The following quotes are from viewpoints and overviews written by The Daily Texan Editorial Board this semester. We’ve selected quotes that paint a picture of the noteworthy events that occurred this fall.
“Voters across the nation don’t know Perry like we know him. His education track record is one of many that suggests he is charging around the country on a platform of minimal substance. We hope voters and journalists in the other 49 states will look past our governor’s ‘cowboy mystique’ and seriously evaluate the decisions he has made in office.”
— On Gov. Rick Perry shortly after he delcared his candidacy for the GOP presidential nomination. Despite sky-rocketing to the top of the pack, Perry is rolling in at 9 percent in Iowa and 3 percent in New Hampshire, according to and NBC/Marist College poll released over the weekend.
“It can end up like Nicole Scherzinger, who despite being the only vocal talent in The Pussycat Dolls, failed when it came to a solo career. Or it can end up like Fergie, who has complemented No. 1 hits with The Black Eyed Peas with some of her own. Currently UT is hoping to become a Fergie.”
— On the possible outcomes of the University’s decision to partner with ESPN to launch The Longhorn Network this fall.
“With a wide-pleasing message comes a wide range of interpretations, and the chancellor will be evaluated based on how institutions such as UT will react to the plan. After all, planks can be used to keep a boat afloat or to push someone off the edge.”
— On UT System Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa’s highly publicized nine-plank Framework for Advancing Excellence across the UT System. Cigarroa’s plan worked to quiet some of the noise surrounding the state’s higher education controversy, but the move from the conceptual to the practical is still in process.
“The biggest reminder from Powers’ speech is that a university’s role goes well beyond job training. The greatest skill a university can teach its students is critical thinking. … A university that can empower students to channel intellectual curiosity to create these ideas is the university of the future.”
— On President Powers’ sixth annual State of the University Address in September.
“What Powell fails to realize, however, is that the controversy was not born out of an aversion to the messy kitchen of healthy debate, but rather a fundamental mistrust of misguided and agenda-driven chefs.”
— On the second meeting of the Legislature’s Joint Oversight Committee on Higher Education Governance, Excellence and Transparency. Powell, facing his biggest critic, State Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, compared the state’s higher education controversy to preparing a Thanksgiving meal, with Cigarroa’s Framework being the end result, or the turkey. The committee concluded its final meeting focusing on governance in November with excellence being next on the agenda.
“Since Texas A&M signaled that it will leave the conference next year, the Big 12 has started to look more like the Nervous 9, as it fired commissioner Dan Beebe on Thursday.”
— On the UT System Board of Regents’ granting President William Powers Jr. the right to negotiate conference realignment discussions on behalf of the University. The semester featured the end of the 118-year streak of playing the Aggies on Thanksgiving day.
“Hopefully the University can, as Powers has suggested, mold MyEdu to serve better purposes than it currently does and, in so doing, make the site worthy of its new burnt orange hue.”
— On the Board of Regents’ controversial decision to partner with and invest $10 million in MyEdu, a privately-held educational services company.
“Wednesday’s open forum put an end to the motions of the Tuition Policy Advisory Committee, as it presented its proposal to the public. And that’s all the process consisted of — motions.”
— On the role of the Tuition Policy Advisory Committee this semester. In November, TPAC proposed a 2.6-percent tuition increase for resident undergraduates and a 3.6-percent tuition increase for all other students.
