reka Kovacs Zachary Sanders James Seblonka Nicholas Guel Abu Abdulrahman Cassandra Taylor Aaron West

Outdoor Adventure Outdoor Adventure Outdoor Adventure Intramurals Intramurals Intramurals Intramurals Intramurals Aquatics Aquatics Aquatics Memberships Memberships Memberships Fitness

Lauren Tolat Sam Colin Rebecca West Madison Mcburney Stephen Chin Roland Tran Lauren Schwartzenburg Harideep Kalaveena Janissa Yarrito David Scott Chris Robinson Brianna Cox Kody Thomas Kendle Templeton Alex London

Fitness Fitness Fitness Fitness Fitness Fitness Fitness Fitness Fitness Sport Clubs Operations Operations Operations Operations Operations

UNIVERSITY CAREER SERVICES + EAGER JOB SEEKERS

= SUCCESSFUL COOGS!

Need advice on your job search?

Overhaul the resume? Ace the interview?

Here are just some of the ways we can help!

SERVICES

RESOURCES Job Bank — The main online jobs database at UH! Resume Bank — Employers can select your resume for an interview!

CareerShift — Centralize your job search online by sourcing jobs, companies, and company contacts all in one location!

Résumé Critiques Mock-Interviews Career Advising/ Counseling Career-Related Workshops Career Fairs On-Campus Interviews

Click www.uh.edu/ucs Visit 106 Student Service Center 1 Call 713-743-5100 Find us on Google Plus

@CoogCareers

fb.com/uh.ucs

uhcareers

University Career Services at UH

You are cordially invited to attend the

UH Alumni Career Fair THURSDAY, JULY 10, 2014

*VIP Hour: 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm • Career Fair: 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm Campus Recreation and Wellness Center, Multipurpose Activity Court 4500 University Dr., Houston, TX 77204

Pre-Registration required: www.houstonalumni.com (search under events) *VIP Hour is for those UH alumni who have enrolled in an alumni plan through UCS and will be able to meet exclusively with employers prior to the opening of the career fair.

UNIVERSITY CAREER SERVICES Click www.uh.edu/ucs Visit 106 Student Service Center 1 Call 713-743-5100 Find us on Google Plus

@CoogCareers

fb.com/uh.ucs

uhcareers

University Career Services at UH

CO NGRAT ULATIO NS T O OUR G RADUA TES!

Remember, your relationship with the Honors community does not end with graduation. We are proud to welcome you as our newest alumni! Log on; link in; drop by.

TheHonorsCollege.com/alumni

Congratulations to our student leaders and assistants!

Taylor Vigil, Activities Funding Board Jessica Luong, Council of Ethnic Organizations Carlos Daniel Martinez, Froniter Fiesta Association Mary Chu, Homecoming Board Aakash Patel, Homecoming Board Kiah Prevo, Metropolitan Volunteer Program McKinney Stokes, Metropolitan Volunteer Program

Jessica Ordonez, Student Program Board Cedric Bandoh, Student Government Association Rani Ramichandani, Student Government Association Bria Riley, Student Government Association Angela Kao, Student Government Association Ryan Geegan, CSI Student Assistant Denzel Jones, CSI Student Assistant

CALL 832.842.6245 VISIT WWW.UH.EDU/CSI EMAIL CSI@UH.EDU

Summer/Fall2013 2013-- Spring Spring 2014 2014 Graduates Summer/Fall Graduates Brooklyn Adelman Ryan Albert Irving Alcantara I. Curtis Amrein Kristin Ammon Michael Autry Jeong-Suk Bae Luis Baston-Pita Adam Beard Candice Beyer Meagan Billings Kerry Bird Leah Bobbey Michael Boyle Nicholas Brooks Alexander Bruce Leah Cables Laura Callon Aaron Casey Matthew Cash Cassandra Castro Sarah Chae Elizabeth Danielle Chan Karissa Chervnsik Pierre-Alain Chevalier Joseph Cherwink Justina Chu Paul Cimini Ashley Moore Coffey Tabatha Cooper Ryan Culotta Gavin Craig Melanie Davis Austin Dean Marion Dickson Vyacheslav Dobrushkin Andrew Dugas Kacee Dugas Matthew Edwards Joseph Eck Brittany Ehrhardt

Lazaro Estrada Janice Fehlauer Heather Foley Briana Garcia Jeffery Gordon Megan Gryga Keite Gularte Elisa Haaland Clipper Hamrick Jonathan Clark Hibbs Joshua Hines Su Han Ho Gracie Ibemere Katharina Jackson BoRa Jeong Haein Esther Ji Stephen Jones Carlos Jung Toyotaka Kaieda Courtney Kirkwood Kyla Knox Jordan Koenig Matthew Konopacki William Kremer Thomas Landfried Alexander Lawler Alan Le Hyeok Lee Weston Lewis R. Natali Linares John Lindsey Dan Littles Sarah Malin Jesus Marquez Thejaswi Maruvada Darrel Materum Sonya Matoussova Tyler McCord Princeton Miles Lauren Moore Morgan Tyler Murphy

Giao-Huong Ngo Sophie Parker Kyle Pastor Luis Perez Thao Pham Caitrine-Ann Piccini Rebekah Poklemba Maxwell Porterfield Nicholas Puccia David Ramirez Friman Kelsey Reeve Stefan Reynosa Kristen Roberts Treveon Roseberry Brittany Ruhmann Eve Ruotsinoja Andrea Sanchez Mallory Sanchez Vanessa Santamaria Ruben Sepulveda Dustin Shaw Daniel Silveira Edward Solomon Sarah Stanley Matthew Suarez Emily Sullivan Joshua Tan Alexa Thibodeaux Megan Thomas Peter Tran Alina Uddin Laura Urdaneta Adam Van Court Katrina Van Maanen Adrianna Vargas Alyssa Weathersby Daniel Webbon Darryl Williams Alexander Winkler Brian Yeakley

Best wishes for your continued success!

Congratulations

to all the

2014 GRADUATES. from: Stay in touch!

THE DAILY COUGAR.COM

“Congratulations Natalie! We

“Sandra...

Lo lograste! We know that it was not easy, being a mother of four and a full time student. We all are VERY proud of you! We LOVE You!” Erik “ Another Degree to add to your belt! You have worked so hard to get to this day.

Your family is very proud of you. You are a great example to Kaela. This is just the beginning for you and we could not be happier Love, Dad and Mom

are in awe of your outstanding accomplishments. We know you will go far! You’ll always be Miss Texas :) xoxoxo”

CONGRADS!

”

Grads: don’t miss your shout-out All hail to thee, Our Houston University. in the UH magazine for graduates!

Our hearts fill with gladness When we think of thee.

We’ll always adore thee Dear old varsity. Submit your ad online: http://uh.edu/csm/congrads And to thy memory cherished, True we’ll ever be.

Questions?

Call us at 713-743-5350 UniversityDEADLINE: of Submit Houston your gift request by Alma 5 p.m. April 25 Mater Donate $50 to get your spot secured in the Houstonian, the official student magazine for graduates of UH.

DEDICATION

For leading UH onto the national stage and continuously inspiring us to achieve our full potential, we dedicate this publication of the Houstonian Magazine to UH fans everywhere.

Photo by Nine Nguyen

EDITOR’S NOTE

HOUSTONIAN 2014

FROM THE EDITOR “WHOSE HOUSE? COOG’S HOUSE!” Every Cougar is familiar with this chant, which can be heard at all University of Houston sporting events. It means that whereever we’re playing, the Cougars will own the house. It’s one of the first pieces of Cougar lingo freshmen pick up when they start at UH, and by their last semester, it’s often their favorite. But students don’t have to leave this chant behind after they walk across the stage at Commencement — Houston is also “Coog’s House.”

According to the 2013 President’s Report, one in seven Houstonians with a bachelor’s degree earned it from UH. That means that this year’s graduates will be bumping into quite a few fellow Coogs if they choose to start their post-collegiate careers in the city. But our strong alumni presence throughout the city is just one of the many reasons why Cougar graduates should feel confidant saying Houston is their house.

The University is also connected to the city through its numerous research efforts, and much of the groundbreaking research going on at our Tier One institution will directly impact the lives of all Houstonians, particularly in the energy

and health areas — two of the University’s “big rock” initiatives.

The UH community also understands that every house can use a little maintenance. And that’s why many of our faculty and students have been working hard this year to improve the lives of everyday Houstonians through community work, social research and through finding ways to open our campus to the city.

Much of the success of our university is due to the fact that we are one of the most ethnically diverse universities in the nation. UH is where Houstonians of every background come together to learn and to forge lasting friendships, allowing them to graduate with the global perspective necessary to achieve success in this global city.

In this year’s issue of the Houstonian, you will find compelling evidence that UH is in fact “Coog’s House,” and that we are already well along in our journey to become the city’s alma mater.

To the graduates of the class of 2014, congratulations on your accomplishment, and remember that the true journey starts now.

DANIEL RENFROW

Magazine Staff Editor in Chief Daniel Renfrow

Advertising Gabriela Padilla

Managing Editor Nora Olabi

Production Jose Cruz, Andres Garcia, Fasiha Jafri

Lead Designer Andres Garcia

Cover Design Andres Garcia

Copy Chief Samantha Wong

Cover Photo Fernando Castaldi

Writers Leslie Espinosa, Laura Gillespie, Natalie Harms, Channler K. Hill, Amanda Hilow, Michelle Iracheta, Andrea Pizzola, Christopher Shelton, Cara Smith, Sonia Zoniga Photographers Fernando Castaldi, Emily S. Chambers, Jenna Frenzel, Caitlin Hilton, Jimmy Moreland, Conny Ramirez, Rebekah Stearns, Justin Tijerina

About The Magazine This magazine was produced by students at the University of Houston in the Center for Student Media. The first copy is free to graduates. Each additional copy is $2, including postage. To request a copy, call (713) 743-5350 or email csm@uh.edu

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HOUSTONIAN 2014

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INTRODUCTION

“As a second-generation native Houstonian, I have seen firsthand CAMPUS LIFE RESEARCH FACES COMMUNITY how UH has grown steadily and flourished, paralleling the city’s own prosperity. Surely, this is no coincidence.”

ANNISE D. PARKER Mayor, City of Houston 2013 letter to the UH community

“If anyone can shape the future of higher education, we in Houston can. Our economy is robust, our community is generous and our willpower is that of a Cougar.”

RENU KHATOR President, University of Houston 2013 President’s Report

RESEARCH

HOUSTONIAN 2014

RESEARCH 15

BECOMING THE CITY’S LABORATORY

O

ne of the biggest stories to come out of UH over the past year has been the astronomical increase in our income from patents. In 2008, the year Renu Khator became president of UH, the University brought in a little more than $1 million from its patent royalties. That’s an extremely modest number compared to the $16.6 million in patent royalty income that we brought in last year.

And according to the 2013 President’s Report — excluding universities with a medical school — UH is the No.1 ranked public university for patent royalty income in the nation.

Our increase in patent royalties is due in large part to the influence of Khator, who not only led the University to a Carnegie Designated Tier One status in 2011, but also pushed it to develop closer ties with Houston, which has inspired us to begin our journey to become the city’s laboratory. As the largest university in Houston, it makes sense that we should hold such a designation — one that we are well on our way to achieving.

UH continues to grow because it is planted in highly fertile soil. Houston has the 30th largest economy in the world. We are also the world’s energy

capital and home to the world’s largest medical center —opportunities for researchers in Houston abound.

Encompassing three of the four “big rocks” laid out by Khator — energy, health, arts and the start initiatives — research is a source of pride for UH and is at the center of the city’s innovation.

In this section, you will take in a survey of some of UH’s ongoing research initiatives, many of which are in collaboration with the local economy or will directly impact the lives of Houstonians.

These initiatives are also a testament to the rising status of UH.

HOUSTONIAN 2014

RESEARCH

Environment

ASSESSING THE RISKS 16

HoustonNET delves deep into the city’s natural hazards

T

he National Science Foundation provided a $401,000 grant in 2013 for a two-year project that will give insight into Houston’s natural hazards. Through this grant and $172,000 in matching support from the University of Houston, 40 GPS stations will be placed throughout the city.

The GPS stations will cover about 10,000 square miles of Houston’s greater metropolitan area and will continuously record data to achieve the project’s goal of observing and reducing the city’s natural hazards.

“The GPS observational network, called HoustonNET, will provide the infrastructure for a broad range of natural hazards research, covering topics such as subsidence, active faults, flooding, salt dome movement and hurricane intensity forecasting,” says Guoquan Wang, an assistant professor of geophysics and one of the project’s principal investigators, in a news release.

The project consists of a two-year collaboration of several UH departments, including the department of earth and atmospheric sciences, the department of civil and environmental engineering and the department of engineering technology. The network allows for multiple projects of varying focus to take place simultaneously.

Barry Lefer, an associate professor of atmospheric science and a principal HoustonNET investigator, will measure the different chemical compounds and meteoro-

Photo Courtesy of UH

logical variables in the local atmosphere.

Lefer says that this website and Ozone Lefer says the project has enabled a Map are especially relevant to young childeeper understanding on how to best dren, the elderly and people with asthma. improve Houston’s air quality.

“The real-time ozone map and our Simultaneously, Shuhab Khan, an assoother outreach efforts has helped educate ciate professor of geology and co-principal Houstonians about how and when they investigator will can act to increase our “The real-time ozone map be studying active air quality and protect faults for his project and our other outreach themselves on days with on the swelling and efforts has helped educate high pollution levels,” subsidence of local he says.

Houstonians about how salt domes.

“As cities grow and and when they can act to get denser, the potential He says the movement of salt increase our air quality.” impacts of natural hazdomes impacts ards, such as flooding, existing structures and plays a deciding active faulting, and widespread surface factor during construction. subsidence increase significantly,” says The project is already starting to impact Wang in a news release. daily life in Houston. With a grant from “HoustonNET’s long-term, continuous the Houston Endowment and collaborameasurement of horizontal and vertical tion from the American Lung Association, ground surface motions will help us better Air Alliance Houston and the TCEQ, the understand, monitor, forecast, warn and HoustonNET team has created a website minimize the impacts of these natural for the project as well as an iPhone and hazards.”

Android application called Ozone Map, which provides residents with near realLESLIE ESPINOSA time data.

RESEARCH

HOUSTONIAN 2014

Space

Photos by Jimmy Moreland

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UNLOCKING THE POWER OF

T

LUNAR DUST

he University is joining in the national effort to collect detailed information about the moon. NASA’s Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer was launched into space Sept. 6 and will orbit the moon for 100 days to gather data that could answer many long-standing questions that boggle the scientific community.

Questions about its surface boundary exosphere — a thin, atmospheric layer prevalent in this solar system — lunar dust and surface conditions, like composition and global density, have yet to be answered.

Alex Ignatiev, the director of the Center for Advanced Materials and a Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished Professor of Physics, is working on a project with his team to harvest lunar dust for the creation of solar cells.

This In-Situ Resource Utilization project would create energy and fuel in space to further research and, eventually, drive down costs of deep space exploration.

“Little is known about lunar dust in the lunar atmosphere, both from the scientific viewpoint and from the

technological viewpoint, as the dust will affect everything that will be done on the moon in the future,” he says.

“The LADEE mission is, to me, a sign of a return of NASA’s interest in the moon, and (it) will support the (research and development) efforts, both of NASA Johnson Space Center scientists interested in properties of the moon and the lunar dust, and of UH researchers interested in using and living on the moon.”

Rabi Ebrahim also works as a research scientist at the Center for Advanced Materials, where he has done tests on the presence of water on the moon, its extraction and its effects on future research and the LADEE mission.

“The presence of water will support life on the moon in many ways, and it could be used as a source of power — hydrogen and oxygen could be used to run oxide fuel cells,” he says. “On the other hand, because of the high silicon content in the moon soil, scientists dream of building solar panels directly on the lunar soil.”

“The LADEE mission will add more information about the moon and its

soil, which may support the space sciences, and scientists may be able to use the moon soil and the ultra-high vacuum to build better electronics and nano-sciences.”

Though this mission will advance the sciences as a whole, the LADEE spacecraft has created some buzz in the space community. It is the first spacecraft that isn’t custom-built, which can cut the cost of future space exploration.

According to NASA’s website, “the Modular Common Spacecraft Bus, or body, is an innovative way of transitioning away from custom designs and toward multi-use designs and assembly line production, which could drastically reduce the cost of spacecraft development, just as the Ford Model T did for automobiles.”

Ignatiev says maximum knowledge about the moon is important.

“The moon is the stepping stone to man’s future migration into space,” Ignatiev says, “and we should have maximum knowledge of the moon if we are to use it effectively.”

NORA OLABI

HOUSTONIAN 2014

RESEARCH

Health

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Photo Courtesy of UH

INCREASING THE CHANCE OF RECOVERY Team searches for new treatments for hard-to-treat breast cancer

A

research team at the University is working on finding new ways to treat triple-negative breast cancer, the only subtype of breast cancer that doesn’t have a targeted gene therapy.

Triple-negative breast cancer receives its name from its lack of the three receptors that fuel most breast cancers. Biology senior Marisa Simon, who received an undergraduate research fellowship this summer to work on the project, explains the added difficulties of this form of cancer.

“Unlike the other breast cancer subtypes, TNBC does not over-express progesterone, estrogen or human epidermal growth factor receptors,” Simon says. “Therefore, the cancer can’t be targeted based on the receptors for these hormones.”

The research team, led by assistant professor Cecilia Williams, is working with the maternal embryonic leucinezipper kinase protein to find a different way of treating TNBC. Williams discovered that MELK was found in stem-like cells but disappeared as those cells developed. The team then discovered that the mammary stemlike cells shared major gene expression with the TNBC subtype and that MELK

expression correlates with poor prognosis in breast cancer.

“We believe that targeting MELK, or the mechanism that MELK is involved in, can help improving the poor prognosis of this breast cancer subtype,” Williams says.

“Now, our first aim (is) to understand the role of MELK for mammary stem cells and for TNBC and then to explore its use for better treatments.”

Simon says Williams is a well-known cancer researcher who has authored many publications and her work has greatly contributed to the knowledge and understanding of various types of breast cancer.

“She was extremely generous in allowing me to join her lab,” she says.

“Through her mentoring and the help of her experienced graduate students, I have developed a passion for research.”

Cell and molecular biology graduate student Jun Wang, who is also working with Williams, is researching other methods to treat TNBC. “I’m working on the microRNA therapy against triple-negative breast cancer.

Different from the MELK or other tumor suppressor genes, microRNAs are not coded for protein translation,” Wang says.

“Abnormal expression or deregulation of these microRNAs is associated with tumorigenesis and metastasis in breast cancer. Therefore, understanding their function in cell proliferation, apoptosis and cell mobility could provide a new implement to treat breast cancer patients, especially (those with) TNBC, which lacks efficient therapy so far.”

This research started in 2005, when Williams was a scientist at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden. She became interested in the stem cell characteristics of breast cancer and initiated a study to explore the genome-wide changes that stem cell-like mammary cells go through when they are differentiated into functional cells.

Along with Simon and Wang, other UH students who are participating in this research are working on understanding the role of MELK, ER-positive breast cancers and detailing the role of estrogen.

These UH students have a large impact on breast cancer research.

“I hope we will uncover important roles of this protein in TNBC that can be used to design significantly better treatments than what are available today for this tumor type,” Williams says.

ANDREA PIZZOLA

RESEARCH

HOUSTONIAN 2014

Nanotech

SLICK TECH Water and oil won’t stick thanks to new UH-backed innovation

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W

e have all been there before.

You’re crawling your way through early morning traffic when you go to take a sip of your coffee, but the car in front of you suddenly breaks — causing you to suddenly break — which causes your coffee to spill on your jeans.

If you’re wearing jeans treated with SCHN, a groundbreaking water-repellent coating developed at UH’s Energy Research Park, your spilled coffee will bead right off your jeans and onto the floor of your car. If you’re not wearing nanotech-enhanced jeans, well, you might want to invest in a Tide Pen. Seamus Curran, associate professor with the Department of Physics and director of UH’s Institute for NanoEnergy, had solar panel cell protection in mind when he began experimenting with nanotechnology in his lab to create hydrophobic coatings.

But SCHN, the product he ended up developing, can be applied to a variety of materials such as fabric, wood, glass

Photo Courtesy of C-Voltaics

and plastic. It promises to revolutionize product quality in the domestic and industrial spheres.

Curran founded C-Voltaics in 2008 to commercially produce these coatings, which have won a number of accolades, including the 2013 Goradia Innovation Grand Prize, a whopping $50,000 that is given to new, commercialized companies in the Gulf Coast region.

Curran says C-Voltaics plans on spending the prize money bringing SCHN to store shelves.

“It’s one thing developing technology, it’s another thing developing an industry,” he says, noting that C-Volatics will bring something new to the market.

Existing products, such as the social media-hyped Neverwet, leave a white, filmy coating on the products that they cover and wear away quickly.

“You’ve got a temporary solution that really does not give you any kind of benefit,” Curran says.

“The longevity of ours is quite long, the protection it gives is very, very good. It gives you both hydrophobic

“It’s one thing developing technology, it’s another thing developing an industry.”

and in some cases even oleophobic — against oil — protection. So it does a lot of things that people would like it to do at a price that is not cost-prohibitive.”

Mark Clarke, associate vice chancellor/associate vice president for Technology Transfer, believes that a part of SCHN’s success will be linked to its non-toxic, environmentally friendly formula.

“The technology is pretty clean,” he says. “It essentially doesn’t use any of the fluorinated carbons, which are normally found in hydrophobic coatings.

Fluorinated carbons actually will be banned in the U.S. by the EPA sometime in the next five years or so. This technology is actually an alternate to those PFCs in that it’s a green version of those. So it’s an opportune time for market entry.”

Since UH is a shareholder in C-Voltaics, the University will directly benefit from the company’s business through collecting patent income.

Curran says he expects C-Voltaics to call the UH Energy Research Park its home for quite some time.

LAURA GILLESPIE

HOUSTONIAN 2014

RESEARCH

Energy

INFINITE POSSIBILITIES 20

Photo Courtesy of UH

Solar water-splitting could create clean, renewable energy source

U

H researchers made groundbreaking discoveries in energy harvesting and nanotechnology this year, paving the way for renewable energy via solar watersplitting.

The Bao Group, led by Jiming Bao, assistant professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, discovered a new approach to solar watersplitting using fabricated nanoparticles of Cobalt(II) oxide as a catalyst.

“Our group is the first group in the world to use this material (for watersplitting),” Bao says. “The next step, simply, is we need to develop a more efficient technique to make the nanoparticle. Once we understand that, then we can design the structure of the nanoparticle so that they can last a long time.”

Cobalt(II) oxide is capable of splitting water into its two chemical components, oxygen and hydrogen, upon exposure to natural light. Hydrogen can then be used to store energy to create fuel cells, among other uses. The catalyst in this process is used effectively without coatings or addi-

tives, which cuts down costs.

Bao Group member Zhongzheng Zhao, a second-year graduate student of materials engineering, says he sees a bright future for this green source of energy.

“If we can use water to give us energy like hydrogen, this could be very promising and solve the problem of shortage of energy,” he says.

Solar water-splitting through this process does not produce extra atoms, and the hydrogen and oxygen byproducts can be recycled as water. The solar-to-hydrogen efficiency of 5 percent using Cobalt(II) oxide is a breakthrough for the team.

However, Bao says the efficiency would need to be around 10 percent to be commercially viable.

Alternative energy has garnered much attention in the past few decades. The International Agency for Research on Cancer, a subset of the World Health Organization of the United Nations, released a study in October 2013 titled “Outdoor air pollution a leading environmental cause of cancer deaths.”

According to the release, air pollution is responsible for 223,000 deaths worldwide from lung cancer as a result of air pollution in 2010.

Yang Li, a third-year electrical engineering graduate student who is also working on the project with the Bao Group, says air pollution is “harming people’s health,” and the process they are developing can bring a new era of global energy consumption.

“I think the new energy is a very attractive point. New, clean energy is a must for the world, because coal, the petrol — petroleum — they maybe can last 100 years, but after that, people have to find some new energy,” Li says. “Also, maybe they can help to solve some environmental problems, prevent air pollution.”

Bao hopes to improve the solar watersplitting process by prolonging the lifespan of the Cobalt(II) oxide and its fabrication as a nanoparticle in the hopes of raising its efficiency to commercially viable levels.

NORA OLABI

RESEARCH

HOUSTONIAN 2014

Technology

MIND OVER MATTER Robotic exoskeleton renews hope, mobility for paralysis patients

J

ose Contreras-Vidal, a professor and researcher at UH, is working with Houston Methodist Hospital to create a Brain Machine Interface system that will listen to the “neuro-symphony of movement” to direct a robotic exoskeleton to move the lower body of patients suffering from paralysis or spinal injury.

Contreras-Vidal believes the human brain is like a symphony with individual neurons firing and working in unison.

“There are 50 to 100 or more players, and each player has a function in the orchestra,” he says. “You have the conductor, you have the violinist, the cello and all those. And you can listen to one of them only, and you can recognize the music. But you listen to all of them and it’s more rich.”

Dr. Robert Grossman, a neurosurgeon at Methodist and a UH adjunct professor, is working in collaboration with Contreras-Vidal by providing his expertise and clinic work to test the technology on volunteers.

“Dr. Grossman is a renowned expert on spinal injury and also he runs a national network for spinal cord injury clinical trials, so he knows how to conduct clinical research,” Contreras-Vidal says.

“He knows about the problems caused by disability in the body and the brain. And I’m coming from the engineering side of things, so it was a very natural synergy.”

The robotic exoskeleton, which “looks sort of like Transformers,” as Grossman puts it, can provide paralyzed patients an opportunity to walk. “(The patients) can be fitted into this

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Photo courtesy of Jose Contreras-Vidal

sort of suit, and the motors will bend the legs at the joints, so they can walk with the suit supporting them,” Grossman says.

The robot is controlled by the brain through a cap that has 64 electrodes and is placed non-intrusively—without surgery—on a patient’s scalp. The Brain Machine Interface then interprets the brain waves and translates them into commands for the machine.

“So if you can imagine, you think about walking forward, we take those brain patterns that relate to walking, and we can use those signals to control the robot,” Contreras-Vidal says.

But it isn’t just about being able to walk again. The BMI with the exoskeleton has the potential to allow patients to prevent secondary conditions caused by immobility, like skin sores or cardiovascular problems, and will provide a better quality of life. However, the technology

will not provide any permanent benefit for the patient’s spinal damage.

Other scientists have experimented with invasive, or surgical, technology that would do the same thing as Contreras-Vidal’s, but he says that would pose a greater risk to the patient and not work as well because the invasive procedure would not allow the technology to interpret as much brain activity as non-invasively.

In three years, Contreras-Vidal expects to have finished developing the BMI and predicts that a version of it and the exoskeleton could be in clinics helping paraplegics around the world within the decade.

“The outcome at the end of this study is to provide evidence of the benefits of this technology, which is so the clinics can adopt it,” he says.

NATALIE HARMS

HOUSTONIAN 2014

RESEARCH

Lab Report: Tier One Research Total Funds Awarded from 2009 to 2013 The University of Houston has consistently received high volumes of funding over the past several years. As it continues to conduct ground breaking research, the University will be able to draw in even higher sums.

22 $120M $114,785,588

$110,428,559

$106,848,906

$100M

$101,149,873 $92,532,358

$80M

$60M

$40M

$20M

2009

‘10

‘11

‘12

‘13

Funding Sources for the 2013 Fiscal Year As a state university, UH receives the majority of its funding from government sources.

However, for- profit and non-profit sources continue to provide a sizeable chunk.

74.06%

GOVERNMENT

20.84%

PROFIT AND NON-PROFIT

4.12%

FOUNDATION

.98%

UNIVERSITY

RESEARCH

HOUSTONIAN 2014

With over 40 world-class research centers, the University of Houston attracts some of the scientific community’s brightest minds, enabling the University to continue its meteoric rise in prominence.

Allocation of Funds in 2013 Fiscal Year A near 75 percent of last year’s funds were allocated to university colleges that conduct scientific research, with more than 50 percent of total funds split between the College of Natural Sciences & Mathematics and the Cullen College of Engineering.

23

.0075%

ARCHITECTURE

5.96%

OPTOMETRY

3.95%

3.5%

BAUER

EDUCATION

27.2%

NATURAL SCIENCES & MATHEMATICS

3.5%

.95%

TECHNOLOGY

PHARMACY

10.9%

CLASS

2.19%

.44%

HOTEL AND RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT

25%

SOCIAL WORK

ENGINEERING

13.35%

DIVISION OF RESEARCH

2.8125% OTHER

.24%

LAW CENTER

Information gathered from research.uh.edu — Research Awards 2013 | Research by Nora Olabi | Infographic by Andres Garcia

HOUSTONIAN 2014

RESEARCH

Chemistry

CHEMICAL CAPITAL 24

UH leverages $4 million grant to create new research center

A

s the petrochemical capital of the world, Houston is the ideal setting for next-generation polymer research that capitalizes on the infrastructure and natural resources at hand.

And the University of Houston, with its variety of experienced advanced materials faculty and its ambitious goals for the future, is positioning itself to lead this challenge through the creation of the Center of Excellence in Polymer Chemistry.

The center, which is expected to open its doors in Fall 2015, is the product of a $4 million grant from the Robert A. Welch Foundation, one of the largest private funding sources in the U.S. for basic chemical research.

The Department of Chemistry, the College of Engineering, the College of Natural Science and Mathematics, the Office of Development and the Division of Research worked together to secure the foundation’s assistance.

The funds will be used to establish the laboratories of two new UH faculty members, one in Chemistry and the other in Chemical Engineering, whose research will be focused on polymer chemistry and engineering.

“Polymers are used in many of the things we consider essential to modern life, such as autos, furniture, medical

Photo by Amanda Hilow

devices, electronics and food packaging,” says David Hoffman, chairman of the Department of Chemistry “The center members will work to make polymer preparations more efficient by studying the basic chemistry and engineering processes used to synthesize polymers with desirable properties.”

According to Hoffman, the search for the first faculty member will begin in Fall 2014, with a start date of Sept.

1, 2015, and new hiring to continue for five to 10 years to bring the center’s total to eight faculty members.

“Research that we will be doing as part of the center builds on the strengths of chemical engineering and chemistry in Houston,” says Mike Harold, chairman of the Department of

Chemical Engineering.

“These professionals train graduate students who will go to work in this area and contribute new ideas to the technology fields. We’re finding a new way to take advantage of the energy revolution that we are seeing in the U.S.” According to Hoffman and Harold, the Center of Excellence in Polymer Chemistry has potential to become a nationally recognized research center.

“The list of industries in the Houston area involved in making the feedstocks for polymers and making polymers is long,” Hoffman says.

“It only makes sense that UH should be at the forefront of polymer research.“

AMANDA HILOW

COMMUNITY

HOUSTONIAN 2014

COMMUNITY 25

BECOMING THE CITY’S HELPING HAND

T

here is an awful lot of good things going on in our city. Our economy continues to boom, public services continue to improve, and Houston residents continue to benefit from the city’s thriving, world-class arts community. But no city is perfect, and despite our best efforts, some people still manage to fall through the cracks.

The University covers the city’s blindspots and, many times, acts as a safety net through its many outreach and education-centric programs.

In the insular world of college campuses, students are all too often intro-

duced to myriad theories on complex social and economic problems, but they may be left without any real-world applications.

It is fortunate that the faculty at the University of Houston know how to turn ideas into action, and students have access to a number of organizations that place them around the city as ambassadors of change.

Service opportunities like TeachHOUSTON, the Metropolitan Volunteer Program and the Community Design Research Initiative, which you will read about in this section, provide communi-

ties around the city with the tools they need to improve their overall quality of life while also giving students valuable life experiences.

By opening up our campus to some of the city’s cultural treasures, like the Alley Theatre, we are also granting members of the Third Ward and surrounding areas with access to Houston’s premier arts community.

The University will continuously strive to build bridges between local communities in order to provide their members with greater access to the many things that make Houston so great.

HOUSTONIAN 2014

COMMUNITY

Outreach

CELEBRATING 25 YEARS OF SERVICE Metropolitan Volunteer Program impacts lives across city 26

Photo Courtesy of MVP

F

or 25 years, the Metropolitan Volunteer Program has provided University of Houston students with opportunities to help the poor and give back to the city.

From making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the homeless to tutoring sick children, MVP has made it its mission to facilitate student engagement with community partners by strengthening its ties to the Houston community.

MVP celebrated its quarter century of service in February with a weeklong array of volunteering activities for students. In celebration, students made more than 200 care packages for the homeless.

MVP Director Kiah Prevo says the program can only expand from here.

“This year we are trying to be bigger and better than last year and the years before. We’d like to continue to put on

great service programs and to provide students with ample volunteer opportunities,” she says.

“Just build really strong relationships with organizations, so that when the day comes when we are this big pillar of service, we still have those relationships.”

MVP’s primary focus is to accommodate both students and local nonprofits and act as a bridge or stepping stone for students looking to connect with the outside nonprofit community. Students then learn to go out and volunteer on their own.

MVP Assistant Director Sara Lalani says she loves to see first-time volunteers go out to an event.

“My favorite thing is when we go out to an event or bring students to a homeless shelter, and they get to interact with people who are in a worse situation than them,” she says, “then see their reaction

and how they react to knowing that they have made such an impact for the first time.”

The organization dates back to 1989, when MVP Founder Lloyd Jacobson had an idea to help his community. Today, MVP has more than 531 student volunteers and serves more than 25 community partners, including the Houston Food Bank, The Beacon and Ronald McDonald House Houston.

For the 2013-2014 year, MVP volunteers have logged more than 2,669 volunteer hours for these and other organizations.

“You never know what volunteering will do for someone,” Prevo says, “or what kind of inspiration they will get out of it.”

MICHELLE IRACHETA

COMMUNITY

HOUSTONIAN 2014

Arts

IN THE LIMELIGHT 27

Photo Courtesy of Alley Theatre

Alley Theatre will call UH home for 2014-15 season

T

he prestigious Tony Award-winning Alley Theatre is packing up from its iconic home of 45 years and moving into UH this fall for the 2014-2015 production year, bringing with it grand renovation plans and a whole new audience to UH grounds, all in anticipation of bringing the spotlight to the main campus.

“There are a lot of people who I believe have a sense of not knowing what UH is, and they’re afraid that it’s this dangerous crime-induced campus,” says Jim Johnson, director of the School of Theatre and Dance.

“I think this is a door we’re opening to a lot of people who may have this pre-judgment from decades ago of our university as a whole, and this will get them to campus, and they’ll be surprised to see that this is a great place to come. It will open a lot of doors to the university.”

Starting in early July, the Wortham Theatre will be under construction to

accommodate the Alley Theatre as its landmark building goes under a $46 million makeover, forming an exciting partnership between these two institutions, an alliance in which Johnson has been central.

Dressing rooms, stages, stage crew equipment and more will be renovated to improve productions at the new theater.

“When the Alley Theatre comes in, they’re going to do some additional improvements to Wortham Theatre that will remain,” Johnson says.

“We’ll get this wonderfully improved space, but it’s also an opportunity for us to do improvements elsewhere in the building. Our costume shop has been expanded and upgraded. Our smaller theater got completely renovated over this past year. We’re still finishing up some details, but it’s almost complete, including a whole new state-of-the-art lighting system that has been installed. It’s been a significant improvement, absolutely.

“You look around and this campus is a completely different world from what it was when I started working here 12 years ago,” says Johnson, remembering UH’s reputation as “Cougar High.”

“We’ll be in a very small cramped

apartment for a year,” he says. “It’s going to be a pain in the butt, but it’ll be fun.”

Theater sophomores Valentina Olarte and Mateo Mpinduzi-mott anticipate great opportunities for the following year.

“It’s great,” Mpinduzi-mott says. “It’ll be different seeing the actors up front for us as aspiring artists. We get to see what’s behind the scenes, share the same green room and observe their preparation.”

Olarte says Alley Theatre explained its plans to UH’s theater students to better assist them in the transition. She added that Alley actors came to work with the students as instructors during the year.

News has spread throughout campus, and it might gain the Alley Theatre new fans, such as business senior Jorge Benitez.

“I wouldn’t usually buy a ticket,” Benitez says. “But now it’s in location, and this brings more light into campus and changes the way you look at our university, so I’ll definitely support it.”

SONIA ZUNIGA

HOUSTONIAN 2014

COMMUNITY

Business

AN ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT Students provide needed tools to budding businesses 28

O

f the many hidden gems on campus, the Microfinance Program ranks high.

Tucked inside the C.T. Bauer College of Business, the program is now in its eighth year of helping individuals who fall below the poverty line learn the skills they need to start and run a business.

The program, which initially began as a class with a study abroad component focused on international microfinance institutions, has since evolved into a 12-week program offered in the fall and spring semesters.

In the first half of the program, students focus on financial literacy and in the second half they become teachers of entrepreneurial education. The entrepreneurs start by writing a business plan which is followed by six weeks of courses on marketing, accounting, legal setup and other aspects of running a business.

Esther Rihawi, an assistant to the microfinance program, was partnered with a tailor when she started with the program four years ago as a student. Having grown up with a seamstress mother, this partnership was ideal in that it allowed Rihawi to offer instruction based upon

“And so I realized we didn’t need to go to Africa, we didn’t need to go anywhere, we needed to do it here.”

Photo Courtesy of BMP

her first-hand knowledge of tailoring in addition to the entrepreneurial knowledge she learned at Bauer.

She credits the positive experience she had while helping community members improve their lives with her eagerness to return to the program.

“Obviously I came back because I loved it. To me this is the best combination of business and kind of like social work ... Rather than just giving aid, you give them skills so that they can earn their own way out of poverty,” Rihawi says. “And to me, that’s much more meaningful.”

The 37 entrepreneurs in the spring semester program consisted of individuals with desires to be successful business owners of daycare facilities, food services, healthy eating, organic gardening, website design and more. All they had to do to be a part of the program was enroll.

“It’s a totally free program. The key thing is that we are out in the community serving. They don’t come to UH to take the class. We’ve got eight people

this semester in the current class whose household income is below $10,000,” says Saleha Khumawala, the program’s founding director.

“We are looking at really poor people, people that are underserved. We try (to choose locations) on bus routes, so if they don’t have transportation, they can ride the bus and come. So we are at neighborhood centers, community centers across town.”

Khumawala says she realized how much Houston community members needed the assistance of the program when she received a call from the pastor of a local Methodist Church who was requesting her help.

“We found out how the need was so acute, and we have the figures, 27.8 percent of Houstonians live below poverty line and about 9 percent live on less than $2 a day,” Khumawala says.

“And so I realized we didn’t need to go to Africa, we didn’t need to go anywhere, we needed to do it here.”

CHANNLER HILL

COMMUNITY

HOUSTONIAN 2014

Development

CHANGING THE LANDSCAPE Photo Courtesy of CCDI

Architectural design initiative partners with communities to improve local lives

T

he Collaborative Community Design Initiative, led by architecture assistant professor Susan Rogers, has developed design plans to improve a dozen neighborhoods in the greater Houston area over three, two-year projects. In Hearts, their most recent outreach, Rogers and her students considered the effect design can have on health.

“Hearts has been about looking at the relationship between community design and health,” Rogers says. “In other words, how do our communities impact our health and how can design transform and impact the community?”

The initiative partnered with four local communities: Magnolia Park, Sunnyside, Fifth Ward and Denver

Harbor. They looked at the communities’ park and green space access, walkability, fresh food access, as well as the education and income statistics for the areas, since those can be health indicators.

“In the United States, overall, the relationship between income and health is correlated tightly, meaning that the lower your income typically is in the U.S., the greater the likelihood that you won’t live as long or that you’re not as healthy,” Rogers says.

“Things like heart disease, diabetes are elevated in neighborhoods where poverty is more prevalent than other neighborhoods.”

The analysis, which is completed in the first half of the project in part by students in Rogers’ community design workshop class and the faculty and staff of the Community Design Resource Center, is aggregated in a briefing book that is made available to community members who can choose to act on the designs. The participating community stakeholders, students and Houston-area professionals are all invited to the Community Design Charette that Rogers hosts in the summer and is vital to brainstorming and development of their ideas.

Tiger Lyon, an architecture graduate student, worked extensively on the Hearts initiative, which wraps up this semester after two years of work.

“As a team, we spent the first half of the (first) semester doing research

and the latter half working on a book in which we incorporated diagrams, drawings, graphic information and design ideas for the neighborhood,” Lyon says.

“We also proposed our ideas and solutions in a presentation at the end of the year, which was extremely beneficial and interesting because it allowed the community to see what we had been working on for a semester and provide feedback.”

While their previous projects have had a degree of success in their implementation, Rogers says Hearts has been able to do more action than before due to financial support.

“This is the first time we’ve actually had the resources to do what we call action projects, which has been wonderful,” she says.

The CCDI has received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts each time, but the Department of Health and Human Services recently reached out to Rogers to express its interest in helping her to do neighborhood planning and visioning through its Community Transformation Initiative.

For Lyon, the hands-on experience he had working in Magnolia Park was incomparable to any he’s had.

“Small ideas and interventions can be just as powerful and important as large scale ideas,” he says.

NATALIE HARMS

29

HOUSTONIAN 2014

COMMUNITY

Education

30

Photo Courtesy of TeachHOUSTON

SHAPING THE BRIGHTEST MINDS OF TOMORROW TeachHOUSTON program provides future STEM teachers with the tools they need to be effective in the classroom

T

he College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics is investing in the city’s future by preparing the next generation of STEM secondary-school teachers.

TeachHOUSTON is an initiative that tries to confront the dramatic shortage of qualified STEM teachers.

Equipped with industry leaders — including retired NASA astronaut Bonnie Dunbar — the program has already garnered significant attention, including a $985,000 grant from the National Science Foundation in 2012 and a $1 million endowment funded by the ExxonMobil Corporation.

The program uses a hands-on approach of instruction, sending firstsemester freshmen as teachers into the unpredictable environment of a real-world classroom.

“Typically, what you would see for a

regular teacher-ed program is students would be in their lecture courses for three and a half years, and they’d experience student teaching the last semester or so, and ready or not, they’re going to graduate the next semester, and they’re going to go teach,” says Tom Le, a math and science master teacher with TeachHOUSTON. It does this, says Le, to prevent what happens in most other education programs. Students in their junior year who experience student teaching for the first time often realize education isn’t the field for them.

In contrast, TeachHOUSTON students are given four years of exposure to the classroom, ensuring that the program’s graduates are nothing short of the enthusiastic, competent educators that the program’s name has come to guarantee.

“We believe that teaching math and science is much different than teaching English or history. If you want to be a math or science teacher, you have to go through the TeachHOUSTON program,” says Jeffrey Morgan, co-director of TeachHOUSTON. All of the students who have gone through the state certification exams to receive their license to teach have passed, Morgan says, “It’s a statement of the quality of the students in the program.”

Co-Director of TeachHOUSTON Simon Bott sees the program as a vital and enriching part of Houston that will foster innovation for generations.

“It’s a wonderful spiral, and as that spiral goes around, it’s getting bigger and bigger and bigger.”

CARA SMITH

FACES

HOUSTONIAN 2014

FACES 31

BECOMING THE CITY’S MELTING POT W

hen Forbes named Houston the “Coolest City in America” in the summer of 2012, they were tuning into our status as a majority minority city as much as they were recognizing us for our world-class arts community and booming economy.

Houston is a diverse city, and depending on how you interpret the results of the 2010 Census, we might have recently overtaken New York City as the most ethnically diverse city in the nation.

This is no small accomplishment, but anyone who has lived in Houston

long enough to meet their neighbors — who are just as likely to have a foreign accent as they are to have a Southern drawl — should already be aware of this fact.

We’ve come a long way since the oil boom of the 1970s and the subsequent oil crash of the 1980s. Our city’s recovery from that crash was due in large part to the diversification of our economy and the diverse group of future Houstonians who came to our city to be a part of that recovery.

Part of what makes UH such a great university is that it functions as a cul-

tural melting pot for a city that already has melting pot status.

UH is where Houstonians of every background come to learn, not only the knowledge and skills they need to achieve professional success after graduation, but also the skills they need to succeed in a multicultural society.

The diverse group of students and professors contained in this section embody what it means to be a Houstonian as well as a Cougar and prove once again that if you’re willing to sweat, you can still make it big in the Bayou City.

HOUSTONIAN 2014

FACES

Administration

FROM THE PRESIDENT 32

“The University of Houston and our alumni are the powerhouse that sustains the cultural, social and economic growth of Houston.”

W

hen you hear the chant “Whose House? Coog’s House!” at football games, pep rallies and even at Commencement, the reality is that Coog’s House encompasses much more than just the stadium or Hofheinz Pavilion or even our campus. The entire city of Houston is Coog’s House!

There are some 220,000 living UH alumni and more than half of them live and work in the greater Houston area. That is why there is not a business or corporation, government agency, law firm, health-related enterprise, public school, performing arts organization, television station or newspaper, social work agency, engineering firm, professional enterprise, sports team or financial services company where the University of Houston is not represented by Cougars.

UH alumni not only work in these places throughout Houston, but more than often occupy senior leadership positions.

They are successful individuals like Richard Rawson, president of Insperity; Laura Murillo, president and CEO of the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; Steve Stephens, president and CEO of Amegy Bank of Texas; Dominique Sachse, news anchor for KPRC-TV; Bernard Harris, president and CEO of Vesalius Ventures and former astronaut; and a host of elected officials, including U.S. Congressmen Gene Green, Ted Poe, and Randy Weber; State Senator John Whitmire; State Representatives Carol Alvarado, Hubert Vo, Senfronia Thompson and Sylvester Turner; Harris County Commissioner El Franco Lee; and Houston City Council Members Mike Laster, C.O. “Brad” Bradford and Melissa Noriega, among many others.

As anyone can appreciate, the Cougar spirit permeates every

corner of our great city of Houston. And that spirit is more visible as the Cougar Red Friday idea takes hold. Each Friday, not only is the UH campus flooded with Cougar red t-shirts, but more and more alumni are wearing red where they work all around town and flying the red UH banner in front of their businesses.

Perhaps nothing exemplifies Cougar power more than the story of the late C.T. “Ted” Bauer, who was co-founder of AIM Investments in Houston. A few years ago, Bauer, who was not a UH alumnus, but nevertheless employed many Cougars in his firm, thought to himself, “You know, I really owe the success of my company and my own personal success to the education my employees received at the University of Houston.” It was then and there that he decided to give a transformational $40 million gift to our college of business administration, later renamed the C.T. Bauer College of Business in his honor.

Indeed, the University of Houston and our alumni are the powerhouse that sustains the cultural, social and economic growth of Houston, making this great city of ours Coog’s House.

RENU KHATOR

FACES

HOUSTONIAN 2014

Alumni

A PLACE IN HISTORY

UH alumna makes her mark as Texas secretary of state

V

ice Chair of the UH System Board of Regents Nandita Berry was handselected by Gov. Rick Perry to serve as Texas’ first Indian-American secretary of state as of Jan. 7.

From her hometown of Hyderabad in the Indian state Andhra Pradesh to the steps of the Texas State Capitol, Berry’s journey is described by the governor as a reflection of the American dream.

“Nandita Berry personifies what is possible through hard work and dedication in the state of Texas,” says Nandita Berry Perry, in a statement.

“Arriving from India at the age of 21 with nothing but $200 to her name, she worked diligently to earn her law degree and has since become one of the most accomplished attorneys in the state. Her work ethic, intelligence and wide array of experiences will serve her capably in her new duties as secretary of state, and I look forward to working with her to keep Texas the best place in the country to live, work and raise a family.”

Berry’s journey started when she graduated from the UH Law Center and, in 2005, joined the ranks of the firm Locke Lord, LLP. She quickly climbed her way up and became senior counsel, working on a range of litigation with a variety of clients, including Fortune 500 companies, according to the firm.

She was appointed by Perry to the Board of Regents in 2009 and later became vice chair. But the opportunity for growth didn’t stop there. Now as Texas secretary of state, her duties include being the state’s chief elections

33

Photo Courtesy of Alicia Pierce

officer, the governor’s liaison on border and Mexican affairs and Texas’ chief protocol officer for state and international matters, according to the Office of the Governor.

“I am truly humbled to follow in the footsteps of Stephen F. Austin, Texas’ first secretary of state,” says Berry in a statement. “Like him, I came to Texas in search of a better life and the limitless opportunities to be found across our great state. Every day, I see Austin’s pioneering spirit alive in Texas, and this great honor proves, once again, Texas is the land of opportunity, both in the private sector and public service.”

Chair of the Board of Regents Jarvis V. Hollingsworth, who is also a Law Center graduate, says he believes Berry’s appointment is a testament to the wealth of bright minds and future leaders UH churns out.

“Appointments such as this one shine

a spotlight on the deep talent pool created from graduates and others throughout the UH System, as many people with UH ties serve in leadership and volunteer positions around the world, across the country, statewide and right here in Houston,” Hollingsworth says.

The Board of Regents is the governing body of the UH System. While on the Board, Berry also served as chair of the Audit and Compliance Committee, vice chair of the Academic and Student Success Committee and a member of the Executive and Compensation Committee.

Berry resigned from her post on theBoard of Regents before her term ended, which would have been Aug. 31, 2015.

She also resigned from her position as senior counsel at Locke Lord, LLP, according to the the firm’s site.

NORA OLABI

HOUSTONIAN 2014

FACES

HEAVY HITTERS 34

UH continues to attract Tier One students because they know that once they step on campus, they will be able to study under the tutelage of some of the brightest minds in their fields. Each of the five faculty members profiled in this section have contributed to the University’s growing reputation as a global hub of academic excellence. Their contributions in the past year have landed them on national and international stages as they continue to be rising stars.

Photos by Fernando Castaldi

“UH is an underappreciated University ... (It) still doesn’t have the recognition it should get, but we’re making inroads.”

BETSY WEBER COOK DIRECTOR OF CHORAL STUDIES, PROFESSOR

“When I recruit new faculty, they recognize that Houston is one of the most vibrant places to live.”

WYNNE CHIN FACULTY SENATE PRESIDENT, C. T. BAUER PROFESSOR

Under Cook’s baton, The Moores School of Music’s choral program has gone from underdog to internationally award-winning.

Her top ensemble Concert Chorale captured first place in the category of chamber choir when she first led them onto the international stage in 2009 at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in Wales, United Kingdom. She has since taken them to other prestigious choral competitions in France and Germany. Last summer, the ensemble placed first in two categories at the Marktoberdorf Choir Competition — one of the most famous in the world.

Cook has served on faculty for more than 20 years, working with Concert Chorale and less experienced singers in the University Women’s Chorus. Her musical interests include historical pieces that can be arranged for women’s choruses.

Chin credits his ability to bring together professors across disciplines as faculty senate president to his ecclectic curriculum vitae — it’s also helping him conduct some pretty groundbreaking research.

The C.T. Bauer professor of decision and information sciences has received more than 17,000 citations for his research and is in third place worldwide for first-authored articles in his discipline’s top journals.

Chin is one of the world’s leading proponents of Partial Least Squares, a path modeling technique that intuitively combines massive amounts of statistical information for easy use.

He uses PLS in many of his research interests, which include information systems, social networks, new technologies and crosscultural analysis.

FACES

“I have plenty of collaborators right here at UH that are all doing exceptional research.”

“Our creative writing program is one of the top in the nation. We attract students from — literally — all over the world.”

HOUSTONIAN 2014

“Being with influential faculty like Professor Paul Chu, I have more opportunities to develop and meet people like him.”

35

LARS GRABOW CHEMICAL AND BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

ZHIFENG REN CHITRA DIVAKARUNI

M. D. ANDERSON PROFESSOR AND PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR AT TCSUH

CREATIVE WRITING PROFESSOR

Although he has only been at UH for three years, Grabow has already collected a number of high profile accolades, including a 2012 Young Scientist Award and a Department of Energy Early Career Research Program Award this May. The department of energy award comes with a $750,000 grant that will aid Grabow in his search for the catalytic hydrotreating processes required to produce bio-oil stable enough for use as a lowcost transportation fuel.

Another project has him searching for a catalyst to convert cheap and plentiful methane gas into more valuable substances like methanol, ethane or ethylene, a highly lucrative discovery that would revolutionize the petrochemical industry.

When Divakaruni joined the UH creative writing program in 1998, she was already a highly celebrated author and poet.

The Calcutta native’s books have been translated into 29 languages and have garnered her an American Book Award, among many others.

Three of her works have been made into award winning films, and her most recent novel, “Oleander’s Girl” made it onto Oprah Winfrey’s Book Club list in April.

She chose Houston as the setting for much of her recent work, including an opera she wrote this year for The Houston Grand Opera and her upcoming novel about three generations of Indian women, one of whom lives in Houston.

From foldable electronics to nanobiophysics, Ren has hit the ground running since joining the research faculty in 2012 after being courted by Director of the Texas Center for Superconductivity Paul Chu. This year, Ren was one of four researchers in the state selected for the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Award in Science from The Academy of Medicine, Engineering & Science of Texas for his contributions to carbon nanotubes, thermoelectrics, hierarchical zinc oxide nanowires, high temperature superconductivity, and molecule delivery/sensing. He was also named a fellow in the 2013 Class of the National Academy of Inventors.

As a materials scientist and researcher, Ren hopes to improve people’s lives by transforming his research into innovative inventions. He holds 24 U.S. patents and 20 pending patents, and has founded or co-founded three high-tech companies.

HOUSTONIAN 2014

FACES

COUGARS ON THE RISE 36

As the largest university in the fourth largest city in the nation, UH offers its students an unparalleled educational experience. Houston is an economic juggernaut that also happens to have a vibrant arts community and the most diverse population in the nation.

In this environment, the opportunities for students abound. The five graduating seniors profiled in this section have each made the best of our university’s connection to the city. You’ll hear their names being mentioned long after they walk across the graduation stage.

Photos by Fernando Castaldi

“UH is a modern, ever-changing campus that definitely meets the needs of our local economy ... The opportunities I’ve had were tremendous.”

“The University has given me opportunities to build my base of knowledge, develop confidence and find myself, giving me the tools to climb to great heights.”

AIAT RADWAN CEDRIC BANDOH

BS, BIOCHEMISTRY & MATHEMATICS

BBA, SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

During his four years at the University, Bandoh has dedicated himself to his studies and fellow students. From his humble beginnings as a Student Government Association intern to his two-year tenure as the youngest president in the organization’s history, Bandoh has embodied the motto of service above self.

Among his long list of achievements during his presidency is the founding of the Rebuild Cullen Boulevard initiative, working hand-in-hand with administrators to finalize the New UC renovations and pushing a fixed-tuition option.

Bandoh’s service to the University has helped put it and its student government on the map nationally as a campus dedicated to nurturing students’ education and professional growth.

Radwan’s desire to help people in need has guided her to a career in medical research, where she has found her niche in the nerological field. She has worked as an intern at M. D. Anderson’s Department of Symptom Research, where she works on the neuroimmuology of cancer related symptoms.

In tandem with her cancer-related symptoms lab work, she was granted a 2013 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship award where she led a project that attempted to develop accurate test results for the extraction of enzyme-related immunosorbant acid and detection of cytokines in the brain, working under the mentorship of post-doctoral fellow Adam K. Walker. She also coauthored a published research article on preventative measures against pneumonia.

Radwan plans on attending medical school, and she is currently waitlisted at University of Texas - Houston.

FACES

“I have worked with some of “I chose UH for the the best professors, guest diversity. UH gives you a directors and people so I global perspective that a feel confident going out and lot of other architecture pursuing my schools don’t have.” career in the real world.”

HOUSTONIAN 2014

“The one most influential tool that I have developed — that I think only would have been possible here — is the human connections.”

37

JACKSON FOX B.ARCH, ARCHITECTURE

NICHOLAS DESALVO

TEGAN DUNNICAN

BS, COMPUTER SCIENCE & MATHEMATICS

BFA, STAGE MANAGEMENT

Dunnican has turned her high school passion for theater into a burgeoning career path. She started off at UH as an assistant stage manager for the college’s theater productions but has worked her way up. She has been the stage manager for “Blood Wedding,” “Serious Money,” “Richard III” and “As You Like It.” But her most recent work has been assistant director for this semester’s “Philadelphia Story.”

Her training in the classroom and on-stage has led her to opportunities to work with the Houston Ballet, where she has been an assistant stage manager for two years and worked on the 2012 and 2013 productions of the “Nutcracker,” and as an intern on the set of this year’s production of “Aladdin.” She plans on attending the Dorset Theater Festival in the summer as an assistant stage manager apprentice.

Fox has spent his last three semesters at UH hard at work on a project for the Three Continent Studio, a partnership of four costal lying universities on three different continents.

The purpose of the studio is to find solutions to the various natural hazards delta lying cities like Houston are prone to, like flooding, hurricanes and urban runoff, along with future problems like global warming.

Fox will travel to Italy for the 2014 Venice Biennale this summer as a member of the studio’s Houston team of researchers. While there, they will present their findings on Houston to a panel of internationally renowned architects and artists. President Renu Khator will be in attendance.

Fox plans on staying in the Houston area after graduation to continue his work in architectural research.

DeSalvo was attracted to UH because of the openness and accessibility of the faculty. And from the moment he stepped on campus, he knew he was a Coog. Four years later, DeSalvo’s research accomplishments are rich and diverse. His recent research project is aimed at aiding autistic individuals in reducing distracting sensory data through an augmented reality solution using a specially designed headset.

His other projects include working on effectively dealing with the difficulties of educating autistic children, visual impairment and mobile security in relation to identity protection. He has worked in collaboration with the UT Medical Center, UH-Clear Lake, Department of Homeland Security, the UH Department of Physics and UH Central Plant. He plans on presenting his research in Japan at a conference in Human Computer Interactions.

HOUSTONIAN 2014

FACES

Obituary

UNIVERSITY LOSES LEGENDARY COACH J 38

oe Curl, the most accomplished women’s basketball coach in UH history, died in April after a lengthy battle with heart problems.

Curl coached the women’s basketball team for 12 seasons — from 1998 to 2010 — and became the longest tenured and most successful coach in the program’s history with his 193-167 record.

In 2003-04, Curl led the Cougars to 28 wins, the most wins in one season in UH history.

He also led them to championships in the Conference USA game and tournament and an appearance and win in the NCAA tournament for the first time, where the Cougars earned a 62-47 victory against Green Bay in the first round of the Big Dance.

Curl recorded seven winning seasons during his tenure as coach in addition to leading the Cougars to five postseason appearances.

After the record-breaking season in 2004, Curl was named C-USA Coach of the Year and received National Coach of the Year honors from The Associated Press, United States Basketball Writers Association, ESPN.com and The Basketball Times.

“His family and friends are in our prayers and thoughts,” said Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Mack Rhoades in a statement.

“Joe was a special member of our athletics family, serving not only as head coach, but as a mentor to many young women throughout the years. His presence and larger than life personality will be missed by all who had the pleasure to know him.”

CHRISTOPHER SHELTON

CAMPUS LIFE

HOUSTONIAN 2014

CAMPUS LIFE 39

BECOMING THE CITY’S ALMA MATER

I

n the fall of 2007, UH had a student residential capacity of 4,320. Today that number stands at a little more than 8,000. This near doubling of our capacity, part of a $1 billion university redevelopment project, will redefine what it means to be a Cougar.

With more students living on campus, students will have greater opportunities to participate in current campus traditions. And as we find the mechanisms necessary to move us futher away from our image as a commuter campus, students will be provided with the environment they need to create some new traditions of their own.

UH graduates will carry these traditions with them after they leave our campus and enter into the workforce.

And since more than 80 percent of UH graduates are still living and working in Houston five years after graduation, our university may soon see some of these traditions become the traditions of the city.

As Houston continues to grow, you can rest assured that UH will continue to grow alongside it. Cougars around the city are already doing their part to help it grow. This year’s crop of graduating seniors will soon enter the workforce alongside those former Cougars, adding new minds to our

already large local alumni base. The connections they will forge with each other and the bonds they already have with the city will enable them to further the University’s goals of local and national recognition and carry it into a brighter future.

In this section, you will find a timeline of some of the year’s most exciting events along with photos of this year’s manifestation of our existing traditions. You will also find ample evidence that we are already well along in our journey to become the city’s alma mater.

HOUSTONIAN 2014

24

August

CAMPUS LIFE

HUNKER DOWN

CAT’S BACK

With the addition of two new residence halls, Cougar Village II and Cougar Place, the University now has the second highest residential capacity in the state.

President Renu Khator riled up her Cougar cubs as she filled them with excitement for the year ahead.

28

August

Photo by Emily S. Chambers

Courtesy of UH

40

18

September

NEW FUSION CUISINE Cafe 101 brings the charm of its Chinatown location to its expansion at the University, just across from Calhoun Lofts.

Photo by Bethel Clumac

30

September

BLOWING CANDLES Shasta VI celebrated his second birthday at his home in the Houston Zoo, where he serves as an ambassador for the University.

Photo by Fernando Castaldi

CAMPUS LIFE

FEAST FOR THE EYES

7

September

Artists were hosted in a survey of “artist-orchestrated” meals in the exhibit “Feast,” which is the first of its kind.

Courtesy of Blaffer Art Museum

HOUSTONIAN 2014

DANCE IN THE DARK

14

September

Cougars got down on a UV dance floor with glow sticks and paint during the first glow party hosted by Student Program Board.

Photo by Fernando Castaldi

41

4

October

THE BEAUX STRATAGEM Theater students presented the “Gregorian Era Comedy,” which is an adaptation by American playwright Ken Ludwig that follows the foiled plans of a “get-richquick” scheme.

Courtesy of Forest Photography

17

October

MASS-COOG-RADE The Fourth Annual Homecoming Dance, featuring a masquerade ball, packed Oberholtzer Hall with a plethora of students.

Photo by Emily S. Chambers

HOUSTONIAN 2014

CAMPUS LIFE

HOMECOMING GAME The University faced off against Brigham Young University for the first time and narrowly lost 47-46 at Reliant Stadium.

19

October

Photo by Rebekah Stearns

“ALL HAIL THE...”

Homecoming King Michael Szymanski and Homecoming Queen Channler K. Hill were crowned by President Renu Khator.

Photo by Justin Tijerina

42

4

January

PINK’S PIZZA OPENS With over 35 beers on tap, pizza by the slice and several television screens for sports-viewing pleasure, Pink’s Pizza has become a great addition to UH’s food scene.

Photo by Fernando Castaldi

22

January

UC RIBBON CUTTING The University opened its doors to the newly renovated University Center and its new addition, the UC North.

Photo by Justin Tijerina

CAMPUS LIFE

21

November

BATTLE OF THE NATIONS The University and Mercury joined forces to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Napoleon Bonaparte’s “Battle of the Nations” in an orchestral performance.

Courtesy of UH

29

HOUSTONIAN 2014

HIPSTER STOMPING GROUNDS

November

Since the opening of The Nook Cafe, it has become a favorite destination for students with their specialty coffee blends, pastries and wine.

Photo by Fernando Castaldi

43

24

January

BARBER OF SEVILLE The Moores School of Music’s production of Mozart’s zany opera filled the opera house with fits of giggles.

Photo Courtesy of UH

27

January

AN ALL-WRITE TALK Inprint Houston brought acclaimed author George Saunders to address the creative writing community on campus and promote his book.

Photo by Justin Tijerina

HOUSTONIAN 2014

29

January

CAMPUS LIFE

FOOD COURT OPENS UH Dining Services brought in a famous friend to introduce hungry students to the expanded dining options in the new UC.

29

January

Photo by Emily S. Chambers

A PIECE OF HISTORY A steel beam from the fallen World Trade Center officially went on display at UH’s newly opened World Trade Center Memorial and Reflection Garden.

Photo by Emily S. Chambers

44

21

February

GO TEXAN DAY Coogs celebrated the first day of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo by putting on their best red boots.

Photo by Jenna Frenzel

25

February

OUTON HITS BIG Senior outfielder Haley Outon rounded the bases in memorable fashion as she hit her 48th home run against Nichols State to break the school record Photo by Emily S. Chambers

CAMPUS LIFE

6

February

GUY’S NIGHT OUT

19

The largest home crowd since 2008 — 7,247 — at Hofheinz Pavilion hosted Guy V. Lewis, who was honored before tip off against Louisville.

February

HOUSTONIAN 2014

BUILDING COMMON WEALTH Humanity, love and humor is shown through the lives of convicts in the “Our Country’s Good” set in the late 18th century.

Courtesy of UH

Photo by Justin Tijerina

45

NEW GRAD SCHOOL OPENS The UH Graduate School officially opened the doors of its new office which will be the home of all doctoral and masters level programs.

Courtesy of UH

3

March

CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR Staff Sgt. Ty Michael Carter sought to redefine the meaning and stigma of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Photo by Justin Tijerina

HOUSTONIAN 2014

5

March

CAMPUS LIFE

BELTING IT OUT Inspired by NBC’s hit show “The Voice,” students from across disciplines showed off their vocal prowess in an adrenaline-pumping competition.

SHOWING SPIRIT

6

March

Cheer, the Cougar Marching Band and the Cougar Dolls Dance Team flooded the streets of downtown alongside a UH parade float during the Rodeo.

Photo by Conny Ramirez

Photo by Caitlin Hilton

46

29

March

ART IN MOTION The UH Dance Ensemble performed contemporary works by six award-winning faculty and professional guest choreographers.

Courtesy of UH School of Theater & Dance

3

April

FESTIVAL OF COLORS Students celebrated the Hindu spring festival Holi by covering each other in colored powder and dancing to live music.

Photo by Jimmy Moreland

CAMPUS LIFE

20

March

FRONTIER FIESTA Mr. Fiesta Anh Ngoc Mai and Mrs. Fiesta Jade Moore were crowned after they individually raised the most money to support UH scholarships.

21

March

Photo by Justin Tijerina

HOUSTONIAN 2014

B.O.B LIVE Students danced on stage and sang along to the celebrity performer’s hit songs like “Nothin on You” and “Airplanes” during Frontier Fiesta.

Photo by Justin Tijerina

47

9

April

WOLFFEST Eight teams of Bauer students competed to raise funds for the Cyvia and Melvyn Wolff Center during Wolffest by designing campaigns and selling food.

Photo by Justin Tijerina

2014 Fall

BUILDING A NEW HOME The Houston Football Stadium will stand as a symbol to the growing athletics department and the fiery red spirit of Cougars for generations to come.

Photo by Izmail Glosson

HOUSTO-

CAMPUS

BEING A COOG ME 48

MEANS...

CAMPUS

HOUSTO-

Every University of Houston student has a different idea of what it means to embody the Cougar spirit, and a unique way of expressing their school pride.

Photos by Nora Olabi

#COOGSHOUSE

39

HOUSTONIAN 2014

CAMPUS LIFE

50

Photo by Izmail Glosson

A TRADITION TRANSFORMS

The morning of April 28 marked a new beginning for one of the longest traditions on campus. That day represented the end of The Daily Cougar as a daily print publication. The student-run news organization that has been covering UH since 1934 will return in Fall 2014 as an up-to-the-minute, digitally focused news outlet with a cutting-edge weekly print publication. As the final print edition rolled off the presses a few hours after midnight, an 80-year-old tradition took on a new life.

Careers Start at Foster Wheeler Because of your outstanding UH education, skills, and energy, we know you’ll have many choices when it comes to your career. And we’d like you to consider Foster Wheeler.

Foster Wheeler has worked hard since 1927 to earn its place as a leading engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) company. But, we need the industry’s brightest, most dedicated colleagues in order to continue to excel. That’s where you could come in.

Visit Ǥ Ǥ ϐ ǯ ϐ Ǥ ǯ Ǥ

© Foster Wheeler AG, 2014. All rights reserved.

There are still great discoveries to be made

Petroleum Geo-Services (PGS) is a leading, worldwide geophysical company providing an extensive range of seismic services and products for the petroleum industry including seismic data acquisition, processing, reservoir monitoring and analysis, interpretation and electromagnetic studies. The company also possesses the world’s most extensive 3D MultiClient data library.

PGS has a presence in over 25 countries with regional centers in London, Houston and Singapore. Our headquarters is in Oslo, Norway and the PGS share is listed on the Oslo stock exchange (OSE:PGS).

We offer competitive salaries and benefits, technical and commercial training, as well as challenging careers and development opportunities worldwide.

For current opportunities and to apply visit www.pgs.com/Careers/Oppotunities

Congratulations to the University of Houston Graduates!

Halc贸n Resources Corporation 1000 Louisiana St., Suite 6700 Houston, TX 77002 (832) 538-0300 www.halconresources.com

Congratulations

HARRY H. CULLEN INVESTMENTS INDEPENDENT OIL OPERATOR 601 JEFFERSON AVENUE SUITE 4000 HOUSTON, TEXAS 77002

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF 2014

For over 45 years, Encon Safety Products, Inc. has been a leader in emergency safety and personal protection products. EnconÂŽ has built a solid foundation in product innovation, design, and service to manufacturers worldwide. Our advance level of design sets us apart from all competitors, but the key to our success is our people.

Are you reaching for excellence? Do you want to play an important role in protecting workers from hazards or perhaps designing safety equipment that will save lives? If so, come join our Team! Send inquiries to:

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Are you IN?

LOOKING FOR THE NEXT CHALLENGE?

INEOS is a rapidly growing manufacturer of petrochemicals, specialty and intermediate chemicals, and polymers. The INEOS Group is one of the world’s largest chemical companies with 51 manufacturing facilities in 11 countries. INEOS Olefins and Polymers USA is a significant entity of the INEOS Group that services the North American market.

INEOS Olefins & Polymers USA is one of the largest producers of olefins and polyolefins in North America.

From its manufacturing locations at Chocolate Bayou, Battleground Manufacturing Complex, and Carson, California, it is a merchant marketer of ethylene, butadiene, polypropylene and high-density polyethylene. INEOS offers a highly competitive compensation and benefits package.

Congratulations Class of 2014 INEOS Hires Accounting and Engineering graduates

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JOHN E. EASTON JR. Business Manager/Financial Secretary

www.ibew716.net

PLUMBERS LOCAL UNION NO. 68

www.plu68.com

THE OFFICERS AND MEMBERS SALUTE THE COUGAR GRADUATES, FACULITY AND ALUMNI Serving these metropolitan areas and their surrounding counties: HOUSTON * GALVESTON * BEAUMONT BRYAN/COLLEGE STATION * VICTORIA * RIO GRANDE VALLEY

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At ABB, a better world begins with you.

Energize your career at ABB. ABB is making a better world. Here, you have the opportunity to touch lives and improve communities. There is a constant focus on your career development. You have the freedom and support to make your mark on a truly multi-cultural, global business that combines leading technologies with the latest thinking. ;QW ECP ƂPF QWT KPPQXCVKXG VGEJPQNQI[ CPF GPIKPGGTKPI VJTQWIJQWV the energy supply chain, from remote offshore oil and gas production platforms to power distribution equipment that keeps the lights on in local homes and businesses. With our industry expertise and pioneering spirit, we are committed to solving the world’s energy challenges in a safe and sustainable way. Check out job opportunities and programs for students and recent graduates at www.abb.com/us.

Leading global provider of TDL analytical instruments for moisture and other trace measurements

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Congratulations Graduating Seniors!

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arcspecialties.com

Serving the University of Houston with Cathodic Protection and Rotating Equipment System Components

Congratulations Graduates!

Since 1935, Brance-Krachy headquartered in Houston has provided advanced distribution and manufacturing for mechanical power transmission and cathodic protection customers worldwide.

Brance-Krachy Co., Inc. 713-225-6661 www.brancekrachy.com Customer Driven. Employee Powered. Business Focused.

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Congratulations to the Graduates of the University of Houston!

Dashiell Corporation 12301 Kurland Drive Suite 400 Houston, Texas 77034

BEST WISHES TO THE GRADUATES!

BEST WISHES TO THE GRADS! We don ’t invent technology don’t technology..

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On Behalf of A Friend of the University of Houston

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Best Wishes to the Graduating Class!

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Houston Corporate Offices 713/529-2608 FAX 713/529-3061 HOUSTON/GALVISTON AUSTIN/SAN MARCOS SAN ANTONIO/LAREDO

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Engineered to stand tall.

At Swagelok, we take great pride in the products we build. We’re honored these produc ts help control critical processes in a wide range of industries.

We’re engineered to stand tall because people count on us.

Samuel Abraham 5000 Westheimer, Ste. 200 @ Post Oak Blvd.

Houston, Texas 77056  (713) 963-0980 2515 Bartlett St., West U, US 59 & Kirby Houston, Texas 77098  (713) 622-4444 E-mail: mail@abrahamsrugs.com  Website: www.abrahamsrugs.com

SERVING TEXA TION SINCE 1976 TEXASS & THE NA NATION

3701 YALE STREET HOUSTON, TX 77018-6563 TEL. 713.699.3515 www.adamsdist.com

You made it!

Your Tutors at Learning Support Services, Challenger Program and your friends at Learning & Assessment Services

WISH YOU THE BEST IN YOUR ENDEAVORS!

Learning and Assessment Services 2014 Graduates

LEARNING SUPPORT SERVICES – TUTORS Kennan Bieber Shenelle Gomez Vishal Gulati Pujjal Khanal Badi Misaqi Dennis Nwabudike Trung Nguyen Madhuri Rangineni Ruta Sawant (Summer 2014) Manish Solanki Kelly Underkofler Keyao Xia Victory (Anthony) Zertuche (Summer 2014) MEASUREMENT & EVALUATION CENTER – RESEARCH ASSISTANT Danesa Ruiz

LAS – RESEARCH ASSISTANT Saikeerthi Maryala CHALLENGER PROGRAM – TUTORS AND STUDENT ASSISTANTS Yen Nhi Nguyen Francisco Corona Henry Garcia CHALLENGER PROGRAM – STUDENT PARTICIPANTS Chelsea N Adams Lorie Alcazar Noel C Alleyne Mark A Borrego Marisol Bustamante Dolores Cerna Mario Cossio Eneida Davila

LAS.UH.EDU

Serbie Edward Jennifer L Elkins Amber Green Samar Hadwan Deunbra Ivory Fatima Kassim Destini King Lee Lacey Kady Le Roxana S Leon Amna Mulla Orlando Munoz Peter Nguyen Jonathan Salzberg Ray Sanders Fred O Sisto Raquel Torres