The Ranger, Oct. 23, 2017 by The Ranger

R ANGER

An independent forum of free voices serving San Antonio College since 1926 and the Alamo Colleges since 1945 Volume 92 • Issue 5

THE oct

2017 Journalism-photography program at San Antonio College

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donations

The center for civic engagement will be taking donations for this college’s food pantry until Oct. 31. Those who wish to donate can do so by placing food in specially marked boxes in the community engagement center next to the Methodist Student Center, the second floor of the library in Moody, under the stairs of Loftin

Student Center and in the mortuary science program of Nail Technical Center. The foods in high demand are canned and other nonperishable food items that can be ready to eat within a few minutes. Direct questions to Joseph Liedecke, coordinator of student success, at 210-486-0137. Austin P. Taylor

Campus police searched student, possibly no consent By Zachary-Taylor Wright zwright9@student.alamo.edu

KENS-5 producer James Deering examines earthenware artwork “54 Grenades” by local artist Verena Gaudy, during the opening reception for “dou•ble en•ten•dre” Oct. 12 in visual arts. The exhibit, curated by visual arts Adjunct Norbert Clyde Martinez Jr., features eight local artists and will be open to the public through Dec. 8. Nicole M. Bautista

Architecture, engineering students shadow professionals Shadowing working professionals helps students know if their chosen field is right for them. By Alison Graef

neering firm that does a project.” Narendorf said students More than 60 architecture and learned about some of the more engineering students participathidden aspects of engineering, ed in this college’s fourth annual including all of the utilities underarchitecture and engineering job ground. She said people don’t realshadow day hosted by O’Connell ize the number of utilities and Robertson and Alamo Colleges services under the ground in a city. Foundation Oct. 13 at 20 firms in “It’s kind of just a spaghetti this city. bowl,” Moore said. Students met and shadowed Moore said the experience working professionals in their field, helped her realize the local uses then they and firm representatives for civil engineering. returned to campus to share their “It was really cool to actually experiences at a luncheon in the see something in San Antonio, nursing complex. because when I Engineering think of ‘civil’ I f r e s h m a n think of bridgAlexandra Moore es or the Eiffel and two other Tower,” Moore students vissaid. “And so it ited Maestas & was cool that I Aubri Simpson, knew … exactly Associates Inc., a civil engineering what she was civil engineering sophomore talking about.” firm specializing in drainage and Civil engiutilities. neering sophomore Aubri Simpson Before student presentations, and two other students visited sura representative from each firm veying and civil engineering comintroduced the firm and its pripany Bain Medina Bain Inc. mary focus. Simpson said they were wel“We kind of focused more on comed like family by the engithe collaborative aspect of the neers, and the experience affirmed industry,” said Andrea Narendorf, for her that civil engineering was vice president of Maestas & the right career for her. She said Associates Inc. “And, on our stuff, the project manager showed the See SHADOW, Page 2 there is never just one civil engiagraef@student.alamo.edu

changed H ethe “view way I the city for the rest of my life.”

Campus police responded to a call describing a man potentially carrying a gun in Gonzales Hall Oct. 4, but first-person accounts are inconsistent with police reports and shed new light on the case. In an interview Oct. 16, kinesiology sophomore Micaela M. said she provided the Alamo Colleges Police Department with a description of a student potentially carrying a gun. “It was just a really shady guy just walking around,” she said. “He had his arms crossed. He was making eye contact with everybody. He was being really observant. As soon as he walked in, you know, you get that gut feeling.” Concealed carry at institutions of higher education was made legal by Senate Bill 11, which passed Aug. 1, 2015, and went into effect at two-year institutions Aug. 1. Open carry is still illegal at higher education institutions. She said the man was dressed

“just normal,” wearing what she thought was a “really light gray” sweater and jeans walking down Gonzales Hall toward the west exit near San Pedro Avenue. She said the man had his arms crossed and what looked like the handle of a gun protruding from behind his left torso. According to the initial police report received Oct. 13, the suspect was “a black male wearing a gray sweater and blue jeans pants carrying a handgun.” The report states that after speaking to the witness the description was expanded to include the man was “bald headed,” standing at 5’9 to 5’11 and weighing 180-200 pounds. The report states that no contact was made with anyone matching the description or carrying a handgun. A supplemental report from Patrolman David Breiten received by The Ranger Oct. 18 states Breiten identified a man matching the description “wearing a gray

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President, executive team discuss concerns with students Aspen Prize, budget cuts, memorial bench, program futures among discussion topics. By Austin P. Taylor

ataylor160@student.alamo.edu

President Robert Vela told about 40 students at Pizza with the President Oct. 18 that the college budget was cut this year because of a drop in enrollment. “We have the biggest budget in the Alamo Colleges district,” Vela said at the event sponsored the Student Government Association in the nursing complex. “Over the last four years, San Antonio College has been experiencing a drop in enrollment every year.” Vela responded to a question asked by business administration sophomore Bobbi Balfour about budget cuts and the cost and location of the memorial bench. Vela said while enrollment did increase this year, the college hasn’t seen growth that would allow for increased funds. “It’s not that anybody’s doing anything wrong,” Vela said. “It’s just that students are living.” Eighty percent of students at this college are part-time students. Vela said day-to-day responsibilities of these students are keeping them from taking more classes. Vela said funds for the memorial bench, installed west of Fletcher Administration Center, were taken from the budget of the previous fiscal year before the budget cuts went into effect. “When this project came to us, and it came to us from your Student Government Association … when you see their tears in their eyes, there’s this obligation we have to not just do something ‘just to do it,’” Vela said. Vela said local artist Luis L. Lopez was commissioned to create the bench because it is important to support businesses within the community around the college. Vela then asked Harley Williams, former SGA president, to comment. “You can’t put a price on it, because the bench is for any student, faculty or staff who have passed away,” Williams said. Williams said the SGA surveyed 60 students prior to choosing the design. The survey asked students what “would make a memorial that was unique to this college?” The results were in favor of a bench.

President Robert Vela takes an informal survey asking students if they would like to have a clinic on campus at Pizza with the President Oct. 18 in the nursing complex. Students received free pizza and a chance to ask Vela questions about this college. Hannah Feuerbacher Vela said the memorial bench is in a visible area to ensure students know about it. A plaque to explain the purpose of the bench will be made, and a fence will be installed to hide from view generators behind the bench. “We have other little pockets we could put the bench in, but students would probably have a hard time finding them,” Vela said. “At least here it’s in the mall area. People can see it and they

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can gravitate to it.” Because of budget cuts, every department lost 25 percent of its operating budget. Students concerned about how these budget cuts have affected smaller programs asked Vela how smaller programs can stay afloat. “Part of that issue is keeping taxes low, keeping tuition low, while the state continues to cut and cut and cut every year,” Vela said. Vela said that smaller programs need to have an “entrepreneurial spirit.” “It’s not just about teaching the skill,” Vela said. “It’s also about teaching ‘how do I take this skill and market it so I can be marketable in this community?’” Vela said smaller programs will thrive once they have aligned what they teach to the current market. “We need to continuously challenge our faculty to think outside the box,” Vela said.

oct 23 2017

“These fields should not go away, but they should be open to transform themselves to be relevant and to be cutting edge.” The college executive team, consisting of three vice presidents and three deans, was also at the event. Vela opened the event by announcing this college’s nomination for the the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. This college is among the 150 community colleges eligible for the 2019 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. The Aspen Institute is a nationwide policy and educational studies organization based in Washington, D.C. The Aspen Prize is awarded to colleges with recognized excellence in the areas of learning, certificate and degree completion, employment and earnings and levels of access and success for minorities and low-income students. The Aspen prize is awarded

once every two years. The winning school receives a $1 million prize. “In the history of SAC, we’ve never been invited to be a part of this 150,” Vela said. “We are one of 150 who were selected out of 1,400 colleges in this country.” Palo Alto, Northwest Vista, and St. Philip’s colleges were also nominated for the Aspen prize. Northeast Lakeview College did not qualify because it is not fully accredited. “The next phase is to be selected into the Top 10,” Vela said. Should this college win the Aspen Prize, Vela said there would be ample ways to spend the money for the betterment of the college.

atch the Pizza with the President video at www. theranger.org.

SHADOW from Page 1 group what lies underneath the surface of this city. “He changed the way I view the city for the rest of my life,” Simpson said. “He said ‘OK, we’re going to peel back the surface of San Antonio and you can see the pipes underneath. You have a freshwater system, you have a sewage system,’ … He just started tearing apart San Antonio. It helped change the way I thought about engineering, and if I wasn’t convinced to be a civil engineer, Bain Medina Bain truly convinced me.” Civil engineering sophomore David Alejandro participated in last year’s job shadow day. Alejandro said in an interview with The Ranger that he was new to engineering when he went on the job shadow last fall. He said he had not previously considered majoring in engineering, but his experience at Bain Medina Bain Inc. convinced him to change his major. “This was a deciding factor for my career,” Alejandro said. He said his experience at the firm showed him the practical importance of engineering and the impact that it has on people’s daily lives. He said he is thankful during his daily commute that engineers designed the roads he drives on. Without good engineers, he said, his life would be much more difficult. “I wanted to find a career that would make an

Andrea M. Narendorf, vice president of Maestas & Associates, shares her experience working in civil engineering with students, faculty and fellow professionals. Architecture and engineering students shadowed local firms to gain hands-on experience and shared what they learned Oct. 13 at a luncheon in the nursing complex. Ashley Bailey impact on my world,” Alejandro said. He said the field is diverse enough that people of varied interests can major in engineering. “It’s a wide field, so definitely keep an open mind and see which one sparks your interest,” Alejandro said.

Jacob Escobodo and David Brieten, patrol officers for the Alamo Colleges Police Department, search a student’s backpack Oct. 4 in Gonzales. The Alamo Colleges Police Department received a tip after 10:30 a.m. from a student who reported suspicious activity from an African-American male, possibly armed, carrying a black backpack and wearing jeans. Escobodo and Brieten continued the routine search through Gonzales, Loftin, Nail and the nursing complex. Sgt. Guillermo Perez said there was no cause for an emergency. Deandra Gonzalez

SEARCHED from Page 1 jacket and blue jeans.” The witness said she was in class for 10-15 minutes before the police arrived. Her class began at 10:50 a.m., meaning campus police arrived around 11 a.m. Oct. 4 to interview her. Nursing freshman Victor U. said he was pulled out of class by campus police at 11 a.m. Oct. 4 in response to the call. The witness was in Room 101, and he was in Room 129. Both were in Gonzales Hall. He said campus police had him face the wall to conduct a body search. He said campus police received a report that fit his description and asked if he had a gun. He told campus police he did not have a gun. He said campus police went into the class, pulled his backpack out and searched it. “I did not give consent to search my backpack or take any pictures of me,” he said. He said campus police took a photo of him, his school ID and driver’s license. In an interview with The Ranger Oct. 18, Deputy Chief Jesse Trevino said he was unaware that a student was searched or interviewed in front of the person who provided the description because it is not written in the reports. Trevino said the district’s police typically ask students for consent before searching personal belongings, clarifying that there is a difference between searching a student and patting them down. He said campus police pat a suspect’s outer clothing when the person may be carrying a weapon, but looking through a student’s personal belongings is considered a search. Trevino said neither the police reports nor the report supplements mention the search of a backpack. The witness said she was on the man’s right side waiting for her class to start. The witness said she thought her English professor, Alex Bernal, called campus police, because she did not provide campus police her contact information.

The initial report Patrolman Jacob Escobedo released to The Ranger Oct. 13 states “a girlfriend had sent a text message to her boyfriend who then called dispatch.” Bernal said he did not contact campus police and did not see the person she described before class started. Bernal said a student told him they saw an angry student with a backpack and something that “didn’t look like a book.” When asked if her boyfriend called campus police, she said her boyfriend may have because she was on the phone with her boyfriend when she saw the potentially armed man. “I was on the phone with him as I saw it, and I was just like, ‘Shoot! What do I do?’” she said. “He was like, ‘Just tell someone.’ I was like, ‘No. I don’t want to.’ I was kind of like, ‘What if it’s nothing?’” The witness said her boyfriend told her to go to class and that’s when everything happened. Bernal said he met with Mike Burton, English, humanities, education and journalism/photography chair, and the two took immediate action, performing a sweep of Gonzales Hall to see if anybody matched the description provided by the student. Bernal said he and Burton searched all classrooms and labs in Gonzales Hall and didn’t see anyone matching the student’s description and didn’t want to be in a position of profiling. “What if the person said they (the suspect) had long hair and black jeans? We wouldn’t stop every person with long hair and black jeans,” Bernal said. When asked if it is common procedure to have the witness in view of a person being investigated, Trevino said sometimes, if there is only one caller, the witness may need to identify a person. Trevino said he was not sure if the witness and the investigated student were in sight of each other because it was not in a police report. Breiten’s report supplement states the “reporting party said he (the student investigated) was not the individual that she saw.” J. Del Valle contributed to this story.

EDITORIAL 3 www.theranger.org/EDITORIAL

oct 23 2017

Clinic in planning stages Administration should consider students’ needs first.

Amanda Graef

Early college learning costing district money Eliminate dual-credit or raise tuition to continue the program? Dual credit is free to high school students, but school districts pay the Alamo Colleges $100 per class section. Dual credit allows high school students to graduate with college credit at no cost. But some see this as lost revenue for the college district. That’s important to note when trustees start talking about raising tuition at the Alamo Colleges. The district also offered free tuition in its summer momentum plan for students who complete a set number of hours in the fall and spring semesters. Students of the hugely popular early college high schools don’t pay tuition

either and yet they can graduate in four years with a high school diploma and an associate degree. It seems the only ones paying tuition are native students, who enrolled directly in the Alamo Colleges. Ask students about balancing the high school programs without raising tuition for native students. As for college students, every dollar helps while in school. It can go toward gas, food or supplies for classes. So, raising tuition will only make it more difficult and expensive to continue school. Native students’ financial health should not be put in jeopardy by making them shoulder the burden for high school advancements.

This college has been without a health clinic since closing the previous clinic in 2011. Hopefully, that is about to change. The college president and other administrators are in the planning stages of bringing a clinic to this campus in the nursing complex. Administration is putting together a survey to assess what students want. Administrators, please create this clinic with students’ needs at the center. A clinic has great potential to serve the students of this college, but the last thing students need is the burden of another fee. Find a way to work with the budget you have and keep the clinic services free or affordable. Considering the high cost of emergency medical services, an on-campus, minor emergency response service could provide quick and affordable relief to a student in distress. The thought of a high ambulance bill may otherwise keep students from

seeking the help they need. Students often struggle to balance school, work, family and self. Unfortunately, self-care can be alltoo-easily shoved to the bottom of the priority list. An on-campus clinic could provide quick and convenient access to overthe-counter medication, vaccinations and first aid. A nurse practitioner would be a significant improvement from the former clinic. Nurse practitioners can not only write physician referrals, but also prescribe medication and diagnose minor conditions. Nursing and medical assisting students could help their community while gaining valuable, hands-on experience in their field by working shifts at the clinic, similar to the early childhood studies students working at the child care center. It is important, in these early days of planning, that the administration not only effectively surveys the student population, but also listens and seriously considers what students have to say.

CORRECTION President Robert Vela was misquoted in “College Council hears new graduation goal” in the Oct. 16 issue of The Ranger. Vela said, “Every year, this is for the last three years, we keep saying we’re not going to hit this. There’s just no way. And we hit it. I couldn’t make the argument that it was too high, or whatever, because we’ve been hitting our WIG for the last three years.” Part of the quote attributed to Vela in the article came from an audience member’s comment.

ONLINE NOW www.theranger.org Coordinator details experiences in leadership institute By Zachary-Taylor Wright A leadership institute coordinator detailed the implementation of leadership materials in the student leadership insti-

tute, and two students described the impacts the program had at the committee-of-the-whole meeting Oct. 17 at Killen Center.

District 9 trustee applications end soon By Zachary-Taylor Wright Residents of District 9 interested in applying for the interim trustee position have until Oct. 30 to apply, and a district law-

yer said interviews by the board will probably be in closed session. The appointment will be made in early November.

STAFF Managing Editor Austin P. Taylor Web Editor Zachary-Taylor Wright Features Editor Alison Graef Pulse Editor J. Del Valle Staff Writers Sarah Centeno, Tania Flores, Karla Sanchez Hernandez, Dillon Holloway, Collin Quezada, Sasha D. Robinson, Alan Torres, Shamona Wali

@sacranger @therangerSAC

A team of five Ranger staff members won awards for their multimedia package in a live contest Oct. 6 at the 2017 Texas Community College Journalism Association convention in Arlington. They competed against students from two-year colleges statewide. Read more about the winners on www. theranger.org — and enter a gift card raffle by liking, sharing and commenting on one of their Ranger stories, photos or videos on Facebook.

By J. Del Valle

ead Q&As with the winners at www. theranger.org. Courtesy of Tricia Buchhorn

Visuals Editor Deandra Gonzalez

Boxing program inspires discipline, confidence

Sixteen students took the stage to compete in the Olypmic styleboxing event hosted by the office of student life Oct. 11 in the mall. About 300 students signed up for the four-week training and 60 students showed up for practice. Focus, discipline and defense are the three components the coach seeks when choosing students to compete in the Olympic style-boxing event. Hector Ramos has coached the boxing team at this college for six years.

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oct 23 2017

Above: Haley Capestany, head women’s basketball coach, gives thanks after a player completed a steal in the last quarter Oct. 11 against UIW in Candler. This is Capestany’s fourth year coaching at this college.

Cardinals swoop Rangers at home opener in Candler Slow transitioning and defense resulted in first home game loss. By J. Del Valle

jdelvalle1@student.alamo.edu

The Rangers’ women’s basketball team home opener against the University of the Incarnate Word Oct. 11 in Candler can be summed up in two words: nailbiting. The Cardinals won the game 73-69. Kinesiology sophomore Kennedy McGovern won the jump ball at the start of the game, giving the Rangers first ball control of the game. Forensic science freshman Acelynn Sepulveda scored the first basket with a quick steal from prepharmacy sophomore Megan Lazaga that turned into a fast-break play and finished off with a smooth layup to the basket. Sepulveda swooshed the first 3-pointer at the 7-minute mark, while the Cardinals struggled with their shooting in the first 5 minutes with a score of 13-9. The Rangers woman-to-woman defense started at the inbound play, and they transitioned to doubleteaming the point guard at the half-court mark, helping the Rangers start off strong against the Cardinals’ easy turnovers and gaining off the steals that resulted in fast break layups. The Cardinals’ momentum started off slow with

Business administration sophomore Daniella Aguirre makes a layup adding 2 points in the second quarter Oct. 11 against UIW in Candler.

Left: Criminal justice freshman Alina Falcon goes for a loose ball against Faustina Ho, business management freshman at UIW, but doesn’t retrieve it Oct. 11 In Candler.

hotos by Brianna Rodrigue

transitioning and defense that resulted in the Rangers stealing the ball three times in the first quarter. Kinesiology freshman Destiny Solis contributed four assists, and Sepulveda led the team with 10 points in the first quarter and first half. The Rangers started off with a 4-point lead at the end of the first quarter 22-18. The energy started to pick up for both teams at the start of the second quarter with international business senior Alyssa Solis chunking a half-court pass to criminal justice sophomore Hailey Gill for a wide-open layup. The Cardinals’ defense was able to contain the Rangers’ offensive scoring with 15 points scored in the second quarter. The Rangers’ defense started slipping on the Cardinal’s offensive shooting with 18 points added to the scoreboard. The Rangers started hustling on defense, which resulted in four steals in the third quarter.

ead the full story and coverage of the team’s win against Victoria college at www. theranger.org.

Kinesiology freshman Celeste Arriaga guards Mireya Montenegro, pre-pharmacy sophomore at UIW, stopping her from crossing half court resulting in a 10-second violation Oct. 11 in Candler.

Psychology sophomore Shanesha Clayton goes through two UIW defenders Oct. 11 in Candler. Clayton made 7 points in the game. The Rangers won 61-59 in their next game against Victoria College Oct. 18 in Candler.

Haley Capestany, head women’s basketball coach, cheers on kinesiology freshman Destiny Solis after making a layup and getting fouled by a UIW player in the last few seconds of the game Oct. 11 in Candler. The women’s basketball team lost 73-69 to UIW in the home opener but won Oct. 4 against UIW 62-46 in pre-season play.