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Show -THE DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE Thursday, August 28,2008 THEATER continued from Page 1 tenure line," he said. Besides fundraising, the department needs to find other ways to increase their annual budget. The department's budget is directly tied to student credit hours. In a iooo level class, a department receives S6o for every credit hour per student. "If you have 300 students in a class, that's really good, but if you're an advanced Russian class with six students, it*s not so good," Schneider said. The theater department typically has 20 to 30 students per class, Nelson said. Although there are fewer students, the department still needs more instructors. Nelson said there were teachers who left the U a few years ago, but haven't been replaced yet. "To have a strong undergraduate and graduate program, we need more national high-quality faculty to help us strengthen the program further," he said. Nelson said he believes the graduate program will bring more students to the department, but more theater space will be needed to accommodate increases. Bayne said theater students attend class in a building that is too small and outdated. "The (Performing Arts) Building they're in is an old, aging space that was built in the 1930s," he said. "It's entirely inadequate." There are discussions to move the theater department to the old Utah Museum of Natural History building after it is relocated. "The university said we're on the list as the new tenant," Nelson said. "(We would) share with the fine arts dean and film studies department." However, the museum is at least two years away from moving to the Rio Tinto building near Red Butte Garden in Research Park. Construction on the museum's new building began this summer. The George Thomas Building, where the museum resides, needs seismic upgrading before any department can move into it. "We'll also need to build more theaters," Nelson said. The department has two theaters it can use for production, both of which have between 100 and 125 seats. Nelson said they want a proscenium theater, or traditional theater with an arch, curtain and fly loft. "Theater students in all areas need experience in a range of theaters, not just black box theaters," he said. The department will have to wait for new theaters and faculty until it has the budget to afford it. Jara Wimmer, accountant for the department, said they are looking at next year's budget and deciding how to get by. The situation is worse because faculty members aren't applying for as many grants, of which the department receives 10 percent, she said. "We've managed to squeak by in the past, but now we can't," Wimmer said. "We're looking at the basic needs, and we'll have to cut some corners. lgroves@ chronicle.utah.edu GREEN continued from Page 1 However, Allred does not want the campaign to end anytime soon. "I hope this will become an emphasis for the whole year," he said. Auxiliary Services designed the campaign to inform U commuters of both the mass transit options available to U commuters, as well as the new on-campus transit options, one of which is a converted campus shuttle that runs on recycled vegetable oil. The veggie bus started its service this year. The shuttle tracker is also new. The shuttles are fitted with GPS systems connected to a television screen in the Union's main lobby. The union TV and a Web site version provide a real-time display of the shuttle movements. The campaign is a campus-wide coordination between multiple service providers on campus. Although the U Campus Store is not sponsoring any activities for the campaign, Shane Girton, associate director for bookstore operations, sees how the environment and budget-friendly message is spreading. Inspired by this campaign, he plans to have a green promotion specific to the bookstore later in the year to let people know about the new money-saving green options new to the bookstore. "We're wearing these shirts to support the parking services incentive for mass transit," he said. "There are a lot of things that we are doing to provide better service to our consumers, but that also falls under the 'go green' label." Allred said that Commuter Services wants to be responsible stewards to our environment. "We have to come up with something each year to help people know that we can help the environment," he said. The average round trip for students and Faculty from their homes to the U is 20 miles, or 10 miles each way. That trip uses approximately one gallon of fuel. One day of driving to the U costs about $4 depending on where you fill up. Allred. estimates that 13,000 students, faculty and staff travel to and from the U every day using mass transit and their UTA EdPasses. The U spends an estimated $2.5 million on UTA bus and TRAX passes each year. According to Allred, the benefits far outweigh the cost. By taking mass transit, U commuters save about 13,000 gallons of gas everyday and keep its equivalent in pollution out of the air. Craig Forstor, director of the Office of Sustainability, believes the campaign is both an environmentally responsible action and responsible community involvement. "This is a part of our contribution as a member of (the Salt Lake Valley) community," said Forstor. "(As a university,) we need to reduce our traffic, air pollution, and carbon footprint by getting people not to drive alone in cars." i.bravo@chronicle.utah.edu Hey! We're online too! dailyutahchronicle.com FILE PHOTO/7fr Oailf Uioh (htomrfi Barbara Smith leads small class of acting students. A Drop in private donations and student enrolment has encouraged the professors to come up with creative ways to cut costs in their department. 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Help us save lives! 609 South State Street 367-7697 Bring in this ad for an extra $ (Offer Valid for New Conors Only) BIOMAT USA UNIVERSITY DISTINGUISHED TEACHING AWARD BASIC CRITERIA *Record of consistent outstanding teaching performance at the University of Utah. * Effective and innovative pedagogy which demonstrates exceptional abilities to motivate student learning. •Exemplary contributions to the educational process outside the classroom (Curriculum planning, supervision of programs, etc.) * Concern for students and their wider education as well as their career preparation. real news PROCEDURES J. Brooks JEWELERS Fashion Plaza • 152 East Winchester, Murray • 801.266.4747 The Gateway • 157 South Rio Grande, Salt Lake City • 801.456.4747 www.j brooksj ewelers.com Member American Gem Society \k Nominations may be made by any individual member of the University community, i.e. students, faculty, administrators and alumni. Nominations may be submitted to the Chair of the University Teaching Committee, 205 Park Building, no later than Monday, September 29,2008. After screening for eligibility, the Teaching Committee will solicit documentation, in accord with the above criteria, from the nominees and their departments before making its recommendations to the central administration. Note: At least one of the four awards will be reserved for an auxiliary faculty member. All nominees must have at least eight years of teaching service at the U of U. •Nomination forms may be found on the web at www.admin.utah.edu/teachingcommittee |