Nora Laos Petition for Tenure

January 26, 2009

University of Houston
Office of the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost
Atttn: Jerald W. Strickland, Interim Provost

Dear Faculty, Colleagues, Alumnus and Students,

In case any of you may not be aware, the University of Houston denied tenure in spring semester 2008 to our cherished teacher and friend, Assistant Professor, Nora Laos, Ph.D. For many, Professor Laos has been an instrumental part of their education at the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and we hope that you will join in this effort to petition for reconsideration of her tenure application.

Professor Laos is an invaluable member of the UH faculty, the College of Architecture, and the Houston community. She is an irreplaceable teacher and mentor to the students past, present, and hopefully future. Professor Laos’s greatest gift is dedicating herself to her students. She has consistently demonstrated her dedication to the students of University of Houston and ensured they gain the necessary knowledge in their academic pursuits. Professor Laos, for many students, has been one of the most inspiring professors and one whose passion is to teach.

Please help ensure that this petition obtains the maximum number of signatures by spreading the word and forwarding this petition to as many students, alumni, faculty, friends, members in the community, and academics from other institutions. Time is of the essence, as the University of Houston has stated Spring 2009 to be her last semester.

We would like to submit this petition by March 1st, 2009, for review to the Office of the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost for University of Houston, so please spread the word before end of February and forward this message to as many people as possible.

Sample quotes about Professor Nora Laos from ratemyprofessor.com

6/25/08 ARCH3353 “I loved this class. You can tell that Nora loves her subject and knows it inside and out. The readings are all interesting and give you a wider understanding of the culture outside of pure architecture. I recommend this class to everyone. There's one short essay, about 10 in class essays, and the two tests. Attendance is a must to pass!”

12/3/07 ARCH2350 “There’s so many good things to say about Nora. By far the best possible prof. to teach Arch History.”

11/15/06 ARCH2351 “I adored her! I loved her class. I learned so much and actually changed my major thanks to her. I would recommend her to ANYONE, even if you don't like art history or architecture!”

3/18/03 ARCH 2351 “Her class is extremely interesting BUT difficult. You should not miss any class!!”