More than Floor

IKEA Houston gives the parents of TUTS much more than somewhere to sit

To say the TUTS kids were a little excited about the new space ... is anunderstatement.
And who can blame them? This is what it looked like before.
There is plenty of new couch space.
Those hard, plastic chairs have also been replaced by much more comfortableoptions.
Now, the parents with long commutes have a spot to spend their hours of waiting

The children of Theatre Under the Stars were genuine in their dramatic reaction to the unveiling of their new theatre lobby lounge, courtesy of IKEA Houston.

Although these young thespians are skilled in the art of performance, their cheers were unmistakably authentic.

"Totally cool," "less lame," "colorful," and "definitely not boring," were common descriptors of the new space from TUTS students like Abigail Moorhead and Aiden Snasdell.

Kerry Sullivan was just happy that the little girl with the pink blanket finally had somewhere to sit. All the kids seem to know this nameless girl — she must be someone's sibling, they say. She's always in that corner, the kids say, pointing out the spot — doing math homework on the floor because until today, there were never enough stiff-backed chairs to go around.

TUTS' PR manager Lauren Lovell says many parents drive in from as far as Pearland and choose to wait through class rather than endure an extra commute. These dedicated supporters will likely benefit most from the new furniture and the new look.

IKEA Houston provided the furniture — which includes KARLSTAD sofas, TULLSTA and NILS chairs, and KLUBBO and STRIND coffee tables — and helped design the entire space.

In turn, TUTS will perform at the grand reopening of IKEA Houston (the store has been redesigned) on Wednesday.

All this makeover excitement has me thinking of some ideas for the currently barren lounge at our new CultureMap office downtown . . .

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Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”