November 29, 2012 by The Houstonian

TODAY’S FORECAST HI: 69o LOW: 53o

Cheyenne Simpson | The Houstonian

WASH program students overtake the campus in their semesterly creations in the “Inflatopia’ group projects featuring everything from a turtle to beehives.

Chance of Rain:

Huntsville under another burn ban, according to officials

Volume 122 / Issue 26

SHSU to play Cal Poly in second round of FCS playoffs after bye

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Thursday, November 29, 2012

Body farm corpses spared from forest fire STAFF REPORT

A fire near the Sam Houston State University body decomposition facility, also known as the body farm, was contained on Wednesday, officials said. The fire was located on the east side of Harmon Creek on Fish Hatchery Road and spread to more than five acres at one time, according to Anthony Tryon,

Walker County communication supervisor. The location was in the Sam Houston National Forest and made it’s way near the edge of the body farm. Butch Davis, Walker County emergency management coordinator, said the fire has probably been burning since Sunday when a thunderstorm came through Huntsville. He said the fire was most likely caused by lightning and was slow burning.

“There was no major damage,” Davis said. “When you have a slow burning fire like this one it helps to get the underbrush out of [the forest], which helps growth.” Officials first received the call at 4:04 p.m. The U.S. Forest Service is also working with Walker County Emergency Management to keep the fire contained, Davis said. University Police Department officers and the Huntsville Fire Department were the first to arrive

on scene. The body farm, officials said, was not in danger because it would have had to cross Harmon Creek. By that time, officials had already put a containment line around the flames. Davis said little wind and high humidity helped keep the fire under control and was “a cake walk” compared to the forest fires last summer. The body farm is a research facility used by the College of

Criminal Justice to understand how different circumstances effect human decomposition. A news report on the facility shows The site is not open to the public for viewing. Davis said there were still workers on the scene when he left, but that officials from the U.S. Forest Service, which watches over the safety public forests, will return Thursday morning to inspect progress on putting out the fire.

Tree of Light gets students ready for holiday season MCKINZIE BROCAIL Senior Reporter Bearkats bundled up and brought donations to the 92 nd annual Tree of Light Ceremony in the Plaza on campus Tuesday night. With candles in hand, students and faculty braved 55-degree weather as they gathered around the 40-foot Christmas tree waiting for it to light up. For some students, the event served as relief before the stress of finals hits. “We’re all enjoying time before finals stress us out and it’s a good cause,” Stephanie Gomez, freshman history major, said while wrapped up in a blanket. “I came out, then went back [to my dorm] for my gloves and blanket.” Sam Houston State University’s Orange Pride Dance Team danced to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” and the SHSU Choral and Jazz Combo caroled holiday songs like “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Silent Night.” “I was singing along to ‘Jingle Bells,’” Paul O. Ajibolade II, animation freshman, said. “This is my first Tree of Light ceremony. It was exciting, everyone was cheering for it to start.” Holiday cheer was everywhere in the Bearkat Plaza. Christmas tree cookies and red velvet cupcakes were washed down with hot chocolate and wassail provided by Student Activities. Homecoming King and Queen, Ashton Winfree and Ashley Baker, introduced administrators and then made a “call for ornaments” where different university organizations got to trim the tree with an ornament representing their group. President Dana Gibson gave a brief history of the tradition. “The Tree of Light Ceremony is the oldest tradition in our university,” Gibson said. “The original tree stands in the middle of the Evans Complex.” A new tradition was started last year when Gibson took out her cell phone to capture a photograph of all the students taking a photo of the tree as it lit up. This year she continued the ritual.

Students were encouraged to volunteer and to give back to the community. In the spirit of “Giving Tuesday,” Student Activities handed out 575 T-shirts in exchange for canned goods that will be donated to the Good Shepherd Mission. “One in five families in Walker County come to the Good Shepherd Mission at some point,” Director of the Good Shepherd Mission David Smith said. While they were not able to attend, distance education and Woodlands Center students could watch the ceremony online. Several administrators including Vice President of Student Services Frank Parker, Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Jaimie Hebert, Vice President for Finance and Operations Alvin Hooten, and Vice President of Enrollment Management Heather Thielemann were also present at the ceremony.

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Students gain free course lab Church to host AIDS vigil access after contract approval JAY R. JORDAN Staff Reporter

BRANDON SCOTT Staff Reporter The Board of Regents approved a contract extension between Sam Houston State University and Pearson Education that will give students free access to course labs and mastering programs. The contract runs from Jan. 1, 2013, through Aug. 31, 2016 at $3.5 million. “What we’re doing with this agreement is unique,” said DELTA Associate Vice President Bill Angrove. The deal provides students with personalized instruction that evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of the individual, according to Angrove. The program features 80 labs, but now they will come free to students, aside from the cost of the course that requires the

material. Faculty Senate voiced its There is also a 60 percent concerns with eCollege, which discount for students who is the server currently used purchase corresponding for online courses. Professors e-books with MyLabs, which complained as far back as 2010 could save students from that eCollege was unintuitive having to scatter around for and difficult to manage, costly textbooks. especially with much of the Angrove compared the staff using Blackboard for personalized instruction to face-to-face courses as well. gaming, with each student This fall, it was decided advancing to the next level at that all online courses would his own pace. be moved from eCollege “It’s used in the to Blackboard 9 beginning developmental math, writing, spring 2013. That meant there reading and first experience. would no longer be a use for Each student is given an the eCollege server, but as individual assessment and Provost and Vice President it tailors instruction to the of Academic Affairs Jaimie individual,” Angrove said. Hebert said in September, the “We’re calling it a student university is locked into the success initiative because we contract whether it used the want students to succeed.” server or not. The university began SHSU owes Pearson renegotiating its contract with Pearson earlier this year after — PEARSON, page 6

Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church will be hosting a vigil in recognition of World AIDS Day on Dec. 1 in Huntsville. The ceremony is in remembrance of those who have battled with AIDS, and seeks to raise awareness of the disease. Scott Antrip, Wesley Outreach Committee Chair, has helped set up the event which is having its fourth annual gathering in Huntsville on Saturday. “It got started because Wesley was trying to spend advent thinking about some of the world issues and how we can respond to those,” said Antrip. “This AIDS vigil started and has continued to be an effort to call attention to the brutal disease of HIV/ AIDS… and to also remember those who lived with it and lost that battle.” According to a report published by CNN, the CDC said that 60 percent of 13-24 year olds were not aware of the HIV positivity, and that 87 percent of high school students have never been

tested for the infection. “That’s stunning to me,” said Wesley Pastor Rev. Cheryl Smith. “That is enough to call attention to this disease, to take away some of the stigma. [The church] is willing to say that the education, prevention, and cure is something that is important to us. It belongs right in the middle of a faith community and we’re trying to raise awareness and be compassionate about it.” Marina Miller, sophomore dance major, is attending the event and urges the spreading of AIDS awareness. “I have a very close friend who just recently told me he had been infected with HIV and it was developing into AIDS,” said Miller. “… It’s something people should be aware of because it can happen to someone you really care about. My point being more people everyday are contracting the virus and we need to do all we do to stop it.” Walker County has seen 72 cases in which an individual was HIV —

VIGIL, page 6

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News

Thursday, November 29, 2012 houstonianonline.com/news

Walker County faces drought conditions, commissioners declare winter burn ban SOPHIE NELSON Staff Reporter The skies could be absent of fireworks this holiday season after the Walker County Commissioner’s Court declared a burn ban for county in its meeting on Monday. According to the Texas Association of Counties (TAC), outdoor burning and other activities that could ignite a fire are prohibited while a burn ban is in effect. The ban lasts for 90 days, but can be extended if the Commissioner’s Court determines need, or shortened if the county judge deems it no longer necessary. Students at Sam Houston State University who live in Walker County were for the most part, unconcerned about the ban. Several said they lived in apartments and were not allowed to burn anyway. Cullen Heard, a sophomore Biophysical Therapy major, said that he would not be under the ban’s influence as an apartment dweller, but have held friends who owned houses where they could have fires that would be affected by the restriction. Other students were disappointed that they would not

be able to hang out with friends again around the bonfires they had been holding on the cold nights over the past few weeks. The Texas Forest Service determines the need for a burn ban based on three components: the Keetch-Byram Drought Index (KBDI), the amount of rainfall and the current fuel moisture (water found in vegetation). According to Sherri Pegoda, Assistant to the County Judge, the Texas Interagency Coordination Center uses the KBDI to determine fire potential in time of drought. They do this by measuring the amount of precipitation needed for the ground to reach its full moisture capacity. The measurements range from 0 to 800 units and “represents a moisture regime from 0 to 8 inches of water through the soil layer”. As of Wednesday, the KDBI measurement was 537 with a high of 647 and a low of 354. Additionally, Walker County should have seen about 44 inches of rainfall by this time but has only seen 38 inches. The fuel moisture for the county normally 147 for this time of year, but is currently 137. This is not the first time Walker County has been under a burn ban. In June, the commissioners

Photo courtesy of Keetch-Bryan Drought Index Texas Weather Connection

WINTER DROUGHT. According to the KDBI, Walker County is currenty at a 537 on a scale of 800 for drought coditions, which is one of three components used to declare a burn ban.

approved to establish a burn ban if necessary after drought conditions reached between 600 and 700 on the KDBI, although a ban was not implemented. In the summer

of 2011, the county was at a 722 on the KBDI and was about 15 inches behind in rainfall, causing severe drought conditions that lead to forest fires along Interstate

45 near Huntsville. The Commissioner’s Court will meet Dec. 10 to decide if New Year’s Eve fireworks will be placed under the ban as well.

Christmas spirit hits Downtown Huntsville fair

MOLLY WADDELL A&E Editor Huntsville is getting into the Christmas spirit with the 3rd Annual Downtown Christmas Fair on Dec. 1 from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Over 100 vendors will line the streets of Downtown Huntsville selling everything from handmade crafts to metal signs. There are booths for everyone with

vendors offering food, children’s toys, handmade knitted and crochet items, art work, jewelry and gift items. There are also traditional carnival foods such as funnel cakes, hot dogs, barbeque and old fashioned root beer. “It is a great way to kick off the holidays and find those gifts for the hard to shop for people,” Main Street Coordinator, Kim

McAuliffe said. There will also be a Winter in the Park children’s area located in Rather Park at the corner of University Ave. and 13th Street. The children’s area is open from noon until 5 p.m. The children’s area will have games, crafts, a cookie decorating station, letters to Santa, karaoke, moon walks and pony rides.

Santa to visit museum LEIGHA LEWIS Staff Reporter The Sam Houston Memorial Museum will host a Houston Family Christmas event and Woodland House Open House on Saturday, Dec. 1, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. “All our demonstrators will be on the grounds…includes blacksmithing, woodworking, kick wheel pottery, spinning & weaving, and Cherokee culture & crafts. We will have holiday goodies, such as homemade gingerbread, teacakes, & wassail,” said the museum’s marketing coordinator Megan Buro. Houston Family Christmas has been an annual event in Huntsville for over a decade, where families come for a 19th century experience. There will be historical demonstrations, holiday treats from Eliza’s kitchen, Santa

Claus for the kids, and a tomahawk throw. In addition to the usual holiday festivities, attendees will be able to walk around the Woodland House. The House was Sam Houston’s family home until he was elected governor of Texas in 1859. The Sam Houston Memorial Museum puts on a variety of events throughout the year including an annual amateur photography contest historical reenactments from experts and museum staff. From Feb. 18 to March 22, there will be an exhibit called “Changing the Face of Power – Women in the U.S. Senate.” The museum is located at 1836 Sam Houston Avenue, between 17th and 19th street. For more information, contact Megan Buro by the Sam Houston Museum at 936-294-1832. The event is free HOProvided HO HO. Santa will be one of the to the public. many events at the celebration

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Children will also enjoy playing in the snow in front of the court house and train rides. Both events cost 50 cents. All shops in the area will remain open for business and will offer different holiday deals. For more information, call Main Street at 936-291-5920.

Female student could face arrest in alleged assault GEORGE MATTINGLY News Editor Police officials say a warrant could be issued for the arrest of a female Sam Houston State University student after she was involved in a alleged physical assault earlier this month. The Walker County District Attorney’s office will determine if a warrant will be issued. If found guilty by a judge, the suspect could face a Class A Misdemeanor charge of assault causing bodily injury, which carries a fine not to exceed $4,000 or up to a year in jail, or both, according to the Texas Penal Code. According to Deputy Chief of University Police Department James Fitch, the case involves

two girls who knew each other and were having personal issues. While no names were released due to the status of the case, Fitch said that a verbal confrontation between the girls escalated to physical assault. According to Fitch, one girl hit the other in the face several times before fleeing the scene on Nov. 11 near the Smith-Hudson Building. While the suspect was unable to be identified by an officer at the time, the suspect has been positively identified, according to the UPD website. The case is currently awaiting review from the District Attorney’s office.

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Viewpoints

Thursday, November 29, 2012 houstonianonline.com/viewpoints

Fighting finals fallout

Social networks Allyson Wiley gives tips to ace finals week share too much of our lives

The moment of pure panic has begun with preparation for finals. Students are looking for legal ways to get ahead in the mountain of reading, missed quizzes and hard to read study guides. Mostly likely, you have reached this point in the semester, still not knowing the name of the course you are taking and you don’t want to begin studying for the comprehensive final. Don’t fret; there are a few ways to make the preparation for the dreaded week a little more bearable. If you have read any of my articles, you know that I am quite fond of lists. I have prepared what I have learned as a few full proof methods of getting through the cram sessions and finals. Throw out that stupid diet that you are on. You might as well put your fat jeans on because the only way to get through cramming is Mountain Dew, potato chips and Skittles. That’s a lie, but studies show that you do need to eat often. Bring snacks with you to keep you motivated. Also it will keep your energy up, so you can push through the 2 a.m. lull. You are going to need caffeine and large amounts of it to study. My drug of choice is Diet Coke and Starbucks, but you can choose anything from energy drinks to espresso. You are just in luck because the school has a convenient Starbucks in the library, where you should be studying anyway.

Depending on your there is a world caffeine tolerance and outside of studying, consumption, you and you can pretend may need to sleep. If that you are actually you don’t function having fun. well on three hours of You may have to sleep, don’t try to. If live at the library, you need your eight but that does not hours to function, mean you need to make sure you neglect personal manage your time in hygiene. At the end order to rest. If your of next week, the ALLY WILEY brain can’t take the library will become Staff Reporter lack of rest, your study pretty crowded, and time will be wasted. If if you haven’t bathed you completely neglect the basic in three days, someone is going human need to sleep, you may to notice. It may be time to go succumb to sleep psychosis and home and shower if you have gum hallucinate. Pulling an all-nighter, in your hair, a missing shoe and may be a ton of fun for you, but it permanent Cheeto fingers. will not help you prepare for that Make study guides. They help chemistry final. Take a couple of prepare and give you a jumping off hours every day and nap. It will point. Go through everything on help you in the long run. your study guide a few times and Studies show that 20 minutes get familiar with the key terms. So of cardio a day can help ‘jog’ your when you take your final, you’ll at memory. Go running outside. least know what the words mean. Breathing in the fresh air and It will help with the guessing taking in the nature is relaxing process at least. and with engage your mind. If Form study groups. Study it’s cold outside, hit the gym or groups help to motivate you to try to find something you enjoy buckle down and start studying. doing that can burn calories (i.e. Getting a group together dancing, football, basketball, will allow you to divide and Zumba, aerobics). conquer definition of terms and Become acquainted with explanations of concepts. the library because you will be Don’t cram. According to the basically living there until after Dartmouth Academic Skills finals. I’ve seen people sleeping Center, you should study in 20under desks on the fourth floor. 50 minute increments and give I would choose a table by the yourself a five to 10 minute break window. It helps to remember between each session.

Breathe. A wise person told me “the world will continue to spin.” This is not the end all be all. I promise there is more outside of that 200 question impossible criminology test. It won’t kill you, even if your hand falls off. Just kidding. Listen to music. According to the Huffington Post, listening to music (such as jazz or classical) while you study stimulates both sides of your brain which increases the likelihood that you will retain information. Try to avoid music with loud drumbeats and lyrics, listen to slow or medium-paced music, and continue one style of studying, such as memorization or science, when listening to a particular type of music. On the day of the final, eat a high protein breakfast and drink water. If you don’t drink coffee or other beverages with tons of caffeine, don’t start on test day. You’ll be jittery and restless. Know what you need to bring to the final. A blue book or a scantron? Pen or Pencil? Don’t bring your cell phone or you’ll be tempted to look at it. And lastly, don’t forget to bring your A-game. Finally, after this monstrosity of a week is over, forget about the tests and go have some fun. Everyone has their vices. Personally, you will find me with a glass of wine and a Netflix movie, but whatever floats your boat. Good luck and ace those exams!

running in the National Museum of Computing after decades of sitting disassembled in a closet. The fact that the oldest functioning electronic computer in history is still chugging along like a 2.5 ton Energizer bunny is enough to deeply enrage anyone who has ever had an Xbox 360 “red ring” after two months. As you may have already guessed, the WITCH’s survival is largely owed to its simplicity. With such a relatively primitive design, there are less malfunctions, mistakes and accidents that could occur. Reportedly, the WITCH was once left to run for over 10 days straight, unmonitored and unkempt, and was still computing when the operators came back from their vacation. Although there is seldom optimism to be had in world news--and this is certainly a breath of fresh air for those of you tired of hearing about lawsuits, homicides, and reality TV--this may muster up some disturbing revelations about where we are headed.

Although it may seem practically utopian to have constant access to your information, it still has to physically exist somewhere, meaning that the power to protect and regulate your information would be almost completely out of your hands. If a meteor crashes into the server in Idaho holding all of your data from Call of Duty 4, it’s tough luck. If your Netflix gets hacked, you’d better empty your bank account, because it’s not unlikely they could hop between devices and accounts until they get something useful. Stealing from your iPhone? Fifteen minutes and a 13-yearold 4chan user. Stealing from WITCH? Four men, a crowbar, a wheelbarrow, and a lot of luck. Breaking your iPhone? Sweet & sour sauce. Breaking WITCH? A Volvo. Very few people would say that technology isn’t steering us towards the better, but most would agree that we damn well better be careful about it.

Current technology does not stand the test of time TAYLOR LIKENS Staff Reporter

courtesy of creators.com

I may not be one to drown in my own superiority complex, but there are certain things I can claim to be completely above. Namely puns. I will therefore not be making any cracks about how the Wolverhampton Instrument for Teaching Computing from Harwell (WITCH) is wicked, or any other sort of nonsense. Enthusiasts of the pun are encouraged to write to the Houstonian. I wouldn’t be wrong in praising it, however, as this 61-year-old device is once again up and

We should find it disturbing that each big advancement seems to usher in a whole new plethora of happy accidents. This was fine back when computers weren’t dominating our workplaces, academia and social lives, but today it’s virtually impossible to peel a banana, pass a kidney stone or turn your head gradually to the left without having to log into something and verify you are in fact not a spammer. The problem: as time passes, there is less and less touchable, visible existence to our gadgets and information. This type of technology is known as cloud computing. Rather than having documents, accounts and information constrained to just a single device or computer, cloud technology is an ever growing feature that enables convenient distribution between platforms. The drawback, however, is that this information doesn’t necessarily exist in any one place that you yourself can touch or hold, meaning it is more easily corrupted or stolen.

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MORGAN MEARS Staff Reporter

We’ve all been on Facebook and seen that one of our friends is in a new relationship, or had a bad day or had a family member pass away all from their status updates. People use social networking sites to share news, both good and bad. We use social networks to connect with family and friends both near and far. From sharing status updates to photos, social networks connect us across the web. However, as a society, we have started to rely too heavily on social networks to share information. According to a story published in the Huffington Post, 17-year-old Jasmine Benjamin, a nursing student at Valdosta State University, was found unresponsive in the study area of her dorm on Nov. 18. When found, the police ruled the incident as a homicide pending further investigation. Normally after someone has been declared dead, the family is notified; however, this wasn’t the case. Benjamin’s family did not find out about their daughter’s death until checking Facebook later that afternoon and seeing a friend’s post about it; the police later notified Benjamin’s parents of her passing after they had already found out from Facebook. The police stated that they could not release any information regarding Benjamin’s death, yet people were already aware of her passing. They did not notify two of the most important people in the young girl’s life: her parents. Instead, they had to find out about their daughter’s death from an online post. From learning about a death on Facebook to finding out that a friend’s relationship just ended, social networks are becoming the new way to share. We have become a society that relies too heavily on social networks to share information. “There is no longer face to face communication, and everything has become based on technology, and social networks have become less about individual expression, and more about throwing yourself out there…” junior psychology major Jacob Hughes said when asked if he thought that we depended too much on social networks to get our information across. Living in a world where we no longer feel the need to inform someone about big changes in our lives or about a death face to face, we simply get on Facebook or Twitter and send out a status or a tweet to the masses letting them know what is going on. As a society, we need to step away from the social networks when it comes to sharing news, may it be a family member passing, someone getting a divorce or a relationship ending. We need to stop sharing these details on social networks and informing those that need to know about it in person. So step away from the computer the next time something major happens in your life and tell someone about it, face-to-face.

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Arts&Entertainment

Thursday, November 29, 2012 houstonianonline.com/a-e

“Spring Awakening” delivers energetic performances CAITLIN ADAMCIK Staff Reporter

Molly Waddell | The Houstonian

MAMA WHO BORE ME. Mrs. Bergmann, played by Jen Lucy Estrada, tries to tell Wendela, played by Victoria Villarreal, about the birds and the bees.

Spring Awakening is a lively and rebellious musical for our generation. The musical focuses on different characters with their problems. The issues are relatable to the target audience, topics like abuse, suicide, and sex. The messages in the musical are definitely a touchy subject. When the musical first came out it was controversial, but now the subjects are more real to the audience. This musical is extraordinary. Everything about the performance stood out; the acting, the singing, the live music, and the energy the actors gave out. The stage design is very unique. A live band is on a platform near the back of the stage. A soundtrack cannot beat sound of the actual instruments in the theater. The actors had such a great energy all throughout the musical.

When they performed a number, they kept the beat with their legs and worked the stage. The following characters stole the show. Melchior, played and Gustavo Gomez, is the strong and stubborn main character who admires Wendla. Gomez did an unbelievable performance. His acting was beyond great. The audience hangs onto his every word, totally be certain of his performance. Gomez showed his acting skills while sharing his deep emotion to a chair act as if it is a tombstone. Wendla, played by Victoria Villarreal, is a naive and curious girl who wants to know more about coming of age. Villarreal has an amazing voice. She belts out her notes like no other. Her opening number is mind blowing. Her acting is as good as her voice. Villarreal lead the audience to believe that Wendla is oblivious to —

SPRING, page 6

W.A.S.H takes over the SHSU campus with inflatables CHEYENNE SIMPSON Staff Reporter Turtles, Bee Hives, cups, headphones and a dead inflatable doll made of plastic wrap covered the campus of Sam Houston State University as students from the art department tested their creativity. These students are apart of the workshop of art studio history class and were participating in their annual “Inflatopia”. This project takes place at the end of every semester as a way for the students to show their creative abilities. “The W.A.S.H. program is really about learning how to work collaboratively with other students

as well as learning the foundations of art. We talk to them and teach them about craftsmanship as well as ideas and concept, but in terms of this project a lot of it had to do with working collaboratively as a team,” said art professor Valerie Powell, who has been teaching the W.A.S.H program for the past four years and has found that it has only gotten better each year. Each team had to use their knowledge that they gained in class and create an inflatable enclosure with only plastic wrapping and hot tools. Each team had to purchase their own materials and work on their inflations outside of class time.

There were not rules as to the size or theme of the inflation but to be as creative as possible. Each team had their own inspiration, for one team the busy and stressful time of finals made them want to slowdown and keep calm. “We wanted to make a turtle because it’s the last three weeks of the semester so everyone is packed with finals coming in and there is all of this stress coming down and we just wanted people to go in and jest relax and take it slow like a turtle,” said W.A.S.H. student Luis Gaitan. Another team went as far as making a dead doll, adding —

WASH, page 6

Jessica Gomez | The Houstonian

ROUGH ROAD GAME. Basketball traveled to College Station Wednesday, losing to the Texas A&M Aggies (7-1) 64-37.

NAACP revives classic TV show, showcases talent JASMINE BROWN Staff Reporter The Sam Houston State University chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People brought a classic popular show to campus as they held their annual Showtime at the Apollo on Wednesday in the Lowman Student Center Ballroom. The event was based around an old popular show that showcases multiple talents from all walks of artistry, including music, dance, and spoken word. The event was no different as it showcased a number of talents at Sam Houston. NAACP’s president Camry Selden, and NAACP member Gieselle

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Walker were the hosts of the show. The tradition of the show calls for much audience interaction. As part of the show, the audience can boo an act and get them swept off the stage by the sandman. While some acts got booed, most survived the crowd’s scrutiny. However, the 1 st place winner was sophomore singer Rashaad Brown accompanied by guitarist Taylor Dees. “I’ve been singing ever since I could talk,” Brown said, “but I was definitely nervous leading up to [Apollo].” However, he overcame the nerves for a big win with much appreciation from the crowd. “It feels amazing to win, especially knowing that we had such little time to prepare,” said Brown, “I’m

loving [performing].” Closing act and NAACP member Caryn Waldon, who closed the show, said “I really, really enjoyed the show. We had a tough crowd but it all turned out well.” Audience member Macneil Jenkins also enjoyed the festivities, but his only complaint was that fellow audience members being a little over zealous in their commentary. “I enjoyed the show other than the people in the background talking,” Jenkins said. “Everything was pretty good, though. My favorite acts were Kendrick’s [Lattimore] acting scene and EJ’s [Eugene Reid Jr.] rap set. I would definitely come to an event like Apollo again.”

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Sports

Thursday, November 29, 2012 houstonianonline.com/sports

Bearkats begin title redemption CONNOR HYDE Sports Reporter

The Sam Houston State Bearkats begin their second consecutive run for the Division I FCS Championship squaring off against the California Polytechnic State Mustangs Saturday at Bowers Stadium. SHSU received a first round bye coming off a loss against Texas A&M to face Cal Poly in the second round of the 2012 FCS Division I Playoffs. According to SHSU head coach Willie Fritz, the week’s rest benefited the Bearkats in preparing for the Mustangs. “We were the most beat up we’ve been all season going in to the A&M game; and then we got a few guys beat up that game,” Fritz said. “When you play as many games in a row as we did, you get down and you’re playing intense games…we took four solid days off and I feel it was good for the guys.” Cal Poly finished their season 9-2 (7-1 conference), and stampeded early in the season with a 24-22 win in week two against Wyoming to establish themselves as a powerful running offense; ranking third in FCS rankings with 36 rushing touchdowns and 3,671 total season rushing yards. “They run a unique offense,” Fritz said. “We haven’t seen anybody play this type of offense before [with the] triple option, but some other elements we don’t see very much.” Even with a top ranked rush offense, SHSU’s defense is a brick wall against the ground attack; ranking third in the FCS. Walter Peyton Award nominee Timothy Flanders ranks in the top 30 running backs in the league with 1,151 yards and 17 touchdowns. After a slow 1-2 start three weeks into the season, the Bearkat offense led a seven game winning streak to claim a spot

Eric Fite | The Houstonian

ROUGH ROAD GAME. Basketball traveled to College Station Wednesday, losing to the Texas A&M Aggies (7-1) 64-37.

as a top 10 overall offense in the FCS (1st according to rivals.com, 6th in NCAA). SHSU averaged

44.5 points per game as well as averaging 480.5 total yards. The game will kick off at 3 p.m.

General admission is $15, while student tickets are $5. For more information visit

www.gobearkats.com

Women’s basketball to “pack the house” Friday CODY LEWIS Sports Editor More than 4,000 elementary students from Walker County schools will visit Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum to watch NCAA Division 1 women’s basketball in the fifth annual “Pack the House” Challenge game Friday at 11 a.m. The Texas A&M-Commerce Lions will visit the Bearkats for a non-conference basketball game while thousands of Sam Houston fans make their presence heard. Each year a “Pack the House” challenge has been held at Johnson Coliseum, the attendance grows. In its first year, the Bearkats played Southern Mississippi and drew in a record 2,261 fans.

The year after that brought in 2,456 as Sam Houston squared off with Ole Miss. Last year, the team produced a whopping 3,141 fans as they defeated Mary-Hardin Baylor. Sam Houston has won three out of the four “Pack the House” Challenge games it has played in. “This year we are pushing for more than 4,000 fans to fill Johnson Coliseum,” Sam Houston head coach Brenda Nichols said. “If any fans haven’t experienced a Pack the House, it is an experience that they will not want to miss.” “Pack the House” is put together every year by NCAA in order for conferences to build attendance while competing. The winners are awarded $500 in which the winning team donates to a non-profit organization of their

choice. Close to two-thirds of Division 1 institutions participated last year and attracted more than 559,000 fans. “Our girls really look forward to the ‘Pack the House’ game,” Nichols said. “With all those kids in the coliseum, it’s just a great atmosphere. It’s a great way to introduce area youngsters to college athletics.” Every person that comes to the game is counted in the overall total and attendance is a pivotal factor in determining who wins the award. “We certainly hope that Sam Houston students, faculty and staff will want to come spend their lunchtime with us Friday and join in the fun,” Nichols said.

Sam Houston holds a 1-3 record coming into Friday’s game, but the Bearkats’ losses have come from some of the country’s top-ranked teams such as Delaware and Nebraska. And their schedule is not getting any easier. The team still has to play TCU and Albany this season along with some tough division games. Senior Britni Martin leads the team with an average of 16.5 points per game and senior Sequeena Thomas adds 9.0 points and 11.3 rebounds per game. Tickets to the “Pack the House” Challenge game can be purchased online at gobearkats. com/tickets or at the SHSU Athletic Ticket Office, which is located at Bowers Stadium. Tipoff for Friday’s game is set for 11 a.m.

Men’s basketball falls to Texas 65-37 JEREMY KLEIBER Staff Reporter

Sam Houston State Men’s Basketball fell short to the University of Texas 65-37, as Sheldon McClellan contributed 16 points and 8 rebounds off the bench for the Longhorns in Austin Tuesday night. The Longhorns posted 39.5 percent shooting and overcame 19 turnovers by making consistent trips to the charity stripe and maintaining presence in the paint. The Bearkats struggled offensively, shooting only 21 percent from the field (13-of-62), while hitting six of 28 from beyond the arch. “We didn’t shoot the ball very well,” Sam Houston head coach Jason Hooten said. “Against a team this big and this talented you have to make your shots. That was disappointing.” Texas (4-2) set the tone from the start. After Sam Houston freshman Paul Baxter tied the game 4-4 with a jumper at the 14:45 mark in the first half, the Longhorns pulled away with a 12-0 run to build a 16-4 margin. Texas led by as many as 17 points in the first period and earned a 32-18 advantage at halftime. Sam Houston never led in the game and was paced by Baxter’s 12 points—11 of which came in the first half. Erik Williams added eight points for the Bearkats. Sam Houston made some noise early in the second period, cutting the Longhorn lead to 11 points on

two separate occasions. Junior Will Bond hit a three-pointer with 13:47 to play to bump the score to 36-25. Darius Gatson turned a steal into an easy layup at the 11:43 mark as Texas led 38-27. Sam Houston State held a 21-18 rebounding edge in the first half, but ended up getting beat on the boards 47-32. With the Horns in the bonus, the free throws helped Texas add to their lead and finish with a 28-point win. “I really thought this was a game that if we played well we could win,” Hooten said. “I saw how Texas struggled in Hawaii (losing two of three games in the Maui Invitational) and we were hoping we would get the team that played like that, but we didn’t.” The Longhorns have limited all six of their opponents this season to fewer than 40 percent shooting. “This group gets more open looks than any team we’ve had here (at UT) because of the screening and driving we are doing,” Horns Head Coach Rick Barnes told Texas Sports. “We are going to always force the ball inside. We used some different things to match what Sam Houston State was doing with its five guards, and that worked pretty well for us.” The Bearkats, which now stand 3-4 for the season, face three more road games before returning home to Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum in Huntsville on Dec. 19 to host HutsonTillotson.

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Thursday, November 29, 2012

You Should Correction In the Tuesday November 27, 2012 issue of the Houstonian the title â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sexual assault, retaliation lawsuit ends in universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s favor,â&#x20AC;? was incorrect. The title should be â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sexual harassment retaliation lawsuit ends in universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s favor.â&#x20AC;?

PEARSON,

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$1.9 million over the next two years for the eCollege learning management system. Angrove said this is a separate agreement with Pearson â&#x20AC;&#x201C; one strictly for the use of electronic content for coursework. The university will still have the eCollege server, but online course officially transfer to Blackboard next semester, and eCollege will be inactive. Blackboard will also still be used for online communication in face-to-face courses.

VIGIL,

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positive, while the entire state of Texas saw 34,258 confirmed cases of HIV during the period from 2004 to 2011, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is at least our goal every day at this church to be inclusive and not overlook anybody,â&#x20AC;? said Smith. â&#x20AC;&#x153;â&#x20AC;Ś Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the social justice part of it. Sometimes people with AIDS get verymarginalized in our society by not gaining access to healthcare and medicine. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s witness, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s awareness, and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s social justice.â&#x20AC;? The World AIDS Day Vigil will be held at the Sam Houston Museum Gazebo on the corner of 19 Street and Ave. O at noon on Saturday, Dec. 1. For more information, visit the World AIDS Day Vigil Facebook event page.

SPRING,

HeRe

being a grown woman. The favorite numbers are easily the lively ones. The actors just make it so much fun to watch. They make the audience want to run on stage to join the song. Spring Awakening is a fantastic and unruly musical. The department of theater and musical theatre put on a truly fantastic performance. This musical is highly recommended to see. We give this musical five out of five paws.

WASH,

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features to the inside for students to play with and marvel at. They even went as far as having students write how they think the doll died in a scrapbook. Courtney Wilganowski a sophomore elementary education major said this about her experience in the dead doll, â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was a lot of fun crawling through the arms and legs you got to experience everything crawl around jump around and act like a kid again.â&#x20AC;? W.A.S.H. student Debbie Davis even saw how excited some students were after visiting the inflations, â&#x20AC;&#x153;They are really excited and just really excited to go in there and be able to run around in it and when we explain it they seem really excited to be told what its for and how long it tookâ&#x20AC;Ś to see them appreciate all the hard work we put into it and how exited they got.â&#x20AC;? This year was the first year that the students were allowed to use colored plastic and some of the students say they are excited to see where this program goes in the future.

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