University of Texas Austin - Cactus Yearbook (Austin, TX)

Page 122 text:

ZL .-J... FineArts Dean Wills Stresses Improvements For many, the word dean con- jures up an image of a stuffy old bureaucrat hidden behind a desk stacked with papers. While one may have found J. Robert Wills, dean of the College of Fine Arts, behind his desk, one might as well have found him lecturing on acting techniques or directing a dramatic adaptation of Edgar Lee Master ' s Spoon River Anthology. While Wills called his school strong both academically and artistically, he stressed the need for continual im- provement. Wills and his staff were developing a five-year plan that would identify strengths and weaknesses in each department and then suggest programs and ideas to correct problem areas. Proposals to help meet the changing needs of the students included a music industry program, a jazz studies program and plans to offer an MFA in acting. One idea that came to fulfillment was an interdisciplinary class, which was offered this year after a two-year absence. The undergraduate class gave students the chance to combine and learn skills in all areas of the arts: art, music, drama and dance. Helping prepare and launch aspir- ing artists was the main intent of the school. However, Wills also stressed developing an appreciative audience as another aim. We have a respon- sibility to create and nourish an au- dience that has a real understanding of the artistic world, he said. Developing that understanding meant educating those who were not familiar with art. Wills proudly noted that 1983 fall enrollment figures showed that non-majors accounted for 44 percent of the school ' s total enrollment. The school ' s influence was not limited to The University communi- ty, either. It ran various art and art appreciation programs in cooperation with the Austin Independent School District and offered a number of pro- grams in dance, opera and theater for young people. Cooperation could also be seen in the reciprocating relationships bet- ween The University and Austin fine arts groups. The Austin Symphony Orchestra performed in the Perform- ing Arts Center, and conductor, Sung Kwak, also directed the UT Sym- phony Orchestra. In addition, many faculty and students played in the symphony. The University also reached the community through over 700 public performances the department spon- sored this year. Wills summed up the college ' s attitude when he said, We see ourselves as not only a university arts group, but also as one that can serve all of central Texas. Lisa Gaumnitz . . Fine Arts Dean, J. Robert Wills, promotes involvement in university and Austin arts organizations. 114 FineArts

Page 121 text:

Engineering ident elected ' the CoUege of W, held the Bet- Smi tli Chair in . 75 majoi i water supply s Oil Well Utilizes Microcomputers A 550-foot-deep oil well was drilled as part of the construction of a new chemical and petroleum engineering building on campus. It was not in- tended to help pay for the $20 million building, located on the corner of 26th and Speedway, but rather, it was the core of an educational model. The well-head, or Christmas tree structure of valves and fittings, was to be installed in the building, along with special sensors and microcom- I ' nited Nati cou ntries, the U.S, ' 100 cities, industries ims since 1952. rthenextsiiyears.lt lal growth and un- tie 1990s. - Jon puters to monitor its functions. Petroleum engineering students would be studying the 13-inch diameter hole, which was filled with non-flammable liquids designed to simulate oil, gas and water. The well was designed to help pro- pel oil field operations into the com- puter age. Researchers hoped to devise computer applications in analyzing test wells. It ' s a new area of development based on improved technology, said Myron Dorfman, chairman of the Department of Petroleum Engineering. The laboratory accompanying the well would have the latest digital meters, testing equipment and microcomputer capability so we can determine methods of stimulating oilfield operations and develop pro- grams to test and produce a well, Dorfman said. Say we have a well in a field that we want to test to see what it could produce, Dorfman said. Normally, we would manually divert the flow to a test tank and measure the oil, gas and water through a certain sized choke over a 24 hour period. In the future, we will do that entire pro- cedure with a computer. An automatic valve could be used to switch from one tank to another, and sensors could give a reading on the amounts of fluid on a computer on your desk. There might be a system to set the size of the opening by the push of a button, and automatic pro- tection to shut down the well if it overflowed. And if it can be done for one well, it can be done for 400. August Podio, professor of petroleum engineering, said that courses dealing with surface produc- tion facilities, natural gas engineering and production will be conducted with the well. The type of ex- periments we are concerned with in this vertical laboratory are those con- cerning flow of mixtures of oil, water and gas, he said. Jon Langbert A 550-foot-deep oil well is being drilled in the new engineering complex as an educational model. Engineering 113

Page 123 text:

ements the public 71 FineArts ARTS Winners Earn Scholarships up the id, We can Five-six-seven-eight-up and down and very low strrretch feel that stretch underneath. Cassandra Jackson obligingly bounced lower and lower in time to the piano. This was just warm-up. Before the class was over, instructor Yacov Sharir led Jackson and her classmates through a rigorous series of plies, jetes and leaps that would have humbled the non-dancer. The class ended as the last chords from the piano faded. For Jackson and a number of her classmates, this 9 a.m. class was the first in a day of several dance workouts that could well have stretched into the late evening hours. However, Jackson was used to the hard work and sacrifice her chosen field demanded. Along with nine ARTS winners, Betsy McCracken and Cassandra Jackson, warm up with graceful stretches. ARTS winner, Hollis Jones perfects her positioning under the eye of instructor Yacov Sharir. other UT students in the C ollege of Fine Arts, Jackson was identified as being among the most promising young artists in the country. The 10 achieved that distinction as seniors in high school after competing in the Achievement, Recognition and Talent Search, a program designed to identify 17 and 18-year-olds for their excellence in the fine arts. I ' m very supportive and ap- preciative of the ARTS program and the scholarship offered through the President ' s Office, said Coleman Jennings, chairman of the Depart- ment of Drama. It ' s an excellent program and is going to help us in at- tracting superior instate and out-of- state students. According to Michelle Kohoutek, the scholarship made attending The University of Texas an opportunity that was just too good to pass up. I had been to the art department and was really impressed by all the things available to me there, she said. And, I didn ' t think I could find those things anywhere else. Kohoutek added that the scholarship money made it possible for her to have top equipment and art supplies. The fine reputation of the fine arts faculty at The University and the scholarship lured Cassandra Jackson to The University. UT was my first choice, she said, and, after I got the scholarship, it seemed to be the best choice. For Ramona Jackson, whose talent and national recognition as a top young dancer brought her offers from schools all over the country, coming to Texas posed a personal challenge for her. I had heard a lot of good things about The University dance program, she said, and when I at- tended a master class taught by Sharon Vasquez, I found the class difficult and challenging for me, so I decided to come to some place where I wouldn ' t feel comfortable, instead of a place where I would feel comfor- table and be able to do all the dance techniques. Lisa Gaumnitz Fine Arts 115