Women have come a long way since the mid-20th century. They’re surpassing men in college enrollment, in voting booths and in the general U.S. population. Yet while women have been making great strides in the past few decades, they still have a long way to go in the political sphere. Currently, women hold just 18 percent […]
Features
Sociology Department Celebrates 100-Year Anniversary
The Department of Sociology celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, and looking back at the department’s many achievements during the past century, this is a milestone worthy of a big celebration. In addition to its top national rankings, the department is home to an impressive number of eminent social scientists and notable alumni —from Charles […]
Explore UT’s Caddo Collection
Many Texans know the Caddo Tribe gave the state its name—Tejas is the Spanish spelling of the Caddo word taysha, which means friend or ally. But did you know that The University of Texas at Austin’s Texas Archeological Research Lab (TARL) safeguards one of the most extensive Caddo collections in the world? “The records and collections of […]
New Groundbreaking Department to Focus on Latino, Mexican American Experience
The first-ever academic department in the U.S. to take a comprehensive look at the lives, cultures and histories of Mexican American and Latino populations has been established at The University of Texas at Austin. The Department of Mexican American and Latina/o Studies (MALS) will ultimately offer undergraduate and graduate degrees that focus on the interdisciplinary […]
UTeach Summer Program Hones Skills for Teaching English Abroad
The Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) summer course is providing students with internship opportunities in Querétaro, Mexico and Daegu, South Korea. UTeach-Liberal Arts founded the program in the summer of 2013 based on the recommendations of liberal arts students and graduates who expressed interest in a course that would allow students to go […]
Examining the Economic Self
Many people dream of getting rich, of leaving the drudgery of work for a life of financial freedom. Daniel Fridman, an assistant professor of sociology and the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies, investigated how groups of people in New York City and his native Buenos Aires attempt to take control of their […]
Liberal Arts Student Lands Summer Internship at U.S. Embassy in Madrid
Living and working in the capital of Spain for 10 weeks is one way Spanish majors can stay sharp over the summer. Megan Palombo, a Spanish and advertising senior, traveled more than 5,000 miles to intern at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid, Spain. This summer, she was able to increase her knowledge of foreign affairs, […]
Q&A with Ecosickness Author Heather Houser
Take a look at your surroundings. Are you sitting in a climate-controlled office next to a window overlooking a sea of traffic? Or are you skimming this article on a porch swing underneath a shady oak tree? Whether you’re surrounded by wide open spaces or a concrete jungle, your environment is significantly affecting your emotional […]
High School Students Experience University Life Through Summer Program
This summer, more than 65 high school students from around the country and across the globe made their way to The University of Texas at Austin to experience life on a college campus. The Summer @ UT/COLA Pre-College Program was designed to help students transition from high school to college, and is the first program […]
Government Alumna Gives Back During 40 for Forty
On April 3 and 4, 2014 Longhorns everywhere had exactly 40 hours to raise $40,000 through a new effort that included email, phone, social media and a student fundraising event. 40 Hours for the Forty Acres offered a challenge to encourage alumni and students to join in and give back. The culmination of the fundraising […]
All the World’s an Opera Stage for English Alumnus Speight Jenkins
Many of us go through college without a clear career path in mind. But a lucky few have the great fortune of knowing their true calling at a very young age. For Speight Jenkins (BA, English ’57), that passion was opera. It all began in the early 1940s when a first grade teacher introduced his […]
Millennial Nation
A Generational Look at Education, Money and Work Empathetic. Impatient. Innovative. Unfocused. Rational. Naive. Excited. These are the words millennials in the College of Liberal Arts use when they’re asked to describe themselves. However, it’s a question they’re not often asked. Plenty of people, from journalists to researchers to employers, are looking to define who […]
Q&A with Beth Mooney
Banking on Liberal Arts Beth Mooney, History ’77, is the chairman and CEO of KeyCorp, making her the first female chief of a top 20 U.S. bank. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, she oversees more than 15,000 employees and $91 billion in assets. She has been named one of the most powerful women in banking by […]
Plan A Midsummer’s Dream Trip to Winedale
We all have those special Texas summer places that draw us back—the dance pavilion at Garner State Park, the swimming hole at Krause Springs, a particular stretch of Padre Island. Ever since English professor James “Doc” Ayres founded the Shakespeare at Winedale program in 1971, the Theatre Barn at Winedale has been one of those […]
Ancient City on the Brink
Can a Crimean World Heritage Site Survive the Region’s Latest Political Unrest? Last June Professor Joseph Carter had reason to celebrate. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) had named the ancient city of Chersonesos—a place where he had dedicated more than two decades of his career—a World Heritage Site. It’s not easy […]
Q&A with Chris Barton
Keeping It Real Chris Barton, History ’93, is an award-winning, bestselling children’s author of Shark Vs. Train, The Day-Glo Brothers and Can I See Your I.D.? He lives in Austin with his wife, Jennifer, and their four children. Who are your favorite authors?Aside from the one I’m married to—Jennifer Ziegler, who writes novels for young readers—the authors that come […]
Making the Grade
Strategies for Improving Education in America Few dispute the value of education, but discussions about how our nation should improve it are becoming more intense and polarized. Of all the competing arguments—more technology, smaller classrooms, improved teacher training, universal pre-kindergarten—most people would agree that America’s education system needs to improve, and soon. According to recent […]
Q&A with Christina Melton Crain
Reducing Recidivism Christina Melton Crain, Government ’88, is president and CEO of DOORS, a reentry advocacy nonprofit based in Dallas that focuses on reducing recidivism (repeat offending). She is the only woman ever to have served as the chairman of the Texas Board of Criminal Justice. Crain has practiced law for more than 20 years, […]
Q&A: Undergraduate Research Week
April 14-18 is Undergraduate Research Week at UT, hosted by the Senate of College Councils and the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Studies. Colleges and organizations across campus, including the College of Liberal Arts, coordinate events throughout the week to showcase the work of undergraduate researchers. On April 15, a group of 11 outstanding […]
The Buck Stops Here
Hit TV series like Breaking Bad demonstrate just how far criminals will go to conceal their piles of dirty money. But of all the countries in the world, these illicit activities are most easily carried out under the guise of shell companies right here in the United States. A shell company is a business in […]
Plan II, Philosophy Alumnus nominated for Academy Award
Zachary Heinzerling, Plan II and Philosophy ’06, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary for his film Cutie and the Boxer. It debuted at the Sundance Film Festival, where he earned the Best Director Award (U.S. Documentary). The film follows the complicated relationship of husband and wife artists Ushio and Noriko Shinohara. Heinzerling […]
50 Years of Civil Rights History: Then and Now
Fifty years ago, President Lyndon Baines Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a landmark piece of legislation that banned widespread discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. To highlight this important milestone, we invited leading scholars from the College of Liberal Arts to highlight pivotal moments in civil rights history […]
Imagining a More Equitable World for Africa’s Gay Community
In most African countries, being gay means living in constant fear. For example, an anti-homosexuality bill recently signed by Uganda President Yoweri Museveni calls for 14 years in prison for first time offenders and life in prison for repeat offenders. Even those who don’t report gay friends and loved ones are considered to be breaking […]
PLAN II ABROAD: Varun Bhatnagar
Varun Bhatnagar, a Plan II honors, business honors and finance sophomore, made his time away from classes count this summer by taking an internship abroad in Shanghai. Read about his job at one of China’s top marketing firms, his take on Chinese culture and his biggest challenges in his own words in this Q&A. Where […]
Digital Archive Holds Untold History of African American Mental Health
Resplendent in his trademark sport coat and bow tie, Louis Armstrong plays a trumpet for a large gathering of patients underneath a grove of trees outside of Central State Hospital, the world’s first African American psychiatric hospital in Petersburg, Virginia. This is one of the many priceless images stored away in the hospital’s filing cabinets […]