February 28, 2013 by The Houstonian

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Connor Hyde | The Houstonian SHSU Theater production offers unique, interactive audience experience in “Our Town.”

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Colin Harris says Prison City Confessions reveals depravity of students, quotes real comments

Volume 123 / Issue 12

SHSU shocks the college baseball world defeating Texas in Austin, 5-3

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Thursday, February 28, 2013

Two suspects at large for aggravated robbery MOLLY WADDELL News Editor A victim was transported to Huntsville Memorial Hospital with non-life threatening injuries after being assaulted and robbed in the 3600 block of Montgomery road according to a Huntsville Police Department press release.

At approximately 12:48 p.m. Wednesday HPD responded to a report of Aggravated Robbery. Officers from the HPD and deputies from the Walker County Sheriff ’s Office arrived at the scene to find that the suspects had fled according to the press release. Police said the initial investigation revealed that a Home

Invasion robbery had occurred. The suspects are described as two black males between the ages of 20-30, armed with a handgun, according to police. Lt. James Barnes of HPD said that the victim was not shot, but he does not know if he has been released from the hospital or not. The scene is being processed

for evidence by HPD’s Criminal Investigation Division. HPD is working closely with the Walker County Sheriff ’s Office due to similar robberies in their jurisdiction, according to the press release. Huntsville Police Chief Kevin Lunsford encourages anyone with information to contact the

Huntsville Police Department. The investigation is ongoing and the suspects are still at large. Any information regarding the robbery contact Sgt. Ken Foulch at (936) 291-5480 or (936) 291-5477. There have been other robberies in Huntsville but police were unable to comment about possible connections by press time.

Miss Sam Houston 2013 pageant Cheyenne Simpson | The Houstonian

Miss Delta Sigma Theta crowned winner CHEYENNE SIMPSON Multimedia Reporter Barriers were broken at the Miss Sam Houston State University pageant but controversy surrounds the judges’ decision. Shanece Smith, a junior communications studies major and Miss Delta Sigma Theta won the judges over with her outgoing personality and spunky attitude. Smith not only brought her unique flare to the stage but also broke the model of pageant women. “I can say that I have knocked over another barrier, I know I can do it, all you have to do is put your mind to it and everything will work its course,” Smith said. Smith competed against six other women in a series of competitions that showcased their spirit, talent and poise. First

runner up was Meagen Morrison, Miss Alpha Delta Pi, followed by the second runner up Lindsey Hill, Miss Orange Pride. While these seven young women represent the diversity of the SHSU campus, some raise the question as to whether or not the pageant portrays a different message. Smith is the third woman from a minority group to win the title of Miss SHSU, but Assistant Director of Student Activities, Donielle Miller, believes it shouldn’t be about race but about the character of the person. “Most of our judges are not from minority groups and I think it is about the content of the person and not the color of their skin. It is about the content they bring to the stage,” Smith said. As with every pageant questions are raised over the fairness, Miller says she can attest that the Miss SHSU pageant is in no way fixed. “The scores are open for the young ladies to come back and review them, they know how this pageant will be scored going into it we keep all of the scores on file. We

keep a spreadsheet of everything that happens that tabulation is done by Executive Director of Campus Activates and Leadership initiatives Dr. Leah Mulligan and a assistant to the department it doesn’t touch program council hands it doesn’t touch anyone who is directly connected to the pageant,” Miller said. Whether people believe the pageant is fixed or not, SHSU and the city of Huntsville has a new representative for the Miss Texas America pageant later this year. Smith not only walked away with the covenant crown of Miss SHSH, she was also awarded a $2,000 educational fund, $500 for her sponsoring organization and a 1 year meal plan with Aamark catering services. Angelic Oritz, 2012 Miss Sam Houston, says she had an amazing experience during her reign and is proud to hand the title over to someone she knows. Ortiz advised the new Miss SHSU to stay loyal to her platform and to never lose sight of her purpose whether she wins or lose.

260 soldiers to be deployed to Kuwait

Photo provided by Shanece Smith’s Facebook

CROWNED: (Above) Winner of 2013 Miss Sam Houston Shanece Smith poses

with 2012 Miss Sam Houston Angelic Ortiz and competition judge Terri Jaggers. (Top - from the left) Lindsey Hill, Brooke Biearhause and Isabel Flores take the stage for the opening number.

SGA overhauls gun bill JAY R. JORDAN Senior Reporter

AP Photo/Austin American-Statesman, Jay Janner

DEPLOY: Lt. Col. Jim Nugent of the Texas Army National Guard 36th Infantry Division kisses his daughter after a deployment ceremony at the Austin Army Aviation Support Facility in Austin, Texas on Wednesday. About 260 soldiers from the 36th Infantry Division will soon be deploying to Kuwait in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Student Government Association’s controversial guns bill was overhauled on Tuesday night. SGA’s S13-02 shifted its purpose through an amendment that passed along with the bill as a whole, as amended. SGA Treasurer Jimmy Williams introduced S13-02 (6A) Tuesday night that took “a couple steps back” from what the original bill intended The amendment changed the bill from saying that Sam Houston State University students want guns on campus to recommending that the Texas State University System allow SHSU and other schools within the system choose

whether or not they allow concealed carry. The most recent bill that passed states that “…this legislation is not intended to urge or judge the merits of a policy to permit CHL holders to carry on University property, but only to urge a reform of state law and Texas State University System policy to grant Sam Houston State University… self-governing autonomy on this issue.” The original bill by Sen. Josh Beaman stated that if passed, SHSU would allow concealed carry on campus property, in legislation with upcoming legislation. Tuesday’s SGA meeting was the last week of nearly a month long discussion on the bill including four open forums allowing students,

faculty, and staff to voice their opinion on whether the bill should pass. Williams’ amendment came after opposition to the bill by students in the forum and faculty senate’s reaffirmation of their 2011 resolution against allowing guns on campus. SGA President Shane Rankin said that he was thankful that students came out and participated in the discussion for the past five weeks. DISCREPANCY The amended bill passed 19-2 in a closed session on Tuesday night, according to Rankin. However, the official — SGA, page 6

Page 2

News

Thursday, February 27, 2013 houstonianonline.com/news

Campus

iDEA Center visits campus, discusses better ways to administer evaluations MOLLY WADDELL News Editor iDEA Center visited campus to work with faculty staff and administrators to discuss ways to get the most out of the iDEA teacher evaluation forms. The iDEA Center was on campus Feb. 25 to Feb. 26 as a part of a workshop that the Faculty Senate and Dean of the College of Business Mitchell Muehsam. Representatives from the iDEA center recommended several ways to improve the evaluation process according to Chair-elect of the Faculty Senate, Tracy Steele. Steele said iDEA recommended that the school should move all of their forms online and with this include a nag bar that would pop

up every time a student got onto a school computer. According to Steele, moving online has its ups and downs. With filling out the forms online would get the results to teachers in a timelier manner. Also with all of the data online iDEA could provide different types of reports which would give professors better feedback. Steele said one of the downfalls would be that the participation rate would drop to 55 percent. There needs to be a 65 percent participation rate for the results to be accurate. Steele said another problem would be that the students may not be taking it themselves. Steele said she talked to other universities that have done their evaluations online and they have heard stories of students

getting together and doing each other’s evaluations. iDEA is also adding a new question to the form. The question would allow students to say whether or not they had any preparation for that course. This way if someone comes in with no previous knowledge of the course and marks that they have learned something; that will give different data than a student who had previous knowledge of the course and says they did not learn more. Steele said that students need to understand how important these forms are to professors. If a professor gets a below average score they could lose their opportunity at tenure or promotion. The feedback also allows the professor to know if the way they are teaching is working.

Technology

ISP’s implement “Six Strikes” policy to help prevent piracy CHRISTIAN VAZQUEZ Staff Reporter

UPDate

Internet Service Providers such as AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, Cablevision and Time Warner Cable have implemented the Copyright Alert System, otherwise known as the “six strikes” policy. This is the latest mechanism to combat piracy. Andy Bennett, director of the Center for Excellence in Digital Forensics at Sam Houston State University, explained what the six strikes policy is and how it works. “The basic principle is that ISP’s are monitoring their user base’s traffic and if they identify activity they believe to be criminal in nature then they will issue a warning to that user,” Bennett said. “Subsequent infractions would be met with stiffer and stiffer responses from the provider until the 6th infraction, at which the ISP reserves the right to terminate service to said user,” According to Arstechnica.com, the six strikes policy was conceived by the Center for Copyright Information (CCI) – an umbrella faction representing major ISP’s across the US and representatives from the recording and film industries. “The CAS marks a new way to reach consumers who may be engaging in peerpeer piracy,” said Jill Lesser, head of CCI. “[It] marks the culmination of many months of work.” As for the policy’s potential consequences for those at Sam Houston State University,

Bennett said that it will not affect those on the SHSU network. “SHSU essentially is an ISP and has had restrictions in place for years regarding illegal file sharing and dissemination of copyrighted materials on the school’s network,” Bennett said. “The first infraction . . . results in a visit to the library and a potential revocation of network access privileges for the user who has committed it.” While students who live on campus have to abide by SHSU’s regulations, those who live off campus will be impacted the same way as other customers who purchase their internet access from an ISP. “They will be bound by the rules as established by their ISP of choice off campus,” Bennett said. Although CCI said that the policy is under the implantation phase, there is a possibility that it will become a permanent mainstay against piracy despite stiff resistance from many internet users. Bennett pointed out that decisions like the six strikes policy is taking the internet further away from what it should ideally be – a public service and a human right. “The idea that the internet is no longer a private medium for content delivery but is now the defacto mechanism for the average person’s ability to exercise his or her right to free speech and as such internet access should be reclassified as a public utility and the infrastructure which services it should be a public resource,” Bennett said.

February 25, 2013 While conducting a traffic stop in the 2500 block of Sam Houston Avenue at 12:36 a.m., the officer determined that the driver was wanted an outstanding warrant of arrest. The driver was arrested and transported to the Walker County Jail. February 24, 2013 Officer observed a male walking in the 2600 block of Sam Houston Avenue at 12:11 a.m. who was unsteady on his feet. Upon checking his welfare, the officer determined that the male was very intoxicated. The male was arrested and charged with the Class C Misdemeanor offense of Public Intoxication.

provided by theideacenter.org

EVALUATIONS. The iDEA center makes the evaluations that students take every semester for each of their courses.

Steele said the faculty learned that there is a short form which would work better for labs and other non traditional classes. Steele said that faculty should

Local

Huntsville to celebrate Sam Houston’s Birthday MOLLY WADDELL News Editor

Sam Houston’s 221 birthday is being celebrated on March 2 with events hosted by The Walker County Historical Commission, the Sam

Houston Memorial Museum and the Sam Houston Statue and Visitor’s Center. The celebration begins at the Gibbs-Powell Home Walker County Museum with coffee and reception from 9:15 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. According to a

provided by SHSU

February 23, 2013 While in the 1800 block of Sam Houston Avenue at 11:40 a.m., officer observed a male walking with a rake. Upon checking on the male, it was determined that he was wanted on two outstanding warrants of arrest. The male was arrested and transported to the Walker County Jail. While conducting a traffic stop near the intersection of Cline and Hayman streets, the officer determined that the driver was wanted on two outstanding warrants of arrest. The driver was arrested and transported the Walker County Jail. February 22, 2013 While conducting a welfar check in the 1000 block of 10th Street at 2:57 AM, the officer identi-

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While assisting a male university student at 12:56 p.m. in reference to their towed vehicle, it was determined by the officer that the student was wanted on a felony warrant. The male was arrested and transported to the Walker County Jail. February 21, 2013 Officer was dispatched at the Woodlands Campus (3380 College Park Drive) at 5:50 PM to assist with a non-university student who was reported as a welfare concern. A parent/guardian was located and took custody of the male.

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press release an exhibit containing items that relate to Texas will be on display for guests to view. The traditional march to the grave will begin around 10:15 a.m. Students will meet at Austin Hall and walk to Oakwood Cemetery were a service will be held. This year’s speaker will be Dr. Howard Horton who is a native of Goliad, Texas and has portrayed Sam Houston since 1998 in Salado Legends: An Outdoor Musical Drama. The Sam Houston Statue and Visitors Center will be hosting a “Toast to Texas” and birthday cake at 2 p.m. The Sam Houston Memorial Museum will also be offering FREE admission on March 2nd. Museum hours on Saturday are 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The first 100 visitors to tour the Main Museum Rotunda will receive a HONOR bracelet.

fied a male (out of Livingston, Texas) who was very intoxicated. The male was arrested and charged with the Class C Misdemeanor offense of Public Intoxication.

Classified

utilize the 16 extra questions that they can add on their own. According to Steele, the faculty and staff believe the conference from iDEA was extremely helpful.

Page 3

Viewpoints

Thursday, February 28, 2013 houstonianonline.com/viewpoints

Anonymous “Prison City Confessions” reveal bigotry, depravity of students

Colin Harris discusses some of the outrageous comments left on the popular page All right Bearkats, I have a confession. At the beginning of each semester I make an effort to grab a seat near the best looking girls in my classes. Besides the professor knowing me by name, being surrounded by beautiful women is my greatest motivational tool for good attendance. I’m not all that assertive and terrible at small talk so it’s doubtful I’ll actually strike up a conversation with any of them. This is purely for selfish non-academic reasons. Wow, it felt great to get that off my chest and I’m not even leaning on the social crutch of internet anonymity. For more than 3,300 students and counting, the Facebook page “Prison City Confessions” exists as a public confessional to anonymously air domestic grievances, expose unrequited love or write racist, homophobic and misogynistic shit no sane person would dare utter publicly. Let’s take a look at what our peers are thinking, but afraid to say out loud. In order to best preserve the candor of these confessions, I’m keeping the slipshod grammar and spelling errors. “Regardless of who won the Miss Sam

Houston pageant or if you are stimulation, self-pleasure is certainly a upset or butt hurt for any reason... hot topic for Prison City Confessions. One thing is still remains true... “I jerk off in one of the bathrooms Black girls are just not pretty. Lol” in the LSC, back in a corner closest to LOL indeed! That’s a real kneethe door by the fountain. I have gotten slapper right there! One other semen on the walls and sink twice and thing that “is still remains true” I have had (homosexual) sex in that is that racists are just not pretty bathroom. If it’s ever locked between 10 either, anonymous or not. and 11 on MWF it’s probably because “Why the fuck do Lesbians I’m in there doing some depraved shit. date women that look and act Oh also one time I snorted a fat ass line like men? I thought that was the in that bathroom” whole point of being a lesbian I’m the sort of person who goes COLIN HARRIS was to date an actual woman, through life assuming every public Staff Reporter not some woman who think she’s bathroom is thoroughly glazed by a a man! I also think you bitches fine film of semen, so not only do I feel should be banned from using dildos you made vindicated but I’d suggest we quarantine this your choice” particular bathroom. Or just burn down the Looks like some greedy horn dog wants all LSC. the dildos to for himself. Let’s see if I can get Then there are always people who moan and this one straight (ha ha!). Using a dildo on a groan about classwork and professors. traditionally feminine girlfriend is A-okay, “FUCK Dr. Andrist in the Forgin language but as soon as that girlfriend stops shaving department! She such a bitch!” her armpits and starts wearing cargo shorts, Take it from me, Dr. Andrist, the only time to use your fingers. Speaking of manual language that appears to be “forgin” to this

honors student is English. Weeding through all the imbeciles is about the only negative of Prison City Confessions. Of course the real reason many make submissions to Prison City Confessions is to reach out to missed connections, a la Craigslist. Maybe that person you saw at a bar or on campus but were too afraid to approach is reading PCC, willing to respond to your seductive revelations. “The really tall guy that works in the Criminal Justice Building is such a cutie!” You hear that, really tall guy who works in the Criminal Justice Building? Next time you’re over in the Criminal Justice Building working and/or being tall, keep your eyes peeled because your secret admirer may be nearby. Prison City Confessions is the ultimate time waster and, for some reason, it’s survived for weeks. There’s nothing as enthralling as reading about the pathetic sex lives and bigoted rants of people who may be sitting right next to you in class, making your sandwich at the sub shop or vigorously rubbing one out in the next stall over in that LSC bathroom.

The Onion apology sets back satire TAYLOR LIKENS Staff Reporter Quvenzhané Wallis, star of “Beasts of the Southern Wild” and arch-nemesis of spellcheck, was nominated for best actress at last week’s Oscars. She didn’t win--but that’s still hardly a bad day for a 9-year-old girl. What did The Onion, which was livetweeting the event, have to say about it? And it might as well have been a dinner bell. The Onion immediately came under fire for its remarks with thousands of readers and media sources demanding that heads roll. The Onion, long standing pinnacle of American satire, stood bravely by their guns and…Oh, wait-that didn’t happen? Nope, in fact The Onion tucked tail and deleted the tweet issuing a public letter that apologized to Wallis, promising to clean up their Twitter content and punish those responsible.

Surrendering to political correctness, The Onion sighed, bent over and prepared itself. Promptly, vultures crusading in the name of every demographic that could (and couldn’t) have possibly been offended swept in for their chance to give The Onion a good, selfrighteous fucking. Racist, sexist--The Onion was called out as virtually everything short of being the fourth reich. Among others, Change.org had a petition to fire whoever posted the tweet claiming that “AfricanAmericans face too many systematic and institutionalized injustices in this country to have to also deal with incessant and pointless commentary.” Change.org then rambled on nervously about how it had at least five AfricanAmerican friends. Wallis has yet to make any comment, presumably because she doesn’t read The Onion, doesn’t know what a “cunt” is, and won’t even hear about this until she’s 35.

Being somewhat of a model for satirical work worldwide, The Onion has done more than simply tarnishing its own image with this incident. Yes, they called the young girl the worst word to call a woman but more importantly they failed to stand up for themselves. In doing so, The Onion has effectively sent out a message that will hurt humorists for years to come. Anyone offended by The Onion’s commentary has already sworn themselves off the publication forever. Pandora’s box was opened and no amount of ass-kissing is going to undo that. For The Onion there was nothing to gain from apologizing and nothing to lose but their dignity. It could have been settled behind closed doors. The Onion could have sorted things out internally, making note of these events for future reference, while externally expressing that it was unfortunate that not everyone found the humor in their statement about the slur. But no, The Onion apologized as they cowered away politely asking if they may be excused to the corner to give themselves a proper spanking. And they didn’t just apologize; they swept the tweet under the rug, thereby confirming that they had

something to be ashamed about. Was the tweet perhaps spicier than The Onion’s usual? It was certainly blunter, but if you honestly believe their jab at the Wallis was remotely out of tune for The Onion, you either aren’t familiar with them or have the observation skills of a houseplant. This is the same publication that put out a 600 word article that is literally nothing but graphic descriptions of terrorists being dismembered and tortured in hell. One of their most popular articles are titled “Why Do All These Homosexuals Keep Sucking My Cock?” Another is “Fun Toy Banned Because of Three Stupid Dead Kids.” Ironically, the most unfortunate thing about this fiasco is in the irreversible harm the media have done to the nine-year-old’s promising career. One snarky blurb has been so blown out of proportion that it has almost entirely eclipsed her moment of fame altogether. The media has done more harm than The Onion ever could have, redefining her as helpless victim rather than a talented young actress. It’s a sad week for both Wallis and satire in general. Just not in the ways people seem to notice.

Top 10 scariest things that still frighten us RICHARD MCKINNEY Staff Reporter

8 Missing a step on a

10 Getting a chip stuck in your

7 to save changes and you

staircase.

throat.

9 Getting a parking ticket.

When Microsoft Word asks haven’t changed anything.

Turning off the lights before you’re in bed.

back a little too far 5 Leaning in your chair.

2 Seeing a spider in the

your progress on 4 Losing Pokemon Gold.

parents using your full 1 Your name.

moving fast enough 3 Not after lighting fireworks.

middle of taking a shower.

Visit Houstonianonline.com to view the full story by Richard McKinney

PAWS UP to Shanece Smith for being crowned “Miss Sam Houston”

PAWS UP

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To whom it may concern: This letter is in response to the recent article, “Students weigh in on five best, five worst jobs on campus” by Morgan Mears. Although stated in the end of the article that “not all employers interviewed”, it is disheartening to not have the Kat Klub of the Lowman Student Center be shown as one of the top places of employment for students. The article is misleading to due lack of information/interviews that should have been top priority while determining the rank of all campus jobs. As a student worker for the Kat Klub of the LSC and February’s Employee of the Month, I was disappointed that we weren’t given the opportunity to share our valued opinion of campus employment. The LSC works as a family unit to provide activities and a space of leisure for students on campus. Whether it’s allowing students to reserve the Kat Klub for organizations to having Christmas parties at our boss’s Daniel McDaniel’s house, the LSC deserves to be recognized. In closing, I believe the article could have been more inclusive of all the student workers in the LSC. There are a large number of students employed here and everyone thinks this is a fun place to work and management is very open and they work around your class schedule. If this article topic is ever used again I hope they decide to include the “student center” when writing about student jobs on campus. Thank You, Anne Wheary Amw057@shsu.edu LSC Kat Klub Employee

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Arts&Entertainment

Page 4

Thursday , February 28, 2013 houstonianonline.com/a-e

“Our Town” offers unique audience experience GEORGE MATTINGLY Arts & Entertainment Editor Audiences got to experience live theatre like never before in the intimate retelling of Thorton Wilder’s “Our Town”, which opened on Wednesday in the Erica Starr Theatre. The play follows the budding romance between Emily and George amidst the citizens of the normal everyday town of Grovers, New Hampshire. As their relationship grows, the entire town learns more about appreciating life’s small moments. Although there was not much of a set or props on stage, the actors made the entire auditorium their stage, offering a new, interactive experience. The actors interacted directly with audience members on and off the stage, sometimes coming close to speak to them or ask questions. Several scenes in the play take place in the theatre as it became a large cathedral. After the first intermission, the audience interaction is taken to the next level when surprise guests take the stage. The interaction with the audience is complimented with live sounds off stage including glass bottles, coconuts and

CONCERT TO ENTERTAIN, ENLIGHTEN AUDIENCE AUBRIE WALKER Contributing Reporter Two music groups at Sam Houston State University will take listeners away from mainstream music in the first major band performances of the semester. Held in the Performing Arts Center Concert Hall, the concert will feature the SHSU symphonic band and concert bands who will play a variety of tunes selected to make audiences think. The symphonic band will start the evening with John Phillip Sousa’s March, followed by Parole Halleluiah, Trombone solo preformed by Ben Osborne, a adjunct instructor of trombone at SHSU and “Finlandia” accompanied by the concert choir. Then the concert band will play Sousa’s march “El Capitan”, “Bloom” by Steve Byrant, and “Children’s Folksong Suite” by a Polish composer Kevin Walczyk. Although the music is meant to be entertaining to audiences, it is also meant to be thoughtprovoking. “I think this is a departure from mainstream music,” Ogechi Ukazu a graduate teaching assistant said. “It’s art music that makes you think.” The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the PAC concert hall. For tickets, call 936-294-2339.

Connor Hyde|The Houstonian

FLASHBACK: Emily, played by Teresa Zimmermann, pleads with her mother to look at her as she struggles with the realization of that she must move on in the SHSU production of “Our Town”, which opened on Wednesday.

bells to bring the actions to life for the audience. The sound technicians handled the challenge of synchronizing the sound with action seamlessly to make the play realistic instead of a distraction. The result not only pulls the audience into the show, but makes

them part of it, offering a new form of actor/audience experience different from any other show at SHSU before. These efforts by the actors and director make the play about “normal” people refreshing and exciting to watch. All the characters made an

Festival to explore, celebrate Latin American culture ANGELA BEEL Contributing Reporter A two-week celebration that explores Latin American culture through music, art, dance and education will come to the Sam Houston State University Campus next week. Festival Inspiración is being hosted by the Wynne Home Arts Center, SHSU and the city of Huntsville and will feature live performances, workshops and master classes from speakers from around the world. The two-week event will begin with an opening reception as well as an exhibition of artwork and book signing by author Paula Vásquez at the Wynne Home Arts Center on March 4 from 4 to 7 p.m. Throughout the week there will be various Latino artists and writers with events stationed around campus as well as a variety of performances each night in the James and Nancy Gartner Performing Arts Center. Students can also watch Latin American films throughout the week in different buildings around campus and attend workshops at the Wynne Home Arts Center. Sergio Ruiz, Ph.D. , Director of Keyboard Studies at SHSU and

event creator, hopes that students attend. “I’ve been dreaming about this for 10 to 15 years now, and for that to come to pass it’s just so cool,” Ruiz said. “To just be able to see some of the things that I had hoped and to have such a great administration that supports this and great faculty and staff that support it and great community members that support it. There’s no way I could have done this alone.” The festival will conclude with the “Caliente” Latin jazz concert featuring Grammy winner Lena Burke and members of the Puerto Rican Conservatory Jazz group on March 8 at 7:30 p.m. in the PAC Recital Hall. Ruiz is very excited for the festival and expects it to be beneficial to students who hope to get a better sense of Latin American Culture. “Students should simply take away a general appreciation of this really wonderful culture,” Ruiz said. “It’s a little bit of everything I think, and I think people can find whatever they want in those two weeks.” Debra Andrist ,Ph.D., chair of the foreign language department, said that the festival will include a variety of speakers who

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impression on the audience. Even the smallest roles were memorable and funny. However Emily and George, played by Teresa Zimmermann and Nathan Wilson, delivered performances that showed their range as actors. For them to go from young,

innocent teenagers to adults who deal with death, loss and growing up showed their versatility. They were able to make their relationship authentic and conveyed all the emotions that come with love, marriage and death. Despite the convincing characters, at times it was difficult to hear their voices fill the room. It took away from the story as deciphering the lines became the focus. However, there were only a few instances of this and never became a huge distraction. The lighting matched the emotions for the show but it did become a distraction when it was too dim, which seemed to dissociate the audience from being as involved in the show as the director might like. Overall, “Our Town” was a unique audience experience and brought several universal themes to light for viewers. Through the story of Emily and George, the show focused on appreciating the smaller things in order to live life to the fullest without missing out on people, places and relationships. “Our Town” will show through March 2 with a Saturday matinee at 2 p.m. Tickets are $12, $10 for SHSU students with a student ID.

Photo provided by Lena Burke

GRAMMY WINNER: Cuban artist and Grammy winner Lena Burke will perform on campus as part of Festival Inspiración, beginning next week.

can educate students on Latin American culture and provide entertainment. “The festival will allow students to learn what faculty staff and students are doing in terms of Latin American themes here on campus. And that they learn more about Latin American art and music and humanities and so forth,” Andrist said. “So that’s the main thing, to have people learn

and have a good time at the same time.” Festival Inspiración will begin on March 4 and continue to the 16 and will be held at SHSU along as the Wynne Home Arts Center. Tickets for the “Caliente” concert are $5 for students. To buy tickets or see full schedule of events, visit the Festival Inspiración website via the SHSU website or like the event page on Facebook.

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Sports

Thursday, February 28, 2013 houstonianonline.com/sports

Bearkats upset Texas in Austin, 5-3 CONNOR HYDE SportsReporter Sam Houston State baseball dethroned no. 22 University of Texas 5-3, continuing their three game winning streak with another strong outing on the mound Tuesday. Tyler Eppler silenced the Longhorns from the rubber, tossing 5.2 innings and allowing only four hits and two runs against the Longhorns. SHSU’s offense also carried over from the team’s strong performance from the weekend and kept rolling into Austin. Hayden Simerly ignited SHSU’s bats early in the second inning with a first pitch double into right field, followed by Ryan O’Hearn’s triple into right center to drive in the Bearkats’ first run of the evening. Third baseman Kevin Miller drove in O’Hearn with a RBI ground out to make the score 2-0 going into the bottom of the second inning. Freshmen Spence Rahm continued SHSU’s rally with a solo homerun in the top of the

Debby Garcia |Courtesy of Daily Texan Staff

DETHRONED: Sam Houston proved that they are no typical FCS baseball team on Tuesday by upsetting Texas 5-3 in Austin to extend their win streak to three games. The Bearkats next play Arkansas State in a home series.

fourth to extend SHSU’s lead 3-0. Head coach David Pierce said his group maintained confidence at home plate to have aggressive plate appearances against the

Longhorn bullpen. “We definitely weren’t intimidated tonight and we were very aggressive at home plate and we really attacked the strike

zone,” Pierce said to GoBearkats. com. “There’s one of two ways you can come in here and that’s be the aggressor or be intimidated.” Eppler held the Longhorns

to five scoreless innings and a potential no-hitter until Mark Payton broke UT’s lifeless lineup with a single into right field. UT narrowed SHSU’s lead to one after a series of hits from Ben Johnson and designated hitter Matt Moynihan to close the score to 3-2. “Eppler got his first win in Division I baseball. He was really good with the curve ball and changeup and had something on his fast ball,” Pierce said. SHSU guarded their lead with two insurance runs in the seventh inning. Luke Plucheck legged out a double from a fielding error and reached third from a pass ball. Colt Atwood drove in Plucheck with a single, followed by Carter Burgess and Anthony Azar sending Atwood home with a single and a sacrifice fly, respectively. Jason Simms closed against the Longhorns allowing no runs, hits and one strikeout to break UT’s midweek 10 game win streak. SHSU returns to Huntsville for three game home series against Arkansas State with game one on Friday. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m.

Basketball squads on track for SLC tournament trip RYAN BOWERS Staff Reporter There are only a few games left in the regular basketball season, and soon the conference tournament in Katy will decide who gets to go to the NCAA tournament representing the Southland conference for men and women. Taking a closer look at the standings allows us to see who’s hot, who’s not, who has the inside track and who needs a little work before they can call themselves champions. Stephen F. Austin and Northwestern State, both 13-2 in conference are followed closely by Oral Roberts (12-3) as the top three men’s teams in the conference. Sam Houston State stands in 5th place (7-7) and has all but assured a spot in Katy. The only question is what seed will they end up with and how will they fare. The Bearkats have four games left with three of them against teams above them in the rankings. The team’s next game against Nicholls State will be key. Nicholls stands

one game behind Sam Houston, and a win for either team should solidify a top five seed. The other game to watch is against Southeastern Louisiana who rest just above Sam Houston in the standings. With a win against the Lions, The Bearkats have a chance to jump into the top four seeds going into the conference tournament. Eventually they will have to face Stephen F. Austin, Oral Roberts or Northwestern State. These are teams they are winless against so far in the season, with one game each against Stephen F. Austin and Northwestern State remaining in the regular season. Sam Houston’s inability to hit key free throws down the stretch has cost them in many of their losses and I expect this to be the biggest hurdle to them winning it all in Katy. They have shown in close losses to Oral Roberts and Stephen F. Austin that they can match up physically but their inability to hit key shots consistently will hurt them. The Women’s bracket

is a bit more muddled, with the top 3 teams all having the same number of conference losses. Oral Roberts sits at the top due to having one more game played than Lamar and Sam Houston, who both sit at 10-4 in conference play. McNeese State (9-5) and Nicholls State (8-6) sit in 4th and 5th respectively, only one and two games out of the top three. The Bearkats have four games remaining against teams below them in the standings, so it is not out of the question that they finish 14-4 in conference. This would give them the best chance to take the top overall seed going into the conference tournament. The Lady Kats split the regular season meetings between Oral Roberts and Lamar, proving that while they can lose to the other

top seeds, they also have a game plan for how to beat them. The key will be shooting. In the two losses, Sam Houston shot below 35 percent from the field overall. In the two wins the number jumped to 41 and 65 percent overall. Sequeena Thomas, Britni Martin and Chanice Smith will get their points either way. It may, however, come down to whether the bench and supporting cast surrounding them can have good games as well. If they do, the Bearkats have a great chance to win the conference tournament and represent the Southland Conference in the women’s NCAA tournament. Selection Monday for the NCAA tournament will be on March 18 and the tournament will begin March 23.

Page 6 Thursday, February 28, 2013

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tally vote given to The Houstonian shows only 19 members voting. According to SGA officials, this was just a mistake due to the unintended voting by two members on the bill who had yet to be voted into SGA. After recognizing their error, the senate suspended the initial vote in order to officially include the two new senators. Rankin’s announcement of the two new senators was only made until after their induction, which was done during closed session, and the vote on the bill.

The yet-to-be approved minutes from Tuesday’s meeting state that Senators Haley Jowiak and Stephen Farrand’s appointments were unanimous. Chief of Staff Ramiro Jaime Jr. said that this discrepancy was a simply an error on SGA’s part. “It was done out of order by accident,” Jaime said. “No one intended [it] to be in closed session.” Flowers concurred, saying that the pace of last night’s meeting was the cause for error. The two senators are to be sworn in during next Tuesday’s SGA meeting.

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