UTA showcases research, academic programs to higher education supporters

From tiny wind turbines designed to power small electronics to the exploration of life on other planets, the University of Texas at Arlington showcased its research and academic programs to higher education supporters on Thursday.

The supporters toured UTA’s state-of-the-art planetarium, attended presentations from award-winning film and music professors and received an up-close look at nursing, technology and environmental research and learning projects.

Newly appointed UT System Chancellor Bill McRaven made his first public visit to the UTA campus for the event. McRaven, who retired from the United States Navy as a four-star admiral, pledged to help each of the system’s 15 universities reach its goals, including President Vistasp Karbhari’s drive for UT Arlington to become a nationally recognized research university.

“President Karbhari came here on a mission. He is determined to make UT-Arlington a top-tier research institution in Texas,” McRaven said. “I think you will agree, UT Arlington is on its way.”

The two-day Chancellor’s Council Executive Committee meeting is designed to give supporters a chance to learn about specific teaching and research initiatives, including how to safely integrate unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace.

“I am absolutely convinced that the University of Texas at Arlington is positioned to become a nationally recognized Tier One university. In many ways it already is,” said Frank Alexander, the Chancellor’s Council chairman. “From research and academic excellence to the makeup of its student body, UT Arlington looks like the future of Texas.”

With enrollment topping 47,000 and increasing national recognition for its faculty, academic programs and student diversity, UTA stands “ready to become the urban flagship of the UT System,” Alexander said.

UTA continues to attract preeminent faculty, including 10 members who are fellows in the National Academy of Inventors, and 100 professors who hold patents on processes, devices and technologies, Karbhari said.

“As a 21st-century urban research university, we have a responsibility to not only develop and deliver knowledge but to also transform it to ensure that what we do adds to the intellectual, technological and social and economic well-being of the region and the nation,” Karbhari said.

This story was originally published January 22, 2015 at 7:37 PM with the headline "UTA showcases research, academic programs to higher education supporters."