April 19, 2012

Vol 120 | Issue 25

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Publishing since 1913

Independent Student Newspaper of Sam Houston State University

Ignite the Night raises awareness of sexual abuse, pg.3

4-Day Forecast Information from Weather.com

Thursday, Apr. 19 HI: 83 LOW: 61

Friday, Apr. 20

Like us on Facebook: “The Houstonian SHSU”

Softball coach catches 1,000 career victory, pg. 5

MOLLY WADDELL Associate News Editor Two student focus groups revealed problems with the current Student Health Center and worked with officials on potential solutions Monday.

Several students representing different clubs and organizations on campus were asked to attend. This group included representatives from the nursing program, Program Council, Bearkat Learning Community

and Student Activities.

According to Keith Jenkins, associate vice president for Student Services, this is the fourth focus group that has been held and over 20 student organizations have been represented.

The focus group was run

by Jenkins, and lead by Terry Phillips, architectural programmer. Phillips asked the students several questions over their experience at the SHC. The overall consensus of the building was that it was nice, but

Saturday, Apr. 21

Megan Laurie | The Houstonian

Sunday, Apr. 22 HI: 78 LOW: 56

Report questions Texas higher-ed policy making STEPHEN GREEN Edtior-In-Chief Texas higher education came under scrutiny in a new study done by the University of Pennsylvania’s Joni Finney and Laura Perna and Patrick Callan of the National Center for Public Policy.

The survey specifically looks at the push for more tier-one universities, according to a report by the Texas Tribune.

“We wanted to look at a large state that had a very fast-growing Latino population, because the country is changing that way, obviously,” Finney told The Texas Tribune.

The study specifically says the economically competitiveness of the state depends on the ability to produce more college graduates.

Currently Texas ranks 39th among states with only 32 percent of adult Texans older than 25 with at least an associates degree.

In 2011, the Texas state legislature cut funding to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, which controls much funding to student grants.

Sam Houston State University recieved a 20 percent funding hit from the state.

The study also shows how Texas faces racial and economic gaps in its higher education systems, but that the “Closing the Gaps” plan will address most of these issues.

The plan hopes to raise those levels to at least match other states by 2015.

SHSU has plans on increasing tuition and developing a marketing plan that will increase diversity of students.

Viewpoints ....... pg. 2 A&E ................... pg.4 News .................. pg. 3 Sports................. pg.5

Students, officials collaborate to improve Student Health Center

HI: 79 LOW: 53

HI: 69 LOW: 53

INDEX

nothing defined the building as the SHC. Some students believed it was vacant for the longest time “The front of the building is not even facing the traffic of campus,” Tobias Steen, junior psychology major, said.

Some students said the wait for appointments was ridiculous.

“I shouldn’t have to plan my doctor’s appointment two weeks in advance, if I knew I was sick that far beforehand I would prevent it,” Tyler Olson, sophomore chemistry major, said.

Several students also agreed that they had never actually seen a doctor, just the nurses available.

“I had to wait a long time for a nurse to tell me I had to make an appointment that wasn’t until two weeks later to see a doctor,” Olivia Milam, sophomore management major, said. “I didn’t make the appointment because I didn’t see the point; I would have been well by then.”

Students did not have any issues with confidentiality except when it came to the window separating the waiting room and the rest of the office. Students thought it should be made with the opaque glass so patients in the waiting room cannot see what is happening with the patients in —

CENTER, page 3

Crawfish invade hearts of Texans NICOLE GABLER Contributing Reporter Crawfish aren’t just a Louisiana tradition anymore.

The “mudbugs” have risen out of the swamps and ditches to invade East Texas. Crawfish season starts at the end of February or March 1 and ends mid-June.

A crawfish is a shellfish or crustacean whose shell is the skeleton which protects the soft organs. The de-shelling process can be long and tedious for a small piece of meat from the tail, but many students take on the challenge for the company and atmosphere.

Amber DelVaglio, senior Sam Houston State University Public Relations student, said, “Crawfish season is a sacred time of year.

I love drinking a cold one, socializing with friends while getting your fingers dirty and breaking open pounds of tails.”

According to the Crawfish Production study by Texas A&M University, it is estimated that in the United States harvest exceeds 100 million pounds per year.

Most of the crawfish consumed in the Unites State is from Louisiana, although Texas now has many hatcheries.

Crawfish are a way of life to some people. To Ken Johnson, co-author of Texas Crawdads, crawfish are his passion.

Johnson said, “Crawdad, crayfish and crawfish are names for the same kind of critter.

Crayfish is said by students, crawfish by eaters, and crawdad by kids and ordinary folks.”

He said that crawfish have gained popularity in Texas more now than in the recent past.

Crawfish availability increased in the past three or four decades when harvests became less

Megan Laurie | The Houstonian EAT’M UP MUDBUGS.

(Above) Tanner, a manager of Humphrey’s and alumni of SHSU, stirs the pot of boiling crawfish. (Right) Alex Middleton thoroughly enjoys his time eating crawfish with his friend Scott Simpson. Eating crawfish is a tedious process and therefore considered to be a social food item.

dependent on wild crops from Louisiana.

“Texas saw crawdad festivals spring up in several cities; headline events for churches, schools, organizations, companies, and miscellaneous institutions; and offerings on menus of restaurants all over the state,” Johnson said.

Crawfish have also taken over business names.

“There is a baseball team in Houston named the Crawdads, and a convenience store chain in southeast Texas also called Crawdads. More importantly in the past -- but still today -- is the enjoyment kids get going out on

crawdad adventures in the waters near their homes,” Johnson said.

Crawfish usually live in moist lowland or aquatic habitats. In Texas, some live in shallow, slow moving streams; others in lakes, ponds or ditches; still others mostly within their burrows.

“Many people will be interested in the chimneys or mounds that burrowing crawdads build as part of their underground liars. The chimney is built of pellets of mud or soil brought up to the surface as the animal digs the downward directed tunnel.”

—

CRAWFISH, page 3

SHSU website hacked by black hat SEO MOLLY WADDELL Associate News Editor Changes have been restored to the Sam Houston State University catalog website after it was hacked on April 12, according to an email sent out to SHSU web developers by Jurden Bruce, web services manager.

The hackers had started to put files on the catalog pages for search engine optimization, according to Elisa Crossland, director of IT@Sam client support. According to Crossland, this means that anytime someone searched for the SHSU catalog in a search engine, the hacker’s website would show up in the search. This is also called “black hat SEO” according to blackhatforum.org.

According to blackhatforum. org, black hat SEO is a method to improve the amount of traffic a person’s website receives in a “natural” or unpaid way, whereas other websites use search engine marketing and pay for their spots on a search engine.

According to the New York Times black hat SEO is not illegal but Google does not allow it. The New York Times said that Google draws a clear line between black hat techniques and white hat techniques, which are offered by consulting firms as “legitimate ways to increase a site’s visibility.”

“We realized it [was happening] so we were able to change the access so [the hacker] couldn’t get on anymore,” Crossland said.

The process to stop the hacker was a collaborative effort between IT@Sam and Web Services.

According to Bruce the through further investigation the file the hackers used allowed them, “access to write across all of the sites that are hosted on our PHP web server.” Since they used this type of file Web Services restored the file server to the week of March 5.

All of the changes were restored to the site a few days after the incident.

According to Crossland, since IT@Sam caught it so quickly there was no damage done to the website.

IT@Sam is unsure of who hacked the website.

“The best thing to do is to track the IP address, which I believe was from another country,” Crossland said.

IT@Sam has taken steps to make the website more secure.

NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS. THE HOUSTONIAN IS LOOKING FOR WRITERS AND EDITORS NEXT SEMESTER. Contact Stephen Green at sgreen@houstonianonline.com

Want to stay connected? Catch us on our new Facebook page and follow us on Twitter.

Facebook.com/HoustonianSHSU

|

@TheHoustonian

Viewpoints

Page 2 Thursday, April 19, 2012

houstonianonline.com/viewpoints

Editorial: Sloan Matters The Editorial Staff explains how the Roberta Sloan story is important for the future, why we chose to publish details

To our upcoming 4-part s e r i e s on parking tickets at SHSU. Our contributors worked hard on this so be sure to check it out!

To Garrett Driver for being n a m e d SLC Men’s Golfer of the Month for April.

To softball coach Bob Brock for recording his 1,000th career win Wednesday vs. Prairie View A& M. Congrats Coach!

After the university announced that Roberta Sloan, Ph.D., was resigning from her position as Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Mass Communication in February, the Houstonian subsequently published three follow-up stories, all trying to shed light on the matter.

The stories included information about Sloan and dozens of public grievances from the University of Central Florida, alleged assault in Florida discovered in public documents, and alleged religious and disability discrimination included in a federal lawsuit at Temple University.

However, character assassination wasn’t the purpose of these stories.

Instead we believe that the stories were an attempt to show the pitfalls of search committees that fail to do full background checks of senior administrative positions.

While the actions that Sloan is accused of may or may not be true, one thing is certain: Search committees never looked into the past, never unearthed the dozens of documented complaints or the many faculty members who wanted

to speak out against Sloan.

During the interview process, the Houstonian spoke in-depth to three faculty members who immensely disliked Sloan at the University of Central Florida, one of whom, John Bell, was on the committee that hired her. Bell said their university, like SHSU, only spoke to references that Sloan provided, a huge mistake.

The dean of the College of Business Administration Mitchell Muesham said their committee only called references that Sloan provided. Even he said references are problematic in finding negative information on candidates.

Committees, especially ones who are searching for administrative level positions, should use more due diligence in their task. Not doing so will greatly harm the education of students.

Not only is it harmful for students, failing to investigate faculty and administration background can cause immense detriment to the university community. Faculty and staff that work with someone who wasn’t fully vetted, and turns out to be a bad choice, can condemn the

candidate’s coworkers to a poisonous work environment.

Universities need to stop the practice of solely relying on candidates’ references to background check.

It’s understandable that search committees wouldn’t have time to think of these various methods to search. Typically they’re made of faculty, staff and other administrators that have other responsibilities.

Therefore, human resources departments should start performing more in-depth background checks, especially on administrative positions.

There are also many companies that perform background checks on potential employees that search for similar information on candidates.

However, the benefit of having a fully-vetted candidate far outweighs the cost of hiring one of these companies.

If the purpose of higher education is enlightenment, the backgrounds of educators shouldn’t remain in the dark.

- Editorial Staff.

Saints alive

T To the bird that pooped on Darnell Taylor at Tuesday night’s baseball game.

Although it’s a sign of good fortune in many cultures, it’s pretty icky.

Hey you!

Yes, you!

Do you have an idea for a ‘Paws’ UP or a ‘Paws’

DOWN?

We’ll even take a SIDE ‘Paw’ if that’s what you have!

Send your ideas to

along the lines of them vs. the world.

Motivation set aside, the real reason I think the Saints are poised to make a run is their 2012 season schedule. Next season, New Orleans will take on the four members of the NFC North that include the Dallas Cowboys and defending Super Bowl Champions New York Giants on the road as well as the Washington Redskins and Philadelphia Eagles at home.

This part of the schedule looks like it will be the toughest for the Saints, as the NFC North is arguably the toughest division in the NFL. However, with the Redskins rebuilding and the Eagles coming off a down season, I expect those two games to be wins for New Orleans.

The other two games in that scheduled could be a toss-up. If the Saints can win one of those two games, it puts them in great shape for the rest of the season.

Continuing on, New Orleans is also set to take on all four teams from the American Football Conference (AFC) West. Those teams include the Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos on the road and the Kansas City Chiefs and San Diego Chargers at home.

In the last couple of seasons, the AFC West has had down years and there has been no “strong team” in that division. While the Broncos have made improvements this offseason adding Peyton Manning, I still think the Saints have enough offensive weapons to be able to defeat Denver. I expect the Saints to

be able to go 4-0 in these games.

The remaining schedule for New Orleans includes two games each with their fellow NFC South division rivals that include the Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The two remaining games for the Saints include a matchup against the San Francisco 49ers at home and the Green Bay Packers on the road.

This part of the schedule could also be tough for the Saints, but I fully expect the Saints to sweep the Panthers and Bucaneers. While Carolina is improving, after drafting quarterback and rookie of the year Cam Newton, I just feel the Saints are going to be too much for them.

The Falcons will be a tougher test for the Saints. The Falcons have a squad that could be considered one of the best in the NFL. I expect New Orleans to at least be able to win one game out of the two games.

The Packers and Saints started off the regular season in 2011 with the Packers edging out the Saints in a high scoring affair 42-34. The 49ers defeated the Saints in last year’s playoff in a close contest, 36-32.

There is no doubt in my mind that the Saints have already been thinking about payback. Even though it will be tough, I think the Saints will be able pull off the victories.

After analyzing their 2012 schedule compared to other teams around the NFL, I fully expect the New Orleans Saints to be one of the top teams in the league, despite their controversial off-season.

Stephen Green E dito r-in-Chie f 936 -294-1505

Cody Lewis

c b oyd @ hou s toni a nonl i ne. c om

Th u r sday ’s Issu e Tu esday 2 p.m .

c l ewi s @ hou s toni a nonl i ne. c om

Business Mananger 936-294-1500

kkin g@h oust on ian on lin e. c om

m j ones @hou s toni a nonl i ne. c om

Zach Birdsong S p o r ts Edi to r

zbirdson g@h oust on ian onl i ne. c om

George Mattingly

Molly Waddell

gmat t in gly@h oust on ian onl i ne. c om

mw ad d e l l @ho u s to ni anon lin e.c om

Ad Deadlines

Misti Jones

Vie w p o i nts Edito r

A & E Edi to r

Matt Frazier

We b & Mul ti m e di a E d i t o r mf razier@h oust on ian on line. c om

Business Staff

Chelsea Boyd

Karmen King

s g re e n@ho u s to ni ano nl i ne.c om

Asso ciate Edito r 936-294-1502

1782 – John Adams secures the Dutch Republic’s recognition of the United States as an independent government. The house which he had purchased in The Hague, Netherlands becomes the first American embassy.

1956 – Actress Grace Kelly marries Prince Rainier of Monaco.

1987 – The Simpsons premieres as a short cartoon on The Tracey Ullman Show.

1995 – Oklahoma City bombing: The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA, is bombed, killing 168. That same day convicted murderer Richard Wayne Snell, who had ties to one of the bombers, Timothy McVeigh, is executed in Arkansas.

April 20 1939 – Billie Holiday records the first Civil Rights song “Strange Fruit”.

1999 – Columbine High School massacre: Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold kill 13 people and injure 24 others before committing suicide at Columbine High School in Jefferson County, Colorado.

2010 – The Deepwater Horizon oil well explodes in the Gulf of Mexico, killing twelve workers and beginning an oil spill that would last six months.

1836 – Texas Revolution: The Battle of San Jacinto – Republic of Texas forces under Sam Houston defeat troops under Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna.

Editorial Staff Faculty Adviser 936-294-1499

1775 – American Revolutionary War: The war begins with an American victory in Concord during the battles of Lexington and Concord.

April 21

viewpoints@ houstonian online.com

Robin Johnson

April 19

1993 – The 51-day siege of the Branch Davidian building outside Waco, Texas, USA, ends when a fire breaks out. Eightyone people die.

Sports Editor Zach Birdsong believes the New Orleans Saints will still be contenders in the NFL

he announcement of the 2012-13 National Football League regular season schedule was made Tuesday. And just like many of the broadcasters on ESPN, I found myself analyzing the majority of the teams’ schedules.

After my analysis, I came to the conclusion that despite the controversy that has surrounded the New Orleans Saints this off-season, I expect the Saints to not only be among the top teams in the National Football Conference (NFC) next season, but one of the top teams in the NFL. Yes, you read that right. I am suggesting that the “bounty” controversy that has surrounded the team will not affect their performance in 2012.

Sure, they will be without head coach Sean Payton for the year and still haven’t signed starting quarterback and Super Bowl XLIV Most Valuable Player Drew Brees to a contract, but this team will be all right.

How do I know? After reading multiple reports from different sources on the contract situation involving Brees, there are no other contenders but the Saints. So, the real question is when they will resign him.

Knowing the type of leader and how essential his personality is in the locker room, there is no doubt in my mind that Brees and the Saints will use the focus of the off-season as some sort of motivation, something

Today in history:

S e n i o r R e p o rt e r

S p o rt s R e p o rt e r

Jessica Gomez

A d v e rt i s i n g M a n a n g e r 936-294-1495

Paty Mason

Tu esday ’s Issu e F r i day 5 p.m .

A ccoun t Executives 936.294.1503

p m a s on@ hou s toni a nonl i ne. c om

Steve Sears

P h o t o g ra p h e r

Meagan Ellsworth

Keelanni Cabrera

Allison McMath

m el l s wor th@ hou s toni a nonl i ne. c om

S e n i o r P h o t o g ra p h e r

Megan Laurie Co p y E d i t o r

P ro d u ct i o n M a n a n g e r

s s e a r s @ h o us t o n i a n o n l i n e . c o m k c a b re r a @ h o us t o n i a n o n l i n e . c o m

Ashley Fordyce

a fo rdy c e @ h o us t o n i a n o n l i n e . c o m

The individual opinions on the Viewpoints page are not necessarily affiliated with the view of The Houstonian or SHSU. The Houstonian is published semi-weekly on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It is a news publication of Sam Houston State University, a member of the Texas State University system, and is produced by students. It is self-supporting and welcomes all advertisers.

Those interested in placing ads or classifieds should call 936-2941495. The Houstonian is a member of the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association.

News

Page 3

Thursday, April 19, 2012

houstonianonline.com/news

‘There is always hope’ Community comes together to raise sexual abuse awareness

MISTI JONES Senior Reporter Bearkats and the Huntsville community came together to “Ignite The Night” by rallying in order to bring awareness and support to victims and survivors of sexual assault and domestic abuse.

The Sam Houston State University Counseling Center, Health Center, Multicultural Student Services, Alpha Chi Omega Sorority, Crime Victim Services Alliance and SAAFE House worked together to host the inaugural event last night, which started at the Old Main Pit and ended at the Walker County courthouse.

“Ignite The Night” attendees witnessed a step performance

by Zeta Phi Beta sorority as well as music, poetry readings and a first-hand survivor story from an anonymous SHSU student.

SHSU President Dana Gibson, Ph.D., spoke to the attendees and thanked those who came out to support and honor these victims and survivors.

“I have to say, first of all, how thankful I am that you guys have taken on an important initiative for the community and the university to look at this,” Gibson

told the participants. “[It’s] a proactive movement to address something that the awareness of, many times, is just not made clear in the broader community.”

Gibson provided the attendees with statistics from the U. S. Department of Justice about sexual assault and domestic abuse and how many instances go unreported. She relayed that 60 to 90 percent of domestic violence cases are unreported while 60 percent of sexual assaults are unreported. Gibson said 80 percent of victims are under age 30 and 44 percent are under age 18. Every two minutes someone in the U. S. is sexually assaulted and every year there are 207,754 victims of sexual assault of reported cases. Every nine seconds a woman is assaulted or beaten and every day in the U. S. more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends.

The community marched to the Walker County courthouse with signs of protest, letting their voices be heard, to stop the abuse.

Signs proclaimed: “No Means No”, “Be The Change You Wish To See In The World”, “Decide To End Sexual Abuse” “Hurts One, Hurts All”, “There’s Always Hope”, “Be A Voice”, “One In Six Women Will Be A Victim. Which Woman In Your Life Will It Be?” and many signs provided other statistics.

Once at the courthouse, B. J. Gaines, Jr., Walker County commissioner, read a proclamation, publicly announcing April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month in Walker County.

“We must work together to educate our entire population about what can be done to eradicate and prevent sexual assault,” Gaines said. “I don’t

George Mattingly | The Houstonian

SURVIVOR. Attendees listen to an anonymous SHSU student’s survivor story read by Anne Mc Daniel, vice president of philanthropy for the Alpha Chi Omega sorority.

understand why anybody would sexually assault anybody but evidently there are some that do. Hopefully through this kind of an organization meeting and educating, we can eliminate it.”

Members of Alpha Chi Omega and Crime Victim Services Alliance sold “Ignite The Night” t-shirts for $10 and wristbands while collecting toiletry donations for the SAAFE House. All of the proceeds from the sales were donated to SAAFE House and Friends of Counseling Center funds for the victims of sexual assault.

Anthony Ormsbee, Community Relations director at SAAFE House, said the event’s turn out was more than he expected.

“We didn’t think that that many people would show up so to see everyone come together and do that,” Ormsbee said. “We’re pretty fortunate and blessed to have

this turn-out for the first year.

We’re really excited for next year because we’re anticipating even larger growth.”

Ormsbee looks forward to next year and has plans for the future rally.

“We definitely want a more active candle light vigil and to have a more participation not just from the university but from the general public as well,” he said.

Attendees participated in a raffle drawing, where many received door prizes provided by local businesses including Buffalo Wild Wings, Huntsville Lanes, Fuzzy’s Tacos, 3 Spoons, Farm House, Margarita’s restaurant, HEB, Yummy Yummy, Bandera Grill, Modello Footwear and Accessories, Dairy Queen, No. 1 Nails and Tangles Hair Salon.

Free pizza was also donated to participants by Pizza Hut, Domino’s Pizza, Double Dave’s

Pizza and Papa John’s.

“When we talk about sexual assault, it’s just not one person or one gender or one culture or one background,” Keith Jenkins, vice president of Student Services, said.

“It’s a lot of different varieties of sexual assault. It’s certainly an issue that seems to be unfortunately growing and not decreasing. The more awareness that we can bring to that issue in society, I think the greater impact we can have.”

“Ignite The Night” derived from “Take Back The Night” which was created in 1975 and is initiated at many universities across the nation such as University of Texas at El Paso, University of Louisiana and Harvard University. Rallies such as these bring awareness by educating the community about sexual violence and domestic abuse and how it can happen to anyone.

Graduating young becomes popular trend The end of the semester is right around the corner and many graduating seniors are feeling the stress and senioritis that comes along with it. Balancing classes and work while trying to find the time somewhere in between to apply for post-graduation jobs can get overwhelming.

Now try doing it at age 19.

Not that being younger than a typical 22-year-old senior makes these nontraditional students less capable of graduating, but they have a much different college experience than everyone else when it comes to schoolwork and a social life.

CRAWFISH,

page 1

Some burrowers in the East Texas live almost exclusively within their burrows and only experience land surface while peering out.

“The chimney is actually the excavated soil. These they plug during drought and keep open during wet times,” the crawfish expert said.

Contrary to popular belief, crawfish are not scavengers of “cockroaches of the swamp.”

They eat mostly fresh, tender vegetation and avoid decaying animal matter.

Crawfish are an excellent source of protein.

Purged crawfish are preferred for eating or preparing a boil. They have been kept in clean wellwater after they’ve been harvested from the field.

The taste is fresher and seems cleaner.

“I like the taste and flavor.

I don’t suck the head though (the crawfish head contains the undesirable brain).

You gotta get the poop line out, too,” Laurie Womack, a long-time crawfish connoisseur, said.

Crawfish is a tradition in Huntsville. They can be found at many apartment complex parties, Bandera Grill, Humphrey’s, Zach’s Bar and Grill, and Imperial

Students are now able to graduate college in two years because of schools such as East Early College High School in Houston. Early college high schools now allow students to get up to their associate’s degrees before even entering a four-year university.

Students who pursue this option jump straight into junior and senior level courses, meaning their classmates are all two or more years older. Due to this, most of the friends they make are all older, making them feel out of place, especially when going out and being the only one who can’t legally drink.

Ashley Stanley, 19-year-old senior political science major,

Garden Restaurant.

The 26th Annual Texas Crawfish & Music Festival is April 20-22 and April 27-29 in Spring, TX. It is the largest and most established crawfish festival in the South. Over 25 tons of mudbugs will be served. The Festival features two weekends of family fun with live music on three stages, hundreds of vendors, carnival rides, and karaoke contests. Stoney LaRue, Cody Canada & the Departed, Shooter Jennings, and Filter are headlining the big event.

Put on a bib, grab a ton of napkins, and get cracking!

How to eat a crawfish 1.Grasp Hold crawfish on both sides of the tail joint, your thumbs on one side of the shell and your index fingers on the other.

2. Twist and Snap With a twisting motion, snap the head away from the tail. (Optional step for diehards: Suck the juice from the crawfish head.)

3. Peel Use your thumbs to peel away the shell from the widest part of the tail, pulling back from the center, just as you would peel a shrimp.

4. Tug Hold the tip of the tail and gently tug out the tender meat. Enjoy!

Courtesy Living .

“

“

SOFIA MEDRANO Contributing Reporter

After my first semester of hearing, ‘what, you are really only 16?’ from everyone, I got used to it...

- Ashley Stanley

graduated high school with 54 college credit hours, bringing her into Sam Houston State University as a junior. She is set to graduate this upcoming May. “At first it was intimidating being a freshman at college and also a junior in high school, but after my first semester of hearing, ‘what, you are really only 16?’ of

CENTER,

Southern

page 1

the back of the office.

According to the students at the focus group parking is another difficulty at the SHC, because the majority of the parking is for staff.

Some other problems arose with the pharmacy.

The students believed it was awkwardly placed and not publicized very well.

“A lot of people don’t know that there is a pharmacy on campus and that it is cheaper,” Kelly McGee, senior nursing major, said.

The students also agreed that the pharmacy would be used more if it were a walk up pharmacy so students wouldn’t have to go in the building to pick up a prescription.

The combing of the Counseling Center and SHC was also discussed.

from everyone, I got used to it and realized that the work was not hard as long as I remained organized,” Stanley said.

While graduating at 19 is certainly an accomplishment, a study done at Johns Hopkins University in Maryland stated that there have been many students within the last 15 years who have graduated from that university at ages as young as 15.

Out of East Early College High School’s first graduating class in 2010, 77 percent of the students graduated with their associate’s degrees. The second graduating class had 71 percent and the third had another 77 percent graduate with their associate’s degrees as well.

About two thirds of the students knew there was a counseling center and about half knew where it was.

The students believed that the combination would be a good change.

“Referring from the SHC to the Counseling Center would be so much easier if they were connected,” McGee said.

According to Jenkins, Phillips will take the students’ opinions and along with Tim McGreggor, another architectural programmer, they will draw up possible plans for the SHC. The plans will be shown to the students and a student referendum will be put on the ballot around homecoming for students to vote on whether or not they approve the expansion.

This same process will occur for the Lowman Student Center expansions which is planned to start discussion in May.

The U.S. Department of Education reported that since 2009, 92 percent of early-college high school students graduated from four-year universities. The first two students from EEC’s high school class will graduate with their bachelor’s degree in May. Graduating in two years does have its’ advantages, like saving money and starting a career sooner, but also comes with sacrifices like giving up most of the “college life” experience and having to grow up faster than most students.

Now at the end of the line, the bittersweetness of graduation is catching up to all seniors, no matter their age.

UPD Update April 16, 2012 While conducting a traffic stop in the 600 block of Bowers Boulevard at 1:28 a.m., officer determined that the driver was in possession of contrab. The driver (of Pollock, Texas) was arrested and charged with the Class B Misdemeanor Offense of Possession of Marijuana.

At 10:55 a.m., officer was dispatched to 2424 Sam Houston Avenue (Sam South Complex) where a university staff member reported that while operating a university vehicle, he backed into another university vehicle. An accident report was completed.

Arts & Entertainment

Page 4 Thursday, April 19, 2012

houstonianonline.com/a-e

Students to premiere original short films Festival to highlight different facets of animation GEORGE MATTINGLY Arts & Entertainment Editor

CLASSIFIEDS

A group of animation students will tell a variety of stories and through motion graphics as they premiere their short films in the annual Animation Festival on May 3.

Held in the Mafridge Auditorium in Art Building F, the festival will feature a variety of original work including motion comics, video and moving story boards as part of their final projects for their animation class.

Also on display at the festival will be still images created by animation students and other videos by the motion graphics class.

Although the final projects will only be minutes long, students have been working on them for a majority of the semester.

The students worked through a long process to create their projects including a written proposal, hand-drawn story boards and creating story reels, according to Diana Salles, assistant professor of animation.

While all the films are part of the same project, students took the creative reigns to focus on different aspects of animation.

Some films tell more emotional, personal stories like in animated films, while other students focused on video game animations. “[Students] might want to do this as a career and their projects usually reflect what they want to do after they graduate,” Salles said. “AfterEffects is used in a lot of different films and using it will help them learn.”

One film tells the story of a little girl in a 1950s candy shop who

Rental 2BR/2BA Roommate plan on ranch, close in town.

Can work P/T for rent. No pets, horse OK. $600/mth.

936-291-3226

George Mattingly l The Houstonian

CREATIVE FREEDOM: Students from the “Motion Animation” class work on their short films in class using a program called AfterEffects, which accoring to Assistant Art Professor Diana Salles, allows more freedom with animations.

comes to terms with her parents’ divorce as she shops around for candy.

“It’s more emotional,” said junior animation major Alexiah Carter, who created the film. “I think trying to evoke some sort of emotion is important because it draws people in.”

Another film by junior animation major Kristen Williams took a different approach to the project as an introduction to a movie.

According to her, working on this project is different from her previous animation classes because it involved working on several elements like sound, movement and timing for one film rather than focusing on just one element.

Another student strayed away from movie sequences to focus

on video games for his motion graphic. His short animation serves as an introduction sequence to a fictional video game studio titled “Blue Ox”.

While each of the projects is unique, students encountered their own set of challenges.

“It’s not just putting a sequence of images together,” Williams said. “It’s so much more than that like timing, sound and movement.

It’s a lot of different pieces that have to come together.”

For others, time was the biggest obstacle to overcome.

“It was hard to balance time with perfection,” Carter said. “[Students] all want something amazing but we lose a lot of sleep over it.”

However, despite the challenges, all the students are looking forward to presenting

Calendar of Events 2012 Downtown Huntsville, TX Wine Down, Shop Small Sample Texas Wines & Shop Downtown Thursday, April 19 6 p.m. – 9 p.m.

Spring Clean Saturday, April 28 9 a.m. – 2p.m.

Downtown Farmers Market Every Saturday May 5 – August 25 8 a.m. – 12 p.m.

Triple A Event – Art Antiques & Autos Saturday, May 5 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Cinco de Mayo Festival Saturday, May 5 10 a.m. – 10 p.m.

Fun Cat Show Downtown June 2 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Fair on the Square Saturday, October 27 5;30 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Huntsville for the Holidays: Downtown Christmas Fair, Winter in the Park & Lion’s Club Lighted Parade Saturday, December 1 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.

their work in front of an audience and seeing how they will react.

“One reason why I’m an animator is to take what’s in my mind and share it with people,” Ethan Byerly, senior computer animation major, said “It’s about sharing my ideas and creativity with others and hoping they enjoy it.”

The Animation Festival will begin with a reception at 6 p.m., followed by the screening at 7 p.m. and is sponsored by the Sam Houston State University Art Department and SHSU’s chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery’s Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques (SIGGRAPH).

For more information, contact Salles at 936-294-3200 or dms033@shsu.edu.

Catch us on our new Facebook page and follow us on Twitter.

Facebook.com/ HoustonianSHSU | @ TheHoustonian

NORML Kats to rock out to raise awareness GEORGE MATTINGLY Arts & Entertainment Editor Two bands will rock out on campus to raise awareness of drug issues as the Sam Houston State University chapter of the National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (NORML Kats) hosts its first benefit concert.

Held in the Lowman Student Center Theatre, the concert will feature performances by Houston rap artist Mike E. Chronic followed by Houston metal rock group Elysian and serves as an outlet for students to break down stereotypes about marijuana laws.

“What people don’t realize is that the U.S. has continued a war on drugs, and has a lot more people in jail over drug issues than many other countries,” Kenneth Hendrickson, Ph.D., faculty adviser to NORML Kats. “It has serious effects on our civil liberties, and costs.”

Hendrickson said the national chapter of NORML was founded in 1970 mainly as a way to promote the freedom to smoke, but has since then evolved to address other issues such as national health issues

concerning marijuana, prison for drug users and the war on drugs.

He began the SHSU chapter of NORML three years ago as a way to show support for students who shared the same ideas about marijuana law reform. It is now made up of 20 to 25 active members.

Hendrickson said that people automatically develop assumptions about smoking marijuana when they first hear about NORML Kats. With the concert, Hendrickson hopes to raise awareness to the campus community to reconsider those expectations.

“No, we don’t want everyone to start smoking,” he said. “We want more people to become educated about the issues.

There are other ways to handle drugs than just prison.”

While this is the first-time event for NORML Kats, Hendrickson said he hopes to continue the event in the future in order to be active on campus and have fun.

The concert will begin at 3 p.m. on Thursday and will last about two hours. It is free for everyone.

For more information, visit NORML’s website at www.norml.org.

Huntsville Main street event to offer citizens local tastes, late shopping GEORGE MATTINGLY Arts & Entertainment Editor The Huntsville community will have a chance to sip, snack and shop the night away as the Huntsville Main Street Program hosts its first Wine Down, Shop Small event on Thursday at 6 p.m.

Held in the Downtown Square, the event was inspired by similar events in other cities, and aims to help the community to experience Huntsville in a new way, said Kim McAuliffe, main street coordinator.

Attendees at the event will be able to taste samples of wine from local wineries and try different hor d’oeurves and desserts from local restaurants and caterers.

In addition, several downtown shops will be open late for late night shopping.

There will also be live music from members of the Sam Houston String Ensemble, a silent auction and prize raffle.

Items for the auction include: Tour & Tastings for 20 people at Colony Cellars, Tour & Tastings for 20 people at Bernhardt Winery, Men’s & Women’s Gift baskets from Bobbie’s Bubbles, Antique Glassware from McAdams Antiques, Custom Handmade Jewelry from Ladybug Antiques, Tour & Tasting for 12 people at Pleasant Hill Winery and others items. Bids will be accepted until 8:30 p.m. that day.

While most events put on by the city of Huntsville are geared toward families, McAuliffe said the Wine Down, Shop Small event is targeted more toward adults 21 and over.

“It’s something new and different for Huntsville,” she said. “We hope it will be a fun night out on the town for the community.”

Tickets for the event are $30. All proceeds go to furthering downtown promotions. For more information, call Huntsville Main Street at 936-291-5920 or follow them on Facebook.

Sports

Page 5 Thursday, April 19, 2012 houstonianonline.com/sports

twitter.com/HoustonianSport

Kats fight off Cougars Baseball gets revenge over Houston

ZACH BIRDSONG Sports Editor

CODY LEWIS Sports Reporter With the help of right fielder Jake Arrington and first baseman Ryan O’Hearn, the Sam Houston Bearkats defeated the University of Houston 5-4 at home on Tuesday.

Arrington went two-for-four from the plate with a homerun and O’Hearn went three-for-four with an RBI as the Bearkats avenged a previous 12-2 loss at the hands of the Cougars on March 13.

Arrington and third baseman Kevin Miller led off the bottom of the second inning with backto-back singles. Arrington then scored on a ground out by O’Hearn to give the Bearkats an early lead.

Second baseman Jessie Plumlee then knocked in Miller and left fielder Luke Plucheck hit a single that scored Plumlee and gave Sam Houston an early 3-0 lead.

After adding a run, the Cougars scored their second run in the top of the sixth inning when second baseman Jake Runte batted in designated hitter Jonathan Davis to make the score 3-2. Arrington saved another run from scoring when he made a remarkable diving catch in right field to get the third out of the inning.

“I was just positioned in the right place,” Arrington said. “I got the opportunity to make a big time play and took advantage of it.

It was at a point in the game where we needed some momentum and it was good to be able to do that for the team.”

Arrington led off the seventh inning with a bomb to right field for his third home run of the season, extending the Kats lead to 4-2.

“I was down in the count and fouled off a fastball the pitch before,” Arrington said. “I was looking for something off speed

Brock gets career victory 1,000 and 1,001

photo courtesy of gobearkats.com

PULLING OUT THE WIN. Bearkat right fielder Jake Arrington bats during a game earlier this season. Against Houston on Tuesday, Arrington went two-for-four with a solo homerun and made a potential game saving catch in the sixth inning.

and got a slider and barreled it up.”

The Cougars struck again in the eighth inning when Houston catcher John Cannon led off the inning with a double. He advanced to third on a fly out and then scored on a groundout by Davis to put them down by one run again.

Corey Toups then led off the bottom of the eighth inning with a triple and scored on a ground out by Plucheck thanks to a wide throw to home, putting the Bearkats back up by two runs.

The Cougars, however, did not go away. They scored another run in the ninth inning when center fielder Landon Appling hit a leadoff double and then scored on a single by first baseman Codey Morehouse.

Relief pitcher Michael Burchett, who had come in to pitch the ninth inning, kept his composure and recorded his fifth save of the season.

“Michael’s been really good since we pushed him to the back end of the bull pen,” SHSU head coach David Pierce said to gobearkats.com. “They hit him a little bit but he didn’t give in. So they earned the one run, but we weren’t really worried about the one run. We were focusing on three outs.”

Michael Oros (5-0) picked up the win for the Kats, pitching four innings, allowing two hits and striking out four. SHSU used four pitchers out of the bullpen as Jordan Bunch, Taylor Holt,

Brandon Bergen and Burchett took the mound.

Pitcher Aaron Garza got the start and the loss for the Cougars, lasting only one and two thirds innings, giving up three runs on four hits. Chase Wellbrock, Jared Ray and Mo Wiley all pitched in relief for Houston.

“Tonight wasn’t our sharpest game,” Pierce said. “But we were able to fight through it and get the win.”

The Bearkats will be back in action this weekend as they kick off a three game series against Southland Conference rivals McNeese State in Lake Charles, Louisiana. First pitch on Friday is set for 6:30 p.m.

Sam Houston State University softball coach Bob Brock, picked up his career 1,000 and 1,001 win when the Bearkats defeated Prairie View twice in a double header that took place on Wednesday.

The Bearkats kept Prairive View scoreless on the day, winning a pair of shutouts, 3-0 and 9-0.

Brock became the 22nd softball coach in NCAA Division I history to achieve the milestone. He is in his 10th season as the Bearkats head coach and now holds a 1,001-603-1 career record, putting him fourth among active Division I softball coaches in total victories.

“All the credit goes to the great young women I’ve had the opportunity to coach,” Brock said in a statement to gobearkats.com.

After the wins, SHSU now improves to 20-17 on the season.

After starting the season 1-13 the Bearkats have gone 19-4 in their last 23 games.

In the opening game, SHSU pitcher Tomi Garrison was dominant, only allowing threehits as the Bearkats pulled off the 3-0 win.

Center fielder Tori Benavidez hit a solo shot and Sarah Allison added an RBI double for the Kats.

Sophomore Shelby Lancaster picked up the victory for SHSU in the second game, lasting four innings and allowing just three hits.

After only picking up four hits in the first game, the Bearkats got 10 hits in game number two.

Allison, Erin Martin and Shelby Tucker all had homeruns in the contest.

The Bearkats will resume Southland Conference play when they host Southeastern Louisiana this weekend. Opening game of the series is scheduled for Friday at 6 p.m.

For any additional information, visit gobearkats.com.

Football ends Spring with annual Orange-White game

Jessica Gomez | The Houstonian

MOVING ONWARD. Quarterback Brian Bell (right) (11) stands in the huddle before the start of annual Orange-White Spring game. Bell completed 11 of his 17 passes in the game for a total of 161 yards. (Above) running back Vincent Dotson (24) rushes against the SHSU defense. Dotson had 49 yards in the game.

Paralegal:

Your career in five months Rice University’s Paralegal Graduate Certificate Program

“I would not have been able to make it this far in my career in such a short time without the Rice program.”

– EMILY SHAW, PAST PARTICIPANT

CLASSROOM PROGRAM:

Join us for an information session on June 19 or August 8 at 6:00 p.m.

Classes begin August 27, 2012 WEB-DELIVERED PROGRAM:

Connect to a virtual information session on August 22 or September 19 at 6:00 p.m.

Classes begin October 8, 2012 $300 discount for information session attendees

paralegal.rice.edu | 713-348-4803

D O YO U K N OW W H E R E YO U ’ R E L I V I N G N E X T Y E A R ?

join the neighborhood SAVE $130 WITH ZERO DOWN + GE T A $150 GIF T CAR D WHEN YOU SIGN A LEASE

scan & like

2-story townhomes. private bedrooms & huge walk-in closets. resort-style amenities. individual leases. pet friendly.

apply online @ villasonsycamore.com 936.439.5234 • 1615 Sycamore Ave Rates, fees, deadlines and utilities included are subject to change / see office for details / limited time only