The Ranger, April 02, 2018

R ANGER

An independent forum of free voices serving San Antonio College since 1926 and the Alamo Colleges since 1945 Volume 92 • Issue 14

THE

April

02,

2 0 1 8 Journalism-photography program at San Antonio College

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graduate

Cap and gown pickup for students participating in commencement is 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. April 2-6 in Duran Welcome Center.

Students need to pick up their caps and gowns by April 6 at 4:30 p.m.

Students must pick them up by deadline or risk their names not being

printed in commencement booklets; however, they will still be able to walk the stage.

Commencement for graduates from fall 2017 and spring and summer 2018, will be 10 a.m. May 12 at Freeman Coliseum, 3201 E. Houston St. Students will receive their degrees in the mail within 60 days of walking the stage.

Victoria Lee Zamora

Advising department documents student transfer intent Advising director hopes to reach students earlier.

By Alison Graef

agraef@student.alamo.edu

Criminal justice freshman Daniel Rogriguez and kinesiology freshman Tyler Morris hold a punch stance in the second week of boxing practice March 26 in Candler.

The boxing club meets 4-6 p.m. Monday-Friday on the second floor of Loftin Student Center. See story online. Deandra Gonzalez

Student activity fee triples to fund clubs, teams, wages

By Austin P. Taylor

ataylor160@student.alamo.edu

The Alamo Colleges board of trustees voted to increase the student activity fee from $1 to $3 per credit hour. The increase will go into effect in the fall.

This is the first raise in the student activity fee since it was created in 2006. All previous proposals to increase the fee were denied.

“I really feel like it’s going to be a game changer for us,” Mark Bigelow, the interim director of student life at this college, said in a March 22 interview.

Bigelow said the increase will be used to enhance existing co-curricular and extracurricular programs to “make the academic experience more robust and enriching.”

Bigelow also said the increased fee could be used to enhance the

experience for online students.

Bigelow said no plans have been solidified for online yet.

Bigelow said this is not the first time students have sought an increase in the student activity fee, but previous attempts to raise the fee were struck down by the board.

“In 2013 a proposal was made to raise the fee by a dollar, but the board said they needed to hear the student voice,” Bigelow said.

Bigelow said the fee is still either at or below what is charged by other Texas colleges, so the colleges’ price of enrollment is still competitive.

Quintin Longoria, Student District Council chair, said this increase will help the student activity fee compensate for growing inflation, which has made it difficult to adequately fund campus

Zachary-Taylor Wright

Student life wants to use fee increase to improve extracurricular activities.

See FEE, Page 2

Advising Director Christina Horton shared the department’s success in exceeding its wildly important goal of documenting student transfer intent at a board meeting March 20 at Killen Center.

The WIG, which was chosen by the advising department at this college for fall 2017, was to increase documented intent to transfer from 314 students to 1,490 by Dec. 15.

The strategy to accomplish the WIG was for each adviser to document the transfer intents of 3 students per week. The department employs 28 advisers.

“This is a critical conversation that we have with students, so the goal was to make sure that three of those conversations happened per adviser per week,” Horton said.

The department exceeded the goal by 19 percent by documenting 1,722 conversations about transfer intent before Dec. 15.

Of those 1,722 students, 22 percent had completed 0-15 credit hours, 13 percent had completed 16-30 credit hours, 20 percent had completed 31-44 credit hours and 45 percent had completed 45 credit hours or more.

Horton said the goal is to see an increase in transfer intent discussions with the 0-15 hour group.

“The WIG is commonly referred to as the 30-hour intent, but I think we can all agree that by 30 hours, that’s a little too late for us to be having that conversation,” Horton said.

Horton said most transfer intent conversations happened at 31-45 hours because students often don’t come to advising before 31 hours.

The top five universities selected by the documented students were the University of Texas at San Antonio, Texas A&M University-San Antonio, UT Health San Antonio, Texas State University and the University of the Incarnate Word.

According to Horton’s presentation, the first-year success rates for transfer students from this college to those universities are between 50 and 54 percent, and the graduation rate is between 58 percent at Texas State and 81 percent at UT Health.

“So the students who are making these choices are really setting themselves up for success,” Horton said.

Horton said the data from the WIG has been put to good use for planning the TRAC center’s February transfer event, on-site appointments with university

See TRANSFER, Page 2

New degree and Level 2 social work certification coming in fall Case management is the most important skill for social workers, coordinator says.

By Andrea Moreno sac-ranger@alamo.edu

Students will have the opportunity to earn an Associate in Applied Science in social work and a Level 2 case management certification when registration opens fall 2018, social work Coordinator Lisa Black said in an interview March 19.

The registration date for fall has not been set.

The new degree and certification will be available only at this college. The board of trustees approved the new degree plan Feb. 27 about two years after it was proposed.

The degree plan will be posted on this college’s catalog website, Black said.

Students are not required to take the associate degree and certification at the same time.

Students have the choice of taking the courses

required to receive the certification of 30 credit hours.

If students decide to continue seeking the applied science degree in social work, they must take another 30 credit hours.

The applied science degree plan will have about 45 credit hours concentrated in social work and 15 credit hours of core classes.

“The degree curriculum is more complex and more in-depth,” Black said, referring to the 45 credit hours required in the major subject.

This college offers an Associate of Arts in which students complete 42 hours in core courses and can include social work courses in the 15 to 18 hours of courses in the concentration area.

“All these credits (degree and certification) will be able to transfer to Texas A&M University-San Antonio,” she said, referring to the new degree plan.

Black said this college has made connections with TAMU-SA, and students are encouraged to

transfer to that university.

She said Texas State University will accept the credits as well.

Students may study for a Bachelor of Arts of Applied Science in social work, sociology and any related field after obtaining the new associate degree at this college, Black said.

After students have the associate degree, Level 2 certification in case management and the bachelor’s degree, students have the opportunity to take a national exam to be a certified case manager, known as a CCM. “Having the certification in case management and then having a national certification makes you very employable,” Black said.

Black presented what social work professionals believe students need to learn and careers students may pursue.

When students graduate with the certification and Associate in Applied Science, students have the opportunity to work in public, profit and non-

profit organizations.

Examples of employment are long-term care, occupational services, child and welfare family services, adult and juvenile justice and mental health care.

According to the presentation Black shared, 36 employers in the workforce shared their views on skills students should have to work in the field of social work.

Case management was the highest needed skill for students to have for employment.

Fifty percent of employers recommended that.

Thirty percent suggested team work, 10 percent suggested documentation skills and 10 percent suggested basic understanding of an individual and family and group dynamics.

Students planning to apply for this plan in the fall are advised to contact Black.

Students can make an appointment with Black in Room 323 of Chance Academic Center or by calling at 210-486-0347.

2NEWS

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April 2, 2018

‘The Government Inspector’ hits McAllister stage April 5 The director said it was the most difficult play to cast with 20 actors portraying 26 characters.

By Katya Harmel

sac-ranger@alamo.edu

The director and cast for “The Government Inspector” are working to prepare for the show debuting 7:30 p.m. April 5 in the auditorium of McAllister Fine Arts Center.

The play was written in 1836 by Russian playwright Nikolai Gogol. American playwright Jeffrey Hatcher, known for his adaptation of “Murder by Poe” in 2003, adapted Gogol’s pre-socialist comedic play in 2008.

“The Government Inspector” begins with gossip that the czar will send an inspector to spy on a small town outside St. Petersburg, Russia. The mayor and townspeople panic to conceal any corrupt activity.

The frantic cover-up is halted when news spreads of a mysterious traveler who has booked a room at the local inn.

The man is quickly assumed to be the inspector, but he is not.

The man’s name is Ivan Alexandreyevich Khlestakov — a selfish, freeloading crook.

The mayor and residents of the town immediately stoop to wine and dine the “inspector,” favors Khlestakov is happy to receive.

The unfortunate case of mistaken identity leads to a series of outrageous events and ultimately leaves the townspeople looking like fools.

FEE from Page 1 organizations and events without raising the fee.

“It’s been almost a decade since we reviewed this fee and so we have 10 years’ worth of depreciation, so the funding we had when we first instituted this fee is not quite what it used to be,” Longoria said.

Longoria said this increase will allow the Student Activity Fee Committee to consider more applications throughout the academic year.

“We have two options. We can either seek to preserve the money till the end of the year like we plan and that involves forgoing applications,” Longoria said.

“Or we can stay true to our first-come, first-service and hit zero whenever that comes. We’ve decided to go with the first choice.”

While this method has been working for the committee, Longoria said they do not believe it is sustainable.

The increase was approved at the March 20 board of trustees meeting.

Theater Coordinator Ronald “Ronnie” Watson, who has been a theater instructor at this college for 13 years, has always been fond of the play and dreamed of directing it.

“It is a farcical, romantic-comedy romp,” he said. “It’s crazy.”

He said he finally chose to do the play this semester because he found the right combination of actors to take on the challenging satire.

“We have a great group this year, so I felt like it was the right time to do it,” he said.

The cast is large with 20 actors playing 26 roles.

Watson said five actresses will each play two roles.

He said this was the most difficult play he has ever had to cast simply because of its size.

“I wanted to give a part to everybody,” he said.

“There are so many possible combinations with such a large play. Fitting all of those puzzle pieces together was pretty tricky this time.”

The lead actors include theater sophomores Steven Mirdjani as Ivan Khlestakov and Craig Haddad playing Mayor Anton Antonovich.

Watson said he has been impressed with the work ethic the actors have shown.

He said the goal was for each actor to have lines memorized over spring break.

Watson admitted he was not completely confident they would accomplish the challenge, but they did.

“It was a very nice, pleasant surprise,” he said.

Watson explained he hopes the audience will

District 2 trustee Denver McClendon, District 4 trustee Marcelo Casillas and District 3 trustee Anna Bustamante were the only board members to oppose the increase.

In a March 26 interview, McClendon said he was concerned the fee increase would be a “burden on some students.”

McClendon was not satisfied with the number of respondents to the survey presented by the Student District Council.

He said the Alamo Colleges student population is more than 60,000, so the survey’s sample size of 1,715 students was not enough to convince him to support the increase.

Kayla Salwey, president of the Student Government Association of this college, said the surveys were conducted across the Alamo Colleges.

The 1,715 students polled make up at least 3 percent of each college’s total population, which is a sufficient sample size, she said.

To ensure students respond to the survey, SGA went into several classes

Theater freshman Stephanie Delgado and theater sophomores Antonio Romero and Steven Mirdjani rehearse Act 2 of the play “The Government Inspector” March 28 in McAllister auditorium. Delgado, who plays the mayor’s maid Grusha, attempts to appear attractive to Mirdjani, who plays Ivan, and Romero, who plays Osip. Deandra Gonzalez notice the irony of the show and connect certain ideas within the play to current U.S. events.

“I think it’s ironic that the play takes place in Russia being that it is so prominent in the news these days,” he said. “Everyone in the play is corrupted.”

“I hope (the audience) connects the damaging affects of corruption today to the play even though

across campus as well as emailed the survey to students.

According to the fiscal year 2018 annual budget, the Alamo Colleges most recent unduplicated headcount was 72,123.

The total of 1,715 makes up 2.37 percent of the Alamo Colleges student population.

Math Professor Gerald Busald said the sample size would allow for over 95 percent confidence in the survey results.

The student activity fee is used to fund this college’s cultural celebrations, intramural sports, on-campus events, club activities and the office of student life.

Any clubs seeking to obtain funds from the committee must submit applications to the Student Activity Fee Committee and present a proposal at a committee meeting. The next meeting is 3 p.m. April 12 in the faculty lounge of Loftin Student Center.

Funds for each college are determined by enrollment.

Any questions about the student activity fee can be directed to the office of student life at 210-486-0125.

it takes place in 1836,” he said. “If they can laugh at themselves, it’s even better.”

“The Government Inspector” is 7:30 p.m. April 5-7 and 12-14 and 2:30 p.m. April 8 and 15 in McAllister.

Tickets are $5 with SAC ID; $8 for other college students, seniors and military; and $10 general admission.

TRANSFER from Page 1 representatives, the upcoming signing event May 3 and other events throughout the semester.

“Now that we know who these students are and where they want to go, we can be more strategic in reaching out to them,” Horton said.

Horton said when students identify where they want to transfer early, the advisers can ensure they take classes that will transfer to those universities and avoid taking excessive classes.

Horton said 80 percent of students who come to this college plan to transfer, but only 50 percent of those students use the transfer services.

She said it is a “reasonable presumption” that a lack of awareness is why so few seek transfer services.

To raise awareness, the center plans to host events on campus, and there is a new video about the center’s services.

Horton said the goal is to have the video incorporated into student development courses and to have faculty show the video to their classes.

“Everyone needs to be talking about transfer from the get-go,” Horton said.

Horton said students who want to go directly into the workforce instead of transferring are assisted in planning for and transitioning into their chosen careers.

“Keep in mind that our transfer center is also a career center,” Horton said.

Students can call Horton at 210-486-033. Students can see their assigned adviser on the “My Page” tab of their ACES account.

EDITORIAL3 www.theranger.org/EDITORIAL

APRIL 02, 2018

Increase student participation before increasing activity fees An extra $24 is not small change to everyone.

Amanda Graef

Don’t be afraid to listen Respect rights to express opinions.

With a polarized political climate sparking disputes over strongly held beliefs, it is more important than ever to protect and respect people’s rights to freedom of speech.

Love of Truth Ministries brings controversy to campus when it holds antiabortion events, displaying sandwich boards with graphic photos of aborted fetuses in the mall.

While people often have strong reactions to the demonstration, it is important for people who disagree with the ministry’s message to express their disagreement while respecting the protesters’ legal right to express theirs.

Free speech is not limited to your opinion. By its nature, it protects people whom you disagree with as well.

This is one sphere in which silencing “the enemy” is not a victory. Fight for

others’ rights as if they were your own — because, really, they are.

Free speech is necessary to exchange information and opinions freely and without censorship.

Through this free exchange, people can learn alternate points of view and be exposed to new information. This is needed to make informed decisions.

Don’t be afraid to hear, see or read things you disagree with. You are welcome to disagree. But try to give objective consideration to that information before rejecting it.

Ignorance is not a position of power, and it is not compatible with enlightenment. People who think their opinions are flawless are not omniscient — they’re closed-minded.

When alternative viewpoints are carefully considered and understood, that information can fuel the fire of a well-informed opinion.

No one likes to discover added fees when checking their bill, but starting in the fall, students enrolled at the Alamo Colleges will have to reach even deeper into their pockets come tuition time.

A vote to increase the student activity fee from $1 to $3 per credit h o u r was passed by the Alamo Colleges board of trustees March 20.

Leading up to the vote, members of this college’s Student Government Association surveyed students across all five Alamo Colleges for their opinion regarding a potential increase.

The survey was designed to give students a voice.

Of those who participated, 62 percent voted in favor of the increase.

The issue with this process is that the 1,715 students who responded make up less than 3 percent of the 72,123 enrolled at the Alamo Colleges.

This is hardly a majority vote.

Furthermore, the poll was conducted in only a few days.

This all but ensured most students would miss the opportunity to give their opinion.

The survey presented to students on campus did not pinpoint where the extra money would go if the fee was raised.

If only 3 percent of a population votes on an issue and the document presented does not provide clear details, does it count as letting voices be heard?

According to the Student District Council, the fee is used to fund student clubs, organizations, events and extracurricular activities.

The funds have also been used by the office of student life for employee compensation and remodeling Loftin Student Center.

Fixing Loftin benefits many, but no data exists to show how many students Fil actually take advane tage of clubs and activities.

Online students also must pay the fee, regardless if they ever physically appear on campus.

One trustee indicated that a per semester increase of $12 to $36 is too small of a number to fret over.

However, to some students it is the difference between being able to afford renting a textbook or buying gas to get to campus.

Tripling a fee because 1,074 students of 72,123 “voiced” support for it is not representing students’ best interests.

ONLINE NOW www.theranger.org 22nd Cesar E. Chavez March draws crowd

By Frank Piedra On March 24, thousands of enthusiastic people gathered outside Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center on the city’s West Side to march in honor of Cesar E. Chavez, a civil rights activist and labor leader. Some of those marching have participated for many years.

Student activity fee triples to $3 per credit hour

By Alison Graef The board of trustees of the Alamo Colleges approved an increase of the student activity fee from $1 per credit hour to $3 per credit hour at a regular board meeting March 20 at Killen Center.

Students taking 12 credit hours will be charged $36 per semester, a 200 percent increase from the former $12 per semester.

STAFF Editor Alison Graef Managing Editor Kimberly Caballero Sports Editor Dillon Holloway Staff Writers Kathya Anguiano, Blanca Granados Katya Harmel, Thomas Macias Sergio Medina, Andrea Moreno Frank Piedra, Jeff Riley, Maya R. Williams Victoria L. Zamora

@sacranger @therangerSAC

Former mayor’s mother breaks barriers

The Ranger staff wins awards in TIPA competition

By Deandra Gonzalez

By Kimberly Caballero

Journalist and anthropologist Cecilia Ballí shared the story of three Hispanic women who broke barriers in the opening ceremony of Women’s History Month March 8 in the Fiesta Room of Loftin Student Center.

They are Rosie Castro, mother of former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro and U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas; Concepcion “Connie” Gonzales, who dug into her family history to find out if her family owned South Padre Island; and Irma Monreal, who questioned the Mexican government after her daughter was found dead along

The Ranger took home 21 awards at the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association convention March 21-25 in downtown Dallas.

TIPA is “one of the largest and most respected collegiate groups in the country” and has more than 25 on-site competitions during its annual conventions, according to the organization’s website.

Among the 60-plus 50-minute workshops was “Eye on the Ball: What a Reporter Does During a Game,” presented

by Drew Davidson, Cowboys beat writer at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Visuals Editor V. Finster

Cecilia Ballí, author and contributor to The New York Times and Texas Monthly, speaks at the opening ceremony for Women’s History Month March 8 in the Fiesta Room of Loftin.

Lorena Torres Romero with seven other women.

“It was a male world,” Ballí said of politics.

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4FEATURES www.theranger.org/premiere

april 02, 2018

Campus teeming with native nightlife The Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation founder said campus wildlife are resilient descendants of species native to this city.

Story by Thomas Macias • sac-ranger@alamo.edu

Mary En

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yeart

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Ortega said the presence of campus wildlife may be attributed to cat food left for this college’s cat population.

“If you feed them, they will come,” Ortega said.

Cuny said animals have adapted their diets as this city urbanized.

When the area consisted of green space, resident animals would eat rats, mice and bird eggs, Cuny said.

“Now they are eating dry cat food because that is what’s there,” she said.

Groundskeeper Jonathon Sanchez said he has seen bats at this college.

His colleague, Ruben Casarez, said he was told of a coyote that roamed campus.

Faculty have reported seeing it.

Other faculty have reported seeing skunks.

Cuny said in addition to these animals, native wildlife also include migratory Mexican tree-tailed and red bats, an occasional gray fox and several species of snakes.

Cuny said most

ry

green,” Cuny said.

“It used to be wildlife habitat. It was a wonderful area to grow up in because you never used to feel like you were in a city. As time progressed and as human beings (regressed), we started doing more of what we see every day now. We started tearing down and destroying the green spaces.”

Cuny said this regression was the construction of a large number of shopping centers becoming the norm instead of traveling downtown where large buildings were concentrated.

Urban development started to expand outward, but the wildlife did not depart, she said.

“The animals have to make the best of what is certainly a bad situation for them, and that is what generations and generations ago the great grandparents of the opossums, squirrels, raccoons and the skunks and foxes that you see today — that’s what they did,” Cuny said.

“They stayed put, and they began to adapt Amanda Graef because they had no

visitors are likely to be acquainted with campus wildlife.According to an Oct. 20 story in The Ranger, a large raccoon broke through a ceiling tile in McCreless Hall and was subsequently chased by groundskeepers and campus police.

Facilities Superintendent David Ortega said animals tend to appear on campus either at night or in the early morning.

Ma

accoons, opossums, bats, squirrels, skunks, snakes, foxes and coyotes were spotted around this college.

So what’s all this wildlife doing on an urban college campus?

Animals frequently seen on this campus are the resilient survivors of a once more robust San Antonio wildlife habitat, said Lynn Cuny, founder and president of Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation, in a March 21 interview.

Cuny, who is native to San Antonio, said this college’s wildlife is a link to a time when this city had more green space, water and native animals.

Cuny said the presence of wildlife predates this college, which was established in 1925 downtown and moved to this location in 1951.

“The wildlife lived in San Antonio since the 1920s and ’30s and certainly before because San Antonio’s terrain would support that,” Cuny said.

“Before San Antonio College was there, they were there.

“The minute you got out of downtown, it used to be very

other choice.”

Cuny said constant development has steadily eroded this city’s natural habitats.

“I remember seeing all these animals as a kid,” Cuny said.

“As I grew up, I started seeing these animals disappear because the green space disappeared.”

This college’s students, faculty, staff and

native wildlife are nocturnal.

Animals that have entered campus buildings probably did so at night and could not get out, Cuny said.

In these instances, Cuny recommended leaving an open door or window for animals.

Both Ortega and Cuny agreed native wildlife should not be considered hazardous, but people should not attempt to remove them.

Ortega said the facilities department has a hotline in case of animal entry. Contact the hotline at 210-486-1235.

For those outside of campus, Cuny said Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation can remove a trapped animal as well.

For more information, call 830-336-2725.

Cats club caters to feline residents

By Francisco Piedra sac-ranger@alamo.edu

Love cats? There is a student club for that.

The San Antonio College Community Cats club was started fall 2016 and provides care and refuge for cats calling this college home.

Before the club was started, staff and faculty primarily cared for feral and stray cats.

Despite the staff’s efforts, a need for a dedicated student organization was essential to give better attention to them, said Michelle Tippit, club cosponsor and client support specialist in the mega lab, in an interview Feb. 28.

“It’s important to share a coexistence and educate the student body about our cat colony,” Tippit said.

The club has taken on responsibility for giving the felines a safe place to stay and providing some stress relief for students.

The cats can be seen in the early and late hours of the day when student traffic is slow.

They generally hide in quieter areas out of public view, such as the area between the center for academic enrichment and the chemistry and geology building.

Food and water bowls are safely tucked away behind bushes and in less populated areas around campus, such as the lower level of Fletcher Administration Center and around the visual arts center.

“There are four cats that hang around the VATC building that I feed,” said Qing Liu, club cosponsor and communication design professor.

“In between classes, I’ll run out and refill their bowls,” Lui said.“My students all know how much I care for them.”

In addition to feeding the felines, the club has partnered with the San Antonio Feral Cats Coalition to assist in the trap-neuter-release program, or TNR, to stop growth and regulate safety.

Two cats hide in bushes behind visual arts. File According to the coalition’s website, trap-neuter-release is a program through which free-roaming cats are trapped, sterilized and returned to outdoor locations where they were found.

Donations from organizations such as the San Antonio Vegetarian Society, the San Antonio Humane Society and individuals cover most of the costs associated with sterilization procedures.

The coalition charges a $20 fee to those who use the trap-neuter-release program.

Information on the program schedule is available on the organization’s website at www.sanantonioferalcats.org.

All free-roaming cats are clipped a quarter of an inch in a straight line at the tip of their left ear after a sterilization procedure.

This is done while the cat is anesthetized for spaying or neutering and is fast-healing.

Ear clipping is a universal sign of identifying free-roaming cats.

While most of the cats are feral, some are strays that have separated from their owners.

“Feral cats are born in the wild and haven’t had much human contact, if any, so they run away most of the time when being approached,” said Monica Caballero, vice president of the San Antonio Feral Cat Coalition.

“Strays once had a home and are more receptive to human contact.”

She praised the club’s efforts in bringing attention to the growing number of free-roaming cats in San Antonio, which she estimates to be about 300,000.

“What these students do with managing the colonies, feeding them, looking after them, and getting them fixed is a morally responsible duty,” Caballero said.

“Not only do they help prevent populations from growing, they are ensuring that the cats don’t mate if they are carrying diseases like feline leukemia and AIDS,” she said.

“Cats are prone to spreading diseases.

“We aren’t keeping the cats without thought,” Tippit said.

“We are not only feeding them. We are also helping control the numbers, and, hopefully, this helps our students and faculty see that. They also help keep the rodent numbers down and overall, they create a welcome environment.”

Some are tame enough to be approached and given flea and heartworm medications.

“We want them to be healthy and not have complications,” Liu said.

Safety is a concern when there is no permanent housing.

The club has discussed plans with architecture students on effective ways to provide shelters.

“Until this happens, the cats will hide under buildings through openings like over at Chance, under staircases, and out in the parking garage to escape any inclement weather,” Liu said.

“There are times when dogs run through and threaten the safety of the cats, so they would have to be sheltered in high places where they can’t be reached,” Tippit said.

With freshmen learning their surroundings and the college being a two-year institution, there isn’t much continuity for providing shelters, Tippit said.

She thinks students and faculty taking care of the cats is positive.

“When there are school breaks, a group of staff and students will work out a schedule and will show up on designated days or weekends to make sure there is food and water,” Tippit said.

“Many times, all we ask for is time. We can provide most of the food, but everyone is welcome to bring their own.”

An official adoption program could be in the works soon.

“We don’t currently have a way to screen individuals who want to adopt a cat,” Tippit said.

“We need to make sure anyone that wants to adopt is responsible enough to do so.”

An exception is made for newly welcomed cats.

“If there is a new cat that wanders onto the campus, individuals are welcome to take them home.

Otherwise, many of them have formed an attachment and simply call this place home,” Liu said.

Other schools with cat clubs are St. Mary’s University, the University of Texas at San Antonio and Trinity University.

This college’s student organization does not have any meetings scheduled.

Students wanting to join the club can contact Tippit at jtippit@alamo.edu or Liu at qliu1@alamo. edu, sign up through OrgSync or visit the club’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SACCCATS.