FRIDAY
JANUARY 27, 2012 FRIDAY High 66, Low 39 SATURDAY High 54, Low 34
VOLUME 96 ISSUE 52 FIRST COPY FREE, ADDITIONAL COPIES 50 CENTS
athletics
SMU gets the swoosh BROOKE WILLIAMSON Sports Editor kbwilliamson@smu.edu
SIDNEY HOLLINGSWORTH/The Daily Campus
Lewis Bernstein accepted the Luminary Award on behalf of Sesame Workshop (formerly Children’s Television Workshop) during Thursday evening’s Simmons Luminary Award ceremony at the Umphrey Lee Center. Bernstein serves as the Sesame Workshop’s executive vice president of education and research.
SMU awards education excellency OLIVIA LUDWICK Contributing Writer oludwick@smu.edu Organizations pioneering new means of improving children’s education were honored at the 2012 Simmons Luminary Awards by the Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development. Joan Ganz Cooney and Sesame Workshop, AVANCE
and Salesmanship Club Youth and Family Centers have created evidence-based research and innovative programs, which served as longtime models for improving education, encouraging hope in communities and strengthening atrisk communities. The Simmons School established the Luminary Award in 2009 to recognize individuals and organizations that have invested large amounts of time and
resources into education as a tool of empowerment. These organizations have received national attention for their creative and passionate thinking that has transformed the lives of children and their families through education. Salesmanship Club Youth and Family Centers is a non-profit that is heavily involved in education and stress-relief services for DISD students.
The Club is determined to give children, who are statistically unlikely to have fair educations, success and to maximize their potential. The organization provides residential and community programs for education and therapeutic services to families as a whole, also paying attention to children’s social and emotional development.
See AWARDS page 7
state
See what ‘swoosh’ is being added to SMU Athletic gear. Next fall, SMU athletes will sport a new logo on their athletic gear. The Nike Swoosh. One of the most recognizable brands in the world, Nike will become the official provider for all equipment, footwear and apparel for student-athletes. “Nike is a world leader in athletic apparel and equipment, and this agreement links SMU Athletics with that prestigious brand,” Director of Athletics Steve Orsini said. “We have raised the profile of SMU Athletics to a high level over the past few years and this commitment by Nike only reinforces that fact.” Orsini is not the only one making statements about the new agreement. Morgan Shaw of Nike Communications said, “Partnering with elite organizations such as SMU allows Nike to continue to help
build better athletes by pushing innovation forward.” Nike has a rich history of partnerships, especially in the NCAA. Some of Nike’s partners include the Air Force Falcons, Oklahoma State Cowboys, Oregon Ducks, Alabama Crimson Tide and our crosstown rivals, TCU Horned Frogs. As far as player partnerships go, Nike is associated with Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Tony Romo, Terrell Owens, Tim Tebow, Aaron Rodgers and Clay Matthews, just to name a few. Nike goes beyond football and student-athletes across the country. They also partner with some MLB teams, professional boxers, cycling teams, figure skaters and swimming. SMU student-athletes will join other athletes partnered with Nike as they wear the famous “swoosh.” There is no doubt athletes around campus are excited. Senior Blake McJunkin
See NIKE page 9
Finances
Let the bidding begin PARTH SHETH Staff Writer pmsheth@smu.edu
SPENCER J EGGERS/The Daily Campus
Randy Johnston, a local ethics attorney describes what it was like to see an execution during Wednesday’s panel.
Texas leads nation in number of executions
JULIE FANCHER Contributing Writer jfancher@smu.edu
This month marks the 35th anniversary since the U.S. reinstated the death penalty with the execution of Gary Gilmore by firing squad in Utah in 1977. Since then, 36 states have reimposed the death penalty, with Texas leading the way by far with the largest number of executions carried out since 1977. Tuesday, Rodrigo Hernandez was put to death in Texas for a murder he committed 18 years ago, making him the 478th person to die in the state since the reinstatement. By the end of February that
number will rise to 481, with Gov. Rick Perry having signed off on nearly half of all of those executed in Texas. Texas’ role as a leader in executions as well as increasing opposition to the death penalty as a form of punishment was the topic of the Death Penalty Panel held at SMU’s Dedman School of Law Wednesday afternoon. President of SMU’s American Constitution Society and SMU Dedman School of Law J.D. Candidate Jay Forester coordinated the event with three speakers who are all opposed to the death penalty. “Instead of a debate where people might have their pro death penalty beliefs affirmed, I wanted to host
speakers who presented the other side but in three different ways, just in case something resonated with a person who was previously in favor of the death penalty,” Forester said. Featured speakers included Randy Johnston, a Dallas attorney who specializes on legal ethics, Rick Halperin, director of SMU’s Embrey Human Rights Program and an expert on capital punishment and Victoria Palacios, associate professor of law at SMU and a former member of the Utah parole board. All three members of the panel described their opposition to the death penalty, provided a brief background on the subject, discussed
See PANEL page 7
It’s about to be that time of year again — the time for spring cleaning. Even if you aren’t someone who takes part in the tradition, you can still reap the rewards . People who participate in spring cleaning usually end up selling their junk at great prices. Although they can choose from many different ways to sell their stuff, many opt to post their items on eBay. If you’re a beginner, figuring out eBay can be daunting. But if you avoid these five mistakes, you can have a pleasant eBay experience
Per onal Finan e and buy things at astonishingly low prices. The first and biggest mistake beginners make when buying on eBay is engaging in “bidding wars,” or continuously maintaining the highest bid by remaining a few pennies ahead of other bidders. While this may work at live auctions, the most important factor in eBay auctions is the time until the auction is over — within the last hour the price could double or even triple.
However, if you wait until the last couple of minutes before the auction is over, you could place just one bid and win the item. Also, some eBay sellers recruit their friends to engage in a bidding war simply to increase the price of an item. Since there is no way to stop a seller’s friends from bidding, the easiest way to avoid this situation is simply to not engage in bidding wars. The second mistake many eBay beginners make is forgetting to check shipping and handling costs. The shipping part of this relates to the cost of actually sending the item to the buyer. The handling part,
See EBAY page 7
lecture
Migration author shares inspirations RAHFIN FARUK News Editor rfaruk@smu.edu New York Times bestselling author Luis Urrea entertained a packed McCord Auditorium on Tuesday with his personal narratives about his experiences as an immigrant and a missionary. Urrea, a writer on U.S.-Mexico border issues, has authored the “The Devil’s Highway,” “The Hummingbird’s Daughter” and “The Queen of America.” In recent years, he has gained recognition from migration activists for his work in increasing tolerance between Mexican and American communities.
But Urrea disagrees with thought that splits groups into immigrants and non-immigrants. “We must move beyond binary thinking. We should not glorify or fetishize the border issue,” Urrea said. The border issue is a complex one that involves crime, health, security and literature issues. Before explaining how he became a well-versed writer on border issues, Urrea confronted a question that some in the crowd may have been thinking. “Why do I look Irish? People say I don’t look Mexican,” Urrea said. Urrea was born to a Mexican father with Irish lineage and an American mother from New York.
“My mother called me Lewis, and my father called me Luis,” Urrea said. His childhood taught Urrea to understand the dynamics of poverty. Urrea’s old neighborhood in Tijuana was infested with crime and disease. Facing dire poverty, Urrea and his family moved to California where his father worked menial jobs. In the United States, he tried to develop his cultural identity. “I was told my tuberculosis was shameful. I was told not to tell people I was from Tijuana because
See AUTHOR page 7