Explosive player
prof becomes first-class fellow NEWS: Chemistry Page 2 playwright to speak at UNT ARTS & LIFE: Winning Page 5 show poor etiquette online VIEWS: Students Page 7
Soft-spoken receiver does talking with play Story on Page 3
Thursday, October 29, 2009
News 1,2 Arts & Life 3, 4 Sports 5, 6 Views 7 Classifieds 8 Games 8
Volume 94 | Issue 37
Stormy 70° /48° The Student Newspaper of the University of North Texas
ntdaily.com
UNT hosts DREAM talk BY MORGAN WALKER Staff Writer
PHOTO BY RYAN BIBB / INTERN
(From left) Caitlin Hawkins, a business freshman, and Lakevia Taylor, a recreation and leisure studies freshman, practice a drill against each other Wednesday.
Fresh players start new season Team returns with ‘new energy’
BY JUSTIN UMBERSON Sports Editor
The UNT women’s basketball team is set to tip off its 2009-10 season next week with a new look. Returning only three players who participated in games last season, the Mean Green added two players who sat out last season because of NCA A transfer rules, five incoming freshmen and three junior college transfers to complete the roster. “We have a lot of new energy a nd t a lent,” head c oach Shanice Stephens said. “Our skill level has really grown and so we’ll be competitive off the bat.” Picked to f i n ish fou r t h in the Sun Belt Conference West Division, UNT looks to
improve on its 11-20 record f rom last season t h roug h discipline and communication. “We always need structure and we don’t chaos, and so discipline is always going to be a mainstay regardless of the team or players,” Stephens said. “That is something that we have to have to keep the team grow ing in t he right direction.” Stephen’s discipline policy began last year, her first year at UNT. Some players failed to buy into it last season, resulting in suspensions, but coach Stephens sa id t heir replacements have brought better team chemistry. “We have a better comfort level,” she said. “The k ids we have in we have a better relationship with. Not everything is perfect, but it’s much better.” Despite winning 11 out of its 31 contests, the Mean Green tied a school record with seven
road victories. UNT sports a much tougher road schedule this season, which consists three away games against Big 12 teams, including a trip to Austin to play the University of Texas Longhorns. “I really want us to take every opponent one opponent at a time,” Stephens said. “I need for every time we step on the floor that we don’t have respect of the jersey and to do our very best.” Gua rd Br it t ne y Ja me s, a cr im ina l just ice sen ior, returns for her fourth year, needing 71 points to be the 12th woman to reach 1,000 points in her UNT playing career. Wanting to be more than just a shooter, James has embraced a new role on the team. “I need to step up and try to be more of a leader since I am senior,” James said. “I need to show everyone the ropes and show everyone how she [coach Stephens] wants
us to play so we can become successful.” Although she was able to practice with the team last season, junior guard Niqky Hughes will be seeing her first competition in over a year since transferring from UT. “I a m pret t y exc ite d,” Hughes said. “This w ill be my f i rst yea r to act ua l ly stay healthy and play a full season.” If the season began today, coach Stephens would not have a set-in-stone starting line up because of the competition brought from the new players. “We’re still play ing w ith that,” Stephens said. “Some good people have taken a big step forward, but if we started today we would still have a toss-up.” T he Mea n Green opens its season at 7 p.m. Nov. 5 w ith an ex hibition against the Texas Woman’s University Pioneers.
Students, faculty and staff will have a chance to discuss the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act at 6 tonight in the Eagle Student Services Center 255. The DREAM Act is a piece of proposed legislation that was first introduced in the U.S. in 2001 and would provide opportunities and freedom to undocumented students if they meet certain requirements, said Ramiro Luna of the League of United Latin American Citizens. The bill would amend the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996. “If they meet those criteria, they’ll be able to get temporary residency,” Luna said. “And eventually, after they go to college for at least two years or enlist in the armed ser v ices, t hey c a n have permanent residency.” T he i m m ig r a nt m i nor must have lived in the U.S. for at least five years, been admitted to an institution of higher education or have earned a high school diploma in the U. S. and been a person of good mora l cha racter, according to www.dreamactivist.org. Being of good moral character means “they cannot be a felon,” sa id Va ler ie Martinez, a political science professor. “They can’t be juvenile delinquents and if they’ve had a job, it can’t be a job where they were paid under the table,” Martinez said. “Because if they have been employed, t hat mea ns they’ve been paying taxes.” Martinez also said she feels it is important for students to learn about the DREAM
Act because a n educated work force requires a college education now. The current estimate of undocumented students who graduate each year from U.S. high schools is about 65,000 students, Martinez said. “Essentially, you’re telling 65,000 students a year they’ll never get a job beyond an hourly wage kind of thing u n le s s t he y ’r e w e a lt h y because they’ll have to pay international student rates, which are expensive,” she said. The event will begin with a presentation by Luna, the keynote speaker, and will be followed by a panel discussion. During the presentation, Luna said he will discuss the logistics, facts, and statistics and the panel will discuss some of the pros and cons of the act. The panelists will include Michael Watts of the College Democrats, Juan Garcia of t he Nor t h Tex a s LU L AC District, as well as several st udents, sa id Serg io Guzman, an international studies senior. “I’m hoping that people can leave the event having learned exactly what it is — it’s not an amnesty which is what we’re trying to make sure that everyone knows,” said Jasmin Flores, an international studies senior. The discussion was organized by Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity, Omega Delta Phi Fraternity and the Mean Green LULAC Council. “I encourage students to contact their congressman and voice their opinion on the DREAM Act because I think it is a legislation that affects the schools,” Luna said.
Speaker suggests focus on students over disciplines BY CALI A. THOMPSON Contributing Writer
While registering for next semester’s classes, students may be encouraged to branch out beyond the scope of their major. Edward Ayers, president of the University of Richmond, spoke to the UNT community Wednesday about how depa r t ments shou ld work toget her to help st udents become more marketable and well-rounded. “We need to stop denying our nature and allow ourselves to be interested in multiple things,” Ayers said. His speech, ca lled “T he H idden C r i si s a nd O ppor t u n it ie s of H ig her Education,” was the second of severa l lect u res i n t he Future of the University series presented by the Center for the Study of Interdisciplinarity. Ayer’s lecture was co-sponsored by the history department. The series focuses on ways to improve all universities, not just the future of UNT. Ayers said that universities should focus more on st udents, rat her t ha n t he “box” or major that students choose. “What if we didn’t start with
boxes and disciplines?” Ayers asked. “What if we focused on students first?” Ayers explained the concept of interdisciplinarity as integrating multiple academic d isciplines to solve problems. “You have the curiosity, I have the tools,” Ayers said. Robert Frodeman, director of the center, said that interdisciplinarity is likely to be t he f ut u re of u n iversit ies across the country. W h i le one d iscipline of st ud y pre sent s a n i s sue, a not her d iscipl i ne br i ngs its ow n ex per t ise a nd t he problem is tackled together. Ayers described the lack of cooperation between disciplines and university departments as a crisis. He u sed M.C . E scher ’s “Relat iv it y ” pict u re of multiple staircases leading in different angles as an example of how higher education institutes work. “Somehow everybody can look down on someone else,” Ayers said. “It’s a bogus sense of hierarchy.” Ay e r s e m ph a s i z e d t he need for interdisciplinarity i n u n iversit ies to su r v ive and ultimately thrive, especia lly in today’s economic
climate. In hard times, college is even more important than before, he said. Yet the demand for higher education in tough financial
Students related to t his concept and the idea of interdisciplinarity. Ju n ior Ca meron Va z i r i liked the idea of being able to branch out into different
“Your undergrad major isn’t going to determine the rest of your life.”
—Edward Ayers President of the University of Richmond
times leads more students towa rd pract ica l f ields of study like business, and away from disciplines of humanities, he said. Ayers said his reason behind this is because students are unable to draw a connection between studying a certain subject and finding a job after graduation. “Your undergrad major isn’t going to determine the rest of your life,” Ayers said. To challenge this notion, Ayers said higher education should not be treated as a commodity, but instead as a service to society. “Why not be yourself now?” Ayers asked. “You still need a discipline and v igor, but it doesn’t have to be a n assembly line.”
fields of study. Vaziri majors in philosophy, histor y and political science. “I’m interested in all three, and they all affect each other,” Va z i r i ex pla i ned. “T hat ’s something you lose when you only study one.” A lt hough interdisciplinarity was the focus of Ayers’ lecture, his overall focus was how history played a key role in looking ahead. Understanding what has and has not worked for higher educat ion in t he past ca n greatly affect its future, Ayers explained. Ayers ment ioned a “lost generation of people I went to grad school with that never found jobs.” Many students were able to relate to need for greater
PHOTO BY CLINTON LYNCH / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Edward Ayers, president of the University of Richmond, speaks to students Wednesday afternoon in the Environmental Education, Science, and Technology Building, with his lecture titled “The Hidden Crisis and Opportunities of Higher Education.” historical understanding to get t hem t hroug h to t heir future. “History is so vital in education,” David A. Rodriguez, a history junior said. “It helps your analytical skills in schol-
arly and business pursuits.” The nex t spea ker in t he C enter for t he St ud y of Interdisciplina r it y w i l l be Jack Marburger, presidential science adviser for President Bush, on Feb. 15.