11 topics to be discussed NEWS: Post-Sept. Page 2 List of best players needs improvement SPORTS: Page 6 should lessen drunken driving VIEWS: E-Ride Page 7
Sweat and Spar Students fight for Jui-jitsu club Page 5
Thursday, September 10, 2009
News 1,2 Arts & Life 3,4,5 Sports 6 Views 7 Classifieds 8 Games 8
Volume 94 | Issue 9
Stormy 91° / 68°
ntdaily.com
The Student Newspaper of the University of North Texas
Money allows for research mentoring BY CHRIS SPEIGHT Senior Staff Writer
Six undergraduate students from five different departments will have the opportunity to pursue individual research projects and get paid $10 an hour. Out of more than 50 departments at UNT, five will receive a grant for $8,000 each. The money will fund undergraduate research programs in which students will have the opportunity to work one-onone with faculty. UNT’s provost office allocated $40,000 for the program, said Celia Williamson, deputy provost and dean of undergraduate studies. “Most of the money is set aside to pay students,” said Gloria Cox, dean of the honors college. “Our students often have to have part-time jobs and we like the idea of their engaging in research and getting paid for it.” Cox said program supervisors think paid research opportunities are more enriching than working for local companies and restaurants. The actual research will concentrate on topics of interest to the respective departments, Williamson said. Students will work side-byside with faculty members w h i le conduct i ng t hei r research, Cox said. “This will be one-on-one mentoring, but it will be in a department where you have some kind of momentum… we don’t want people working
in isolation,” she said. “We want that camaraderie that community develops when people from a department are working together.” This is the second year this program has been offered at UNT, Wiliamson said. Last year, the provost’s office allocated $20,000 that was split between two departments, foreign language and English. No departments have been selected for the grant yet and won’t be until Sept. 28, Cox said. They will receive their money within a week, she said. “In the ‘request for proposal,’ we will favor departments that don’t have as many opportunities to get funding from outside sources,” Cox said. Of the five departments selected, each will be asked to identify six faculty members and six students from each so that the new undergraduate research programs can begin, Cox said. Williamson said the faculty members who will be working with the students are already engaged in research of their own. In addition to working sideby-side with experienced faculty on research projects and getting paid for it, the undergraduates selected will go on trips to better their research, Williamson said.
See PROGRAM on Page 2
PHOTO BY DREW GAINES / PHOTOGRAPHER
Participants of Denton’s Tuesday night community bike ride wait to crank their way around the 8-mile loop covering the west side of town.
Cyclists ride Denton weekly BY JORDAN FOSTER Staff Writer
Red flashing lights float above the asphalt as the creaking of foot pedals and rusty chains pierce the silence. Every Tuesday night, a swarm of bicyclists take to the streets of Denton, riding with sporadic shouts and buzzing tires. The group meets at 9:30 p.m. outside the Language building. Carson Coldiron, a business sophomore said that the group gives riders the opportunity to enjoy the camaraderie and strength in numbers.
The night ride’s popularity has increased throughout the years. Regulars said they have seen as many as 120 bikes at one time. The formation at times resembles a Tour de France style, mixed with the freedom of riding on sidewalks. Coldiron said that every rider carries a “just ride” attitude. “I really enjoy the ride, it’s a good, positive way to have fun and meet new people,” Coldiron said. “I don’t remember exactly how I found out about the ride, I think it was from my buddy who
had a friend who was involved.” Many in the group have been riding together since they were freshmen at UNT and some continue to ride even after graduation. Andy Wherry, UNT alumnus, said the night ride is a tradition in which he likes to take part. “I was drawn to it just like everyone is drawn to the bike and a mob mentality of let’s just all get together and do it,” Wherry said. “I kind of ran into it when I was riding through town and saw this huge swarm of bicyclists. I had a good time.”
The routes vary from week to week. Some nights, the route has taken the group as far as from the Language building to the Denton Airport on Airport Road. The bikes on the excursion come in all sorts — everything from track bikes, race bikes, cruisers and custom bikes. Each bike dons its own colors, design and age. “Some bikes are put together like Frankenstein,” Wherry said. “You’ll see everything from race bikes to double-deckers.”
See BIKE on Page 2
SGA starts new school year BY CAROLYN BROWN Senior Staff Writer
PHOTO BY CRISTY ANGULO/ PHOTOGRAPHER
(From left to right) Senior Tyler Bailey, junior Esteban Santiago, junior Victor Gill, sophomore J.J. Johnson and junior Kelvin Drake are the returning five starting linemen for the 2009 football season.
Football team uses experienced offensive linemen as foundation BY ERIC JOHNSON Senior Staff Writer
One hundred eight: That is the number of combined starts by the offensive line for the Mean Green football team. UNT returns all five starting lineman from last season, which is rare for a college football team. New qua r terback R i ley Dodge said the continuit y bet ween t he linemen w ill help smooth his transition. Dodge made his first college start Sept. 3. “Our offensive line was unbelievable against Ball State,” Riley Dodge, the undeclared redshirt freshman, said. “They really give us confidence going forward that we will be able to run the ball, and it makes
it easier for me knowing that I will have time to throw.” The unit did not allow a sack on Dodge and helped the Mean Green gain more than 500 yards of total offense, 296 of which came on the ground. The anchor of this group is right tackle Esteban Santiago, who has started every game since taking the redshirt and now has 25 career starts. T he 6 -f o ot-3 -i nc h, ne a r 300-pounder is looked to by his fellow linemen as their leader. “Esteban is the most experienced,” Victor Gill, a kinesiology junior, said. “He is a key part of our line and has a great shot at all-conference this season.” Santiago, a sports manage-
ment redshirt junior, would enjoy being all-conference, but just wants to do his part to help his team win. “Our job is to make Riley comfortable and give him time to throw,” Santiago said. “I would love to be all-conference, but I want to win football games first.” Gill, with 13 career starts of his own, bookends the line with Santiago starting at left tackle for the Mean Green. He was originally recruited as a tight end and has made a seamless transition to the line. Gill said he feels the offensive line is an integral part of the success of this team and that it is a versatile group.
See CHANGE on Page 6
The UNT student senate kicked off the fall semester Wednesday night by electing its new leaders and passing two bills. The senate elected College of Arts and Sciences senator Drew Robertson as speaker, College of Arts and Sciences senator Jessika Curry as speaker pro-tem and Kevin Sanders as sergeant-at-arms. The Student Government Association is a group of individuals elected by students to provide connections between students and administrators. The senate passed two bills. One approved a budget of $152,671.74 for the 2010 fiscal year. The other, introduced by CAS senator Joel Arredondo, allows runner-up candidates from student senate elections to take the place of elected senators who vacate their seats before the first full senate meeting of either long semester. The bill allows the runnersup to fill the vacancies as fullterm senators rather than being appointed by the SGA president, which would require them to run a second time in the next semester. Several senate seats are vacant, and the bill will help to quickly fill them, Arredondo said. “Essentially, this bill fixes a lot of loose ends that need to be fixed,” he said. Bonita Jacobs, vice president of student development, briefly spoke about this year’s project to change the University Union. She formed a master
PHOTO BY EVAN CLINTON / CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER
SGA senator Joel Arredondo begins the first session of the year Wednesday. planning committee to assess the building’s problems, and said she is trying to get more student feedback on ways to improve it. “You’ve got to have the students driving the process,” Jacobs said. The planning committee is considering several options for the Union, including building a new structure or tearing down the old building, she said. Students who want to get involved with Union changes can participate through Facebook and Twitter groups, she said. SGA president Dakota Carter delivered his state of the union
address, outlining his goals for the new school year. He called for a more inclusive SGA with stronger ties to students. This year, Carter said the SGA plans to have town hall meetings for UNT students, build stronger ties with student organizations and work for more student involvement in athletic events. “We will be more pro-active this year, not expecting students to come to us, but for us to come to students,” Carter said. The student senate is open to all students and meets at 5:15 p.m. on Wednesdays in Wooten Hall 322.