the ranger nov. 19, 2012
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The Ranger, the student newspaper at San Antonio College, is a laboratory project of the journalism classes in the Department of Media Communications, published Mondays except during summer, holidays and examinations.TRANSCRIPT
This week
Jeff Schnoor, top left, participates in a Student Activity Fee Committee meeting Oct. 12. Monica Correa
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ScanThe Ranger
Campus closesfor holidays
Alamo Colleges will be closed
Thursday through Sunday for
Thanksgiving and reopen Nov. 26.
Offices at all district colleges
will close Dec. 24 for winter break
and will reopen Jan. 7.
Classes for the spring semes-
ter begin Jan. 22 after the Martin
Luther King Jr. Day holiday Jan. 21.
For more information, visit
alamo.edu/calendars.
Rebecca Salinas
Last day to drop with W Tuesday
Tuesday is the deadline for stu-
dents to drop classes with a W.
Students must meet with their
course instructor to decide if drop-
ping a course is best for them before
the instructor can drop them from
a course, David Rodriguez, director
of counseling, said.
Instructors can drop students
only for exceeding the number of
absences allowed by the college
attendance policy.
After the census date, students
cannot drop courses using from
their ACES account.
“The reason for meeting with
the instructor is because nobody
wants students to drop classes
unless it’s absolutely necessary,”
he said.
Rodriguez said when students
meet with their instructor, they can
discuss options, such as extra credit
opportunities, to prevent the drop.
If students are dropping all
their courses for the semester, they
must see a counselor, he said.
“If a student is at the point
where they’re dropping everything
for the semester, many times there’s
something significant going on
other than just academics and we
want to see if there is any assistance
we can provide,” Rodriguez said.
Although course drops do
not affect a student’s GPA, they
do affect financial aid, academic
progress and the cost to repeat the
courses, he said.
A three-peat penalty charges
out-of-state tuition for a course
taken three or more times, and
the six-drop rule allows only six
dropped courses during a stu-
dent’s undergraduate career.
For more information, call the
counseling center at 210-486-0333.
Alma Linda Manzanares
By JENNIFER [email protected]
A student appointed to the
Student Activity Fee Committee,
which oversees the allocation of
about $400,000 in student fees,
shares the same name as a person
with a criminal background that
includes three convictions for theft,
a felony conviction for burglary and
one conviction for writing hot checks
that resulted in a year in jail.
The committee member, addic-
tion counseling sophomore Jeff
Schnoor, maintains he is not the
person listed in Texas Department
of Public Safety documents with 16
variations of the name and two birth-
dates.
“That’s another Jeff Schnoor,” he
said Tuesday.
He declined to provide a reporter
his birth date and full name.
After his appointment by the
Student Government Association
in early October, Schnoor told the
committee Oct. 12 in introducing
himself that he had been president
of student governments at St. Philip’s
College, Palo Alto College and the
University of Maryland at College
Park.
The University of Maryland at
College Park could find no record of a
former student named Jeff Schnoor.
No one at Palo Alto College could
confirm his serving as a student gov-
ernment president.
In an interview Tuesday, Schnoor
admitted that he had been student
government president only at St.
Philip’s, which he said was in 2003,
and that he only helped student gov-
ernments at College Park and Palo
Alto. He said he would provide docu-
ments from College Park, but had not
done so by deadline.
“I’ve helped over at Palo Alto and
University of Maryland and some
other colleges,” he said.
A St. Philip’s dean of student suc-
cess secretary confirmed by tele-
phone Tuesday that Schnoor had
been a student government presi-
dent at St. Philip’s.
Public records show that the
person using a version of Schnoor’s
name has had seven arrests dat-
ing back to 1991 and as recently as
March 16, 2012. This person served
over a year in state prison.
The arrests for theft were report-
ed in Tom Green County. A mug shot
obtained from the county sheriff’s
office bears a strong resemblance to
Schnoor.
The first arrest was in 1991 for
Class C theft of less than $50.
The next arrest for this person was
in 1992 for a Class B theft between
$50 and $500, which resulted in three
months probation.
An arrest in 1996 for a person
using his name was a first-degree
felony for burglary of habitation of
more than $200,000.
The person using Schnoor’s name
received 10 years probation.
On Nov. 1, 1999, a person using
one of the 16 versions of Schnoor’s
name in DPS records was arrested
for writing $2,688.77 in bad checks,
pleaded guilty and was jailed for 457
days, according to records from the
119th Judicial District in Tom Green
County.
In September 2000, a person
using Schnoor’s name was arrested
in Tom Green County for unauthor-
ized use of a vehicle.
The most recent arrest for a per-
son with a variation of that name was
March 16, 2012, for driving with an
invalid or suspended license in Tom
Green County.
See DISABLED, Page 4
See COMMITTEE, Page 4
By PAULA CHRISTINE [email protected]
Some mobility-chal-
lenged students at this
college have questioned
whether moving the office
of disability support services
to the first floor of Moody
Learning Center Aug. 1
serves their best interests.
They complain of diffi-
culties with access, an inad-
equate cell phone signal in
the office and a VIAtrans
drop-off point that is often
blocked by other vehicles
and difficult to use in the
rain.
They say mobility issues
with construction projects
underway all over campus
add to frustration.
Education sopho-
mores Mariana Solis and
Meloday Magallanez, kine-
siology sophomore Zachry
Arambula and liberal arts
sophomore Charlie Shivley
at different times asked the
same question, “Why did
DSS have to move?”
DSS moved to the first
floor of Moody Learning
Center Aug. 1 from the first
floor in Chance Academic
Center, a building designed
for ease of access, to be near
the office of veterans affairs.
“I thought they were
going to turn that place into
something else,” Arambula
said of the space in Chance.
“I went by there (Chance
Room 124) the other day,” he
said. “It was just empty.”
Solis, Magallanez and
Shivley expressed puzzle-
ment on why the office of
veterans affairs was not able
to move into Room 119 of
Chance, near the old DSS
office.
Students and staff report
cell phone service is poor
in Moody with only two cell
service providers with sig-
nals reaching indoors to the
DSS office spaces.
On Aug. 1, DSS students
met with Emma Mendiola,
dean of student affairs, at
their request. The content
of the meeting remains
confidential, except that it
included location change
concerns, Magallanez said.
She quoted Mendiola
responding to student con-
cerns by saying, “I had to
move my office too, and the
paint wasn’t the paint I want-
ed, but I dealt with it.”
DSS assistant Delia De
Luna attended the meeting
and corroborated this quote.
In an interview with
Mendiola Nov. 7, Mendiola
learned Magallanez inter-
preted her comment as
suggesting the paint on the
walls was comparable to
their challenges navigating
campus with wheelchairs
and canes.
“There is no comparison,
but yeah, I’m not going to
make light of their abilities,”
Mendiola said. “We have
to find some place in the
middle so they can do for
themselves.”
Mendiola said she has
been working for Alamo
Colleges for about 20 years
and she spent her first three
years in DSS. Her back-
ground includes a master’s
degree in social work.
“I would never want to
insult someone by assuming
that they can’t do for them-
selves,” she said. “That was
one of the lessons they taught
me when I worked in DSS.”
Mendiola’s impression
of the Aug. 1 meeting was
that student questions and
concerns were answered and
students felt better when the
meeting was done.
She was surprised to
learn the Magallanez had
said later, “This campus
seems to not give a crap
about us.”
Mendiola said Alamo
Colleges wants to educate
the whole student, not just
the academic part of the stu-
dent, but the whole person
Disabled students frustrated with access
Committee member denies arrest records
Liberal arts sophomore Charlie Shivley and his wife, Sherrie, wait for a VIAtrans shuttle Wednesday east of Moody. Access for the shuttle is blocked by a district truck parked in the tow-away zone. Sergio Ramirez
Charlie Shivley
Single copies free • 210-486-1773 theranger.org Vol. 87 Issue 9 • Nov. 19, 2012
Calendar
People Nov. 19, 20122 • The Ranger
For coverage in Calendar, call 210-486-1773 or e-mail [email protected] two weeks in advance.
Today
Deadline: Rental Returns deadline for
Fall/Flex is Dec. 18. Call 210-733-5960.
ACCD Registration: Open registration
for spring semester.
SAC Workshop: Adobe Illustrator spon-
sored by the student technology center 8
a.m.-9 a.m. in Room 542 of Moody. Call
210-486-0160
SAC Advising: Texas Lutheran 9 a.m.-
noon on the fi rst fl oor of Chance.
SAC Advising: Texas State 9 a.m.-noon
on the fi rst fl oor of Chance.
SAC Meeting: Student Government
noon-1 p.m. in craft room on Loftin.
Continues Mondays. Call 210-486-0133.
SAC Meeting: Men’s Bible study 1
p.m.-2 p.m. at the Church of Christ
Student Center, 301 W. Dewey. Continues
Mondays. Call 210-736-6750.
SAC Meeting: Parkour Club at 3 p.m.
in Gym 1 of Candler. Continues Thursdays.
Call 210-486-1023.
SAC Performance: Choir concert
sponsored by fi ne arts at 7:30 p.m. in
auditorium of McAllister. Call 210-486-
1030.
Tuesday
SAC Meeting: Campus Crusade for
Christ now called “Cru” 1:30 p.m. in
Room 004 of Chance Academic Center.
Continues Tuesdays.
Wednesday
SAC Meeting: Ladies Bible study
1 p.m.-2 p.m. at the Church of Christ
Student Center, 301 W. Dewey. Continues
Mondays. Call 210-736-6750.
SAC Meeting: Gay Ally and Lesbian
Association 3 p.m. in the faculty and staff
lounge of Loftin. Continues Wednesdays.
Call 210-201-4252.
SAC Meeting: San Antonio Immigrant
Youth Movement at 4 p.m. in Room 101
of Gonzales. Continues Wednesdays. Call
210 849-8066 or visit www.facebook.
com/saiym.sac.210.
Friday
Event: 23rd Annual International
Mercado de Paz Peace Market 10 a.m.-
6 p.m. at Esperanza Peace and Justice
Center, 922 San Pedro. Continues through
Friday. Call 210-288-0201 or visit www.
esperanzacenter.org.
Nov. 26
St. Mary’s Drive: Miracle on 36th
Street Toy Drive sponsored by campus
police department 7 a.m.-noon in con-
ference Room D in University Center.
Continues through Dec. 21. Call 210-
436-3668.
SAC Advising: Texas A&M University-
College Station 1 p.m.-4 p.m. on the fi rst
fl oor of Chance.
Nov. 27
ACCD Deadline: Last day to withdraw
for 14-week fall session.
SAC Advising: University of Incarnate
Word 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on the fi rst fl oor
of Chance.
Nov. 28
SAC Advising: Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
9 a.m.-11 a.m. on the fi rst fl oor of Chance.
SAC Event: Foosball Tournament spon-
sored by student life 1 p.m.-2 p.m. in the
craft room of Loftin. Call 210-486-0128.
SAC Event: Teaching Academy Program
Peers speaker series: “What Can I Do
Today to be a Great Teacher Tomorrow?”
by Sylvia Lovelace, teacher for the San
Antonio Alliance, 1 p.m.-2 p.m. in Room
129 in Gonzales. Call 210-486-0658.
Nov. 29
Deadline: Fourth installment pay plan,
33 percent of tuition and fees due. Call
210-486-0201.
SAC Meeting: President’s Roundtable 2
p.m.-3:30 p.m. sponsored by student life
and student government in craft room of
Loftin. Call 486-0128.
SPC Event: Career TechED Expo 2012
sponsored by applied science and technol-
ogy division 4 p.m.-8 p.m. in building I at
Southwest Campus. Call 210-486-7015.
Nov. 30
Trinity Performance: Christmas
Concert sponsored by the music depart-
ment 7:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m. in Laurie audi-
torium. Call 210-999-8212.
SAC Event: “Harvest the Empire” and
“Illegal Movie” screening sponsored by
San Antonio Immigrant Youth Movement 3
p.m.-5 p.m. in Methodist Student Center,
102 Belknap. Call 210-849-8066.
SAC Concert: Percussion Ensemble
sponsored by department of fi ne arts at
7:30 p.m. in the auditorium of McAllister.
Call 210-486-0255.
Dec. 4
Deadline: Last day to withdraw for fall
Flex 2 session.
Dec. 5
SAC Event: SAC holiday tree-decorating
celebration sponsored by student life 11
a.m.-1 p.m. in Loftin. Call 210-486-0128.
SAC Event: Snow Day sponsored by
student life 1 p.m.-3 p.m. in mall. Call
210-486-0128.
Dec. 7
SAC Event: National Cotton Candy Day
sponsored by student life 9 a.m.-1 p.m. in
Loftin. Call 210-486-0128.
Dec. 10
SAC Event: Final examinations for the
regular 16-week fall session. Continues
through Dec. 15.
Left: Nursing sophomore Edric Filpo asks Chancellor Bruce Leslie if more signs can be put up around campus where parking is available during Chat with the Chancellor Thursday in the faculty and staff lounge of Loftin. Leslie said Filpo would need to get in touch with Dr. Robert Vela, vice president for academic and student success. Riley Stephens
www.theranger.org/people
Above: Liberal arts freshman Angela Winston and Victoria Estrada, who attend Travis Early College High School, win a shirt during National Distance Learning Week in the mall. The information booth was set up to give information to students about the online classes that this college provides. For more coverage, go online to theranger.org Monica Correa
Below: Kathy Ma, program specialist at UTSA’s Confucius Institute, helps liberal arts freshman Homer Sandoval into a king’s costume during a Chinese Culture presenta-tion Tuesday in Oppenheimer for International Education Awareness Week. The presentation included other activi-ties such as calligraphy, mask-painting and paper-cutting. Monica Correa
Left: Architecture freshman Jean Pierre jumps in and out of a 200- pound tire before executing 10 tire lifts Wednesday in the mall. Pierre attended different stations as part of a promotion for activities the kinesi-ology department offers in Candler. Vincent Reyna
By FAITH [email protected]
Leaders of campus organizations and co-
workers who have worked closely with former
student life Director Jorge Posadas did not have
much to say about his departure Nov. 9.
As director of student life for more than
six years, Posadas worked with student lead-
ers through Presidents Round Table, Student
Activity Fee Committee, Student Government
Association and campuswide activities such as
Antojitos Festival, Octoberfest, Rodeo Roundup
and FunFest.
While Posadas was director, the office of
student life established a formal dinner and
awards ceremony each spring to honor the
most outstanding members of student organi-
zations.
All of these events were produced with the
help of the staff of the office of student life.
Dr. Robert Vela, vice president of academic
and student success, confirmed Nov. 12 that as
of Nov. 9, Posadas was no longer an employee
of the college, but declined to specify details
because “it’s a personnel matter.”
Although Posadas declined to comment
after The Ranger contacted him at his home
Wednesday, he said he was “looking at a few
options” for legal representation.
Emily Kahanek, assistant coordinator of
special projects, was named interim director of
student life Wednesday, Vela said.
Multiple phone calls to student life secre-
tary Mary Schlabig; student activities specialist
Carrie Hernandez; and Jacob Martinez, assis-
tant coordinator of leadership and activities,
were not returned.
Mark Bigelow, assistant coordinator of lead-
ership and activities, declined to comment and
directed questions about Posadas to Vela.
“Because it’s very sensitive, I asked them just
to refer them (questions pertaining to Posadas)
to me,” Vela said.
Psychology sophomore Jacob Wong, Student
Government Association president, declined to
comment Nov. 12 when asked about Posadas.
Wong had worked with Posadas since 2010,
while Posadas was still nonvoting chair of
the Student Activity Fee Committee. Posadas
resigned over the summer and was replaced by
Emma Mendiola, dean of student affairs. Wong
also led campus tours under the direction of the
office of student life.
SGA Secretary Justin Wideman, biology
sophomore and activity fee committee mem-
ber, also declined to comment Nov. 12.
The president of Gay Ally Lesbian
Association, which has sponsored campuswide
events such as Coming Out Week, expressed
sadness at Posadas’ departure. “It is always sad
to see someone leave,” GALA President Rene
Orozco, advertising and public relations sopho-
more, said. “Some things can’t be helped.”
Orozco said students should be a top prior-
ity for the next director of student life.
Charlie Castleman, program director for col-
lege radio station KSYM 90.1 FM, said, “I didn’t
know the man personally, but from what I had
seen, he seemed to be a very malicious and vin-
dictive person who had an agenda of his own,
and I didn’t think that was in line with what the
students wanted.
“I think that we need more equal represen-
tation of the student population on commit-
tees like the Student Activity Fee (Committee),”
Castleman said. “It seems to be that a few
students have all of the power when it comes
to deciding what the students’ money is being
spent on, and (this situation) is not representa-
tive of the actual population of the students.”
Mendiola said Wednesday about hiring a
director of student life that, like any college
employee, the person in that position should be
“student-friendly” and “responsible.”
“Any of our roles here, I think, are extremely
important in terms of the growth that we would
like to see in our students,” Mendiola said. “A
lot of times, that means being able to be a lot
like good parents without diminishing the adult
status of our students.
“No matter what role we’re in, in an edu-
cational institution, we all teach to a certain
extent, and so being able to do that in a positive
way, I think, is important.”
Posadas created controversy during his six
years as student life director.
He presided over closed meetings of the
Student Activity Fee Committee, which handles
an estimated $400,000 budget that is generated
through the collection of $1 per credit hour
per student. College President Robert Zeigler
ordered the meetings to be open Nov. 16, 2011.
In February, the committee met without
a quorum and approved $5,721.97 for four
organizations. A meeting was canceled in May
because of a lack of a quorum.
In April, the committee proposed a student
activity fee budget of $800,000, which included
a line item of $70,000 for a second student
newspaper. The budget would have required
doubling the activity fee and approval from the
district board of trustees.
Posadas received local and national cover-
age after telling a Ranger editor in an email
Oct. 17, 2011, that he would “negotiate an
appropriate fee” for interviews. After Posadas
demanded a fee for Ranger interviews, Vela
accompanied Posadas in an interview with The
Ranger in February “to ensure a good interview
process,” Vela said Feb. 9.
For more information, call Vela at 210-486-
0931.
Rebecca Salinas and Alma Linda Manzanares
contributed to the story.
By CARLOS [email protected]
According to a sur-
vey taken by the Student
Government Association, the
top two things students like
most about this college are
the professors and the activi-
ties provided for students.
The top two things stu-
dents like most about this
district are financial aid and
security.
Four areas students have
the biggest issues with are
financial aid, parking, con-
struction, and counseling.
SGA presented the infor-
mation to President Robert
Zeigler during the monthly
Pepsi with the President Nov.
8.
The group collected 186
surveys during their Sweet
Treats event Oct. 31 in the
mall.
Students who filled out the
four questions on the survey
were rewarded with candy.
Secretary Justin Wideman
explained that the issues for
both district and this college
mirrored each other because
students are blaming both
equally.
Another popular issue stu-
dents had was “administra-
tion,” but the responses gave
no specifics to who or what
part of the administration.
It was clear that students
liked receiving financial aid.
“They (students) like that
they get money to help pay for
college,” Wideman said.
Wideman said he was
compiling all the surveys
and that the results would
be presented at the Student
Government meeting Nov. 12.
They were not presented
at the meeting, and afterward,
Wideman said they were still
being compiled.
In other news, Vice
President Mike Martinez, told
Zeigler that SGA would be
adding two new officers.
A historian is needed to
document activities and
events for future SGA mem-
bers to see what the organiza-
tion has done, Martinez said.
A parliamentarian will be
active during SGA meetings by
maintaining order and ensur-
ing that all student govern-
ment rules are being followed.
This position will keep the
meetings moving forward and
productive, Martinez said.
Zeigler agreed.
“I think you need some-
body to help run and manage
the meetings. I think that is a
significant step … too many
meetings are not well-man-
aged and they just ramble
on,” Zeigler said.
With the new positions,
SGA will be able to “effect
more students and really
give them a more rounder
voice,” commissioner Maura
Callahan said.
With the addition of two
new officers, SGA is request-
ing an additional $2,000 a
semester to their budget start-
ing in the spring semester.
“It depends on where it
would be and if we have it,”
Zeigler responded. “It may
have to wait until the next
academic year.”
SGA will amend their con-
stitution to reflect the new
positions regardless of a bud-
get increase for next semester.
“We need them for state
(conference),” President
Jacob Wong said.
Dr. Robert Vela, vice presi-
dent of academic and student
success, asked SGA to reach
out to students at the Central
Texas Technology Center in
New Braunfels.
A majority of the students
at the center are SAC students
and are interested in being a
part of SGA and leadership
roles, Vela said.
“They want to engage with
us,” Vela said.
Zeigler added that SGA
should also reach out to stu-
dents at Travis Early College
High School taking dual credit
courses at this college about
getting involved with SGA.
“Those are our students
as well … it would be good
for them and good for us,”
Zeigler said.
NewsNov. 19, 2012 The Ranger • 3
Student leaders, staff mum on departure
SGA reveals feedbackAssistant coordinator named interim student life director
By FAITH [email protected]
Emily Kahanek, assistant
coordinator of special proj-
ects, has been appointed
interim director of student life
while the college begins the
process of filling the
position, Dr. Robert
Vela, vice president
of academic and
student success,
said Wednesday.
Vela said the
director of student
life position would
be posted inter-
nally before look-
ing for potential
employees outside of the col-
lege.
The college’s executive
team would need to approve
the position before giving it to
human resources before post-
ing it, he said.
“Every position must be
vetted through our college
executive team before we can
submit it for posting,” he said.
The executive team will
more than likely begin the pro-
cess the week of Nov. 25 and
“will probably take a few weeks
after that to get it posted.”
The position of student life
director is vacant because the
employment of Jorge Posadas,
the director since 2006, ended
Nov 9. College officials will not
comment on the reasons for
Posadas’ departure.
Kahanek said Thursday
in an interview that she was
hired in March 2011 as ser-
vice learning coordinator for
the office of civic engagement,
which operates under the
office of student life.
She said she will continue
to work as a coordinator while
serving as interim
director of student
life.
One event
Kahanek organizes
includes the OxFam
hunger banquet,
which takes place
once a semester.
Students draw cards
representing differ-
ent income classes
and are provided with meals
depending on the cards they
draw.
There will be no interrup-
tion of student life events,
Kahanek said. She said stu-
dent life will “continue to pro-
vide excellent programming
for our students and making
sure that we have a continu-
ous stream of great events.”
Kananek came to the col-
lege in February 2009 for the
college Alumni Association
coordinator after having
been a senior public rela-
tions coordinator for H-E-B
Grocery Co. She resigned in
September 2009 to pursue a
master’s degree in education
at the University of Texas at
San Antonio.
For more information, call
the office of student life at
210-486-0125.
Former student life director is considering legal representation.
Student life events will continue as planned.
Emily Kahanek
www.theranger.org
Jorge Posadas at a men’s basketball game Feb. 11, 2009 File
Justin Wideman, biology sophomore and Student Government Association secretary, says survey results from Sweet Treats reveal students are happy with the number of campus police but are unhappy with administration during Pepsi with the President Nov. 8. Riley Stephens
Student Government Association asks for a budget increase to add two officer positions.
By PAULA CHRISTINE [email protected]
On Oct. 26, a heavy thunderstorm sent
students trotting, hopping and ducking
between buildings.
The library was full of warm bodies seeking
shelter, but just outside at the drop-off point
nearest disability support services about 3
inches of deep water and pouring rain proved
too much to manage with a wheelchair.
DSS assistant Lolly Espinoza said a stu-
dent she did not wish to identify called the
office to report her challenge during the
worst part of the storm.
Fifteen minutes after the call, VIAtrans
driver Jerry Crandall got soaked through
shoes and shirt while assisting liberal arts
sophomore Charlie Shivley, who uses a
wheelchair, with boarding.
The VIAtrans is a public transportation
service that can be used by anyone with dis-
abilities seeking access to events or classes
on campus. About 15 students registered with
the office of disability services use VIAtrans
regularly.
The VIAtrans drop-off point nearest the
new DSS quarters on the first floor of Moody
Learning Center is at the main second floor
entrance on the east side of the building in
parking Lot 16.
Shivley is usually accompanied by his wife,
Sherrie Shivley, and they both said they have
consistent problems with the new location.
At least four to five times weekly, she said
they arrive to find the drop-off point blocked
by cones, construction materials or drivers.
She said she asks people to move their
vehicles, but they do not always make room.
Charlie Shivley said, “They (faculty) get
mad because we are not in class or late.”
He said consistent delays accessing the
drop-off point in good weather frustrate him
so much he now chooses to arrive at 6:30 a.m.
and wait for buildings to open.
Shivley said he prefers the old DSS location
on the first floor of Chance Academic Center
because it had a broad doorway, open view
and short, level distance between the doorway
and VIAtrans drop-off point in Lot 19.
Limited shelter is available for those who
must wait in wheelchairs at Moody. To access
the VIA trans, students must pass through
concrete pilings, yet another hurdle for wheel-
chairs. Other students have difficulty maneu-
vering stairways to the drop-off that have been
overgrown with ivy and often littered.
TV broadcasting sophomore Anthony
Cavallini said he does not use VIAtrans for
access to campus because he has other trans-
portation resources.
Access to the VIAtrans drop-off point near
the new DSS office doesn’t affect him, and he
doesn’t mind the relocation.
“Things are bigger now, more space I
noticed,” he said. “I mean we’ve got to have
change at one point.”
News Nov. 19, 20124 • The Ranger
of each student attending Alamo Colleges.
“We have to educate them about life,” she
said. “I’m sorry it came across as unsympa-
thetic. That’s not how I feel.”
The director of DSS, Maria Gomez, said
the office combined with VA because they
serve a shared population. She said laws for
veteran benefits made the DSS and VA pro-
grams compatible.
The Vocational Rehabilitation and
Employment VetSuccess Program autho-
rized by Congress in Title 38 Code of Federal
Regulations, Chapter 31, is an example of
these laws. Also, disabled veterans are pro-
tected by the Americans with Disabilities Act
just as civilian students with disabilities are
covered.
Gomez said the VA office serves about
2,000 students, and the DSS office serves
about 2,000 students in an academic year.
Many of these students are a shared popu-
lation between the two offices because so
many veterans are disabled, Mendiola and
Gomez said in separate interviews.
She said the shared student population
was the major reason for the move.
“There was a time when there was no con-
struction,” Mendiola said. “Suddenly there
was money available and we had to act fast.”
Both Mendiola and Gomez said, the idea
to combine VA and DSS was first mentioned
20 years ago. Mendiola said the opportunity
appeared unexpectedly.
When asked about design of the new offic-
es for DSS, Mendiola said she and Dr. Robert
Vela, vice president of academic and student
success, were required by the district admin-
istration to perform a very quick turnaround.
David Mrizek, vice president of college
services, said Thursday that facilities funds
were identified for moving counseling, veter-
ans affairs and DSS during the summer.
The time allotted for use of the funds
did not allow for a more thorough vetting of
design plans for the project, Mendiola said.
Mendiola described a female student who
came to this college needing an adult changing
table, and the presence of her male attendant
excluded women’s restrooms as an option.
Mendiola said, “We went above ADA regu-
lations.” She said restrooms in the DSS offices
in Moody can accommodate a student with
special hygiene needs requiring an attendant.
Old DSS space in Chance will be reno-
vated to provide more classrooms.
The new DSS space moved to combine all
campus counseling components on the same
floor — mainstream, VA and DSS
“We thought we were making a nice situ-
ation,” she said. “Not everybody agreed with
that.”
Limited cell phone service has been a
challenge for some students as reported by
Magallanez, Arambula, De Luna and Gomez
in separate interviews.
De Luna is working with Sprint to work
on a possible deal for a signal booster for
Moody’s first floor.
A canopy promised by this college to DSS
to shelter the ramp from parking Lot 16 to the
east entrance to Moody has not materialized.
Mendiola said the need to bring materials
into Moody for construction on upper floors
was delaying the canopy construction.
She said some things cannot be controlled.
“All students have the right to voice their
opinion,” Gomez said. She agreed some stu-
dents vocalize their frustrations.
Mendiola agreed with Gomez regarding
students’ rights to speak their mind and said
she hopes students will come and speak with
her after they have spoken with the director
of DSS.
Wheelchairs and storms don’t mix
Music sophomore Jesus Interiano walks education sophomore Melody Magallanez to class Monday northwest of Chance. Sergio Ramirez
www.theranger.org
DISABLED, from Page 1
COMMITTEE, from Page 1
By REBECCA [email protected]
The Adjunct Faculty
Council needs to focus on
getting more members, Chair
Jerry Townsend said Tuesday
in the monthly meeting.
Townsend, journalism full-
time adjunct, said he wants to
meet once more this semester
to recruit members so they can
move forward with an adjunct
leadership conference.
“We need to take care
of our own structure first,”
Townsend said. “If we’re going
to do something ambitious
as a districtwide leadership
meeting of adjunct faculty ...
we need to have a good, strong
committee of several people to
work on that.”
Townsend said he does
not want to commit to details
of the conference when the
council does not have many
members to work on it.
“If we have to do it next
year, then we have to do it next
year,” he said.
Townsend said more peo-
ple from other colleges would
come if there is at least one
adjunct from each college
working on the event.
English Adjunct Amanda
Martin said she wants adjuncts
to email her ideas for a survey
on activities for the conference.
She said she wants ideas for
activities, location and time to
be submitted by mid-to-late
January to have the conference
around March.
The conference survey says
topics of discussion include
the value of an adjunct coun-
cil, professional development
and salary. Also on the survey
is a place for adjuncts to sign
up to present a seminar.
Townsend said the con-
ference will be to encourage
adjunct council development
at other colleges.
He said his previous idea
of having an adjunct summit
“got people riled up.” He said
the conference will be a more
graceful way of handling busi-
ness.
Possible locations include
this college, the Region 20
Education Service Center,
1314 Hines Ave. or Northeast
Lakeview College.
In other news, the deadline
for application for the El Éxito
award is Nov. 30.
The award from the Bob
and Mary Zeigler Adjunct fac-
ulty Professional Development
Fund is for adjunct faculty who
have taught a minimum of two
courses at this college during
the semester nominated. Any
faculty member can nominate
an adjunct, and adjuncts can
nominate themselves.
Applications can be turned
in to Cynthia Price, program
coordinator for the Murguia
Learning Institute and Bob
and Mary Zeigler Fund chair,
with a letter of reference for
the adjunct’s chair or program
coordinator, a peer and a stu-
dent.
Applicants also need a
statement of accomplish-
ments and reasons they are
being nominated and a sum-
mary of teaching responsibili-
ties from the last four years.
For more information, call
Price at 210-486-0756.
For more information on
applying, call Townsend at
210-486-1780.
Adjunct Council needs more members to stage conference
1999 arrest 2004 2012 arrest
Dr. Robert Vela, vice president of academ-
ic and student success, said in an interview
Thursday afternoon, “We don’t require criminal
background checks for students to attend our
college. We don’t limit anybody’s participation
in the college because of it. A lot of our students
do have criminal backgrounds.
“We realize students may have made mis-
takes in the past, but it should not keep them
from being active members of a college. If a
student has a concern, they can always file a
complaint with my office, and we will investi-
gate it thoroughly,” he said.
While Vela said he could not comment spe-
cifically on a member of the committee, he said
the five students and two alternates do not have
access to the $400,000 of student funds that they
allocate. The student activity fee is highly regu-
lated, with checks and balances where no single
person has the ability to take funds, he said.
“There is a lot of protocol that goes into mak-
ing sure the money goes where the committee
wants it to go. Ms. Mendiola, as chair, her office
makes sure that the money is routed to the right
and appropriate departments,” he said, referring
to Emma Mendiola, dean of student affairs and
the nonvoting chair of the committee.
Jacob Wong, psychology sophomore and
Student Government Association president,
who appointed Schnoor as a student represen-
tative for the committee, said Wednesday, he
looks at applicants’ accomplishments but does
not fact-check them.
He said he has the authority to remove
members of the committee who intentionally
provide false information.
“I can address the situation, and I can remove
them if it is something I find out later,” he said.
After learning of the criminal past of a per-
son using versions of Schnoor’s name, Wong
said he would want to look at the time frame in
which the incidents happened.
Wong said Schnoor is taking the commit-
tee work seriously. “He does research, he has a
binder, he collects all the information, and he’s
been very balanced and fair.”
He said he would talk to Schnoor and
Mendiola.
“It’s a concern when you’re dealing with
money, especially money of the students. …
There can’t be any sense of impropriety or mis-
management of funds because we are governed
by state law,” Wong said.
Mendiola was unavailable for an interview
by deadline.
Schnoor said Tuesday he was involved in a
lawsuit with a man from Temple involving Texas
Airsoft Safety Organization. Airsoft is a hobby
similar to paintball. He attributed the confusion
over his name to the other party in the lawsuit.
That information could not be confirmed.
In a video posted on YouTube Sept. 18, 2010,
after an airsoft game, a person identified as Gray
Wolf, who looks like Schnoor, details an elabo-
rate military background.
In the video, Gray Wolf says he served 26
years in the military and says he served in the
Marines and Army.
He spent 4 ½ years being a Marine because
he “didn’t want to wait for someone to die or
pass away to get promoted.” Therefore, he went
into the Army and served as a Ranger.
Gray Wolf also said he was an instructor for
scuba diving at the John F. Kennedy School.
He then said he was a U.N. peacekeeper and
has been to Albania, Serbia and Bosnia.
Gray Wolf said in the video that he went into
the military when he was 16½ years old by sign-
ing a waiver. He said that he was an orphan and
got emancipated at 15.
Schnoor told the Student Activity Fee
Committee Oct. 12 that he served in the mili-
tary 16 years.
NewsNov. 19, 2012 The Ranger • 5
No priority for students here at Tobin Lofts
By ALMA LINDA [email protected]
The district is looking into another public-
private partnership for the development of a
central administrative building at Playland Park,
2222 N. Alamo St., John Strybos, associate vice
chancellor of facilities operation and construc-
tion management, said Tuesday.
Strybos said about 450 district administra-
tion and staff are housed at three locations: 811
W. Houston St., 201 W. Sheridan and 7990 Pat
Booker Road.
On July 17, 2008, the district gained owner-
ship of the 12.644-acre property from the San
Antonio Water System at a cost of $4.13 million.
Strybos said along with the administrative
building, he anticipates that there would be a
parking garage. “I would expect one if we need
parking for 450 employees and to develop the
land the correct way,” he said.
Strybos said the development partners also
could determine what they want to use the prop-
erty for, such as apartments or retail.
He said he expects a proposal will be made
for the approval to issue a request for quali-
fications for the public-private partnership
at the Building, Grounds and Sites Selection
Committee meeting Dec. 4 and the Alamo
Colleges regular board meeting Dec. 18.
Strybos said if the proposal is approved, the
request for qualifications would be sent out in
January. A public and private partnership is the
involvement of a private enterprise in the form
of management expertise or monetary contribu-
tions or both in government projects aimed at
public benefit.
Strybos said if the district moves to a central
location at Playland, the three properties that
currently house district administration and staff
would become surplus property that could be
sold or redeveloped into apartments.
“What Alamo Colleges’ goal would be will
depend on the partners in the public-private
partnership,” he said.
At the Sept. 25, 2008, Buildings, Grounds and
Sites Selection Committee meeting, Chancellor
Bruce Leslie proposed that Playland Park could
function as a unified district headquarters and
serve as an opportunity to partner with local
business and government. Leslie also proposed
that the facility could be used to train students
in culinary arts and massage therapy.
The estimated $116 million price tag drew
objections and criticism from Faculty Senate
and the Adjunct Faculty Council at this college,
and the proposal was dropped from the board’s
December 2008 agenda.
Leslie said in an interview Thursday that
in 2008 he was proposing ideas to the Alamo
Colleges board of trustees based on his expe-
rience as chancellor of Houston Community
College System.
“I was saying to the board that we could com-
bine several things in this location and because
it’s in the city, it could give greater visibility to
some of these programs,” he said.
Leslie said because of such a strong opposi-
tion from the faculty, staff and students, “with-
out of thinking of the advantages,” the proposal
was dropped. “We even had a student come and
say something about ‘Dr. Leslie, the only reason
he’s recommending this is because he wants to
be able to have a massage and a taco,’” he said.
“There’s a passion here around keeping
things where they are and if you change some-
thing you’re diminishing the institution, and
that’s not true at all. The fundamental issue has
got to be what can we do to make the students’
the most full and richest experience that they
can possible have,” Leslie said.
Currently, Playland Park provides 650 extra
parking spaces to make up for a shortage caused
by construction projects that have taken away
about 450 parking spaces.
Parking spaces are limited in Lot 16 for
remodeling in Moody Learning Center and in
Lot 21 as a staging area for expansion of Scobee
Planetarium and the Challenger Learning
Center. Lots 26, 33 and 31, near Main Avenue
and West Evergreen Street, are also closed for
construction of a garage and the Tobin Lofts
public-private partnership.
District wants public-private partnership for PlaylandA central administration building for 450 employees may be built.
About 70 applications have been submitted.
College Council discusses spring break leave for staff
www.theranger.org
By REBECCA [email protected]
Staff Council President Anelia Luna said the
United Staff Council has submitted a proposal
to Chancellor Bruce Leslie for staff members in
this district to get the first three days of spring
break off during the College Council meeting
Tuesday.
Luna said the Alamo Colleges are the only
colleges to be open three days of the week
classes do not meet for spring break.
“You could be more productive in a way that
a lot of people have to make special arrange-
ments and leave part of the time anyway for
their children,” Luna said. “A lot of the people
gone affects the work of the ones that are still
here.”
According to the academic calendar, all
administrative offices will be closed March
14-17. Classes are dismissed March 10-17.
In a phone interview Thursday, Dr. Adriana
Contreras, deputy to the chancellor, said
Thursday that the topic was discussed in the
presidents and vice chancellors meeting Nov.
12. She said the proposal was taken into consid-
eration and more research is being conducted.
Luna said in a phone interview Thursday
that she does not know when or if Leslie or the
Alamo Colleges board of trustees will make a
decision.
Zeigler said the staff in the Alamo Colleges
have fewer days off than the rest of peer dis-
tricts by three or four days.
“Taking this step and making this move will
put us in line with our peer colleges,” Zeigler
said. “I think it is a good proposal … It seems to
be a reasonable request.”
In other news, Zeigler said the college exec-
utive team is pleased with the placement of the
college seal on a base west of Moody Learning
Center.
The seal will be in a marble base with a
slanted top near the west entrance to Moody.
“Of course, all we need to do is figure out
how we’re going to pay for it,” Bill Richardson,
kinesiology and dance chair, said.
The two college seals on the college monu-
ment west of Gonzales and McCreless halls
on San Pedro Avenue were removed in April
after Alamo College’s logos were placed on top
of them in 2010. The other seal is on the wall
of the executive conference room in Fletcher
Administration Center.
In other news, allied health Chair Stella
Lovato said the Faculty Evaluation Committee
is going to delay the deadline for recommen-
dations for new full-time faculty evaluations
to Jan. 18. The evaluations are based on the
new full-time faculty job descriptions that were
passed at the Sept. 18 regular board meeting.
The committee is working with Dr.
Raoul Arreola, a consultant from the Faculty
Evaluation Resource Center, to determine new
standards to evaluate full-time faculty.
Lovato said chairs thought the evaluation
process was “moving too quickly and some
of the departments did not have time to ade-
quately work on it.”
Lovato said District Council of Chairs gave
the motion to Super Senate Friday and to Dr.
JoCarol Fabianke, interim vice chancellor of
academic success.
Dr. Dawn Elmore-McCrary, co-chair of the
Faculty Evaluation Committee, initially wanted
to have the evaluations done by the end of this
month.
In other news, Faculty Senate President
Larry Rosinbaum announced math Professor
Hoan Duong is this college’s Piper Professor
Nominee.
Rosinbaum said paperwork still needs
to be finished, but the citizens committee is
almost ready to turn in all paperwork to Minnie
Stevens Piper Foundation.
Nomination forms are due Nov. 21, and the
winner will be announced May 1.
Susan Espinoza, director of college and
grants development, said she wants people to
share interesting information with her about
Duong to make the presentation to the founda-
tion more interesting.
Jacob Wong, Student Government
Association president, said SGA is considering
Duong as an adviser. Criminal justice Professor
Tiffany Cox and English Professor Sharon Argo
are current SGA advisers.
In other news, College Council will not meet
in December because Zeigler said he did not
see a need for one.
For more information, call Project
Coordinator Robin Collett at 210-486-1956.
Susan Espinoza, director of college and grants development, asks for members to share informa-tion on math Professor Hoan Duong to contribute to his statewide nomination in the Piper Professor competition at College Council Tuesday in visual arts. Rebecca Salinas
By ALMA LINDA [email protected]
Students from this college who apply to
live in Tobin Lofts upon completion in fall
2013 will have the same priority as other
local college students, general manager
Renee Cavazos said Wednesday.
Tobin Lofts, a four-story complex being
built through a public-private partnership
at North Main Avenue and East Laurel Street,
will include a 225-unit residential space, a
961-space parking garage and 12,000 square
feet of commercial space, with Luther’s Café
as anchor tenant.
The project includes construction on the
north and south sides of West Evergreen.
The lofts are scheduled for completion
in August.
Students from other colleges and univer-
sities, such as the University of Texas at San
Antonio, University of the Incarnate Word
and Trinity University can rent apartments
in Tobin Lofts.
“If a person from Incarnate Word comes
and leases before a SAC person, then it’s
going to come to the person who came first,”
Cavazos said. “SAC has no upper hand in
leasing.”
She said about 70 applications have been
submitted for Tobin Lofts since the leasing
office began accepting applications Nov.1.
The lofts will provide 552 beds for stu-
dents in furnished apartments with all bills
paid. There will also be 65 beds available
for families and employees in a building
connected to a parking garage that will be
constructed in Lot 26 at Evergreen Street
and Main.
Prices range from $875-1,050 for a one
bedroom, one bath apartment; $675-775 per
person for two bedrooms, two baths; $525
per person for four bedrooms, two baths;
and $575 per person for four bedrooms, four
baths. Some units in the student area have
up to four beds, so if students do not have
roommates, the leasing office will match
roommates based on a questionnaire.
Applications are available in the leas-
ing office 10 a.m.-6 p.m. in Room D402 of
Building 19 of the continuing education
annex, 309 W. Dewey Place, or online at
www.livetobinlofts.com.
A model of a full-size bed, sofa, dresser,
desk and office chair is expected to be avail-
able in the leasing office.
For more information, call 210-486-1817.Floor plan for a one-bedroom in Tobin Lofts Courtesy
By AMANDA [email protected]
Student parking isn’t expected to get any
better for the spring semester.
Parking spots are limited because lots are
partially closed to provide for the remodeling
of Moody Learning Center and as a staging area
for expansion of Scobee
Planetarium and con-
struction of the Challenger
Learning Center.
Lots 26, 33 and 31 near
Main Avenue and West
Evergreen Street are also
closed for construction of a parking garage and
the Tobin Hill Lofts, a public-private partnership.
For extra parking, students and faculty still
will be able to use 650 parking spots at the dis-
trict-owned property that formerly was Playland
Park at 2222 N. Alamo about 1.4 miles from this
campus. Playland parking is open from 7 a.m.-6
p.m., and a shuttle will run between the lot and
Fletcher Administration Center. The shuttle will
run every 15 minutes throughout the day. The
last pickup from this campus will be at 6 p.m.
“Instead of student roaming around in
the garage and parking lots, which could lead
to students being late for classes, we decid-
ed to have more avail-
able parking options,”
Vanessa C. Torres, public
relations director, said.
Students with a park-
ing permit who take
night classes will be able
to park in faculty parking lots after 5 p.m.
Students who bought an annual parking
permit for $50 in the fall will not need a new
permit. Parking permits for the spring semester
are $30, and $18 for the summer. In the fall,
permits for parking lots will remain $50, but a
permit to park in garages will be $200.
To avoid parking charges and hassles, stu-
dents can purchase a five-month semester
bus pass for VIA Metropolitan Transit for $35.
Students can buy a parking permit and semes-
ter bus pass in the business office in Room 201
of Fletcher Administration Center.
The bus pass can be used to ride VIA buses
at any time during that period.
By CARLOS [email protected]
Study locations can play a
big role in a student’s academic
success.
The environment a student
chooses to study in must be a
place where someone can focus,
student development Professor
Suzanna Borawski said.
“To learn anything, you have
to be able to focus,” Borawski
said.
Distractions are not limited
to just loud noises. Loud colors
or décor can be a distraction
as well.
“I do not think students real-
ize how important it is to have
that place to go to and just be
with their studies and not have
a multitude of different distrac-
tions,” Borawski said.
Students need to realize how
important it is to step away from
other things going on in their
lives to study, she said.
Environment is important
when studying, but how and
when students spend time on
the material is equally impor-
tant.
Students taking 12 hours a
semester should devote 24 hours
a week to studying, Borawski
said.
This breaks down to slightly
over three hours a day of study-
ing.
Students should try studying
for an hour and a half to two
hours at a time. Take a break and
come back to it later, Borawski
said.
“A marathon study session
for four hours or five hours is
really not the best way process
all of the information,” Borawski
said.
Borawski also said that
reviewing material within 24
hours of a class is the best way
to get the information into the
long-term memory.
With Moody Learning
Center under construction
and extremely loud at times,
Borawski suggests San Pedro
Springs Park.
Just across San Pedro Avenue
on the west side of the campus,
the park has benches and picnic
tables that students can use to
study.
“It is a place that someone
can go to escape from campus
and just be out in nature, and
that kind of lends itself to calm-
ing you down,” Borawski said.
There are a few spots to study
in peace right here on campus
as well.
In the patio area surround-
ed by Loftin Student Center,
McCreless Hall and the Gonzales
Hall, students can find benches
and tables to study.
On the second floor of the
nursing complex, students will
find benches, cushioned chairs
and tables.
The large windows in the
entrance give students great
natural light to go along with
silence.
Another warm and quiet
location for studying can be
found in the lobby of the audi-
torium in McAllister Fine Arts
Center.
In the lobby, student can
even find a few desks to sit at.
The floor is carpeted in case stu-
dents want to sprawl out and
read.
The area is extremely quiet
and much like the health com-
plex, with large windows provid-
ing good light for reading.
News Nov. 19, 20126 • The Ranger
Environment can determine success of study efforts
Adjunct’s book traces African-Americans’ military history
For more information on purchasing parking
permits and bus passes, call 210-486-0201.
Playland lot to continue offering parking reliefParking attendant Roy Ramirez helps to guide vehicles to the correct parking spaces Thursday, in the parking garage. Riley Stephens
www.theranger.org
Communication design sophomore Jordan Anascavage takes out materials for his class Thursday in Lot 9 north of visual arts. Monica Correa
Fall, Start Two , Flex 1, Flex 2
Final Exam ScheduleMonday, Dec. 10(MWF and MW)Class Time7 a.m. — 7 a.m.-9:30 a.m.10 a.m. — 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.1 p.m. — 1 p.m.-3:30 p.m.3:50 p.m. — 3:50 p.m.-6:20 p.m.
Tuesday, Dec. 11(TR)Class Time8 a.m. — 8 a.m.-10:30 a.m.10:50 a.m. — 10:50 a.m.-1:20 p.m.1 p.m. — 1:40 p.m.-4:10 p.m.1:40 p.m. — 1:40 p.m.-4:10 p.m.
Wednesday, Dec. 12(MWF and MW)Class Time8 a.m. — 8 a.m.-10:30 a.m.11 a.m. — 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m.2 p.m. — 2 p.m.-4:30 p.m.2:25 p.m. — 2:25 p.m.-4:55 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 13(TR)Class Time6:30 a.m. — 6:30 a.m.-9 a.m.9:25 a.m. — 9:25 a.m.-11:55 a.m.12:15 p.m. — 12:15 p.m.-2:45 p.m.3:05 p.m. — 3:05 p.m.-5:35 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 14(MWF)Class Time9 a.m. — 9 a.m.-11:30Noon — noon-2:30 p.m.
Note: Final exams for evening andweekend classes are given during classhours. Department chairs can schedulefinal exam dates that do not conform tothis schedule.
A campus map is available at alamo.edu/sac.
By INGRID [email protected]
During World War II the fight for equality
drove many African-Americans into military
service.
This historical narrative of the African-
American experience in the U.S. Armed Forces
is told in a recently released book by history
Adjunct Isaac Hampton.
“Many thought ‘they can’t deny me equal
rights if I die for them, if I serve them, if I fight
for them,’” he said Tuesday in an interview.
The book is the culmination of Hampton’s
research for a capstone research paper when
he studied for a master’s degree from Texas
Southern University.
The paper highlighting views of black offi-
cers and their experiences in the ROTC began
a seven-year journey that ended with a book:
“The Black Officer Corps: a History of Black
Military Advancement from Integration through
Vietnam.” The book documents African-
American military history from 1946-1973.
The voices of African-American officers
and soldiers who served this country line the
pages with oral accounts that may have been
lost had it not been for Hampton’s pen.
Hampton’s research led him to the National
Archives at College Park, Md. While there, he
said he found a glaring hole in the literature.
“When I went to the national archives to do
research, one of the long-time archivists said,
‘Isaac, what you are looking for is not going to be
in any archives — this is too much of an embar-
rassment to the institution to write it down.’”
Hampton said he knew he had captured the
voices of African-Americans who have served
under the shadow of American apartheid.
The book focuses on the African-American
officers’ experience and documents how the
Black Power movement influenced African-
Americans serving during the Vietnam era.
Hampton an Urbana, Ohio, native, obtained
a Ph.D in 20th century U.S. history from the
University of Houston in 2008.
He served in the U.S. Army from 1988-
1991 and currently is the command historian
for U.S. Army South. As command historian,
Hampton writes living history.
Hampton has performed more than 300
oral interviews that encompasses civil rights
advocates from the 1960s, soldiers, Marines
and airmen ranging from the lowest rank to
generals and admirals.
Hampton has been invited to speak at this
college Feb. 26 during Black History Month.
The book, published by Routledge, is avail-
able at Amazon.com, www.routledge.com and
on the shelves at Barnes & Noble.
History Adjunct Isaac Hampton
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NewsNov. 19, 2012 The Ranger • 7
www.theranger.org
Premiere8 • The Ranger
Nonperishable food items can be donated in Room 238A of Nail or in
collection boxes throughout campus through November.
Diamonds in the afterlifeBy PAULA CHRISTINE [email protected]
The remains of a cremated adult
can be turned into about six carats of
diamonds.
This and other trendy facts were
included in a lecture Nov. 7 at the Witte
Museum, just down the hall from dead
people still telling their stories through
multimedia and interactive technology
in Mummies of The World, The Exhibit.
“The dead are in,” Dr. Michael C.
Kearl, a sociologist and author, said.
He said that in the last 40 years of his
research in death, dying, time and other
issues, he has seen a shift in trends
regarding beliefs about immortality
created by two major changes — the
mobility of the American population
and technology.
He said the trends are clearly visible
in the arts of popular culture.
Tim Burton is just one of the media
personalities bringing death into enter-
tainment with films such as “Corpse
Bride,” “Edward Scissorhands,” and
“Frankenweenie.”
Digitizing historical music lets living
musical artists join with popular dead
artists on new music, such as Nat King
Cole and daughter Natalie Cole in the
song “Unforgettable.”
Technology allows movies to com-
bine dead with living actors, such as
in “Forrest Gump,” a June 1994 movie
set in the 1960s where living actor Tom
Hanks playing Forrest Gump shakes the
hand of President Kennedy.
He also noted the prevalence of
skulls on T-shirts, shoes, jewelry, post-
ers and more.
“Belief in immortality is higher now
than the last 40 years,” he said.
Belief changes are shifting, such as
changes in funeral traditions, he said.
“How you deal with the dead is at
the core of moral belief systems,” he
said.
Egypt is famous for its mummies, but
he said the motivation behind their ritu-
als is common to many cultures and time
periods throughout history.
He said death was considered per-
manent and the vast majority of the
dead were usually not remembered by
name in a few generations.
Even today, most people do not
know about their great-grandparents.
This created the desire in many cul-
tures for tombstones and other items
that would create remembrance.
He said since families generally
stayed in the same area, this made
sense.
Today tombstones are not that suc-
cessful at helping people remember.
Families are on the move, away from
family gravesites.
He said the message has changed.
Instead of simply wanting to be remem-
bered, he said the dead and the liv-
ing are hoping to continue to interact
somehow, some way.
Without a grave to visit, Americans
are trying new things empowered by
technology.
Now, services are offering the dying
choices to arrange for videos and birth-
day cards or other kinds of messages to
be sent in the future to their families
and career audiences.
He said the living and survivors are
creating new ways to feel connected
with the dead.
The dead actually have their
own manager in Hollywood, Curtis
Management Group.
“The dead can continue to work,
as long as earnings continue,” he said.
Examples he named included Elvis
Presley, Marilyn Monroe and Albert
Einstein.
This desire for connection is the
motivation behind new trends includ-
ing turning cremains (cremation
remains) into diamonds, sending cards
and videos or calling someone after
death.
Tombstones are able to post the
deceased Facebook page, he said. Curtis
Management Group and families can
authorize the use of voice-cloning tech-
nology so voices of the dead can still
read scripts for new movies and com-
mercials.
Some plan to continue their legacy
in other ways.
In life, James Doohan played Scottie
in “Star Trek” television and movies.
Kearl said Doohan chose to be launched
into space.
Kearl said Clyde Tombaugh discov-
ered Pluto and is on a space vessel
headed there now.
The inventor of the Frisbee had his
ashes added into the creation of several
Frisbees after death, and Pringles snack
inventor Fred Baur wanted his ashes
resting inside a Pringles can.
Maybe a diamond is not so unusual.
Kearl said 35 percent of funerals in
the United States were cremation in
2010, and states such as Washington
and Hawaii have a 70 percent crema-
tion rate.
Websites for LifeGem,
DNA2Diamonds and Cremation
Solutions suggest a diamond would be
a kind of portable tombstone able to be
taken with survivors wherever they go.
They offer dozens of choices for
memorial jewelry for diamonds and
ashes, urns and FAQ pages for questions
about the process and other aspects of
cremation.
Questions, answers and comments
after the lecture were diverse.
The first audience member said she
had donated her body to science and
would never allow her family to have it.
Another talked about touring the
huge cemeteries on the East Side of San
Antonio.
“In the Texas Hill Country, there is a
Republican only cemetery,” Kearl said.
The audience responded with laugh-
ter as they did several times throughout
the presentation.
Kearl ended by saying, “It is a
democratization of the afterlife that is
happening now.”
By AMANDA [email protected]
The mortuary science department and the
Catholic Student Association will sponsor food
drives throughout November.
The mortuary science department raised more
than 800 pounds last year.
The department has conducted a food drive
for more than eight years and collected more than
8,000 pounds of food.
Professor Francisco E. Solis is in charge of col-
lecting nonperishable foods.
“We used to have boxes out in each department
before, but we just don’t have the resources to put
boxes out in each department anymore,” Solis said.
Solis encourages other students and depart-
ments to donate.
“We used to donate to St. Vincent De Paul
Society, but now we donate all the food to the Phi
Theta Kappa food pantry,” Solis said.
If students or departments wish to donate,
there will be a box in the department office in
Room 238A in Nail Technical Center until Nov. 30.
The Catholic Student Association’s drive
through November is the third drive the group has
participated in this semester.
“For the month of November, we will distribute
evenly who we donate to, which is the San Antonio
Food Bank, SAC (Phi Theta Kappa) food pantry,
and the family that we adopted,” campus minister
Joseph Liedecke said Wednesday.
The association has been doing this for more
than 11 years, he said.
The November drive will be through with
boxes distributed throughout the campus and at
the Catholic Student Center, 312 W. Courtland
Place.
Boxes will be collected at the end of the month.
The association helped Student Government
Association and the office of civic engagement
with a food drive Nov. 12 and 13 in the mall.
The association also had a food drive last
month, “Trick or Treat so Others Can Eat,” that
brought in six large boxes of nonperishable food.
For more information from the mortuary sci-
ence department, call 210-486-1135.
For more information on the Catholic Student
Association, call Liedecke at 210-736-9306 or visit
https://orgsync.com/30743/chapter or www.arch-
sa.org.
For food pantry information, call 210-486-0431.
Groups work to fill upfood pantries
www.theranger.org/ premiere
Less than one box of food was collected for Student Government Association and Catholic Student Center food drive Tuesday in the mall. Nothing was collected Monday. Maura Callahan, SGA commissioner and communications sophomore; Mike Martinez, SGA vice president and anthropology sophomore; and criminal justice freshman Megan Halbardier pose for a photo taken by Catholic Campus Minister Joseph Liedecke. Monica Correa
Mummies of The World, The Exhibit at the Witte Museum Courtesy
Students are encouraged to donate food for two organizations.
The exhibit at the Witte Museum is open
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays,10 a.m.-8 p.m. Tuesdays,
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays
and noon-5 p.m. Sundays.
Call 210-357-1900.
Nov. 19, 2012 • 9Premiere
Design students show their work
By LUCIA [email protected]
This year’s communication design exhibition will be on dis-
play through March 8 on the second floor of Longwith Radio,
Television and Film Building.
Richard Arredondo, communication design program coordi-
nator, said the purpose of the exhibition is to display the work of
students in the program.
The exhibition, which opened with a reception Thursday, is
composed of hand-executed illustrations and computer-gener-
ated digital prints, Arredondo said.
Because the projects came from multiple communication
design classes, there were no specific guidelines.
Full-time and part-time faculty from the program selected
the 70 projects for the exhibition from more than 100 projects
submitted.
The projects on display were created by students in the com-
munication design program during the fall 2011 and spring 2012
semesters, Arredondo said.
The program, one of five in the media communications
department, provides animation, web and illustration courses,
Arredondo said.
The two-year program leads to an associate of applied sci-
ence degree, and students can also earn a Level 1 certificate that
provides basic training and skills through specific courses that
may lead to entry-level employment.
The program also offers an advanced skills certificate.
Graduates may find careers in publishing, art direction,
graphic design, illustration, animation, web design, multimedia
development, special effects, storyboarding, and advertising.
For information, call 210-486-1031.
Students show ingenuity in saving time, money
Nonperishable food items can be donated in Room 238A of Nail or in
collection boxes throughout campus through November.
Diamonds in the afterlifetion rate.
Websites for LifeGem,
DNA2Diamonds and Cremation
Solutions suggest a diamond would be
a kind of portable tombstone able to be
taken with survivors wherever they go.
They offer dozens of choices for
memorial jewelry for diamonds and
ashes, urns and FAQ pages for questions
about the process and other aspects of
cremation.
Questions, answers and comments
after the lecture were diverse.
The first audience member said she
had donated her body to science and
would never allow her family to have it.
Another talked about touring the
huge cemeteries on the East Side of San
Antonio.
“In the Texas Hill Country, there is a
Republican only cemetery,” Kearl said.
The audience responded with laugh-
ter as they did several times throughout
the presentation.
Kearl ended by saying, “It is a
democratization of the afterlife that is
happening now.”
www.theranger.org/ premiere
Less than one box of food was collected for Student Government Association and Catholic Student Center food drive Tuesday in the mall. Nothing was collected Monday. Maura Callahan, SGA commissioner and communications sophomore; Mike Martinez, SGA vice president and anthropology sophomore; and criminal justice freshman Megan Halbardier pose for a photo taken by Catholic Campus Minister Joseph Liedecke. Monica Correa
Communication design Professors Brook Rosser, Qing Liu and Joel Knocke set up the program’s student exhibit Nov. 9 in Longwith. Monica Correa
Exhibit displays 70 projects from multiple communication design classes.
By NICOLE A. [email protected]
Just like the White Rabbit from
Lewis Carroll’s book “Alice’s Adventures
in Wonderland,” time is essential for
college students.
When starting college, many stu-
dents need time they do not have
because their social lives override their
study time.
For students to balance school,
work and a social life, they do odd
things to save time and money, such
as pulling all-nighters, focusing less on
appearance and finding ways to save
money on gas.
For sports management sopho-
more Nicholas Stevenson, pulling all-
nighters usually results in a B grade or
higher on tests.
On the other hand, many college
students have their own way to con-
quer all-nighters.
Education sophomore Afton Barber
sticks to a routine that works for her by
alternating sleeping with studying.
She alternates writing for 30 min-
utes and sleeping for 30 minutes
throughout the night, she said.
She said she does that so she will
not be so tired in the morning.
Appearance also takes time in the
morning before going to school. The
decision is whether to wake up early
and pick out an outfit or just throw
something on.
Anthropology sophomore Krystal
Solano said, “To save time, I tend to
brush my hair back in a ponytail and
throw on the first T-shirt or tank top
I see.”
Sydney Peterson, American Sign
Language interpreting sophomore,
said she also saves time in the morn-
ing by coming to school comfortably.
“I never really dress up for school,”
she said. “I’m always in running shorts
and tennis shoes for the most part.”
Communication design sopho-
more Mandy Derfler, production
manager for The Ranger, wears mis-
matched ankle socks she grabs from a
drawer each morning.
“I am too lazy to fold them,” she
said.
She said once she drew out two
that matched and found that so odd,
she almost put one back.
Since this college doesn’t offer stu-
dent housing yet, most students have
to commute to campus whether it’s by
bus, bike or motor vehicle.
Student housing will be
available in the fall. The
Tobin Lofts, located
at the North Main
Avenue and East
Laurel Street, will
be open to students
from any college.
Some students
find odd ways to
save money when it
involves transporta-
tion.
Physical therapy
sophomore Jonathan
Fowler said, “I steal the
lawn mower gas out of
the shed when I’m running
low in my truck. I don’t think
my dad has picked up on that
yet.”
Food is fundamental for every-
one, even college students. When
money is tight, many students can
still find free food around campus,
David Rodriguez, director of counsel-
ing, said.
Various events on campus provide
food and refreshments such as punch
and cookies that students can take
advantage of, Rodriguez said.
Students can also receive free food
from the Phi Theta Kappa food pantry.
The pantry is open to students and
employees at this college. The pantry
is open noon-3 p.m. Wednesdays and
Thursdays.
One of the things the college
encourages is sharing resources such
as textbooks, Rodriguez said.
Students save money when
they share or sell their books
to their friends or other
students instead of
paying full price at
the bookstore,
Rodriguez said.
The exhibit at the Witte Museum is open
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays,10 a.m.-8 p.m. Tuesdays,
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays
and noon-5 p.m. Sundays.
Call 210-357-1900.
Nov. 19, 201210 • The Ranger Editorial
Congratulations to the students at this college who received honors in the 2011-12 academic year.
In fall 2011, spring 2012 and summer 2012, 5,997 students received honors, and 267 of them participated in the annual honors ceremony Tuesday in the auditorium of McAllister Fine Arts Center.
Those students have excelled in their studies and put hard work and dedication into their aca-demics to receive such a high level of distinction.
Students received honors in four categories.President’s Honors are for students with 12 or
more semester hours in a semester and a grade-point average of 4.0 and cumulative GPA of 2.0.
Honors are for students with 12 or more semester hours with a GPA of 3.5-3.99 in with a
cumulative GPA of 2.0.President’s Part-time Honors are for students
with 6-11 semester hours and a GPA of 4.0 and cumulative GPA of 2.0.
Part-time Honors are for students with 6-11 semester hours and a GPA of 3.5-3.99 in the cur-rent semester with a cumulative GPA of 2.0.
These students excelled despite the chal-lenges most students face — too little money, too little time and too many distractions.
They did their best on assignments, turned them in on time and made their academic responsibilities a priority in their lives.
They serve as an example for others.Stay focused and finish this semester with
good grades so you can be eligible for next year’s honors ceremony.
Beginning in spring, incoming students will have to complete mandatory online modules before admission as part of MyMap, or My Monitoring Academic Progress, a stu-dent success initiative.
Modules include “Paying for College,” “I-CARE,” “Assessment Information” and “Test Preparation.”
Upon completion of the four modules, stu-dents will be required to take a quiz and are expected to score a minimum of 60 to pass each module.
A score of a 60 is the equivalent of a letter grade of a D minus, a grade most universities will not accept when students transfer.
To promote student success, the bar needs to be raised to a higher standard.
The modules teach basic skills that all first-time-in-college students need to know, so it’s important to make the experience accessible for students.
If students are expected to earn a 2.0 minimum GPA to transfer, the expectations should be the same for MyMap.
Kudos for honors
Raise expectations
Recognize adjunctsAdjuncts sometimes receive the short end
of the stick. When the district passed out raises to faculty for 2012-13, officials didn’t include adjuncts.
Then this year, administrators considered limiting adjuncts to teaching loads of 7.4 units or less to avoid the expense of contrib-uting to adjuncts’ retirement.
But now the Bob and Mary Zeigler Adjunct Faculty Professional Development Fund pro-vides recognition for the hard work adjuncts exhibit.
Part of the fund is the Èxito award, which gives $250 to one adjunct each semester who exhibits exemplary work.
The deadline to apply is Nov. 30.
Another part of the fund supports profes-sional development for adjuncts and con-tinuing education faculty at this college.
The fund allocates a total of $2,000 this year for professional development, and each award can be up to $250.
Professional development activities include workshops, conferences or seminars.
These awards are the few recognitions adjuncts qualify for.
Adjuncts are essential to this college.This college has 332 full-time faculty mem-
bers and 468 adjunct faculty members teach-ing this semester.
Adjuncts deserve every bit of financial encouragement they can get.
Juan Carlos Campos
www.theranger.org/opinion
©2012 by The Ranger staff, San Antonio College, 1300 San Pedro Ave., San Antonio, TX 78212-4299. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without permission.The Ranger news outlets, which serve the Alamo Community College District, are laboratory projects of journalism class-es in the Department of Media Communications at San Antonio College. The Ranger is published Mondays except during summer, holidays and examinations.The Ranger Online is available at www.theranger.org.News contributions accepted by telephone (210-486-1773), by fax (210-486-9292), by email ([email protected]) or at the editorial office (Room 212 of Loftin Student Center). Advertising rates available upon request by phone (210-486-1765) or as a download at www.therang-er.org.The Ranger is a member of the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association, the Associated Collegiate Press and the Texas Community College Journalism Association.
Guest Viewpoints: Faculty, staff, students and com-munity members are welcome to contribute guest viewpoints of up to 450 words.Writers should focus on campus or current events in a critical, per-suasive or interpretative style. All viewpoints must be published with a photo portrait of the writer.
Letters Policy: The Ranger invites readers to share views by writing letters to the editor. Space limitations force the paper to limit letters to two double-spaced, typewritten pages. Letters will be edited for spelling, style, grammar, libel and length. Editors reserve the right to deny publication of any letter. Letters should be mailed to The Ranger, Department of Media Communications, San Antonio College, 1300 San Pedro Ave., San Antonio TX 78212-4299.Letters also may be brought to the newspaper office in Room 212 of Loftin Student Center, emailed to [email protected] or faxed to 210-486-9292.Letters must be signed and must include the printed name and tele-phone number. Students should include classification, major, cam-pus and Banner ID. Employees should include title and telephone number. For more information, call 210-486-1773.Single Copy Policy: Members of the Alamo Community College District community are permitted one free copy per issue because of high production costs.Where available, additional cop-ies may be purchased with prior approval for 50 cents each by con-tacting The Ranger business office. Newspaper theft is a crime. Those who violate the single- copy rule may be subject to civil and crimi-nal prosecution and subject to college discipline.
Editor Alma Linda Manzanares
Managing EditorRebecca Salinas
Calendar EditorJennifer Coronado
Photo EditorRiley Stephens
Photographers Monica Correa, Vincent Reyna
Photo TeamGloria Fernandez De ClementsSergio Ramirez, Carolina Vela
Multimedia EditorIngrid Wilgen
Illustrator
Juan Carlos Campos
Production ManagerMandy Derfler
Production AssistantJason Hogan
Staff WritersCristina Carreon, Angelo Thomas Dixon, Chelsea Driskell
Lucia Espino, David Espinoza, Carlos Ferrand Edgar Garcia, Kirk Hanes, Jennifer Luna,
Beau McCarter, Patricia McGlamoryAdam Meza, Ivie Okungbowa, Osita Omesiete
Diana Palomo, Felipe Perez Jr. Janeka Porter, Christina Quintanilla, Amanda Rios
Paula Christine Schuler, Nicole A. West
Web Editor Faith Duarte
CirculationDawn Mayen
I was born in
Mexico City 23
years ago, but in the
summer of 2001, I
became a Mexican-
American.
From the
moment my fam-
ily and I stepped
in this coun-
try, I loved and
embraced every-
thing about it. It became my home.
The attacks of 9/11 hurt my heart
as it did any other American. As a
minority, I felt the aftermath of how
immigrants, from all backgrounds,
were viewed.
It was not until I started high
school that I learned the reality and
the obstacles of my legal status.
I joined the JROTC program at
Fox Tech High School, and, as my
rank got higher, more and more Army
recruiters contacted me.
I was more than willing to enlist
but they always required a “paper”
saying I was an American. Why wasn’t
my patriotism
and love for this
country enough?
The year 2007
was bittersweet. I
worked hard and
graduated with
honors and in the
Top 10 percent
of my class, but
again my legal status kept me from
scholarships and opportunities.
At a time when the anti-immi-
gration subject was more aggressive,
even frightening enough to consider
going back to Mexico, San Antonio
College opened the door.
This college is giving me the
opportunity for the quality higher
education that brought my family
and me to the U.S. in the first place.
It was at this college where I
learned about the DREAM Act
through the Students United for the
DREAM Act.
I didn’t want
to be a SUDA
member at first
because I was
afraid to let every-
one know my
legal status, so I
supported the
organization with
donations and signatures.
As the DREAM Act movement was
growing, the negativity toward immi-
grants began to disappoint me. I felt
as if we were going back in time to the
civil rights movement.
After the DREAM Act’s failure, I
realized the need to show others how
many of us DREAMers are here, and
who we really are.
I “came out” and became undocu-
mented and unafraid.
The pursuit of happiness is not
illegal, and this is exactly what I am
doing.
I am undocumented because I
don’t have a paper saying I was born
or naturalized in the U.S., but in my
heart, I have adopted this country as
my home.
I don’t understand why some
people don’t accept that the U.S. is
the most immigrated country, and
unless they are a true-blooded Native
American, they probably have immi-
grant blood within them.
This recent election revealed more
than the name of our next president;
it unveiled the importance of minori-
ties, especially Latinos/Hispanics.
Latinos/Hispanics “came out” to
show that we are more than what
others imagine, and they represented
all of us who did not have the privi-
lege to vote.
I qualify for the Differed Action for
Childhood Arrivals policy, which will
grant me a work permit.
I can look for a job that will at
least pay minimum wage, and yes,
some undocumented immigrants are
still getting paid less than minimum
wage.
With a decent paying job I can
help my parents with my college
tuition or any other expenses.
The DACA policy does not give
me a documented status, benefits or
permission to go out of the country,
as many might think.
For now, I know that I can con-
tinue my education, but I don’t know
what is going to happen after gradu-
ation or in the years to come.
I will never forget where I come
from, and a paper will never make me
more American than what I already
am.
NewsNov. 19, 2012 The Ranger • 11
No need for paper to be an American
“I will never forget where I come from, and a paper will never make me more American than what I already am.”
www.theranger.org
Writer’s nephew, Mark. Courtesy
End financial aid delays
Editor:
This is a letter to the president, chan-
cellor and board of trustees of the Alamo
Colleges to hear and act upon the pleadings
of those students at SAC who undergo the
long process of verification to receive their
financial aid funds.
This is a letter in regard to the lack of
duty from the financial aid staff and depart-
ment members.
We believe that the amount of time that
is given to students on how long the verifi-
cation process will take is an extreme and
ridiculously long wait.
In my case, it has been a penalizing cru-
cial wait of more than 15 weeks (reaching
the total amount of a whole semester).
We are exhausted of waiting for the
financial aid department to accomplish
their job and desperate to receive attention
from those in a higher position who are
able to fix our problem.
I have sent various letters to the presi-
dent and director of the financial aid office
at SAC, but nothing has been done up to
now.
It’s time for everyone to know how poor
is the attention being given to those stu-
dents in our situation, in my situation.
Will the college pay for my personal
items that I have had to pawn in order to go
through this long wait without my financial
assistance?
Will the college pay for the debts I have
gotten into for borrowing money to pay for
my expenses?
Or will you finally do something about
it, Mr. President?
Irma Ledezma
Science Freshman
Letters policy:
The Ranger encourages readers to voice
their opinions by submitting letters to the
editor.
Letters should be emailed to sac-rang-
Letters also can be submitted at
theranger.org.
Click “contact us,” then click “submit a
letter.”
Letters must include a printed name
and telephone number. A student’s major,
classification, campus and Banner ID need
to be included.
Letters should not exceed two pages.
Letters
Viewpoint by LUCIA ESPINO
Dear Mark,
If you are reading this letter, it is because your
father thinks you might just understand what your
crazy uncle is trying to say.
As I write this letter, you have yet to reach your
second birthday.
By the time you read this letter, my youth will have
long since passed and yours will be gaining steam.
To the young man I love with all my heart, I want to
share some of my 32 years of wisdom with you.
As you get bigger, you will begin to understand
the power of physical strength. Later you will begin to
understand your strength within.
Your father was always a physically strong fellow, but it was his inner
strength that I will always remember. If he has not yet told you his story,
then he will someday — a story of true strength and the price that comes
with it.
My big brother, your father, lost his big brother when he was a young
man. When Marco passed at age 13, your dad was only 11, but he felt he
needed to grow up overnight.
He protected me from the harsh reality of life. He protected me from
losing my childhood.
He gave up his childish ways so that I could keep mine.
I woke up and he was my only brother.
It was difficult to comprehend at age 9, but your father made sure that
I remained a child full of wonder.
Even at a young age, when the world had been unfair to him, he
remained kind and full of heart.
You must always remember that true strength is not found in force, but
rather in compassion. Be kind, Mark, even when the world is not.
The world is a big and scary place, but just do not let it scare you, little
buddy. Fear is a good thing, but you must be able to separate fear of fear
and fear of doing what is right.
I remember being young and believing that the most important thing
was fitting in. I would have done almost anything to be cool.
I can remember a time in high school when I joined in with a group
who were laughing at someone for being different.
At that moment, I felt like I was one of the popular kids.
I saw that student later that day in the hall. I was hoping he would not
recognize me, but he did. I could see the hurt in his eyes, and the truth
was that I was not any different than he was.
There will be many times in your youth when the right thing to do
seems unpopular. Doing what is right may not bring you reward or accep-
tance, but it will bring you peace.
As you get older, the weight of this world grows along with you. Most
of that weight you carry around is because you’re trying to be something
you’re not.
Trust me, Mark, it is hard enough to be yourself, let alone someone else.
Be comfortable in your own skin, and never apologize for who you are.
One truth in life is that you will wake up you and go to bed every night
you.
Love that person you see in the mirror and allow him to smile back at
you as often as possible. You must know by this point in your life that you
are loved, and you are learning to love others beyond your family. Open
your heart and try to live a life through love.
When love finds you, do not be afraid to love another. I had a love once
that I believed was going to last forever, and when forever ended, I was
certain my world was over.
The nature of love can leave you feeling sick at times. If you find your-
self heartbroken just remember that the same love that broke it is the
same love that will mend it.
When your heart is broken, remember to be a man and cry. Do not let
the ways of the world dictate your love.
This world is a pretty amazing place, so try not to focus on the shad-
ows it casts. Laugh as much as possible. Find joy in the hardest times
because, believe it or not, you will be laughing about it later.
Do not take yourself or this world too seriously. One of the greatest
traits that any person can have is the ability to laugh at themselves.
One time your grandmother and I tried to drive the family van into a
low-clearance parking garage.
We made it through the entrance, and that was as far as we got because
our van was taller than the height of the ceiling.
We had cars behind us honking, and people in the parking garage
laughing at us. When we finally got the van unstuck, we saw the mangled
luggage rack on the top.
We looked at each other and just started laughing. We looked like fools,
but nobody got hurt, and the world kept on turning.
When you tumble down, get up and laugh — after all it is kind of funny.
Do not be mad when the world laughs at you because you will have your
chance to laugh at the world.
Always remember that life is a journey. Everything that has a begin-
ning must have an end. Try to enjoy the path between the two.
Dream big and never say you cannot do something.
Da Vinci once said, “If someone tells you that you cannot paint, then
by all means paint.”
Always believe in yourself and understand that you will fail. It does not
matter that you fail, it only matters that you get up. Thomas Edison tried
1,000 times and failed before he finally created the light bulb.
Life is not about anything other than living it. Keep you eyes, heart and
mind open to it. Live your life for the dash.
The dash is that little mark on a tombstone that is set right between
the date of birth and the date of death. Actually, it is hyphen, but it’s a
dash to me.
It is the only part of a tombstone that has any significance.
When you are old enough, you may have more questions, and I will be
there. I will always be there.
Your Uncle, Los
Letter to my nephew about life, love, laughs
Viewpoint by CARLOS FERRAND
By OSITA [email protected]
The new Challenger
Center and remodeled
Planetarium will open in the
fall, and no one is more eager
to enjoy the amenities the
new facility has to offer than
astronomy Professor Alfred
Alaniz.
“I am most interested in
the top floor open observa-
tion deck,” he said Oct. 2.
Alaniz has been looking at
the sky from the top floor of
the parking garage.
“During the design pro-
cess, I requested a platform
that my students can mea-
sure the sky from,” he said.
David Mrizek, vice presi-
dent of college services, said
the top floor of the observa-
tion deck will be about 36
feet tall and have an area of
about 2,376 square feet.
The center will be the
second tallest building on
campus. The tallest is Moody
Learning Center with seven
stories.
The planetarium is being
remodeled, increasing the
size and adding more seating
and restrooms.
Building of the Challenger
Center started May 2 and is
scheduled to be finished by
fall.
The Challenger Center
will have activities that edu-
cate students in science,
technology, engineering and
math fields.
Challenger Learning
Centers are programs to equip
students with knowledge,
confidence, and skills to bet-
ter themselves and the nation,
reports the official website for
the Challenger Center.
There are 45 other
Challenger Centers in the
country with three in Texas.
Houston is home to the first
Challenger Center, which
opened in August 1988. It
was opened by families of the
crew that were lost from Space
Shuttle Challenger/STS-51L,
which exploded 73 seconds
after liftoff Jan. 28, 1986.
Alaniz asked planetari-
um Director Bob Kelley for
telescope piers, electricity
and data inputs. A pier is a
telescope base, and the data
inputs allow access to the
Web, among other uses.
Students attach tele-
scopes to the permanent
piers that face Polaris, the
north star, he said.
Alaniz said he believes
the San Antonio community
is going to benefit from the
center with emphasis on stu-
dents who have not entered
high school.
“We have to get students
attracted to science, technol-
ogy, engineering and math-
ematics early because they
tend to deviate around the
age of 10,” he said. He said all
the STEM fields will be able
to gain from the center.
Alaniz said students at
this college can anticipate
acquiring greater knowledge
for astronomy. “You can
study it freely; all you have to
do is go outside,” he said.
A possibility of remote
access to telescopes located
in Marathon might be avail-
able, Alaniz said with elation.
This opportunity was
made possible by a pro-
fessor from Sul Ross State
University in Alpine, he said.
He said it’s dark out in
West Texas and one can see
exactly what is going on at
the moment. It’s dry and
there are clear skies year-
round, he added.
This will allow this col-
lege to see images through
telescopes in Marathon with
remote or manual access via
display at this college.
“I’ve gotten so used to
having the planetarium. Now
that’s gone I’m having with-
drawal symptoms,” Alaniz
said jokingly.
Alaniz said he is currently
using computer software in
his classes to suffice for not
being able to take classes to
the planetarium.
For more information,
call Alaniz at 210-486-0060.
News Nov. 19, 201212 • The Ranger
Professor awaits reopening of planetariumTower will make Challenger Center the second tallest building on campus.
www.theranger.org
Renovations to the outer shell of Scobee planetarium Aug. 1 Ingrid Wilgen
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By OSITA [email protected]
This digital age is rapidly
moving toward flash memory.
Microsoft co-founder
William “Bill” Gates has said
he expects DVDs and Blu-rays
to become obsolete within the
next 10 years, according
to a Jan. 11 article on
Techtron, a tech-
nology blogging
website.
In an Oct.
26 article from
Time Tech,
Time maga-
zine’s technolo-
gy website, Philip
Schiller, senior vice
president of world mar-
keting at Apple, said, “Old
technologies are holding us
back,” in reference to why
optical drives are removed
from the next generations of
Mac computers.
Fun with Physics Friday has
a use for them. Fun with Physics
Friday provides weekly activi-
ties for students that can consist
of anything from dismantling
lawnmowers to building home-
made lava lamps.
The activities take place
1:30 p.m. every Friday in the
MESA Center in Room 204 of
Chance Academic Center.
All students are welcome to
participate. Fun with Physics
Friday is collecting reflective
discs for their latest project.
The goal is to collect 700
discs to attach to a 10-foot sat-
ellite dish to reflect the
sun’s rays to gen-
erate heat at its
focus point.
A s t r o n o m y
P r o f e s s o r
Alfred Alaniz
compared the
phenomenon
to sunrays hit-
ting a magnify-
ing glass, then cre-
ating heat.
This is only the beginning,
Alaniz said.
“If we accomplish this, we
can do many other things like
purify water, add more power
to solar panels and burn torti-
llas,” he said jokingly.
Thirteen white collec-
tion boxes have been placed
in departments around the
college. As long as the discs
are still reflective they can be
used, he said.
For more information, call
Alaniz at 210-486-0060.
Fun with Physicsneeds shiny discs
By LUCIA [email protected]
Trupti Biplabketan Jain, Michigan
State University Fulbright visiting
scholar, said one-third of the world’s
poor population live in India during
her lecture Nov. 8.
Room 218 of
the nursing com-
plex was almost
full as about
five professors
brought classes to
her lecture titled
“ M i c r o f i n a n c e
and Impoverished
Women: Status,
Challenges and
Prospects,” spon-
sored by the
department of ser-
vices for women
and non-tradition-
al students.
Jain showed a picture of women
who were helped by a microfinance
institution; she said they were just a
handful of all the women the institu-
tions want to help.
Jain said these women were like
many others: They grew up to get
married and have children, but they
did something different.
After seeing the economic
struggles their families were going
through, they decided to ask the bank
for a loan, but they were denied.
“The banks think that poor peo-
ple are not bankable,” Jain said. “This
is a regular story of life in India.”
“Microfinancing is banking for the
poor, not poor banking,” Jain said.
It is an economic development
tool, and its objective is to assist the
poor out of poverty.
Jain said microfinance institu-
tions funds
first came
from private
corporations,
now they also
come from
the interest
earned on
lending.
The gov-
ernment is
not giving any
money for
lending but
it provides
grants to take
care of administrative expenses, Jain
continued.
Microfinance institutions give
small loans to low-income people,
with very low interest and no collat-
eral, to be invested in those people’s
new business with the expectation
that later they will be able to pay it
back.
“It is a business of trust,” Jain said.
Even though microfinancing is a
new concept, India has the biggest
percentage of outreach with 15 to 20
percent of the poor in a microfinance
program.
“Microfinance institutions are
doing more than just providing
the money,” Jain said. “They are
approaching the people, show (them)
how to start a business and (how to)
keep their business.”
Jain said these institutions orga-
nize groups in the same economic
level, but with different occupations,
gender and interest.
Although these programs con-
centrate on helping women become
financially independent, the institu-
tions also help men who are willing
to learn about microfinance.
“Women that join these groups
also need the support of the men to
be successful,” Jain said. “Men are
also benefiting from the success of
the women in the program.”
Jain said that not enough funds
and low financial literacy from the
members in the groups are the main
problems for these institutions.
“Too much money in the hands of
the group, when they are not ready,
just doesn’t work,” Jain said. “The
groups are not only dealing with eco-
nomic issues, but also with social
issues.”
The microfinance institutions
work with the group to identify their
needs, aspirations and obstacles.
They assist the members to over-
come their obstacles and achieve
their goals, Jain said.
Jain explained how by empower-
ing women, these institutions also
empower the communities.
These microfinance institutions
empower women by enhancing their
contributions to their household
income and increasing the value of
their assets, Jain said.
This will reduce poverty rates and
allow households to spend more in
education, which helps with a better
attendance in school and lower drop-
out rates, Jain continued.
It will also allow women to spend
on their health care to improve
maternal health, nutrition and lower
child mortality rates, Jain said.
Sara Samano, disability support
services counselor, asked, “How long
a process will take?” referring to the
time between the institutions putting
a group together, until the group is
ready to use the money on their own.
Jain said it depends on the group’s
participation and willingness. “We’ve
had groups that take 17 years to be
ready and open their own business.”
Roxana Avendano, American Sign
Language sophomore, said, “I like the
idea that it is mostly women, but that
(it) is also community-based.”
Jain said she admires the com-
mitment of the staff at the empower-
ment center because it was reflected
in the smile of the women who had
overcome their struggles with the
support of the center and the college.
The most important teaching Jain
will take back to her community is
“helping the elder women in terms of
acquiring education,” she said.
NewsNov. 19, 2012 The Ranger • 13
Mircofinance helps empower women in IndiaEmpowered women mean an empowered community, a Fulbright visiting scholar says.
“Women that join these groups also need the support of the men to be successful. Men are also benefiting from the success of the women in the program.”Trupti Biplabketan Jain,
Michigan State University Fulbright
visiting scholar
“Our way to discipline a child here in the center is redirection. If we want a child to walk and not run, we say, ‘Use your walking feet,’ instead of saying, ‘Stop running.’”
Teresa Robledo,early childhood center teacher
Fulbright scholar Trupti Jain from Michigan State University talks about microfinance and women in poverty in India Nov. 8 in nursing. Carolina Vela
www.theranger.org
By LUCIA [email protected]
Although corporal punishment is legal in
Texas schools, it is not being implemented,
Alice Laffere, education program coordinator,
and Teresa Robledo, early childhood center
teacher, agree.
In Springtown, they seem to not agree on
this.
According to an Associated Press article, two
teenage girls suffered bruises after they were
paddled by a male assistant principal.
Their parents did not complain about the
punishment itself, but instead that the school
violated the policy that an educator of the same
sex as the student should be the one adminis-
trating the punishment.
According to the Texas Education Code,
Section 37. 0011 Use of Corporal Punishment,
corporal punishment means the deliberate
infliction of physical pain by hitting, paddling,
spanking, slapping, or any other physical force
used as a means of discipline.
Laffere, said corporal punishment is still
legal, but it varies from state to state and district
to district.
Teachers are required to have a discipline
curriculum, but they cannot administrate cor-
poral punishment if it is not within the district’s
policy.
Laffere has been teaching for more than 26
years and said, although it was very common
years ago, hardly any school practices corporal
punishment as discipline now.
Corporal punishment in schools can be
traced back to the 1977 Ingraham v. Wright
Supreme Court case, Laffere said.
Two male students, James Ingraham and
Roosevelt Andrews, stated that they had been
paddled in school an excessive amount of times
and with excessive force violating their right
under the Eighth Amendment, which prohibits
use of unusual punishment.
The students argued they were not given
previous notice of the
punishment, going
against the 14th
Amendment, which
requires due process
of law to protect the
individual from mis-
taken punishment.
The Supreme
Court stated the
Eighth Amendment
protects people
charged or convicted
of a crime, and the due process clause of the
14th Amendment does not require notice or
hearing prior to imposition of corporal punish-
ment as that practice is authorized.
Robledo said the early childhood center
does not use corporal punishment as a disci-
plinary measure.
Robledo said it is not used simply because it
is prohibited as a minimum standard for licens-
ing requirements by the Texas Department of
Family and Protective Services, but because it
does not help the child’s discipline.
When a child is being punished in a physi-
cal way, the child either becomes afraid of the
person giving the punishment, does not take
it seriously or often repeats the same mistake
for which the original punishment was issued,
Robledo said.
“Our way to discipline a child here in the
center is redirection,” Robledo said. “If we want
a child to walk and not run, we say, ‘Use your
walking feet,’ instead of saying, ‘Stop run-
ning.’”
Redirection shows children the right behav-
ior instead of focusing on unacceptable behav-
ior, Robledo continued.
Robledo also said even if parents approve of
corporal punishment,
teachers at the center
are not allowed to
administer it.
According to the
Texas Education
Code, Section 37.
0011 Use of Corporal
Punishment, to pro-
hibit, allow or rein-
state corporal pun-
ishment on a student
as a disciplinary mea-
sure a student’s parent, legal guardian, or other
person having lawful control over the student
must provide a written, signed statement to the
board of trustees of the school district in the
way stated by the board.
Leslie Garza, public information officer at
Harlandale Independent School District, said
the district does not require written permission
or approval from the parent because corporal
punishment is not being used.
The Harlandale 2012-2013 student-parent
handbook states corporal punishment can
be used as a discipline management tech-
nique alone or in combination with other
techniques.
Garza said corporal punishment is not
enforced at the district, even if stated in the
handbook. Suspension and expulsion are some
examples of their disciplinary measures.
The Center for Effective Discipline is a non-
profit organization that educates the public
about the effects of corporal punishment in
children and alternative ways of discipline,
Deborah Sendek, the center’s director, said.
People used to see children as miniature
adults and were working at a very young age
especially during the Industrial Revolution,
Sendek said.
Children were expected to behave, work,
and be punished as adults, Sendek said.
Psychologists are studying how children
think and comprehend, as they get new results,
the way children are treated should be changed,
Sendek continued.
Children are being educated to avoid violent
relationships, bullying, and to prevent domes-
tic violence, but at the same time an older
male or female is allowed to hit them at school,
Sendek explained.
According to the Associated Press, the
Springtown school district changed the policy
to expand, but not void, corporal punishment.
Now, opposite sex administrators can carry on
the punishment as long as a same-sex school
official is present.
Sendek said 30 states in the U.S., and the
District of Columbia, banned corporal punish-
ment from their schools.
In the remaining 19 states, it is still legal and
is more likely to happen in rural cities, Sendek
said.
Even if is not being allowed, the fact that it’s
still legal puts society several steps back from
the right direction, Sendek continued.
This is more than a disciplinary issue,
Sendek said, “It is a human rights issue; it is not
OK to hit people, especially children.”
For more information, call the early child-
hood center call 210-486-0530 or the education
program at 210-486-1275.
Paddling in schools still legal but not allowedCorporal punishment is legal in 19 states, including Texas.
By KIRK [email protected]
Service learning has decreased in the num-
ber of courses and volunteering opportunities
since moving to the office of student life in
August 2010 because there are no stipends or
bonuses to fund it, said Emily Kahanek, assistant
student life coordinator and director of the cen-
ter for civic engagement.
Kahanek said, and the college’s website
states, the goal of service learning is to for stu-
dents and professors to gain experience in a field
and give to the community. “Service learning
gives no additional pay. It takes a special profes-
sor to get involved with service learning without
compensation,” Kahanek said. “Professors can
choose whether or not to participate in giving
service learning courses.”
She said the program currently has five
professors and eight courses. Kahanek said no
information was available from previous semes-
ters of service learning classes and professors.
Art history Professor Debra Schafter said
students enrolled in service learning often get to
intern in the field of the service learning course.
Schafter also implements student learning as
an optional addition to her course, ARTS 1304,
Art History Survey 2.
Enrolled students are required to intern
at San Antonio Museum of Art, McNay Art
Museum, Artpace and Contemporary Art. Only
students approved by these museums and gal-
leries end up in the service learning component
of Schafter’s class.
Two students from the art history service
learning class recently participated in “Chalk It
Up,” one helping out with children and another
organizing with the event. “Chalk It Up” is an
annual arts festival on Houston Street from
Artpace and teaches people to build murals.
Students will earn a certificate for completed
service hours based on instructor requirements.
Mortuary science Professor Mary Mena
requires 48 hours in six weeks of service learning
for mortuary science while Schafter requires 32
hours of service learning in her art history course.
Mena said students receive grades for their
student learning experience. “Students will go
to different assigned funeral homes,” Mena said.
They will assist funeral home directors with
graves, escort them to a chapel and sit with the
funeral home director when making funeral
arrangements. Mena said service learning is
almost completed for her fall course, and she
intends to continue it in the spring.
In the past, sociology Professor Terri
Slonaker has been involved with service learn-
ing. Slonaker said she was not able to do it this
semester but she hopes to do it again in the
spring. Slonaker said students volunteered at
local hospice agencies, rehabilitation facilities
and played center activity bingo.
Sociology Adjunct John Algeo teaches a soci-
ology course in New Braunfels. Algeo said service
learning is optional for his class, and 18 hours of
service learning would allow participating stu-
dents to drop their lowest grade.
Students are also required to write sum-
maries in his course that apply sociology terms.
For more information, call Kahanek at 210-
486-0127 or visit http://www.alamo.edu/main.
aspx?id=4824.
Health Nov. 19, 201214 • The Ranger
Service learning an opportunity to get experience for careers
Complex carbs fuel the body By FELIPE PEREZ [email protected]
Some diets say carbohydrates are healthy;
others eliminate them from their programs.
So are carbs good or bad?
If you ask Wellness Coordinator Chris
Dillon, the answer is both.
Complex carbohydrates are the good
carbs.
Complex carbs are great for athletes
because of the source of energy they provide.
“Complex carbs are time-released bits of
energy; they help with your digestive track,”
Dillon said.
Good sources of complex carbs are 100
percent whole-grain cereals, bran cereals,
green vegetables and fresh fruits.
Complex carbs are good because they
help people feel full with few calories.
Simple carbs are carbs that are bad.
“Simple carbs are more of your quick fix
— sugar right now where you spike up and
then hit a wall an hour later,” Dillon said.
Simple carbs are bad because the empty
calories are converted into fat.
Breakfast is often called the most impor-
tant meal of the day.
“I could ask six out of 10 students if they
had breakfast this morning, and their answer
would be no,” Dillon said.
Need help with making the proper choic-
es on what to eat for breakfast?
“Egg whites, with a slice of 100 percent
whole-grain toast, and some oatmeal,”
Dillon said.
“Within the egg whites slice up green
peppers or spinach, and for another protein
source you can have low fat turkey bacon
with a glass of 100 percent fruit juice.”
Not everyone thinks about the nutritional
value of everything they feed themselves.
“Think of your body as a car,” Dillon said.
“Carbs are the fuel that make it run.”
“If we don’t put the right nutrients into
our body, you are not going to be as mobile
and function at your peak,” he added.
For information, visit the kinesiology depart-
ment’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.
com/sackinesiology. Call 210-486-1010.
www.theranger.org
GoANG.com/TX 1-800-TO-GO-ANGTalk to a recruiter today to learn more.
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SUCCESSIS 25,000 FEET UP. The men and women of the Air National Guard serve part-time,
which gives them the chance to dominate their full-time civilian
career fields as well. You’ll develop the kinds of high-tech skills
employers value, while receiving generous benefits and wearing
our country’s uniform with pride.
Juan Carlos Campos
By DIANA [email protected]
Veteran Valentin Martinez, a retired major in
the Bexar County Sheriff’s Department Support
Division, went back to school at the age of 45.
He wants others to know the value of an edu-
cation and giving back by volunteering.
He attended this college from 1982-85, com-
pleted 150 credit hours and received associate
degrees in law enforcement, criminal justice and
public administration.
He was president of the United Mexican-
American Association while he was a student
here.
He served more than 50 years in the Marine
Corps, Army, Air Force, Texas Army National
Guard and Texas State Guard and was awarded
three Purple Hearts and two Bronze Star medals.
Martinez is the founder of the All-American
Armed Forces Parade Association, Memorial
Service Detachment, U.S. Military Veterans
Parade Association and Alamo Silver Wings
Airborne Association.
Also, he is one of the founders of Military
Order of the Purple Heart Alamo Chapter 1836.
Martinez volunteered a total of 5,000 com-
munity service hours.
He attended Lanier High School and was a
member of the JROTC.
He dropped out of high school to join the
Marine Corps at the age of 16. He eventually
earned a GED on May 1, 1966.
He appreciated the military lifestyle because it
provided him clothing and three meals a day. He
didn’t live that lifestyle until he joined the military.
“The military was the answer because life
was hard,” he said.
“GI bill was the answer to all the veterans and
retired,” Martinez said.
The GI bill encouraged him to get an educa-
tion.
“We wanted to advance in ourselves in life,
and college was the answer,” he said.
“Age doesn’t matter make a difference,
whether you’re young or old, to attend college,”
he said.
Don’t be the average guy, always try to do
more than what you have, Martinez said.
Martinez said he is dedicated to continue
serving the country until his last day on Earth.
“I want to thank God for all these years in life
and all that I’ve done,” he said.
Martinez said, “Con Dios todo, sin Dios
nada,” meaning, “With God everything, without
God nothing.”
He encourages students to stay in college
because it will pay off.
By FELIPE PEREZ [email protected]
The dance program will stage a Works in
Progress show Dec. 7 highlighting routines stu-
dents will be performing for their Spring Show.
The Works in Progress show will take
place at 7 p.m. Dec. 7 in the auditorium of
McAllister Fine Arts Center. The performance
is open to the public, and tickets are $5 and
can be purchased at the door.
This is the first year the program has done
a Works in Progress show in which students
perform routines they have prepared for the
Spring Show May 10.
Money raised from Dec. 7 event will be
used to send members of the Dance Club
to dance workshops at Sam Houston State
University in Huntsville. Twelve students will
attend the workshops Jan. 24-27.
The dance program moved from the kinesi-
ology department and became part of the fine
arts department this fall.
“The biggest difference being part of the
fine arts department is being able to collaborate
with the theater department dancers,” kinesiol-
ogy Professor George Ann Simpson said.
More than 100 students taking dance
classes will be in the show. Students from tap,
jazz, ballet, lyrical, modern dance and the
dance performance class will be performing.
“Any time you do something for the first
time, it’s always very exciting. This show is no
exception,” Simpson said.
For more information, call 210-486-1021.
NewsNov. 19, 2012 The Ranger • 15
Veteran values education
Works in Progress set for Dec. 7Veteran and graduate Valentin Martinez
www.theranger.org
Dance sophomore Yana Lee and the rest of the dance performance class rehearse a routine for Works in Progress Tuesday in Candler. Monica Correa
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3/4 of clients receive services
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with the education, information,and services needed to make responsible choices about sex and reproduction.
584,000of unintended pregnancies averted by contraceptive services each year.
estim
ated
num
ber
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NLY
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Est. 2012
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Blue lights and colorful laser
beams brightened the Fiesta
Room of Loftin Student Center
while music blasted as student
models walked down the run-
way Wednesday for the seventh
annual fashion show.
The theme of the fashion show was
“San Antonio SAC in the City,” which Carrie
Hernandez, student life event coordinator, said
was a reference to the television series, “Sex in
the City.”
The fashion show was sponsored by the
office of student life and funded by the Student
Activity Fee Committee.
Hernandez helped students organize and
stage the show.
Student Government Association President
Jacob Wong, psychology sophomore, and SGA
commissioner Laura Belalcazar, criminal jus-
tice sophomore, emceed the show. SGA Vice
President Mike Martinez, anthropology sopho-
more, served as the DJ.
Belalcazar was the coordinator for the event,
which featured 14 student models, 10 females
and four males who auditioned in October.
Before the show, the female models fixed
their hair and makeup in the Fiesta Room, and
the male models got ready behind black drapes.
Some of the female models had makeup
applied by cosmetologist Cynthia Garza who
volunteered to help.
Biology sophomore Kim-Briana Lorine, who
is the Phi Theta Kappa president, was a model
in the show.
“It’s a fun event. I watched it last year and
thought I’d try out this year,” she said.
Most of the models had two business outfits
and two eveningwear outfits.
The first part of the fashion show was
dedicated to a contest hosted by Generations
Federal Credit Union.
The bank donated $20 to each model to
spend at Goodwill.
The models had to assemble an outfit suit-
able for business attire with the $20 budget,
and the winner would receive a free iPad from
Generations Federal Credit Union.
“You don’t have to spend a lot of money to
dress nice,” Kimberley Blohm, student brand
ambassador from the credit union, said.
As each model came out from the black
drapes and struck a pose, noise of the crowd
increased.
Business freshman Terrell Stewart walked
the runway in a black suit with a black and red
tie. The audience reacted with whistles as he
posed.
To choose the winner, Blohm asked for
the audience to
applaud for the
outfit they liked
best.
The mod-
els lined up on
the stage, and
Belalcazar asked
each one to step
forward.
The audience
replied with whis-
tles and applause
for all models, but one model, early childhood
sophomore Michelle Negrón, received more
applause than the others.
Negrón won the contest for business attire
she bought from Goodwill. She said many of
her family members told her that she should be
a model, and that’s why she decided to partici-
pate in the show.
Negrón wore a white blazer, black blouse
and white pants for her business attire.
Graduate Lizzie McDonald, who participat-
ed as a model in last fall’s fashion show, came to
show her support as a spectator.
“I had the most fun with the other girls, and
we rehearsed a lot,” she said.
McDonald described this year’s fashion
show atmosphere as glamorous, sassy and
exciting because of the decorations, music and
lasers.
Before the models came out in eveningwear,
students continued to line up outside the Fiesta
Room to gain entrance. Each student had to
sign a sign-up sheet for the student life office.
Many stopped at the refreshments table for
free lemonade and popcorn.
For the eveningwear portion of the show,
the female models wore dresses and the male
models wore suits.
The eveningwear was either the model’s
own clothing or
borrowed from
Arden B in North
Star Mall, Wong
said.
The store man-
ager of Arden B,
Amadilia Galindo,
also attended the
fashion show.
The female
models took turns
sitting on a cube
chair behind the drapes waiting for their turn
to walk.
When it was their turn, two male models
opened the drapes, and one held out his hand
and led the model to the runaway where she
showed off her dressy attire.
Three of the female models designed their
own dresses.
Education freshman Sierra Rose Solano and
liberal arts freshman Susan Maghami designed
black dresses, and business sophomore Sonya
Love created a mustard halter-top dress.
Each model posed with the four male models
who served as a backdrop, and Belalcazar play-
fully described them as the “girls’ accessories.”
As the show ended, the models posed for
photos by audience members.
Behind the black drapes, cookies cut as mar-
tini glasses, heels, shoulder bags, and shirts that
read “San Antonio SAC in the City” were pro-
vided for the models by the office of student life.
Wong referred questions about the cost of
the production to Hernandez, who could not be
reached Thursday.
Feature Nov. 19, 201216 • The Ranger
Nursing sophomore Nicole Herrera and business admin-istration freshman Karen Ibarra help Negrón get ready.
Liberal arts sophomore Jon Martinez stands vigil while business sophomore Sonya Love walks the runway Wednesday in the Fiesta Room of Loftin. Martinez helped the contestants step down during the fashion show.
Liberal arts freshman Gladymar Nieves walks a runway during a fashion show Wednesday. The office of student life sponsored the seventh fashion show “SAC in the City” in the Fiesta Room of Loftin.
Early childhood sophomore Michelle Negrón wins the seventh fashion show and an iPad while the runner-up, business administration freshman Karen Ibarra, cheers loudly.
www.theranger.org
Story by Nicole A. West • Photos by Riley Stephens
Lights!Glamour!Fashion!