Browsing: Baylor

Dr. Michael Trakselis, professor of chemistry and biochemistry and head of the Trakselis Laboratory, was recently able to unravel the structure of the MCM8/9 enzyme — a protein whose mutations generally give rise to premature ovarian failure or insufficiency, infertility and various types of cancer.

Every year at orientation, the incoming class gets to learn its class hymn. Each class hymn is about the transformation of incoming freshmen as they become adults, allowing them to get a glimpse of what is to come as Baylor Bears. For the class of 2027, they learned “There’s More.”

On their first day of class freshman year, Wiff Rudd, professor of trumpet and brass area coordinator, and his now-wife, Jeanette Rudd, had their picture taken on a Baylor swing by The Baylor Lariat. The next day, a Lariat print edition hit the stands, and much to their surprise, the cover featured their photo. They said it was a definitive moment for them, and on Wednesday — almost five decades to the day the original was taken — they recreated that same photo.

Baylor Dining Services is offering five free meal swipes for any dining hall on campus to all students, except those with a seven-day meal plan. The form to sign up allows one submission per student and says the swipes will be added to students’ accounts in one to two business days due to the high volume of responses.

According to its website, Baylor’s McNair Scholars Program aims to prepare low-income, first-generation and other underrepresented students to successfully navigate a path to a doctoral program following graduation. It prepares undergraduate students for the rigors of doctoral studies through immersion in research and a variety of scholarly activities.

There’s no denying it: food insecurity is an issue for students on campus— 2,150 of them to be exact, according to The Store’s website. If such a sizeable number of students struggle with this issue, why is it that these students remain silent in their suffering?

Tenure is given as a reward to faculty that have proven excellence and loyalty to Baylor. As a policy, that’s fine, but is it currently set up to incentivize professors to stay on the cutting edge of current trends, technology, practical theories and innovation? Perhaps it’s time to reevaluate the policy and add additional reviews, incentives and requirements for all tenured faculty in order to retain their tenure status.

The alert felt more like a chilling reminder that our lives could have been at risk for a moment. It was also very concerning to notice the message contained unclear information about where the potential shooter even was, as there is no specific “ITS building” on Baylor’s campus.