ranger .org
the
Retired English professor writes biography of former student
Serving San Antonio College since 1926
Online
An independent forum of free voices
/readtheranger @therangerSAC /therangervideo
210-486-1773 • Single copies free
Volume 90 Issue 3 • Sept. 28, 2015
New center puts vets, pups at ease Northwest Vista College veterans’ service dogs are welcome. By Giselle Guadron sac-ranger@alamo.edu
Northwest Vista College has opened a new place for veterans to decompress, find resources and even get doggy treats. The veterans lounge and resource center welcomes veterans with service dogs. The center is equipped with dog beds, water bowls and treats for the service dogs. Service dogs are a part of many veterans’ lives; they assist with different needs. Computer science sophomore Terrance McGlade visited the center Sept. 9 with his service dog, Major. “This is a much-needed asset to the campus,” he said. Major even got to lie down in one of the dog beds and rested for a bit. Major is an American bull terrier mix with black lab, and he safeguards McGlade’s life. “He lets me know when I have seizures, and because of that I am not scared to go out in public,” he said. The veteran’s lounge and resource center opened Sept. 9 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Room 217 of Pecan Hall. President Ric Baser noted the importance of the center. “We’re giving a place for veterans to go and decompress and to get away,” he said. There are over 2,000 veterans on the Northwest Vista campus and this center will provide them a safe haven. The center is in memory of all veterans and dedicated to economics Professor Miguel Muñoz Sr., a Vietnam veteran who served with the U.S. Army’s 173rd Airborne Brigade. He died in
Deputy Chief Joe Pabon shows the utility closet where stolen and lost property is stored at this college’s DPS station at 1601 N. Main. Pabon said the closet was full Sept. 9. Kyle R. Cotton
District police seek to return missing property Administrative associate at campus’ DPS is the keeper of lost property. NVC computer science sophomore Terrance McGlade and service dog, Major, demonstrate Sept. 9 some of the amenities of the veteran’s lounge and resource center. Giselle Guadron February 2014. Muñoz’s wife, Rosie Muñoz, and his children, Northwest Vista economics Professor Mike Muñoz Jr. and Linda Muñoz Zehr, attended the dedication. “We’re honored that Northwest Vista College has recognized our father for services to our country and the college,” Zehr said. Being a veteran, the elder Muñoz was aware of the difficulties veterans faced after their return and became an advocate for the Vet to Vet program at Northwest Vista. The program is designed to help student veterans achieve both academic and personal success.
The program offers support to help veterans make their transition into civilian life easier. The center offers a number of amenities for student veterans: snacks, a microwave, small fridge, television, computers, a resource board and patio seating. After the ribbon-cutting, everyone proceeded outside to a celebration picnic. For more information, call 210-486-4417 or visit www.alamo.edu/nvc/future-students/ veterans/ or Room 110 of Cypress Campus Center. For more information on Northwest Vista’s Vet to Vet program, visit www.alamo.edu/nvc/ current-students/v2v/.
Celebrate the freedom to read The library will set up blind dates with banned books this week. By Roberto Martinez sac-ranger@alamo.edu
Students can exercise their freedom to choose what they read from this college’s library with books that have been challenged and or banned for content during Banned Books Week. According to the American Library Association, Banned Books Week is an annual event that promotes the freedom to read and highlights the value of free and open access to information. It is observed this year from Sept. 27-Oct. 3. Each year, Banned Books Week celebrates the freedom to express all viewpoints, even if they might be considered unorthodox or unpopular, according to the association’s website at www.ala.org/bbooks/ bannedbooksweek. The library at this college will present the third annual Blind Date with a Banned Book during Banned Books Week. Students with a college ID can visit the library beginning at 9 a.m. today on the third floor of Moody Learning Center and choose a book wrapped in brown paper. Ten books will be available at 9 a.m. Monday and Wednesday and
at noon Tuesday and Thursday. Reference Librarian Celita Avila recommends students come early
Courtesy as it is first come, first served, and the books go quickly. This year’s selection of books includes the recently challenged “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” a medical history book, by Rebecca Skloot. This book was challenged in Knox County, Tenn., after the mother of a 15-year-old boy called the book pornographic and wanted it removed from all Knox County schools, according to a Salon article published Sept. 9. “As librarians, it is our duty to find the balance between ageappropriate content, and remain vigilant in allowing the access of information for all,” Avila said.
Avila said all libraries have collection standards and policies to prevent explicit content and assures that each title purchased is subject to this consideration. “(With) titles that have received criticism but have also received literary recognition and awards, we have to remember, we are curators for everyone and provide this content for everyone,” she said. Other books featured that have also been challenged or banned include “The Autobiography of Malcom X,” which has been regarded as a “how-to-manual” for crime and claims of “anti-white” statements. “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” by Dee Brown, the story of U.S. growth and expansion to the west from the perspective of the Native Americans, was banned by a school district in Wisconsin in 1974 because some considered the writing “polemical” and the district wanted to avoid controversy. “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neal Hurston, according to the American Library Association, was challenged in 1997 by parents in Brentsville, Va., who attempted to ban the book from a high school’s advanced English class for “sexual content.” That ban was overturned. To find out more about Banned Books Week 2015, visit www.sacguide.libguides.com/banned.
By Kyle R. Cotton
kcotton11@student.alamo.edu
After the success of lowering reported crimes across the district by increasing their presence at the Alamo Colleges, the police department selected as its wildly important goal this year to increase their found-propertyreturned-to-owner rate from 31 to 33 percent by the end of the year. The WIGs come from FranklinCovey’s “Four Disciplines of Execution,” which is an accountability system required of all district employees. The most common crime across the district is the crime of opportunity (burglary and theft) that accounts for almost half of all reported crime, according to the 2015 Weekly Report. Deputy Chief Joe Curiel said the police will return more property to their owners by expanding presence on social media, using the department website, calling those who label their belongings and sending, mass emails and fliers. Curiel said the goal is only a 2 percent increase because most found property has no identifying marks. “Each campus has an administrative associate responsible for the safekeeping and documenting of found property,” Curiel said. “Every week each of the administrative associates will have this WIG where their goal would be to achieve three different means of advertisement or communicate to try to inform the public or the owner of the property so we can increase that return rate.” Curiel said the best way to prevent crime is for students to be aware of their own targets of opportunity, such as laptops, iPads, bicycles, backpacks and telephones. Curiel said students at this college should be especially careful because the campus is more open compared to the other campuses, which are better defined and separated from the surrounding communities. The best way to prevent crimes of opportunity is to refrain from leaving items unattended and increase basic awareness of an individual’s property and environment, Curiel said. For more information, visit alamo. edu/district/police. For more information on found property, contact the DPS office’s administrative associate at each campus through the non-emergency number, 210-485-0099.