The Ranger Sept. 25, 2009 by The Ranger

THE RANGER

A forum of free voices serving San Antonio College since 1926

Vol. 84 Issue 3

Dude looks like a

‘Leading Lady’

Comedy mixes mixes farce farce and and fashion fashion 99 Comedy

LAB LAB HOURS HOURS CUT CUT 4 4 CHALK CHALK TALK TALK 9 9 EYES EYES ON ON YOU YOU 11 11

Single copies free

Sept. 25, 2009

2 â&#x20AC;˘ Sept. 25, 2009

The Ranger

The Ranger • Vol. 84 • Issue 3

Sept. 25, 2009 • 3

The Ranger

A forum of free voices serving San Antonio College since 1926

4 News

4 Administrators dress to impress graduation message By Vanessa M. Sanchez

4 Lab hours, staff cut By Laura Garcia Photo by Destiny Mata

5 Chancellor ad appears after no-confidence vote By Vanessa M. Sanchez

7 Budget cuts silence foreign languages By Trey Randolph

11 Surveillance eye on the wall By Laura Garcia Photo by Destiny Mata

6 People 8 Premiere

International accordian festival this weekend

By Henry A. Chavarria Illustration by Juan Carlos Campos

8 8 in 8 guerilla filmmaking

9 “Leading Ladies” comedy opens Thursday By Mario Anguiano Cover photo Destiny Mata Story photo by Priscilla Reyna-Ovalle

9 Chalk Day encourages free speech

Only online @ theranger.org People slideshow Fotoseptiembre founder builds photographic legacy

By Zahra Farah

Drug war Hot Potato

10 Calendar

Plans for city GLBT community center

12 Editorials

Cartoons You can always vote them out 14 Viewpoint Student balances motherhood with studies By Erika Torres Photos by Destiny Mata

Chancellor gets 3-year, $1 million contract Mayor Castro sees hope for the future Students’ summer trips abroad to China, Japan

15 Blotter

Biology department’s new greenhouse

15 Cops hop big wheels

Editorials

By Henry A. Chavarria Photos by Priscilla Reyna-Ovalle

16 Backpage Creativity and coffee flow at open mic nights Story and photos by Leda Garcia

Share enrollment celebration with students Staff Council: It’s never too late to take a stand

By Henry A. Chavarria

www.theranger.org

Go to www.theranger.org for news and information. The next print edition will be Oct. 9.

The Ranger

4 • Sept. 25, 2009

Hours, staff cut in many departments’ labs Destiny Mata

By Laura Garcia Labs on campus are limiting hours and staff available for students this semester because of budget cuts. The student learning assistance center, or SLAC lab, on the seventh floor of Moody Learning Center has reduced staff through attrition from 17 in the spring to 13 and lost seven hours weekly. The lab is open 7:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 7:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday. SLAC office supervisor Jennifer Chopra said the lab is staffed with temporary employees. Numbers of students visiting the lab after 9 p.m. were unavailable. Another lab experiencing cuts is the foreign languages lab in Room 120 of the academic instruction center. Last semester, the lab had two work-study students and a full-time lab tech and offered weekend hours. But this semester, Maricela Ramon, the communication arts lab tech for the department, works all three positions. Foreign languages Chair Anna

Biology sophomore Jamar Bell and Armando Cantu, human resources management sophomore, study in the SLAC lab in Budzinski said budget cuts have affected the amount of paper and toner available and they are looking into charging students 10 cents per copy similar to the SLAC lab. The grammar and writing labs in Room 118 and 122 of Gonzales Hall have cut tutors from 20 to 12. The lab operates on a mix of workstudy and temporary employees. The open lab closes at 7 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays and 6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Previous semesters, the lab closed at 8 p.m. and was open Saturdays 9 a.m.-noon. They no longer offer

Moody Wednesday. Bell works on physics homework while Cantu studies math using the lab’s Plato software.

weekend hours. English lab supervisor Evette Ruiz-Gonzalez said the grammar lab next door was hurt the most by cuts, only opening to accommodate sections of English courses. They are now offering hours in the morning and afternoon and Tuesday until 7:30 p.m. A staff member of the writing center in Room 203 of Gonzales Hall said the lab is booked with appointments more than a week in advance and hopes to expand the staff. The student multimedia lab in Room 412 of Moody is open 7 a.m.-

4 p.m. Monday through Friday but usually closes at 5 p.m. when fully staffed. Michael Raso of media services said that lab is waiting for work-study positions to be filled so hours can be extended again. The math tutoring lab in Room 124 of McCreless Hall stays open an extra hour on weekends because an instructor comes in earlier. Otherwise, lab hours during the week remain the same from 9 a.m.7 p.m. Monday through Thursday. The lab is open for tutoring 9 a.m.2 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Campus administrators to hit the mall in cap and gown By Vanessa M. Sanchez The first and third week of October, administrators will appear on the mall and other parts of this campus wearing graduation regalia to encourage students to apply for graduation. This is to remind those students close to finishing that the deadline to register for December graduation is Nov. 2. Students who are close to graduation will receive a printable “button” to be worn where administrators can see them. Students spotted with the button will have their names placed in a drawing for several iPod shuffles. Dr. Jessica Howard, vice president of academic affairs, said the event is an invitation to converse with administrators about graduation

and to increase the number of students considering graduation. Howard said administrators may put up a graffiti wall to get even more students involved. In a phone interview Tuesday, Howard said of last year, “We definitely saw an increase” in the number of students who applied to graduate, the largest number of graduates and degrees awarded ever. “We’re trying to make graduation a part of our culture,” Howard said. “We want to con-

tinue that campaign the entire year.” Students will be able to download a printable button from their PALS e-mail account or the school’s Web site, www.alamo. edu/sac, to participate in graduation week. Administrators will not announce when they will be walking the campus to keep students wearing the buttons daily. For information on applying for graduation, visit academic departments or the office of counseling on the first floor of Moody, or call 486-0333. Counseling is open 7:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays.

The Ranger

Sept. 25, 2009 • 5

Chancellor gets three-year, $1-million-plus contract See the entire 11-page contract online. By Jason B. Hogan The Alamo Community College District board of trustees continues to show moral and financial support to Chancellor Bruce Leslie with a new $15,000 annual retention bonus inserted into his three-year contract extension — despite an overwhelming 90 percent vote of no-confidence from faculty members in the four accredited district colleges. Board Chairman Denver McClendon, who represents District 2, announced at the Sept. 15 regular board meeting that a new contract with Leslie had been approved. The contract was a topic of discussion in executive session of the special board meeting Aug. 25 to approve the tax rate. The board approved the contract 8-0. District 3 trustee Anna Bustamante was not in attendance. With an annual $15,000 retention bonus, Leslie stands to receive an extra $45,000 following the completion of his new contract, payable by Oct. 31, 2012. The contract, which officially began Sept. 1, also features an automatic rollover clause, effective Sept. 1, 2010, for an extension of an

additional year, unless the board deems Leslie unworthy. He also could be awarded annual increases separate from his retention payment. The chancellor’s base salary remains unchanged, at an annual rate of $313,663.84, from his original terms of agreement with the board of trustees beginning Nov. 1, 2006. The chancellor will be eligible for a subsequent raise for Fiscal Year 2009-2010 should the board approve an increase for all district employees at the same percentage increase. If the chancellor is terminated prior to the ending date of his contract — either by voluntary dismissal or for good cause — Leslie

will collect $833.33 per month for time served between Sept. 1, 2009, and Aug. 31, 2010. He will receive a payment of $1,458.33 per month for Sept. 1, 2010, to Aug. 31, 2012. Compensation for time served month-to-month for a disability resignation will be paid at the same rate. But the chancellor will continue to receive entitled benefits assigned to him under his original 2006 contract, such as use of the district’s Plaza Club membership, participation in insurance and retirement plan benefits, a life insurance policy worth twice his annual salary, as well as a $1,000 monthly automobile allowance and use of a district gas credit card. In addition to routine business expense reimbursement, he will be reimbursed for an Internet access card for his laptop. Leslie receives the same holidays, personal disability, sick and other leave as other employees on 12-month contracts, but he accrues two vacation days per month without limit and will be paid for unused vacation at his termination. If Leslie chooses to resign, he must offer 12-months notice. If the board requests he vacate the position sooner, he continues to collect salary and benefits as spelled out in his contract and continues to accrue vacation, holiday, sick and personal leave time and will be paid for them.

Chancellor’s ad appears day after no-confidence vote By Vanessa M. Sanchez In the Sept. 16 issue of the San Antonio Express-News, Chancellor Bruce Leslie appears in an ad, showing a full-length photo of Leslie standing with arms folded. The message reads “The faculty and staff of Alamo Colleges are making us look very smart right now. Thanks, everyone.” The ad was 4.9 columns by 21 inches, cost $4,749.55 and was published the day after faculty released its votes of no confidence in the chancellor at the September regular meeting of the Alamo Community College District board. The ad was purchased by the district’s communications department out of its budget that increased from $1 million to $1.7 million this year, Leo Zuniga, associate vice chancellor of communication, said. Zuniga said that as chief operating officer, Leslie is the face of the Alamo Community College District.

As to the timing, Zuniga said the communications department was waiting for the census date to finalize the ad. “This ad was reserved weeks in advance,” he said. Mario Muñiz, district director of public relations, agreed his department planned for weeks to put the ad out on that specific day after the final enrollment in district colleges was calculated. The ad “wasn’t related to the vote of no confidence in any way,” he said. “Sometimes, it just seems that people are reading into things,” Muñiz said after he said he thought The Ranger was calling to complain about the ad. Zuniga also questioned the call for information on the ad. “What’s the problem here?

What’s wrong with the message?” Zuniga said the district frequently purchases ads in the San Antonio Express-News. The district ran an even larger ad New Year’s Day to list accomplishments. That ad was 5 columns by 18 inches and cost $11,742. Muñiz said there was an ad in a Sunday edition July 26 that no one called or complained about. That ad congratulated 30 faculty, shown in a group photo, who won the NISOD Excellence Award. The ad, which stated, “Great teachers make successful students,” was 6½ columns by 11½ inches and cost $2,286. The marketing budget includes television, radio and Web ads along with digital billboards.

See cartoon on Page 13

People

6 â&#x20AC;˘ Sept. 25, 2009

The Ranger Leda Garcia

Priscilla Reyna-Ovalle

Competition: www. theranger.org Log on for more People photos.

Biology freshman Arturo Martinez plays in a tennis tournament Monday on the college courts. The tournament was sponsored by the student life office and will resume when weather permits. First place wins an iPod shuffle and second place a college T-shirt.

Entertainment:

Trio Azulâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vocalist, Azul Barrientos, sings a Huapango, a type of conga, during a perfomance for Hispanic Heritage Month Sept. 18 in the Fiesta Room.

The Ranger

Sept. 25, 2009 • 7

Budget cuts don’t translate to foreign languages By Trey Randolph Budget cuts and the district’s new edict against full-time adjuncts are preventing some programs from blossoming. Department Chair Anna Budzinski attributes these problems to the losses of two language programs, German and Chinese, because of the departure of two key professors who taught those classes. She said the problem is as simple as “adjuncts are paid poorly, and people need income.” According to the district Web page, adjunct, or part-time, pay starts at $2,159 per three-hour course taught by an instructor with a bachelor’s degree, and tops at $2,678 for an instructor with a doctorate teaching that same threehour course.

By comparison, full-time adjunct pay starts at $17,181 per semester, or $3,436.20 per three-hour course, and full-time tenure track begins at $34,362 per nine months, or $3,436.20 per three-hour course. Carol Swanson, English-as-asecond-language instructor and former department head, agrees with Budzinski, saying part-time adjuncts do not work enough hours to develop a program potential students could consider successful or worthwhile. “The way it is, if you don’t have a full-time, probably tenured professor, the program is in danger,” Swanson said, adding that full-time tenured faculty teach the department’s two most popular programs, Spanish and ESL. “The district is thinking of dollars and cents, and they’re pretty igno-

rant of the individual programs,” Swanson said. “If you don’t give good faith to a program, the students realize it is not worth their time. “In order for us to offer a minor language,” she continued, “you have to give the students the expectation that they can take a full series or it’s hardly worth it. In order to do that, the professor needs to teach more than allowed as an adjunct.” Budzinski thinks adjuncts are a better fit for her department than tenured faculty because language popularity is always changing, and the department needs to change with the demand. “For languages or for some subjects, it’s a good solution (to hire fulltime adjuncts). I think it’s better than having tenured faculty because if there are fewer classes, we can offer

fewer,” she said. “If there is a tenured instructor, we cannot have them without a job. For a program like language, when one language becomes very popular, like Japanese right now, we have to have this teacher.” Budzinski said Japanese is the most popular program, with about 150 students in six courses. Budzinski said the German program had to be cut after the departure of Instructor James Dunn. She is looking for a new German instructor and said she hopes to restart the program as early as fall. The department also lost Chinese and ESL Lecturer Len McClure, an instructor Budzinski described as “fabulous.” Swanson said McClure got a fulltime job with the city because “he has a family to take care of.”

Premiere

8 • The Ranger

40 to learn guerilla filmmaking

Sept. 25, 2009 • 9

‘Ladies’ take the lead in new drag production Priscilla Reyna-Ovalle

By Henry Chavarria

production team. The goal of the workshop is to have students “think n Nov. 14-16, the office of student life and outside of the box,” Klebahn said. “I want to take potential the media communications department are filmmakers and give them their first victory.” sponsoring the “8 in 8 Boot Camp” in guerilla The workshop will focus on various filmmaking techfilmmaking where students will learn the art niques like scriptwriting, pre-production, casting, location of taking great movie ideas from a concept to reality in setting, lighting and sound, cinematography, shot mapping, eight short hours. shot listing, editing, working on a limited budget Dr. J.C. Alvarez-Klebahn, a graduate of the and time. Student life will provide cameras, lightMaking an Zaki Gordan Institute for independent filmmak8-minute film ing and editing equipment. ing in Arizona, will lead the workshop. To apply, students must make a team of four in 8 hours Klebahn graduated from Princeton and to fill the jobs of the director, camera, light/ Columbia universities to pursue a career in sound and producer. politics and the corporate world but in 2000 found her Each group must submit a three-minute short video to true passion in filmmaking. Since 2002, she has conducted introduce the team, explaining everyone’s film experience workshops. She said that everything she did prior to filmand interests. making gave her the skills to be a successful filmmaker. The “8 in 8 Boot Camp” application must be submitted “The best way to learn the art of filmmaking is to do it with a video by 5 p.m. Oct. 9. repetitively. Digital filmmaking allows us to produce at a All team members must be current students enrolled faster rate and makes the art more accessible to the comhere in a minimum of six hours with a GPA of 2.0. mon person,” Klebahn said. The top 10 teams of four will be selected by Klebahn and Klebahn designed her workshop to take a big film idea, media communications Professors Markene Bennett, Terry break it up into pieces, organize the pieces and then execute Tackitt and Dr. Yuk-Kwong “Edmund” Lo. the filmmaking process. Winning teams will be notified Oct. 19, and on the final “A lot of creative types lack the skill of organizing,” day of the workshop, their films will be showcased at a film Klebahn said, which is why she emphasizes that students festival on the mall. find what they are good at and pick the right person for their For more information, call student life at 486-0134.

By Mario Anguiano

Pre-med sophomore Breanna Villani and theater sophomore Loretta De La Torre play Audrey and Meg at dress rehearsal Wednesday in McCreless Theater.

Squeeze in accordion festival By Henry Chavarria The International Accordion Festival is taking over La Villita Oct. 9-11 featuring free live performances, workshops, open mic and accordion jam sessions. On three stages, students can enjoy ensembles from all around the globe playing everything from Panamanian pinyin to Czech polka. The festival will feature artists from Taiwan, Argentina, Lebanon, Scotland, Bulgaria, Spain and the United States. Some of the major acts are Buckwheat Zydeco, Daniel Diaza and Lia Davis, Jaime y los Chamacos and the Zydepunks. “The festival is totally unique,” the director of the conjunto music program at Palo Alto College, Juan Tejeda, said, “celebrating the diverse

world of accordion tradition.” In the educational component, students can find workshops facilitated by some of the artists performing at the festival. The workshops consist of informal sessions and performances featuring personal interaction with master artists and their music. The International Accordion Festival is two days of cultural integration boasting

Those who can’t get enough of “Mrs. Doubtfire,” “Some Like It Hot” and other scripts involving guys trying to walk around in heels, can take in “Leading Ladies,” by playwright Ken Ludwig. Ludwig’s play, which debuted in 2004, opens Oct. 1, directed by theater and speech Professor Jim Mammarella and featuring four theater sophomores. “Leading Ladies” is a farce — a comedy with unlikely or extravagant situations, disguises and mistaken identity — set in York, Pa., in 1958. Two starving, British “Shakespearean” actors, Jack and Leo, hear of a woman searching for her two nephews to leave them her fortune. They hatch a scheme to pose as her nephews only to discover that they really need to be posing as her nieces, Maxine and Stephanie. Leo finds himself falling for the woman’s actual niece, Meg, who is already engaged to the local minister, and the minister becomes increasingly skeptical of the actors’ behavior, even though he has his own plans for Meg’s fortune. Romantic entanglements and odd shenanigans shake things up as the

two actors find themselves filling out their “He’s a really funny guy. He’s an actor, and I brassieres. like that about him,” Minogue said. “He’s got a Steven Reyna, who plays the Rev. Duncan lot of energy, and I have a lot of energy to use Wooley, Meg’s fiance, said “Leading Ladies” is toward it.” the funniest play he has ever acted in. Reyna Minogue said that Maxine starts to become has performed onstage since high school. a character all her own, adding to the chaos Loretta De La Torre plays Meg, the heir to that most farces entail. “It’s interesting to delve the sought-after fortune. into that ‘womanly realm,’” he said, adding She said the cast is expectthat he hopes that while wearing a lot of laughs. “It is just ing high heels “not to break Admission a flat-out comedy. There are a leg in the process, literally.” Free for ACCD situations the characters find John Belcher plays Jack, students and employees themselves in that are very far posing as Stephanie, who with ID. General out there,” De La Torre said. always follows Leo’s lead, even admission, $10; seniors, “When you step into the if it means putting on a pair military and children age 5 and older, $5. No one play, you see all these funny of heels. under age 5 admitted. characters and situations, and “He cares so much about it’s like ‘Oh, God, where is this his best friend, Leo. It’s very going to take me,’ but there is actually a lot of rare that you get to [play] someone who will romance going on,” she said. sacrifice themselves for the good of somebody De La Torre said Meg is just going along for else,” Belcher said. the ride with the two dragsters. “She’s either Belcher was familiar with Ludwig’s works. very gullible because she’s never experienced He won a UIL award in 2008 performing in anything like this or she’s trusting of situaanother Ludwig play, “Moon Over Buffalo.” tions,” she said. “Ludwig’s work is fun, it’s quick, fast-paced, Acting as Leo, who is posing as Maxine, and it’s enjoyable.” Sean Minogue said he is grateful for what the “Leading Ladies” will be at 7:30 p.m. Oct. role brings out in him as an actor playing an 1-3 and Oct. 8-10, and at 2:30 p.m. Oct. 4 and actor. 11 in McCreless Theater.

Chalk Day celebrates free speech

ethnic foods, beverages and unique merchandise booths. For the full performance and schedule line-up, visit www.internationalaccordionfestival.org.

By Zahra Farah

Juan Carlos Campos

Students crouch, hands dusty with chalk, ready to exercise the right to free speech by drawing, quoting or writing poetry on the mall. Chalk Day, which celebrates freedom of speech and assembly, will run from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 9. The event started in 2004 after former student Gabriel Garza left a bucket of chalk on the mall to see what his friends would do while he went to class, Irene Abrego, journalism instructor, said. “They used it and wrote all over the pavement. A staff member saw them and complained, because one, they did not have permission, and two, who was going to clean that up?”

“I thought it was ridiculous for them to get in trouble. It’s chalk; it will wear off,” Abrego said. Bam! Chalk Day was born, an event sponsored by The Ranger and the journalism program. “A few people thought it was childish,” she continued. “I think it’s because it’s not what people do everyday, and it reminds us of our childhood, but it is not necessarily childish.” Even though the event is a celebration of freedom of speech, participants are encouraged to follow standards similar to those used by The Ranger. “We discourage people from using obscenities.” Chalk Day is in conjunction with National Newspaper Week, this year observed Oct. 4-10, because it too celebrates the First Amendment, said Jason B. Hogan, editor of The Ranger. “Once you know what Chalk Day entails, it gives you the opportunity for your voice to be heard through the written word as it is meant to be,” he said.

The journalism program distributes at least a hundred pieces of chalk throughout the day, he said. Abrego said what is important is that people enjoy themselves and join in the impromptu creativity. “I walk around campus, and I don’t see many people smiling, but on Chalk Day, they are relaxed, they are happy, and they feel a part of something. I think they feel a bit naughty, too,” she said. There used to be a designated free speech area on campus, but the Supreme Court ruled that it actually represents a restriction on freedom of speech. Hogan and Regis L. Roberts, Ranger Web editor, remember a drawing of an egg detached from a uterus that read, “40 million killed.” “I thought it was tasteless and offensive,” Roberts said. “But the beauty of Chalk Day is that one thing can be offensive to one individual group, but you or anyone else cannot be in control.” Abrego said, “It is not graffiti or vandalism. Just as quickly as it appears, it disappears.”

Calendar

10 • Sept. 25, 2009 For coverage, call 486-1773 or e-mail sac-ranger@alamo.edu two weeks in advance.

Today SAC Event: Outdoor movie screening of “Star Trek” 7:20 p.m.-10 p.m. in the mall. Call 486-0125. SPC Exhibit: “Jewels of the Earth/Las Joyas de la Tierra,” paintings by Elizabeth Elequin in Room 100 of Watson. Continues through Oct. 12. Call 486-2704.

Wednesday SAC Event: Antojitos Festival 9 a.m.-1 p.m. in mall. Call 486-0125. SAC Meeting: Cheshyre Cheese Club 2 p.m.-3 p.m. in Room 127 of Gonzales. Call 486-0125. SAC Transfer: Texas A&M San Antonio 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. in the transfer center on the first floor of Moody. Call 486-0864. SAC Transfer: University of the Incarnate Word 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on the first floor of Chance. Call 486-0864.

Saturday SAC Workshop: Free “Planning and Paying for College Workshop” 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m. in Room 218 A and B of nursing and allied health. Call 734-8937. Monday SAC Event: Karaoke 11 a.m.-1 p.m. in Loftin. Call 486-0125. SAC Meeting: Mexican-American Engineers and Scientists 2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. in Room 144 of Chance. Call 4860125. SAC Transfer: Texas State University San Marcos 9 a.m.-11 a.m. on the first floor of Chance. Call 486-0864. SAC Transfer: University of Texas at San Antonio 9 a.m.-11 a.m. on the first floor of Chance. Call 486-0864.

SAC Transfer: University of Phoenix 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on the first floor of Chance. Call 486-0864. SAC Meeting: Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science at 2:30 p.m. in Room 144 of Chance. Call 602-4940. SAC Meeting: Astronomy Club noon-1 p.m. in Room 101 of nursing. Call 4860125. SAC Meeting: Gay and Lesbian Association 2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. in Room 612-613 of Moody. Call 486-0125. Thursday SPC Performance: Azul and Marco, aka Mexican Stepgrandfather, at 7 p.m. in the Heritage Room of the campus center. Call 486-7231.

SAC Transfer: Texas A&M San Antonio 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. in the transfer center on the first floor of Moody. Call 486-0864. SAC Event: Two-mile run 1 p.m.-4 p.m. at San Pedro Springs Park. Call 4860125.

www.theranger.org SAC Workshop: “Using SAC Library to Enhance your Course” 1 p.m.-3 p.m. in Room 716 of Moody. Call 486-0030. Tuesday Employee Development Day: College closed; no classes until 5 p.m.

Complete calendar online

Calendar Legend

SAC: San Antonio College NVC: Northwest Vista College SPC: St. Philip’s College SWC: South West Campus PAC: Palo Alto College NLC: Northeast Lakeview College

The Ranger

Sept. 25, 2009 • 11 Destiny Mata

A surveillance camera in Gonzales Hall sends a continuous digital feed to a DPS data bank to aid in investigation of campus crime throughout the district.

District adds more surveillance By Laura Garcia Look up. Those glass bubbles on the ceiling are keeping an eye on you. Officers may or may not be watching the feed. The district police monitor a digitally recorded camera surveillance system. Almost every building in the district has eyes. More are on the way. Of 1,029 cameras throughout the district, there are 277 on this campus alone. They cost about $1,200 each. Periodically throughout the day, the feeds rotate through a bank of monitors. Recordings are kept for about a month on DVR. Sgt. Ben Peña of the district department of public safety said the cameras have aided in most crime investigations. He said the cameras helped after an Aug. 9 report of a break-in of Fletcher Administration Center. “We are hoping to have cameras in all of our buildings and public areas in the next few years.”

About four years ago, district officials decided to invest in cameras and have been installing them since then based on availability of funds and need. Cameras were incorporated into new construction during the capital improvements project. Northeast Lakeview College has cameras in every building. Northwest Vista College has just one building without cameras. Buildings without cameras here and at St. Philip’s and Palo Alto colleges will have cameras installed at the end of renovations. “The district is trying to enhance the level of security on campuses by adding more cameras and controlled-access systems,” Peña said. The controlled-access systems set up on many buildings on campus enable the police to conduct a lockdown digitally if necessary from DPS offices. They are attempting to install the systems in every building.

12 • Sept. 25, 2009

Editorial

The Ranger Photo by Priscilla Reyna-Ovalle

The Ranger

Editor Jason B. Hogan Managing Editor Vanessa M. Sanchez Calendar Editor Henry A. Chavarria Photo Editor Priscilla Reyna-Ovalle Photographers Leda Garcia Destiny Mata Production Manager Laura Garcia Production Assistant Alena Ramirez Newsroom Assistant Zahra Farah Illustrator Juan Carlos Campos Staff Writers Mario Anguiano, Tyler K. Cleveland, Emilio Davila, Zahra Farah, Lorraine Gomez, Trey Randolph, Erika Torres Web Editor/Circulation Regis L. Roberts

The Ranger, the student newspaper at San Antonio College, is a laboratory project of the journalism classes in the Department of Media Communications, published Fridays except during summer, holidays and examinations. News contributions accepted by telephone (486-1773), by fax (486-1789), by e-mail (sac-ranger@alamo.edu) or at the editorial office (Room 212 Loftin Student Center). Advertising rates available upon request (486-1765). The Ranger is a member of the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association, the Associated Collegiate Press, the Texas Community College Journalism Association and the Associated Press. Guest Viewpoints: Faculty, staff, students and community members are welcome to contribute guest viewpoints of up to 450 words. Writers should focus on campus or current events in a critical, persuasive or interpretative style. All viewpoints must be published with a photo portrait of the writer. Letters Policy: The Ranger invites readers to share views by writing letters

to the editor. Space limitations force the paper to limit letters to two doublespaced, typewritten pages. Letters will be edited for spelling, style, grammar, libel and length. Editors reserve the right to deny publication of any letter. Letters should be mailed to The Ranger, Department of Media Communications, San Antonio College, 1300 San Pedro Ave., San Antonio TX 78212-4299. Letters also may be brought to the newspaper office in Room 212 of Loftin Student Center, e-mailed to sac-ranger@alamo.edu or faxed to 486-1789. Letters must be signed and must include the writer’s printed name, classification, major, Social Security number and telephone number. For more information, call 486-1773. Single Copy Policy: Because of high production costs, members of the Alamo Community College District community are permitted one free copy per issue. Where available, additional copies may be purchased with prior approval for 50 cents each by contacting The Ranger business office. Newspaper theft is a crime. Those who violate the single copy rule may be subject to civil and criminal prosecution and subject to college discipline.

Editorial

The Ranger

Sept. 25, 2009 • 13 Laura Garcia

District 1

District 2

District 3

You can always vote them out During the Sept. 15 meeting of the Alamo Community College District board, audience members floated the fact that three of nine trustees are up for re-election in May. On that list are Bernard Weiner of District 1, Chairman Denver McClendon of District 2 and Anna Bustamante of District 3. Considering the board members ignored the faculty’s objections to the leadership of Chancellor Bruce Leslie and voted him a new three-year contract with additional bonuses, trustees seeking re-election should be aware that faculty and staff at the colleges vote at a much higher ratio than the general public. If enough unhappy employees of district colleges vote, trustees could lose www.theranger.org Go online for editorials on their bid to serve another Staff Council and district’s term. celebration of enrollment. If more than 90 percent of students in a class had a problem with a professor and the students brought their complaints to the department chair, should the chair at least look into the situation? If more than 90 percent of students in four of the teacher’s five classes expressed no-confidence in that teacher’s ability to teach them, what would you expect the chair to do? The college’s academic grievance policy requires chairs to listen to both sides of a student-faculty dispute. Right now, the trustees are in the same situation, and it is a shame. The trustees should listen carefully to the faculty’s objections to the chancellor before dismissing them and forging ahead with the chancellor’s agenda. The board works for the community. They were elected by them, and it is nothing short of asking them to do their jobs by listening to that community. That community includes faculty, staff – and students.

.55 4, 749 Corrections In the Sept. 11 article, “Committee approves early retirement plan,” the name of Linda Bower-Owens, associate vice chancellor for employee services, was misspelled. Also in the story, Bower-Owens was quoted incorrectly. It should read, “Employees must remain separate from the district for at least one month.”

14 • Sept. 25, 2009

Opinion

Parenthood not end of educational goals I study quietly as my But their goals were forgotten. 3-month-old son sleeps When I first learned I was pregnant, I strugpeacefully at my side. gled with school, dropping most of my classes I stop and stare at his after falling behind. innocent face periodically. I wanted to quit school altogether. He makes the struggle But seeing my son grow more and more each worthwhile. day has inspired me. I know I need to better I have to make an effort — for him. Viewpoint by Erika Torres myself so that I can proI need more than a minimum-wage job to vide for my son. give him all the things he needs. I live with my fiancé (my son’s father), in his I don’t want my son to grow up on welfare, parents’ house. wearing hand-me-downs from his older cousWith me not working, we barely make it ins, never knowing a Christmas with more from paycheck to than a couple of presDestiny Mata paycheck. ents, or being afraid I am in school of playing outside only two days a week, because we live in a while my son is with bad neighborhood. my mom. I know my family When I am at deserves better. school, I miss him I want a house of like the deserts miss our own in a decent the rain. neighborhood with And when I am a yard for my son to home with him, I play. desperately miss the I want to buy outside world. him new shoes every Compared to school year and a new some, I have it easy. car on his 16th birthI have seen young day and pay for his single mothers strughoneymoon. gle to keep a job to Erika Torres holds 3-month-old son, Jay. I want to give him pay for child care so the world. they may go to school and older parents who I have decided to work hard to finish my quit school when they were younger and wait associate degree so that I may have a chance at until their children are grown to return. a successful career — for him. I have watched the education of friends I hope one day he looks back at my life and be flushed down the toilet after they have is proud. children. I hope he knows that I did it all for him. Their new role of “mommy” took priority, as And I hope he is inspired to further his eduit should. cation and make his own success story.

The Ranger

Letters Change for the worse Editor: I have been on the faculty at San Antonio College for nearly 40 years, and I have never seen a board so blind, an administration so bad or faculty morale so low. When I began teaching here and ours was the fifth-largest institution of higher learning in the state of Texas, there were 10 officials Bruce Leslie who ran everything. Ten! Today, however, there are legions of administrators who are working themselves to death in an effort to justify their existence. The number of self-studies, staff studies and feasibility studies that are ongoing is mind-numbing. The chancellor’s answer, regrettably, is to attend more conventions, launch more task forces, and have more consultants and high-salaried administrators. In actuality, if we fire three out of four administrators, we could reduce unnecessary work, save a fortune on salaries, travel and other administration-generated expenses, and improve the efficiency of the entire operation at the same time. Perhaps, then, we could refocus on our recently neglected mission of providing a quality education for our students. Dr. Thomas M. Settles History Professor

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Blotter

The Ranger

Sept. 25, 2009 • 15 Priscilla Reyna-Ovalle

Officials Chancellor: Dr. Bruce H. Leslie 201 W. Sheridan, Bldg. B, San Antonio, TX 78204-1429 Work: 485-0020 Fax: 208-8149 E-mail: bleslie@alamo.edu

Deputy Chief Derrick V. Patten instructs officers on the use of the new T3 motion vehicles Sept. 16 at the department of public safety at West Park and North Main. The district purchased 10 T3s, five for police and five for security guards.

District 1: Dr. Bernard Weiner 929 Manor Drive, Ste. 7, San Antonio, TX 78228 Work: 735-9151 E-mail: bweinermd@satx.rr.com District 2: Denver McClendon 3811 Willowwood Blvd., San Antonio, TX 78219 Work: 281-9141 E-mail: denvermcclendon@satx.rr.com District 3: Anna Bustamante 511 Ware Blvd., San Antonio TX 78221 Work: 882-1603 Fax: 927-4557 E-mail: abustamante20@alamo.edu District 4: Marcelo S. Casillas 115 Wainwright, San Antonio, TX 78211 Home: 922-6815 Fax: 923-3167 E-mail: mcasillas19@alamo.edu District 5: Roberto Zárate 4103 Buffalo Bayou, San Antonio, TX 78251 E-mail: rzarate11@alamo.edu District 6: Dr. Gene Sprague 14722 Iron Horse Way Helotes, TX 78023 Work: 567-5544 Fax: 520-9185 E-mail: sprague@uthscsa.edu District 7: Charles Conner 13306 Hunters Hollow, San Antonio, TX 78230 Home: 493-7176 Fax: 493-7909 E-mail: cconner8@alamo.edu District 8: Gary Beitzel 15403 Forest Mist, San Antonio, TX 78232 Home: 496-5857 E-mail: gbeitzel@alamo.edu District 9: James A. Rindfuss 109 Laburnum, San Antonio, TX 78209 Home: 828-4630 Work: 375-2555 Home Fax: 832-8292 Office Fax: 375-0301 E-mail: jrindfuss@alamo.edu

Presidents San Antonio College, Dr. Robert E. Zeigler 486-0959, rzeigler@alamo.edu Northeast Lakeview College, Dr. Eric Reno 486-5484, ereno@alamo.edu Northwest Vista College, Dr. Jacqueline Claunch 486-4900, jclaunch@alamo.edu Palo Alto College, Dr. Ana M. “Cha” Guzman 486-3960, aguzman@alamo.edu St. Philip’s College, Dr. Adena W. Loston 486-2900, aloston@alamo.edu

Cops hop big wheels for patrol New vehicles are aimed at improving contact with public. BY HENRY A. CHAVARRIA Six months ago, a new idea developed in the district department of public safety to put officers on electric T3 Motion vehicles to improve contact with the public. T3s cost 10 cents a day to charge the battery three to four hours and purchase of the 10 units cost the department $9,000 each. According to www.t3motion.com, the T3 Motion is an energy-efficient, single-person vehicle that gets the equivalent of 500 miles per gallon. They are clean-energy vehicles and release zero emissions into the environment. The police department intends to station two units at each campus to give officers enhanced visibility from a 9-inch high platform. It also allows them to reach speeds up to 25 mph. DPS Sgt. Mike Nemcic is ready to get the T3 Motions out in the field after facilitating T3 training along with Deputy Chief Derrick Patten and SAN ANTONIO COLLEGE

PALO ALTO COLLEGE

Sept. 8: An officer observed a vehicle with windows open in the Park Place lot. Vehicle checked, came back as stolen.

Sept. 8: An individual reported theft of district property. ST. PHILIP’S COLLEGE Sept. 8: An individual reported theft of district property.

Cpl. Guillermo Perez. The training consisted of a two-hour course including academic and practical testing. “These vehicles are a supplement to cars, not a replacement,” Nemcic said. “They will allow us to spend more time on campus and less time patrolling around campus which improves customer contact.” This means that patrol cars will still be used in case of an arrest, traffic accidents or other major incidents. “The T3 Motions are going to be a big asset as far as the department’s community initiative design to integrate the department into the community versus monitoring the community,” Nemcic said. He said this new law enforcement technique will show students that the department is there to serve and not disturb. The department’s plan is to have one security officer and one police officer on a T3 unit per campus. The T3 Motions can be operated indoors as well as outdoors and should be in routine use within the next week. An individual reported theft of personal property from a classroom. SOUTHWEST CAMPUS Sept. 8: An individual reported burglary of vehicle.

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The Ranger

16 • Sept. 25, 2009

Graphic design sophomore Samantha Wiblitzhouser plays the accordion during Coffee Night Open Mic Sept. 11 in Loftin.

English sophomore Santo Randazzo reads an excerpt from “Moby Dick” by Herman Melville at the Coffee Night Open Mic Sept. 11 in Loftin. The event takes place monthly in Loftin, organized by the Cheshyre Cheese Club.

Biology sophomore Taylor Hansen performs to “Use Somebody” by Kings of Leon.

Creativity and coffee flow at open mic

Story and Photos by Leda Garcia

English sophomore and club member, Caroline Richardson, signs up for an opportunity to participate.

Students and community members joined the first Coffee Night Open Mic of the semester sponsored by the Cheshyre Cheese Club Sept. 11 in Loftin Student Center to share their creativity. Participants shared their original writing as well as pieces from their favorite poets, jokes, songs and talents, such as playing instruments. Some members of the club went on the stage and shared their past experiences with the club. During the event, participants were treated to free coffee, cookies, popcorn and cheese. “We’re like a family. It feels good to come back and be part of this,” said Terry Robledo, the event’s host and a former student of this college, while holding his 9-month-old daughter, Helena Robledo.

Biology sophomore Taylor Hansen said he came to help club members set up the event and by the end of the evening, he had decided to perform on his guitar while singing. Aside from all the stage happenings, the event also included a button contest originated by English Instructor Jane Focht-Hansen, co-sponsor of the Cheshyre Cheese Club. Participants could make a button to wear featuring words they had written. Tony Guerrero, English sophomore, described it as “inspirational” and also as a great opportunity to develop one’s portfolio. The next Coffee Night Open Mic is 6 p.m., Oct. 9. in the round in Loftin. For more information on the Cheshyre Cheese Club and upcoming events, e-mail jfocht-hansen@alamo.edu or attend a meeting at 2 p.m. Wednesday in Room 127 of Gonzales Hall.