April 18, 2013

Earth Week

University promotes environmental awareness on campus

Online

April 18, 2013

Karen Villarreal /The Pan American

Volume 69, No. 25

ONLINE CONTENT

panamericanonline.com

National News West, TX

Major explosion near Waco injures hundreds April 17, number of deaths unknown

Boston

Two bombs explode April 15 during Boston Marathon, 3 confirmed dead

Weekly Updates

Baseball, tennis, track and field updates

Apple Mob

UTPA hosts event for Sodexo

ACM: Fight Club

Reporter George Terrazas inquires about ACM event

Video

By Lea Victoria Juarez The Pan American When Republican State Sen. Dan Patrick filed Senate Bill 1128 March 5, members of some minority communities were up in arms.

The bill states that a student cannot graduate from a higher education institution until they have taken six hours of “a comprehensive survey” in American and Texas history.

According to Sen. Patrick, SB 1128 is clarifying a 1955 law that states students at public institutions need to complete two American history courses. Additionally, courses such as Mexican-American or African-American history may no longer count for the credit at

(Above)Left to right: Frida Kahlo, Charles Tailfeathers, Dolores Huerta, Susan B. Anthony

MAS groups and Texas senator disagree on higher ed. courses institutions such as the University of Texas at Austin.

The District 7 senator explained in a March 17 Facebook post that he feels the course options for fulfilling the American and Texas history requirements in higher education institutions have become too narrow, only focusing on topics such as gender or race. Although he said these subjects are important, Patrick noted that students need to have an understanding of politics, war, economy and other “events that have

helped shape our past and who we are today.”

Some minority communities, however, feel this is a racial attack. A petition to stop the bill was posted on Change. org about a month ago with 2,505 signatures as of April 17 in support of the opposition.

“We must stop this bill because college courses that teach about Mexican-American history and African-American history teach undergraduate students from a critical standpoint,” the petition reads.

“Students understand the mean-

ingful contributions from individuals of color that help make this state and our country a great one.”

However, UTPA already doesn’t allow substitute courses such as African-American studies to meet the American history requirement. Therefore SB 1128 wouldn’t affect students on campus.

Even though UTPA students wouldn’t be affected, the MexicanAmerican Studies Club is adamant about its opposition to SB 1128, which is set to be decided by the Texas Legislature Sept. 1.

“It’s difficult to understand why the bill is being proposed and where it comes from,” MASC President Ruben Garza said.

“But being students of color, who look at this from our point of view, we look at this as an attack on our culture, an attack on our race, an attack on our identity.”

To draw attention to the bill, MASC members posted fliers around campus with “Stand Up” written on them, and are asking students who oppose the bill to take photos with the flier, which they plan to post to social media.

SB 1128 is inspired by a January 2013 National Association of Scholars study that looked at courses at the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University at College Station. The report, written by Richard Fonte, the former director of the We the People program at the National Endowment for the Humanities, examined the background of professors and 85 courses offered fall 2010 that could count toward the state’s two-course American history requirement.

“We found that all too often the course readings gave strong Left to right: emphasis to race, class and genFather Miguel der social history, an emphasis so Hidalgo, Abra- strong that it diminished the atham Lincoln, tention given to other subjects in Martin Luther American history (such as military, King Jr.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

2

news opinion

April 18, 2013

18 Years old with $2o,000 to my name

#UTPA

Tweet at and follow us @ThePanAmerican

Saw this beautiful but dangerous Mexican viper in the herpetology lab @ utpa y’day. Glad for safety glass! http://ow.ly/i/1Uvby #snakes - @para_sight10h Why can’t the power be out at utpa - @loveekriss9h @UTPA, wide awake.... ready to learn something new - @ck11c9h

Vol. 69, No. 25

(if only they weren’t red numbers)

Karen Villarreal Design Editor

I didn’t know my parents were in debt when I filled out my Free Application for Federal Student Aid for the first time in 2009. I was right out of high school and planning to attend UT Austin in the fall, if the $20k the FAFSA predicted my family could contribute I just finished paying off my student loans!

was paid. When my parents gently informed me that they couldn’t live up to the FAFSA’s expectations but wanted me to attend anyway, we became another drop in the student loan bucket. And it’s a deep bucket - in 2011, student loans amounted to $870 billion, according to The Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and it’s the only kind of debt that has risen in recent years (and is predicted to keep rising).

I had to borrow money be-

That’s great!

We just started saving for our daughter’s!

The Pan American

thepanamerican@gmail.com 1201 West University, ARHU 170 Edinburg, Texas 78539 Phone: (956) 665-2541 Fax: (956) 316-7122

Harvard, here I come

Editors-in-Chief:

Francisco Rodriguez /The Pan American

Karen Antonacci Daniella Diaz

cause the FAFSA program had no way of knowing that my parent’s salaries aren’t a true reflection of their monetary situation. Despite their relatively high reported earnings (they’re in the middle class tax bracket), their finances are in a constant state of uncertainty near the end of the month when card payments are due. Their situation isn’t even abnormal. According to a 2011 survey by Bankrate.com, more than half of Americans hold more credit card debt than emergency savings. What is troubling, coupled with that statistic, is that the FAFSA doesn’t factor in consumer debt (credit card debt, medical debt, parent’s student or car loans) when determining family contribution or eligibility for financial aid. So while half of American parents can’t afford to pay for their children’s’ educations, their salaries make them ineligible for most grants and even work-study.

I stayed at UT for two years before deciding the ever-growing debt wasn’t worth the undeclared “major” I was pursuing. UTPA is cheaper, but even so, I fill out the FAFSA every year knowing I’m going to come away with another 10k in loans. Eventually I got over the self-pity and did some research, finding the importance of paying back what I’ve borrowed. According to ConsumerFinance.gov, more than 10 percent of borrowers who took out a loan in 2005 had defaulted by 2011. The total defaults to date are over $8.1 billion, which comes out of the taxpayer’s pocket and out of the student loan cycle, which works by taking money paid back after graduation to fund new student loans being issued to incoming freshmen. With more cuts to education looming, students can’t be irresponsible about the breaks they’ve been given, or future generations will be that much

worse off. I also learned that it’s not hard to be responsible. I can repay with a percentage of my paycheck instead of a flat rate, and though it will take years, I can sleep easy knowing that I didn’t hurt anyone but myself.

So I’ve taken my parents’ advice and haven’t taken out any credit cards of my own, but will still be part of a new debtor’s group: the graduates with more student loan debt than credit card debt and no emergency savings to speak of.

This is the same group that won’t be contributing to the economy because they can’t afford it, won’t be filing for bankruptcy though many will be bankrupt (because student loans are an exception to consumer debt in this case), but will be co-signing their children’s student loans. Living the American dream, ya’ll...

News Editor:

Charles Vale

Sports Editor:

Norma Gonzalez

Arts & Life Editor:

Lea Victoria Juarez

Photography Editor: Adrian Castillo

sequestration: ‘The new normal’

Design Editor:

By Karen Perez The Pan American

Multimedia Editor:

Karen Cardenas has to be at class by 9:10 a.m., but her usual half hour wait at the Hidalgo bridge has stretched to two to three hours lately.

According to the psychology major, crossing the border is a frustrating “mental stress.”

The Reynosa resident, like many UTPA students commuting from Mexico, experiences the effects of budget cuts known as ‘sequestration’ occurring across the nation’s borders firsthand. When spending cuts kicked in last month, commuters felt the impact.

“Actually one of the officers advised me to start coming earlier because of budget cuts. There are less employees, especially in the mornings,” the 21-year-old said. “I have to be at the bridge at 7:10 a.m. because lines take longer, sometimes they only have two lanes open.”

During Semana Santa, or Holy Week, Cardenas waited three hours at the bridge daily.

Holy Week is a Catholic holiday that runs from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday. This year, the popular vacationing period for Mexican nationals began March 23 and lasted approximately two weeks. Mexican nationals visit the Valley regularly for shopping, leading to long lines at ports of entry.

“I was late for my first class

Karen Villarreal

Elizabeth Espinosa

Social Media Editor: Ismael Melendez

Adviser:

Dr. Greg Selber

Administrative Associate:

Anita Reyes

Advertising Manager:

Elva Ramirez

Webmaster:

Jose Villarreal

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 paper or university.

Next Delivery: April 25 at noon Letters to the

Editor The Pan American accepts letters of 300 words or less from students, staff and faculty regarding recent newspaper content, campus concerns or current events. We cannot publish anonymous letters or submissions containing hate speech or gratuitous personal attacks.

Please send all letters to:

thepanamerican @gmail.com

(April 4) and hopefully it’ll be the last time,” Cardenas said.

“I’m not going shopping, I’m coming to school.”

GOVERNMENT CUTS Sequestration is a series of across-the-board cuts projected to be about $85.4 billion for fiscal year 2013, which ends September 30. In a 12-month fiscal year, the sequester would lead to an approximate five percent reduction in discretionary program spending, which involves budget negotiations between the president and Congress.

The sequester threat was originally part of the Budget Control Act of 2011, which mandates equal spending cuts over nine years (2013-2021), to encourage compromise on deficit reductions. Congress members couldn’t agree on a budget, so mandatory cuts were scheduled to begin Jan. 2. By passing the American Taxpayer Relief Act that same day, the sequester was delayed for two months.

Failing to reach a deal with Congress, President Barack Obama motioned the sequester effects to begin March 1.

April 10, Obama signed $109 billion in reductions into effect starting Oct. 1.

Budget cuts for U.S. Customs and Border Patrol may lead to less staff on hand, meaning longer wait times in ports of entry. According to the Department of Homeland Security, seques-

tration requires more than $600 million in cuts across the CBP. “It already started. The government knew these cuts were gonna happen,” said Political Science Professor Paul Jorgensen. “Each agency is doing it differently. You have to look where the government spends most of its money.”

Dave Jackson, an economics

and nondefense programs for a total of about $85.4 billion.

The U.S. Customs and Border Patrol headquarters said in a statement that the effects of sequestration will continue to have serious impacts on the CBP, including increased wait times for customs inspections at airports and ports of entry. According to CBP.gov, furloughs (temporary

Sequestration is a series of acrossthe-board cuts projected to be about

$85.4 billion

for fiscal year 2013, which ends September 30 and finance professor, said for the most part people aren’t feeling the direct impacts of the sequester because not all cuts are immediate.

“If you work and earn $1,000 a month and your salary cuts by $100 it doesn’t mean you’re going to die of hunger in the first week,” Jackson said. “It means that you can gradually cut your spending to make up for that $100 and that’s kind of what’s happening now.”

The Congressional Budget Office, a nonpartisan agency, estimates $42.7 billion to be cut from both defense programs (other than spending for military personnel)

unpaid leave for employees) will cause increased wait times and reduced hours of service.

AT UTPA While sequestration is taking its toll on federal programs across the nation, students and employees may feel the pinch close to home.

According to the White House website, the sequester impact for Texas means 930 teacher and aide jobs are at risk of being cut: 1,450 low-income students will lose work-study jobs, 172,000 will lose access to support programs and special education and

280 schools will lose funding to help disadvantaged students.

A January report by the Texas House of Representatives stated that the Texas Education Agency’s estimated reduction is $517.6 million. Although Pell Grants for low-income students are exempt from the sequester, the University of Texas System predicts budget cuts to research could total between $114 million to $123 million annually and $1.3 and $1.4 million cut from financial aid programs annually.

Depending how quickly the sequester is implemented, Jorgensen said he believes education programs will play a big part in the cuts come summer and fall.

“Each university system has to figure out how to handle the budget cuts,” Jorgensen said.

“Pan American may get fewer federal dollars from the UT System as whole.”

Jackson said the sequester may bring anything to the University, from staff and professor layoffs to shorter school days, adding that tuition alone isn’t enough to fund the school.

“A good portion of the revenue comes from the state. If the sequester cuts that funding, yeah, ultimately we will see significant cuts here in the school,” Jackson said.

Continued on page 4

April 31, 18, 2013 2013 January

3

BSM helps raise awareness of human trafficking Photo and story

By Susan Gonzalez The Pan American The National Human Trafficking Hotline receives more calls from Texas than any other state in the United States, according to a 2011 report by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.

This statistic is one reason the Baptist Student Ministry worked with the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking April 9 and 11 - to raise awareness of human trafficking. CAST is a nonprofit organization that assists victims of human trafficking and works to stop these practices. This is the first time BSM has had a series of events on the issue.

Human trafficking is when a person is forced or tricked into labor, sometimes of a sexual nature, according to Aaron Glenn, a representative from CAST who spoke at the “Introduction to Human Trafficking” event April 9 at the BSM. “Human trafficking is a really broad umbrella,” Glenn said. “Until the year 2000, we didn’t have

a definition for all these different kinds of abuse and human rights issues, so the government created a (term) called ‘human trafficking.’”

As a state with one of the largest borders in the country, Texas is regarded as a major destination and transit state for human trafficking, according to the USCCR. “McAllen is a really critical entry point for human trafficking into the United States,” Glenn said. “It’s a really important place to know about trafficking.”

About 100 students attended the introductory event and more than 200 participated in the “Make Your Mark” event the same day in front of the Arts and Humanities Building. Students and community members made posters with red handprints and signed their names underneath their “mark” as a sign of solidarity with those affected by the problem. According to the report by the USCCR, as many as 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders annually. This statistic does not include those trafficked within their own

country.

“The red handprint is a symbol for ‘one hand, one life,’ meaning we are all trying to work together to stop this,” said Erika Perez, a BSM student leader. “It is not only a local issue, but a global issue.

It says in the Bible to help those who are in pain, suffering. And (victims) of human trafficking are suffering and we should have love from them and try to help.”

Locally, the issue of human trafficking has been prevalent.

20,000 people may be trafficked anNually into the u.s.

One of the most recent cases in the Valley involved Juan David Alviso Gonzalez, an 18-year-old Mexican citizen who was sentenced to five years in prison March 25 for holding illegal immigrants in

Mission, trying to extort money from them and sexually assaulting them.

To help raise awareness of cases like this, BSM held a dinner April 9 where they discussed human trafficking and how to prevent it. In addition, the group had a prayer service April 11 to call for the end of a practice that affects thousands of people globally and nationally. In recent years, the U.S. State Department has estimated that as many as 20,000 people may be trafficked annually into the United States.

“The human trafficking events had two goals: to raise awareness about the issue of human trafficking and to mobilize action,” BSM Director Robert Rueda said. “We can all do something about it. A lot of people have the idea that you can’t do something about it but you can.

There’s something you can do and that’s what we want the students to get, that’s the message.”

According to Glenn, one of the best ways people can help is by reporting any suspected hu-

ADVERTISEMENT

Students place red handprints on a giant poster in front of the Arts and Humanities Building for the “Make Your Mark” event April 9. The Baptist Student Ministry held this event to raise awareness of human trafficking. man trafficking activity. While law enforcement officials work to stop this practice, it is impossible for them to recognize and prevent every case of human trafficking in a certain area, but tips from civilians can help.

Glenn is one of the representatives from CAST who asked to partner with the BSM to educate students and community members about human trafficking, teaching what it is and who to contact if someone witnesses suspected activity. For example, a trafficked individual may look physically unhealthy, may not have his or her own form of identification or travel documents, or someone else may speak on their

behalf. If a person thinks they are witnessing a human trafficking situation, there are several hotlines they can call for assistance, including CAST’s.

“Human trafficking is when a person is kept, their freedom is taken, and they’re forced into labor and coerced into doing something,” Rueda said. “So when a human being is deprived of freedom it is something that should be close to every person’s heart...it is close to our hearts and we believe it is also close to the heart of God.”

Hotline: 888-539-2373

ADVERTISEMENT

Page 4

sequester continued from page 2 Initially, veteran students at the University feared sequestration would eliminate their federal tuition assistance through third-party military agencies, not including the state-administered Hazelwood program and G.I. Bill.

However, Obama signed a bill March 26 to restore tuition assistance programs, which is an average of $4,500 per year to all military branches except the Coast Guard for fiscal year 2013.

Miguel Cruz, a computer engineering major and Army veteran who works at the UTPA Veteran Service Center, said that sequestration might eventually reduce that $4,500 by as much as $1,000. He said that the majority of veterans, like himself, use their tuition assistance as a backup and instead get funding through the GI Bill.

According to Elda Arriaga, VSC manager, there are 473 veteran students at UTPA but only 25 to 30 students depend solely on tuition assistance.

“We don’t know what will

happen in the summer or fall,” Arriaga said.

IN TEXAS Texas is expected to be one of the most economically hurt states from the sequester, trailing behind California and Virginia, according to a January report by the Texas House of Representatives. Texas might lose about 98,979 defense jobs and 60,494 non-defense jobs.

With increased expenditures by Mexican nationals in central and southern Texas, however, the state’s economy might be OK. Mexican Nationals spent $863,089,738 in Hidalgo County in 2012, according to a report by the Strategic Alliance for Business and Economic Research Institute.

Jackson, who is also the director of the Center for Border Economic Studies at UTPA, said the Texas economy depends tremendously on the Mexican Nationals’ expenditures.

“If you were to literally stop Mexicans from coming over here you would not have a Valley economy,” Jackson said.

“The good thing about it is that we had a major recession recently but we weren’t impacted as much because we still had sales coming in the Valley. We had a lot of Mexicans coming to shop. If they were to close the border or anything like that then yes, on this side we would feel it.”

On a national level, Jorgensen said the sequester will cause slower economic growth for fiscal year 2013.

“The government should be spending money, the idea to slash its budget is not a good thing,” he said. “In a recession, when we have the government holding back purchases and the money it spends the economy will be hurt.”

Although Jorgensen said nobody knows the specific effects the sequester may bring, he expects the five percent reduction in federal spendings to remain in place for the future.

“It appears this is going to be the new normal, the new status quo,” he added.

April 18, 2013

WE ARE NOW HIRING!

    Apply@ARHU 170

April 18, 2013

ADVERTISEMENT

Page 5

ADVERTISEMENT

Page 4

sequester continued from page 2 Initially, veteran students at the University feared sequestration would eliminate their federal tuition assistance through third-party military agencies, not including the state-administered Hazelwood program and G.I. Bill.

However, Obama signed a bill March 26 to restore tuition assistance programs, which is an average of $4,500 per year to all military branches except the Coast Guard for fiscal year 2013.

Miguel Cruz, a computer engineering major and Army veteran who works at the UTPA Veteran Service Center, said that sequestration might eventually reduce that $4,500 by as much as $1,000. He said that the majority of veterans, like himself, use their tuition assistance as a backup and instead get funding through the GI Bill.

According to Elda Arriaga, VSC manager, there are 473 veteran students at UTPA but only 25 to 30 students depend solely on tuition assistance.

“We don’t know what will

happen in the summer or fall,” Arriaga said.

IN TEXAS Texas is expected to be one of the most economically hurt states from the sequester, trailing behind California and Virginia, according to a January report by the Texas House of Representatives. Texas might lose about 98,979 defense jobs and 60,494 non-defense jobs.

With increased expenditures by Mexican nationals in central and southern Texas, however, the state’s economy might be OK. Mexican Nationals spent $863,089,738 in Hidalgo County in 2012, according to a report by the Strategic Alliance for Business and Economic Research Institute.

Jackson, who is also the director of the Center for Border Economic Studies at UTPA, said the Texas economy depends tremendously on the Mexican Nationals’ expenditures.

“If you were to literally stop Mexicans from coming over here you would not have a Valley economy,” Jackson said.

“The good thing about it is that we had a major recession recently but we weren’t impacted as much because we still had sales coming in the Valley. We had a lot of Mexicans coming to shop. If they were to close the border or anything like that then yes, on this side we would feel it.”

On a national level, Jorgensen said the sequester will cause slower economic growth for fiscal year 2013.

“The government should be spending money, the idea to slash its budget is not a good thing,” he said. “In a recession, when we have the government holding back purchases and the money it spends the economy will be hurt.”

Although Jorgensen said nobody knows the specific effects the sequester may bring, he expects the five percent reduction in federal spendings to remain in place for the future.

“It appears this is going to be the new normal, the new status quo,” he added.

April 18, 2013

WE ARE NOW HIRING!

    Apply@ARHU 170

April 18, 2013

ADVERTISEMENT

Page 5

6

arts & life

April 18, 2013

‘The Valley’s soundtrack’

Melissa “Bones” Martinez

Local music scene strives to survive

By Lea Victoria Juarez The Pan American Each weekend, artists across the Valley plug in their amps, set up their mics and prepare to perform for anyone who will listen. But while they’re playing their tunes in the limelight, empty seats in the venue don’t go unnoticed.

A headcount of about 50 people attended the RGV Local Musicians Showcase April 13 at Barlow’s Rock Venue in Pharr. According to event promoter Waylon Magallan, that’s a large number when it comes to Valley shows.

RGV Showcase is meant to expose local artists on the rise and get them known in the Valley community, Magallan said. A total of eight acts performed, ranging from rap and metal to acoustic.

“I’m from San Antonio. They have a very good music scene there. When I came here, I was expecting it to be the same,” the 21-year-old said. “Over there you have a show and you’re like, ‘Man, only 200 people showed up.’ Over here you’re like, ‘Oh I had a good show, 40 people showed up.’ It’s just really different.”

Magallan moved to the Valley in May 2012 and eventually began organizing live music shows with promoting company Ace’s High Productions. According to Magallan, he noticed a struggle in the local music scene, motivating him to get involved. As a musician himself, he said he wanted to do his part.

“We wanted to do a show for artists who are barely starting some people’s first shows - just to help them out and get some exposure,” Magallan said of RGV Showcase. “Before I moved down here, everyone would say that McAllen had a very good scene and the local music had support. But when I moved down here, everyone said the

scene was dying. I just wanted to help it out.”

According to Magallan, artists in the Valley don’t promote themselves well, resulting in a less-than-packed house, discouraging the artists. Lack of selfpromotion is one of the factors in the “struggling” scene, according to the promoter.

Barlow’s owner Dante Becerra can attest to this theory.

“As a venue owner, I feel bad for bands if they don’t have people. At the same time it’s the band’s responsibility to promote their show,” said Becerra, the singer of local band 22 to None.

“A lot of bands, when they get booked, they assume that the

Arturo Villalobos/The Pan American

fans and artists, Becerra thinks it’s because there aren’t enough venues to play.

BARS VS. VENUES According to Becerra, bars such as McAllen’s Simon Sez and Cypress Lounge are popular with bands, but many are ages 21 and up, leaving out the younger demographic. Barlow’s, however, doesn’t sell alcohol or allow smoking indoors, leaving that particular crowd to potentially seek other locations.

Along with the venue, bar battle, Becerra explained that audiences get discouraged when they have to pay to see local bands perform and will complain about

I can be playing in front of like three people and I would still have brought the whole getup. It’s fun to me.

- Melissa “Bones” Martinez Local musician

promoter is going to promote for them, but the bands have to bring in their own people.”

Tucked away in a plaza, next to Taqueria Jalisco, lies Barlow’s Rock Venue, which opened in January. Becerra explained that he opened the venue because bands didn’t have many locations to play.

“Too many local venues closed down, and since I’m in a band, it was hard to find places that let you play if you don’t bring in 50 to 100 people,” 34-year-old Becerra said. “I wanted a venue for the locals. The ones who don’t get to play anywhere.”

While Magallan said he believes support is lacking from

a cover fee. The RGV Musicians Showcase charged an entrance fee of $4 with 10 percent of the cut for Ace’s High. There are reasons for this. As opposed to bars that use drink funds to pay bills, places like Barlow’s, which don’t sell alcoholic refreshments, rely solely on the cover charge to stay in business.

“You’re not paying for a local band. You’re paying for the place to stay open so you can watch local bands,” Becerra explained.

“We don’t sell anything, maybe water for a dollar. Cover pays the lights, the AC. It pays for the venue to stay open and a lot of people don’t like that.”

FOR THE MUSIC Regardless of the attendance, for some artists, the show will go on - a mentality that Secrets Told In Silence guitarist Melissa “Bones” Martinez follows.

“As a person who has seen it all and has been struggling for years, it doesn’t matter to me,” the 30-year-old Weslaco native said. “I can be playing in front of like three people and I would still have brought the whole getup. It’s fun to me. This is what I do and I’m not going to half-ass it.”

Martinez, whose band played at the RGV Showcase, explained that she’s been involved in the music since she was 12 years old, performing with bands and as a solo act.

Although she said she will play music regardless of crowd size, she understands the importance of audience involvement.

“If you have support and they show interest in you, it kinda adds motivation for the band to get out there and practice as much as they’re supposed to,” she noted. “If they see that people are starting to show interest in them then it kind of builds them up.”

For shows such as RGV Musicians Showcase, Becerra and Magallan explained that it’s all done for the locals, and it’s something that they will continue to do while they can.

“This is all we have. We don’t live in a big market city where there’s stuff to do all the time,” Becerra said. “It’s like, every movie has a soundtrack, this is our soundtrack. We need the support. I mean, we’ll play with or without it. Even if it’s playing in a garage for two people, we’re still going to play. This is the Valley’s soundtrack.”

MAS continued from page 1 diplomatic, religious, intellectual history),” Fonte wrote in the report.

The bill comes on the heels of the Arizona effort to discontinue the teaching of ethnic studies in public schools.

SB 1070, passed April 2010, stated that residents must carry proof of their citizenship upon suspicion. HB 2281, passed 2011, declared public school students be taught to value each other as individuals and not teach resentment and hate towards other races or classes of people.

Sen. Patrick clarified in his Facebook post that he isn’t trying to rid universities of African-American and Mexican-American courses altogether, but trying to make sure students know all of America’s narrative as opposed to just a portion.

“Both cultures have played a major part in our history and who we are today,” he said in the post. “Not understanding the great melting pot of race and culture that is a part of the fabric of America’s past would be to miss a major part of our history. That needs to be taught and falls into what I call a broad and comprehensive history of our nation.”

Garza disagrees.

“We look at the bill and what it’s going to do and we see that it’s limiting the courses we take,” the 24-year-old political science major said. “We feel like he’s trying to micromanage our courses and what we’re allowed to take. It comes down to academic integrity and intellectual freedom.”

With the idea of intellectual freedom, MASC has already taken a step forward on the UTPA campus.

RESOLUTION MASC drafted a resolution asking the University to consider an inclusion requirement course, allowing diversity initiatives at UTPA. “It’s just the institution making a conscious choice to promote diversity or inclusiveness within their campus,” Garza said. “So we felt that our University, being a Hispanic-serving institution with over 90 percent Hispanic population, that we should have something similar to that.”

According to the UTPA Factbook, 89.2 percent of Hispanics made up the University population as of fall 2012.

MASC is asking the University to adopt a course in the core curriculum or as subject within the core that examines the historical contributions of various groups, from areas

such as gender, ethnic, religious or LGBT community studies.

“In a history course, you don’t necessarily study things about Mexican-Americans or about African-Americans,” Garza said. “So we’re really looking to change that and give students an opportunity to explore topics and issues that maybe they haven’t been introduced to, and maybe they might be interested in.”

As of now, it’s still unresolved as to whether this would fit within the core curriculum without adding more hours or removing a core requirement such as, philosophy, literature and science.

Faculty Senate member Lewis Weger sees two options: integrate an unspecified inclusion subject within the core or get rid of UNIV 1301 and put an inclusion course in its place. The only issue he sees with the latter is that a specific inclusion course would take its place. That single course would have to include studies from all types of minority groups, a highly difficult task, according to Weger.

If they integrate an inclusion subject within the core requirements, students would have more options and majors with 120 hours can use the course to satisfy an advanced course need.

“Why not have a variety of courses that are designated as meeting the inclusion requirement?” the associate professor said. “Have students free to pick whatever course it is they want to take, as long as there’s the understanding...that students must pick one course.”

Several of the courses UTPA already offers would be able to count as an inclusion requirement such as Mexican-American politics, border studies, gender and politics and race immigration and studies.

Although, Garza admitted the resolution process has been difficult and MASC doesn’t understand Sen. Patrick’s reasoning behind SB 1128, their main goal is to encourage discussion between the two groups and gain an understanding of each other.

“Our goal is to not completely change people’s opinion but at least to begin a discourse with this,” Garza said. “We want to welcome conversation so people can understand where we’re coming from and equally, we want to see their side of the story as well.”

April 31, 18, 2013 2013 January

7

Broncs look to keep fighting after failing to qualify for tournament

By Eder Castillo The Pan American

Thomas-Orestis Panoulas Freshman

Adrian Castillo/The Pan American

The UTPA Bronc men’s tennis team is looking to finish off the season strong, despite falling to Southland Conference opponent Lamar University 4-3 Friday in Beaumont.

With a loss to Lamar, the Broncs’ chances for making the conference tournament were dashed.

The Broncs (8-16) went into Friday’s match against Lamar needing the victory to place in the top four and make the Southland Conference Tournament. They had been in the top five after defeating Oral Roberts April 1 in Fort Worth.

Although the team has faced challenges this season, with injuries such as the one suffered by freshman Thomas-Orestis Panoulas at the ITA Regionals Oct. 21 and struggling to get wins on the road with a 1-10 away record, they still plan to keep fighting. The Broncs have one match remaining on their schedule against No. 57 Texas A&M Corpus Christi at the Thomas J. Henry Tennis Center at Corpus Christi.

“We’re a young team and I feel like we’re getting better as we go. We had a tough schedule and we’ve had some key injuries early,” Coach Paul Goode said. “That kind of hurt our confidence and made guys have to play up, a little bit higher up than they would have otherwise, so that was tough. But otherwise I feel like we’ve improved through the season.”

Although the Broncs have had trouble being consistent at times, Goode said he knows what the team has to do to improve.

weekly updates

“We’ve been talking a lot about mental consistency throughout the match and being tactically sound for the whole match and not being so up and down during,” he said.

“And trying to be consistent with our approach to how we’re trying to play the match.”

The Broncs came up just a bit short in their first match Friday of their three road matches in three days against Lamar University, Alcorn State University and University of Lafayette. The Broncs swept the Cardinals in doubles and were able to get two singles match points with wins by Felix Hasselberg and Joseph Bishop. But in the end, the Cardinals were just too much, taking the remaining four matches to come out with the win.

Even though the loss keeps the Broncs outside of the tournament, there is still some promise for them in the future, particularly in breakout freshman Panoulas, a native of Greece who has 13 wins in singles and 12 in doubles.

“Thomas has really had a great season,” Goode said. “He’s improved probably the most of anyone from the beginning of the year to now. At the beginning of the fall I felt like he would be somewhere between one and three, and now he’s clearly established himself as our best player, and a lot of it goes back to his work ethic and his consistency from day-to-day with his work ethic.”

Panoulas became just the second Bronc to earn Southland Conference Player of the Week honors March 26. He was also the only player to get a point earlier that week against No. 54 Arkansas. The

Razorbacks were just one of several top-ranked opponents UTPA has faced this year on its road schedule.

“Our schedule, we’ve played I think six or eight ranked teams on the road. We’ve played Top 20 Baylor, we’ve played TCU which is actually better than what they’re ranked,” Goode said. “Rice is very good, so is Texas Tech. We’ve played a lot of tough teams on the road and that’s more the reason for our road record this season.”

Last year the Broncs had a better travel mark (5-3) than they have this year (2-11), but did not face as many top-ranked opponents.

The Broncs looked to even out the series going into their second match up this year against the Cajuns, as Louisiana Lafayette had the best of the Broncs when they faced off earlier this month at Orville Cox Tennis Center in Edinburg.

“It’s great. I love it. I love being able to play someone twice and have a second shot at them,” Goode said. “We know what to expect going into it. The match was real contentious the first time and very competitive. So we’re excited to have them again and we’re looking forward to that match.”

After dropping two of their last three road games, to Lamar and Louisiana Lafayette, the Broncs look to get their third road win going into their final match of the year April 20 in Corpus Christi.

“We finish up the regular season at Corpus Christi, which is a team that’s ranked in the 50’s right now,” Goode said. “They’re a very good team and have had a lot of success lately so it should be a good test for us.”

ba s e ba l l Won all four games against Chicago State University and outscored them 32-2 in the series Lost to the Longhorns 6-1 in Austin April 16

men’s basketball men’s golf

Norma Gonzalez/The Pan American

The UTPA men’s basketball held the last team practice April 15 to conclude the 201213 season. This was the last opportunity for newly instated head coach Dan Hipsher (right) to get acquainted with the team as a whole.

“Well, they are just getting to know me and I’m getting to know them,” Hipsher said. “We had two team workouts that were allowed and today’s the last day of that.”

Hipsher brought in seniors Brandon Provost (left) and Aaron Urbanus (center) as assistant coaches to help him run the practice.

“It’s fun to help out and see a different perspective of the coaches and learn new things,” Urbanus said.

Will host Play Day April 20, where contestants will compete against the men’s team

women ’s golf

Will host the Great West Conference Championship April 24-26 in San Antonio

men’s tennis

Defeated Alcorn State 5-2 April 13 in Louisiana Lost 5-2 to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette April 14 in Louisiana Will take on the Islanders in Corpus Christi April 20

Joseph Bishop heads into Corpus with a three-match winning streak in singles

women’s tennis

Will compete at the National Invitation Tennis Tournament April 20-21

April 18, 2013

ADVERTISEMENT

Page 8