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August 05, 2008
Go Coogs
The title of this post may seem an odd one, given that Houtopia is a proud and committed Texas Longhorn, but we mean it. (After all, dad is a longtime UH faculty member and we grew up rooting for the Coogs in football and basketball.) Sports, however, is not the subject of this entry.
Rather, it is the University of Houston's bid to become the state's third "flagship" university (following UT and A&M) about which we write. This ambitious goal is one being aggressively advanced by UH's impressive new chancellor, Dr. Renu Khator.
At a university event Khator hosted a few months ago at the Chancellor's residence, she told the crowd there was no reason that UH, given the vast financial and intellectual capital available in Houston, should not be a premier research university. We agree. Khator went on to tell the crowd she had very ambitious fundraising goals for the institution, and attendees left the event duly impressed.
Last week, Chronicle columnist Lisa Falkenberg picked up the torch. She notes that Texas, for a state of its size, a relatively few major research universities (three -- UT, A&M and Rice). California, by contrast, has nine while New York has eight.
The onus for change lies with the Texas Legislature, which has historically given the lion's share of its support to UT and A&M. Falkenberg suggests UH may have a shot in next year's legislative session. We hope so.
Posted by houtopia at August 5, 2008 11:11 PM