Kinsolving celebrates 50th anniversary, invites alumni
Kim Stanick-Mullins, a 1989 UT alumna, walked with two of her college friends through the halls of Kinsolving South on Saturday in celebration of the dorm’s 50th anniversary.
“It’s amazing when you first walk in,” she said. “The lobby, the convenience store, the cafeteria — it’s all so different.”
The anniversary festivities included 1950s-style food served in Kinsolving Dining Hall as well as music and games from the 1950s.
Kinsolving has been an all-girls residence hall since it was built in 1958. Photographs taken decades ago are on display.
“It’s really strange to think these things have been here for 50 years,” said Vivian Le, electrical engineering freshman and Kinsolving resident.
This was the first event held by the residence hall’s council that invited alumni.
“Kinsolving has a lot of traditions, but none that have involved alumni like this,” said Catherine Sanders, the area coordinator of Whitis Residence Halls. “We wanted to make sure students know what came before them and what changes that have happened since it opened.”
The dorm’s Residence Hall Council said it started planning for the event in August because it is important for students and alumni to celebrate University history.
“A lot of dorms have their own history and traditions, and it’s important to celebrate them,” said Jin Kwon, biology sophomore and the residence hall’s conservation leader. “It’s what brings the residents together.”
Alumnae who lived in the dorm were invited to attend and were encouraged to take tours of the halls.
“We lived in Room 108,” said Stanick-Mullins as she took photos outside of the room. “We will never forget it.”
- Viviana Aldous
Barack Obama seeks two University of Texas employees as advisers
President-elect Barack Obama is looking to two University of Texas leaders to help advise him as he prepares to take office.
James Steinberg, dean of the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, is a candidate to be the Obama’s national security adviser.
Steinberg was a deputy national security adviser for the Clinton administration, and for the last several months, he has worked as an informal adviser for Obama on foreign-policy topics. Steinberg accompanied Obama when he went to Iraq and Afghanistan this summer.
UT President William Powers said he thought Steinberg was a natural choice for the position.
“He is an absolutely terrific dean,” Powers said. “It’ll be a loss for the University but a great gain for the country.”
Obama also appointed Juliet Garcia, president of the University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College, to join his transitional team as an adviser.
According to her biography on the university’s Web site, Garcia is the first Mexican-American woman in the nation to be the president of a college or university.
Powers said he thinks she is an outstanding person and a great choice.
“The University is the kind of place the president-elect would look to for talent and advice,” Powers said.
— Melanie Gasmen
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