Page 6 SGA votes Take it all off!

Volume 56, Issue 14

Monday, December 1, 2003

The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost Collegewww.sa.utb.edu/collegian/ INSIDE

Page 11

Community gathers forFeast of Sharing

Thousands of peopleenjoyed a deliciousThanksgiving meal andmusical entertainmentduring H-E-B's 11thannual Feast of Sharingat the Jacob BrownAuditorium.

Page 6

New courses addedto School of Business

degrees

Page 9

Buena Vida revitalization taking root

SGA votesfor referendumon rec center

The UTB/TSC Centerfor Civic Engagementhas been working toimprove the lives of res-idents from the BuenaVida neighborhood,offering family counsel-ing, helping them puttogether a neighbor-hood watch, teachingchildren history and art,as well as informingadults about voting,greening and wellness.

Nursing program receives state grant

UTB/TSC has received a$48,000 grant from the TexasHigher Education CoordinatingBoard to help develop master-prepared nurses to serve aspotential faculty in the AssociateDegree Nursing program.

The grant "will [also] providefunds to support the develop-ment and training of current fac-ulty," UTB/TSC President JulietV. García told the SouthmostUnion Junior College Districtboard of trustees during its Nov.20 meeting.

She said the university antici-pates that this training will bring

"at least six new master-levelstudents that will commit to theproject and become nursing fac-ulty upon graduation."

The university also hasreceived $37,000 fromCoordinating Board for a sum-mer institute to provide pre-nursing enrichment for studentswho want to enter the Associate

Degree Nursing program.In other business, board chair-

man Chester Gonzalez said theinaugural meeting of theUTB/TSC Futures Commissionon Nov. 19 "was a success."

He said the commission will"help us design the next level of

By Analiz GonzálezStaff Writer

See ‘Board,’ Page 12

A new degree planwill affect those seek-ing bachelor of busi-ness administration orbachelor of applied artsand sciences degrees,university officials say.

SONIA MEJIA/COLLEGIAN

Jose Ricalday, a sophomore computer science major and captain ofLos Dormitorios soccer team, gets his head shaved by Ivan Alvarado, asophomore business major and captain of La Korrupcion soccer team.Los Dormitorios lost to La Korrupcion Nov. 21 in a tourney sponsoredby the Office of Student Activities. The teams bet that the captain of thelosing team would shave his head.

Take it all off!

The UTB/TSC Student Government Associationhas passed a resolution to support and create a ref-erendum next spring on building a recreation cen-ter at UTB/TSC.

Student Government Association PresidentEdward Camarillo explained during the Nov. 21meeting that the purpose of the resolution was tocreate a referendum in conjunction with StudentAffairs in favor of proposing the construction ofthe rec center.

The resolution also calls for the SGA to spend nomore than $300 in the campaign.

Freshman Senator Abraham Ponce askedwhether a committee was currently in place for thecampaign.

Camarillo replied that there was and that heserves on the committee, along with SergioMartinez, of Student Affairs; Alex Salinas, SGAvice president for historical archives; and Directorof Student Activities and Resident Life VinceSolis, who heads the committee.

James Vogelsang, upper-level senator for theCollege of Science, Mathematics and Technology,asked whether the referendum applied to the stu-dent body or the community.

Camarillo said the referendum was for students.Senator Luis Gutierrez, lower-level senator for

the School of Business, asked the president wherethe proposed recreational sports facility would bebuilt.

Camarillo replied that the immediate purpose of

By Adrian PeñaStaff Writer

See ‘SGA,’ Page 16

The Collegian December 1, 2003 • PAGE 3On Campus

Campus to observe Mexican holiday traditions

The posada and pastorela, two holi-day traditions of the Mexican culture,will take place at 7 p.m. Friday on theUTB/TSC campus.

The Office of Student Activities andthe Dean of Students Office are spon-soring the event, which is divided inthree parts: the peregrinación, the pas-torela and the posada.

The peregrinación, or procession,starts at the Free Speech Area, which islocated behind Gorgas Hall, and endsat the SET-B Plaza. The processionwill consist of students portrayingMary and Joseph walking along withperegrinos, or pilgrims and re-enactingtheir search for lodging before JesusChrist's birth. The procession will gothrough the university's paseo, where"homes" will be set up, and the pil-grims will ask for lodging.

After the peregrinación, the pas-torela will take place at 7:30 p.m. inthe SET-B Lecture Hall. The pastorela,or shepherd's play, is about the birth ofJesus.

Students, most of them members of

Club Cultural Latinoamericano, willperform the play. Club member RaulContreras volunteered to adapt thescript from an older version and todirect the play.

University officials say the event iscultural, not religious.

"It's something cultural, we don't seeit as religious," said Aragelia Salazar-Figueroa, a student development spe-cialist for the Dean of Students Officeand sponsor of the club.

During the Spanish colonization ofMexico, the Spaniards used pastorelas

to evangelize the natives. The shep-herd's play has become an importanttradition of Mexican culture.

Today, pastorelas are comedies donein a modern way. The costumes and thestage might have an up-to-date look,but the message is still the same as thefirst pastorelas: good vs. evil.

At the end of the pastorela, around8:30 p.m., the posada will take place.This is a Mexican-style party withfood, piñatas, games such as lotería,and a performance by GrupoFolklórico Tizatlán.

Vince Solis, director of StudentActivities and Resident Life, said theuniversity is expecting a big crowd.

"It's one of our largest events, we areanticipating about 600 or 700 peoplethis year," he said.

UTB/TSC has celebrated the posa-da/pastorela for 11 years.

"This pastorela started back in 1992and we started with a small group ofmembers, and it was something small,and every year it's getting bigger andbigger, and it's part of the traditionsthat we don't want to lose," Salazar-Figueroa said.

The event is open to the public.Admission is free.

By Andrea FigueroaStaff Writer

Monica Padilla, Jesus Paredes, Karla Treviño and Crisanto Villarrealportray angels for the pastorela.

DAMARIS GLORIA/COLLEGIAN

CCoommee eennjjooyy tthhee ffrreeee ffeessttiivviittiieess,, wwhhiicchh iinnlluuddee mmaarriiaacchhiiss,, ppiiññaattaass,, ffoooodd aanndd lloottss ooff ffuunn!!

UTB/TSCPresents the 2003

PPoossaaddaa aanndd PPaassttoorreellaa BBeeggiinnss aatt 77 pp..mm.. DDeecc.. 55 iinn tthhee FFrreeee SSppeeeecchh AArreeaa!!

FFrreeee ttoo EEnnttiirree CCoommmmuunniittyy

ViewpointPAGE 4 • December 1, 2003 The Collegian

Student Soapbox

"Yeah I would, I mean the gym right now is really limited and anincrease in machines and stuff would be good. It would be fun thatway. We would have more choices."--Selena BarbosaFreshman education major

"Yes, because it would increase the number of athletes in the schooland it would bring more students to the university."--Sarai BarreraFreshman

Would you support a fee to finance a recre-ational sports facility for the university?

Last week I had an argument with aclassmate about my career and heasked me, "Well, what does a musiciando?" The most logical answer wouldbe to perform but that's when I stoppedand thought about it. What does it taketo be a good musician?

When I started with this dream, myidea was to go to college, educatemyself, go out and get a contract to bethe next Whitney Houston. Reality is,people take for granted the real duty ofthe musician.

My first semester as a musician Ithought it was going to be easy; Imean, what is the science of it, really?Then when I went to the classes it wasa real shocker!

"You need to support the tone, breathwith your diaphragm, lift your softpalate and let the sound go out," theprofessor said in my first class. Somany things have to be under controlwhen you are singing!

I was a bit disappointed because Ifound it hard to understand this entire-ly new concept. Even though it justseems like something simple, let metell you, it takes a lot of determinationto be a good musician.

I decided to do some research byasking some musicians. They told methat one of the most important things isto perform well but above all, to haveacceptance from the audience. That iswhen it clicked, that the most impor-

tant thing above all is what your audi-ence thinks of you.

I decided to continue with my jour-ney toward music and got invited toperform. I thought, 'Oh, my God! Whatam I going to do?' So I prepared reper-tory for the performance. When I wasabout to perform, my heartbeat waslike a drum playing some sort of calyp-so but after I performed, that is whenthe expectation began. Will they likeit? Did I do a good job? And a thou-sand more questions kept popping inmy head. Then, I heard a warm roundof applause and felt the acceptance.

One of the most important thingspeople need to realize is how difficultit is to be a well-rounded musician.The idea that you have to be born withtalent to be a musician is just a myth. Ilearned that what makes you be a goodmusician is not your looks, how muchmoney you spend on your appearance,if you have a Billboard top 10 recordor if you were born with talent; whatmakes somebody a good musician ishard work and perseverance.

In other words, never give up whensomebody tells you that you cannot doit, that you have to be born with talent.I know a lot of musicians who say theyare talented and want to be pop starsand a lot of others who want to do itjust for fun. There is nothing wrongwith that, because what will makethem achieve their ultimate goal istheir willingness to commit to theircareers.

By Lorena CruzTiempo Nuevo Editor

A musician's profession

Without financial pain, there is no gainThe journey to a higher education

can at times be a tough, daunting andcostly venture. Soon enough, the roadto receiving a college diploma in Texaswill cost even more than it alreadydoes.

The recent tuition/fee increases pro-posed by universities is not an act ofmoney grubbing toward the students,but rather a necessity in response to thestate's recent budget cuts.

In this last legislative session--filledwith re-districting quarrels and missingcongressmen--our elected leaders

agreed to give Texas universities thepower to regulate tuition. Thus, thisreduced the amount of funding provid-ed by the state to the universities.

Enter UTB/TSC. Our university is growing rapidly

with a projected 11,000 students slatedto attend classes this upcoming springsemester. However, with growth comegrowing pains.

Think of the university as a growing10-year-old child with legs and armsfeeling pain from a growth spurt. Toaccommodate the growing pain, thechild needs some fast-acting cream, buthis parents will not give it to us.

In UTB/TSC's case, our "cream" isfunding and the only way to receive itis to increase fees.

According to a recent BrownsvilleHerald article reporting on the propos-als, the tuition and fees will increase16percent in Fall 2004. Granted, our uni-versity has the lowest tuition rate in thestate, and chances are the fee increaseswill not be felt by students on financialaid. Meanwhile, the students who donot qualify for financial aid get theshaft.

No one should blame the university.Our library is in desperate need ofimprovements and our academic advis-

ing center is in need of more adviserswith a waiting list reaching the 10-milemark.

In order to preserve the quality of ouruniversity and meet the growingdemand of students, these fees aresomewhat necessary.

Consequently, as I, along with thethousands of other Scorpions, enter thenext few semesters of our college edu-cation-trying to better our futures-wewill tighten our financial belts-all inthe name of saving the state a fewbucks.

Joshua Caldwell is a sophomore.

By Joshua Caldwell

"Yes, I agree to it because a campus like this needs more activities forstudents. [It will help] keep them busy and keep them interested inthe campus [so that they will want] to stay here instead of leaving theValley to go to another college."--David EscobarSophomore criminal justice major

--Compiled by Analiz González


Retirement Income

LD4310-05/03

Yturria offers global economic perspective

As part of the InternationalEducation Week celebration, FrankYturria, chairman of the Inter-American Foundation, gave an eco-nomic perspective of Latin Americaand the world.

The IAF was established byCongress 30 years ago as an independ-ent agency that provides grants to non-governmental and community-basedorganizations principally in LatinAmerica and the Caribbean.

The IAF supports self-help develop-ment programs in poor countries toimprove the quality of life, providingan opportunity for individual develop-ment, entrepreneurship, innovationand to strengthen relations among thecountries.

Yturria, a South Texas rancher andbusinessman, has visited countries allover the world, observing the condi-

tions and conflicts people have to face. Referring to Latin American Indians,

Yturria said that the conditions ofwretched poverty prevailing amongthem deal directly with discriminationand persecution. Local governmentsand corrupt politicians stand in theway of the development of the people.

Another problem Latin Americancountries face is the deportation ofcriminals from the United States, hesaid. When criminals are sent back,local governments do not have theinfrastructure and the money to dealwith them.

Yturria described the programs theIAF has financed in countries such asGuatemala, where a small number ofpeople were producing car batteriesand earning the money to establish a

successful business employing localpeople.

The IAF also supports programs inMexico.

"We have a number of targets inMexico," Yturria said. "Most of thetargets are south from the border,down where the real poverty is." InChiapas, Mexico, local Indians weregranted funds to produce and exportcoffee and orchids. On the gulf coast,fishing villages are established to earnlocal currency and, by this, preventingthe necessity of people to leave theirhometowns and go across the border.

The IAF programs are helping tobuild the middle class and provide theresources to improve their situation.

Yturria also lectured about the situa-tion in European countries where theliteracy rate is 100 percent. There thegovernments and the people have theinfrastructure and resources to be com-petitive in today's world.

He said the United States and LatinAmerican countries should form a blocof trading and mutual cooperation tocompete globally.

Today it will be very hard for stu-dents to find a job, he said.

"Young people have competitionfrom all over the world, students mightbe diligent and don't goof," Yturriasaid.

He had some advice for internation-al students attending colleges in theUnited States.

"My advice to them is learn as muchas you can here and take it back homeand try to apply it," Yturria said. "Theonly people that are going to changethings are you young people, and youare going to change it for the best orthe worse."

By Arath LopezStaff Writer

MARIA DURON/COLLEGIAN

Frank Yturria lectures on "Incorporating the World in Your CollegeEducation" to more than 30 students and faculty on Nov. 19 at the SET-B Lecture Hall. Yturria's presentation was one of several events on cam-pus celebrating International Education Week.

PAGE 6 • December 1, 2003 On Campus The Collegian

A new degree plan will affect thoseseeking bachelor of business adminis-tration or bachelor of applied arts andsciences degrees, university officialssay.

Students who have already signed adegree plan do not need to sign the newdegree plan, said Suzanne Hardebeck,chairwoman of the BusinessAdministration Department.

Hardbeck said two new courses thatwill be offered in Spring 2004 are nowpart of the degree plan: Introduction toBusiness (BUSI 1301) and BusinessWriting (ENGL 3322).

"Introduction to Business is now partof the degree plan, when it wasn'tbefore; students are recommended totake it to see if they'll like it," saidRussell Adams, director of the Schoolof Business' MBA program.

The upper-level course, BusinessWriting, is replacing the lower-divisioncourse, Technical and Business Writing(ENGL 2311).

"We are trying to align what the busi-ness community and companiesrequire from our students," Adamssaid. In most companies and business-es, "writing skills are a critical compo-nent of that, if you can't communicatethen you can't succeed in business,

actually the No. 1 skill necessary iscommunication."

Adams said hundreds of studentshave signed the new degree plan.

The English and Speech Departmentand the School of Business worked incollaboration to create the BusinessWriting course.

"Business majors who have beenplanning to take the ENGL 2311 needto be taking the 3322 instead; theymight want to go and talk to the advis-er for the School of Business," saidCharles Dameron, chairman of theEnglish Department.

The new course was created for theneeds of the business students,Dameron said.

"It is a course that focuses on thekind of writing that students in theSchool of Business need to do for theircoursework … but also the kind ofwriting that they will be doing whenthey're professionals in the businessworld," he said.

Dameron said English majors willbenefit from it, too.

"It is also available for Englishmajors, since it is an upper-levelEnglish course," he said.

Dameron anticipates that most stu-dents registering for the course will bebusiness majors.

He said there had been a couple ofproblems with ENGL 2311.

"The main issue is that it was alower-division course and it wasn'treally able to give the students themore advanced skills, the moreadvanced focus that we can offer withan upper-division course," he said.

Dameron said the Technical andBusiness Writing course was notfocused strictly on business writingbecause it had to accommodate stu-dents in criminal justice, nursing, engi-neering technology and anyone elsewho wanted to take ENGL 2311. Hesaid this broadened the focus of thecourse material.

Assistant Professor for Speech andEnglish Teresa Murden will be theinstructor for Business Writing, hesaid.

"We are advertising right now for anew faculty member with a Ph.D.degree in technical communication,"Dameron said. "Dr. Murden has thecredentials and the background toteach the course but what we want todo is to bring someone in, who is even

more focused in that area."Three sections that can accommo-

date a total of 78 students have beenopened for the spring semester.

"Then, depending on the demand forthe course, more sections will be addedthe following semesters," Dameronsaid.

Dameron said this change will givestudents more flexibility, since theywill be able to start taking upper-levelcourses even if they have not taken thiscourse. Before, they had to have ENGL2311 completed so that they could starttaking upper-level courses. The prereq-uisites are still composition I and com-position II.

One section of ENGL 2311 wasopened for the spring semester. It wasfull within the first two days of regis-tration.

"I'm pretty sure that most of those[students] are business majors, becausethe business majors, they know theyneed it, they try to get it very quickly,"Dameron said.


New courses added to School of Business degrees

Foundation awards scholarships

Several UTB/TSC students are recipients of scholarships from theSouth Texas Higher Education Foundation, a nonprofit corpora-tion that provides higher education assistance funds for students inSouth Texas. The amount of each scholarship ranges from $500 to$1,000. Shown (front row, from left) are Mari Chapa, Financial Aiddirector; scholarship recipients Jacqueline Segura, Laura Robledo,Mirna Gabriela Vasquez, Maria Irma Berlanga, Elizabeth Vargas,Alma Rosa Guerra, Jessica Garcia; and Karla Sosa, scholarshipcoordinator. Back row: scholarship recipients Joel Zamora, MariaElsa Mendez, Ester Leal, Irma Hernandez, Georgia Gongora andNorma Medina.

COURTESY PHOTO

Futures Commission to mapuniversity’s next 20 years

Six task forces consisting of commu-nity members, high school and univer-sity students, and faculty and staffmembers comprise the UTB/TSCFutures Commission that has beencharged with outlining the university'snext 20 years of operation.

"It is not very often that we get calledto do this kind of important work,"UTB/TSC President Juliet V. Garcíasaid during the initial meeting of thecommission on Nov. 19 in the StudentUnion's Gran Salon. "We are all callednow to help do this together."

García explained the urgency of thesituation through a horticulturalmetaphor.

"You've been asked to help plantsome trees not knowing if they'reexactly in the right place, but knowingthat if we nurture them, if we waterthem … they're going to grow," Garcíasaid.

The six task forces composing thecommission are Financing, Friend andFund Raising, Academic Programs,Workforce Training and ContinuingEducation, Student Life and Campus

Planning.After García and other university

officials described the work of thecommission, each task force met sepa-rately.

The Friend and Fund-Raising TaskForce is led by Associate Professor ofCurriculum and Instruction ReynaldoRamirez and Harlingen attorney RandyWhittington.

At this task force meeting, VicePresident for InstitutionalAdvancement William Strong identi-fied two sources of university funding:philanthropic funding streams and fed-eral funds.

Strong told the task force that exter-nal funding has grown from $23,242 in1992 to $12,511,871 in 2003.

"This [growth] is particularlyimpressive," Strong said. "Most ofthose dollars are coming from … thevarious research interests in health sci-ences, biology, physics, NASA,[National Institutes of Health]," Strongsaid. "The more we build those pro-grams … the more these dollars willincrease."

Strong compared UTB/TSC's

By Adrian PeñaStaff Writer

See ‘Futures,’ Page 11

On CampusThe Collegian December 1, 2003 • PAGE 7

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UT-Austin graduate student urges undergrads to get master's

Zoraima Diaz, a graduate student inthe LBJ School of Public Affairs at theUniversity of Texas at Austin, visitedUTB/TSC recently to talk about gradu-ate school opportunities there.

Diaz, who addressed about a dozenstudents Nov. 13 in the Student Union'sBougainvillea room, encouraged stu-dents to apply not only for the publicaffairs but also other master's pro-grams.

"We're really at this point trying tostress not only obviously students toapply, but students of color and thatspecifically means Latino, African-Americans and Asian students, becausewe're running a deficit at the

University of Texas," said Diaz,explaining that in her class of about260, only 12 are students of color.

Diaz is a member of the PublicAffairs Alliance for Communities ofColor. Members "are traveling to cam-puses throughout the country to try andencourage students of color to pursue amaster's degree in public affairs or pub-lic policy," Diaz stated in an e-mail toUTB/TSC prior to her visit.

She detailed the public affairs degreeprogram, including the kind of classesthat the students have to take. Theduration of the program is two years,with a total of 53 credit hours. Studentstake full course loads of about 12 hoursper semester.

Some students in the audiences wereconcerned about the GPA and GRE

requirements. Diaz emphasized thateven though a grade-point averageabove 3.0 and a Graduate RecordExam score around 500 are recom-mended, that should not deter themfrom applying.

Letters of recommendation are

required as well. Diaz advised studentswho are interested in applying to askwork and volunteer supervisors to rec-ommend them. The Fall 2004 admis-sions application deadline is Jan.15.

The LBJ School of Public Affairs

Santa's great helper

Great Steak and Potato employee Juanita Saldivar smiles whileshe connects the Christmas lights at El Comedor Nov. 24.

LUIS MARTINEZ/COLLEGIAN

Club SpotlightName: The Collegian Press ClubPurpose: To provide timely news

and information to students andemployees of the University ofTexas at Brownsville and TexasSouthmost College and to provide alearning environment for studentsinterested in journalism. The staffproduces The Collegian newspaper,The Collegian Online and TheCollegian News (television news-cast).

President: Sonia MejiaSecretary: Analiz GonzálezTreasurer: Jamie StandefordSponsor: Azenett CornejoEvents: Members attend the

Texas Intercollegiate Press

Association Convention each springto take part in journalism work-shops and to compete in contestsranging from news writing and pho-tography to advertising design andtelevision announcing.

Meetings: 1 p.m. Fridays in theStudent Publications office, locatedin Student Union room 1.28

Requirements: Minimum 2.2GPA.

For more information: call 554-5143 or send an e-mail to [email protected] or visit the StudentPublications office.

--Compiled by Priscilla Garcia

ROY MARTINEZ/FOR THE COLLEGIAN

Members of The Collegian Press Club include (front row, fromleft) Azenett Cornejo, Student Publications coordinator; GriseldaValerio; Maria Duron; and Jamie Standeford; treasurer. Middlerow: Andrea Figueroa; Priscilla Garcia; Mary Lou Alvarez;Damaris Gloria; Ana Sanchez, administrative assistant; andAdrian Peña. Back row: Andrew Nenque; David Martinez; LouieVera; Chris Aguilar; Sonia Mejia, president; Arath Lopez;Lorena Cruz; Analiz Gonzalez, secretary; and Luis Martinez.


See ‘Public,’ Page 9

On CampusPAGE 8 • December 1, 2003 The Collegian

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Classifieds

Stray cat roundup hits snag

The Cat Coalition's effort to roundup more than two dozen stray cats oncampus is being impeded by someonewho is releasing the cats from traps,officials say.

Traps were set around campus onNov. 17. Five cats were caught, buttwo were released before the coalitioncould transport them to the veterinari-an.

The trapped cats are taken to a vet-erinarian office to be tested for dis-eases, receive vaccinations and havemicrochips placed in their necks foridentification, said Amanda Fuhro,director of Human Resources and amember of the Cat Coalition.

After this happens, the cats arereleased where they were caught.

Fuhro said the only way theCoalition can capture the cats and takethem to a veterinarian is by using traps.

"The traps don't hurt the animal,"Fuhro said. "The idea is to control thecat population while getting the bene-fits of having them on campus, whichis to control the rodents."

Of the five cats captured, only threehave been taken to a veterinarian,Fuhro said, because someone releasedthe other two.

"[The people releasing the cats]

think we mean harm, but we reallydon't," Fuhro said. "These cats aregoing to be so much better off after thecapturing and releasing process."

She said the cats on campus aregoing to be healthy cats that will be fedregularly and will be given water.

Besides Fuhro, members of the CatCoalition are Alma Leal, associate pro-fessor for School Specialties;Rosemary Martinez, vice president forBusiness Affairs; Charles Bevers,director of Environmental Health andSafety; Edward Camarillo, StudentGovernment Association president;Jenifer Chatfield, associate veterinari-an at Gladys Porter Zoo; Ruth AnnRagland, associate vice president forAcademic Affairs; and JosephZavaletta, interim director of theCenter for Civic Engagement and anassistant professor in the AccountingDepartment.

The cost of trapping, vaccinating,neutering and releasing each cat will bebetween $60 and $80. Martinez, Leal,and Fuhro are donating the money tocarry out the program.

Fuhro said the Cat Coalition is tryingto do a good thing on campus but "weneed help."

"We need people to not release thecats from the cages," she said.

She also said that people should notfeed the cats because if there is plentyof cat food they will not be lured to getthe cat food set up in the traps. Peoplewho would like to donate cat foodshould contact Fuhro.

Fuhro said the Cat Coalition is look-ing for a volunteer group to help feedthe cats and help with the traps andtransportation to the veterinarian.

Those interested in volunteering maycall Fuhro at 554-7067 or Martinez at544-8240.


CHRIS AGUILAR/COLLEGIAN

Director of Human ResourcesAmanda Fuhro stands next to acat trap on campus. Three catshave been captured, fixed, vacci-nated, tested for diseases and thenreleased.

Belting out a love song


Jose Roberto Leos sings "Hermoso Cariño" during the MariachiEscorpión fund-raiser concert Nov. 19 in the SET-B Lecture Hall,which was filled to capacity.

Record-setting winter commencement draws near

The end of a journey for almost 900students will come when they walkacross the stage Dec. 20 duringUTB/TSC's Winter Commencement.

A record-setting 871 students arescheduled to graduate at the cere-monies. A total of 195 students willreceive certificates, 318 will receiveassociate of arts degrees, 299 willreceive bachelor's degrees, 58 willreceive master's degrees, and one willreceive the diplomado de administra-cion de empresas degree.

Registrar Albert Barreda said thiswinter's commencement is the largestone yet.

"There are three graduation cere-monies that will take place this year,"Barreda said. "It's going to take addi-tional coordination so that each of thecommencements goes off well and sothat it will be something memorable for

the graduates."At 10 a.m., the College of Liberal

Arts will graduate 325 students.At 2 p.m., the School of Business will

graduate 163 students, the College ofScience, Mathematics and Technologywill graduate 168 students, and theSchool of Health Sciences will gradu-ate 61 students.

The School of Education will gradu-ate 154 students at 6 p.m.

Serving as keynote speaker at eachceremony will be Dr. Elena Marin,executive director of Su ClinicaFamiliar in Harlingen. Marin graduatedwith an associate of arts degree fromTexas Southmost College in 1975 andtransferred to the University ofHouston, where she received a bache-lor's degree in pharmacy. She graduatedfrom Boston University's School ofMedicine in 1983.

By Adrian PeñaStaff Writer Grad fulfills dad’s wish, Page 13


Sagittarius (Nov. 23-Dec. 21):Helping others makes you feel goodinside, especially if they offer to buyyou lunch.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20):Friends and classmates will be nosierthan usual, but since you like talkingabout yourself, you won't mind.

Aquarius (Jan. 21-Feb. 19): Subtlehints don't work.

Pisces (Feb. 20-March 20): Youwill try to look important while stand-ing in the hallway, but everyone willignore you anyway.

Aries (March 21-April 20): Yourembarrassment for watching certainfilms will cause you to tell others, "Itwas for a class project."

Taurus (April 21-May 21):Attempts to win $500 by creating ashort film will be frustrating as otherpeople keep getting in your way.

Gemini (May 22-June 21): Today,you will take special delight in burst-ing other people's bubbles.

Cancer (June 22-July 22): Otherswill be amused by your inability tofind what you need most at a crucialtime.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22): Yourdreams of being an actor will be real-ized when a fellow student brings acamera to campus to make a short filmfor an Internet contest.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 23): You willmanage to save at least $5 this week byborrowing print cards from yourfriends.

Libra (Sept. 24-Oct. 23): You willdiscover a new talent for being lazy.For some reason, this will please youimmensely.

Scorpio (Oct. 24-Nov. 22): Youwill scare your friends again, but thistime it will be because you are unusu-ally talkative and expressive.

Mystik SisterBy Griselda ValerioStaff Writer

Buena Vida revitalization taking rootThe UTB/TSC Center for Civic

Engagement has been working toimprove the lives of residents from theBuena Vida neighborhood, offeringfamily counseling, helping them puttogether a neighborhood watch, teach-ing children history and art, as well asinforming adults about voting, green-ing and wellness.

"This is what a community universi-ty is all about," said Joseph Zavaletta,interim director of the Center for CivicEngagement.

The center is helping students see theneeds of the community firsthand, saidAlma Garcia, leadership organizer forthe community and residence associa-tion.

"That is very important because any-one can tell you," Garcia said. "But it'snot the same if you see it."

Buena Vida Project President LeticiaSierra said neighborhood residentswant the Center for CivicEngagement's help to "create betterchildren and better families with thehelp of the counselors and the teachersthat are coming to the neighborhood."

"The programs and clinics Dr.Zavaletta promised us are comingalong and we are really happy andgrateful to [him] and the people thatwork at the center," Sierra said.

On Nov. 22 the center sponsored ablock party in the neighborhood.

The Cameron County HealthDepartment administered free flu shotsduring the party and six UTB/TSCfreshmen in the Associate Degree inNursing program provided informationon nutrition and pregnancy. They alsochecked the residents' eyesight, bloodpressure and blood sugar levels as part

of a class assignment.Registered nurse and former Buena

Vida resident Ana Rodriguez spoke to agroup of residents about "breaking thechain" of poverty and improving theirsituation.

"If I can do it you can do it," she said.Zavaletta said the center plans to pre-

pare Buena Vida residents for the 2004election by having voter registrationdrives.

Jennifer Godfrey, the center's Artsand Beauty assistant, is teaching neigh-borhood children art, as well as teach-ing wellness, exercise and nutrition toadults.

Godfrey said the work she is doingwith the residents "is showing themthat we really do care about theirhealth, about their education and bet-tering their life here."

She said about 15 women come toexercise, relax and stretch as well aslearn about healthy eating Monday andThursday mornings at 10 a.m. in theBuena Vida Community Center, at 15thand Tyler streets.

Sierra said the Center for CivicEngagement has "helped us a lotbecause we come to the aerobics class-es and my son comes in the evening tolearn history and art."

Civic Engagement volunteer andBuena Vida resident Leonor Garciasaid she decided to volunteer becauseshe wanted to help out.

Garcia goes from house to househanding out fliers to inform the resi-dents of what is being done in theneighborhood.

UTB/TSC received a three-year,$400,000 grant from the U.S. Housingand Urban Development Departmentto revitalize the neighborhood, whichis bounded by International Boulevard,Expressway 77/83 and Gladys Porter

Zoo.Zavaletta said the federal grant will

end next fall."Unfortunately, that is what happens

to a lot of our initiatives," he said. "Wehave a grant, we go for three years, andthen we pack up and go home. … Idon't want that to happen to this."

Zavaletta said he would like to seefunding for the Buena Vida Projectcome from the UTB/TSC budget "sothe question is to look for a strategy indoing that."

Zavaletta said he probably will askfor a year extension on the grant "totake us into September 2005."


ARATH LOPEZ/COLLEGIAN

A tug-of-war was one of the recreational activities that took place duringthe Buena Vida neighborhood block party sponsored by UTB/TSC'sCenter for Civic Engagement on Nov. 22.

usually has about 100 to110 students.This last year, the entering class con-sisted of about 160 students. Diaz saidthe greater number reflects the state ofthe economy.

"If the economy takes a downturn,everybody wants to go back to gradschool," she said.

Diaz also spoke about the SouthTexas Graduate Fellowship Program.This program will offer $10,620 to 20

first-year students. Of this amount,$620 will be designated for medicalinsurance and the rest for tuition andfees. Those students entering any mas-ter's or doctoral program at UT-Austin,and who are graduating or have gradu-ated from any public university inSouth Texas, are eligible. The recipientwill be able to combine this award withany other appointment or fellowship,but will be required to register fulltime. This program also allows recipi-ents who are non-Texas residents topay in-state tuition.

PublicContinued from Page 7

PAGE 10 • December 1, 2003 The CollegianOn Campus

Ambassador reflects on Mexico's political changes

The U.S. ambassador to Mexico saysgrowing up in Brownsville preparedhim for the job.

"There was no better preparation forwhat I'm doing now, than growing upin this community," Antonio O. GarzaJr. told about 100 people gathered inStudent Union's Gran Salon Nov. 24for his lecture and a reception in hishonor.

"It's a fascinating time to be servingin Mexico because of the changingpanorama in terms of their politics," hesaid.

The election of Vicente Fox as presi-dent of Mexico was revolutionarybecause it gave power to a new partyafter 70 years of a "perfect dictator-ship," Garza said.

"Having elected [Fox] built a senseof a newness, the sense of the possible,we can elect our people," he said. "But… we still have a judiciary that is justgetting comfortable with its role."

Garza said Mexicans are still tryingto understand their congress' role ingovernment.

"It is interesting because Mexicans

were really [proud] about having elect-ed Vicente Fox, but on some level theystill wanted the efficiency of the oldstyle of presidency," Garza said. "Whatis expressed from time to time is, 'He'sa great man, we elected him, but whycan't he get things done the way [otherpresidents did]?' Well, because theynow have congress."

He said Mexicans need to see that

their congress is an important part ofhow democracy works and that thefrustration created by a gridlock intheir congress can be healthy.

"It's not the sort of frustration that Ithink is unhealthy, it's the sort of frus-tration that can be expressed vocallyand in the press," he said. "This waveof understanding is sweeping throughthe country [and] ultimately [it is]going to make them a stronger partner,a stronger ally, a stronger friend, butmore importantly, it's going to make itstronger for Mexicans to have ademocracy."

On July 16, 2002, President Bushnominated Garza to be AmbassadorExtraordinary and Plenipotentiary ofthe United States of America toMexico. He began serving as ambassa-dor on Nov. 22, 2002.

Regarding the popular belief thatthere is friction between the UnitedStates and Mexico since the UnitedNations vote on the Iraq conflict, Garza

said nothing could be further from thetruth.

"I don't think there's anythingunhealthy about contentious debates,”he said. “What was unfortunate wasthat in the wake of the contentiousdebate was the perception that some-how the relationship had suffered onother levels. Nothing can be more fur-ther from the truth because while therewas a clear disappointment from theU.S., our countries are getting alongjust fine."

Garza spoke briefly of Mexicanimmigration to the United States.

"The immigration policy hasn't quitehit pace in a way that allows us toassimilate people the way this countryhas historically done," he said.

The audience greeted Garza with astanding ovation.

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Community gathers for Feast of SharingThousands of people enjoyed a

Thanksgiving meal and musical enter-tainment during H-E-B's 11th annualFeast of Sharing at the Jacob BrownAuditorium.

Joe Lucio, Feast of Sharing coordi-nator and director of the H-E-B foodstores on Boca Chica Boulevard and

Paredes Lines Road, said 12,000 mealswere served to Brownsville andMatamoros residents on Nov. 19.

Volunteers from various govern-ments, companies and schools tookpart in serving the traditionalThanksgiving meal, including theBrownsville Police and Fire depart-ments, Coca-Cola Co., WatermillExpress, Hygeia Dairy Products Co.and the Brownsville IndependentSchool District.

Lucio said the doors were opened tothe public at 11 a.m. but most of thevolunteers arrived at 9 a.m.

"There are about 800 volunteers[and] 100 directors to help serve, pickup the trash or entertain," he said.

Lucio detailed the amount of foodserved.

"We [serve] 1,500 pounds of turkeybreasts, 12,000 rolls, 500 pounds ofmashed potatoes and 600 cases of

pumpkin pies," he said. "This is a wayH-E-B gives back to the community.Many of these 'feasts' are held through-out Texas."

Jose de Leon, a Coca-Cola Co. repre-sentative, said he and other volunteersserved about 8,000 cups of the softdrink.

"We've served 100 cups per tank andwe've used 80 tanks," he said.

Enrique Castillo ofWatermill Express said heand other volunteersarrived at 9 a.m. andserved a total of 115 gal-lons of water, about 5,000cups.

Israel Rios, branch man-ager for Hygeia DairyProducts, said it was the12th year the company hasserved dairy products atcommunity feasts.

He said three volunteersfrom the company andvolunteers from otherorganizations served 3,750half-pints of whole andchocolate milk.

During the feast, sevenpolice officers patrolledthe Jacob BrownAuditorium and courtyardassuring that everything

was in order. Brownsville Police Sgt. Robert

Avitia said the officers arrived at 8 a.m.for route checks and to supervise thewaiting lines outside the auditorium.

"Since 9 a.m. there was a line formedof a couple of hundred people, frominfants to elderly," Avitia said.

Only one major incident occurred--an intoxicated man was arrested forharassing a woman, he said.

"Other than that, everything has beenfine," Avitia said.

Fire Department Capt. Cruz Lopezsaid 12 other firefighters from the clos-est station were at the feast helping out.

Lopez said three people who werewaiting in line outside the auditoriumfainted and "immediately were takencare of."

Letty Coronado, central checkoutmanager at the H-E-B on SouthmostRoad, was the entertainment coordina-

tor for the event."Every year, I pick different schools

to help us out," Coronado said. "Thisyear, we had the Russell ElementaryChoir, Porter's Estudiantina, Hudson'sN.E.C. choir, Stell's band and drill

team, 'Los Potrillos' and 'Los Gallitos.'In the courtyard we had DJ.'Electroband.' We also have TillyGarza, 'Mother Goose' here. Otherschools came, not as entertainment, butto help serve the meals."

Priscilla GarciaStaff Writer


Jessy Sanchez enjoys cotton candy given out-side the Jacob Brown Auditorium during theFeast of Sharing Nov. 19.


Judith Arredondo (right) enjoys a traditional Thanksgiving meal ofturkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, stuffing and cranberry sauce.Thousands enjoyed the meal provided by H-E-B Food Stores.

endowment with Harvard University's."Harvard has the largest endowment

of any institution in the world and itsendowment is almost $20 billion,"Strong said. "That comes down to $3million per student. Here … we have$3 million for all of our students--col-lectively. … Our endowment is very,very small and if we're going to be agreat university, great universities havehealthy endowments."

He said UT-Austin's endowmenttotals between $7 billion and $8 billion.

Whittington informed the committeethat a strategy must be employed togarner contributions.

"You do it by giving them reason tocontribute to the university,"Whittington said. "There [has to be]something going on at that universitythat they want to nurture in some wayor they want to start something at thatuniversity that they can nurture."

Father Armand Mathew saw commu-nity awareness of the university as amain concern.

"As strange as it sounds, people inthis community do not know this insti-

tution," Mathew said. "I hear a lot ofpeople talking [and asking] 'What's theuniversity doing?' and 'Why a universi-ty?' and 'Why a partnership?' Peopledon't know."

Mathew said a good public effort bythe committee would help in collectingfunds.

"I believe that one of our big effortshas to be creating a mentality out therethat this serves the entire communityand therefore the entire communitymust help sustain it and help it grow,"he said.

Margie Mancillas, assistant vicepresident for the Pre-K-16 Alliance,brought up the Howard Dean model ofcontribution collection in which peoplecan donate online.

"He's collecting $5, $70 per personand he has done a lot," Mancillas said.

She proposed compiling a list ofHispanic women in the area and pro-moting Dr. Gerson Peltz's study ofbreast cancer in Hispanic women tothem via the Internet. Peltz is an asso-ciate professor in the BiologicalSciences Department.

"Perhaps we could do something likethat," Mancillas said, adding that

FuturesContinued from Page 6

See ‘Futures,’ Page 16


expansion for our university."García gave an overview of the dif-

ferent task forces that are part of theFutures Commission and said the uni-versity is still looking for "additionalvolunteers."

The Academic Program Task Force,which is staffed by Provost and VicePresident for Academic Affairs JoseMartin, will help the university focuson degree programs and decide on apath for development of centers ofexcellence.

"They will also examine our role insocial and economic development ofthe community… [and] examine waysto keep education accessible and [lookat] what strategies we should considerfor international and out-of-state stu-dents," García said.

The Campus Planning Task Force,which will be staffed by Vice Presidentfor Administration and PartnershipAffairs John Ronnau, will "be helpingus be creative in our planning forbuilding and restoration … thinkingabout ways to use and care for the nat-ural resources in ways that mightenhance the area [and] how to addressparking and transportation issues," shesaid.

The Fund- and Friend-Raising TaskForce, which is staffed by VicePresident for InstitutionalAdvancement Bill Strong, will beworking to "build a valuable alumnibase and to increase scholarships …and to build an endowment that can beused to recruit and retain top faculty,"García said.

The Financing Task Force, which isstaffed by Vice President for BusinessAffairs Rosemary Martinez, will beexamining alternate funding mecha-nisms and will talk about how to usecurrent revenue more efficiently.

The Student Life Task Force, whichis staffed by Vice President for StudentAffairs Hilda Silva, will be looking atwhich student activities should beenhanced and what student housingmight look like in the future.

The Workforce Training andContinuing Education Task Force isstaffed by Vice President for ExternalAffairs Antonio Zavaleta.

Members of this task force will be"dreaming" of what the InternationalTechnology, Education and Commercecampus can become and working toenhance partnerships with communitybusiness and industry leaders.

García said the task forces will bemeeting from now until April.

The different task forces "are goingto allow us to dream a little bit … andallow us to take a look at what mightbe here, not what we can afford, notwhat the state is willing to fund today,but what our students need and whatthis region needs," she said.

Zavaleta gave the board a statusreport on the Career OpportunitiesRetraining Program, which has re-trained about 500 former Levi'semployees.

Participants in the 15-month trainingprogram attended classes from 8:30a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday throughThursday. On Fridays they receivedtutoring.

"We were asked to develop short-term training courses in response tolocal business needs," Zavaleta said.

James Holt, dean of WorkforceTraining and Continuing Education,said the program integrates basicsskills, English as a Second Languageand GED courses, as well internshipsand job search components.

Holt said the average improvementin grade level of the former Levi work-ers was 3.88 grade levels higher thanthey began.

Out of the 364 students tested, 54earned General Equivalency Diplomas(GED), 434 earned specialized certifi-cates, 86 earned vocational certificates,26 received one-year academic certifi-cates, 29 received associate degreesand three received bachelor's degrees.

Holt said the total cost of the pro-gram was $2,594,171.

Gonzalez asked when Holt couldprovide the board with information onjob placement.

Holt responded that he would like totake measurements at six-month andone-year points.

"One of the things we do have toconsider is the state of the economyright now, although some of thesefields that we are training in, it's boom-ing, for example in construction and soforth, I think we will see some mixedresults right away, and we are going tobe tracking all of that but I believe thefirst and best benchmark will be abouta year down the road," Holt said.

The board then voted to approve anamendment to adjust revenue fortuition paid by students in the amountof $470,441, adjust expenses fortuition in the amount of $538,303 andadjust expenses to the tuition differen-tial paid to UTB for students in theamount of $21,330.

The board also voted to hire 3DInternational as the architectural firm

BoardContinued from Page 1 A taste of the world

DÁMARIS GLORIA/COLLEGIAN

Freshman art major Lindy Rocha, a member of the InternationalStudents Organization, serves enchiladas,, to Karla Treviño duringthe International Food Festival at the Gazebos Nov. 21. There weremore than 20 dishes from such countries as Spain, thePhillippines, Belize, Bangladesh, Chile and China. event was partof the International Education Week Celebration.

Signing up for spring classes


Freshman biology major Johanna Esparza registers for the Spring2004 semester in the Tandy Hall Info Shop as freshman criminaljustice major Kimberlee Olvera looks on. A total of 4,488 studentsregistered for classes during the first week of spring registration,which began Nov. 10, said Angie Coronado, administrative assis-tant for the Office of Enrollment Planning. Esparza registered onNov. 14, when radio stations The Beat (KBTQ-96.1 FM) and TheRock (KFRQ-94.5 FM) broadcast live from Tandy and gave awayprizes and souvenirs.See ‘Board,’ Page 14


Dunking the mentor


Freshman liberal arts major Trent Mathis throws a football todunk Sting Success mentor Rene Ibarra during the Sting Cram N'Jam held Nov. 21 between the Gazebos and North Hall. The event,which offers food, music, games and prizes, is held each semesterfor Sting Success students.

Graduating student fulfills dad's last wishOn Dec. 20, nearly 900 UTB/TSC

students who have completed theirstudies will receive their diploma, andeach of them has a story of effort andperseverance.

Among them is Gabriela Peña, whoduring her last semester here had toface her father's death.

Last spring, Peña was enrolled as afull-time student and was about toacquire all the credits for her bachelor'sdegree in mathematics. On April 28,during the last week of school, Peñareceived a call from her sister-in-lawsaying that her father, Jaime Peña, wasin critical condition at a hospital inHouston.

Peña's father had been diagnosedwith mesothelioma, a rare form of can-cer. Jaime Peña had worked in a jobwhere he was exposed to asbestos-which has been linked to mesothe-lioma--while he lived in Chicago in the1960s. It took several years for the can-cer to be diagnosed and by the begin-ning of last May, he was very ill.

As soon as Peña received the call sheknew there was no time to lose; herfather had been in the hospital twicebefore. But she faced a dilemma--thesemester was ending and finals werecoming.

Peña was a participant in the

ASPIRE program. Jennifer Marquez,who is a tutor in the program, toldRoggena Provenzano, the program’sdirector, about Peña's situation.Provenzano talked to professors andsent them a memo informing themabout the situation, asking them tomake the possible arrangements.

"It was very amazing that the profes-sors worked together and helped[Peña] to go through that," Marquezsaid.

Professors Nancy Garcia, Paul-Herman Zieschang, Zhong-Ling Xuand Taeil Yi made arrangements soPeña could go and be with her fatherand family.

"I knew there were more important

things at the moment, and I could do itbecause I knew her, she participated inclass very actively," Zieschang said. "Ifyou know the students then you nowtheir weaknesses and the strengths andyou're able to help them."

The arrangements provided allowedPeña to immediately fly to Houstonand be with her father. Peña and hermother were practically living in thehospital as her father was getting sick-er. At those moments the most impor-tant thing to Peña was being by herfather's side, she said.

While in Houston, Peña's father toldher his last wish was for her to finishcollege and be the first in the family todo it. In order to graduate and qualifyfor student teaching in the fall, Peñastill had to complete a Calculus IIclass. After her father's condition sta-bilized, Peña was able to come back totake the survey concepts final and getenrolled for Summer I.

When Summer I started, mathProfessor Roger Contreras allowed herto study independently while she wasin Houston.

Then the inevitable happened. OnJune 23, Jaime Peña died. After theloss, many things came to Peña's mind;she did not know if she was going to beable to graduate. She came back forthe last week of class and passed thefinal. Then she started student teachingat Oliveira Middle School for 14weeks. She taught math and geometryto eighth-graders.

Peña completed her student teachingon Nov. 21 and is getting ready forgraduation, which will achieve herfather's last wish.

"I changed a lot going through allthat," Peña said. "I'm very attached tomy mother now; we went through a lottogether. ... After I graduate I will takesome time off and will enjoy beingwith my mom and my family."

By Arath LopezStaff Writer

Gabriela Peña

Same name, different language

Junior mathematics major Shaghayegh Setayesh, an internation-al student from Iran, writes a student's name in the Farsi lan-guage. "Your Name in Other Languages," held Nov. 17 in theEndowment Courtyard, was one of several events at UTB/TSC cel-ebrating International Education Week.



Law school dean recruits here

William C. Powers, dean of theUniversity of Texas School of Law, hasvisited the UTB/TSC campus to recruitstudents.

"We want to see more of you at ourlaw school," Powers told dozens of stu-dents gathered in the SET-B third con-ference room on Nov. 19. "Five yearsago, 10 years ago, we were not doing agood job recruiting people from thispart of the state and we want to be ageographically diverse law school."

Brownsville Mayor and UT LawSchool graduate Eddie Treviño intro-duced Powers.

"I love coming to the universitybecause here is the future ofBrownsville," Treviño said. "Each oneof you that is here [should] realize howimportant the profession--and it's not ajob--but the profession of law is to ourcountry, to our democracy."

He said lawyers are the fabric of therule of law.

"The reality is that when somebodyhas a problem, whatever it may be, thefirst person they're going to call is alawyer," the mayor said. "I'm here to

tell you that there is not a more nobleprofession in the entire world. Ifsomebody tells you we already havetoo many lawyers, keep in mind thatthere's always room for a good one."

Powers said the number of minoritystudents who attend law school in theUT System has increased by 20 per-cent.

"In the entering class four years ago,we had seven African-Americans …and 30 Mexican-Americans," he said."This current entering class, we had 30African-Americans and 70 Mexican-Americans."

Law school student Trey Mendez, a2001 UTB/TSC graduate and formerCollegian sports editor, attended therecruiting session.

"They asked me if I wanted to comeand I said yes, definitely, because thisis where I graduated from and I thinkit's really important that we get morestudents from UTB and from theValley to go to UT," Mendez told TheCollegian. "We need more representa-tion from here because most of the stu-dents tend to be from Houston orDallas and there's very few peoplefrom South Texas."

to expand the UTB/TSC Master Plan toinclude the recent acquisition of theITEC campus (formerly AmigolandMall) and Fort Brown peninsula prop-erties.

A Nov. 13 memorandum fromRonnau and Wayne Moore, specialassistant to the president, to the TSCPhysical Facilities Subcommitteestates that funding for the master planproject is included in the ITEC renova-tion budget but does not state theamount.

As of press time Tuesday, Ronnauhad not responded to an e-mail fromThe Collegian asking how much 3DInternational would be paid under acontract for master planning services.

The board also approved a changeorder in the amount of $227,119 to addtwo computer drafting labs to thePraxedis Orive Jr. Technical TrainingCenter.

Trustee Roberto Robles reported thathe met with the Academic AffairsPartnership Committee on Nov. 6 andlearned that the master of science inphysics, master of accountancy, masterof public policy and management andbachelor of communication degreeprograms are awaiting approval byeither the Texas Higher EducationCoordinating Board or UT System.

Robles also reported that grants forUTB/TSC now total between $35 mil-lion and $36 million.

Sylvia Peña, dean of the School ofEducation, said that UTB/TSC stu-dents have a combined passing rate of92 percent--the same as UT-Austin--onthe state board for educator certifica-tion exam.

García reported that the universityreceived a 100 percent pass rate in thefollowing areas: Bilingual ESLSpanish Test, Elementary Self-Contained Certification, ElementaryComprehensive Test, Principles Testand Spanish Oral Proficiency.

Trustee Dolly Zimmerman reportedthat she met with the Student Affairs

Partnership Committee on Nov. 12. The committee discussed the possi-

bility of building a recreational sportsfacility on campus that would befinanced by a student fee if studentsapprove it by vote.

Student Government AssociationPresident Edward Camarillo said thathe addressed the UT System board ofregents at their meeting Nov. 18regarding tuition increases for nextfall.

Camarillo said he told the regentsthat the student body was made wellaware of the tuition increase proposalsand the general attitude was "we paynow or we pay later."

García said the decision to increasestudent fees next fall semester came asa result of consultation with students,the Student Services Fee AdvisoryCommittee, the Academic Senate andStaff senates.

She said revenue from the increasedfees will be used to hire 10 faculty, 10staff and increase scholarships at theuniversity.

Zimmerman noted that "the concor-dance policy states that TSC adopt thesame fees as UTB and, therefore, sincewe're doing that, there is no action nec-essary."

In the construction report, Ronnaureported that a new 20-ton chiller wasplaced in the library. Moore reportedon the Education and Business com-plex, saying that although the projectwas delayed 34 days due to rain, "con-siderable progress" has been made,including the pouring of the founda-tion.

Vice President for Business AffairsRosemary Martinez introduced 2001UTB/TSC graduate Veronica Rocha asthe new Barnes & Noble bookstoremanager and Laredo CommunityCollege graduate Juan Daniel Paz asthe assistant manager. Barnes & Nobletook over the campus bookstore inmid-October.

Absent from the meeting weretrustees David Oliveira and EduardoCampirano.

Robert Ramirez and Jorge Sanchez of U.S. Classic Billiard bringin a new pool table into the Student Union Game Room on Nov.19. Four new pool tables will replace the present electronic tables.Students will now have to pay at the Office of Student Activities forthe each hour they play. "The other tables were electronic and verysensitive and were being damaged on a regular basis," said VinceSolis, director of Student Activities and Resident Life. "Now we aregoing to be offering … free billiards at certain times of the day toattract more people to the Student Union."

New pool tables for the Union


BoardContinued from Page 12


very proud of you," BrownsvilleMayor Eddie Treviño said.

Garza began his career in publicservice in 1998 as Cameron Countyjudge, the first Republican elected tocountywide office. In 1998, Garza waselected railroad commissioner, the firstHispanic Republican elected tostatewide office in Texas.

"About 15 years ago, when I was for-

tunate enough to administer the oath ofoffice to Tony Garza, I lectured him alittle bit, as federal judges are prone todo," Hinojosa said. "I said, if you con-duct yourself with the principles ofcharacter and the integrity and dedica-tion that you've learned from your par-ents, you will do an excellent job, andas I watched his career for 15 years, Iam proud to say that he has been faith-ful to those lessons that he learnedfrom his parents."

GarzaContinued from Page 10


Students share experiences of studying abroad

Five students and employeesdescribed their experiences studyingabroad during a panel discussion Nov.20 in the Student Union's Gardeniaroom.

Alejandra Lima, a sophomore busi-ness administration major, went toHungary as a high school exchangestudent in 1997. The Rotary Club ofMatamoros sponsored her.

One of the main challenges shefaced, she said, was the language.

"It was difficult, but since I wasthere and [would] hear it constantly, itwas easier," Lima said.

In 1999, sophomore bilingual educa-tion major Liliana Galindo had theopportunity attend high school in LaBresse, France, for a year. TheMatamoros Rotary Club also spon-sored her stay in France.

"When I got there I had no idea[about] the language, so it was kind ofhard," Galindo said.

Galindo also recalled the school.

"The school is pretty strict," she said."You go Monday through Friday from8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Wednesday, youonly go half a day."

Francisco Garcia, a computer userservice specialist in the DistanceEducation department, spent fiveweeks in England to learn about thework of his counterparts there. He wentto England as part of the Rotary Club's

Group Study Exchange."At the beginning it was kind of

shocking [because] it was my first timeout of the country," Garcia said.

Wanting to learn more about life in aThird World country, Rosalinda Garza,who is pursuing a master's degree inHispanic literature, went to Lima, Peru,last summer via an exchange program.

"It was difficult for me, I was there

when the United States declared thewar [against Iraq]," said Garza, refer-ring alluding the hard feelings Peru hadagainst the U.S. "I thought I was justgoing to go to learn about the culturebut … you are leaving a lasting impres-sion that hopefully is going to help inthe future."

Maria del Carmen Gonzalez, who ispursuing a master's in Hispanic litera-ture, received a scholarship fromSigma Delta Pi to study in Madrid,Spain, last summer.

"One of the things that impressed methe most about Madrid was the cultureand the diversity it has," said Gonzalez,who is a learning instructional special-ist in the College Assistance MigrantProgram. "To meet students from othercountries was a great experience forme."

Gonzalez said that one of the thingsthat impressed students there was theability of U.S. students to study andwork at the same time.

The panel discussion was part ofUTB/TSC's observance ofInternational Education Week.

LORENA CRUZ/COLLEGIAN

Members of the panel share their experiences Nov. 20 in the StudentUnion’s Gardenia room.

By Lorena CruzTiempo Nuevo Editor

Lawyer spells out rules for international students

Receiving an education in the UnitedStates can be a lengthy endeavor ifyou're an international student, saidimmigration attorney Jodi Goodwin.

Goodwin presented "ImmigrationLaw and International Students" onNov. 18 as part of the InternationalEducation Week observance atUTB/TSC.

"If [international students] do every-thing correctly and follow through thesystem, [they'll] get a visa and [they]can study and possibly stay on workinghere," Goodwin told a group of about adozen gathered in the Student Union'sGardenia room for her lecture. "Theproblem more often than not is thatthere are a lot of hoops."

International students must have anF-1 visa to be able to study in theUnited States. To receive an F-1 visa, astudent must first be accepted into aschool. The school then issues an I-20.

"An I-20 basically shows what you'regoing to be studying, how long yourdegree program is going to last, howmuch it's going to cost and you alsohave to show what type of finances youhave available to pay for your educa-tion because foreign students have to

pay foreign tuition and it's about threetimes as much as what other peoplehave to pay," Goodwin said.

With that form, the student can applyfor a visa at the American Consulate intheir home country.

"Once the visa is issued, they cancome to the United States and go toschool for as long as it takes them tofinish their program," she said.

Since the 9-11 terrorist attacks, newpolicies and restrictions have beenforced upon international students,Goodwin said.

"Some of the changes since 9-11 thathave affected students are the require-ment that all consular interviews nowbe in person," she said. "This hasalmost always been the case forMexicans, but many other nationalities[were] able to use a drop box or mail toapply for their visa."

Goodwin said the Department ofHomeland Security now uses a highlysophisticated database called theStudent and Exchange VisitorInformation System (SEVIS) to trackinternational students.

"Since the beginning of the SEVISprogram, all students have had to gettheir information put into the system,"she said. "They track their visa

issuance, their I-20s their course loadand their employment authorization, ifapplicable."

There is a proposed regulation thatcalls for a $100 user fee for each per-son enrolled in SEVIS, Goodwin said.

"Some other restrictions are that [stu-dents] can no longer change schoolswithout going through a complicatedtransfer procedure within SEVIS," shesaid. "Likewise, if [students] changetheir status from being a visitor tobeing a student, they are not allowed tostart school until they have actuallybeen approved, whereas before theywere allowed to start school."

Goodwin said international studentsare important to the United States.

"It is important for foreign studentsto come to the U.S. not only because ofdiversity, but because as an economicworld power, the U.S. needs that for-eign knowledge to be able to competeglobally," Goodwin said.

After graduation, some internationalstudents want to remain in the UnitedStates to work in their field.

Asked what the procedures are forinternational students to become per-manent residents after graduation,Goodwin said there is no one way thatan international student can become a

permanent resident."There are options for students to

look into after they finish their degree,[such as] optional practical training, H-1B visa, etc., but no one way tobecome a permanent resident," shesaid.


CHRIS AGUILAR/COLLEGIAN

Jodi Goodwin talks about immi-gration law and international stu-dents during her presentation Nov.18 in the Student Union'sGardenia room.


the campaign was to acquire studentfeedback on whether the center shouldbe built or not.

Senator Erick Vallarino proposedamending the campaign fund, but themotion already had been seconded.

Vallarino abstained from voting onthe resolution.

A proposal for a recreational sportsfacility would have to be approved bythe Texas Legislature, university offi-cials have said.

Tax-free textbooks?In his officer's report, Camarillo said

several Student GovernmentAssociations, including UTB/TSC, areproposing a tax-free textbook holiday.The idea was discussed during therecent Texas State Student Conventionin Austin, he said.

"Each school took more than twomembers and [Senator MichaelCamarillo] and I were selected toattend," Camarillo said. "We talkedabout some major issues that …nobody thinks that much can be doneabout it."

The state rakes in about $300 millionannually from textbook taxes,Camarillo said. The proposed holidaywould relieve some student financialstress, with the recent approval oftuition and fee increases.

"We're going to want to [talk] withour Sen. [Eddie] Lucio and our repre-sentatives to make sure they make it apriority next legislative session,"Camarillo said.

Camarillo likened the proposed text-book tax holiday to the existing statesales-tax holiday that takes place inAugust.

With the right effort, the proposalcould become a reality in the nearfuture, Camarillo said.

"Now this could happen very soon--in a couple of years--and it's going totake the right students to go up thereand knock on those doors and write theletters and send the e-mails and meetface to face with legislators to bringthis to all students."

Voter apathyCamarillo informed the SGA of sev-

eral more issues discussed at the con-vention. Headlining the list of issueswas voter apathy.

"When you know that your studentbody can come out and vote at a highpercentage, this student body will bemuch more susceptible to getting whatit would like and what it needs on cam-pus," Camarillo said. "I think that'scritical to anything we do."

Another issue was tuition deregula-tion.

"Another committee … is going toresearch tuition deregulation [in find-ing] what's positive about tuitionderegulation and how's it going toaffect [students]," Camarillo said. Helater explained that the committee incharge of researching is composed ofseveral universities statewide and thatthe research acquired will benefit allTexas schools.

Camarillo also told the SGA abouthis invitation from UTB/TSC PresidentJuliet V. García to attend the Universityof Texas System board of regents meet-ing Nov. 17-18.

Camarillo also said the PhysicalPlant is going to fix the potholes nearthe dorms.

He also addressed the concern aboutpotholes on the street leading into thedorms.

"The City of Brownsville was goingto be there today to cover those pot-holes."

Camarillo also mentioned that ayear-old concern about computersstacked in Eidman 105 posing a possi-ble safety hazard has been addressed.He informed a professor of the SGA'swillingness to help with the problemand discovered that numerous requestshad been made to the Physical Plant toremove the computers. Camarillo toldThe Collegian that the computerswould be moved to the WorkforceTraining and Continuing Educationcenter to increase student computer lit-eracy.

The president notified the board ofthe criticisms the association hasreceived, most regarding how SGAmoney is spent.

Finance reportVice President for Finance Monica

Villarreal gave a report on the SGA'sexpenditures.

The SGA has spent $5,047.62, or 38percent, of its $13,000 budget, leavinga balance of $7,952.38.

The SGA has spent $947 for mem-bers' shirts, going over budget by $47;$696.80 for an SGA retreat; $178.91,office supplies; $36.62, lunch with TheCollegian; and $474 for a trip to the UTSystem regents' meeting, which will bereimbursed.

The organization has spent a total of$2,714.29 on students. Of this amount,$107.73 was spent on the firstPresident's Round Table, $90.73, sec-ond President's Round Table; $180,Junior Leadership Conference; $635,hat and visor giveaways; $1,646.40,Halloween Extravaganza (going overbudget by $646.50); and $54.43 for

voter registration food.In his report, Michael Camarillo,

lower-level senator for the College ofLiberal Arts, told the board of his expe-rience at the Texas State StudentConvention.

He vowed not to rest until half ofUTB/TSC students were registered tovote. He likened the issue of studentvoter apathy to fighting a war.

Camarillo stressed the importance ofstudent participation in the votingprocess.

"This is one issue that involves everysingle aspect SGA is, every singleaspect of students here [and] every sin-gle aspect with the community [and]every single aspect of the State ofTexas."

In his report, Vogelsang spoke abouthis involvement in the university'sFutures Commission. He compared thecommission to the Texas TomorrowPlan the City of Austin initiated in the1970s when the city was first trying tobecome a major metropolitan area.

"They got people from the universityand the community and everybodytogether and form a vision of what theywanted to do with the next 10, 20years," Vogelsang said. "That's basical-ly what this commission is going to bedoing here. We were looking at issueson a larger scale."

Vogelsang was assigned to thefinance committee, which was"charged with the task of basically tak-ing a look at where the money comesfrom right now that funds all the activ-ities and all the aspects of the universi-ty and trying to find a way of increas-ing that amount of money," he said.

"[UTB/TSC] has a budget of $89.5million for this fiscal year," Vogelsangsaid. "That is not enough money to runa college, which shocked me tremen-dously."

Vogelsang added that more money isneeded for the university since theincrease in student fees is not enoughto defray the costs of new buildingadditions to alleviate student crowdingin classrooms.

Edward Camarillo added thatUniversity of Texas System ChancellorMark Yudof said UTB/TSC's budgetslash was the most severe of anyUniversity of Texas component, oper-ating on a budget of 25 percent lessmoney. Camarillo said that the chan-cellor spoke of UTB/TSC's dramaticreduction in funding at the board ofregents meeting.

Vogelsang added that UTB/TSC'sbudget operates on roughly 29 percentof student fees and receives theremainder of its funding from the state.

"The majority of the money that thecollege has to offer does not come fromfees and tuitions which might be themisconception out there," Vogelsangsaid.

attaching a request for contributions toa research study would increase thechances for success.

English and Speech DepartmentChair Charles Dameron likened thesuggestions to the scholarship initia-tive 15 years ago.

"One of the things we did do was tomake contact with lots of folks outthere who gave what they could. …That may not lead to huge amounts [ofmoney] itself, but the long-term payoffis spectacular."

Dameron explained that most peoplethought the endowment program 15years ago would not meet its goal, butit ultimately did. He suggested apply-ing similar strategies used in theendowment campaign to a newer one.

"We've gotten payoff from that eversince; it's grown and it's provided lotsof money for students to come here,"Dameron said.

Whittington explained that theendowment program contained anobjective known by all who participat-ed and also involved a "hook," ratherthan being an "amorphous fund-raisingeffort" that led to its success.

"There was a hook that tied in com-munity pride and pride for the univer-sity," Whittington said. "We need tonot only to create an objective outthere, but we need to develop a mes-sage with it that gives that programsome identity."

Whittington said the success of anInternet campaign raising millions ofdollars $5 at a time must hold somekind of message that mobilizes thepublic to participate.

Fine Arts Department Chair SueZanne Urbis proposed marketing thatwould allow contributors to renamethe schools through a donation.

"There are many universities whohave [various schools] who are named

SGAConinued from Page 1

FuturesContinued from Page 11

See ‘Futures,’ next page

Student Publications is accepting applica-tions for Collegian Online Editor forSpring 2004. Knowledge of Dreamweaverand Photoshop a must. Deadline to applyis 5 p.m. Dec. 5. For more information,call 554-5143.


Workforce director visits Thailand for exchange program

For six weeks, Mark Sorensen, direc-tor of Workforce Training andContinuing Education at UTB/TSC,was immersed in the culture ofThailand with the intent of exchangingideas on an international level andimplementing strategies he learned inSoutheast Asia to continuing educationat UTB/TSC.

Sorensen went to Thailand duringSeptember and October as part of theFulbright Exchange Program for teach-ers and administrators.

"The purpose of the program is theexchange of ideas internationally oneffective education practices, fosteringthe development of partnershipsbetween the U.S. and foreign universi-ties, and to build mutual understandingbetween the people of the United Statesand the rest of the world," Sorensensaid.

The Fulbright Exchange Program,established in 1946 under legislationintroduced by the late Senator J.William Fulbright of Arkansas, issponsored by the U.S. Department ofState and the J. William FulbrightForeign Scholarship board.

Sorensen participated in the adminis-trative exchange, which includes theparticipating countries of Argentina,Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic,Estonia, Finland, Germany, Jordan,Mexico, Oman, Romania, SlovakRepublic, Thailand, Turkey, the United

Kingdom and Uruguay.While in Thailand, Sorensen spent

much of his time making presentationsand conducting workshops dealingwith how workforce training and con-tinuing education is done at UTB/TSC.

"Thailand is just starting to explorethis type of education," Sorensen said."Most of the students I saw were 18 to23 years old, the traditional studentwho moves from high school into col-lege, then enters the workforce. Nowthe country is seeing a change and theyare trying to develop an economy andskills that are more up to date with therest of the world."

Those skills included workshops oncurrent business techniques, grant writ-ing, fund-raising, online instruction, aswell as several other areas just begin-ning to emerge in Southeast Asia.

Sorensen said that although much ofhis time was spent teaching, he alsolearned quite a bit from the experience.

"I learned a great deal about estab-lishing international collaboration andwe're looking into following up on thathere," Sorensen said. "There was alsoa considerable focus on business andmicro-enterprise in Thailand. It's veryentrepreneurial because many of thebusinesses are family oriented and theyhave a lot of opportunities to buildsmall enterprises."

Another point of interest to Sorensenwas the cultural influence on the socie-ty of the country.

"Culturally, I learned a lot," Sorensensaid. "Ninety percent of the country isBuddhist and I think that has a greatimpact on the personality of the people.I know it's had an impact on me per-sonally."

That personality is one of calmnessand generosity, said Sorensen, whospent time visiting different culturalavenues in Thailand, includingBuddhist monks.

Sorensen's exchange counterpart isTanate Chitsuthipakorn, a professor ofbusiness at Phakklang University and adoctoral candidate at ChulalongkornUniversity in Thailand.

"The Fulbright Exchange Program isdesigned so that the exchange partnershave very similar goals in mind whentraveling to the host country," Sorensensaid. "Both Tanate and I wanted to seehow workforce training and continuingeducation works in foreign markets.Luckily, a match was made and wewere able to take part in the program."

Chitsuthipakorn is currently travel-ing throughout the United States andwill return to Brownsville early thismonth.

"When I was in Thailand, I stayed inTanate's home with him and his fami-ly," Sorensen said. "While Tanate ishere in Brownsville, he has the chanceto stay in the dorms on campus andexperience that aspect of the university.He also had the chance to visit Mexicoand see yet another culture."

For Sorensen, the FulbrightExchange Program gave him opportu-nity to experience another culture andexchange ideas that he hopes will havea positive impact on workforce trainingand continuing education both atUTB/TSC as well as the areas he visit-ed during his journey abroad.Sorensen said he hopes to participate inthe program again to further establishinternational relations among foreignuniversities.

By Mary Lou AlvarezStaff Writer

Mark Sorensen poses with young Theravadda Buddhists in Thailand.COURTESY PHOTO

after individuals who have given siz-able endowment--million of dollars,"Urbis said. "Those kinds of things putus on the map."

Strong said the university has a planfor marketing school renaming, butlacks personnel needed to activelymarket the program on a daily basis.

Director of Development Barry Hornexplained the mission of the commit-tee, saying that three key strategiesneed to be met: identifying, cultivatingand asking. He also said that most con-tributions are made unasked.

"Those dollars are usually neveractually asked for," Horn said, addingthat the donor has to hear the universi-ty's story before ever being approachedfor contributions.

"He [has to] already [be] on your side… then you present before them the

opportunity. … But you don't typicallyever ask--they are going to ask you,'May I?'"

Horn asked that everyone in theroom convey the message the universi-ty is broadcasting to the community.

"I think we need more of a messageto an outsider who comes to campus,"Manager of Special Collections andArchivist John Hawthorne said."Working in the Hunter Room, I oftensee folks that come from far off to dohistorical research."

Hawthorne said frequent visitors'complaints were the lack of a visitorscenter, museum and campus tours.

Strong said UTB/TSC's advertisingcampaign isn't geared toward students.

"We're not advertising to studentswho want to go to college," Strongsaid. "We're advertising to people whohave already been to college."

Peltz urged marketing of the univer-sity's programs.

"We need to transform these activi-ties into something that can attract theattention not only in our community,but eventually out of state," Peltz said.

Whittington asked Peltz if there wasa list of studies that could do this.

Peltz said the breast cancer researchproject he is currently heading, theAlzheimer's study headed by AssociateProfessor of Biological Sciences LuisColom and the infectious diseasesstudy that Associate Professor ofBiological Sciences DanielProvenzano operates are candidates.

"Maybe if [philanthropists in bigcities] get this information--this mes-sage--they can wake up: 'Hey--theseguys are doing something there.’ ...And instead of contributing to theUniversity of Texas at Austin, maybethey're going to contribute to us," Peltzsaid.

One member called for more com-munity involvement in campus activi-

ties."I think [Spring 2002's]

Homecoming concept brought a lot ofpeople from the community that hadn'tseen what we developed into,"Assistant Director of Financial AidGeorgiana Velarde said. "It created alot of buzz in the community and thenwe dropped the ball and didn't bringthem back. … I think we need to fol-low through on some of those thingsthat will keep them coming back."

Velarde said the success of this year'sHalloween Extravaganza has spurredplans for an Easter Egg Hunt.

"For somebody that has children, Iknow that there is no place inBrownsville [to have the event]."Velarde said. "I'm hoping that thespringtime event will be a huge successand draw in a lot of families."

All of the task forces are scheduledto meet again on Jan. 13.

FuturesContinued from previous page

PAGINA 18 •1 de diciembre de 2003 The CollegianTiempo Nuevo

Recibir una educación en los EstadosUnidos, puede ser un proceso muylargo si eres un estudiante interna-cional, dijo la abogada en inmigraciónJodi Goodwin.

Goodwin presentó una conferenciatitulada "Ley de Inmigración yEstudiantes Internacionales" el 18 denoviembre como parte de la cele-bración de la Semana de EducaciónInternacional en UTB/TSC.

"Si [los estudiantes internacionales]hacen todo correctamente y siguen elsistema, [ellos podrán] adquirir unavisa y [ellos] podrán estudiar y posi-blemente trabajar aquí", dijo Goodwina un grupo de aproximadamente unadecena de estudiantes que se reunieronen el Salón Gardenia de la UniónEstudiantil para su conferencia. Elproblema más frecuente es que haymuchos obstáculos".

Los estudiantes internacionalesdeben de tener la visa F-1 para poderestudiar en los Estados Unidos. Pararecibir una visa F-1, el estudiante debe

de ser aceptado en laescuela. La escuelaentonces le otorgauna forma I-20.

"Un I-20 básica-mente muestra lo quevas a estar estudian-do, que tan largo va aser tu plan académi-co, cuanto te va a

costar y también muestra las finanzasde cuanto tienes para pagar por tu edu-cación, porque los estudiantes extran-jeros tienen que pagar su cuota de estu-diante extranjero la cual tiene un costode tres veces mas que alguna otra per-sona tiene que pagar", dijo Goodwin.

Con esa forma, el estudiante puedehacer la solicitud para una visa en elconsulado Americano en su país.

"Una vez que la visa es dada, puedenvenir a los Estados Unidos e ir a laescuela por el transcurso de lo que duresu carrera", dijo ella.

Desde los ataques terroristas del 9-11, nuevas normas y restricciones hansido implementadas sobre estudiantesinternacionales, dijo Goodwin.

"Algunos de los cambios hechos

desde el 9-11 que han afectado a losestudiantes es el requisito de que todaslas entrevistas consulares deben de seren persona," ella dijo. "Esto siempre hasido el caso de muchos mexicanos peromuchas otras nacionalidades [podían]depositar o mandar por correo la solic-itud para su visa".

Goodwin dice que el Departamentode Seguridad de la Patria ahora usa unasofisticada base de datos llamadaSistema de Información del Estudiantey Visitante de Intercambio (SEVIS)para rastrear a estudiantes interna-cionales.

Desde el comienzo del programaSEVIS, todos los estudiantes hantenido que poner su información el sis-tema", ella dijo. "Rastrean cuando reci-bieron su visa, su I-20, sus clases y supermiso de trabajo, si es aplicable".

Hay una reglamentación que fuepropuesta de una cuota de $100 porcada persona que este en el SEVIS,dijo Goodwin.

"Otras restricciones son que los[estudiantes] no pueden cambiar deescuelas sin antes hacer un complicadoproceso por medio de SEVIS parapoder trasladarse a otra institución",dijo ella. "De la misma manera, si los[estudiantes] cambian su categoría de

ser un visitante a ser un estudiante, nopueden empezar las clases hasta quesean aprobados, considerando queantes si podían comenzar sus estudios".

Goodwin dijo que los estudiantesinternacionales son importantes paralos Estados Unidos.

"Es importante para los estudiantesextranjeros venir a los Estados Unidosno solamente por su diversidad, sinoporque es una potencia económicamundial, los Estados Unidos necesitaconocimiento extranjero para podercompetir globalmente", dijo Goodwin.

Después de graduarse, algunos estu-diantes internacionales deseanquedarse en los Estados Unidos paratrabajar en su especialidad.

Se le preguntó cuáles eran los pro-cedimientos para que los estudiantesextranjeros puedan convertirse en resi-dentes permanentes, Goodwin dijo queno hay solo una mannera para que unestudiante internacional se pueda con-vertir en residente permanente.

"Hay opciones que estudiantespueden hacer después de graduarse,[como] entrenamiento prácticoopcional, la visa H-1B, etc., no haysolo una manera para poder conver-tirse en un residente permanente", dijoella.Aportando su granito de arena

MARIA DURON/ COLLEGIAN

Estudiante del primer año en criminología Tania Benavides y estu-diante del primer año en tecnología industrial Juan Reséndez par-ticipan en la Campaña de Limpieza de la Ciudad de Brownsvilleayudando a limpiar un lote baldío en la calle Wildrose Lane cercade la Autopista 77/83 el 15 de noviembre. Benavides y Reséndezformaban parte de un grupo de seis miembros del club CAMP deUTB/TSC (Programa de Asistencia a Emigrantes en el Colegio)como parte de un proyecto de servicio a la comunidad.

Abogada explica reglas para estudiantes internacionalesPor Sonia Mejía Editora del Collegian

Nombre: Silvia G. Reyes Edad: 19 añosPromedio: 3.7 Especialidad: Educación Clasificación: Estudiante del

segundo añoReconocimientos: Lista de la

Rectora, Lista Nacional deDecanos y Lista del Decano

Pasatiempos: Conversar porInternet, ir al cine y cenar fueracon sus amigos

¿Cuál ha sido tu reto másgrande? "Que los maestros nocreyeran que yo podía ser capazde desempeñarme bien en clasesavanzadas porque tengo dislex-ia".

¿Cuáles son tus metas afuturo? "Quiero terminar mi car-rera como educadora para sermaestra de dislexia".

Si pudieras cambiar algo de

la universidad, ¿Qué harías?"Tener más estacionamiento yque se arreglen las calles de launiversidad".

Anécdota: "Cuando estaba enla secundaria me puse zapatosdiferentes y no me di cuentahasta mi última clase, cuando meiba a atar las cintas. Estaba enclase y me empecé a reír a mediaclase, mi maestra me hizo que ledijera a toda la clase porqué meestaba riendo".

Estudiante de HoyPor Lorena CruzEditora de Tiempo Nuevo

Jodi Goodwin

The Collegian December 1, 2003 • PAGE 19Sports

As my favorite columnist BillSimmons would say," Here's the bestthing about writing a column: You canvent." And I shall!

First off let's hit the fantasy world. Ihave a team that contains the likes ofRicky Williams, Edge James, CoreyDillon, Andre Johnson, Randy Moss,Jeremy Shockey, Trent Green, ChrisChambers, Olindo Mare; one wouldthink I would at least be in the top fourin my league of 10. But no! I have adismal record of 3-8 and it's ruining mylife.

I take pride in football and to be atthe bottom of the basement in myleague is eating at my soul. Finals arecoming up--I don't care. Nick Vanexelis playing with the Warriors--I don'tcare. Lakers are at the top of the league--I don't care.

The holidays are here and I am not ina jolly spirit!

To make matters worse, the Dolphinshave developed a cancer during the sea-son, and it's called the offensive line.Ricky Williams has had two decentrushing performances all season. Therewas a span of seven games where hedidn't hit the century mark. Teams areputting eight men in the box --and sinceour passing game is horrible-- we don'tmuster any offense. It's driving mecrazy!

I spend my Sundays saying thingslike, " Hurry up and go three and out soour defense can score!" I am not sure ifI can take another Finz loss. I amaffected in all aspects in my life when itoccurs.

On Monday morning I have a hardtime getting up for school and I tend tosay to myself, "Why go?" At workwhen I look back on my stories I findrandom thoughts like "score, points,offensive" in them. My family andfriends know when Miami has addedanother to the Loss column, and morethan half don't follow football! All theydo is just look into my eyes.

I want one thing for Christmas andthat is to win! Last year when theymissed the playoffs--for the first time insix years--I locked myself in my roomand cut off all communication to theworld outside. It took me 'til about mid-July to recover. That was mainlybecause the Cubs kept me occupied andI didn't think about it.

I have to look at the positives though:There are still four more games left andif I can somehow manage to win thelast few in my fantasy football league, Iwill finish a very mediocre 7-8. TheDolphins have never done this bad soearly in the year. They are usually fiveor six games above 500, then comecrashing down in late November andDecember. Maybe this is the year thecurse is reversed! Thinking positive!

There. I feel better.

Team Sting's National hopes end in conference playoffs

Team Sting's National hopes werebrought to an abrupt halt after falling toSan Jacinto College in the first roundof the conference tournament held atLee College in Baytown. The team ledin the first two sets and was close in thethird but never sealed the deal.

In the first set, both teams scratchedand clawed for any sort of run to try todevelop some separation. With thescored tied at 9-9, the Lady Ravenswent on the first run, scoring fourstraight points and prompting headcoach Skippy Brown to call a timeout.After the timeout, Team Sting went ona run of its own, scoring six straightpoints and forcing the Lady Ravens to

use up one of their timeouts. The LadyRavens came out of the timeout andanswered back, tying the game up at16-16. Both teams exchanged blows,splitting the next 22 points and knot-ting them up at 27-27. San Jacinto thenscored three of the next four points togive them the set 30-28.

The second set saw the LadyScorpions jump off to a 4-1 lead behindthe block of Xochitl Garza and DevonWatts. Once again the Lady Ravensbounced back and closed the gap to oneat 8-7. Team Sting would then take itsbiggest lead of the set by going up fivepoints at 14-9. The Lady Scorpionsheld their lead for most of the set butbegan to stumble when San Jacinto tiedit up at 21-21. The Lady Ravens'comeback seemed to freeze Team Stingas they went on to win the set 30-26.

"You study film and work with theplayers to work on a specific team andwe worked on it so hard that we didn'tdo it," Brown said.

Team Sting seemed to have the windknocked out of it after letting the firsttwo sets slip away. The Lady Ravenstook advantage of the downedScorpion squad and sprung to a 9-3lead. Team Sting showed its resilienceby tying the set up at 17 all. Withmomentum shifting toward theScorpions side, the Ravens grabbed itback by regaining the lead at 24-18.After a timeout by Brown, Team Stingshortened the gap to within three at 25-22. That spurt would be the team's lastof the match as well as the season. TheLady Ravens scored five straightpoints and took the match in the thirdset at 22-30.

Brown then explained that the teamprobably peaked too early.

"It was unfortunate that the teampeaked too early," he said. "You neverknow how to manage that. They werehot as firecrackers! I pulled out everytrick I knew, they just didn't click.Timing is everything in a must-win sit-uation and if you’re not clicking, you'renot going to win."

Brown gave his final thoughts on theteam as well as the season.

"That's the funnest team I enjoyed inmy coaching career,” he said. “I don'tthink I will ever have a team like thatagain. Sometimes it was a real chore tocoach but it was very enjoyable. I hopeit happens again but I don't think it everwill. The school should be proud ofthis team."

By Louie Vera Sports Editor

Crystal Baller

Life as a fantasy, sort ofBy Louie Vera Sports Editor

Soccer action

Chris Aguilar/CollegianBusiness major Jorge Almanza (left) and engineering technologymajor Jose Luis Salazar stay stride by stride with each other for theRed Devils in the soccer tournament semifinal match vs. Barza,which won 4-0. La Korrupcion defeated the Creatures for the soc-cer title in the tourney sponsored by the Office of Student Activities.A total of 14 teams competed.

December SpecialsMonday-Thursday

Rent 1 VHS film and get a free rental on

1 VHS

Give your friends the gift of entertainment.Let them enjoy the best of foreign and classic films.•Artistic certificate valid for the rental of 2 VHS $5.00•Artistic certificate valid for the rental of 2 DVDs $6.00•Artistic certificate valid for the rental of 1 VHS and DVD $5.50

Rentals are for 5 days. DVD rentals $2.50, VHS rentals $1.99

Contact us at (956) 542-1155 for more information.

In front of the Village at Fort Brown (enter through back street of UTB)

UTB/TSC Food Court Thank You UTB/TSC

Pizza Slice only $1.00

Good luck on finalsand have a great and safe Christmas holiday!

Banana Muffins $1.00Sugar-free Banana Muffins $1.00

Free Christmas Cookieswhile they last

Holiday Musicfeaturing

Fountain Drinks $1.00(one free refill)

Coffee orHomemade

Hot Chocolate$1.00

This Week’s Specials

Soup $1.00

Mini Salad $1.00

Sunni’s

PAGE 20 • December 1, 2003 The CollegianArts & Entertainment

For all art majors at UTB/TSC, theapproach of graduation can mean onlyone thing: Senior Art Shows. Whilethe senior show is a requirement tograduate for art majors, most peoplewould be hard pressed to come acrossan art student who doesn't look forwardto showcasing the culmination of theirtalent. This month, seven senior artstudents will display their finest workat the Richardson Art Gallery on cam-pus.

The opening reception for ManuelBarrera, Susana Garcia, Carlos Graciaand Adrian Jude Salazar's senior artshow will be held at 6:30 p.m. today.Their show will feature a wide varietyof work ranging from art influenced bypop culture and icons to Japanese- andChinese-influenced ceramics.

"There's quite a diversity of art inthis show," Salazar said. "I considerthe work that I do to be contemporaryand I use popular icons and autobio-graphic themes in my pieces."

Garcia's work focuses more on orien-tal influences.

"A lot of my stuff I based on impres-

sionist Japanese and oriental prints,"Garcia said. "I find the art of the orientvery intriguing and incorporating itinto my work is something I've beenexperimenting with."

Although the styles and subject mat-ter differ in these artists' pieces, theyfeel that the range of work will give theviewers something varied to look at.This show will run through Friday.

The opening for the second senior art

show, titled"Expressarte," willtake place at 6:30p.m. Dec. 8."Expressarte" willfeature work by sen-ior art majors PatriciaBarrera, RolandoHolland and EricaTreviño. The consen-sus by the three artistsis that this show isabout different meth-ods of expressingthemselves, hence thetitle.

For Barrera, hermethod of expres-sion is through the

use of rich colors and textures."My artwork is a narration of color

events in my life," Barrera said."There was an emotion that I experi-enced when I first saw the paint, thenthe impression of color in my palettegave me the inspiration to create feel-ings and emotions in my artwork.Color has an expressive power to com-municate without relying on a subjectmatter in the traditional sense."

Holland's art is also about self-expression, and the way he communi-cates this is through representations ofnature and the female form because hesaid he feels that they have similarqualities that go hand in hand.

"I've always had a hard time commu-nicating with words," Holland said."Art has always been the easiest wayfor me to express myself. The contentin my pieces consist of a mixture ofabstract and surrealistic styles."

Treviño's art is also about expres-sion, but for her, it is a record of herpersonal life.

"I'm drawn to colors, shapes, texturesand figures that represent my hiddenemotions," Treviño said. "These workscan be interpreted as a puzzle thatneeds to be put together."

Expressarte will run from Dec. 8-12at the Richardson Art Galley. Galleryhours are Monday through Thursdayfrom 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Fridaysfrom 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The gallery islocated on the second floor of the ArtBuilding on the UTB/TSC campus.For more information, contact gallerydirector Teresa Eckerman-Pfiel [email protected] or call 983-7097.

Senior exhibits showcase culmination of workBy Mary Lou AlvarezStaff Writer

Patricia Barrera’s Abstract No. 1

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