The anger Volume 93 • Issue 12 San Antonio College A forum of free voices since 1926
March 4, 2019 WWW.THERANGER.ORG
SLAC lab offers free tutoring on 13 subjects Test proctoring is also available in the lab for making up missed tests. By Travis Doyle sac-ranger@alamo.edu Tutoring through the student learning assistance center is free for 13 subjects and is available by appointment. “The students have no idea tutoring is free of charge. They really think they have to pay,” administrative services specialist Bertha Ovalle said in an interview Feb. 11. The lab has 10 tutors available by appointment and 14 workstudies. The work-studies help on a day-to-day basis by working at the front desk or answering general questions about the lab. Total lab visits were at 20,730 in the fall by 3,320 students, and the most used service was access to the computers, academic Coordinator Geraldo Guerra said in an interview Feb. 22. The services offered by the lab are free, except for printing which
is paid for with a GoPrint account or with a GoPrint online account. The lab is for students who need tutoring or a quiet place to do homework at school instead of being distracted at home, he said. The main lab has 70 computers, including three iMac computers with a suite of Adobe software. “It offers Photoshop and Illustrator, and that’s what I usually use to edit my pictures, said criminal justice sophomore Mayra Mendez in an interview Feb. 11. Mendez said she uses the lab at least twice a week to edit pictures for a photography class, and she hopes the lab can get the Adobe Bridge program to help her keep photos organized. Guerra’s biggest goal for the lab is “to make the student more aware of their responsibilities as a student.” “So we really want the student to really take an active role of being a student here at SAC,” he said. “It’s not high school anymore, so it’s your responsibility as a student and as an adult.” The lab also offers exam-proctoring for students who need to make up exams.
Students can get an exam proctored by asking their instructor to submit a SLAC proctoring exam request with a list of all the students who are making up the exam. The lab also hosts workshops to teach skills, such as résumé writing, formatting and citations, stress management and financial aid basics. The schedule for the workshops can be found on the SLAC webpage of this college’s website. The SLAC webpage also offers 39 downloadable self-help handouts in English/writing, mathematics, natural science, social science, study skills and tutoring. The SLAC lab is open 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m.5 p.m. Friday, and 9 a.m.- 1 p.m. Saturday in Room 707 of Moody Learning Center. Students can make tutoring appointments at 210-486-0165 or sac-slac@alamo.edu. For more information, visit www.alamo.edu/sac/about-sac/college-offices/slac/.
District approves Fresh Start No concrete promotion campaign has been created for the program. By Sergio Medina smedina104@student.alamo.edu
Psychology sophomore Thaddeous Kelly cross punches boxing coach Hector Ramos while sparring at boxing practice Feb. 25 on the second floor of Loftin. Practices are from 4-6 p.m. Monday-Friday. Practice for new members begins March 18. The next boxing competition is
the Olympic-Style Boxing tournament from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. April 17 in the mall. Ramos said if students want to compete in matches, members need to show up consistently to practice. Go online to see the slideshow and story. Deandra Gonzalez
ESL program hopes for a language learning center Almost 1,000 students enrolled in ESL classes in the fall. By Marissa Macias sac-ranger@alamo.edu English-as-a-second language faculty hope they are getting closer to adding a developmental lab for the center for English language learning in Oppenheimer Academic Center. Sharla Jones, English-as-a-second language professor, has worked to build this lab for the past 10 years. “The sense of community that the students have is something I would like to see more of in a learning center,” Jones said Feb. 19. Jones also created a language learning lab at Northwest Vista College, which operated from 2000 until the ESL program was canceled in 2010. “Students would come because they like the idea of those specialized workshops when we had a facility to do it in,” Jones said. The lab here would offer computers equipped with supporting software for reading, writing, grammar, listening and speaking skills practice; writing and reading centers with an ESL resource library; tutoring services; and specialized work-
shops and seminars. Cross-language tutoring would be an added benefit the lab would bring to the program by encouraging better collaboration between all student languages, Jones said. “You can have students who are studying Spanish who could get tutoring from the students who are studying English who are Spanish speakers,” Jones said. Funding is the main factor holding up production, Jones said. “That’s what we are trying to figure out. Where we are getting the money from to do this,” Jones said. With a cost of about $30,000, the lab would have 25 sign-in computers with software, 30 headphones with microphone capabilities and job opportunities for supplemental instructional leaders. Monitors would be furnished by the office of technology services, she said. The development of the learning center is coming out in phases, Tom Cox, chair of languages, said Feb. 19. Phase 1 is finding a suitable classroom for the lab, then finding the funding for furniture and software, Cox said.
“It is still in the early planning stages, but it would be nice if we could have part of it rolled out by fall, but that would be a little optimistic depending on what would happen over summer,” Cox said. The ESL program is part of the languages department. The coordinator for ESL is Professor Anna Budzinski. The program offers four levels of courses in Flex 1 and Flex 2 semesters. Each level offers courses under the ESLA rubric in speaking and listening, writing, grammar and reading. After Level 4, students who are enrolled in the ESLA credit program can take English for Academic Purposes classes. ENGA courses are designed for English language learners to help transition them into collegelevel classes, according to the ESL webpage on the college website. ENGA courses are in reading and vocabulary, and composition and grammar. During the fall semester, 993 students were enrolled in the ESLA program in two flex semesters. For more information, call Cox at 210-486-1115 or email tcox@alamo.edu.
The board of trustees unanimously voted to pass the Fresh Start program for students during the regular meeting of the board Feb. 26 at Killen Center. Beginning in the fall, the program will allow former students without college accreditation and with financial holds of $500 or less to re-enroll. The program will benefit up to about 9,000 students in Bexar County who owe money to the district. That translates to $1,832,943 in money owed. In total, there are about 277,000 students in Bexar County who have some college credit but no accreditation. After completing six credit hours with a C grade or better, students will receive a scholarship in the amount owed. Students will be able to enroll in financial aid to cover tuition expenses. Further, students will be encouraged to attend financial literacy workshops, develop academic plans with academic advisers and connect with student advocacy services. Dr. Diane Snyder, vice chancellor for finance and administration, said before the board the program
See START, Page 2 Students who benefit:
About 9,000 students in Bexar County with financial holds of $500 or less