In front of a crowd of thousands, presidential hopeful Ron Paul said if elected, he would make it legal for Americans to once again drink raw milk.

The GOP candiate came to Hofheinz Pavilion Friday to tell his supporters he was in the race for the long haul.

“Every once and a while, we’ll notice the media will come out and say, ‘when are you going to quit?’ And, I say, ‘we are only getting going,’” he said.

“They say, ‘everyone else is dropping out,’ and I say, ‘yeah, they ran out of money, and they ran out of supporters, and nobody comes to their rallies.’”

Paul took to the podium dressed in a red polo and jeans that juxtaposed with the men in suits that introduced him and greeted the crowd with a thank you and “go coogs.”

His main talking points including decreasing the control of the federal government, ending the Federal Reserve Bank, his plan to fix the deficit in three years, ending the war on drugs and pulling out of wars.

“The message is of course the key issue and we can be very pleased that it is well received and of course we know that it’s well received by young people, but there are a lot of other people now, and all age groups and all kinds diversity that are enthusiastic about the liberty message,” he said.

Each point Paul made was met with chants from the crowd. One of the few comments met with “boos” was before Paul came to the podium when the CEO of UH’s Students for Ron Paul, who introduced the candidate, confessed he voted for Barack Obama in 2008.

The crowd went wild when Paul talked about ending the wars the U.S. is involved in and ,brining the troops home. An extra burst of applause came when a marine in the front row stood up to support his candidate.

“Accusations that have been thrown at me over the years, and probably at you as well, have been that if you don’t support the wars, somehow or another you don’t support the troops,” Paul said. “The question, if anybody asks about that, is ask them if that’s the truth, then why do the troops support Ron Paul more than any other candidate?”

John Beall, a mechanical engineering technology sophomore, said he was impressed by the rally.

“I wanted to see Ron Paul talk. I wanted to hear him defend his policies, and hopefully be inspired by his speech,” he said.

“He sounds like the only voice of reason amongst the presidential candidates.”

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More than $349.5 million will be used toward the construction and renovation of several academic and student facilities around campus, as well as for some off-campus sites.

One of the more anticipated is the estimated $80 million University Center Transformation project, which includes the UC and the UC Underground renovations along with the construction of two additional attachments on the north and east ends. Student fees will cover 95 percent of the money for this project.

“The result will be the complete transformation of this central facility which offers financial, functional and aesthetic benefits to a Tier-One university’s campus,” said project manager Katherine Miller.

“It will be the focal point for students, faculty, staff and visitors alike, and we aim for it to be the venue of choice on campus for all significant events.”

The east addition will be two stories and expand into parking lot 1E near Melcher Hall. The ground floor will include all food service operations, a bookstore support area and a new 400-seat theater for classes, movies and other events. The second floor will be composed of several meeting spaces, including two large event spaces, Miller said.

Also two stories, the north addition will be constructed over the UC Underground. The first floor will house most of the student organization spaces that currently reside in there. The second floor will include a new Student Government Association Senate chamber and other UC special components.

An elevated walkway will connect the north building to the UC, creating a multi-use plaza in between that will feature seating, a performance stage and a gathering space.

The main UC and UC Underground will be completely reworked to fix the current maintenance and code compliance issues and modernize the outdated mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, Miller said.

The bookstore will be relocated to the east side where the food court currently resides and will also utilize additional basement space. It will not experience any downtime because of construction, Miller said.

The now-open arbor space will be enclosed and transformed into a multi-faceted central space. Several lounge and retail spaces will be added throughout the building, and all current offices and meeting rooms will be updated, Miller said.

The UC Transformation project will be worked on in two phases. The first phase will begin June 2012 and last through December 2013 – it will include the north and east additions as well as some renovations. The second phase will occur from December 2013 to December 2014 and include all the renovations for the existing UC.

Next to this construction is the approximately $41 million Classroom and Business Building. Construction on the first two floors will be complete for the fall 2012 semester, while the upper levels will be finished in spring 2013.

“It’s a multi-use facility. The first two floors will be used for general classroom use for multiple programs,” Miller said.

“Floors three, four and five will be for Bauer College of Business, primarily their executive MBA programs, and some student organizations.”

Near the current Optometry Center, construction is already underway on the approximately $80.5 million Health and Biomedical Building, which will house the College of Optometry, student and faculty research labs and offices for the faculty and graduate students. It will be completed for the fall 2012 semester, said project manager John Posch.

“The facility will serve as the home of an inter-disciplinary research program, which includes BSL-2 level containment area, ambulatory surgical center, specialized research area, seminar spaces and classrooms and vivarium space,” Posch said.

Approximately $38.7 million is being used for additions to the Central Plant, which is located at the center of campus near the M.D. Anderson Memorial Library and provides utility services to much of the campus.

“The expansion will accommodate three new chillers and a new office suite for the plant on the ground floor,” Posch said.

“The project also includes the purchase and installation of three new low NOx high-efficiency boilers, replacement of all four cooling towers and the addition of one new cooling tower.”

Construction on this project will begin pulling back and removing fencing in June 2012, but it will not be entirely complete until fall 2013.

Renovations and expansion to the Blaffer Museum will be finished in summer 2012 and will cost approximately $2 million. These include a new north-facing entrance and several changes to the galleries, Miller said.

“The expansion will be to the north and that will basically provide a more public entrance,” Miller said.

“We’ve moved the stairs to the north side of the expansion and we are renovating all of the gallery space so that it functions better and is basically up to twenty-first century museum standards.”

Construction is also taking place in the Science and Engineering Research Center building, where approximately $13.9 million is being used to insert more lab space on the second and fourth floors. The fourth floor will be completed in summer 2012, and the second floor will be finished in spring 2013.

“When they built it, a lot of it was what we call shell space, which is empty space,” Posch said.

“We’ve done a series of remodels to fit it out with labs over the years. So, we are finishing up the last two sections of it now.”

Also filling in space, an approximately $35.8 million build-out to the fourth floor of the Science Teaching Building will allow for additional research space and will be complete in Jan. 2013.

Several buildings will be undergoing life and safety upgrades, primarily fire alarm and sprinkler updates. These include the Lamar Fleming Jr., Old Science, Science and Research 1 and Science Teaching Lab buildings. The overall cost will be $57.6 million, and the construction will occur at various times through the fall 2013 semester.

Construction is also planned off-campus at the Energy Research Park as well as at other UH System locations, according to Director of Facilities Planning Mike Yancey.

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Participants were able to register at 7:30 a.m. and the marathon kicked off at 10:00 a.m. with introductions and words from sponsors, including HEB, UH, Youth Service America and several others.

Kelly Dean, a UH graduate, played the national anthem while 20 “VIP” kids ran the first lap holding the American and Texas flag.  At approximately 10:20 a.m., the first wave of children, parents toting babies in strollers, grandparents and student athletes took off.

This was the first run/walk hosted by the University’s Behavior Opportunities Uniting Nutrition Counseling and Exercise program. The event was open to all ages and monetary donations were accepted. Funds collected during the event will benefit “BOUNCE Healthy Lifestyle Programs.”

Volunteers signed up online or registered upon arrival on Saturday.

“Its always great to have a stream of volunteers welcoming the participants,” said Andrea Trevino, a Marathon Kids volunteer.

Marathon Kids has members from 154 schools and 40,000 children in Houston.

The marathon ended in “reward alley” where participants received coloring books, place mats and sunglasses.

The marathon was a celebration of the children’s hard work from the fall to spring, and the excitement and enthusiasm from the participants remained high throughout the afternoon.

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Students crowded around the new 2012 Honda Civic Coupe parked in front of the University Center on Tuesday for a promotional event organized by Cougar Concepts.

The attendees played with the radio and other dashboard gadgetry and enjoyed free food, games and giveaways while asking questions about the car’s gas mileage and price points of the Cougar Concepts crew.

The students of Cougar Concepts were required to do a campaign briefing and create ads for Honda during the semester.

This year’s event was centered on the theme, “How do you Civic?” According to Chelsea Lewis, a member of the student-run agency Cougar Concepts, the theme has to do with a person’s individuality and style, and the way they drive their car.

Cougar Concepts worked with Honda and EdVenture Partners to encourage college students to communicate and share how they interact with the Honda Civic Coupe.

The students of Cougar Concepts collaborated and developed this marketing campaign for Honda. The students produced 900 flyers, posted ads, placed 50 yard signs strategically on campus and wrote a press release, which was posted on the group’s Facebook page.

Jerne Davidson, an event coordinator for Cougar Concepts, explained that UH was one of 22 universities chosen by EdVenture Partners to represent them and create a real campaign for the Civic.

“A lot of our success is going to be measured by how this event turns out — the number of attendees — the number of people that are swayed by us to buy the car and everything of that nature,” Davidson said.

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The walk was started three years ago when members of the Greater Houston Chapter of AFSP were looking for a university to host the event approached Kathy Zerda, director of the Program for Mastery in Engineering Studies in the Cullen College of Engineering.

“Since PROMES is a large student success community, I knew my students would be up for the challenge,” Zerda said.

Registration and check-ins for the 2.5 mile walk start at 8 a.m. and the event is open to the public. A brief remembrance program will follow the walk.

The event is to bring awareness to depression and suicide. For Zerda, it has personal meaning.

“I took it on because I lost my own 24-yr old son to suicide in 2006.  I knew nothing about suicide before that event, and as a university professor I wanted to make students aware of issues related to suicide and depression,” Zerda said.

“Since the first UH Campus Walk in 2010, our university community has lost friends and family to suicide, and participation in the Walk has spread well beyond the Engineering student community. We get great support from students of all majors, from the UH Counseling and Psychological Services team, and many faculty and staff.”

For more information about the campus walk, go to www.afsp.donordrive.com/event/UH/.

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“This day-long program of lectures, panel discussions and conversations will explore federal energy policy as it impacts the state of Texas, state policy as it impacts communities like Houston, the promise of clean and renewable energy in all its forms and the impact of one of the largest shale plays anywhere on the economic and environmental health of South Texas,” says a Texas Tribune press release.

UH President Renu Khator will open the event at 8 a.m. after the complimentary breakfast.

Other speakers include the chairman on the Texas Railroad Commission, members of the House Energy Resource Committee and representatives from various energy companies.

People who plan to attend should RSVP because seating is limited.

For a full list of events and to RSVP, go to www.tinyurl.com/tribunefestUH or email rsvp@texastribune.org.

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Since 2008, the University of Houston has spent $219 million on construction, while another $219 million is being spent on current projects and an additional $200 million is allocated to proposals in the design and financing phase, said UH President Renu Khator in her fall 2011 address.

This has resulted in several construction sites sprawled over campus, closing walkways and obstructing traffic.

“You see it every day when you try to get through campus,” said Director of Facilities Planning Mike Yancey. “We are going to wrap all of those (projects) up as soon as we can.”

All of the construction going on at once has forced students to accommodate to the changes, which include campus sidewalk closures and parking lot closures and reassignments.

“We try to keep the sidewalks open and have good accessibility, but at the same time, we have to do these projects,” Yancey said.

In order to try and limit additional burdens on students, the University has tried to set tighter restrictions on the construction boundaries.

“We limit the contractor’s footprint of the site to where it’s up real close to the building and still allows people to get around,” Yancey said. “The issue is that when you get multiple buildings in the same general location, you get these little narrow slices of traffic.”

Yancey said the University is trying to keep construction at a constant pace to be as non-intrusive as possible.

“I don’t think it’s all at once. It seems that way because we are active right now,” Yancey said.

“What I would like to see is that it continues at an even level so you don’t have big spikes and valleys.”

There are currently three projects in pre-construction — the bidding and procurement phase — they are still being designed and negotiated with contractors.

These projects include a parking garage where Lot 1A is currently located, the University Center transformation project and renovations to the old science building.

“We do some construction-manager-at-risk projects, where you involve the architects and engineers at the same time you involve the general contractor,” Yancey said.

Two residence halls, a dining hall and several academic buildings around campus are considered in the active construction phase, also known as the building phase. These are a mixture of completely new structures as well as renovations and additions to old structures.

“While we are renovating, we are improving,” Yancey said. “The campus is getting better, and I’m really happy with it.”

The financial support for these projects comes from various sources.

“There are a lot of different funding sources, from tuition revenue bonds and HEAF (Higher Education Assistance Fund) to grants and local funds,” Yancey said. “Each project has a different funding source or sources. You can see how the money is combined to do the project.”

Yancey said he does not see a time when construction will not be happening in some form on campus.

“If you look at the life cycle of buildings and the components in a building, in order to maintain and operate it properly, you have to replace certain components in (that) building,” Yancey said.

“As the students and academic people’s needs change, (the University) will necessarily re-purpose the buildings.”

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Students braved the stormy weather Thursday for free food, drinks and music at the fourth annual Grill Fest on the College of Technology grounds, East Courtyard.

The event gave students an opportunity to display their current research, as well as capstone projects. The College of Technology’s Student Body Council — which is comprised of all the college’s student organizations chairs — hosted faculty, alumni, students and industry representatives.

Dean William Fitzgibbon was on hand to kick-off the festivities and to also remind everyone about being safe.

“This is a more informal way for the students to interact with the some of the companies that have sponsored the event,” said Director of Development Lisa Burns.

“We do run several workshops educating students on how to network and interact, but this is for students to primarily relax and enjoy the atmosphere of the College of Technology.”

President of Supply-Chain Industry and Distribution Organization and logistics senior Christopher Lazok said the University provides each individual organization with money to use for specific events.

“Each organization tends to use their money separately on single small events, we decided to group all of our money together for one single purpose,” Lazok said.

Grill Fest allows for more interaction between students due to the sheer size of the event and the number of student-run organizations.

“People from all the different organizations, meeting with each other about what degree plans are available, discussing what classes they are taking, what professors they have — it’s just a big melting pot, so to speak,” he said.

“This is basically how it works in the real world — you get people who can work together for an event.”

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“There are too many unknown costs for the I-45 site,” Vice Chair for the Board Mica Mosbacher said.

“I would hate to burden our students with more costs.”

The alternate site would have cost the University an estimated $40 million more than it would to keep the stadium in the current location.

The I-45 site date of completion was 2015 and would’ve relocated Cullen Boulevard and the intramural fields. One year of rental for another facility would’ve been added to the cost.

Chair of the Board of Regents Nelda Blair said she and other members felt comfortable with the current site for the new stadium.

“I am satisfied that our current site is the site to be,” Blair said.

The cost for the new, approximately 40,000-seat football stadium is $105 million, and construction will be completed by 2014.

The Board also approved a student fee increase that will be implemented in the fall semester.

“There is no tuition increase; it’s just the fees to support the UC and the athletics construction,” Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs John Antel said.

“These are not fees for classes but for services.”

Students will pay be charged a $100 increase in fees for the construction of the new football stadium and the new University Center facilities.

Antel said the fee was self-imposed after students voted in approval of the athletic referendum on Feb. 2.

UH Chancellor and President Renu Khator said she received news March 20 that the UH systems are now Hispanic-serving institutions.

“There are only two Tier One universities who have that: University of New Mexico and University of California at Riverside,” Khator said.

To be named a Hispanic-serving institution, a university has to have an enrollment of at least 25 percent undergraduate full-time Hispanic students at the end of the year immediately preceding the date of application.

Khator said the title was an important example of the University’s synchronization of Houston’s diverse population and culture.

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Sophomore Journalism major Kathleen Murrill, a residential assistant in Cougar Village, was shocked to learn that she owed the university more than $5,000 after she had already paid off her account.

“I had paid my tuition bill in full in January with the help of scholarships, loans and the compensation from being a RA,” said Murrill.

“When I saw that I now owed back over $5,000, I was surprised and scared because I had no idea how I would be able to pay that.”

Several RAs are facing similar charges and many are not ready to simply pay without trying to fight the charges. As the issue has not yet been resolved, none are willing to go on record at this time.

“The RAs affected are understandably upset. There has been some organization with the creation of a Facebook page and emails to each other,” said Murrill.

“I think they just want to know why this wasn’t fully explained to us before we took the position and why we have to pay for this mistake.”

UH assigns each student an expected cost of attendance when they enroll based on multiple factors, said Executive Director of Student Financial Aid Sal Loria Jr. Students can receive up to that amount in scholarships and grants that are awarded based on financial need.

“We started hearing concern from some staff members that their financial aid packages were being readjusted,” said Executive Director of Residential Life & Housing Don Yackley. “Their aid was being adjusted down based on how much need they qualified for.”

Residential assistants receive waivers to cover the costs of room and board rather than monetary compensation, Yackley said.

“The RA waivers are truly waiving their fees,” said Loria.

“If you’re not an RA, you would have to pay completely out-of-pocket for those charges. So it is counted as a resource.”

Counting the waiver as a resource that impacts the student’s cost of attendance because it is considered needs-based. This amount is factored into the overall amount of aid a student is receiving and counts towards the university’s set budget.

“It was really the timing of when we received the (list of RAs) and how we posted those funds to their account,” Loria said.

“It happened after students got refunds and that’s what caused the charge back. Some students had been over-awarded.”

Once the financial aid office realized these students had been given more aid than their budget allowed, they had to inform them and reclaim the excess amount in compliance with federal law.

“Here’s a cup of water and this is how much aid you are eligible for. Financial aid filled the cup based on your individual situation,” said Yackley.

“Later, housing poured in the amount of what RA compensation is and it made the water spill over. Now we have to clean up the water and return it.”

The amounts owed back range from $100 to $7,000 according to Loria, but financial aid is working with each student individually to try and reduce the inconvenience of the costs as much as possible. Loria says he hopes they can lower the number of students affected to about 20.

“For any student that is left with an outstanding balance, it will of course be held at no interest,” said Loria. “We’ve paid back the feds so the institution will hold that debt as a zero, no interest loan.”

Murrill said she has found the financial aid office helpful in the month it has taken to get her account back to normal, but she is still struggling with the fact that the problem occurred at all.

“The situation continues to be frustrating because it feels as though RAs are suffering the consequences of a problem they didn’t cause or create,” said Murrill.

“I do believe financial aid and housing are trying their best to help the situation in any legal way they can, but either way, RAs are literally paying for (someone else’s) mistake.”

While Residential Life & Housing and the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid are planning to reevaluate their current system for processing the aid on residential assistants’ accounts, Yackley said no department is particularly at fault.

“Next year we are reorganizing the system to ensure this doesn’t happen again,” said Loria.

“It’s avoidable and, when done appropriately, (the system) works.”

This is the third consecutive year in which the highly competitive grant has been awarded to University of Houston.

“Universities all around the country put in proposals to ExxonMobil, and then decide which university would be the most successful in hosting the camp. There are only 20 camps held per year,” Camp Director Paige Evans said.

This year, the camp’s focus will be on the need for alternative energy sources due to our reliance on fossil fuels.

The camp will accept 48 students who are entering the sixth, seventh or eighth grade by Fall 2012, scored well on math and science standardized test scores and received two teacher recommendations. The deadline to sign up for the camp is Thursday, April 5.

The campers will spend two weeks living in Cougar Village, going to the recreation center, attending presentations given by the top teachers in the math and science fields, visiting the Texas Learning and Computation Center, and various other excursions around campus. Campers will also get to meet a number of professionals who are interested in careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields.

“The camp is a chance for middle school students to get a taste of college life as well as gain more knowledge in the field they are interested in,” Evans said.

The students will also construct a home using alternative energy like wind, solar, nuclear, thermal and others. Robots, cars and other objects will also be constructed as the students experiment with the various forms of energy.

Students are also expected to take several trips off campus during their two-week stay. They will be visiting NASA, the Health Museum and the ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company Technical Training Center.

“Our job is to cultivate the next generation of innovative thinkers,” Evans said.

Six junior counselors who are previous camp attendees will oversee the camp, and the 12 other counselors are students involved in the teachHouston program.

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Nebraska Book Company, a textbook industry titan who owns 290 stores nationwide, including The College Store, filed for a Second Amended Plan for Reorganization and Disclosure Statement with the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware on March 7.

Although NBC received an extension when it came to the performance evaluations of about 40 off-campus bookstores, The College Store still wasn’t up to par.

The College Store Manager Jessica Brost said business started to decline with the popularity and convenience of online sales.

“We are among several stores on the list that will be closing,” Brost said.

“To be honest, it’s very difficult to say. They were looking at our fall and spring sales. Our sales have been declining over time.”

According to NBC, online purchasing isn’t the only factor contributing to the decline of sales in the off-campus bookstores. Recently, many colleges and universities have offered the option of renting textbooks, and then selling them back for lesser value.

“This store definitely coincides with what the whole industry is going through when it comes to textbooks,” Brost said.

“It is very difficult to compete with Amazon or E-book.

“We pay more for books than they do. It’s a very tough thing to go through.”

The increase of online sales, textbook rentals and the popularity of tablets have left many employees of the industry jobless.

“Most of us here are going to be on the job market very soon. I’m just hoping for the best for all of us,” Brost said.

“It’s unfortunate because the minute we put everything on sale, a long line of people showed up.”

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Former United States ambassador to the United Nations and diplomat, John Bolton, spoke to law students about the Obama administration’s failures at an international level.

The US has turned their attention away from international affairs and is focusing only on its internal situation, Bolton said.

“It is simply not possible to have sustained American prosperity at home unless we have a strong international presence,” Bolton said.

“Whatever stability there is in the world is essentially provided by the United States.”

Bolton said President Barack Obama doesn’t see the world as a “huge” threat.

The US has the lowest number of navy ships overseas since 1916 and the number is projected to decrease. Cuts will also be applied to the Air Force and Army while international threats are continuing to rise, Bolton said.

“The relations of the United States and Russia are exceptionally low,” Bolton said.

“In August 2008, Russia invaded Georgia. Candidate Obama said that both sides should exercise their strength — Georgia on one hand and Russia on the other.

“This didn’t sound comforting to the people of Georgia. Their army can probably fit in this room. This also signals to the Russians that presidential candidate Obama didn’t understand what worked.”

Bolton also said the Obama administration is not doing anything to stop North Korea.

“We know that they’re making enormous progress with their missiles. Communication satellites have been used to celebrate the hundredth anniversary,” Bolton said.

“Obviously, if you can put missiles in earth’s orbit, you can put it on any target on earth. They are certainly well on their way. It is the most heavily sanctioned country. What have we done about it? Nothing.”

The US relationship with Iran was also criticized.

“When you let missiles get in the hand of crazy, religious fanatics who don’t share the same values as we do here, it is something that needs to be concerned about,” Bolton said.

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New traditions will be blended with old on Saturday when the UH Alumni Association unveils a live cougar mascot for the University after more than two decades without one.

Though Shasta VI’s predecessors have lived on campus, this incarnation will remain in his exhibit at the Houston Zoo, said President of the UH Alumni Association Mike Pede.

“There are all kinds of reasons why a live cougar should not be out of where he’s being handled by professionals,” Pede said. “He will be there 24-7 with the 4-year-old cougar that already lives there named Haley.”

The Alumni Association has been in communication with the zoo since Jan. 2011, but they have been working on getting a new cougar for longer.

“Once we got here, we thought that was a very important tradition to try recreate or renew, so we’ve been working to do that since I got here two years ago,” Pede said.

One of the new traditions will be to leave class rings in the cougar exhibit overnight.

“We will take the class rings and put them in the exhibit in a specially made box that Shasta will be able to hop up on top of and bless those, basically,” Pede said.

The Alumni Association will also set up webcams in the exhibit so that Shasta can make digital appearances at UH events.

“I think in a perfect world, everyone would like to have their live mascot on their campus in a wonderfully laid out exhibit,” Pede said. “But I also understand all the issues that will have us handling it in this way.”

Shasta VI was born in September in Washington, and he now weighs about 45 pounds, said Houston Zoo Spokesperson Brian Hill.

“The weight for an adult male cougar is about 145 pounds, so he has a little bit of growing to do,” Hill said.

Shasta’s mother was killed by a hunter, and state wildlife officials were brought in to rescue Shasta and his littermates.

“Two of the cubs were found in short order,” Hill said. “But Shasta proved a little bit elusive.”

The cub was eventually found when state wildlife officials mimicked the chirping sound mother cougars use to communicate with their cubs, Hill said, and all three cubs were then taken to Oregon Zoo.

“Shasta had a pretty rough go as a young cougar, but he’s in a great place now,” Hill said.

Pede, who graduated from UH in 1989 and wore the Shasta suit as the mascot at UH football games, said that having a live cougar mascot provided a boost to school spirit.

“Whoever you’re walking through the zoo with,” he said, “you can beat your chest in pride for a couple minutes and say, ‘That’s my guy right there. He’s one of us and I’m one of them.’”

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Of the 3,249 international students enrolled at UH this semester, 237 live on campus, according the Office of International Students.

“The school should have more events for on-campus students to celebrate spring break together like parties or field trips because international students do feel lonely, especially during spring break,” said accounting and finance senior Quan Tran.

For some international students living on campus, the early closing hours for dining facilities and the recreation center during the break were a nuisance.

“There’s no choice but to eat outside of campus,” said Sascha Lulla, a finance senior from Singapore.

Lulla drove to the nearest Wendy’s or Subway when businesses like the Calhoun Loft’s convenience store closed at 3 p.m.

“The school should really cater to its international students since they have so many,” Lulla said.

Other international students, like hotel and restaurant management post-baccalaureate Agi Anthony don’t have vehicles to drive to a restaurant off campus.

Anthony, who moved to Houston from Nigeria two years ago, said his meal plan was wasted when dining facilities on campus were shut off, and the current contract he signed did not warn him of this problem.

“No one does anything about it,” Anthony said.

“It’s a challenge that international students have experience with during Thanksgiving.”

Since using his meal plan wasn’t a viable option during the break, Anthony used money to buy snacks or dine at China Star when it was open earlier in the day.

“We should be able to eat,” Anthony said. “But if we can’t, they should put it in the contract, so we understand and aren’t left in the dark.”

Anthony said spending spring break on campus, far from his friends and family, made him homesick, but it’s something international students must go through as they work to achieve their goals.

“Here you always miss that fellowship and those communications you have back home,” Anthony said.

“But we try to do what we can, to try to get where we want to get to.”

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Franco deferred his acceptance in the program last fall for a year, but he will not be attending this fall either due to scheduling conflicts.

“His plans do not permit him to enroll in the doctoral program this fall,” Director James Kastely of UH’s creative writing program told the Houston Chronicle.

“The problem is, he’s just very busy, so the future is uncertain.”

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Computer science junior John Cates said he takes the classes to further his understanding of the face-to-face courses he’s enrolled in at UH.

“I have found the MIT lectures to be more interesting, and it’s refreshing to take (courses) at your own pace,” he said.

Rice University began offering textbooks and course lectures online for free in February using Connexions, and other universities — like MIT — using OpenCourseWare.

Material from the courses — ranging from class notes to quizzes and paper assignments to full textbooks — is available free of charge on the websites.

Cates said the online classes have a downside, however. Without a professor to hold students to deadlines, it is easy to get behind schedule.

“If you want to take a class from OpenCourseWare, you just do it yourself,” he said.

Though UH students may use the sites, the University does not provide a similar service.

UH Executive Director of Media Relations Richard Bonnin said the University is aware of other higher education institutions with a “more robust funding structure” offering free materials online.

“The University of Houston does not offer any free classes at this time — online or otherwise,” Bonnin said.

Bonnin said UH uses part of the tuition and student fees to develop online classes.

“We are not currently in the position to offer the resulting materials to the general public at no charge,” he said.

Rice professor of electrical and computer engineering Richard Baraniuk began a non-profit publishing project 13 years ago called Connexions that aimed to make high-quality textbooks accessible to anyone online — at no cost.

“The OpenStax College is a new initiative out of Rice to develop a free library of open textbooks,” Baraniuk said. “These are books that are not just to be used at Rice University, but for two- and four-year colleges across the country.”

Baraniuk says that by implementing free online textbook initiatives, students can save money and finish their degrees more effectively.

“What we are striving to provide is high-quality learning materials that are really easy to adopt and they are saving students tremendous money,” Baraniuk said. “The more the students save, the more they can continue the program and finish and enhance the work force.”

Additional reporting by Audris Ponce, Eduardo Venegas, Courtney Johns and Kimberly Grady.

Students going to and from the University Center were stopped by members of the Students for a Democratic Society at their Palestinian Marketplace on Monday in the UC North Patio. The event, which was held to inform students about Israeli-Palestinian relations, is part of Israeli Apartheid week.

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Lot 12B will be closed until April 2 and lots 12A and 15D will be closed until March 26, according to a campuswide email sent by director of UH Parking and Transportation Services, Robert Browand.

Students with economy parking passes will not be fined for parking in student lots today through Friday, Browand said.

Parking will be available at the Energy Research Park, located at 5000 Gulf Freeway, and shuttles will run every 15 minutes, Browand said.

For more information on where to park, go to www.uh.edu/pts.

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