S PORTS
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NBA Schedule Thursday, Jan. 22
25-16 8:30
25-13
Dallas Mavericks vs. Jan. 23 at Chicago, 7:30 Jan. 25 Sacaramento, Noon
Jan. 27 at Seattle, 9 Jan. 28 at Utah, 9
Friday, Jan. 23 at 23-17 7:00 33-11 Houston Rockets vs. Jan. 25 at Orlando, 5 Jan. 26 at Miami, 6:30 Jan. 28 Sacramento, 8
at 27-15 9:30 16-26 San Antonio Spurs vs. Jan. 24 New Orleans, 7:30 Jan. 26 at Milwaukee, 7 Jan. 27 at New York, 6:30
SUPERBOWL XXXVIII Sunday, Feb. 1 at 16-2
5:25
■ Hoops . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 ■ Sports Clipboard . . . . . 13
Arena boxing a big hit, Peña KO’d By ED CHRNKO The Pan American
at
■ Tennis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
The main event at Oscar Night in the Valley, held at the Dodge Arena last Friday, was supposed to be the presence of six-time world champion Oscar De La Hoya and the 10-round bout between two-time world champion Fernando Montiel and Roberto López. But a four-round junior welterweight slugfest between Edinburg’s Pablo Peña and Fort Worth’s Richard Best stole the show. After being pushed back from the night’s third bout on the undercard to the fifth spot due to the event being broadcast internationally by Univisión’s sister station, Telefutura, the two boxers came out swinging with the hopes of making an impression on De La Hoya, who was seated at ringside. Peña and Best electrified the standingroom-only crowd, announced at 6,408 with a dazzling display of speed, stamina, courage, and the ability to take a barrage of punches. However, it was Best who silenced the crowd by landing a powerful left hand that dropped Peña to the canvas with a thud. Peña, 19, had to be attended by medical personnel for several minutes before being able to stand up, but was eventually able to walk off by himself. With the knockout loss, Peña fell to 5-2, while Best improved to 5-6-3. Peña was disappointed by the loss, especially since it came in front of Valley fans. “I feel bad that I lost in front of my hometown,” said a distraught Peña. “But
that’s the way stuff goes sometimes. Not everything can go your way.” Peña’s trainer and manager, Noé Peña Sr., blamed his son’s loss on the fight’s postponement to the fifth bout of the undercard, after it had been originally scheduled as the third fight. “He wasn’t in there mentally anymore,” the elder Peña said. “He was fired up the first time. If he would’ve gone in the third bout the way it should’ve been, that guy would’ve been out the first, second round at the most, maybe.” However, Raúl Cásarez, 17, of Edinburg fared better than his former sparring partner, going the distance for a win against Marcus Hicks of Dallas in a fourround bout. Cásarez improved to 5-0, while Hicks dropped his pro debut. “It was a pretty tough fight, the toughest opponent I’ve faced yet,” Cásarez said. “He had a lot of heart, man. He was strong.” Cásarez and his trainers, Team Dávila, had to work with the disadvantage of finding out that Hicks was a southpaw only minutes before the fight began. This made them scramble to redo their fight strategy. In the main event of the night, Montiel of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, México, defeated an initially aggressive Roberto López of Tijuana, Baja California by way of a technical knockout after knocking the wind out of him near the end of the third round.
14-5
Road to the Super Bowl: New England: Jan. 10 def. Titans 17-14 Jan. 18 def. Colts 24-14 Carolina: Jan. 3 def. Cowboys 29-10 Jan. 10 def. Rams 29-23 Jan. 18 def. Eagles 14-3
Killer Bees Friday, Jan. 23 vs. Killer Bees vs. Corpus at Dodge Arena, 7:30 Jan. 24 vs. Austin at Dodge Arena, 7:30 All games p.m.
Happy
January 22, 2004
Sexual harassment situation explored
New
An Inside Look:
Year News ............................................2 ■ A & E............................................7 ■ Sports ........................................16 ■
See Page 2 for details
China !
T h e S t u d e n t N e w s p a p e r o f T h e U n i v e r s i t y o f Te x a s - P a n A m e r i c a n
Valley Woman Strives for Place in Politics By CLARISSA MARTINEZ The Pan American
Photo by Daniel Aguilar/The Pan American
Dorados select Valley players at tryouts Saturday not only proved to be a good day for football at PSJA Stadium, but it turned out to be a good day for dreams to come true. After approximately four hours of drills and exercises under the afternoon sun, the 110 players who took part in the Río Grande Valley Dorados first open tryout found out who would continue their dream of playing professional football. The Dorados, arenafootball2’s newest expansion team, whittled down the 110 hopefuls to 15 fortunate players, who attracted the attention of the coaches and trainers on hand at the tryout. The expansion team will open its inaugural season March 27. “There are about 15 guys that I’m very interested in bringing back,” Dorados head coach Gary Gussman said. “And out of those 15 I might just sign...without bringing them back in.” Despite the amount of players Photo by Ed Chrnko/The Pan American participating in the tryout, RGV Dorados head coach Gary Gussman talks to Minnesota Viking punter and Gussman was more impressed by Valley native Leo Araguz on the sidelines during Saturday’s open tryouts. the talent he saw.
Jan. 22
BREAKING THE GLASS CEILING:
Former two-time world champ Fernando Montiel celebrates his See BOXING page 14 TKO victory over Roberto López Jan. 16 at the Dodge Arena.
By ED CHRNKO The Pan American
THURSDAY
HEADLINES
“Actually, I was more impressed with the talent that was out here,” Gussman said. “I wasn’t expecting the caliber of talent that was out. Out of 110 guys, there were quite a few legitimate guys that really opened not just my eyes, but all the other coaches that were helping out.” In addition to the gridiron heroes, several more people came out the stadium to take in the tryout from the stands. One of those people was Pharr native and Minnesota Vikings punter Leo Araguz. “I know that we have a lot of talent here in the Valley,” Araguz said. “Actually, I was watching the news last night (Friday) and heard that they were having an open tryout and just wanted to see what they’re all about and support a couple of guys I know that are out here.” During his visit at the tryout, Araguz met briefly with coach Gussman and although he is still under contract with the Vikings, he offered his assistance. The possibility of Araguz joining the Dorados one day, in See DORADOS page 15
The Rio Grande Valley has a new competitor for a seat in Congress, and it’s not exactly who political analysts would expect. A Hispanic woman raised in South Texas vys for District 25 Congressional seat. However, race and gender does not seem to be an issues with this woman hoping to break down barriers. Originally from Brownsville, Texas, Leticia Hinojosa made a decision that she wanted to make a difference in her life. Growing up in a financially weak environment, Hinojosa overcame obstacles that eventually shaped her into the person she is today. Living in a two-room house, without indoor plumbing until she was six years old, Hinojosa escape from the life of poverty by immersing herself into literature. “I loved to read, I was an avid reader,” Hinojosa said. “I really enjoyed biographies. I would read stories of people who had overcome great obstacles and had achieved personal success but more so had made a difference in the world.” Even after losing her father at the early age of eleven, Hinojosa did not
stop working towards achieving her goals. With the guidance and encouragement of her mother, Hinojosa maintained her ambition and eventually was able to change her life. But she didn’t stop there. In 1978, Hinojosa graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with high honors and then attended UT Law School where she graduated in 1981. After working in Austin for a few years in Legal Aid, Hinojosa returned to the Rio Grande Valley. “I returned because I just felt like there was a lot of things that needed to be done down here,” Hinojosa said. “In Austin, there were already of people involved with many different political stances while over here I felt a need to help.” After her return Hinojosa saw the differences between the political system in Austin and The Rio Grande Valley. “It was different in the fact that in I saw, just in the legal feel there were few women lawyers especially trial lawyers and there were no women judges,” Hinojosa said. “This was something I felt needed to be changed.” After practicing law in Weslaco for seven years, Hinojosa eventually set
her sight on a higher calling and ‘went to the bench’ in 1989. She became practiced law with a firm for seven years in Weslaco then I eventual went to the bench in 1989. Her arrival as a Hidalgo County trial court judge marked the first female in the Valley to be a judge and the third Hispanic female judge in the state. “I enjoyed practicing law, but when I saw there was a lot of sexism at the time, I felt that the only way to change things was to have more women in elected positions,” Hinojosa said. “I entered with the thought in my mind that I could really help change the system.” Soon after becoming a judge Hinojosa became more active in schools and helping young people because she felt it was important for them to see women can achieve success in nontraditional ways. At a visit to an elementary school shortly after becoming a judge, Hinojosa saw the difference she could make by being in her position. “When I went to visit a elementary school I asked the students what they wanted to be when they grew up,” Hinojosa explained. “When a little girl answered she wanted to be a
See HINOJOSA page 11
Clarissa Martinez/The Pan American
PIONEER— Former judge Leticia Hinojosa is trying to become a member of the U.S. Congress representing District 25. She is running against Lloyd Doggett.
Survey shows teens conflicted about sex By EDWINA P. GARZA The Pan American
GUEST— Former President George H.W. Bush will appear at two events Feb. 5 at UTPA. SEE PAGE 3 FOR RELATED STORY
Today’s youth are widely associated with and ridiculed for their supposed obsessions with sexuality. Did Brooke Shields wait until marriage to have sex? What about Jessica Simpson? Does Anna Kournikova seriously expect the world to believe she’s a virgin? While media followers of young people are seemingly overwhelmed with who’s lost what, a study by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy suggests that as many as two-thirds of U.S. teens are asking themselves why they didn’t wait to lose their virginity. Martha Leos has seen the split decision among teens and their decisions to become sexually active. She said at least half of the teens she’s worked with wished they would have waited.
Leos, the educational director at Planned Parenthood in McAllen, said many teens found themselves in a situation they may have not been completely aware of. “Maybe they were at a party and they were under the influence and it just happened,” Leos said. According to the research, they are not alone, despite a decided regret factor involved. The survey, conducted by telephone in August and September, said that 85 percent of teens from 12 to 19 believe that sex should occur only in a long-term, committed relationship. But Leos said that many teens, at the moment, believe they are in such a relationship. “There are some that felt ‘This is the one‚’ and [that they are] in a serious relationship even though they are just 16,” she said. “Their first experience was not what they
thought,” Leos said of teens who regret their sexual activity. Most students do not seem ashamed of their acts, and yet most requested anonymity as a condition for discussing this sensitive topic. One UTPA freshman who didn’t wait said he doesn’t regret what he’s done, but wouldn’t want to risk the possibility of his parents finding out. Should his parents find out, he imagines they’d be upset that he didn’t listen to their advice. He said there was no way of knowing if he and his then girlfriend were going to be together forever, but he knew that he did love her then. One girl questioned losing her virginity at 17, saying that she did so because she was “living in the moment.” She added she never felt any pressure from anyone other than herself. The only thing she regrets about her sexuality was not losing her virginity to
See SURVEY page 11
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January 22
2004
OPINION
January 22, 2004
letters
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editorials
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cartoons
Editor Arianna Vazquez gareyjup@aol.com
The University of Texas-Pan American men and women’s track teams are doing their part to keep Edinburg beautiful. The teams recently adopted a two-mile stretch of land on South Closner Road, where members will do litter cleanups four times a year. Head Coach Ricky Vaughn believes community service is important because it teaches his athletes that there is more than just athletics. “I think that the community gives a lot to athletics, no matter the level you are playing at. The community supports athletics by donating money and time,” said Vaughn. “We need to try and give back to the community. It makes our athletes appreciate and realize what we have here.” All of this hard work on and off the track is aimed at one thing: having a great season. The Broncs were scheduled to kick off their season this weekend at The Leonard Hilton Memorial in Houston, but they will not be making that meet due to team health issues. “We have had some injuries and I felt it was in the best interest of the team for me to cancel this meet,” said Vaughn. “With the teams we are competing against we cannot go into a meet at half strength, we have to be at full strength to compete.” Instead their first meet will not be until the Houston Indoor Invitational Feb. 7 in
News Editor Belinda Reyes mstxbellezalatina2003@ yahoo.com
A & E Editor Omaira Galarza omairang@yahoo.com
Sports Editor Ed Chrnko echrnko@yahoo.com
Graphics Editor Daniel Aguilar kerygma_@hotmail.com
Layout Designer Dagoberto Perez Reporters Brian Carr Vanessa Castillo Julian Cavazos Diana Corpus Garza Edwina Garza Dulce Gonzalez Matt Hall Christina Harris Aaron Lozano Vanessa Lucio Clarissa Martinez Amy Medellin Photographer Franco Caballero Student Pub. Secretary Jo Anne Murphy Adviser Dr. Greg Selber
The PAN AMERICAN is the official student newspaper of The University of Texas-Pan American. Views presented are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the university.
Letters policy The Pan American gladly accepts letters from students, staff and faculty regarding newspaper content or current issues. The Pan American reserves the right to edit submissions for grammar and length. Please limit submission length to 300 words. The Pan American cannot publish anonymous letters, or submissions containing hate speech or gratuitous personal attacks. Letters are printed at the discretion of the editor and must include the writer’s name, class/title and phone number.
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Houston. At this meet the green and orange will see the likes of top schools such as Houston, Texas, Texas A&M, and Baylor. Vaughn is going to be looking for his older guys on the men’s side to step up and give the leadership to the younger ones in order to have a good season. “Rashaad Ben, Isaac Ybarra, J.C. Crosby and Westly Keating are the people who are leading this team,” said Vaughn. “Track is different than a team sport where people lead by different ways. Westly leads through his work ethic and the other guys see his results and will follow that. You do not have to be a vocal leader in track.” On the women’s side the athletes are much younger and inexperienced, so the search for a leader is ongoing, but Vaughn is excited about the process. “ Amy Moses is one that with her success she had people will look up to and look at her for leadership,” said Vaughn. “We are still looking for someone to step up and be a leader both on and off the track for this team.” Once the season gets going the Broncs have one emphasis and that is winning and making a name for them around the country. “Our main emphasis is qualifying people for the NCAA Regionals and Nationals,” said Vaughn. “I think we have three to five people that have a chance to qualify for the NCAA’s. Our main goal is to qualify as many people as possible for the NCAA Nationals.”
By MATT HALL The Pan American After the first action of the new season, the University of Texas-Pan American's men's tennis team has some excellent performances to build on. The men earned a split in their season Opener by defeating Trinity, 4-3, and falling to Texas A&M, 6-1 at Texas A&M's Mitchell Tennis Center. At number four singles freshman Gary Bianco was the only winner for the Broncs, winning in straight sets against John Nallon of Texas A&M, 6-3, 6-4. Head Coach Eduardo Provencio believes Bianco is a diamond in the rough. “That is the best he has played since he has been in the U.S. He is an incredibly talented kid and we have not seen his best,” said Provencio. “He has been a pleasant surprise so far.” Bianco finally played the way he has been waiting to play and earned a personal victory. “The way I played made me happy, not the school I beat,” said Bianco. “It is always good to win and I have been waiting to play like this for six months and I played good and won.” In doubles play the green and orange gave the Aggies a handful in two of the three matches. At number one doubles, sophomore Rehman Esmail and junior Jeremy Salvo pushed Mohammed Dakki and Brett Joelson to the brink but lost 9-8. Esmail believes he and Salvo outplayed their counterparts, but just made some mistakes down the stretch. “We felt we were better than them,” said
Dorados
NEWS
■ Bush . . . . . . . . . . . 3 ■ Griffith . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 ■ Bible School . . . . . . . 5
Dantzker Return Raises Sexual Harassment Issues By CLARISSA MARTINEZ The Pan American On any university campus, different people from different environments meet together to share the common goal of education. With a variety of people merging on common ground, different perspectives and sometimes different tolerance levels also merge. Knowing where to draw the line of appropriateness is sometimes blurry, but the university is making it necessary for employees to know the limits. Last year, between April 24 and May 13 eight written complaints were filed against criminal justice associate professor Mark Dantzker. The formal complaints alleged that they had experienced harassment. Though Dantzker chose not to speak out on the subject, his return to the university has affected several students. Though none of the complaints filed against Dankter alleged an overt ‘quid pro quo’ [equally exchanged] form of sexual harassment, it did allege the types of unwelcomed sexual conduct leading to the creation of a hostile, intimidating or
offensive environment. With this particular situation coming to an end, students are more aware to the fact that they have a voice concerning the comfort of their environment, but administration is taking a further step with its requirement of all UTPA employees to take a sexual harassment seminar when they begin working for the university. Seminars have been required from all employees for the last years. According to Section 18 of the Student Judicial Affairs Handbook, UTPA condemns sexual harassment of its students, staff and faculty. The website states that, “UTPA is committed to the principle that the learning and working environment of it’s students employees and guests should be free of sex discrimination and is illegal.” Examples of behavior that could be considered sexual misconduct or sexual harassment include physical contact of a sexual nature including touching, patting, hugging, or brushing against a person’s body. Explicit or implicit propositions or offers to engage in sexual activity, or even exposure to sexually oriented graffiti, pictures, posters, or material. Like with
all other harassment, the conduct must be uninvited or not expected from an individual. INVESTIGATIVE PROCESS Dean of Students Jerry Price spoke about the procedures needed to follow when a sexual harassment allegation is brought to the administration. With misconduct occurring in the past, the university is looking towards the future to provide open doors and open ears to the needs of the students. The process usually begins with an informal, confidential conversation with the Dean of Students or someone whom the dean assigns to deal with the complaint. After discussing the situation, students will be provided with options on how to deal with harassment. These options will include receiving suggestions on how to discourage the harasser, and informal approaches such as reporting in confidence your concern to the harasser’s supervisor. Filing a formal written complaint is also an option. “The most usual complaint that I hear from students from my experiences are allegations that professors are treating a
See HARASSMENT page 12
Page 15
Track team adopts road Men’s tennis splits opener By MATT HALL The Pan American
1201 West University, CAS 170 Edinburg, Texas 78539 (956) 381-2541 Fax: (956) 316-7122 http://www.panam.edu/dept/panamerican 53rd Year – No. 15
Sports
Photo by Ed Chrnko/The Pan American
Former Texas A&M-Kingsville quarterback Abel González practices his passes during a tryout for the RGV Dorados, the newest arenafootball2 expansion team, Saturday at PSJA Stadium in Pharr. The Dorados will hold another tryout at Rice University in Houston Feb. 14.
Esmail. “We do not care that they were number nine in the country we should have won.” At number three doubles, sophomores Nik Porter and Oliver Steil lost a nail-biter to Dash Connell and Alex Strom, 9-7. Salvo believes the doubles performance he and his partner had was not only good for them, but it helped his teammates out as well. “We knew we could compete with the Aggies, but it was good to show it and not just talk about it,” said Salvo. It also helped our teammates’ confidence too.” Against Trinity the Broncs dropped a doubles match, but responded to the challenge by taking four out of six singles matches to ensure a victory. Salvo, Porter, Bianco and Steil all won in singles, with Steil icing the victory by defeating D.J. Petros at number five singles, 1-6, 6-2, 6-3. Salvo believes unity is the main strength in this year’s team that will allow for a better record than last year. “Our confidence is there and we need to build upon what we did last year. We are closer as a team and our goal is to win the conference,” said Salvo. “We got second last year and we want to win it this year.” The Broncs are now 1-1 after two matches, and will return to action when they visit Eastern Kentucky Feb. 6. Provencio believes his team is a couple of pieces shy of completing the puzzle and being able to compete with anyone in the country. “Overall I am very happy with the start. It is good to play a top ten team and get a taste of top notch tennis,” said Provencio. “We just need a couple of players here and there and we can compete with anyone.”
continued from page 16
any capacity, would only increase the team’s ties with the Valley. Araguz, who played five years in the NFL, was recently called back to duty when the Vikings requested his services for the last two games of the regular season. He played against Kansas City and Arizona. In those two games, Araguz punted seven times for an average of 38.7 yards. “Just having the opportunity to go back and prove that I could still kick was definitely an honor,” Araguz said. “It definitely humbles you. You go up there and getting back to the top and being able to compete at that level is the best thing ever. I just feel bad that we got pushed out of the playoffs because I would definitely like a couple more games to show them that I could still kick.” Former wide receiver Armando González Jr., who graduated from PSJA Memorial in 2002, was happy to have had the opportunity to have tried out, but was hampered by a quadricep injury that hindered his performance. “It was fun,” González said. “I had some good times, but the injury really slowed me down.” Helping out the Dorados coaching staff evaluate the players was San Diego Chargers consultant Steve Schnall, who is also an adjunct consultant at The University of Texas-Pan American. “It’s a good turnout from all over the country,” coach Scnall said. “There was a solid group of kids. It looks as though 10 percent could make it back. They all tried hard and gave a good effort. There
were a lot of positive things for the Valley.” Among the 15 chosen to return were a pair of former Nikki Rowe graduates. Nikki Rowe standout Adrian Armstrong, 5-foot-8, 170 pounds, had previously tried out for the Texas A&MKingsville squad, but now finds himself with an opportunity to catch on with the Valley’s first professional football team. “I didn’t expect it, but I’m glad I did it,” Armstrong said about the tryout. “There was some good talent out here, some fast people. I wasn’t the fastest one, but I did what I did.” Another Rowe standout, 6-foot, 250pound lineman Bernie Luna, recently graduated from Sul Ross State University. “It was pretty good (tryout),” Luna said. “I’ve been to another one and I think this is a lot better because it showed more individually.” Recent PSJA North graduate Anthony Hernández was another Valley player selected at the end of the first tryout. Hernández played varsity high school football for only one season, but racked up 10.5 yards per carry (666 yards rushing) and scored 10 touchdowns. During the tryout, Hernández pulled his hamstring, but was able to show enough promise in his earlier performances to make Gussman’s final 15 list. “It’s a surprise to still have a chance,” said a smiling Hernández. “Somebody my size and for as little as I am, from the Valley, that’s nice. I’m happy.” The Dorados will hold another tryout Feb. 14 at Rice University in Houston.
Sports
January 22, 2004
Page 14
Watson lights up Broncs for 30 points UMKC’s Michael Watson (left) dribbles around Chris Fagan (right). Sergio Sánchez (background) backs up Fagan. Watson had a game-high 30 points in the ‘Roos’ 7769 victory Monday. Photo by Delisa Guadarrama/The Pan American
By MATTHEW A. CEBALLOS The Pan American The University of Texas-Pan American men’s basketball team dropped its fourth game in a row Wednesday as Texas-Arlington breezed past the Broncs 73-54. With the loss, UTPA fell to 5-13 on the season, while UTA improved to 7-8. On Monday, the Broncs suffered a 77-69 loss to the University of Missouri-Kansas City Kangaroos, thanks to another great individual performance from one of the visitors.
Boxing
Despite missing his first three shots of the game it certainly wasn’t an off night for UMKC’s Michael Watson. Watson scored 30 points and helped lead UMKC past the Broncs for the second time this season. On Dec. 4 he scored 27 points against the Broncs. “He’s definitely one of the better scorers we’ve faced this season,” said UTPA forward Chris Fagan. Fagan wasn’t the only one impressed by Watson’s performance. “He did what he was advertised (to do)
continued from page 16
“He surprised me, but I wanted to do my best to impress Oscar and the crowd,” Montiel said. Montiel, who improved to 27-1-1, was impressed by the Dodge Arena crowd and felt right at home. “I feel like I’m at home,” Montiel said. “Actually, they don’t even treat me like this (nice) at home. Of course, they love me there too, but you never expect it when you are out of the city. It pleased me that the people attended, not only from the United States, but from México. A lot of people from the border came.” In the co-main event, 2000 Mexican Olympian Daniel “Ponce” De León of Cuauhtémoc, Chihuahua, México chased a scared Jesús Pérez of Córdoba, Colombia, making him kiss the canvas three times, before winning on a TKO near the end of the opening round. “I think he felt my hands,” said De León about Pérez, who apparently ran scared. “He felt the punches. And really, I didn’t want to hurt him so much. I just
wanted to win my fight. He felt my punches and I saw that he wasn’t going to be able to handle the fight for a long time.” De León improved to 16-0, while Pérez dropped to 22-4-3. As for the “Golden Boy”, he was also surprised by the greeting he received in the Valley. “I never expected this,” De La Hoya said. “It fills my heart. It caught me off guard.” De La Hoya’s career is currently on hold and he is waiting to see if Félix “Tito” Trinidad will come out of retirement. De La Hoya is presently planning to fight in June, September, and December of this year. “I would love to fight Trinidad first and the reason why is because he’s the one who beat me first and put my first loss on my record,” said De La Hoya at the weigh-in Thursday. “And then with [Shane] Mosley because Mosley is a fighter who is very gifted and his speed is what is very deceiving. We’ll just have to wait and see. Then we still have Hopkins, which is the most dangerous of all.”
tonight,” said UTPA coach Bob Hoffman of Watson. “He’s a good player.” The first half of the game was a seesaw that saw both teams take the lead at various times. The Broncs went in to halftime only trailing by two points, 32-30, despite making only 32.4 percent of their shots from the field in comparison to UMKC’s 52.2 percent. After the game was tied at 34 early in the second half, UMKC hit a trio of three pointers, including two by Watson, and began to take a commanding lead. But trailing 56-39 with 12:27 remaining, the Broncs used a 17-1 run during the next 6:10 to cut the lead to a single point, 57-56 with 6:17 remaining. Despite their best efforts an offensive charge, missed shots, and a technical foul fueled a UMKC lead that was just too much to overcome. The outside shooting of UMKC was too strong. Watson was 7 for 13 from beyond the arc and overall the team was 12 for 22 on threes. Fagan led the Broncs with 19 points and nine rebounds. Guard Ray Castillo added 16 points and center Ryan Lange had eight points and eight rebounds. Watson led all scorers with 30 points; forward Mike English added 15 points and forward Brandon Lipsey had 11. With the win, UMKC improved to 9-7. The Broncs will begin a three-game homestand Jan. 28 starting with Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne, and continuing Monday, Feb. 2 (Alcorn State) and Wednesday, Feb.4 (Lamar).
Next Game:
Indiana - Purdue Fort Wayne Mastadons
UTPA Broncs
When: Wednesday, Jan. 28 Where: Field House Time: 7:30 p.m. All-time series: UTPA leads the all time series with the Mastadons 1-0. Wednesday, Box Score 1 UTPA 24 Texas-Arlington 27
Jan. 21 2 30 46
F 54 73
Bronc scorers: A. Holcomb 12, R. Lange 10, R. Castillo 9, C. Fagan 8, E. Montalvo 4, A. Sakalys 4, Z. Weir 4, S. Sánchez 3.
Oscar Night at the Dodge Arena
Photo by Daniz Rivera Photo by Delisa Guadarrama/The Pan American
Team Dávila tends to Raúl Cásarez during his fight Friday.
From left, Gabriel Elizondo, Daniel “Ponce” De León, Fernando Montiel, Oscar De La Hoya, Roberto López, Jesus Pérez, and Marcus Badilla pose after the weigh-in held in Mission Jan. 15.
January 22, 2004
THE PAN AMERICAN
Page 3
Former president to make Book swap is possible appearances here Feb. 5 solution to money woes By ARIANNA VAZQUEZ The Pan American
foundation. Dean of Students Jerry Price said that this year they wanted to make sure students had access to the event. “We created a separate event just for students,” Price said. “We purchased as many seats as we thought UTPA students would use. UTPA has first priority, and the rest will be available to GEAR UP.” According to Gilberto Maldonado,
One of the most famous Americans of our time is coming to campus, and this time, the average student stands a good chance of getting a ticket to the show. Former President George H. W. Bush will appear at the university Feb. 5. Bush’s resume is massive. He was a member of the U.S. House of Outstanding Leadership Series Representatives, U.S. Ambassador to the Sponsorship Levels United Nations, the Republican National Committee Chairman, $25,000 and the director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Then he was $15,000 Ronald Reagan’s vice president and became the 41st president in $10,000 1988. But since his term ended in 1993, he has $7,500 deliberately changed his lifestyle and now makes scheduled appearances $5,000 at public institutions Source: UTPA Foundation and charity events around the country to discuss his experiences director of corporate support for the holding some of the most important and UTPA Foundation, more seats are powerful public offices in the world. reserved for the University’s students for This time his stop is at UTPA, on the event. Thursday Feb. 5, 2004, where Bush will “Four hundred GEAR UP high school be the first up on this year’s Outstanding students have been invited to the event,” Leadership Series. In the past, the school Maldonado said. “The remaining seats welcomed luminaries such as Gen. will be distributed to UTPA students.” Norman Schwarzkopf, and former New Bush’s presentation is planned to York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. But mainly focus on his experience while in this year, the UTPA Foundation and the office, including the fall of the Berlin Distinguished Speakers Committee have Wall, and the breakup of the Soviet Union planned to make the event different from and the end of the Cold War. in years past: they plan to have more Thursday’s schedule for Bush will students attend the event. consist of meeting with the elite few who Last spring, when Giuliani visited will sponsor the foundation at the Five school grounds, he met with a select few Star VIP Sponsorship Level of $25,000 community leaders, for a large fee that down to the minimum of $5,000. There went into the UTPA Foundation for will be a private photo and autograph student scholarships. But students who session for the major sponsors, a dinner, wished to attend and could not afford the Bush’s presentation, plus a question-andpricy amount were left out, missing the answer session. opportunity to hear the man who lessened Students will not have to pay the NYC violence and acted heroically to sponsorship prices to attend their event, help city residents after Sept. 11. which will be held prior to the gala in the Schwartzkopf’s visit was also restricted. Field House. Students will be able to pick But this year, the committee has a up a voucher today starting at 11 a.m. at multiple day planned for Bush Feb. 5, the Student Union. Limited vouchers will whose son, George W. Bush, gave his be given and students need to show a latest State of the Union address Tuesday. validated student identification card to First, Bush the Elder is scheduled to meet obtain it. On the day of the event, the at 5 p.m. with 1,000 students at the student will have to present the voucher, University’s Fine Arts Auditorium. There, and once again show their student ID to he will address both UTPA students and get a ticket to enter the session. high school students who are part of the For students who are unable to obtain a GEAR UP, which benefits migrant voucher, a waiting area will be set up students in Texas. After that session he before the event for last minute no-shows, will appear with community leaders, in a and those tickets will be distributed. paid event benefiting the scholarship
By VANESSA CASTILLO The Pan American The second week of the semester is about over, and while many students bought their textbooks weeks ago; some are still shopping around for the best prices, or waiting for financial assistance to kick in. In any case, new classes mean new books, and that means spending hundreds of dollars on required textbooks. Students acquire books from all types of sources: online, checking them out of the reserved section of the library and photocopying them, book stores of course, and now, via a new source made available to UTPA students recently: a book swap. The Student Government Association has initiated this systematic way for students to buy and sell their textbooks on their own terms. In a well-intended attempt to look out for UTPA students, the SGA book swap is aimed at bringing together students with a common interest. "We are providing a service for students and giving them an alternative to pricey bookstores," said SGA Vice President Oscar Garza. "What we're doing is cutting them [bookstores] out of the loop." Avoiding the middleman to save money seems to be a good idea. Students often buy books that cost $100 or more and get less than 25 percent of the original price when they return to bookstores to sell them at the end of a semester. "I bought a communication book at the beginning of last semester for $101, I received $16 for it when I sold it back to the bookstore," recalls senior communication major Crystal Kief. "When I bought my books this semester, they were selling the same book they gave me $16 for, for $82." With this in mind, SGA’s Garza said the book swap is focused on encouraging students to help each other. "Students know how frustrating purchasing expensive books and getting practically nothing for them, can be,” Garza said. The book swap may be a solution for students whose books are collecting dust because they would rather hold on to them than sell them for peanuts. Or for a student who bought the wrong book, lost their receipt and missed the deadline for a full refund. The book swap is a basic data list comprised of the following: book subject, book title, professor, price, as well as the name of the person selling the book, their e-mail address and phone
number. It seems simple enough and has the potential to help students all over campus. However, the list that is taped on the SGA office door gives the impression that some students who have enlisted the help of the book swap are not interested in the well-being of their fellow students, some asking as much as $95 for a book that is being sold at South Texas Book Supply across the street for $66. It is clear that the book swap is aimed at helping students, not ripping them off, but Garza also said the database is a starting point for students to negotiate their own prices. Some books on the SGA book swap list do have lower price tags than those at bookstores or online markets, but consumers be warned that it is your responsibility to inform yourself of the following: 1. Try and find out if the same edition will be used the following semester. 2. Shop around for the best prices. 3. Asking for a reasonable price is essential and ethical: do not ask a student to buy a five-dollar book for $20. It is up to students to make or break this idea. There are 85 books on the swap list and several students willing to negotiate prices. Some students say they would not want to wait around for a phone call, and sell their books to bookstores in order to obtain the cash faster. On the other hand, some students say it may work. "I'd add my name on the list as soon as I bought my books and hope to get an offer by the end of the semester," said business major Brian Corona. The SGA is hoping to make the book swap a success with the help of students. "I would sign up for the book swap if it comes out cheaper for me," said freshman nursing student Grace Selvera, who bought her books at a bookstore. "I would rather sell my books for more money than the book store would give me, but for less than they sell their used books for." The book swap is free and available to all UTPA students for the remainder of the semester. To add your name to the database, students must go to the third floor of the University Center, the building in front of the cafeteria, room 322, and give all necessary information to an SGA member. They are available from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday thru Friday. The SGA is also trying to get the book swap available online by the end of May, for the increased convenience of students seeking a shot at economic, affordable textbooks.
SGA Book Swap
South Texas Booksupply
half.com
The Student Writer, Editor & Critic, 6th Ed. by B.F. Clause
$ 35
$ 38.25
$ 23.86
Dos Mundos: En Breve w/ Listening Comprehension, 5th Ed. by T.D. Tarrel
$ 60
$ 66.50
$ 72.94
Biology 6th Ed by Campbell & Reece
$ 100
$ 96.00
$ 72.07
Applying Ethics by J. Olen & V.E. Barry
$ 50
$ 53.00
$ 44.99
Photo by Daniel Aguilar/The Pan American
Cázares (right) charges in on Marcus Hicks (left). Cásarez defeated Hicks in the bout.
Photo by Daniz Rivera
Pablo Peña lays on the canvas after getting knocked out.
January 22, 2004
THE PAN AMERICAN
Page 4
Promotion rewards performance of Griffith By JULIAN CAVAZOS The Pan American
Last semester, she was interim director. As of Jan. 1 she became the director of Institutional Research and Effectiveness. Dr. Susan Griffith has had much experience in the field of institutional research over nearly 30 years. All that hard work paid off when Pres. Miguel A. Nevarez gave her this promotion. She was thrilled. “I was extremely happy to know that the president had confidence in me for the position,” Griffith said. “ It was an opportunity to take a challenge and to work in a position that I already had a lot of experience in. It was a perfect match.” Griffith was born in Altoona, Pa., about 100 miles east of Pittsburgh. Her father was an engineer for DuPont, so the family moved frequently. In her first 20 years Griffith lived in five different states, and says the experience has molded her in various ways. “Moving a lot has made me very flexible and able to deal with change fairly easily,” Griffith explained. “But it has also left me without any sense of a ‘hometown’ the way some people have.” After graduating with a bachelor’s in art history from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Griffith worked as a curator of education at the Museum of Fine Arts in Springfield, Mass. There, she conducted tours and educational classes, prepared teaching
materials and guides, and curated graphics exhibitions. From the early 1980s Griffith worked at Texas State University-San Marcos (then known as Southwest Texas State University), starting off as assistant to the vice president of Academic Affairs, and ending as the associate vice president for Planning and Administration in 1998. Much of her experience was garnered there. “This was about 25 years ago. I went to Susan Texas State and worked with academic affairs and salaries,” she said. “At that time, just like now, I like being grounded in numbers before I make a decision. I like to have numbers in stats to back up an opinion, decision, or anything like that.” In September 2003, Griffith became
UTPA’s interim director, in a role connected to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness (IRE). This office directs and coordinates institutional planning, policy analysis, and evaluation to improve and advance university goals. It also studies the area of future enrollment. “The Office of Institutional Research does some projections on the enrollment five to 10 years down the road and prepares for Griffith it,” said Dr. Frederick Von Ende, IRE executive director. “And, by preparing for it, we are able to plan what types of buildings, parking lots, and other things we will need.” According to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, by 2005, UTPA’s enrollment is projected to reach
16,626. By 2010, enrollment is projected to skyrocket to an all-time high of 19,032. It currently rests just short of 16,000. When it comes to diversity at UTPA, Griffith said that as this institution continues to implement additional graduate programs, the enrollment may become very diverse. She said if UTPA were to initiate satellite campuses in Mexico, our international student population would increase. “In fact, the State of Texas expects UTPA to be one of the major forces in the drive to increase participation of Hispanics to pursue a higher education in Texas,” she said. Griffith continued as interim director until Jan. 1, when Nevarez announced her new position. In her new position she directs the institution’s enrollment projection process, conducts operational research for executive management decision-making, and directs the strategic planning processes for UTPA. Von Ende praises Griffith for her hard work that has led to the new position. “She has performed well enough in the period when she was an interim director, and with that designation, it gave her more permanence to her job title. She is knowledgeable, and enthusiastic,” Von Ende said. “Susan did a lot of work in other institutions, and has brought that experience here.”
Jinx continues to zap potential business near campus By ANGELA I. CANALES The Pan American Ferboy’s, Speedy’s, and Rocha’s. These are all names of businesses that were once located at 1603 E Sugar Road, adjacent to campus. However, none of them are there anymore; they either never officially opened or lasted for a short time. Ferboy’s, a coffee shop partnership, was inspected on March 15, 2000, and was granted the right to open. The place was painted, furniture purchased and advertising done. But the place never opened. Speedy’s was a three-person partnership that was filed by Fernando Curiel to sell buffalo wings. The place was inspected on July 29, 2002 and like its predecessor was granted an opening. It probably operated for two weeks before the lights went out and the for-sale signs went up. Observers wondered what sort of curse marked the spot. After all, its location seemed a natural for business, at the busy intersection of University and Sugar. Yet twice the place had turned into a money pit. Last fall there arose a new challenger. Rocha’s Restaurant filed for inspection by Gerardo Rocha in October 2003, as a taqueria. Amazingly enough the Sugar Curse struck again, as the restaurant was only open for about 10 to 12 days before it closed for good.
Although Rocha’s Restaurant did actually sell some wares, the owners had trouble getting the business up and running. The restaurant faced a lawsuit that put a strain on its operation. One of the owners of the previous restaurant, Speedy’s, was never informed of the transaction. She then filed a lawsuit claiming that she was still the owner of the building. The judge filed in favor of Rocha’s. “There were only two owners that consented to sell the restaurant and the other owner did not know about the transaction, [so] she called the police and we had some trouble, but that was not the reason we closed,” said Rocha, the owner of Rocha’s Restaurant, has another location, in Mission. “The Mission Restaurant is doing just great,” said Rocha, adding that he simply ran into manpower problems. The Edinburg location was closed due to lack of employees, he explained. “We closed because we could not find people to work,” Rocha said. “People went and they only worked for two or three days, we were taking people from this business (in Mission) and it doesn’t make any sense.” Problems with management also put a strain on the restaurant, which became the third straight one to go bottoms up in the same site. “The manager just quit,” Rocha said. “She just all of a sudden said she didn’t
want to work there and we had to close.” So three strikes are on the board against entrepreneurs seeking to take advantage of the site’s proximity to campus. The owner of the building believes there are two reasons why these businesses have not been successful. “Every owner either did not have enough finances or adequate management,” according to Bud Gill, who also said he has other ideas that may work for the building. “This location is the best for a bookstore,” said Gill. “Where this building is located, would allow for this type of business to be successful.” Whatever business takes the next shot at 1603 E. Sugar Road is going to need all the luck it can muster, that’s for sure, as the recent past has been mysterious and rocky for the previous tenants.
Sports
January 22, 2004
2003-2004 Sports Schedules
Date
Opponent/Time
Scores
Nov. 4
Monterrey Tech
W112-46
Nov. 8
Houston Quest
W 111-59
Nov. 22
Southern Methodist
L 59-69
Nov. 25
Texas A&M-Int’l
W 90-50
Nov. 29
Texas-Arlington
L 75-81
Dec. 1
SWA of God
W 90-60
Dec. 4
Missouri-Kansas City
L 80-104
Dec. 6
Texas-San Antonio
W 86-83
Dec. 12
Mississippi Valley St.
L 67-85
Dec. 14
Sam Houston State
L 66-92
Dec. 17
North Texas
L 81-87
Dec. 20
Rice
L 58-69
Dec. 22
Oklahoma State
L 61-96
Dec. 29
Oklahoma
Dec. 31
McMurry
W 90-58
Jan. 6
Baylor
W 55-54
Jan. 8
North Texas
L 53-71
Jan. 14
Wright State
L 60-82
Jan. 19
Missouri-K.C.
L 69-77
Jan. 21
Texas-Arlington
L 54-73
Jan. 28
IPFW
L 57-72
7:30
Feb. 2
Alcorn State
Feb. 4
Lamar
7:30
Feb. 7
IPFW
Noon
Feb. 11
Arkansas State
7:30
Feb. 14
TAMUCC
7:30
Feb. 16
Air Force
7:30
Feb. 19
Central Baptist
7:30
Feb. 28 March 1
TAMUCC Arkansas State
7:30
7 7:05
Men’s Tennis Spring Season Date
SPORTS CLIPBOARD Moses new compliance officer
UTPA Men’s Basketball
Pegjohngy Moses was announced as the UTPA athletic department's new assistant athletic director for compliance services and senior woman administrator. Moses fills the vacant post left by Charlotte Hunt, who left the university to take the director of compliance position at Conference USA. The North Carolina native graduated from Duke University and Tulane Law School and comes to the university with extensive NCAA Division I experience. Moses is currently the assistant athletic director for compliance at the University of TennesseeChattanooga. The Duke graduate previously worked at the University of Central Florida, Brown, and Cornell.
While at Duke, Moses sered as the manager for the women's basketball team and worked with head coach Gail Goestenkors in the nationally recognized Blue Devil program.
Killer Bees get short break
2003 CHL Standings
Franco Caballero/The Pan American
ADIOS— The third business in less than two years has gone bottoms up on Sugar Road. Rocha’s opened for just two weeks before closing its doors for good, after two other eateries came and went in the building around the corner from Economy.
Trinity, 10 a.m.
Jan. 19
Texas A&M, 1:30
Feb. 6
Eastern Kentucky, TBA
Feb. 7 Feb. 7
Northwest
W L OTL PTS
Colorado
25 10 2
52
OKC
19 14 5
43
Dayton, TBA
New Mexico
18 16 3
39
Xavier, TBA
Wichita
17 16 4
38
Feb. 14
Saint Louis, 2
Tulsa
12 16 8
32
Feb. 21
TAMUCC, 2
Feb. 26
Laredo College (Exh.), 1
March 11
Abilene Christian, 5:30
March 12
Prairie View, TBA
March 13
March 24
Northeast
W L OTL PTS
Bossier-Shreveport 23 8
3
49
Memphis
24 15 1
49
Texas Southern, 10 a.m.
Indianapolis
21 14 1
43
UTSA, 2
Fort Worth
11 20 6
28
April 3
DePaul, 1
Southwest
W L OTL PTS
April 4
Texas-Arlington, 10 a.m.
Amarillo
25 11 2
52
April 7
Texas Southern, 2
SanAngelo
22 13 4
48
April 8
Lamar, 3
Odessa
13 23 2
28
April 9
Southeastern Louisiana, Noon
Lubbock
9 20 6
24
April 17
TAMUCC, 2
April 30
SLC Championships
Southeast
W L OTL PTS
May 1
SLC Championships
Laredo
30 5
May 2
SLC Championships
Austin
HOME GAMES IN BOLD All games p.m. unless noted.
2
62
16 15 5
37
Rio Grande Valley 15 15 6
36
Corpus Christi
29
13 19 3
2003-2004 Sports Schedules
When the second half of the season gets underway against Corpus Christi Friday, the Bees will begin wearing their dark jerseys on home ice and use their white jerseys when they play on the road. In the first half, the Bees used their white jerseys at home and dark jerseys on the road.
Although the CHL AllStar Game will be played Thursday night in Albuquerque, NM, the RÌo Grande Valley Killer Bees (16-17-6) will get little rest during the short break. The Killer Bees hit the ice again Friday night at the Dodge Arena against the Southeast Division rival Corpus Christi Rayz (15-20-3) at 7:30 p.m. Prior to the All-Star Game, the Bees played seven games in 10 days and concluded the stretch run with a 4-1 win over Odessa Sunday. The Bees' leading scorer is forward Bill Newson with 20 goals and 12 assists for 32 points.
Opponent/Time
Jan. 19
Page 13
Lady Broncs next game:
Southwest Missouri State Lady Bears
UTPA Lady Broncs
When: Tonight Where: Springfield,MO Time: 7:05 p.m. Records: UTPA (7-10); SMS (13-1) All-time series: It will be the first meeting between the two teams. Notable: SMS is currently on an 11-game win streak.
UTPA Women’s Basketball Date
Opponent/Time
Scores
Nov. 7 Nov. 21 Nov. 22 Nov. 25 Nov. 29
Houston Air Force. Boise State/Dayton TAMUI St. Edward’s
W W W W W
Dec. 5
St. Lous
L 45-77
Dec. 6
Kansas State/Sac.
W 60-50
Dec. 14
Oral Roberts
L 57-67
Dec. 17
Texas
L 25-90
Dec. 19
Marshall
L 59-74
Dec. 21
Central Michigan
L 40-56
Dec. 28
Tulsa
L 41-71
Dec. 31
Prairie View A&M
W 64-52
Jan. 2
UT-Arlington
L 46-85
Jan. 7 Jan. 9
Sacramento State San Diego State
W 49-47 L 38-59
Jan. 11
Louisiana-Lafayette
L 54-62
Jan. 13
SE Louisiana
L 58-60
Jan. 22
SW Missouri State
7:05
Jan. 24
TAMUCC
7:00
Jan. 27
Incarnate Word
7:00
Jan. 31
IPFW
Noon
Feb. 3
Northern Colorado
7:00
Feb. 9
Prairie View A&M
7:00
Feb. 16
Louisiana-Lafayette 5:00
Feb. 19
IPFW
5:00
Feb. 24
TAMUCC
7:00
Feb. 28
SE Louisiana
7:00
March 3
Northern Arizona
8:00
Women’s Tennis Spring Season
Mexican Soccer League 2004 Team Chiapas Club San Luis U.A.G. Toluca Guadalajara Pachuca Querétaro Morelia Irapuato Puebla Atlas América U.N.A.M. Cruz Azul Monterrey Veracruz Santos Atlante Tigres Necaxa
Group I 3 - Toluca 1 - Pachuca 1 - Atlas 1 - Puebla 1 - Monterrey
W-D-L 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-1 0-0-1 0-0-1 0-0-1 0-0-1
GF:GA 4:2 2:0 3:2 1:0 1:0 2:2 2:2 1:1 1:1 1:1 1:1 1:1 1:1 0:0 0:0 2:3 0:1 0:1 2:4 0:2
Group II 3 - U.A.G. 1 - Querétaro 1 - América 1 - U.N.A.M. 0 - Santos
PTS 3 3 3 3 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Scorer / Team S. Pereira, CHI W. Gaitán, TIG
Group III 3 - Chiapas 3 - San Luis 1 - Morelia 1 - Cruz Azul 0 - Tigres
91-77 68-67 63-57 84-55 79-42
G 2 2
Group IV 3 - Guadalajara 1 - Irapuato 0 - Veracruz 0 - Atlante 0 - Necaxa
Week 1 results Jan. 17-18: Chiapas 4, Tigres 2; Morelia 1, Irapuato 1; Monterrey 0, Cruz Azul 0; San Luis 2, Necaxa 0; Atlas 1, Puebla 1; América 1, U.N.A.M. 1; Pachuca 2, Querétaro 2; Atlante 0, Toluca 1; U.A.G. 3, Veracruz 2; Santos 0, Guadalajara 1. Week 2 schedule Jan. 24-25: Veracruz vs. Monterrey; Toluca vs. Chiapas; Cruz Azul vs. América; Tigres vs. Pachuca; Guadalajara vs. Atlante; Necaxa vs. Santos; Querétaro vs. Morelia; U.N.A.M. vs. Atlas; Irapuato vs. U.A.G.; Puebla vs. San Luis.
Date
Opponent
Time
Feb. 6
UTEP
3:00
Feb. 13
Sam Houston State,
3
Feb. 14
Northwestern State
1:30
Feb. 15
Stephen F. Austin
9 a.m.
Feb. 21
TAMUCC
2:00
Feb. 26
Laredo College (Exh.) 1:00
March 11 Abilene Christian
5:30
March 13 Texas Southern
10 a.m.
March 17
Wyoming
TBA
March 18
Jacksonville
Noon
March 19
Long Island
TBA
March 20
Bethune-Cookman
TBA
March 27 Air Force
8:30 a.m.
April 7
Texas Southern
2:00
April 8
Lamar
3:00
April 9
McNeese State
9 a.m.
April 16
IPFW
TBA
April 16
Northern Colorado
TBA
April 17
TAMUCC
2:00
HOME GAMES IN BOLD All games p.m. unless noted.
THE PAN AMERICAN
HARASSMENT student differently, perhaps less professionally to a specific student,” Price said. When a complaint is issued there are two different ways of dealing with the results. A student can make an informal complaint or rather if not successful then a higher standard is taken and a formal complaint is made. “What usually happens is that students want the actions to stop,” Price said. “If it goes further than that, students can file a complaint to us and then we work together to resolve the problem.” STARTING NEW “Don’t tolerate the harassment,” Price said. “I’ve seen independent competent students usually put up with situations that make them uncomfortable, either out of the thought of retaliation or the feeling that they can handle the harassment. Don’t, all of this will wear on you.” Price also noted that students are more than entitled to make a case of the harassment and that they should resolve any problems they have with anyone on campus. “Usually, the majority of the professors are unaware that what they are doing is unwelcome,” “We speak with the faculty and then they decided to meet the standards of what the student wants. Usually they do comply with the
Page 12
BIBLE SCHOOL college when he was doing missionary work in Mexico. “ I was working in Mexico, where I am originally from, as a missionary, when I heard about the school,” Lara said. “ We have students from Mexico, Central America and South America.” He said that he felt that teaching at the college was part of calling from God. “ I teach mainly mission courses, world religions, the history of missions, cross-cultural communications, and cultural anthropology,” Lara said. “ At the language school I teach Spanish grammar.” Although the college is nondenominational, students who attend the school come from different denominations [Christian religions]. But Lara said that religions are not a problem, because of the understanding of the school’s Statement of Faith. According to the RGBI’s Statement of Faith, the Rio Grande Bible Institute exists to glorify God by serving the Hispanic church through equipping leaders, edifying believers, and evangelizing the lost. It seeks to accomplish this mission under the leadership of the Holy Spirit in accord
the power that a professor has to control their grade or even retaliate against them if they file a complaint.” Being at a college campus surrounded by adults, the tension between students and faculty members could mount to harassment without intentionally doing so. Telling an unsolicited compliment here, a sexual joke there could lead to problems with a person’s reputation, job or even life. “Every different workplace could contribute to sexual harassment,” Price said. “At a university, students are working with advisor whom they form admiration for the faculty member in a strictly platonic sense. Sometimes the faculty member enjoys the admiration but sometimes it can be misread by either the professor or student.” Price continued to say that luckily with the education that surrounds a college campus, most people are educated enough to know when the harassment begins. “The environment has its advantages and disadvantages,” he concluded. “On one hand, we have the education to know what is right and wrong, but at the same time there can be misunderstandings that leads to problems.”
continued from page 5 with the missionary mandate of the infallible Word of God. Lara said that students attend the college to study the bible and prepare for missionary work in Latin America, Spain, Europe and Africa, but lately the number of students have decreased since he has been there in 1987. A big part of that problem is the tight security the United States have placed on foreigners post Sept.11. “ We have less students now, because lately getting Visa’s are harder since Sept. 11 and the main reason is that laws are more tough,” Lara said. “We will have 80 new applicants ready to come [to the college] and end up with only 16 or 17 new students.” Anderson agrees that the number of bible students and missionaries have decreased recently, but not only locally. He said the numbers have also decreased in the U.S. He along with other college officials hopes that will change in the future. “We started the year with an excellent missions conference at the beginning of [Jan.]. Our guest speakers opened up to students over to the world, not just here,” Anderson said.
Page 5
Bible school carries on 57-year traditions
continued from page 2
what the students want and then go on with their lives.” Joe Ramirez was one of the students who started a petition concerning to create an alternative for students who needed to take a course that Dantzker taught. Two classes that Dantzker teaches are courses necessary for criminal justice majors reported as of last November. Ramirez said that the department accepted the petition and there is some for of alternative for students. “The petition was created to allow students who might have felt uncomfortable having Dr. Dantzker for a class to have an alternative,” Ramirez said. “I’ve actually had some retaliation against myself from people who did not believe in the petition. Students will stop talking to you because of the argument that someone is incident until proven guilty.” Ramirez stuck to his conviction that if a professor has been accused of sexual harassment, then students have a right to not take his classes. “There are a lot of people who are in the same situation that are afraid to come forward about being sexually harassed,” Ramirez said. “From whichever professor, from whatever department, a college student respects
THE PAN AMERICAN
January 22, 2004
By BELINDA REYES The Pan American
Schools Valley-wide opened up to a new start this year, either to continue the school year or start a new semester. The quiet Rio Grande Bible Institute weren’t alone in opening its doors this semester. The Rio Grande Bible Institute, which is located on the corner of Bus, Hwy 81 and Trenton Rd. in Edinburg was originally founded in 1946 by a Baptist pastor and evangelist, Rev. M.C. Ehlert. According to RGBI’s home page on the web, Ehlert came to the Valley in the late 1930’s to do a tent evangelism, it was then that he saw a need to train Hispanic believers and new converts because there was very little bible training available in this area. Eventually 40 acres of land was purchased in the south Edinburg. The first few buildings were built and the first semester of school began in spring of 1947. The bilingual bible college which taught bible studies in both English and Spanish offered three years of bible training so that missionaries had the tools to minister to Hispanics in Latin America. Keith Anderson, registrar, said that today the totally Spanish, Nondenominational institute now consists of a four-year bible school, a one-year language school and various correspondence courses.
CANTU
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formal interview, submitted my portfolio, secretary, was Zorie Monita, who is and was hired.” currently pursuing a bachelor of arts in This is not Cantu’s first time working at Spanish with teacher’s certification. Monita UTPA. As a student, he did work-study is a graduate of Weslaco High School who duty for the Department of Education. was previously employed with the Weslaco “It was great, I always liked working at Independent School District, where she was Pan Am,” Cantu said. “It always had a the administrative assistant for the athletics sense of professionalism, so when I heard department for four years. they were hiring here I jumped at the “This is a great opportunity to work for opportunity.” the University while I continue my During the month and a half that Cantu education,” Monita said. “It has a has been with UTPA he has taken on some wonderful experience and I am very lucky pretty big projects. Included is the return of to work here with the people in this Los Arcos, a news supplement in the department.” Monitor which is printed three times a year in order to keep alumni and the surrounding communities in touch with what is happening at UTPA. Its next publication will be its first since 1997. “Out of all my projects I would have to say that Los Arcos is my biggest yet, and the one that I am most proud of so far,” Cantu said. “It is my first time doing a newspaper print of that type, I have done ads, brochures, calendars, but never anything of this type, it was my first time venturing into that field.” Besides Los Arcos, Cantu has also put together the brochures for the upcoming Career Day in March and oversees any advertising the school puts out. Another publication that Cantu has been working on is Bravo, a newspaper publication connected with the Leadership Series. “This new publication of Bravo will Amy Medellin/The Pan American feature a profile of former President FORMER BRONC— UTPA graduate Aaron Bush, who is coming to speak, and also Cantu now works at the university where he what went on at HESTEC and how that first started learning graphic design. went,” Cantu said. Also recently hired to the University Relations staff, as the department
“We have several schools, a bible school, a language school to learn Spanish and correspondence courses,” Anderson said. “The bible school is the main focus [of the institute]. It’s for the missionaries working among [Spanish speaking] Hispanics in America, Central and South America, and Spain.” Anderson continued that the bible college has three areas of study, which are missionary, pastoral, and Christian education. “Some graduates are all over the world, one went to Africa, a few in Europe and most are in North and South America,” Anderson said, Although the college is accredited with AABC [the Accredited Association of Bible Colleges] and a member of Interdenominational Foreign Mission Association, and the U.S. department of Education, the degrees obtained are not yet considered equivalent to a bachelor’s degree. However, students who further their biblical studies at a university enter as graduate level. “We need more Ph.D.’s [teaching here] before we can call our graduate’s degree a bachelors. But, a lot of our students do go on into Seminary [studies], which is considered a master’s level,” Anderson said. “ I don’t know of any graduate being turned down [when going to a university.]” There are currently 85 students in the
Bible College and 37 attending the Language school. There are a total of 25 professors, including full and part-time. Anderson said the two schools are separate. At the Spanish school the students enrolled are taught Spanish all day long. Students come from all several countries to learn Spanish. The college also offers housing for these students. Along with Daniel Aguilar/The Pan American studying Spanish and OLD SCHOOL— The Rio Grande Bible Institute has been training the bible, students, missionaries since 1947. It also has Spanish language classes especially in the offered to students and members of the community. It is located in Spanish school are southeast Edinburg off Trenton Road. required to attend a Spanish church on Sundays. Anderson said that there are 25 have 13 countries represented, including Central and South America, and Spain.” to 30 “We even offer a few bible classes [at Churches that are integrated with the night] to the community,” Anderson college. added. “In the language school, students come Javier Lara, who has a masters degree from all over the U.S. and Canada. has been teaching at RGBI since 1987, We’ve had students from Japan, who are teaches both at the Language school and now with a missionary group in Peru,” the Bible school. He learned about the Anderson said. “In our Bible College we See BIBLE SCHOOL page 12
Makeover: Oracle will revamp UTPA system By CECI CASTANEDA The Pan American The university’s faculty computer system is getting a makeover and if it works out, the student system will get one too. UTPA has announced the purchase and installment of Oracle, a multi-year project that promises to greatly increase the efficiency of the current SCT computer system. SCT, the current system, is a decade old and soon to be obsolete for the growing university population. It lacks workflow, the capacity to move things automatically and streamline documents, leaving desperately needed authorized papers trapped in unopened campus mailboxes. This could hinder a university with a projected growth of up to 26,000 students in the next decade. So UTPA went shopping. Committees evaluated the latest software, including SCT, SAP, PeopleSoft and Oracle through on-site demonstrations, reference calls and study of software performance in other universities. What made Oracle the winner? Dollars, a couple million more of them. According to one executive sponsor, Oracle is at least $1 million cheaper than any of the other systems, while still maintaining its high level of quality. After the purchase, UTPA selected two executive sponsors, William Morris and James Langabeer. The university also appointed Dave Ramzy, a successful new systems implementer, to head the laborious Oracle project. Ramzy, having worked on nearly 20 similar projects in the past, is an expert on system configuration and installment. The system makeover provides collaboration e-mail and enables faculty members to check their voicemail from any location through the use of ".wav" files. Oracle makes the grant process simpler by using templates for granting centers, allowing faculty to submit grant applications electronically and offering accessible reporting requirements. The software provides for automating purchasing costs and savings, allowing the system to check for accuracy in
purchasing. It institutes workflow; automatically moving documents to the next available person for signature. "Documents could spend 10 days, two weeks floating in campus mail, waiting for a signature,” Morris said. "Oracle eliminates paper shuffle." Parameters allowing less authorization for requested money have also been set by Oracle. No longer will seven signatures be required for purchases of a small monetary value, speeding up the approval process. Documents could This makeover spend 10 days, two also makes the university look weeks floating in more organized to campus mail, waiting potential students. for a signature. Oracle Instead of sending eliminates paper the same shuffle. welcoming brochure six times, Oracle streamlines - William Morris, Executive Sponsor mail orders, sending only to those with empty mailboxes. Efficiency is again increased. Making payments will be incredibly simpler as well. Currently, invoices are papers, checks are paper, and worse yet, receipts are papers with scrawled numbers on it. This will all change with Oracle. All payments will be made electronically, eliminating much of the costs and time resulting from paperwork. However, with such a large project as this, training will be extensive and time consuming. Professors from Oracle, with Ramzy’s help, are currently working with a core project team of roughly 150 faculty and administration. The core team is divided into two learning paths, the technical track and the functional track, states Ramzy. Classes vary from week to week, from two days up until five full days.
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Formal training began in November 2003 and will continue for several months. Informal training, however, is much lo “Training is forever,” Ramzy said. “Online training is available for everyone with user ID. New faculty can watch interactive tutorials at Pan Am’s websit Change and training are usually not sweet-sounding to faculty. Their reaction has been mixed: some eagerly embrace new technology and others are cautious and reserved, according to an Oracle trainer. But UTPA is confident of the decision and is running full-throttle with this multi-million-dollar project. According to its representatives, the faculty will soon learn that Oracle will bring benefits for all. As stated, the recent purchase of Oracle was for the faculty version only. Yet, according to Ramzy, students will be affected piece by piece. Once the accounting system is in, work-study students will experiences changes in the payroll system. It is hoped that the student version of the software will be purchased soon. Evaluators still need to see the student version in action. Since the software will manage financial aid, the university is especially cautious. "There is huge liability if financial aid messes up," Morris stated. “The system needs to be as bug-free as can be." So far, Oracle has proved itself well. Since its release in the summer of 2002, 100 systems have been sold. Texas Women's University has one, and Pan American has been closely following their transition. If the student version of Oracle is purchased, the change will not be dramatic. Ideally, students will be able to move seamlessly through the system. When all implementation is complete, Oracle will bring technology the Valley has never experienced before. UTPA will, despite people’s stereotypes, be a center for education, technologically capable to fully serve their growing amount of students. “The world is coming to Edinburg,” Ramzy said. ”All the best brains, all the best people, all the best technology.”
January 22, 2004
THE PAN AMERICAN
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THE PAN AMERICAN
January 22, 2004
Injury prevention an increasing concern By DIANA CORPUS GARZA The Pan American
For Jose Ramos Jr., 25, an athletic trainer at McAllen High School, sportsrelated injuries are a serious subject. Ramos, a 1999 University of Texas-Pan American graduate in kinesiology, believes prevention is the key. With involvement in high school athletics at an all time high, prevention is a must. “Injury prevention is a holistic approach,” Ramos said. “Look at the whole picture, meaning your weight program, conditioning program, nutrition, and mental health.” A good athlete begins preparing earlier than high school. Preparation begins with a good program in elementary school with fun exercises that incorporates stretching. Kids don’t realize they’re learning, to them they’re just having fun doing something, but that’s how kids learn. They aren’t aware of the communication occurring in the brain. “You do certain exercises that develop neuro-pathway connections between the brains and the muscles that allow to coordinate certain things,” said Dr. Juan Gonzalez, strength trainer at UTPA. “They develop gross motor skills.” This coordination enables them to enjoy the exercise more. Stretching is important even at that age, but conditioning the strength part is difficult with little kids because they’re still growing. “Their growth plates aren’t closed, and their ligaments are just developing,” said Ramos. “Tendons are just getting going. There is danger of the child’s bones growing faster than their muscles then diseases of the knees can or might develop that can affect them later in life.”
That’s why elementary physical education is important. Coaches teach motor and cognitive skills, which kids will use later in life. Elementary, middle school, and high school coaches help to develop the motor skills used to play and participate in athletics. Coaches teach stretching exercises, but don’t forget to warm up. “With any exercise program, warming up before any activity is probably the best thing you can do for your body,” Ramos said. “ Stretching cold muscles is not the best thing.” “Look at Michael Johnson, world record holder in the 400 and 200 meters,” said Ramos. “He warms up with a two-mile jog everyday before he even stretches.” Most athletes incorporate a stretching routine. Some use bikes, treadmills, stair climbers, and anything that gets their body moving and their blood circulating. Coaches also incorporate stretching routines they learned as little kids, in high school, or as college athletes. An athlete needs to know their body. An athletic trainer is always looking and observing the athlete. “If an athlete who has a chronic back pain stands still too long he gets stiff,” said Ramos. “We modify by keeping him warm. We’ll take the bike out to the football stadium and have him ride the bike. We just have him stay as warm as possible.” But not all training is equal when it comes to males and females. Ramos believes some integral training in some sports is possible, but the female body should be trained differently. “Men can endure more,” said Ramos. “I’m not saying that women can’t endure pain but it’s just that the stress that’s put on a woman is a lot different because of the female triad.”
“The female triad is the amenorrhea take and rest plays a major part in an (absence of menstrual cycle), eating athlete’s health. disorder, and osteoporosis,” Gonzalez “Look at the whole picture,” Ramos said. said. “Ask yourself: What am I eating? The female triad affects the female Are you getting enough rest? Are these body during their menstrual cycle. The external factors causing a downfall in loss of blood can loosen ligaments, and your performance? Is there a tendons causing stress fractures. An psychological aspect causing stress? eating disorder, such as anorexia, Mental attitude is also important.” bulimia, or in some cases, just not eating The athlete must know himself or properly can cause loss of bone density, herself. All these factors are important and also affects the estrogen levels. to injury prevention for the successful Osteoporosis is the loss of calcium need athlete. With New Year’s resolutions for strong bones. aimed at loosing weight and becoming Female athletes need to learn when to fit, an injury can put a stop to all your recognize when there is an eating plans. disorder in their body or other changes in their menstrual cycle. Reoccurring stress fractures usually happen for a reason. The female athlete is aware of the basics, but is not aware of the whole picture. For both types of athletes, rest is often overlooked. Some athletes do multiple sports; this is where the athletic trainer comes in. Reyes says to tell your trainer if you need help. The athlete needs to Diana Garza/The Pan American be able to say OUCH!— J ose Ramos Jr., athletic trainer at McAllen High School finishwhat their body es wrapping Crystal Garza’s foot after an injury. can or cannot
Alumni group seeking to maximize time, finances By DIANA CORPUS GARZA The Pan American
Franco Caballero/The Pan American
BRONC TALK— UTPA mascot Bucky the Bronc makes an appearance at the student organization recruitment fairthat was held Tuesday in the Quad. Dozens of groups passed out information and looked for new members for 2004. Bucky did not join!
Maybe there is strength in numbers. In an effort to offset poor attendance at alumni mixers, Dave Winter, one of three vice presidents on the Board of University of Texas-Pan American Alumni Association suggested a dual mixer that included UTPA staff and faculty and members of the McAllen Chamber of Commerce. The mixer was hosted by Winter on Tuesday at his office furniture business, Office USA located at 1007 E. Pecan in McAllen. Winter, a 1974 UTPA graduate, welcomed guests at one end of the building while a handful of members from the UTPA Alumni Association held a sub-committee on fund-raising at the other end. “We’re fundraising money mainly for scholarships,” said Bobby Guerra, president of the UTPA Alumni Association and chairman of the Democratic Party. Guerra, whose term as chairman of the Democratic Party will end in June, is looking forward to his duties as president of the Alumni Association,
and to spending more time in search of a replacement for Dr. Miguel A. Nevarez, retiring UTPA president. “We are very proud of what Mike has done for the University,” said Guerra, referring to Nevarez. “As president, I will be serving on the search committee for his replacement. There’s a lot of hard work ahead of us.” Debra Grant, director of External Affairs at UTPA and member of the sub-committee on fundraising, said they wanted to look into new moneymaking efforts. The sub-committee is currently finalizing last minute details on one such project. UTPA Alumni Association mixers had ceased for a while due to low attendance so combining them with the McAllen Chamber of Commerce, of which UTPA is a member, seemed like a good idea, according to Grant. “It’s been a while since we had one [mixer],” said Grant. “We’re trying to limit them to once or twice a year with bigger crowds.” For more information on the UTPA Alumni Association, call 381-2500 or visit their website http://alumni.panam.edu.
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Designer back home By AMY MEDELLIN The Pan American While reading a newspaper or advertisement on campus students don’t usually think about what makes each publication come together. They are more than just stories written by reporters, or text thought up by a creative team of advertisers. The layout of each piece is truly a work of art, done by an artist. At UTPA that artist is Aaron Cantu, a graphics designer for University Relations. After graduating from McAllen Memorial High School in 1994, Cantu finished his freshman and sophomore
HINOJOSA Franco Caballero/The Pan American
NEW FACE— Veronica Gonzalez kicked off her campaign for District 41 State Representative Wednesday night in McAllen. She will run against two other Democrats in the March 9 primary. Of the 54 people running for office area-wide, only seven are female.
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someone who was seriously in love with her. At 17, she said, there’s no way of knowing what love is without having experienced any sort of life outside high school. “Kids will make mistakes, it’s a part of life,” Leos said. “That’s not [good] to say she’s 17 and this [pregnancy] happened to her: she could of done it at 14. At least she waited and that’s a good thing, too. We want these kids to wait as long as possible, but most high school kids are having sex by their senior year.” The Valley in particular has had a propensity for teen pregnancy. Although nationwide numbers seem to be flattening out due to birth control tactics, this area still ranks among the leaders in percentages of incidence. Of the 1,000 youth surveyed for the national study, 88 percent said waiting to have sex would have been easier if they were able to talk with their parents. Leos believes that idea could go either way. She said she has many teens come to Planned Parenthood who say they have good relationships with their parents, but they still don’t want to tell their parents that they’ve become sexually active because they don’t want to disappoint them. “I guess they felt ‘they want me to wait till I’m married or older‚’ so whatever their reasons are they felt they do it despite having an open communication with their parents,” she said. Leos also said many families have come into her office with their teen, thinking they may be pregnant. Or the girls are indeed expecting and the mothers can’t understand why their daughters didn’t come to them for advice. She said those parents have told their daughters to talk to them, and they would seek information about birth control. They were supportive of their daughters. Still, with open-minded parents, many teens don’t come to their parents first. They have the age-old teen notion of invincibility: they think it won’t happen to them. “It’s no guarantee, but I think for the most part, though, most kids don’t have that open communication with their parents,” Leos said. “And the older they are, 15 and older, these kids are going to want to take care of whatever the
problem they have themselves on their own.” It’s a tough situation, she admits. If parents have expressed their opinions on teen sex and have made it clear what they expect, the teens do pay attention and they do their best to stay true to what they promised. Studies show that parents who talk to their teens more about key issues find that their children are less prone to major mistakes in judgment. This particular study suggests that teens see their parents as role models for healthy, responsible relationships. This in mind, coming to parents with the possibility of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted disease (STD) may make a teen nervous. And as Leos said, many teens don’t want to disappoint their parents. “I’m Catholic: it’s pretty clear in my family that I shouldn’t be having sex until I’m married,” said one UTPA freshman said, describing her short conversation she had with her parent about sex. Leos said it is best to start an open dialogue with a teen on sex sooner than later. The subject then becomes less of a big deal. It will evolve into something both the teen and parents know how to deal with because they’ve discussed what they would do in the event of pregnancy, or in cases of sexual possibility. “A lot of pressure is put on these kids,” she said. “Some do well, some don’t. But it’s helpful to have a good relationship with parents for when that time does come.” Kids learn about sex on the street and certainly from media these days. Recognizing the power of mass dissemination of ideas, a full 92 percent of the teens surveyed said it’s important for society to send a message to teens urging them to wait to have sex until they’re out of high school. Sometimes abstinence programs carry the stigma of association with conservative religious organizations. Such groups battle for control of sex education with groups like Planned Parenthood, who are criticized by critics for failing to believe they can stop the problem, choosing instead to treat the symptom after it has manifested itself.
year at UTPA and then transferred to the University of Texas San Antonio, where he was working toward a degree in architecture. After finding that architecture was not for him, Cantu moved back to the Valley to find a new interest while staying in the design field. “I continued to go to school here at Pan Am and I happened to run into a friend that was taking a graphic design course here, and I didn’t even know that there were graphic design classes at Pan Am,” Cantu said. “I decided to enroll in the classes and I ended up graduating with a degree in graphic design.”
After receiving a bachelor of fine arts degree with a concentration in graphic design in 2002, Cantu worked as the head graphic and web designer for the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle National Shrine for about a year. While searching for a new job, Cantu came across an opening for a graphics designer at his alma mater. “I saw that they [UTPA] had a graphic designer position available, and I got a call from Sandra Quintanilla asking me if I was interested in the job,” said Cantu. “I said I was, and I came and had a
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judge, this was the first time, that I could see that as a woman, I could have inspired her and given the affirmation that she needed to want to become a judge. I think that was a significant accomplishment, even though it wasn’t something that I actually did but what I was.” Though the culture of the Rio Grande Valley holds the Hispanic traditions that are views sometimes as ‘machismo’, Hinojosa said she hadn’t experienced any cultural block when she runs against men. “Maybe machismo exists, but on a personal level rather than a political level,” Hinojosa considered. “I hope it could change everywhere but every race I’ve run in I’ve won by a majority. Two races were against men so even though the perception of machismo is there, it hasn’t translated in the election results.” “Looking back on my personal experiences and what has made a difference in my life, I think that is what I would like to facilitate to others so they won’t have as difficult a time as I did in areas, such as receiving an education,” she said. Providing an outlet for women is one of Hinojosa’s projects and she has become involved with the National Board of Latino Espano Leadership Institute. The national organization trains young women and also women who are in professional jobs become better leaders in their field. Making an allusion between leadership and a pie, Hinojosa said she wants to make sure diversity is spread out among leaders. “There is only one pie and sometimes when women come to the table to get a piece others that have possessed the whole pie have a problem giving up a share,” she said. “It’s seems that they always think they know how to handle the pie better than others. It’s time to show them differently.” Now, with the possibility of Hinojosa becoming the first Hispanic female to represent Texas in the U.S. House, she is focusing on the task at hand. Campaigning, speeches and traveling are the things on her mind.
“I think it’s important that we take great risks to accomplish great things. I’ve loved being a judge but I just felt like you have to seize an opportunity when it arise and if I win, it will not only change my life but hopefully changes the lives of the area an d state.” Hinojosa platform consists of issues such as immigration and the difference between the ways the Canadian border functions compared to the Mexican border. Education and health care is also on top of the list, but Hinojosa emphasizes the health care needs of veterans. “There’s no reason why veterans should have to be treated the way they have been in the past,” Hinojosa said. “They put their lives on the line for this country but they do not have the basic necessities of heath care. They need to be given the dignity that they have earned.” Though some expected Hinojosa to be intimidated by the history and support of her opponent, Lloyd Doggett, but Hinojosa believes that with a new congressional district, new leadership should come as well. “I’ve always been a person who strongly believes that glass ceilings were made to be broken,” Hinojosa said. “I have been told by women and men too that it is time for a Hispanic woman to be in Congress for the state of Texas. They are anxious for another perspective.” Though running against Doggett will be a feat in itself, Hinojosa says that if elected she plans to fight for the area like democratic leadership has always intended. “I think being from this area, and being who I am will make a difference in the district,” Hinojosa concluded. “My life experiences have affected my life on a daily basis. That I have either experienced what the community is going though first hand or have seen them makes me motivated to fight with everything I have to improve this areas. I can always gain the political experience that Mr. Doggett has, but he will never gain the personal experiences I have had being a women in the Rio Grande Valley.”
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
January 22, 2004
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Gallery is a place that will cater to the arts. Members of Salinas commented that the network, and those who the VYBE Network have discovered there are many support it share a common interest. "It [VYBE] is a network of ministries, a network of creative young people, but if they are not influenced in the right way their talents become stifled. This venue is people who share the same vision," said Salinas. Cortina stressed that the network did not want the open to anyone who exercises any form of art as long as venue to be labeled in a "Christian way." She explained they have a positive message. According to David Salinas, VYBE graphic designer, that the network does not want people to do so because the group has found that as soon as it is the venue serves as a place of labeled as a "church function" people encouragement. immediately begin to point fingers. The "It's a place where we want to It [VYBE] is a venue is completely general and open to give people a positive network of anyone seeking to relax and have a good encouragement," said Salinas. time without any negative influences. "It's a safe place, we want it to be ministries, a "It makes sense for people to call it a a positive influence on the youth." network of Christian thing, but if you label it like that The VYBE Network is mainly you open up to a lot of criticism," said comprised of Christian related people who Cortina. "We want to stay away from the organizations. These organizshare the same religious barriers." ations come together in an VYBE's mission is to use relevant events, attempt to find ways to positively vision. concerts, and seminars to target and reach a influence young adults. The group - David Salinas, certain youth culture. Anyone is welcome has found that coming together VYBE Graphic Designer into the network as long as his or her makes it easier as opposed to each primary mission is to help the youth. VYBE organization working alone. Together VYBE has increased its resources and wants parents to feel safe knowing that their teens are at personnel. Due to the fact that it is a non-profit a place where only positive influences exist. In the end organization the network depends on the support of the all the group wants to accomplish is to help the youth. "Hopefully one person can be influenced by this in a community. Cortina stated that it has received support through positive way," said Cortina. For more information on VYBE or any of the group's donations and sponsorship. The Vybe Theater Gallery building will be able to run through that local support upcoming events log on to www.vybe.net.
Infante, art projects are becoming difficult to conduct today because the money available for the arts is scarce, and in third world countries funding is even less. Despite his qualms about funding, he remains optimistic about his craft. “Anyone can live off art, but not everyone will be famous,” Infante said. “It is the poetic experience. Art should be a part of everybody’s life.” Infante proves that individuals can subsist through artistic works with his continued success. Last year, he conducted a touring exhibition in nine airports in the southeast, which was viewed by over 500,000 people. Currently, he is curator for the Fair of Contemporary Art in Madrid 2005 for art and new sports. He has published 26 books including one book of poetry, “The Cereal Box.” “Slowly I’ve gone into writing because I’ve found that the image comes first from the written word,” he said. Poetry is presently his favorite form of art. “I could be just writing poetry and I could be very content,” he explained. Infante describes poetry as a thinking art because the creator has to make art where there is no art, and he considers art a creative metaphor. His passion for poetry, as well as the rest of the arts, in conjunction with his knowledge of how to sell the product is part of what enticed Adame to bring Infante to the Valley. “I’m going to try to bring more workshops like this that educate people in the Valley, and also teach you how to live in the real world, which is completely different from school,” said Adame of Art Addict. For information about future workshops contact Alba Adame at (956) 624-8686.
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REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW
Stiller, Aniston make for a fun time in "Polly" By CHRISTINA HARRIS The Pan American If you’re the type of person who loves gross humor and Ben Stiller comedies, “Along Came Polly” is the movie to see this weekend. Stiller plays Reuben Feffer, a risk assessor for a top insurance firm known for his ability to quote statistics and obsess over health hazards. The movie begins with Reuben’s wedding to Lisa, played by Debra Messing. When Lisa cheats on Reuben on the first day of their honeymoon a hunky French scuba instructor, played by the versatile Hank Azaria, the flippers hit the fan, literally. While Reuben encounters Polly Prince, a carefree waitress played by Jennifer Aniston, he begins to assess his own careful life. Polly introduces him to the other side of his safe world, which includes salsa dancing and spicy food. She tries to liberate Reuben from his risk-free life. Along the way, Reuben tries to impress Polly by eating her spicy foods, which creates many funny, yet equally disgusting scenes including one that involves a loofah sponge being used as a toilet plunger. Yet while we watch Stiller as he is constantly thrust into these horribly embarrassing situations, that would usually cause a normal person to move to another country, we can’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it. The problem with the movie is that if you’ve watched the trailer, you pretty much
saw the entire movie and can save yourself a couple of bucks. The scenes go by quickly, each not lasting but a couple of minutes. While it keeps you from getting bored, the choppiness of the movie leaves you wondering about how the relationship has progressed. One minute there is a horrible bathroom incident that seems to leave Polly a bit unsettled, and the next minute she’s asking him on another date. Jennifer Aniston, America’s own queen of good hair, doesn’t disappoint audiences as Polly. Although it’s hard for Aniston to be anyone else but Rachel Green on “Friends,” she portrays the light-hearted, commitment-phobic Polly realistically. Her comedic timing compliments Stiller’s ability to become these dopey yet lovable characters that he has played in movies like “Meet the Parents.” The only other standout character is Reuben’s best friend, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman. He plays an ex-child actor named Sandy Lyle who doesn’t want to let go of his 1980s stardom, so therefore acts like a diva in order to convince himself that he’s still famous. The complete opposite of Reuben, both support each other nicely. While there aren’t many laugh-out-loud scenes, there are some that involve Hoffman throwing one of his diva-like fits while playing Judas in a rendition of “Jesus Christ Superstar.” Another funny scene involves Stiller dancing the salsa, bearing a strange resemblance to a deranged monkey. Stiller is very believable as the vigilant Reuben, which contributes to the movie’s fast-pace humor. However, he is so bacteria-wary that by the end of the movie, touching anything seemed like a health risk, especially because of the scene where Reuben berates Polly about eating bar nuts. For future reference, since only one out of six people wash their hands after using the
bathroom, beware that eating bar nuts is a huge risk in itself. Screenwriter and director John Hamburg, whose previous films include “Meet the Parents” and “Zoolander,” seems to enjoy torturing his actors by making them perform awkward stunts, but in the end, the films become a success. This was confirmed when “Along Came Polly” bumped the box office leader “The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King” from its coveted first place position. The film drew in $27.6 million in its opening weekend compared to the $10.2 million that “Return of the King” brought in. The running time for “Polly” is 90 minutes, and is rated PG13 for sexual content, language, crude humor, and some drug references. Although “Along Came Polly” may appear to be a chick-flick, strangely enough there aren’t any romantic moments during the film. The movie should appeal to both men and women as a fun comedy. It may not become one of the classic comedies, but it still makes for a great day at the movies.
Starring: Ben Stiller, Jennifer Aniston, Debra Messing, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Hank Azaria Directed by: John Hamburg MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sexual content, language, crude humor and some drug references. Running Time: 1 hr. 30 min. Reviewer s Grade:
BPhoto and caption courtesy of Universal Studios. Ben Stiller and Jennifer Aniston star as Reuben Feffer and Polly Prince in “Along Came Polly.” Here the two stand with the now famous loofah in John Hamburg’s latest creation.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Around Town Market Days Jan. 23-25 Place: South Padre Island Convention Center Event: Purchase or view crafts, jewelry, trade show items, and specialty foods. Price: Admission is $1. Phone: (956) 761-6746 Chordsmen Chorus & Quartets Jan. 24 at 2 p.m. Place: McAllen International Convention Center Auditorium Event: The Chordsmen Chorus & Quartets of San Antonio will perform in a ‘barbershop’ style. Price: Tickets are $12. Phone: (956) 682-2871 Folk-art Discussion Jan. 25 at 2 p.m. Place: Museum of South Texas History Event: Joan Jones, collector and appraiser of Mexican folk retablos, will speak about these types of religious paintings. Price: Admission is: adults, $4; seniors $3; students with I.D., $2.50; children 512 years old, $1.50. Phone: (956) 383-6911 Meet Mark Twain Jan. 27 at 7 p.m. Place: McAllen International Convention Center Event: Impersonator Donald King Cowan takes on the role of wise and witty author Mark Twain. Price: Tickets are $12. Phone: (956) 682-2871 Square Dancing Jan. 31 all day Place: McAllen International Convention Center Event:: Put on your dancing shoes and grab your partner for the Texas Square Dance Jamboree. Price: Tickets are $12. Phone: (956) 682-2871
■ Real Opinions . . . . . 8 ■ Landmarks . . . . . . 8-9 ■ Movie Review . . . . .10
Group plans new VYBE for youth
Non-profit Valley organization seeks venue to create positive environment for teens to hang out.
By DULCE GONZALEZ The Pan American Parents are one step closer to getting what they have always wanted. What could that be? A safe place for their teens to han gout without the negative social pressures of the world. The VYBE Network (Valley Youth Being Elevated) is a non-profit group who seeks to provide teens with a positive environment in which they can relax and have fun. VYBE has been around for less than three years. Even though it is a fairly new organization it has quickly found a need for its own space in which it can host activities. The VYBE Network is using locations such as La Villa Real Special Events Center and The Bean Bag Depot, located in the back of Viva Life Bookstore, for its concerts and other special events. Currently, VYBE is trying to close a deal with the owners of a building located on North 10th Street in McAllen. If everything goes as planned the building will be transformed into the Vybe Theatre Gallery. The network’s intention for the building is to let it function as a secure place where young adults can go to relax instead of being out in the streets where the group believes youth runs the risk of getting in trouble. According to Annabell Cortina, director of VYBE the main focus group of this organization is the 16 to 25-year-olds. Cortina stated that many times this is the age group where teens are trying to find their identity and feel like they need to find
a place to fit in. She commented that they often find themselves in a world that is lost, so they feel like they are caught in the middle. "Right now we see that kids are out in the street or they're getting involved in negative social pressures and what we try to do is provide something different for them," said Cortina. "We try to offer and expose them to more positive alternatives." The network hopes that the gallery will help serve as a positive alternative for the youth. It will be open daily and will be free of charge during the off-peak hours. During the weekends when it hosts bands and live acts, a minimal cover charge will be applied. The Vybe Theatre Gallery will serve as a coffeehouse with a unique flavor. Not only will it have a coffee and smoothie bar running at all times, but also a video arcade, pool tables, outdoor volleyball and basketball courts. In the long run VYBE would like to add skateboard ramps. According to VYBE representatives, this new venue will serve as an educational facility. It will host seminars as well as workshops on screenwriting, acting, movie production and sound engineering, among others. Cortina stated that members of VYBE are currently speaking to professors from the University of Texas-Pan American and South Texas Community College in an attempt to recruit the school to participate in teaching various workshops. Cortina stressed that the Vybe Theatre
Courtesy of VYBE Network
See VYBE page 10
Singer of the Christian pop-rock band “The Benjamin Gate” belts out lyrics from one of the band’s energetic songs.
Art Addict helps to educate community By OMAIRA GALARZA The Pan American As graduation approaches college students wonder, what’s next and will I survive the “real world?” Alba Adame graduated from the university last year, and wants to help future graduates of the arts through the transition. She is currently the owner of Art Addict Art Services and Gallery, a rustic art gallery located inside the back entrance of Casa Antigua. In an attempt to provide something for every viewer’s taste, the gallery’s displays are not limited to one style or theme. The public’s first chance to sample this broad assortment of artwork was on Sept. 17, and on average a new show is held every two months since the inauguration. Works by artists from Russia, Germany, Mexico, and Brazil will be on display at the next show on Feb. 11. Prior to opening the gallery, Adame received an undergraduate degree in art with a specialization in graphic design, but she believes that her success in the business world is based on knowledge she gathered outside of her field. Her father is a business owner, so she was exposed to those types of dealings. “I’m only hanging in there because I was a marketing major before I switched,” Adame said. Last weekend Adame was host to a three-day marketing workshop for an audience of 10 Valley
artists. Juan Jose Diaz Infante, is a photographer, curator, and artist from Mexico, presented the workshop, “Marketing and the Arts, Production of Products.” Adame chose to invite Infante to the Valley after she attended his workshop in Saltillo, Mexico because it is vital for aspiring artists to know how to market their work. “It was essential to me as an artist,” said Adame. “I hope that people will take advantage of this opportunity and learn from what I’ve learned,
Franco Caballero/The Pan American (Left): Alba Adame, owner of Art Addict Art Services and Gallery (Right): Artist and curator Juan Jose Diaz Infante.
and from Infante.” Originally this workshop was developed by Infante as an integration course at the Centro Nacional de las Artes (CNA) in Mexico City. He designed the course to serve as an introduction to marketing and arts for every area of the arts. He has been teaching it for the past four years because of the consumer-driven nature of today’s society. “It’s a need because it’s a buyer’s market,” said Infante. “This is one of those courses that should be in everyone’s mind to take.” His work is on display in more than 12 countries across the globe including Brazil, Canada, Russia, Mongolia, Germany, and the United States, and now he is beginning to take his course on the road in the form of various workshops. “I’ve done it many different ways,” Infante explained. “It’s never the same.” At a workshop he conducted for the visual arts in Jalapa, Mexico, a lecture on the understanding of art was followed by an auction that sold 90 percent of the students’ works. “I’m not interested in Paris or New York,” Infante said. “The basic places I like to go and generate a public are where there isn’t a lot of art.” Among other tasks, he is the project leader to produce a contemporary art encyclopedia for art in Mexico from 1980 to 2005. According to
See ART page 10
The FCC hopes to change the regular use of “bad words” on radio and TV by increasing fines on stations that continue to use “profane” language. So...
Should F**K be fined? “No, they shouldn’t increase the fines. It’s not about freedom of expression, but I think anyone reserves the right to cuss at will, on or off the screen.” Jeanette Ferry-Gomez Freshman English
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
January 22, 2004
E DINBURG Tejano’s own Nashville ★ T
he sounds of his guitar echo Tejano director for the South Texas Museum of History. That is why in 1999 the Edinburg 2020 committee music, not loudly but eternally while a rusted sombrero casts a decided to create the Tejano Walk of Fame, an shade on the face that lives forever Edinburg tourist spot that currently honors 22 people who have contributed to Tejano music. in Edinburg, on the Tejano Walk of Fame. Every year, from 1999 to 2002 five members were The face baring the trademark mustache belongs to Tejano music legend and pioneer, Jose Roberto inducted onto the walk of fame in October, which is Pulido. Under his name follows what many family also National Hispanic Heritage Month. "I was a part of the committee a long time ago," and Valley residents know him as, "El Primo," a McKone said. nickname that translates into "The Cousin." He covered the induction ceremony in an article He is immortalized with a large statue honoring he wrote for The Monitor years ago, him in his own when the first members were honored. hometown, where he "It was a big crowd of people and stands above the there were a lot of musicians who Tejano Walk of Fame. were there, including the Pulidos," he The statue stands as the said. centerpiece of a The Pulido family of Edinburg has walkway that includes a long line of talented musicians who several tiles displaying have made a mark for Tejano music and honoring the all over Texas. Jose Roberto Pulido names of the people has become a music legend for South who have made Tejano Texas and is considered to be a a music genre that is so Jim McKone, pioneer in Tejano music by many of close to home. A music Public relations director for South Texas Museum of his fans. His son and daughter, Alma genre that finds its and Bobby Pulido, have made marks place well rooted in the of their own. Rio Grande Valley. Like his father Bobby Pulido made a name for "Tejano music was, and still is, very active here in the Valley," said Jim McKone, public relations himself in the music business with several albums.
“If they do that, I won’t be able to afford cable. Damn it!” Lara Goins Sophomore Communication
“
“I think it would be good because they shouldn’t even say those things in the first place. Not only do older people, like us, listen to these people, but children do. If they are exposed to this they might think that it’s all right.” Mayra Gonzalez Freshman Accounting “I think it would help curb the use of profanity, unless profanity helps boost the ratings of a station.” Edward Rivas Junior Education
real opinions
Page 8
Tejano music was, and still is, very active here in the Valley
“
January 22, 2004
He was inducted into the Tejano Music Hall of Fame and given a star with his name on it in 1999, where the statue of his father stands. UTPA art professor and sculptor, Richard Hyslin constructed the statue in 1999. Currently, the group in charge of cultural activities for the city no longer exists, according to Mayra Garza, secretary for the City of Edinburg. "There was a 2020 committee that used to handle things like the Tejano Walk of Fame in Edinburg," Garza said. Since the committee no longer is active, there has been nobody to keep up with the Tejano tourist spot. "Nobody else has gotten involved since that committee had done all the work," she said. The last musicians on the walk of fame were inducted in 2002. Edinburg’s Tejano Walk of Fame is located on 415 W. McIntyre St. The future of the small tourist landmark outside the Edinburg City Auditorium is uncertain. It may or may not continue to induct new members to its honored sidewalk. "There is no telling if there is going to be a future for it," Garza said. She explained that there is currently a new committee for cultural arts in Edinburg in development. According to Garza, a meeting was held on
★
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Story by Aaron Lozano Monday night to nominate a new committee that would be in charge of all cultural, art and music activities for the city. "We’re in the process of notifying the new members and getting things together," she said, "they will be in charge of things like art, music and anything that has to do with promoting culture in our city. Its purpose is mainly to promote art." It is not certain whether the committee will take over the duties of the original Edinburg 2020 committee, which included the Tejano Walk of Fame. The committee was a part of the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce offices and later the City of Edinburg Offices. "I’m sure they will look into it, but it will be a totally new advisory board," Garza said. While cultural committees and advisory boards in Edinburg come and go, one thing is certain for the honored musicians on the Tejano Walk of Fame. Their talent, voice, music, and lives will forever be heard in the distant winds just outside of the Edinburg City Auditorium. And while some of them still live and reside in Valley cities while others have passed, Tejano and music fans alike remember them forever. A sidewalk with their names will always glisten under the hot Valley sun and "El Primo" holding a guitar will always honor their contributions to the South Texas beat known as Tejano music.
8
6
HALL OF FAME ★★★★★★★★★
1. “Star from Tejano Walk of Fame,” photo by Aaron Lozano. 2. “Freddy Fender,” courtesy of www.google.com. 3. “Bobby Pulido,” courtesy of www.bobbypulidoonline.com. 4. “Laura Canales,” courtesy of www.ondanet.com. 5. “Selena Quintanilla,” courtesy of www.google.com.
2
3
4
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Tejano Music
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Page 9
6. “Los Dos Gilbertos,” photo by Rene Cerda. 7. “Flaco Jimenez,” courtesy of www.google.com. 8. “Statue of Jose Roberto Pulido,” photo by Aaron Lozano.
Agustin V. Ramirez 2002 Freddy Fender 2002 Eulalio Piporro Gonzalez 2002 Ruben Y Alfonso Ramos 2002 Narciso Martinez 2002 Selena Quintanilla 2001 Esteban Jordan 2001 Ildefonso "Sonny" Ozuna 2001 Ricardo B. Guerra 2001 El Indio Isidro Lopez 2001 Lil Joe Hernandez 2000 Pepe Maldonado 2000 Lydia Mendoza 2000 Flaco Jimenez 2000 Tony de la Rosa 2000 Willie Lopez 2000 Laura Canales 1999 Los Dos Gilbertos 1999 Johnny Canales 1999 Carlos Guzman 1999 Roberto Pulido 1999 Jose Roberto Pulido 1999
The FCC hopes to change the regular use of “bad words” on radio and TV by increasing fines on stations that continue to use “profane” language. So...
Should F**K be fined? “No, they shouldn’t increase the fines. It’s not about freedom of expression, but I think anyone reserves the right to cuss at will, on or off the screen.” Jeanette Ferry-Gomez Freshman English
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
January 22, 2004
E DINBURG Tejano’s own Nashville ★ T
he sounds of his guitar echo Tejano director for the South Texas Museum of History. That is why in 1999 the Edinburg 2020 committee music, not loudly but eternally while a rusted sombrero casts a decided to create the Tejano Walk of Fame, an shade on the face that lives forever Edinburg tourist spot that currently honors 22 people who have contributed to Tejano music. in Edinburg, on the Tejano Walk of Fame. Every year, from 1999 to 2002 five members were The face baring the trademark mustache belongs to Tejano music legend and pioneer, Jose Roberto inducted onto the walk of fame in October, which is Pulido. Under his name follows what many family also National Hispanic Heritage Month. "I was a part of the committee a long time ago," and Valley residents know him as, "El Primo," a McKone said. nickname that translates into "The Cousin." He covered the induction ceremony in an article He is immortalized with a large statue honoring he wrote for The Monitor years ago, him in his own when the first members were honored. hometown, where he "It was a big crowd of people and stands above the there were a lot of musicians who Tejano Walk of Fame. were there, including the Pulidos," he The statue stands as the said. centerpiece of a The Pulido family of Edinburg has walkway that includes a long line of talented musicians who several tiles displaying have made a mark for Tejano music and honoring the all over Texas. Jose Roberto Pulido names of the people has become a music legend for South who have made Tejano Texas and is considered to be a a music genre that is so Jim McKone, pioneer in Tejano music by many of close to home. A music Public relations director for South Texas Museum of his fans. His son and daughter, Alma genre that finds its and Bobby Pulido, have made marks place well rooted in the of their own. Rio Grande Valley. Like his father Bobby Pulido made a name for "Tejano music was, and still is, very active here in the Valley," said Jim McKone, public relations himself in the music business with several albums.
“If they do that, I won’t be able to afford cable. Damn it!” Lara Goins Sophomore Communication
“
“I think it would be good because they shouldn’t even say those things in the first place. Not only do older people, like us, listen to these people, but children do. If they are exposed to this they might think that it’s all right.” Mayra Gonzalez Freshman Accounting “I think it would help curb the use of profanity, unless profanity helps boost the ratings of a station.” Edward Rivas Junior Education
real opinions
Page 8
Tejano music was, and still is, very active here in the Valley
“
January 22, 2004
He was inducted into the Tejano Music Hall of Fame and given a star with his name on it in 1999, where the statue of his father stands. UTPA art professor and sculptor, Richard Hyslin constructed the statue in 1999. Currently, the group in charge of cultural activities for the city no longer exists, according to Mayra Garza, secretary for the City of Edinburg. "There was a 2020 committee that used to handle things like the Tejano Walk of Fame in Edinburg," Garza said. Since the committee no longer is active, there has been nobody to keep up with the Tejano tourist spot. "Nobody else has gotten involved since that committee had done all the work," she said. The last musicians on the walk of fame were inducted in 2002. Edinburg’s Tejano Walk of Fame is located on 415 W. McIntyre St. The future of the small tourist landmark outside the Edinburg City Auditorium is uncertain. It may or may not continue to induct new members to its honored sidewalk. "There is no telling if there is going to be a future for it," Garza said. She explained that there is currently a new committee for cultural arts in Edinburg in development. According to Garza, a meeting was held on
★
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Story by Aaron Lozano Monday night to nominate a new committee that would be in charge of all cultural, art and music activities for the city. "We’re in the process of notifying the new members and getting things together," she said, "they will be in charge of things like art, music and anything that has to do with promoting culture in our city. Its purpose is mainly to promote art." It is not certain whether the committee will take over the duties of the original Edinburg 2020 committee, which included the Tejano Walk of Fame. The committee was a part of the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce offices and later the City of Edinburg Offices. "I’m sure they will look into it, but it will be a totally new advisory board," Garza said. While cultural committees and advisory boards in Edinburg come and go, one thing is certain for the honored musicians on the Tejano Walk of Fame. Their talent, voice, music, and lives will forever be heard in the distant winds just outside of the Edinburg City Auditorium. And while some of them still live and reside in Valley cities while others have passed, Tejano and music fans alike remember them forever. A sidewalk with their names will always glisten under the hot Valley sun and "El Primo" holding a guitar will always honor their contributions to the South Texas beat known as Tejano music.
8
6
HALL OF FAME ★★★★★★★★★
1. “Star from Tejano Walk of Fame,” photo by Aaron Lozano. 2. “Freddy Fender,” courtesy of www.google.com. 3. “Bobby Pulido,” courtesy of www.bobbypulidoonline.com. 4. “Laura Canales,” courtesy of www.ondanet.com. 5. “Selena Quintanilla,” courtesy of www.google.com.
2
3
4
7
Tejano Music
5
1
Page 9
6. “Los Dos Gilbertos,” photo by Rene Cerda. 7. “Flaco Jimenez,” courtesy of www.google.com. 8. “Statue of Jose Roberto Pulido,” photo by Aaron Lozano.
Agustin V. Ramirez 2002 Freddy Fender 2002 Eulalio Piporro Gonzalez 2002 Ruben Y Alfonso Ramos 2002 Narciso Martinez 2002 Selena Quintanilla 2001 Esteban Jordan 2001 Ildefonso "Sonny" Ozuna 2001 Ricardo B. Guerra 2001 El Indio Isidro Lopez 2001 Lil Joe Hernandez 2000 Pepe Maldonado 2000 Lydia Mendoza 2000 Flaco Jimenez 2000 Tony de la Rosa 2000 Willie Lopez 2000 Laura Canales 1999 Los Dos Gilbertos 1999 Johnny Canales 1999 Carlos Guzman 1999 Roberto Pulido 1999 Jose Roberto Pulido 1999
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
January 22, 2004
Page 10
VYBE continued from page 7
ART
Gallery is a place that will cater to the arts. Members of Salinas commented that the network, and those who the VYBE Network have discovered there are many support it share a common interest. "It [VYBE] is a network of ministries, a network of creative young people, but if they are not influenced in the right way their talents become stifled. This venue is people who share the same vision," said Salinas. Cortina stressed that the network did not want the open to anyone who exercises any form of art as long as venue to be labeled in a "Christian way." She explained they have a positive message. According to David Salinas, VYBE graphic designer, that the network does not want people to do so because the group has found that as soon as it is the venue serves as a place of labeled as a "church function" people encouragement. immediately begin to point fingers. The "It's a place where we want to It [VYBE] is a venue is completely general and open to give people a positive network of anyone seeking to relax and have a good encouragement," said Salinas. time without any negative influences. "It's a safe place, we want it to be ministries, a "It makes sense for people to call it a a positive influence on the youth." network of Christian thing, but if you label it like that The VYBE Network is mainly you open up to a lot of criticism," said comprised of Christian related people who Cortina. "We want to stay away from the organizations. These organizshare the same religious barriers." ations come together in an VYBE's mission is to use relevant events, attempt to find ways to positively vision. concerts, and seminars to target and reach a influence young adults. The group - David Salinas, certain youth culture. Anyone is welcome has found that coming together VYBE Graphic Designer into the network as long as his or her makes it easier as opposed to each primary mission is to help the youth. VYBE organization working alone. Together VYBE has increased its resources and wants parents to feel safe knowing that their teens are at personnel. Due to the fact that it is a non-profit a place where only positive influences exist. In the end organization the network depends on the support of the all the group wants to accomplish is to help the youth. "Hopefully one person can be influenced by this in a community. Cortina stated that it has received support through positive way," said Cortina. For more information on VYBE or any of the group's donations and sponsorship. The Vybe Theater Gallery building will be able to run through that local support upcoming events log on to www.vybe.net.
Infante, art projects are becoming difficult to conduct today because the money available for the arts is scarce, and in third world countries funding is even less. Despite his qualms about funding, he remains optimistic about his craft. “Anyone can live off art, but not everyone will be famous,” Infante said. “It is the poetic experience. Art should be a part of everybody’s life.” Infante proves that individuals can subsist through artistic works with his continued success. Last year, he conducted a touring exhibition in nine airports in the southeast, which was viewed by over 500,000 people. Currently, he is curator for the Fair of Contemporary Art in Madrid 2005 for art and new sports. He has published 26 books including one book of poetry, “The Cereal Box.” “Slowly I’ve gone into writing because I’ve found that the image comes first from the written word,” he said. Poetry is presently his favorite form of art. “I could be just writing poetry and I could be very content,” he explained. Infante describes poetry as a thinking art because the creator has to make art where there is no art, and he considers art a creative metaphor. His passion for poetry, as well as the rest of the arts, in conjunction with his knowledge of how to sell the product is part of what enticed Adame to bring Infante to the Valley. “I’m going to try to bring more workshops like this that educate people in the Valley, and also teach you how to live in the real world, which is completely different from school,” said Adame of Art Addict. For information about future workshops contact Alba Adame at (956) 624-8686.
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REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW
Stiller, Aniston make for a fun time in "Polly" By CHRISTINA HARRIS The Pan American If you’re the type of person who loves gross humor and Ben Stiller comedies, “Along Came Polly” is the movie to see this weekend. Stiller plays Reuben Feffer, a risk assessor for a top insurance firm known for his ability to quote statistics and obsess over health hazards. The movie begins with Reuben’s wedding to Lisa, played by Debra Messing. When Lisa cheats on Reuben on the first day of their honeymoon a hunky French scuba instructor, played by the versatile Hank Azaria, the flippers hit the fan, literally. While Reuben encounters Polly Prince, a carefree waitress played by Jennifer Aniston, he begins to assess his own careful life. Polly introduces him to the other side of his safe world, which includes salsa dancing and spicy food. She tries to liberate Reuben from his risk-free life. Along the way, Reuben tries to impress Polly by eating her spicy foods, which creates many funny, yet equally disgusting scenes including one that involves a loofah sponge being used as a toilet plunger. Yet while we watch Stiller as he is constantly thrust into these horribly embarrassing situations, that would usually cause a normal person to move to another country, we can’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it. The problem with the movie is that if you’ve watched the trailer, you pretty much
saw the entire movie and can save yourself a couple of bucks. The scenes go by quickly, each not lasting but a couple of minutes. While it keeps you from getting bored, the choppiness of the movie leaves you wondering about how the relationship has progressed. One minute there is a horrible bathroom incident that seems to leave Polly a bit unsettled, and the next minute she’s asking him on another date. Jennifer Aniston, America’s own queen of good hair, doesn’t disappoint audiences as Polly. Although it’s hard for Aniston to be anyone else but Rachel Green on “Friends,” she portrays the light-hearted, commitment-phobic Polly realistically. Her comedic timing compliments Stiller’s ability to become these dopey yet lovable characters that he has played in movies like “Meet the Parents.” The only other standout character is Reuben’s best friend, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman. He plays an ex-child actor named Sandy Lyle who doesn’t want to let go of his 1980s stardom, so therefore acts like a diva in order to convince himself that he’s still famous. The complete opposite of Reuben, both support each other nicely. While there aren’t many laugh-out-loud scenes, there are some that involve Hoffman throwing one of his diva-like fits while playing Judas in a rendition of “Jesus Christ Superstar.” Another funny scene involves Stiller dancing the salsa, bearing a strange resemblance to a deranged monkey. Stiller is very believable as the vigilant Reuben, which contributes to the movie’s fast-pace humor. However, he is so bacteria-wary that by the end of the movie, touching anything seemed like a health risk, especially because of the scene where Reuben berates Polly about eating bar nuts. For future reference, since only one out of six people wash their hands after using the
bathroom, beware that eating bar nuts is a huge risk in itself. Screenwriter and director John Hamburg, whose previous films include “Meet the Parents” and “Zoolander,” seems to enjoy torturing his actors by making them perform awkward stunts, but in the end, the films become a success. This was confirmed when “Along Came Polly” bumped the box office leader “The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King” from its coveted first place position. The film drew in $27.6 million in its opening weekend compared to the $10.2 million that “Return of the King” brought in. The running time for “Polly” is 90 minutes, and is rated PG13 for sexual content, language, crude humor, and some drug references. Although “Along Came Polly” may appear to be a chick-flick, strangely enough there aren’t any romantic moments during the film. The movie should appeal to both men and women as a fun comedy. It may not become one of the classic comedies, but it still makes for a great day at the movies.
Starring: Ben Stiller, Jennifer Aniston, Debra Messing, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Hank Azaria Directed by: John Hamburg MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sexual content, language, crude humor and some drug references. Running Time: 1 hr. 30 min. Reviewer s Grade:
BPhoto and caption courtesy of Universal Studios. Ben Stiller and Jennifer Aniston star as Reuben Feffer and Polly Prince in “Along Came Polly.” Here the two stand with the now famous loofah in John Hamburg’s latest creation.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Around Town Market Days Jan. 23-25 Place: South Padre Island Convention Center Event: Purchase or view crafts, jewelry, trade show items, and specialty foods. Price: Admission is $1. Phone: (956) 761-6746 Chordsmen Chorus & Quartets Jan. 24 at 2 p.m. Place: McAllen International Convention Center Auditorium Event: The Chordsmen Chorus & Quartets of San Antonio will perform in a ‘barbershop’ style. Price: Tickets are $12. Phone: (956) 682-2871 Folk-art Discussion Jan. 25 at 2 p.m. Place: Museum of South Texas History Event: Joan Jones, collector and appraiser of Mexican folk retablos, will speak about these types of religious paintings. Price: Admission is: adults, $4; seniors $3; students with I.D., $2.50; children 512 years old, $1.50. Phone: (956) 383-6911 Meet Mark Twain Jan. 27 at 7 p.m. Place: McAllen International Convention Center Event: Impersonator Donald King Cowan takes on the role of wise and witty author Mark Twain. Price: Tickets are $12. Phone: (956) 682-2871 Square Dancing Jan. 31 all day Place: McAllen International Convention Center Event:: Put on your dancing shoes and grab your partner for the Texas Square Dance Jamboree. Price: Tickets are $12. Phone: (956) 682-2871
■ Real Opinions . . . . . 8 ■ Landmarks . . . . . . 8-9 ■ Movie Review . . . . .10
Group plans new VYBE for youth
Non-profit Valley organization seeks venue to create positive environment for teens to hang out.
By DULCE GONZALEZ The Pan American Parents are one step closer to getting what they have always wanted. What could that be? A safe place for their teens to han gout without the negative social pressures of the world. The VYBE Network (Valley Youth Being Elevated) is a non-profit group who seeks to provide teens with a positive environment in which they can relax and have fun. VYBE has been around for less than three years. Even though it is a fairly new organization it has quickly found a need for its own space in which it can host activities. The VYBE Network is using locations such as La Villa Real Special Events Center and The Bean Bag Depot, located in the back of Viva Life Bookstore, for its concerts and other special events. Currently, VYBE is trying to close a deal with the owners of a building located on North 10th Street in McAllen. If everything goes as planned the building will be transformed into the Vybe Theatre Gallery. The network’s intention for the building is to let it function as a secure place where young adults can go to relax instead of being out in the streets where the group believes youth runs the risk of getting in trouble. According to Annabell Cortina, director of VYBE the main focus group of this organization is the 16 to 25-year-olds. Cortina stated that many times this is the age group where teens are trying to find their identity and feel like they need to find
a place to fit in. She commented that they often find themselves in a world that is lost, so they feel like they are caught in the middle. "Right now we see that kids are out in the street or they're getting involved in negative social pressures and what we try to do is provide something different for them," said Cortina. "We try to offer and expose them to more positive alternatives." The network hopes that the gallery will help serve as a positive alternative for the youth. It will be open daily and will be free of charge during the off-peak hours. During the weekends when it hosts bands and live acts, a minimal cover charge will be applied. The Vybe Theatre Gallery will serve as a coffeehouse with a unique flavor. Not only will it have a coffee and smoothie bar running at all times, but also a video arcade, pool tables, outdoor volleyball and basketball courts. In the long run VYBE would like to add skateboard ramps. According to VYBE representatives, this new venue will serve as an educational facility. It will host seminars as well as workshops on screenwriting, acting, movie production and sound engineering, among others. Cortina stated that members of VYBE are currently speaking to professors from the University of Texas-Pan American and South Texas Community College in an attempt to recruit the school to participate in teaching various workshops. Cortina stressed that the Vybe Theatre
Courtesy of VYBE Network
See VYBE page 10
Singer of the Christian pop-rock band “The Benjamin Gate” belts out lyrics from one of the band’s energetic songs.
Art Addict helps to educate community By OMAIRA GALARZA The Pan American As graduation approaches college students wonder, what’s next and will I survive the “real world?” Alba Adame graduated from the university last year, and wants to help future graduates of the arts through the transition. She is currently the owner of Art Addict Art Services and Gallery, a rustic art gallery located inside the back entrance of Casa Antigua. In an attempt to provide something for every viewer’s taste, the gallery’s displays are not limited to one style or theme. The public’s first chance to sample this broad assortment of artwork was on Sept. 17, and on average a new show is held every two months since the inauguration. Works by artists from Russia, Germany, Mexico, and Brazil will be on display at the next show on Feb. 11. Prior to opening the gallery, Adame received an undergraduate degree in art with a specialization in graphic design, but she believes that her success in the business world is based on knowledge she gathered outside of her field. Her father is a business owner, so she was exposed to those types of dealings. “I’m only hanging in there because I was a marketing major before I switched,” Adame said. Last weekend Adame was host to a three-day marketing workshop for an audience of 10 Valley
artists. Juan Jose Diaz Infante, is a photographer, curator, and artist from Mexico, presented the workshop, “Marketing and the Arts, Production of Products.” Adame chose to invite Infante to the Valley after she attended his workshop in Saltillo, Mexico because it is vital for aspiring artists to know how to market their work. “It was essential to me as an artist,” said Adame. “I hope that people will take advantage of this opportunity and learn from what I’ve learned,
Franco Caballero/The Pan American (Left): Alba Adame, owner of Art Addict Art Services and Gallery (Right): Artist and curator Juan Jose Diaz Infante.
and from Infante.” Originally this workshop was developed by Infante as an integration course at the Centro Nacional de las Artes (CNA) in Mexico City. He designed the course to serve as an introduction to marketing and arts for every area of the arts. He has been teaching it for the past four years because of the consumer-driven nature of today’s society. “It’s a need because it’s a buyer’s market,” said Infante. “This is one of those courses that should be in everyone’s mind to take.” His work is on display in more than 12 countries across the globe including Brazil, Canada, Russia, Mongolia, Germany, and the United States, and now he is beginning to take his course on the road in the form of various workshops. “I’ve done it many different ways,” Infante explained. “It’s never the same.” At a workshop he conducted for the visual arts in Jalapa, Mexico, a lecture on the understanding of art was followed by an auction that sold 90 percent of the students’ works. “I’m not interested in Paris or New York,” Infante said. “The basic places I like to go and generate a public are where there isn’t a lot of art.” Among other tasks, he is the project leader to produce a contemporary art encyclopedia for art in Mexico from 1980 to 2005. According to
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January 22, 2004
THE PAN AMERICAN
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THE PAN AMERICAN
January 22, 2004
Injury prevention an increasing concern By DIANA CORPUS GARZA The Pan American
For Jose Ramos Jr., 25, an athletic trainer at McAllen High School, sportsrelated injuries are a serious subject. Ramos, a 1999 University of Texas-Pan American graduate in kinesiology, believes prevention is the key. With involvement in high school athletics at an all time high, prevention is a must. “Injury prevention is a holistic approach,” Ramos said. “Look at the whole picture, meaning your weight program, conditioning program, nutrition, and mental health.” A good athlete begins preparing earlier than high school. Preparation begins with a good program in elementary school with fun exercises that incorporates stretching. Kids don’t realize they’re learning, to them they’re just having fun doing something, but that’s how kids learn. They aren’t aware of the communication occurring in the brain. “You do certain exercises that develop neuro-pathway connections between the brains and the muscles that allow to coordinate certain things,” said Dr. Juan Gonzalez, strength trainer at UTPA. “They develop gross motor skills.” This coordination enables them to enjoy the exercise more. Stretching is important even at that age, but conditioning the strength part is difficult with little kids because they’re still growing. “Their growth plates aren’t closed, and their ligaments are just developing,” said Ramos. “Tendons are just getting going. There is danger of the child’s bones growing faster than their muscles then diseases of the knees can or might develop that can affect them later in life.”
That’s why elementary physical education is important. Coaches teach motor and cognitive skills, which kids will use later in life. Elementary, middle school, and high school coaches help to develop the motor skills used to play and participate in athletics. Coaches teach stretching exercises, but don’t forget to warm up. “With any exercise program, warming up before any activity is probably the best thing you can do for your body,” Ramos said. “ Stretching cold muscles is not the best thing.” “Look at Michael Johnson, world record holder in the 400 and 200 meters,” said Ramos. “He warms up with a two-mile jog everyday before he even stretches.” Most athletes incorporate a stretching routine. Some use bikes, treadmills, stair climbers, and anything that gets their body moving and their blood circulating. Coaches also incorporate stretching routines they learned as little kids, in high school, or as college athletes. An athlete needs to know their body. An athletic trainer is always looking and observing the athlete. “If an athlete who has a chronic back pain stands still too long he gets stiff,” said Ramos. “We modify by keeping him warm. We’ll take the bike out to the football stadium and have him ride the bike. We just have him stay as warm as possible.” But not all training is equal when it comes to males and females. Ramos believes some integral training in some sports is possible, but the female body should be trained differently. “Men can endure more,” said Ramos. “I’m not saying that women can’t endure pain but it’s just that the stress that’s put on a woman is a lot different because of the female triad.”
“The female triad is the amenorrhea take and rest plays a major part in an (absence of menstrual cycle), eating athlete’s health. disorder, and osteoporosis,” Gonzalez “Look at the whole picture,” Ramos said. said. “Ask yourself: What am I eating? The female triad affects the female Are you getting enough rest? Are these body during their menstrual cycle. The external factors causing a downfall in loss of blood can loosen ligaments, and your performance? Is there a tendons causing stress fractures. An psychological aspect causing stress? eating disorder, such as anorexia, Mental attitude is also important.” bulimia, or in some cases, just not eating The athlete must know himself or properly can cause loss of bone density, herself. All these factors are important and also affects the estrogen levels. to injury prevention for the successful Osteoporosis is the loss of calcium need athlete. With New Year’s resolutions for strong bones. aimed at loosing weight and becoming Female athletes need to learn when to fit, an injury can put a stop to all your recognize when there is an eating plans. disorder in their body or other changes in their menstrual cycle. Reoccurring stress fractures usually happen for a reason. The female athlete is aware of the basics, but is not aware of the whole picture. For both types of athletes, rest is often overlooked. Some athletes do multiple sports; this is where the athletic trainer comes in. Reyes says to tell your trainer if you need help. The athlete needs to Diana Garza/The Pan American be able to say OUCH!— J ose Ramos Jr., athletic trainer at McAllen High School finishwhat their body es wrapping Crystal Garza’s foot after an injury. can or cannot
Alumni group seeking to maximize time, finances By DIANA CORPUS GARZA The Pan American
Franco Caballero/The Pan American
BRONC TALK— UTPA mascot Bucky the Bronc makes an appearance at the student organization recruitment fairthat was held Tuesday in the Quad. Dozens of groups passed out information and looked for new members for 2004. Bucky did not join!
Maybe there is strength in numbers. In an effort to offset poor attendance at alumni mixers, Dave Winter, one of three vice presidents on the Board of University of Texas-Pan American Alumni Association suggested a dual mixer that included UTPA staff and faculty and members of the McAllen Chamber of Commerce. The mixer was hosted by Winter on Tuesday at his office furniture business, Office USA located at 1007 E. Pecan in McAllen. Winter, a 1974 UTPA graduate, welcomed guests at one end of the building while a handful of members from the UTPA Alumni Association held a sub-committee on fund-raising at the other end. “We’re fundraising money mainly for scholarships,” said Bobby Guerra, president of the UTPA Alumni Association and chairman of the Democratic Party. Guerra, whose term as chairman of the Democratic Party will end in June, is looking forward to his duties as president of the Alumni Association,
and to spending more time in search of a replacement for Dr. Miguel A. Nevarez, retiring UTPA president. “We are very proud of what Mike has done for the University,” said Guerra, referring to Nevarez. “As president, I will be serving on the search committee for his replacement. There’s a lot of hard work ahead of us.” Debra Grant, director of External Affairs at UTPA and member of the sub-committee on fundraising, said they wanted to look into new moneymaking efforts. The sub-committee is currently finalizing last minute details on one such project. UTPA Alumni Association mixers had ceased for a while due to low attendance so combining them with the McAllen Chamber of Commerce, of which UTPA is a member, seemed like a good idea, according to Grant. “It’s been a while since we had one [mixer],” said Grant. “We’re trying to limit them to once or twice a year with bigger crowds.” For more information on the UTPA Alumni Association, call 381-2500 or visit their website http://alumni.panam.edu.
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Designer back home By AMY MEDELLIN The Pan American While reading a newspaper or advertisement on campus students don’t usually think about what makes each publication come together. They are more than just stories written by reporters, or text thought up by a creative team of advertisers. The layout of each piece is truly a work of art, done by an artist. At UTPA that artist is Aaron Cantu, a graphics designer for University Relations. After graduating from McAllen Memorial High School in 1994, Cantu finished his freshman and sophomore
HINOJOSA Franco Caballero/The Pan American
NEW FACE— Veronica Gonzalez kicked off her campaign for District 41 State Representative Wednesday night in McAllen. She will run against two other Democrats in the March 9 primary. Of the 54 people running for office area-wide, only seven are female.
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someone who was seriously in love with her. At 17, she said, there’s no way of knowing what love is without having experienced any sort of life outside high school. “Kids will make mistakes, it’s a part of life,” Leos said. “That’s not [good] to say she’s 17 and this [pregnancy] happened to her: she could of done it at 14. At least she waited and that’s a good thing, too. We want these kids to wait as long as possible, but most high school kids are having sex by their senior year.” The Valley in particular has had a propensity for teen pregnancy. Although nationwide numbers seem to be flattening out due to birth control tactics, this area still ranks among the leaders in percentages of incidence. Of the 1,000 youth surveyed for the national study, 88 percent said waiting to have sex would have been easier if they were able to talk with their parents. Leos believes that idea could go either way. She said she has many teens come to Planned Parenthood who say they have good relationships with their parents, but they still don’t want to tell their parents that they’ve become sexually active because they don’t want to disappoint them. “I guess they felt ‘they want me to wait till I’m married or older‚’ so whatever their reasons are they felt they do it despite having an open communication with their parents,” she said. Leos also said many families have come into her office with their teen, thinking they may be pregnant. Or the girls are indeed expecting and the mothers can’t understand why their daughters didn’t come to them for advice. She said those parents have told their daughters to talk to them, and they would seek information about birth control. They were supportive of their daughters. Still, with open-minded parents, many teens don’t come to their parents first. They have the age-old teen notion of invincibility: they think it won’t happen to them. “It’s no guarantee, but I think for the most part, though, most kids don’t have that open communication with their parents,” Leos said. “And the older they are, 15 and older, these kids are going to want to take care of whatever the
problem they have themselves on their own.” It’s a tough situation, she admits. If parents have expressed their opinions on teen sex and have made it clear what they expect, the teens do pay attention and they do their best to stay true to what they promised. Studies show that parents who talk to their teens more about key issues find that their children are less prone to major mistakes in judgment. This particular study suggests that teens see their parents as role models for healthy, responsible relationships. This in mind, coming to parents with the possibility of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted disease (STD) may make a teen nervous. And as Leos said, many teens don’t want to disappoint their parents. “I’m Catholic: it’s pretty clear in my family that I shouldn’t be having sex until I’m married,” said one UTPA freshman said, describing her short conversation she had with her parent about sex. Leos said it is best to start an open dialogue with a teen on sex sooner than later. The subject then becomes less of a big deal. It will evolve into something both the teen and parents know how to deal with because they’ve discussed what they would do in the event of pregnancy, or in cases of sexual possibility. “A lot of pressure is put on these kids,” she said. “Some do well, some don’t. But it’s helpful to have a good relationship with parents for when that time does come.” Kids learn about sex on the street and certainly from media these days. Recognizing the power of mass dissemination of ideas, a full 92 percent of the teens surveyed said it’s important for society to send a message to teens urging them to wait to have sex until they’re out of high school. Sometimes abstinence programs carry the stigma of association with conservative religious organizations. Such groups battle for control of sex education with groups like Planned Parenthood, who are criticized by critics for failing to believe they can stop the problem, choosing instead to treat the symptom after it has manifested itself.
year at UTPA and then transferred to the University of Texas San Antonio, where he was working toward a degree in architecture. After finding that architecture was not for him, Cantu moved back to the Valley to find a new interest while staying in the design field. “I continued to go to school here at Pan Am and I happened to run into a friend that was taking a graphic design course here, and I didn’t even know that there were graphic design classes at Pan Am,” Cantu said. “I decided to enroll in the classes and I ended up graduating with a degree in graphic design.”
After receiving a bachelor of fine arts degree with a concentration in graphic design in 2002, Cantu worked as the head graphic and web designer for the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle National Shrine for about a year. While searching for a new job, Cantu came across an opening for a graphics designer at his alma mater. “I saw that they [UTPA] had a graphic designer position available, and I got a call from Sandra Quintanilla asking me if I was interested in the job,” said Cantu. “I said I was, and I came and had a
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judge, this was the first time, that I could see that as a woman, I could have inspired her and given the affirmation that she needed to want to become a judge. I think that was a significant accomplishment, even though it wasn’t something that I actually did but what I was.” Though the culture of the Rio Grande Valley holds the Hispanic traditions that are views sometimes as ‘machismo’, Hinojosa said she hadn’t experienced any cultural block when she runs against men. “Maybe machismo exists, but on a personal level rather than a political level,” Hinojosa considered. “I hope it could change everywhere but every race I’ve run in I’ve won by a majority. Two races were against men so even though the perception of machismo is there, it hasn’t translated in the election results.” “Looking back on my personal experiences and what has made a difference in my life, I think that is what I would like to facilitate to others so they won’t have as difficult a time as I did in areas, such as receiving an education,” she said. Providing an outlet for women is one of Hinojosa’s projects and she has become involved with the National Board of Latino Espano Leadership Institute. The national organization trains young women and also women who are in professional jobs become better leaders in their field. Making an allusion between leadership and a pie, Hinojosa said she wants to make sure diversity is spread out among leaders. “There is only one pie and sometimes when women come to the table to get a piece others that have possessed the whole pie have a problem giving up a share,” she said. “It’s seems that they always think they know how to handle the pie better than others. It’s time to show them differently.” Now, with the possibility of Hinojosa becoming the first Hispanic female to represent Texas in the U.S. House, she is focusing on the task at hand. Campaigning, speeches and traveling are the things on her mind.
“I think it’s important that we take great risks to accomplish great things. I’ve loved being a judge but I just felt like you have to seize an opportunity when it arise and if I win, it will not only change my life but hopefully changes the lives of the area an d state.” Hinojosa platform consists of issues such as immigration and the difference between the ways the Canadian border functions compared to the Mexican border. Education and health care is also on top of the list, but Hinojosa emphasizes the health care needs of veterans. “There’s no reason why veterans should have to be treated the way they have been in the past,” Hinojosa said. “They put their lives on the line for this country but they do not have the basic necessities of heath care. They need to be given the dignity that they have earned.” Though some expected Hinojosa to be intimidated by the history and support of her opponent, Lloyd Doggett, but Hinojosa believes that with a new congressional district, new leadership should come as well. “I’ve always been a person who strongly believes that glass ceilings were made to be broken,” Hinojosa said. “I have been told by women and men too that it is time for a Hispanic woman to be in Congress for the state of Texas. They are anxious for another perspective.” Though running against Doggett will be a feat in itself, Hinojosa says that if elected she plans to fight for the area like democratic leadership has always intended. “I think being from this area, and being who I am will make a difference in the district,” Hinojosa concluded. “My life experiences have affected my life on a daily basis. That I have either experienced what the community is going though first hand or have seen them makes me motivated to fight with everything I have to improve this areas. I can always gain the political experience that Mr. Doggett has, but he will never gain the personal experiences I have had being a women in the Rio Grande Valley.”
THE PAN AMERICAN
HARASSMENT student differently, perhaps less professionally to a specific student,” Price said. When a complaint is issued there are two different ways of dealing with the results. A student can make an informal complaint or rather if not successful then a higher standard is taken and a formal complaint is made. “What usually happens is that students want the actions to stop,” Price said. “If it goes further than that, students can file a complaint to us and then we work together to resolve the problem.” STARTING NEW “Don’t tolerate the harassment,” Price said. “I’ve seen independent competent students usually put up with situations that make them uncomfortable, either out of the thought of retaliation or the feeling that they can handle the harassment. Don’t, all of this will wear on you.” Price also noted that students are more than entitled to make a case of the harassment and that they should resolve any problems they have with anyone on campus. “Usually, the majority of the professors are unaware that what they are doing is unwelcome,” “We speak with the faculty and then they decided to meet the standards of what the student wants. Usually they do comply with the
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BIBLE SCHOOL college when he was doing missionary work in Mexico. “ I was working in Mexico, where I am originally from, as a missionary, when I heard about the school,” Lara said. “ We have students from Mexico, Central America and South America.” He said that he felt that teaching at the college was part of calling from God. “ I teach mainly mission courses, world religions, the history of missions, cross-cultural communications, and cultural anthropology,” Lara said. “ At the language school I teach Spanish grammar.” Although the college is nondenominational, students who attend the school come from different denominations [Christian religions]. But Lara said that religions are not a problem, because of the understanding of the school’s Statement of Faith. According to the RGBI’s Statement of Faith, the Rio Grande Bible Institute exists to glorify God by serving the Hispanic church through equipping leaders, edifying believers, and evangelizing the lost. It seeks to accomplish this mission under the leadership of the Holy Spirit in accord
the power that a professor has to control their grade or even retaliate against them if they file a complaint.” Being at a college campus surrounded by adults, the tension between students and faculty members could mount to harassment without intentionally doing so. Telling an unsolicited compliment here, a sexual joke there could lead to problems with a person’s reputation, job or even life. “Every different workplace could contribute to sexual harassment,” Price said. “At a university, students are working with advisor whom they form admiration for the faculty member in a strictly platonic sense. Sometimes the faculty member enjoys the admiration but sometimes it can be misread by either the professor or student.” Price continued to say that luckily with the education that surrounds a college campus, most people are educated enough to know when the harassment begins. “The environment has its advantages and disadvantages,” he concluded. “On one hand, we have the education to know what is right and wrong, but at the same time there can be misunderstandings that leads to problems.”
continued from page 5 with the missionary mandate of the infallible Word of God. Lara said that students attend the college to study the bible and prepare for missionary work in Latin America, Spain, Europe and Africa, but lately the number of students have decreased since he has been there in 1987. A big part of that problem is the tight security the United States have placed on foreigners post Sept.11. “ We have less students now, because lately getting Visa’s are harder since Sept. 11 and the main reason is that laws are more tough,” Lara said. “We will have 80 new applicants ready to come [to the college] and end up with only 16 or 17 new students.” Anderson agrees that the number of bible students and missionaries have decreased recently, but not only locally. He said the numbers have also decreased in the U.S. He along with other college officials hopes that will change in the future. “We started the year with an excellent missions conference at the beginning of [Jan.]. Our guest speakers opened up to students over to the world, not just here,” Anderson said.
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what the students want and then go on with their lives.” Joe Ramirez was one of the students who started a petition concerning to create an alternative for students who needed to take a course that Dantzker taught. Two classes that Dantzker teaches are courses necessary for criminal justice majors reported as of last November. Ramirez said that the department accepted the petition and there is some for of alternative for students. “The petition was created to allow students who might have felt uncomfortable having Dr. Dantzker for a class to have an alternative,” Ramirez said. “I’ve actually had some retaliation against myself from people who did not believe in the petition. Students will stop talking to you because of the argument that someone is incident until proven guilty.” Ramirez stuck to his conviction that if a professor has been accused of sexual harassment, then students have a right to not take his classes. “There are a lot of people who are in the same situation that are afraid to come forward about being sexually harassed,” Ramirez said. “From whichever professor, from whatever department, a college student respects
THE PAN AMERICAN
January 22, 2004
By BELINDA REYES The Pan American
Schools Valley-wide opened up to a new start this year, either to continue the school year or start a new semester. The quiet Rio Grande Bible Institute weren’t alone in opening its doors this semester. The Rio Grande Bible Institute, which is located on the corner of Bus, Hwy 81 and Trenton Rd. in Edinburg was originally founded in 1946 by a Baptist pastor and evangelist, Rev. M.C. Ehlert. According to RGBI’s home page on the web, Ehlert came to the Valley in the late 1930’s to do a tent evangelism, it was then that he saw a need to train Hispanic believers and new converts because there was very little bible training available in this area. Eventually 40 acres of land was purchased in the south Edinburg. The first few buildings were built and the first semester of school began in spring of 1947. The bilingual bible college which taught bible studies in both English and Spanish offered three years of bible training so that missionaries had the tools to minister to Hispanics in Latin America. Keith Anderson, registrar, said that today the totally Spanish, Nondenominational institute now consists of a four-year bible school, a one-year language school and various correspondence courses.
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formal interview, submitted my portfolio, secretary, was Zorie Monita, who is and was hired.” currently pursuing a bachelor of arts in This is not Cantu’s first time working at Spanish with teacher’s certification. Monita UTPA. As a student, he did work-study is a graduate of Weslaco High School who duty for the Department of Education. was previously employed with the Weslaco “It was great, I always liked working at Independent School District, where she was Pan Am,” Cantu said. “It always had a the administrative assistant for the athletics sense of professionalism, so when I heard department for four years. they were hiring here I jumped at the “This is a great opportunity to work for opportunity.” the University while I continue my During the month and a half that Cantu education,” Monita said. “It has a has been with UTPA he has taken on some wonderful experience and I am very lucky pretty big projects. Included is the return of to work here with the people in this Los Arcos, a news supplement in the department.” Monitor which is printed three times a year in order to keep alumni and the surrounding communities in touch with what is happening at UTPA. Its next publication will be its first since 1997. “Out of all my projects I would have to say that Los Arcos is my biggest yet, and the one that I am most proud of so far,” Cantu said. “It is my first time doing a newspaper print of that type, I have done ads, brochures, calendars, but never anything of this type, it was my first time venturing into that field.” Besides Los Arcos, Cantu has also put together the brochures for the upcoming Career Day in March and oversees any advertising the school puts out. Another publication that Cantu has been working on is Bravo, a newspaper publication connected with the Leadership Series. “This new publication of Bravo will Amy Medellin/The Pan American feature a profile of former President FORMER BRONC— UTPA graduate Aaron Bush, who is coming to speak, and also Cantu now works at the university where he what went on at HESTEC and how that first started learning graphic design. went,” Cantu said. Also recently hired to the University Relations staff, as the department
“We have several schools, a bible school, a language school to learn Spanish and correspondence courses,” Anderson said. “The bible school is the main focus [of the institute]. It’s for the missionaries working among [Spanish speaking] Hispanics in America, Central and South America, and Spain.” Anderson continued that the bible college has three areas of study, which are missionary, pastoral, and Christian education. “Some graduates are all over the world, one went to Africa, a few in Europe and most are in North and South America,” Anderson said, Although the college is accredited with AABC [the Accredited Association of Bible Colleges] and a member of Interdenominational Foreign Mission Association, and the U.S. department of Education, the degrees obtained are not yet considered equivalent to a bachelor’s degree. However, students who further their biblical studies at a university enter as graduate level. “We need more Ph.D.’s [teaching here] before we can call our graduate’s degree a bachelors. But, a lot of our students do go on into Seminary [studies], which is considered a master’s level,” Anderson said. “ I don’t know of any graduate being turned down [when going to a university.]” There are currently 85 students in the
Bible College and 37 attending the Language school. There are a total of 25 professors, including full and part-time. Anderson said the two schools are separate. At the Spanish school the students enrolled are taught Spanish all day long. Students come from all several countries to learn Spanish. The college also offers housing for these students. Along with Daniel Aguilar/The Pan American studying Spanish and OLD SCHOOL— The Rio Grande Bible Institute has been training the bible, students, missionaries since 1947. It also has Spanish language classes especially in the offered to students and members of the community. It is located in Spanish school are southeast Edinburg off Trenton Road. required to attend a Spanish church on Sundays. Anderson said that there are 25 have 13 countries represented, including Central and South America, and Spain.” to 30 “We even offer a few bible classes [at Churches that are integrated with the night] to the community,” Anderson college. added. “In the language school, students come Javier Lara, who has a masters degree from all over the U.S. and Canada. has been teaching at RGBI since 1987, We’ve had students from Japan, who are teaches both at the Language school and now with a missionary group in Peru,” the Bible school. He learned about the Anderson said. “In our Bible College we See BIBLE SCHOOL page 12
Makeover: Oracle will revamp UTPA system By CECI CASTANEDA The Pan American The university’s faculty computer system is getting a makeover and if it works out, the student system will get one too. UTPA has announced the purchase and installment of Oracle, a multi-year project that promises to greatly increase the efficiency of the current SCT computer system. SCT, the current system, is a decade old and soon to be obsolete for the growing university population. It lacks workflow, the capacity to move things automatically and streamline documents, leaving desperately needed authorized papers trapped in unopened campus mailboxes. This could hinder a university with a projected growth of up to 26,000 students in the next decade. So UTPA went shopping. Committees evaluated the latest software, including SCT, SAP, PeopleSoft and Oracle through on-site demonstrations, reference calls and study of software performance in other universities. What made Oracle the winner? Dollars, a couple million more of them. According to one executive sponsor, Oracle is at least $1 million cheaper than any of the other systems, while still maintaining its high level of quality. After the purchase, UTPA selected two executive sponsors, William Morris and James Langabeer. The university also appointed Dave Ramzy, a successful new systems implementer, to head the laborious Oracle project. Ramzy, having worked on nearly 20 similar projects in the past, is an expert on system configuration and installment. The system makeover provides collaboration e-mail and enables faculty members to check their voicemail from any location through the use of ".wav" files. Oracle makes the grant process simpler by using templates for granting centers, allowing faculty to submit grant applications electronically and offering accessible reporting requirements. The software provides for automating purchasing costs and savings, allowing the system to check for accuracy in
purchasing. It institutes workflow; automatically moving documents to the next available person for signature. "Documents could spend 10 days, two weeks floating in campus mail, waiting for a signature,” Morris said. "Oracle eliminates paper shuffle." Parameters allowing less authorization for requested money have also been set by Oracle. No longer will seven signatures be required for purchases of a small monetary value, speeding up the approval process. Documents could This makeover spend 10 days, two also makes the university look weeks floating in more organized to campus mail, waiting potential students. for a signature. Oracle Instead of sending eliminates paper the same shuffle. welcoming brochure six times, Oracle streamlines - William Morris, Executive Sponsor mail orders, sending only to those with empty mailboxes. Efficiency is again increased. Making payments will be incredibly simpler as well. Currently, invoices are papers, checks are paper, and worse yet, receipts are papers with scrawled numbers on it. This will all change with Oracle. All payments will be made electronically, eliminating much of the costs and time resulting from paperwork. However, with such a large project as this, training will be extensive and time consuming. Professors from Oracle, with Ramzy’s help, are currently working with a core project team of roughly 150 faculty and administration. The core team is divided into two learning paths, the technical track and the functional track, states Ramzy. Classes vary from week to week, from two days up until five full days.
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January 22, 2004
Formal training began in November 2003 and will continue for several months. Informal training, however, is much lo “Training is forever,” Ramzy said. “Online training is available for everyone with user ID. New faculty can watch interactive tutorials at Pan Am’s websit Change and training are usually not sweet-sounding to faculty. Their reaction has been mixed: some eagerly embrace new technology and others are cautious and reserved, according to an Oracle trainer. But UTPA is confident of the decision and is running full-throttle with this multi-million-dollar project. According to its representatives, the faculty will soon learn that Oracle will bring benefits for all. As stated, the recent purchase of Oracle was for the faculty version only. Yet, according to Ramzy, students will be affected piece by piece. Once the accounting system is in, work-study students will experiences changes in the payroll system. It is hoped that the student version of the software will be purchased soon. Evaluators still need to see the student version in action. Since the software will manage financial aid, the university is especially cautious. "There is huge liability if financial aid messes up," Morris stated. “The system needs to be as bug-free as can be." So far, Oracle has proved itself well. Since its release in the summer of 2002, 100 systems have been sold. Texas Women's University has one, and Pan American has been closely following their transition. If the student version of Oracle is purchased, the change will not be dramatic. Ideally, students will be able to move seamlessly through the system. When all implementation is complete, Oracle will bring technology the Valley has never experienced before. UTPA will, despite people’s stereotypes, be a center for education, technologically capable to fully serve their growing amount of students. “The world is coming to Edinburg,” Ramzy said. ”All the best brains, all the best people, all the best technology.”
January 22, 2004
THE PAN AMERICAN
Page 4
Promotion rewards performance of Griffith By JULIAN CAVAZOS The Pan American
Last semester, she was interim director. As of Jan. 1 she became the director of Institutional Research and Effectiveness. Dr. Susan Griffith has had much experience in the field of institutional research over nearly 30 years. All that hard work paid off when Pres. Miguel A. Nevarez gave her this promotion. She was thrilled. “I was extremely happy to know that the president had confidence in me for the position,” Griffith said. “ It was an opportunity to take a challenge and to work in a position that I already had a lot of experience in. It was a perfect match.” Griffith was born in Altoona, Pa., about 100 miles east of Pittsburgh. Her father was an engineer for DuPont, so the family moved frequently. In her first 20 years Griffith lived in five different states, and says the experience has molded her in various ways. “Moving a lot has made me very flexible and able to deal with change fairly easily,” Griffith explained. “But it has also left me without any sense of a ‘hometown’ the way some people have.” After graduating with a bachelor’s in art history from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Griffith worked as a curator of education at the Museum of Fine Arts in Springfield, Mass. There, she conducted tours and educational classes, prepared teaching
materials and guides, and curated graphics exhibitions. From the early 1980s Griffith worked at Texas State University-San Marcos (then known as Southwest Texas State University), starting off as assistant to the vice president of Academic Affairs, and ending as the associate vice president for Planning and Administration in 1998. Much of her experience was garnered there. “This was about 25 years ago. I went to Susan Texas State and worked with academic affairs and salaries,” she said. “At that time, just like now, I like being grounded in numbers before I make a decision. I like to have numbers in stats to back up an opinion, decision, or anything like that.” In September 2003, Griffith became
UTPA’s interim director, in a role connected to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness (IRE). This office directs and coordinates institutional planning, policy analysis, and evaluation to improve and advance university goals. It also studies the area of future enrollment. “The Office of Institutional Research does some projections on the enrollment five to 10 years down the road and prepares for Griffith it,” said Dr. Frederick Von Ende, IRE executive director. “And, by preparing for it, we are able to plan what types of buildings, parking lots, and other things we will need.” According to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, by 2005, UTPA’s enrollment is projected to reach
16,626. By 2010, enrollment is projected to skyrocket to an all-time high of 19,032. It currently rests just short of 16,000. When it comes to diversity at UTPA, Griffith said that as this institution continues to implement additional graduate programs, the enrollment may become very diverse. She said if UTPA were to initiate satellite campuses in Mexico, our international student population would increase. “In fact, the State of Texas expects UTPA to be one of the major forces in the drive to increase participation of Hispanics to pursue a higher education in Texas,” she said. Griffith continued as interim director until Jan. 1, when Nevarez announced her new position. In her new position she directs the institution’s enrollment projection process, conducts operational research for executive management decision-making, and directs the strategic planning processes for UTPA. Von Ende praises Griffith for her hard work that has led to the new position. “She has performed well enough in the period when she was an interim director, and with that designation, it gave her more permanence to her job title. She is knowledgeable, and enthusiastic,” Von Ende said. “Susan did a lot of work in other institutions, and has brought that experience here.”
Jinx continues to zap potential business near campus By ANGELA I. CANALES The Pan American Ferboy’s, Speedy’s, and Rocha’s. These are all names of businesses that were once located at 1603 E Sugar Road, adjacent to campus. However, none of them are there anymore; they either never officially opened or lasted for a short time. Ferboy’s, a coffee shop partnership, was inspected on March 15, 2000, and was granted the right to open. The place was painted, furniture purchased and advertising done. But the place never opened. Speedy’s was a three-person partnership that was filed by Fernando Curiel to sell buffalo wings. The place was inspected on July 29, 2002 and like its predecessor was granted an opening. It probably operated for two weeks before the lights went out and the for-sale signs went up. Observers wondered what sort of curse marked the spot. After all, its location seemed a natural for business, at the busy intersection of University and Sugar. Yet twice the place had turned into a money pit. Last fall there arose a new challenger. Rocha’s Restaurant filed for inspection by Gerardo Rocha in October 2003, as a taqueria. Amazingly enough the Sugar Curse struck again, as the restaurant was only open for about 10 to 12 days before it closed for good.
Although Rocha’s Restaurant did actually sell some wares, the owners had trouble getting the business up and running. The restaurant faced a lawsuit that put a strain on its operation. One of the owners of the previous restaurant, Speedy’s, was never informed of the transaction. She then filed a lawsuit claiming that she was still the owner of the building. The judge filed in favor of Rocha’s. “There were only two owners that consented to sell the restaurant and the other owner did not know about the transaction, [so] she called the police and we had some trouble, but that was not the reason we closed,” said Rocha, the owner of Rocha’s Restaurant, has another location, in Mission. “The Mission Restaurant is doing just great,” said Rocha, adding that he simply ran into manpower problems. The Edinburg location was closed due to lack of employees, he explained. “We closed because we could not find people to work,” Rocha said. “People went and they only worked for two or three days, we were taking people from this business (in Mission) and it doesn’t make any sense.” Problems with management also put a strain on the restaurant, which became the third straight one to go bottoms up in the same site. “The manager just quit,” Rocha said. “She just all of a sudden said she didn’t
want to work there and we had to close.” So three strikes are on the board against entrepreneurs seeking to take advantage of the site’s proximity to campus. The owner of the building believes there are two reasons why these businesses have not been successful. “Every owner either did not have enough finances or adequate management,” according to Bud Gill, who also said he has other ideas that may work for the building. “This location is the best for a bookstore,” said Gill. “Where this building is located, would allow for this type of business to be successful.” Whatever business takes the next shot at 1603 E. Sugar Road is going to need all the luck it can muster, that’s for sure, as the recent past has been mysterious and rocky for the previous tenants.
Sports
January 22, 2004
2003-2004 Sports Schedules
Date
Opponent/Time
Scores
Nov. 4
Monterrey Tech
W112-46
Nov. 8
Houston Quest
W 111-59
Nov. 22
Southern Methodist
L 59-69
Nov. 25
Texas A&M-Int’l
W 90-50
Nov. 29
Texas-Arlington
L 75-81
Dec. 1
SWA of God
W 90-60
Dec. 4
Missouri-Kansas City
L 80-104
Dec. 6
Texas-San Antonio
W 86-83
Dec. 12
Mississippi Valley St.
L 67-85
Dec. 14
Sam Houston State
L 66-92
Dec. 17
North Texas
L 81-87
Dec. 20
Rice
L 58-69
Dec. 22
Oklahoma State
L 61-96
Dec. 29
Oklahoma
Dec. 31
McMurry
W 90-58
Jan. 6
Baylor
W 55-54
Jan. 8
North Texas
L 53-71
Jan. 14
Wright State
L 60-82
Jan. 19
Missouri-K.C.
L 69-77
Jan. 21
Texas-Arlington
L 54-73
Jan. 28
IPFW
L 57-72
7:30
Feb. 2
Alcorn State
Feb. 4
Lamar
7:30
Feb. 7
IPFW
Noon
Feb. 11
Arkansas State
7:30
Feb. 14
TAMUCC
7:30
Feb. 16
Air Force
7:30
Feb. 19
Central Baptist
7:30
Feb. 28 March 1
TAMUCC Arkansas State
7:30
7 7:05
Men’s Tennis Spring Season Date
SPORTS CLIPBOARD Moses new compliance officer
UTPA Men’s Basketball
Pegjohngy Moses was announced as the UTPA athletic department's new assistant athletic director for compliance services and senior woman administrator. Moses fills the vacant post left by Charlotte Hunt, who left the university to take the director of compliance position at Conference USA. The North Carolina native graduated from Duke University and Tulane Law School and comes to the university with extensive NCAA Division I experience. Moses is currently the assistant athletic director for compliance at the University of TennesseeChattanooga. The Duke graduate previously worked at the University of Central Florida, Brown, and Cornell.
While at Duke, Moses sered as the manager for the women's basketball team and worked with head coach Gail Goestenkors in the nationally recognized Blue Devil program.
Killer Bees get short break
2003 CHL Standings
Franco Caballero/The Pan American
ADIOS— The third business in less than two years has gone bottoms up on Sugar Road. Rocha’s opened for just two weeks before closing its doors for good, after two other eateries came and went in the building around the corner from Economy.
Trinity, 10 a.m.
Jan. 19
Texas A&M, 1:30
Feb. 6
Eastern Kentucky, TBA
Feb. 7 Feb. 7
Northwest
W L OTL PTS
Colorado
25 10 2
52
OKC
19 14 5
43
Dayton, TBA
New Mexico
18 16 3
39
Xavier, TBA
Wichita
17 16 4
38
Feb. 14
Saint Louis, 2
Tulsa
12 16 8
32
Feb. 21
TAMUCC, 2
Feb. 26
Laredo College (Exh.), 1
March 11
Abilene Christian, 5:30
March 12
Prairie View, TBA
March 13
March 24
Northeast
W L OTL PTS
Bossier-Shreveport 23 8
3
49
Memphis
24 15 1
49
Texas Southern, 10 a.m.
Indianapolis
21 14 1
43
UTSA, 2
Fort Worth
11 20 6
28
April 3
DePaul, 1
Southwest
W L OTL PTS
April 4
Texas-Arlington, 10 a.m.
Amarillo
25 11 2
52
April 7
Texas Southern, 2
SanAngelo
22 13 4
48
April 8
Lamar, 3
Odessa
13 23 2
28
April 9
Southeastern Louisiana, Noon
Lubbock
9 20 6
24
April 17
TAMUCC, 2
April 30
SLC Championships
Southeast
W L OTL PTS
May 1
SLC Championships
Laredo
30 5
May 2
SLC Championships
Austin
HOME GAMES IN BOLD All games p.m. unless noted.
2
62
16 15 5
37
Rio Grande Valley 15 15 6
36
Corpus Christi
29
13 19 3
2003-2004 Sports Schedules
When the second half of the season gets underway against Corpus Christi Friday, the Bees will begin wearing their dark jerseys on home ice and use their white jerseys when they play on the road. In the first half, the Bees used their white jerseys at home and dark jerseys on the road.
Although the CHL AllStar Game will be played Thursday night in Albuquerque, NM, the RÌo Grande Valley Killer Bees (16-17-6) will get little rest during the short break. The Killer Bees hit the ice again Friday night at the Dodge Arena against the Southeast Division rival Corpus Christi Rayz (15-20-3) at 7:30 p.m. Prior to the All-Star Game, the Bees played seven games in 10 days and concluded the stretch run with a 4-1 win over Odessa Sunday. The Bees' leading scorer is forward Bill Newson with 20 goals and 12 assists for 32 points.
Opponent/Time
Jan. 19
Page 13
Lady Broncs next game:
Southwest Missouri State Lady Bears
UTPA Lady Broncs
When: Tonight Where: Springfield,MO Time: 7:05 p.m. Records: UTPA (7-10); SMS (13-1) All-time series: It will be the first meeting between the two teams. Notable: SMS is currently on an 11-game win streak.
UTPA Women’s Basketball Date
Opponent/Time
Scores
Nov. 7 Nov. 21 Nov. 22 Nov. 25 Nov. 29
Houston Air Force. Boise State/Dayton TAMUI St. Edward’s
W W W W W
Dec. 5
St. Lous
L 45-77
Dec. 6
Kansas State/Sac.
W 60-50
Dec. 14
Oral Roberts
L 57-67
Dec. 17
Texas
L 25-90
Dec. 19
Marshall
L 59-74
Dec. 21
Central Michigan
L 40-56
Dec. 28
Tulsa
L 41-71
Dec. 31
Prairie View A&M
W 64-52
Jan. 2
UT-Arlington
L 46-85
Jan. 7 Jan. 9
Sacramento State San Diego State
W 49-47 L 38-59
Jan. 11
Louisiana-Lafayette
L 54-62
Jan. 13
SE Louisiana
L 58-60
Jan. 22
SW Missouri State
7:05
Jan. 24
TAMUCC
7:00
Jan. 27
Incarnate Word
7:00
Jan. 31
IPFW
Noon
Feb. 3
Northern Colorado
7:00
Feb. 9
Prairie View A&M
7:00
Feb. 16
Louisiana-Lafayette 5:00
Feb. 19
IPFW
5:00
Feb. 24
TAMUCC
7:00
Feb. 28
SE Louisiana
7:00
March 3
Northern Arizona
8:00
Women’s Tennis Spring Season
Mexican Soccer League 2004 Team Chiapas Club San Luis U.A.G. Toluca Guadalajara Pachuca Querétaro Morelia Irapuato Puebla Atlas América U.N.A.M. Cruz Azul Monterrey Veracruz Santos Atlante Tigres Necaxa
Group I 3 - Toluca 1 - Pachuca 1 - Atlas 1 - Puebla 1 - Monterrey
W-D-L 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-1 0-0-1 0-0-1 0-0-1 0-0-1
GF:GA 4:2 2:0 3:2 1:0 1:0 2:2 2:2 1:1 1:1 1:1 1:1 1:1 1:1 0:0 0:0 2:3 0:1 0:1 2:4 0:2
Group II 3 - U.A.G. 1 - Querétaro 1 - América 1 - U.N.A.M. 0 - Santos
PTS 3 3 3 3 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Scorer / Team S. Pereira, CHI W. Gaitán, TIG
Group III 3 - Chiapas 3 - San Luis 1 - Morelia 1 - Cruz Azul 0 - Tigres
91-77 68-67 63-57 84-55 79-42
G 2 2
Group IV 3 - Guadalajara 1 - Irapuato 0 - Veracruz 0 - Atlante 0 - Necaxa
Week 1 results Jan. 17-18: Chiapas 4, Tigres 2; Morelia 1, Irapuato 1; Monterrey 0, Cruz Azul 0; San Luis 2, Necaxa 0; Atlas 1, Puebla 1; América 1, U.N.A.M. 1; Pachuca 2, Querétaro 2; Atlante 0, Toluca 1; U.A.G. 3, Veracruz 2; Santos 0, Guadalajara 1. Week 2 schedule Jan. 24-25: Veracruz vs. Monterrey; Toluca vs. Chiapas; Cruz Azul vs. América; Tigres vs. Pachuca; Guadalajara vs. Atlante; Necaxa vs. Santos; Querétaro vs. Morelia; U.N.A.M. vs. Atlas; Irapuato vs. U.A.G.; Puebla vs. San Luis.
Date
Opponent
Time
Feb. 6
UTEP
3:00
Feb. 13
Sam Houston State,
3
Feb. 14
Northwestern State
1:30
Feb. 15
Stephen F. Austin
9 a.m.
Feb. 21
TAMUCC
2:00
Feb. 26
Laredo College (Exh.) 1:00
March 11 Abilene Christian
5:30
March 13 Texas Southern
10 a.m.
March 17
Wyoming
TBA
March 18
Jacksonville
Noon
March 19
Long Island
TBA
March 20
Bethune-Cookman
TBA
March 27 Air Force
8:30 a.m.
April 7
Texas Southern
2:00
April 8
Lamar
3:00
April 9
McNeese State
9 a.m.
April 16
IPFW
TBA
April 16
Northern Colorado
TBA
April 17
TAMUCC
2:00
HOME GAMES IN BOLD All games p.m. unless noted.
Sports
January 22, 2004
Page 14
Watson lights up Broncs for 30 points UMKC’s Michael Watson (left) dribbles around Chris Fagan (right). Sergio Sánchez (background) backs up Fagan. Watson had a game-high 30 points in the ‘Roos’ 7769 victory Monday. Photo by Delisa Guadarrama/The Pan American
By MATTHEW A. CEBALLOS The Pan American The University of Texas-Pan American men’s basketball team dropped its fourth game in a row Wednesday as Texas-Arlington breezed past the Broncs 73-54. With the loss, UTPA fell to 5-13 on the season, while UTA improved to 7-8. On Monday, the Broncs suffered a 77-69 loss to the University of Missouri-Kansas City Kangaroos, thanks to another great individual performance from one of the visitors.
Boxing
Despite missing his first three shots of the game it certainly wasn’t an off night for UMKC’s Michael Watson. Watson scored 30 points and helped lead UMKC past the Broncs for the second time this season. On Dec. 4 he scored 27 points against the Broncs. “He’s definitely one of the better scorers we’ve faced this season,” said UTPA forward Chris Fagan. Fagan wasn’t the only one impressed by Watson’s performance. “He did what he was advertised (to do)
continued from page 16
“He surprised me, but I wanted to do my best to impress Oscar and the crowd,” Montiel said. Montiel, who improved to 27-1-1, was impressed by the Dodge Arena crowd and felt right at home. “I feel like I’m at home,” Montiel said. “Actually, they don’t even treat me like this (nice) at home. Of course, they love me there too, but you never expect it when you are out of the city. It pleased me that the people attended, not only from the United States, but from México. A lot of people from the border came.” In the co-main event, 2000 Mexican Olympian Daniel “Ponce” De León of Cuauhtémoc, Chihuahua, México chased a scared Jesús Pérez of Córdoba, Colombia, making him kiss the canvas three times, before winning on a TKO near the end of the opening round. “I think he felt my hands,” said De León about Pérez, who apparently ran scared. “He felt the punches. And really, I didn’t want to hurt him so much. I just
wanted to win my fight. He felt my punches and I saw that he wasn’t going to be able to handle the fight for a long time.” De León improved to 16-0, while Pérez dropped to 22-4-3. As for the “Golden Boy”, he was also surprised by the greeting he received in the Valley. “I never expected this,” De La Hoya said. “It fills my heart. It caught me off guard.” De La Hoya’s career is currently on hold and he is waiting to see if Félix “Tito” Trinidad will come out of retirement. De La Hoya is presently planning to fight in June, September, and December of this year. “I would love to fight Trinidad first and the reason why is because he’s the one who beat me first and put my first loss on my record,” said De La Hoya at the weigh-in Thursday. “And then with [Shane] Mosley because Mosley is a fighter who is very gifted and his speed is what is very deceiving. We’ll just have to wait and see. Then we still have Hopkins, which is the most dangerous of all.”
tonight,” said UTPA coach Bob Hoffman of Watson. “He’s a good player.” The first half of the game was a seesaw that saw both teams take the lead at various times. The Broncs went in to halftime only trailing by two points, 32-30, despite making only 32.4 percent of their shots from the field in comparison to UMKC’s 52.2 percent. After the game was tied at 34 early in the second half, UMKC hit a trio of three pointers, including two by Watson, and began to take a commanding lead. But trailing 56-39 with 12:27 remaining, the Broncs used a 17-1 run during the next 6:10 to cut the lead to a single point, 57-56 with 6:17 remaining. Despite their best efforts an offensive charge, missed shots, and a technical foul fueled a UMKC lead that was just too much to overcome. The outside shooting of UMKC was too strong. Watson was 7 for 13 from beyond the arc and overall the team was 12 for 22 on threes. Fagan led the Broncs with 19 points and nine rebounds. Guard Ray Castillo added 16 points and center Ryan Lange had eight points and eight rebounds. Watson led all scorers with 30 points; forward Mike English added 15 points and forward Brandon Lipsey had 11. With the win, UMKC improved to 9-7. The Broncs will begin a three-game homestand Jan. 28 starting with Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne, and continuing Monday, Feb. 2 (Alcorn State) and Wednesday, Feb.4 (Lamar).
Next Game:
Indiana - Purdue Fort Wayne Mastadons
UTPA Broncs
When: Wednesday, Jan. 28 Where: Field House Time: 7:30 p.m. All-time series: UTPA leads the all time series with the Mastadons 1-0. Wednesday, Box Score 1 UTPA 24 Texas-Arlington 27
Jan. 21 2 30 46
F 54 73
Bronc scorers: A. Holcomb 12, R. Lange 10, R. Castillo 9, C. Fagan 8, E. Montalvo 4, A. Sakalys 4, Z. Weir 4, S. Sánchez 3.
Oscar Night at the Dodge Arena
Photo by Daniz Rivera Photo by Delisa Guadarrama/The Pan American
Team Dávila tends to Raúl Cásarez during his fight Friday.
From left, Gabriel Elizondo, Daniel “Ponce” De León, Fernando Montiel, Oscar De La Hoya, Roberto López, Jesus Pérez, and Marcus Badilla pose after the weigh-in held in Mission Jan. 15.
January 22, 2004
THE PAN AMERICAN
Page 3
Former president to make Book swap is possible appearances here Feb. 5 solution to money woes By ARIANNA VAZQUEZ The Pan American
foundation. Dean of Students Jerry Price said that this year they wanted to make sure students had access to the event. “We created a separate event just for students,” Price said. “We purchased as many seats as we thought UTPA students would use. UTPA has first priority, and the rest will be available to GEAR UP.” According to Gilberto Maldonado,
One of the most famous Americans of our time is coming to campus, and this time, the average student stands a good chance of getting a ticket to the show. Former President George H. W. Bush will appear at the university Feb. 5. Bush’s resume is massive. He was a member of the U.S. House of Outstanding Leadership Series Representatives, U.S. Ambassador to the Sponsorship Levels United Nations, the Republican National Committee Chairman, $25,000 and the director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Then he was $15,000 Ronald Reagan’s vice president and became the 41st president in $10,000 1988. But since his term ended in 1993, he has $7,500 deliberately changed his lifestyle and now makes scheduled appearances $5,000 at public institutions Source: UTPA Foundation and charity events around the country to discuss his experiences director of corporate support for the holding some of the most important and UTPA Foundation, more seats are powerful public offices in the world. reserved for the University’s students for This time his stop is at UTPA, on the event. Thursday Feb. 5, 2004, where Bush will “Four hundred GEAR UP high school be the first up on this year’s Outstanding students have been invited to the event,” Leadership Series. In the past, the school Maldonado said. “The remaining seats welcomed luminaries such as Gen. will be distributed to UTPA students.” Norman Schwarzkopf, and former New Bush’s presentation is planned to York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. But mainly focus on his experience while in this year, the UTPA Foundation and the office, including the fall of the Berlin Distinguished Speakers Committee have Wall, and the breakup of the Soviet Union planned to make the event different from and the end of the Cold War. in years past: they plan to have more Thursday’s schedule for Bush will students attend the event. consist of meeting with the elite few who Last spring, when Giuliani visited will sponsor the foundation at the Five school grounds, he met with a select few Star VIP Sponsorship Level of $25,000 community leaders, for a large fee that down to the minimum of $5,000. There went into the UTPA Foundation for will be a private photo and autograph student scholarships. But students who session for the major sponsors, a dinner, wished to attend and could not afford the Bush’s presentation, plus a question-andpricy amount were left out, missing the answer session. opportunity to hear the man who lessened Students will not have to pay the NYC violence and acted heroically to sponsorship prices to attend their event, help city residents after Sept. 11. which will be held prior to the gala in the Schwartzkopf’s visit was also restricted. Field House. Students will be able to pick But this year, the committee has a up a voucher today starting at 11 a.m. at multiple day planned for Bush Feb. 5, the Student Union. Limited vouchers will whose son, George W. Bush, gave his be given and students need to show a latest State of the Union address Tuesday. validated student identification card to First, Bush the Elder is scheduled to meet obtain it. On the day of the event, the at 5 p.m. with 1,000 students at the student will have to present the voucher, University’s Fine Arts Auditorium. There, and once again show their student ID to he will address both UTPA students and get a ticket to enter the session. high school students who are part of the For students who are unable to obtain a GEAR UP, which benefits migrant voucher, a waiting area will be set up students in Texas. After that session he before the event for last minute no-shows, will appear with community leaders, in a and those tickets will be distributed. paid event benefiting the scholarship
By VANESSA CASTILLO The Pan American The second week of the semester is about over, and while many students bought their textbooks weeks ago; some are still shopping around for the best prices, or waiting for financial assistance to kick in. In any case, new classes mean new books, and that means spending hundreds of dollars on required textbooks. Students acquire books from all types of sources: online, checking them out of the reserved section of the library and photocopying them, book stores of course, and now, via a new source made available to UTPA students recently: a book swap. The Student Government Association has initiated this systematic way for students to buy and sell their textbooks on their own terms. In a well-intended attempt to look out for UTPA students, the SGA book swap is aimed at bringing together students with a common interest. "We are providing a service for students and giving them an alternative to pricey bookstores," said SGA Vice President Oscar Garza. "What we're doing is cutting them [bookstores] out of the loop." Avoiding the middleman to save money seems to be a good idea. Students often buy books that cost $100 or more and get less than 25 percent of the original price when they return to bookstores to sell them at the end of a semester. "I bought a communication book at the beginning of last semester for $101, I received $16 for it when I sold it back to the bookstore," recalls senior communication major Crystal Kief. "When I bought my books this semester, they were selling the same book they gave me $16 for, for $82." With this in mind, SGA’s Garza said the book swap is focused on encouraging students to help each other. "Students know how frustrating purchasing expensive books and getting practically nothing for them, can be,” Garza said. The book swap may be a solution for students whose books are collecting dust because they would rather hold on to them than sell them for peanuts. Or for a student who bought the wrong book, lost their receipt and missed the deadline for a full refund. The book swap is a basic data list comprised of the following: book subject, book title, professor, price, as well as the name of the person selling the book, their e-mail address and phone
number. It seems simple enough and has the potential to help students all over campus. However, the list that is taped on the SGA office door gives the impression that some students who have enlisted the help of the book swap are not interested in the well-being of their fellow students, some asking as much as $95 for a book that is being sold at South Texas Book Supply across the street for $66. It is clear that the book swap is aimed at helping students, not ripping them off, but Garza also said the database is a starting point for students to negotiate their own prices. Some books on the SGA book swap list do have lower price tags than those at bookstores or online markets, but consumers be warned that it is your responsibility to inform yourself of the following: 1. Try and find out if the same edition will be used the following semester. 2. Shop around for the best prices. 3. Asking for a reasonable price is essential and ethical: do not ask a student to buy a five-dollar book for $20. It is up to students to make or break this idea. There are 85 books on the swap list and several students willing to negotiate prices. Some students say they would not want to wait around for a phone call, and sell their books to bookstores in order to obtain the cash faster. On the other hand, some students say it may work. "I'd add my name on the list as soon as I bought my books and hope to get an offer by the end of the semester," said business major Brian Corona. The SGA is hoping to make the book swap a success with the help of students. "I would sign up for the book swap if it comes out cheaper for me," said freshman nursing student Grace Selvera, who bought her books at a bookstore. "I would rather sell my books for more money than the book store would give me, but for less than they sell their used books for." The book swap is free and available to all UTPA students for the remainder of the semester. To add your name to the database, students must go to the third floor of the University Center, the building in front of the cafeteria, room 322, and give all necessary information to an SGA member. They are available from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday thru Friday. The SGA is also trying to get the book swap available online by the end of May, for the increased convenience of students seeking a shot at economic, affordable textbooks.
SGA Book Swap
South Texas Booksupply
half.com
The Student Writer, Editor & Critic, 6th Ed. by B.F. Clause
$ 35
$ 38.25
$ 23.86
Dos Mundos: En Breve w/ Listening Comprehension, 5th Ed. by T.D. Tarrel
$ 60
$ 66.50
$ 72.94
Biology 6th Ed by Campbell & Reece
$ 100
$ 96.00
$ 72.07
Applying Ethics by J. Olen & V.E. Barry
$ 50
$ 53.00
$ 44.99
Photo by Daniel Aguilar/The Pan American
Cázares (right) charges in on Marcus Hicks (left). Cásarez defeated Hicks in the bout.
Photo by Daniz Rivera
Pablo Peña lays on the canvas after getting knocked out.
PAGE 2
January 22
2004
OPINION
January 22, 2004
letters
■
editorials
■
cartoons
Editor Arianna Vazquez gareyjup@aol.com
The University of Texas-Pan American men and women’s track teams are doing their part to keep Edinburg beautiful. The teams recently adopted a two-mile stretch of land on South Closner Road, where members will do litter cleanups four times a year. Head Coach Ricky Vaughn believes community service is important because it teaches his athletes that there is more than just athletics. “I think that the community gives a lot to athletics, no matter the level you are playing at. The community supports athletics by donating money and time,” said Vaughn. “We need to try and give back to the community. It makes our athletes appreciate and realize what we have here.” All of this hard work on and off the track is aimed at one thing: having a great season. The Broncs were scheduled to kick off their season this weekend at The Leonard Hilton Memorial in Houston, but they will not be making that meet due to team health issues. “We have had some injuries and I felt it was in the best interest of the team for me to cancel this meet,” said Vaughn. “With the teams we are competing against we cannot go into a meet at half strength, we have to be at full strength to compete.” Instead their first meet will not be until the Houston Indoor Invitational Feb. 7 in
News Editor Belinda Reyes mstxbellezalatina2003@ yahoo.com
A & E Editor Omaira Galarza omairang@yahoo.com
Sports Editor Ed Chrnko echrnko@yahoo.com
Graphics Editor Daniel Aguilar kerygma_@hotmail.com
Layout Designer Dagoberto Perez Reporters Brian Carr Vanessa Castillo Julian Cavazos Diana Corpus Garza Edwina Garza Dulce Gonzalez Matt Hall Christina Harris Aaron Lozano Vanessa Lucio Clarissa Martinez Amy Medellin Photographer Franco Caballero Student Pub. Secretary Jo Anne Murphy Adviser Dr. Greg Selber
The PAN AMERICAN is the official student newspaper of The University of Texas-Pan American. Views presented are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the university.
Letters policy The Pan American gladly accepts letters from students, staff and faculty regarding newspaper content or current issues. The Pan American reserves the right to edit submissions for grammar and length. Please limit submission length to 300 words. The Pan American cannot publish anonymous letters, or submissions containing hate speech or gratuitous personal attacks. Letters are printed at the discretion of the editor and must include the writer’s name, class/title and phone number.
Readers with disabilities may request an alternative format of this publication at The Pan American business office. For special assistance to attend any event listed in this publication, contact the coordinator of the event at least one week prior to the advertised date.
Houston. At this meet the green and orange will see the likes of top schools such as Houston, Texas, Texas A&M, and Baylor. Vaughn is going to be looking for his older guys on the men’s side to step up and give the leadership to the younger ones in order to have a good season. “Rashaad Ben, Isaac Ybarra, J.C. Crosby and Westly Keating are the people who are leading this team,” said Vaughn. “Track is different than a team sport where people lead by different ways. Westly leads through his work ethic and the other guys see his results and will follow that. You do not have to be a vocal leader in track.” On the women’s side the athletes are much younger and inexperienced, so the search for a leader is ongoing, but Vaughn is excited about the process. “ Amy Moses is one that with her success she had people will look up to and look at her for leadership,” said Vaughn. “We are still looking for someone to step up and be a leader both on and off the track for this team.” Once the season gets going the Broncs have one emphasis and that is winning and making a name for them around the country. “Our main emphasis is qualifying people for the NCAA Regionals and Nationals,” said Vaughn. “I think we have three to five people that have a chance to qualify for the NCAA’s. Our main goal is to qualify as many people as possible for the NCAA Nationals.”
By MATT HALL The Pan American After the first action of the new season, the University of Texas-Pan American's men's tennis team has some excellent performances to build on. The men earned a split in their season Opener by defeating Trinity, 4-3, and falling to Texas A&M, 6-1 at Texas A&M's Mitchell Tennis Center. At number four singles freshman Gary Bianco was the only winner for the Broncs, winning in straight sets against John Nallon of Texas A&M, 6-3, 6-4. Head Coach Eduardo Provencio believes Bianco is a diamond in the rough. “That is the best he has played since he has been in the U.S. He is an incredibly talented kid and we have not seen his best,” said Provencio. “He has been a pleasant surprise so far.” Bianco finally played the way he has been waiting to play and earned a personal victory. “The way I played made me happy, not the school I beat,” said Bianco. “It is always good to win and I have been waiting to play like this for six months and I played good and won.” In doubles play the green and orange gave the Aggies a handful in two of the three matches. At number one doubles, sophomore Rehman Esmail and junior Jeremy Salvo pushed Mohammed Dakki and Brett Joelson to the brink but lost 9-8. Esmail believes he and Salvo outplayed their counterparts, but just made some mistakes down the stretch. “We felt we were better than them,” said
Dorados
NEWS
■ Bush . . . . . . . . . . . 3 ■ Griffith . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 ■ Bible School . . . . . . . 5
Dantzker Return Raises Sexual Harassment Issues By CLARISSA MARTINEZ The Pan American On any university campus, different people from different environments meet together to share the common goal of education. With a variety of people merging on common ground, different perspectives and sometimes different tolerance levels also merge. Knowing where to draw the line of appropriateness is sometimes blurry, but the university is making it necessary for employees to know the limits. Last year, between April 24 and May 13 eight written complaints were filed against criminal justice associate professor Mark Dantzker. The formal complaints alleged that they had experienced harassment. Though Dantzker chose not to speak out on the subject, his return to the university has affected several students. Though none of the complaints filed against Dankter alleged an overt ‘quid pro quo’ [equally exchanged] form of sexual harassment, it did allege the types of unwelcomed sexual conduct leading to the creation of a hostile, intimidating or
offensive environment. With this particular situation coming to an end, students are more aware to the fact that they have a voice concerning the comfort of their environment, but administration is taking a further step with its requirement of all UTPA employees to take a sexual harassment seminar when they begin working for the university. Seminars have been required from all employees for the last years. According to Section 18 of the Student Judicial Affairs Handbook, UTPA condemns sexual harassment of its students, staff and faculty. The website states that, “UTPA is committed to the principle that the learning and working environment of it’s students employees and guests should be free of sex discrimination and is illegal.” Examples of behavior that could be considered sexual misconduct or sexual harassment include physical contact of a sexual nature including touching, patting, hugging, or brushing against a person’s body. Explicit or implicit propositions or offers to engage in sexual activity, or even exposure to sexually oriented graffiti, pictures, posters, or material. Like with
all other harassment, the conduct must be uninvited or not expected from an individual. INVESTIGATIVE PROCESS Dean of Students Jerry Price spoke about the procedures needed to follow when a sexual harassment allegation is brought to the administration. With misconduct occurring in the past, the university is looking towards the future to provide open doors and open ears to the needs of the students. The process usually begins with an informal, confidential conversation with the Dean of Students or someone whom the dean assigns to deal with the complaint. After discussing the situation, students will be provided with options on how to deal with harassment. These options will include receiving suggestions on how to discourage the harasser, and informal approaches such as reporting in confidence your concern to the harasser’s supervisor. Filing a formal written complaint is also an option. “The most usual complaint that I hear from students from my experiences are allegations that professors are treating a
See HARASSMENT page 12
Page 15
Track team adopts road Men’s tennis splits opener By MATT HALL The Pan American
1201 West University, CAS 170 Edinburg, Texas 78539 (956) 381-2541 Fax: (956) 316-7122 http://www.panam.edu/dept/panamerican 53rd Year – No. 15
Sports
Photo by Ed Chrnko/The Pan American
Former Texas A&M-Kingsville quarterback Abel González practices his passes during a tryout for the RGV Dorados, the newest arenafootball2 expansion team, Saturday at PSJA Stadium in Pharr. The Dorados will hold another tryout at Rice University in Houston Feb. 14.
Esmail. “We do not care that they were number nine in the country we should have won.” At number three doubles, sophomores Nik Porter and Oliver Steil lost a nail-biter to Dash Connell and Alex Strom, 9-7. Salvo believes the doubles performance he and his partner had was not only good for them, but it helped his teammates out as well. “We knew we could compete with the Aggies, but it was good to show it and not just talk about it,” said Salvo. It also helped our teammates’ confidence too.” Against Trinity the Broncs dropped a doubles match, but responded to the challenge by taking four out of six singles matches to ensure a victory. Salvo, Porter, Bianco and Steil all won in singles, with Steil icing the victory by defeating D.J. Petros at number five singles, 1-6, 6-2, 6-3. Salvo believes unity is the main strength in this year’s team that will allow for a better record than last year. “Our confidence is there and we need to build upon what we did last year. We are closer as a team and our goal is to win the conference,” said Salvo. “We got second last year and we want to win it this year.” The Broncs are now 1-1 after two matches, and will return to action when they visit Eastern Kentucky Feb. 6. Provencio believes his team is a couple of pieces shy of completing the puzzle and being able to compete with anyone in the country. “Overall I am very happy with the start. It is good to play a top ten team and get a taste of top notch tennis,” said Provencio. “We just need a couple of players here and there and we can compete with anyone.”
continued from page 16
any capacity, would only increase the team’s ties with the Valley. Araguz, who played five years in the NFL, was recently called back to duty when the Vikings requested his services for the last two games of the regular season. He played against Kansas City and Arizona. In those two games, Araguz punted seven times for an average of 38.7 yards. “Just having the opportunity to go back and prove that I could still kick was definitely an honor,” Araguz said. “It definitely humbles you. You go up there and getting back to the top and being able to compete at that level is the best thing ever. I just feel bad that we got pushed out of the playoffs because I would definitely like a couple more games to show them that I could still kick.” Former wide receiver Armando González Jr., who graduated from PSJA Memorial in 2002, was happy to have had the opportunity to have tried out, but was hampered by a quadricep injury that hindered his performance. “It was fun,” González said. “I had some good times, but the injury really slowed me down.” Helping out the Dorados coaching staff evaluate the players was San Diego Chargers consultant Steve Schnall, who is also an adjunct consultant at The University of Texas-Pan American. “It’s a good turnout from all over the country,” coach Scnall said. “There was a solid group of kids. It looks as though 10 percent could make it back. They all tried hard and gave a good effort. There
were a lot of positive things for the Valley.” Among the 15 chosen to return were a pair of former Nikki Rowe graduates. Nikki Rowe standout Adrian Armstrong, 5-foot-8, 170 pounds, had previously tried out for the Texas A&MKingsville squad, but now finds himself with an opportunity to catch on with the Valley’s first professional football team. “I didn’t expect it, but I’m glad I did it,” Armstrong said about the tryout. “There was some good talent out here, some fast people. I wasn’t the fastest one, but I did what I did.” Another Rowe standout, 6-foot, 250pound lineman Bernie Luna, recently graduated from Sul Ross State University. “It was pretty good (tryout),” Luna said. “I’ve been to another one and I think this is a lot better because it showed more individually.” Recent PSJA North graduate Anthony Hernández was another Valley player selected at the end of the first tryout. Hernández played varsity high school football for only one season, but racked up 10.5 yards per carry (666 yards rushing) and scored 10 touchdowns. During the tryout, Hernández pulled his hamstring, but was able to show enough promise in his earlier performances to make Gussman’s final 15 list. “It’s a surprise to still have a chance,” said a smiling Hernández. “Somebody my size and for as little as I am, from the Valley, that’s nice. I’m happy.” The Dorados will hold another tryout Feb. 14 at Rice University in Houston.
S PORTS
PAGE 16
NBA Schedule Thursday, Jan. 22
25-16 8:30
25-13
Dallas Mavericks vs. Jan. 23 at Chicago, 7:30 Jan. 25 Sacaramento, Noon
Jan. 27 at Seattle, 9 Jan. 28 at Utah, 9
Friday, Jan. 23 at 23-17 7:00 33-11 Houston Rockets vs. Jan. 25 at Orlando, 5 Jan. 26 at Miami, 6:30 Jan. 28 Sacramento, 8
at 27-15 9:30 16-26 San Antonio Spurs vs. Jan. 24 New Orleans, 7:30 Jan. 26 at Milwaukee, 7 Jan. 27 at New York, 6:30
SUPERBOWL XXXVIII Sunday, Feb. 1 at 16-2
5:25
■ Hoops . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 ■ Sports Clipboard . . . . . 13
Arena boxing a big hit, Peña KO’d By ED CHRNKO The Pan American
at
■ Tennis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
The main event at Oscar Night in the Valley, held at the Dodge Arena last Friday, was supposed to be the presence of six-time world champion Oscar De La Hoya and the 10-round bout between two-time world champion Fernando Montiel and Roberto López. But a four-round junior welterweight slugfest between Edinburg’s Pablo Peña and Fort Worth’s Richard Best stole the show. After being pushed back from the night’s third bout on the undercard to the fifth spot due to the event being broadcast internationally by Univisión’s sister station, Telefutura, the two boxers came out swinging with the hopes of making an impression on De La Hoya, who was seated at ringside. Peña and Best electrified the standingroom-only crowd, announced at 6,408 with a dazzling display of speed, stamina, courage, and the ability to take a barrage of punches. However, it was Best who silenced the crowd by landing a powerful left hand that dropped Peña to the canvas with a thud. Peña, 19, had to be attended by medical personnel for several minutes before being able to stand up, but was eventually able to walk off by himself. With the knockout loss, Peña fell to 5-2, while Best improved to 5-6-3. Peña was disappointed by the loss, especially since it came in front of Valley fans. “I feel bad that I lost in front of my hometown,” said a distraught Peña. “But
that’s the way stuff goes sometimes. Not everything can go your way.” Peña’s trainer and manager, Noé Peña Sr., blamed his son’s loss on the fight’s postponement to the fifth bout of the undercard, after it had been originally scheduled as the third fight. “He wasn’t in there mentally anymore,” the elder Peña said. “He was fired up the first time. If he would’ve gone in the third bout the way it should’ve been, that guy would’ve been out the first, second round at the most, maybe.” However, Raúl Cásarez, 17, of Edinburg fared better than his former sparring partner, going the distance for a win against Marcus Hicks of Dallas in a fourround bout. Cásarez improved to 5-0, while Hicks dropped his pro debut. “It was a pretty tough fight, the toughest opponent I’ve faced yet,” Cásarez said. “He had a lot of heart, man. He was strong.” Cásarez and his trainers, Team Dávila, had to work with the disadvantage of finding out that Hicks was a southpaw only minutes before the fight began. This made them scramble to redo their fight strategy. In the main event of the night, Montiel of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, México, defeated an initially aggressive Roberto López of Tijuana, Baja California by way of a technical knockout after knocking the wind out of him near the end of the third round.
14-5
Road to the Super Bowl: New England: Jan. 10 def. Titans 17-14 Jan. 18 def. Colts 24-14 Carolina: Jan. 3 def. Cowboys 29-10 Jan. 10 def. Rams 29-23 Jan. 18 def. Eagles 14-3
Killer Bees Friday, Jan. 23 vs. Killer Bees vs. Corpus at Dodge Arena, 7:30 Jan. 24 vs. Austin at Dodge Arena, 7:30 All games p.m.
Happy
January 22, 2004
Sexual harassment situation explored
New
An Inside Look:
Year News ............................................2 ■ A & E............................................7 ■ Sports ........................................16 ■
See Page 2 for details
China !
T h e S t u d e n t N e w s p a p e r o f T h e U n i v e r s i t y o f Te x a s - P a n A m e r i c a n
Valley Woman Strives for Place in Politics By CLARISSA MARTINEZ The Pan American
Photo by Daniel Aguilar/The Pan American
Dorados select Valley players at tryouts Saturday not only proved to be a good day for football at PSJA Stadium, but it turned out to be a good day for dreams to come true. After approximately four hours of drills and exercises under the afternoon sun, the 110 players who took part in the Río Grande Valley Dorados first open tryout found out who would continue their dream of playing professional football. The Dorados, arenafootball2’s newest expansion team, whittled down the 110 hopefuls to 15 fortunate players, who attracted the attention of the coaches and trainers on hand at the tryout. The expansion team will open its inaugural season March 27. “There are about 15 guys that I’m very interested in bringing back,” Dorados head coach Gary Gussman said. “And out of those 15 I might just sign...without bringing them back in.” Despite the amount of players Photo by Ed Chrnko/The Pan American participating in the tryout, RGV Dorados head coach Gary Gussman talks to Minnesota Viking punter and Gussman was more impressed by Valley native Leo Araguz on the sidelines during Saturday’s open tryouts. the talent he saw.
Jan. 22
BREAKING THE GLASS CEILING:
Former two-time world champ Fernando Montiel celebrates his See BOXING page 14 TKO victory over Roberto López Jan. 16 at the Dodge Arena.
By ED CHRNKO The Pan American
THURSDAY
HEADLINES
“Actually, I was more impressed with the talent that was out here,” Gussman said. “I wasn’t expecting the caliber of talent that was out. Out of 110 guys, there were quite a few legitimate guys that really opened not just my eyes, but all the other coaches that were helping out.” In addition to the gridiron heroes, several more people came out the stadium to take in the tryout from the stands. One of those people was Pharr native and Minnesota Vikings punter Leo Araguz. “I know that we have a lot of talent here in the Valley,” Araguz said. “Actually, I was watching the news last night (Friday) and heard that they were having an open tryout and just wanted to see what they’re all about and support a couple of guys I know that are out here.” During his visit at the tryout, Araguz met briefly with coach Gussman and although he is still under contract with the Vikings, he offered his assistance. The possibility of Araguz joining the Dorados one day, in See DORADOS page 15
The Rio Grande Valley has a new competitor for a seat in Congress, and it’s not exactly who political analysts would expect. A Hispanic woman raised in South Texas vys for District 25 Congressional seat. However, race and gender does not seem to be an issues with this woman hoping to break down barriers. Originally from Brownsville, Texas, Leticia Hinojosa made a decision that she wanted to make a difference in her life. Growing up in a financially weak environment, Hinojosa overcame obstacles that eventually shaped her into the person she is today. Living in a two-room house, without indoor plumbing until she was six years old, Hinojosa escape from the life of poverty by immersing herself into literature. “I loved to read, I was an avid reader,” Hinojosa said. “I really enjoyed biographies. I would read stories of people who had overcome great obstacles and had achieved personal success but more so had made a difference in the world.” Even after losing her father at the early age of eleven, Hinojosa did not
stop working towards achieving her goals. With the guidance and encouragement of her mother, Hinojosa maintained her ambition and eventually was able to change her life. But she didn’t stop there. In 1978, Hinojosa graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with high honors and then attended UT Law School where she graduated in 1981. After working in Austin for a few years in Legal Aid, Hinojosa returned to the Rio Grande Valley. “I returned because I just felt like there was a lot of things that needed to be done down here,” Hinojosa said. “In Austin, there were already of people involved with many different political stances while over here I felt a need to help.” After her return Hinojosa saw the differences between the political system in Austin and The Rio Grande Valley. “It was different in the fact that in I saw, just in the legal feel there were few women lawyers especially trial lawyers and there were no women judges,” Hinojosa said. “This was something I felt needed to be changed.” After practicing law in Weslaco for seven years, Hinojosa eventually set
her sight on a higher calling and ‘went to the bench’ in 1989. She became practiced law with a firm for seven years in Weslaco then I eventual went to the bench in 1989. Her arrival as a Hidalgo County trial court judge marked the first female in the Valley to be a judge and the third Hispanic female judge in the state. “I enjoyed practicing law, but when I saw there was a lot of sexism at the time, I felt that the only way to change things was to have more women in elected positions,” Hinojosa said. “I entered with the thought in my mind that I could really help change the system.” Soon after becoming a judge Hinojosa became more active in schools and helping young people because she felt it was important for them to see women can achieve success in nontraditional ways. At a visit to an elementary school shortly after becoming a judge, Hinojosa saw the difference she could make by being in her position. “When I went to visit a elementary school I asked the students what they wanted to be when they grew up,” Hinojosa explained. “When a little girl answered she wanted to be a
See HINOJOSA page 11
Clarissa Martinez/The Pan American
PIONEER— Former judge Leticia Hinojosa is trying to become a member of the U.S. Congress representing District 25. She is running against Lloyd Doggett.
Survey shows teens conflicted about sex By EDWINA P. GARZA The Pan American
GUEST— Former President George H.W. Bush will appear at two events Feb. 5 at UTPA. SEE PAGE 3 FOR RELATED STORY
Today’s youth are widely associated with and ridiculed for their supposed obsessions with sexuality. Did Brooke Shields wait until marriage to have sex? What about Jessica Simpson? Does Anna Kournikova seriously expect the world to believe she’s a virgin? While media followers of young people are seemingly overwhelmed with who’s lost what, a study by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy suggests that as many as two-thirds of U.S. teens are asking themselves why they didn’t wait to lose their virginity. Martha Leos has seen the split decision among teens and their decisions to become sexually active. She said at least half of the teens she’s worked with wished they would have waited.
Leos, the educational director at Planned Parenthood in McAllen, said many teens found themselves in a situation they may have not been completely aware of. “Maybe they were at a party and they were under the influence and it just happened,” Leos said. According to the research, they are not alone, despite a decided regret factor involved. The survey, conducted by telephone in August and September, said that 85 percent of teens from 12 to 19 believe that sex should occur only in a long-term, committed relationship. But Leos said that many teens, at the moment, believe they are in such a relationship. “There are some that felt ‘This is the one‚’ and [that they are] in a serious relationship even though they are just 16,” she said. “Their first experience was not what they
thought,” Leos said of teens who regret their sexual activity. Most students do not seem ashamed of their acts, and yet most requested anonymity as a condition for discussing this sensitive topic. One UTPA freshman who didn’t wait said he doesn’t regret what he’s done, but wouldn’t want to risk the possibility of his parents finding out. Should his parents find out, he imagines they’d be upset that he didn’t listen to their advice. He said there was no way of knowing if he and his then girlfriend were going to be together forever, but he knew that he did love her then. One girl questioned losing her virginity at 17, saying that she did so because she was “living in the moment.” She added she never felt any pressure from anyone other than herself. The only thing she regrets about her sexuality was not losing her virginity to
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