09 15 2005 by The University Star

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TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS

www.UNIVERSITYSTAR.com

SEPTEMBER 15, 2005

THURSDAY

VOLUME 95, ISSUE 9

Students: Incident doesn’t detract from positive message By Zandria Avila News Reporter Although the African American Leadership Conference was disrupted by an incident with police early Sunday morning, Keemon Leonard, president of the Black Student Alliance and pre-mass communication junior, said the incident should not dampen the many positive aspects of the conference, including workshops, social events and speakers. “It was a great educational conference with outstanding workshops and exceptional speakers,” Leonard said. “I commend the AALC committee in organizing a magnificent conference.” The 13th annual AALC began Friday evening with students gathering for a mixer in the LBJ Student Center Ballroom. Shortly following the mixer, lights were dimmed in the Ballroom, and the conference opened with entertainment provided by the Neo Soldiers, a poetry organization based out of Austin. The audience was drawn into the Neo Soldiers’ lives with eloquent anecdotes and original melodies. Many pieces addressed issues of the African-American community, urging the audience to break stereotypes of AfricanAmericans. “We use red frequently in our poems because red has a flavor. Many associate red with a happy memory — Kool-Aid, popsicles, red soda. As some African-Americans obtain advance educations they use their education as a reason to break away from their community. Red reminds them where they came from,” said a member of the Neo Soldiers who only gave his stage name, Korim. This year’s initial stages were unique, with entertainment setting the continued mood and the first Gospel Fest featured in any AALC held at the university. Performers featured budding recording artists such as James and Roy Jacobs of Double Portion, singer Cheryl McWilliams, who is also the grant director of Multicultural Student Affairs,

and Notori Blue, from the University of Texas. Also performing was special guest Denise Tichnoer, a world-renowned gospel artist. Tywaun Watkins, sociology senior, said he attended an all-male conference Friday. “It was great and mind-empowering,” Watkins said. Saturday’s activities included four workshop sessions for conference attendants to choose from, each with various speakers.

Enrollment trends at Texas State were the main focus of the Faculty Senate meeting Wednesday. President Denise Trauth and Provost Perry Moore were present to address the Senate. The senators, along with Trauth and Moore, mulled over statistics compiled by the enrollment management ofﬁce, which included the enrollment rates of undergraduate and graduate programs as well as

enrollment at the Round Rock Higher Education Center. While Texas State’s total enrollment is up by 1.4 percent, graduate programs have suffered a decline of 5.3 percent overall, including a 20.6-percent drop in post-baccalaureate students. The drop in these students, Moore said, is not indicative of the entire graduate program since many students in the post-baccalaureate program are only seeking teacher certiﬁcation and do not represent the typical graduate

Undergraduate students Fall 04

Undergraduate students Fall 05

Today’s Weather Precipitation: 20% Humidity: 63% UV: 10 Very High Wind: S 11 mph

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UARY Coming soon: The Sanctuary Lofts, located on the corner of Hutchison Street and North Street, will feature a renovated space with newly developed living quarters.

— Keemon Leonard Black Student Alliance president

See AALC, page 4

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Graduate students Fall 05

organizing a magniﬁcent conference.”

“We are trying to recruit and retain minorities and one way we do that is to have them engage in the campus right away. One way we do that is the AALC,” said Jonnie Wilson, assistant director of multicultural student affairs. “It also prepares leaders who will be on this campus.” One of the speakers in the ﬁrst session on Saturday, Shona Johnson, presenter of “Free Yourself,” aimed to inspire listeners to release themselves from situations they were unnecessarily bound to, from bad relationships to bad job situations. She offered her testimony, saying her belief in God had a positive effect in her life. Being a victim of domestic violence, Johnson said she suffered low self-esteem and mental anguish. Johnson advised those in attendance not to “remain in a disaster area. God sees you in your most perfect and holy way in spite of your faults.” Students posed questions like “how could you begin to see yourself in the manner God sees you” and “how could you remove yourself from the ‘disaster area?’” Johnson presented three steps to begin the healing process and cautiously promised that while

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Graduate students Fall 04

commend “I the AALC committee in

Adam Brown/Star photo To conclude the African American Leadership Conference, Jarvis Clark spoke to a large crowd at the LBJ Student Center with an inspirational and practical message on Sunday. Clark excited the crowd with anecdotes of his experiences in different churches and spoke of how to succeed in life.

95˚/73˚

See SENATE, page 4

SUBURBAN SANC

Jeremy Craig/ Star photo

Former First Baptist church to become shopping, living area By Anna Hefﬂey Special to The Star

An artistʼs rendering of the new Sanctuary Lofts.

Rather than destroying the old First Baptist Church at 303 W. Hutchison St., developers are converting the building to new apartments, dubbed the Sanctuary Lofts. The First Baptist Church had been looking for land on which to build a new church for 10 years, Rev. Mark Newton said. Newton said even after numerous remodels, the

Image courtesy of www.thesanctuarylofts.com

See LOFTS, page 4

PAWS takes initiative to keep students in school with interactive program By Kathy Martinez News Reporter

Mostly Sunny

student. Moore pointed to the 18.8-percent increase in doctoral students at Texas State as more indicative of the trend in graduate school. “Increasing the graduate enrollment is the top — the top priority of the university. We will be working throughout this year to develop a marketing plan, program by program, for the graduate level,” Moore said. Moore called attention to the

(In number of students)

By Clayton Medford News Reporter

Texas State Enrollment, 2004-05

AALC weekend holds Trauth and university provost address Faculty Senate ‘mind-empowering’ workshops, speakers

Over the last several months, the Division of Student Affairs has developed and launched a new student-retention initiative in an effort to increase student retention rates at Texas State. The Positive Action With Students is an early alert Web-based warning system that allows faculty and staff to make referrals to help students throughout their college career. Interim Associate Vice President of Student Affairs Jennifer Beck said faculty and staff members can ﬁle referrals with PAWS regarding any concerns about students facing challenges with their academic career. Categories and subcategories under which faculty and staff referrals may ﬁle were based on information collected from graduation exit interviews and assessment data administered and collected by the university about common concerns and

“I

t’s about time the university take a pro-active role in the live of their students. We are what makes this university.”

Saturday Mostly Sunny Temp: 95°/ 71° Precipitation: 20%

By Paige Burrer Special to The Star

struggles students face. Only faculty and staff will have access to the system to make referrals by logging on to the PAWS alert system. “The protocol for the program involves the faculty or staff member submitting a referral based on his or her observation of a student in their class that seems to be having some sort of

Sept. 16 marks Mexico’s 195th anniversary of the beginning of the battle of their independence from Spain. Celebrations throughout Mexico and in the United States will take place to commemorate Mexico’s victory against Spain. Cinco de Mayo is the official day Mexico gained its independence after a 10-year struggle against Spain. However, Hispanics everywhere declare Sept. 16 as Mexico’s Independence Day because it signifies the beginning of the revolt. Originally, the war against Spain was not planned to start until Oct. 2, 1810. However, Spain discovered their plans to gain independence, and Mexico was left with only two choices: either fight now or lose the revolt indefinitely. Fortunately, Mexico decided to start the revolt early. On Sept. 16, 1810, a group of local conspirators sounded the church bells and yelled for ev-

See STUDENTS, page 3

See MEXICO, page 3

— Jude Prather public administration junior

Two-day Forecast Friday Partly Cloudy Temp: 95°/ 71° Precipitation: 10%

Dieciséis de septiembre events honor Mexico’s independence day

Inside

TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS

Classiﬁeds Comics Crossword News

10 9 9 1-4

Opinions Sports Trends

To Contact The Star: 5 11,12 6-9

PAGE TWO The University Star

Thursday in Brief

September 15, 2005

starsof texas state Dr. James Houseﬁeld, associate professor of art and design, has been chosen to receive the Fall 2005 Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching. The award is given to a faculty member every fall by the university president, as are presidential awards for outstanding scholarship and creative activity and for outstanding service. Dr. Houseﬁeld is being recognized for his passion

for teaching and the individual attention with which he guides each of his students. Dr. Housefield’s students say his unique and exuberant teaching style makes the material exciting and relevant to them. In addition to teaching, Dr. Housefield serves as adjunct curator for the Austin Museum of Art. The Star congratulates Dr. Housefield for this honor and thanks him for his commitment to teaching.

News Contact — Kirsten Crow, starnews@txstate.edu

It’s easy being green

Calendar of

Texas State alumnus Joe Ellis puts his used car batteries in the designated area at Green Guy Recycling. Located behind Tractor Supply Company, Green Guy Recycling is a great place for students and residents of San Marcos to bring recyclable materials. For more information, call (512) 353-3266.

EVENTS Clubs & Meetings

from 9 to 10 p.m. at the Student Recreation Center.

Thursday Alcoholics Anonymous meets from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m. in the LBJ Student Center, Room 3-12.1. Orchesis Dance Company auditions are at 5 p.m. in the Jowers Center, Room 178. Please wear form-ﬁtting clothes.

Monday Sexual Assault & Abuse Survivors Group has its ﬁrst meeting from 5 to 6:15 p.m. For information or to sign up, call the Counseling Center at (512) 245-2208.

Tuesday War Support Group: Helping Students Cope, a drop-in support group for students dealing with a loved one or friend serving in the military, meets from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the LBJSC, Room 5-1.10.

Wednesday The Association of Information Technology Professionals meets from 5 to 6 p.m. in the LBJSC, Room 3-3.1. ACOA/Dysfunctional Families Group meets from 5:15 to 6:45 p.m. For information or to sign up, call the Counseling Center at (512) 245-2208.

Campus Sports Thursday FREE salsa dance class is from 8:10 to 9:10 p.m. at the Student Recreation Center.

Monday

Events Thursday FREE Writing Center Workshop “Professional Writing” is from 2 to 3 p.m. in Flowers Hall, Room G09. Open to students, staff and faculty. Please contact Bearden Coleman at (512) 245-3018 if you plan to attend.

Monday The School of Music hosts An Evening of Schubert Songs and Chamber Music at 8 p.m. in the Recital Hall. Tickets are $2 for general admission and $1 for students.

Tuesday The School of Music hosts an organ recital by faculty artist John Schmidt at 8 p.m. in the University Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $2 for general admission and $1 for students.

CALENDAR SUBMISSION POLICY Calendar submissions are free. Send submissions to Calendar of Events at starcalendar@txstate.edu, or call (512) 245-3487 for more information. E-mailed press releases will not be accepted. If using e-mail, please submit as a simple bulleted list of essential information. Submissions are on a ﬁrst come, ﬁrst served basis and notices for weekly meetings need to be submitted every week they will take place. The University Star reserves the right to refuse entries or edit for libel, style and space purposes. Deadline: Three working days prior to publication.

Linda L. Smith/Star photo

CRIME BL TTER San Marcos Police Department Sept. 13, 10:20 a.m. Grafﬁti/1301 Highway 123 Grafﬁti of an educational facility. Sept. 13, 1:27 p.m. Theft/1131 W. MLK Drive Victim reported that her bicycle was stolen sometime during the night. Sept. 13, 3:39 p.m. Lost/1301 Highway 123 Cell phone was lost in the locker room at San Marcos

High School. Sept. 13, 5:03 p.m. Theft/Burleson Street/ Mary Street Violation of wrecker ordinance. Sept. 13, 9:51 p.m. OTH/1011 Wonder World Drive Impersonating public servant report. Sept. 13, 11:50 p.m. DWI/1334 N. Interstate 35 Intoxicated motorist placed under arrest for driving while intoxicated.

Crime stoppers: UPD: 245-7867, SMPD: 353-TIPS

FREE hip-hop dance class is

On This Day...

STARS OF TEXAS STATE POLICY

Do you know someone at Texas State who has recently celebrated a great achievement? Nominate your choice to appear in The Star as a “Star of Texas State.” Write an e-mail to starletters@txstate.edu with the subject line “Stars of Texas State,” and include your nominee’s name, his/her relationship to the university, contact information for yourself and your nominee, and a brief description of the achievement. Also include a photo of your nominee if available. Accepted nominees will be featured at the top of Page Two.

WE ALL MAKE MISTAKES In Wednesday’s issue of The Star, the chance of precipitation was listed as 230 percent. In fact, it is impossible to give more than 100 percent. We apologize for the error and sincerely hope that none of our readers carried umbrellas all day based on our prediciton. Tuesday’s story titled “Students report excessive force in early morning arrests” stated that Chad Gordon and Christian Prater were arrested in the incident early Sunday morning between attendees of the African

American Leadership Conference and police. Wednesday’s story titled “Contradictory accounts of confrontation leave questions” stated correctly that the two were detained but not arrested. Also, Tuesday’s story stated that Brian Ware’s girlfriend, a University of Texas nursing junior, was handcuffed; she was not. We apologize to both Ware’s girlfriend and the law enforcement community for the error. Both errors in Tuesday’s story were corrected in Wednesday’s article.

1775 - An early and unofficial American flag was raised by Lieutenant Colonel Isaac Mott after the seizing of Fort Johnson from the British. The flag was dark blue with the white word “Liberty” spelled on it. 1821 - Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador proclaimed independence. 1858 - The first mail service begins to the Pacific Coast of the United States under government contract. Coaches from the Butterfield Overland Mail Company took 12 days to make the journey between Tipton, Mo. and San Francisco, Cali. 1923 - Oklahoma was placed under martial law by Gov. John Calloway Walton due to terrorist activity by

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Daily Beat Windfall payment means lower taxes for San Marcos residents A one-time windfall payment in September 2004 that boosted San Marcos sales taxes by 32.3 percent now has resulted in a 20.9 percent decline in this September’s rebate compared to a year ago. The city of San Marcos saw a 20.9 percent reduction in the sales tax rebate from the state of Texas compared to last September, a difference of $306,141. San Marcos sales tax revenues are running 4.2 percent ahead of last year, with an overall gain of $513,527 so far and with one more month to go in the ﬁscal year. The current ﬁscal year budget for sales tax revenue is $13,526,761. “Last year, the city of San Marcos received a one-time

the Ku Klux Klan. After this declaration, national newspapers began to expose the Klan and its criminal activities. 1935 - The Nuremberg Laws were enacted by Nazi Germany. The act stripped all German Jews of their civil rights, and the swastika was made the ofﬁcial symbol of Nazi Germany. 1961 - The United States resumed underground testing of nuclear weapons. 1971 - Greenpeace was founded. 1994 - It was announced that the season was over for the National Baseball League on the 34th day of the players’ strike. The ﬁnal days of the regular season were canceled.

Mike Cardew/Akron Beacon Journal David Pushcar, 23, gets a quick nap on Wednesday during a break from cleaning a water-damaged house on 55th Street in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Miss.

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windfall payment from a company that had underpaid its taxes significantly,” said Rodney Gonzales, finance director. “Sales taxes were estimated to increase by only one percent for the current fiscal year. We are well ahead of this projection and will likely exceed this estimate.” A state audit had revealed the underpayment by the company and the city was compensated in Sept. of 2004. The Sept. payment reflects sales taxes collected in July. “We are still moving in a healthy direction and confident that recent expansion at the outlet mall and community growth will keep our economy prospering,” Gonzales said.

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NEWS

Thursday, September 15, 2005

PAWS: Retention system goes online Monday morning CONTINUED from page 1

problems or challenges with school,” Beck said. The e-mail, or “alert,” from the faculty member is then received by the VPSA office, which notifies the appropriate liaison on campus to assist the student with issues that may result in the student leaving campus. The liaison then contacts the student via e-mail or phone to offer assistance based on the referrals made. Many of the referral categories listed on the system include academics, academic skill deficiencies, career development, emotional, personal, physical and social. Specific categories dealing with these referral issues include not attending class, writing-skill deficiencies, homesickness, financial problems, legal problems, family or personal crisis, continual isolation and roommate problems. “What we are trying to establish with this program is an opportunity for students to get assistance from some form of professional liaison here on campus, whether it be academically or emotionally,” Beck said. She said the goal of the program is to respond to the student within two to four days of the referral and the system is for nonemergency situations. Beck said all referrals are kept confidential and are not seen by other liaisons. For psychology senior Kristin Bourland such a program is an advantage to the university. Bourland believes it is important the university take strides to ensure it retains its successful students. “I can only imagine how many outstanding students that not just this university, but many college campuses, lose because of financial obligations,” Bourland said. “It seems unfair that a student who does really well in school has to drop out because they are having problems paying for their education. Those students deserve special assistance.” The PAWS alert system also

makes referrals for students having academic problems in the classroom. “It seems students only become an issue to the university when it’s too late and they have already received ﬁve Fs for the semester, and then they’re kicked out,” said Jude Prather, public administration junior. “It’s about time the university takes a pro-active role in the lives of their students. We are what makes this university.” Criminal justice professor Michael Supancic said while he has some concerns about the intrusiveness of the program, he thinks it is a good judgment call on behalf of the university. “What is important is that the program be a service-oriented program for the welfare of the students, not the university itself,” Supancic said. “If we are providing a service such as education, then it is the responsibility of the university to some degree take care of its students.” Supancic thinks a lot of professors are afraid to get involved with their student’s affairs because they don’t have the expertise to assist them. “We are often seen as a therapeutic outlet, which leaves us in limbo because of liability issues,” said Supancic. “I’ve had students come into my classroom and burst into tears, and I’ve had to question whether or not it’s my role to do something. Being able to refer students to the appropriate source is helpful.” Some of the professional liaisons on campus include Career Services, the Counseling Center, the attorney for students, the dean of students, Financial Aid, Student Learning Assistance Center, the Writing Center, the Math lab and Residence Life. The Web site, available at www.studentaffairs.txstate.edu/ pawalert, will be activated at 8 a.m. on Monday, so that faculty and staff members can begin using the referral system. “We just want students to know that the university cares about their college success and we want to be there to help them see it through,” Beck said.

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The University Star - Page 3

PAINTING HIS PASSION

Jeremy Craig/Star photo Fredrick Tabares, studio art senior with a specialization in painting, spends much of his out-of-class time in the studio experimenting with ideas such as incorporation of text in his paintings.

A Bobcat in Baghdad Sept. 13, 2005 I’ve never been to war before, so I had no idea what to expect the living conditions to be like once I arrived. I must tell you, it sucks. However, all things considered, living here isn’t that bad once you get used to it, so I’ll try my best to describe some of my day-to-day surroundings. When one thinks of soldiers off at war, one might picture them living in trenches or some crappy tent in the middle of the jungle. Let me tell you, America has improved on that notion quite a bit and has actually ﬁgured out a few ways to pamper us in Iraq. We live, sleep and operate on a large base near the center of Baghdad. Since the Army has been here a few years already, amenities are set up to make life as comfortable as possible, given that, on the other side of the fence, there are some people who want to kill us. Soldiers at my camp, as well as most other places I’ve been to, live in small trailers. Think of small, single-wide trailers lined up row after row. Each trailer is divided into three small rooms, each about 15 feet wide by 15 feet high, and two people live in each room. I have a small bed with springs that are always poking me, a wall locker and some shelves that are crooked because I built them myself out of scrap wood. Thank God that everyone has airconditioning in their rooms; the heat this summer would have been deadly without it. Our living conditions may not sound very glamorous, but I can’t complain too much. I have a small amount of privacy, and my roommate and I get along really

My name is Brian Patrick Henretta. I’m a 24-year-old Texas State student from Buffalo, N.Y. I moved to Killeen in 2000, and my home has been San Marcos since early 2003. I’m an Army public affairs specialist, journalist and photographer with the 100th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment, Texas National Guard, out of Camp Mabry, currently serving in Baghdad under Operation Iraqi Freedom. I’m a mass communication sophomore, but my major will likely change by the time I return to Texas State.

well. We have a store where we can buy some essentials, so I was able to purchase a small refrigerator for the room. I don’t care for empty walls, so I ordered a few posters from eBay and brought some back after my trip to Europe during the spring. I like doing whatever I can to fool myself into thinking that my room is nice and for it to remind me of home. We are able to shower every day because we have trailers that were converted into bathrooms and showers. I can’t believe that with all the sweating we do here, some people don’t take full advantage of the showers every day; they are gross, but that’s beside the point. The bathroom trailer can get dirty, but it’s cleaned every day so it’s usually not too nasty. I’ve accepted the fact that I have to use community showers, but I still get uncomfortable whenever a fat, naked guy is blocking the aisle as I try to walk by. Eating is such an important part of my life, so thankfully the food isn’t too bad. Kellogg, Brown and Root, a big, greedy subsidiary of big, greedy Halliburton, may be an evil corporation, but they sure know how to cook some chicken. They are contracted by the government to prepare our meals, as well as provide many other essential services to us soldiers. The dining facilities are pretty good. You can choose from a huge variety of greasy short-order food, healthy lean meats, vegetables, fresh fruit, various ethnic foods, Baskin Robbins ice cream and about ten different cakes made by a professional pastry chef. These mess halls are open for four meals a day, so no one really goes hungry. Plus they have TVs inside on which to watch sports while you’re eating. If normal food doesn’t suit you, there

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are trailers with Burger King, Subway, Pizza Hut and a few others to give soldiers a taste of fast food from back home. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Are you ready to sign up and come on over yet? One thing that bothers me is how ugly everything is here, but I suppose it’s unavoidable. The Army doesn’t care as much about buildings looking nice as it does about them being functional. Fortunately, Saddam Hussein cared a lot about his buildings looking nice, and we live on one of his old presidential grounds. My camp was home to Saddam’s old recreational area in Baghdad. He built huge, man-made lakes because he’s a big speedboat and fishing fan. This was his spot where he would go with his sons and buddies to relax. There is a huge palace called the al-Faw Water Palace that’s right on one of his lakes and right down the street from me; coalition soldiers work out of it now. I love to go running around the palace and lake around sunset because the reflections off the lake are beautiful at that time of day. Of course, there are many camps throughout Iraq in various conditions, and I can only speak about the few I’ve been to. I know that there are some camps where living conditions are much more difficult, so I consider myself lucky. It takes some getting used to, but eventually you learn to call your trailer room in Baghdad home. It’s a long way from a comfortable San Marcos apartment, but I guess home can be any place that you go to escape from what’s going on outside around you. To contact Spc. Henretta, e-mail brianiniraq44@yahoo.com

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NEWS

Page 4 - The University Star

AALC: Sessions touched on many issues CONTINUED from page 1

the process would not be easy, it would be fulfilling in the end. LaTonya Revis, interdisciplinary studies senior and first time attendant of the AALC, was at Johnson’s workshop and said she believed the topic was beneficial to her life. Revis described the experience as “uplifting and life altering.” “I had previously conversed with friends the night before on the very subject. She repeated their words verbatim, and it was conformation,” Revis said. Subsequent to the “Free Yourself ” experience, Revis waited to thank Johnson, which resulted in an in-depth conversation. Revis shared a heart-to-heart conversation with Johnson and her words resulted in Revis shedding tears. “It’s nice to know other women deal with the same insecurities and persist with life,” Revis said. “I am now empowered.” Before leaving Revis’ side, Johnson and others gathered hands to pray over Revis. “I was deeply moved by the support from the other ladies, I had never spoke to them before,

church could not be brought up to code. “We were really hampered in what we could do in the building,” Newton said. “We were thrilled when Sanctuary Lofts bought it.” The church moved temporarily to the San Marcos Baptist Academy on Aug. 15, 2004, and will break ground on their new building Oct. 30, which will be located at Hunter Road and McCarty Lane. The Lofts won the 2005 Development Project of the Year award from the Central Texas American Planning Association Section. Bill Lee and Margaret Shaw accepted the award on behalf of Tekoa, Momark Development, LLC, and the City of San Marcos. “We saw it as an opportunity to create a unique urban environment while preserving one of the most historic pieces of architecture in the city,” Lee said. John Butts, superintendent of Tellepsen Builders, the company constructing the lofts, said there will be 44 loft apartments inside the church. Two additional four-story buildings will be built around the church, which will house 162

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had previously conversed with friends the night before on the very subject. She repeated their words verbatim, and it was conﬁrmation.”

— LaTonya Revis interdisciplinary studies senior

never knew their names. They cared enough to join in prayer,” Revis said. Darcy Lofton and Maya Willis’ workshop Saturday addressed the impeding issue of intra-racism. The presenters spoke of intra-racism historically, discussing when slave owners divided the African-American race by treating those with lighter skin tones better than those with darker complexion in an effort to divide and cause hatred within the race. Saturday’s events were concluded by separate female and male wrap sessions titled “Is Black Still Beautiful?” The sessions were an open forum for attendants to voice concerns of the African-American community. Some of the topics covered included discussions about “good” hair versus “bad” hair,

SANCTUARY: Project to convert church to lofts receives planning award CONTINUED from page 1

Thursday, September 15, 2005

more apartments. The apartments will be fully furnished, including a washer and dryer. The complex will also have a game room, business center, chapel, fitness studio, three pools and a hot tub. There will be an on-site coffee shop and retail area. The specific retailers who will be filling the area are still unknown. The Sanctuary Lofts will also have a direct-access parking garage with 525 spaces. It will be seven stories, with two stories below ground so that the garage will not stand higher than the sanctuary. “I thought it was a good idea because the church needed a bigger building and the developers wanted to build a community,” said Katie Wynns, nutrition and foods senior. The developer is Sanctuary Lofts GP LLC. It is owned and operated by Tekoa SL, LLC and Momark Development, LLC, both out of Austin. “It’s going to be a very unique complex for the city and a jewel for the college,” Butts said. Information about amenities, floor plans and leasing can be found at www.thesanctuarylofts.com. The Lofts will be accepting applicants to move in Fall 2006.

light skin versus dark skin and socialization within the African-American community. Sunday ended the conference with a church service held in the LBJSC Teaching Theater. The sermon was presented by Jarvis “Caesar” Clark, a counseling and guidance graduate student. Wilson said the conference is open to all students. “The conference is never the same,” Wilson said. “The themes change every year.” Watkins said despite the incident Sunday, the AALC was inspiring. “It was too bad the incident that occurred Saturday night had to happen, but the conference itself was uplifting and made us realize how important our generation is to the future of our world,” Watkins said.

Tiffany Searcy/Star photo The San Marcos Animal Shelter is full of kittens. These kittens are so new to the shelter they do not even have animal control numbers. For more information, call (512) 393-8340.

SENATE: Enrollment MEXICO: Friday marks trends at Texas State, anniversary of 10-year Round Rock assessed CONTINUED from page 1

8.5 percent increase in undergraduate enrollment of Hispanic students. The university, Moore said, has made gains in becoming a Hispanic serving institution — a priority — and is pleased by the increase in Hispanic enrollment. However, the provost emphasized all the statistics presented in the report only reﬂect the difference between the fall semesters of 2004 and 2005 and should be reviewed accordingly. Moore reminded the senators that “trends are not built in one year; the progression builds up over time.” Computer information systems professor and senator Vivek Shah asked Trauth what direction she expected the enrollment trend to turn in the coming several years, given the current statistics. “We see the (undergraduate) growth at San Marcos kind of leveling off as long as the infrastructure in San Marcos is how it is. But if a commuter rail comes to San Marcos, it may change. But I think the growth is going to be at the graduate level here, but I also think that some of that growth will be at Round Rock,” Trauth said.

Moore hopes the growth at the Round Rock Higher Education Center will come from within the surrounding area. “The Round Rock campus is going to serve Round Rock and North Austin; (the San Marcos) campus is serving south parts of Austin and other areas. We need to let Austin know that Round Rock is there, and we have to very much let the campuses of ACC know that Round Rock is there,” Moore said. “I think you would be very surprised at the number among the average population that don’t know it is there, haven’t seen it and certainly don’t know how nice it is.” Trauth also hopes any growth at the San Marcos campus will not adversely affect the culture that residential students create. “I believe it’s important to keep the undergraduate core residential program healthy even though that’s not the majority,” Trauth said. “They affect the university disproportionately; they make the university what it is. I don’t want to shift to a junior/senior university because then you lose that culture the freshmen and sophomores create.”

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eryone to fight for liberty. This marked the beginning of the Independence war. To celebrate this significant moment in history, Hispanic citizens everywhere have fiestas every Sept. 16. Those celebrating pop fireworks, have local parades and wave Mexico’s flag proudly through the air. “Usually in my home town, there’s some type of event put on by the city, and if not, there’s some really big sporting event on TV. There’s also a parade in the morning,” said Luvin Chapa, a Spanish senior from Laredo. “On Friday, I’m going to celebrate by drinking a beer for my ancestors.” “Although this year there are no festivities being held in San

Marcos, there will be events held at Waterloo Park in Austin starting at 11 a.m. Thursday morning,” said Veronica Guerra of the San Marcos Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. “There will be speakers and events for the entire crowd.” The festivities will continue into the evening with the main event beginning at 6 p.m. “El Grito” will be performed by the Council General of Mexico, with music, food and festivities to follow. “I’ve been to the Dieciseis de Septiembre festival that was held in San Antonio when I was younger. It’s always a big celebration. My parents, to this day, still celebrate the day with an annual party at our house,” said Nicole Macharro, a business ﬁnance major.

It makes you smarter.

OPINIONS THE UNIVERSITY STAR

quoteof the day

”

“The simple fact of the matter is this really wasn’t that big of a deal. You had a large crowd, and a lot of them had been drinking. Occasionally we get the same thing happening when the bars close downtown. You have to call in people to get the crowds to move on.These things happen from time to time. Three guys went to jail. It’s just not that big of a deal as police issues go.”

— San Marcos Police Chief Howard Williams talking about the incident following the AALC after-party early Sunday morning. (Source: San Marcos Daily Record)

Thursday, September 15, 2005 - Page 5

Opinions Contact — Joe Ruiz, staropinion@txstate.edu

THE MAIN POINT

Camouflaging truth doesn’t change events The events of early Sunday morning following the African American Leadership Conference after-party at the LBJ Student Center are wellknown by now. It is sad that the three-day event was overshadowed by the unfortunate incident. In the Sept. 8 issue, we published an advance about the AALC, and we assigned a reporter to cover the weekend’s sessions and workshops, along with the speakers and their impact on those in attendance, for our Tuesday issue. Our reporter, Zandria Avila, covered those events as assigned as well as the melee that began after the party ended. That’s how news works. In today’s issue, the positive events of the AALC are told on our front page, but we will also coninue to cover the aftermath of the confrontation as new information becomes available. If the agencies and students involved, as well as the university, truly want to solve any problems, they must be open with the campus community. “The important part of this is dialogue — dialogue of what occurred and dialogue of how we can do it differently in the future so we don’t have to be in this situation,” said Joanne Smith, interim vice president of Student Affairs. While these thoughts are fine and good, they are beginning to reek of empty rhetoric. As of Tuesday afternoon, the University Police Department, the San Marcos Police Department and the Hays County Sheriff’s Department all have requests in their possession for information and arrest reports as well as access to any in-car video footage of the event. The University Star hopes that if these agencies are sincere in their efforts to settle these issues, they will not delay our requests or seek counsel from the attorney general’s office in order to withhold the information requested. We have also asked all three law enforcement agencies to provide their policies on the use of “less-than-lethal” tactics of crowd control. By asking questions of law enforcement, the university and the students involved, we are not attempting to make judgment, but only to provide the Texas State community with as clear and accurate a picture as possible. By granting The Star access to the records quickly, the agencies can help us fulfill our duty of providing all the information to the public and allow our readers to decide for themselves what happened that morning. The students involved in this incident should be angry that a number of media outlets covering this story have failed to present the students’ side of the case, basing their accounts solely on the agencies’ version of events. Quite frankly, rehashing a press release doesn’t do the job. There are serious differences in accounts of that morning’s events, and ignoring those differences won’t make them go away. A number of students have reported that faculty and staff members have told them not to talk to the media. By not talking, the students ensure that the world outside Texas State will only hear the administration and law enforcement version of the events. We have to wonder if those faculty and staff telling students not to exercise their right to tell their side of the story are really looking to the students’ best interest. The aftermath of this event will not be felt solely by the students involved but by the entire Texas State community. Open the meetings to the community; be frank and open with the events that happened and admit to any mistakes. Students interested in other media coverage should check out the San Antonio Express-News, the San Marcos Daily Record, KXAN-TV and KVUE-TV. All of the related stories are available on their respective Web sites. We implore all parties involved to open all meetings, allow us quick access to the records requested and make a sincere effort to restore the trust in our community.

The Main Point is the opinion of the newspaper’s editorial board. Columns are the opinions of the writer and do not necessarily reﬂect the opinions of the full staff, Texas State University-San Marcos Student Media, the School of Journalism and Mass Communication or Texas State University-San Marcos. Letters policy: E-mail letters to starletters@txstate.edu. Letters must be no longer than 300 words. No anonymous letters will be printed. We reserve the right to edit for grammar, spelling, space and libel. We reserve the right to refuse obscene, irrelevant and malicious letters. All e-mails must include the name and phone number of the letter writer. Students should also include their classiﬁcations and majors.

s e t o u q s m pu Compiled by Ashley Richards

Are you in favor of the university spending $100,000 to build the LBJ statue in The Quad? “No. The statue does nothing for me except something I can look at. Give me something I can use. I mean, our rec center is one-fourth the size of other universities our size.” — ADAM NICHOLS computer information systems senior “It’s a great memorial for a great president that came to this university. It shows that Texas State has some great people that came out of this university.” — BRANDON TANOUS public administration senior

The University Star 601 University Drive Trinity Building San Marcos, TX 78666 Phone: (512) 245-3487 Fax: (512) 245-3708

Kelly Simmons/Star illustration

Leadership conference incident was unneccesary The greek organifrom squad cars zations, the campus and oral accounts and city police defrom every angle, partments and the although hopeuniversity are rightfully the university fully questioning the will not deny the events at the concluobvious. There sion of the African is a reason these NICOLE HERNANDEZ American Leaderstudents feel injusStar Columnist ship Conference this tice. Those feelings weekend. While the should not and university continues cannot be easily the official inquiry into what dismissed. happened that night, one Tommy Davis, while waiting might ask: If the police agenfor his ride home, was told by cies involved had acted in a an officer to “walk to Austin.” strictly legal manner, would That sounds like a conthe question of fair treatment temptuous order. If a student even exist? Unofficially, here is having a heated discussion are my own inquiries. with another student, he is If the police had acted in a likely in a defensive state as way that did not further agit is. This leaves no room for gravate the crowd, would so officers to taunt with such many students have perceived wise and authoritative advice their actions that way? If the as “walk to Austin.” Maybe, officers had not tased one too just maybe, it was statements many students, would there like these combined with the even be a group claiming to ostentatious cocking of weaphave witnessed such an event? ons by more than enough law If there were as many verbal enforcement that agitated the disputes that night as UPD students. says there were, would not The reason for tasing Bryan even one person in that entire Ware, according to UPD Chief crowd of 200 to 300 students Ralph Meyer, was the act of be able to concur with that putting his hands on an ofstatement? These are questions ficer in an alleged attempt that everyone should be askto interfere with an arrest. ing. It is right to seek videos Correct me if I’m wrong, but

he way in which law enforcement handled the situation has sent the message that black students are and will continue to be treated with less respect than they deserve.

police officers are trained to apply submission holds that are nonlethal and effective. Why would a student putting his hands on an officer make that officer feel so threatened that he would need to tase that student instead of applying a submission hold? There were more than enough officers on the scene to handle — in a much more appropriate manner — a student laying his bare hands on an officer. Joanne Smith, interim vice president of student affairs, said dialog was the “important part” of the situation and what should come of it. Enough dialogue has already occurred nonverbally. The way in which law enforcement handled the situation has sent the message that black students are and will continue to be treated

with less respect than they deserve. They have been treated like a street gang when they are the cream of the crop. They were disrespected when they deserved so much more. “The crowd respected the Taser,” Meyer said. Apparently, the Taser got more respect than any African-American leader did Sunday morning. It is hard to believe that students attending an AALC would jump at the chance to hit an officer. It is just as difficult to imagine students becoming intoxicated and making criminals of themselves at an event meant to encourage pride and hope within an ethnic group. The kind of young people you find at a leadership conference are not likely the same ones you find in barroom brawls and sidewalk shootouts. These people — and I mean people, not gangsters, not agitators, not drunks — are a part of our future as a university and as a nation. They shine just as brightly as the students in any other kind of leadership organization. Hernandez is a mass communication senior.

Despite American norm, it’s OK to be intelligent America has deto read for fun, volved intellectually in and the majority the past few centuries. of them will tell For example, I was sityou no. Apparting in my American ently, reading for literature class and fun is for nerds. my professor asked Society has adJOE TORRES us if we understood opted this new Thomas Paine’s Combelief of pushing Star Columnist mon Sense. About half those who try to the class raised their better themselves hands. This caught me a little down and the ones who wish off guard. This document was to have things remain as they written as a prelude of our are up. rights as Americans and half As a society, do we strive my class didn’t understand to remain average? Unfortuit. This document was also nately, the answer seems to one of the most inspirational be yes. In movies and in TV pieces of literature that drove shows, you still see the intelmany living in that time pelectual cast as the bookish riod to question the rules set nerd. The cool guy or girl is for them. It kind of bothered cast as the average American me that half my class couldn’t teen. They have problems just understand it. like the rest of us and are able Is this our intellectual high to comprehend class work but point in society? Have we deonly to a certain degree. The volved from our well-educatcool ones who are smart are ed ancestors? The newspapers the ‘average student.’ Do you we read and the textbooks see a trend? we learn from are written The average ‘American Joe’ at a grade level much lower seems to be what we, as a than the one intended for the society, strive to become. In reader. Literacy is a basic huschool, we are taught enough man right, but ask any child to get by. Even in the gifted (or adult) if he or she likes classes, we were taught only a

Editor In Chief..................David Michael Cohen, stareditor@txstate.edu Managing Editor..................................Joe Ruiz, staropinion@txstate.edu News Editor......................................Kirsten Crow, starnews@txstate.edu Assistant News Editor.................Ashley Richards, ar1225@txstate.edu Trends Editor..............Christina Gomez, starentertainment@txstate.edu Photo Editor...........................Courtney Addison, starphoto@txstate.edu Sports Editor...................................Miguel Peña, starsports@txstate.edu

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little more, and we’re allowed to go a tad more in-depth than the other students. In high school, the standard play goes on. You are told that the choices you make now will have a huge effect on your future, and yet you are only given certain choices to pursue. It goes on like this all through your academic career. We are taught to be average since the age we enter school. The right to a decent education seems to be a general statement. Although, we are granted the right to learn, it doesn’t say how well we will be taught. I don’t want to go into another war article, but that is a good example. In the beginning, everyone accepted the fact that we were going to war and that America had a job to do. Then, when people stopped and looked around, they found out that the war was unjustiﬁed. Protests began, and we got answers. There were no weapons of mass destruction. The point in this is that when you stop and really think about something, you ﬁnd out that half the time, it’s not all it’s

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cracked up to be. Questioning the rules is how this country got started in the ﬁrst place. I will refer you back to Thomas Paine. His writings urged people to ﬁgure things out for themselves. This was the time when America broke free from the Puritan way of life and started the melting pot we live in today. My point for writing this is that you don’t have to be ordinary. You don’t have to accept the general guidelines that are set for you by society. It is OK to contemplate the meaning of religion or life in general. The time you are living in is the perfect time to think and ask questions. I understand that there are some major things going on in the world right now, but sometimes it’s healthy to sit and ponder certain aspects in life. I understand that, collectively, people are afraid of things that are different; but you as an individual don’t have to be. Torres is a pre-mass communication sophomore.

The University Star is the student newspaper of Texas State University-San Marcos published Tuesday through Thursday during the fall and spring semesters. It is distributed on campus and throughout San Marcos at 8 a.m. every other Wednesday of Summer I and II with a distribution of 6,000. Printing and distribution is by the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung. Copyright Sept. 15, 2005. All copy, photographs and graphics appearing in The University Star are the exclusive property of The University Star and may not be reproduced without the expressed written consent of the editor in chief.

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Thursday, September 15, 2005 - Page 6

happeningsof the weekend san marcos

Thursday The Triple Crown — Kim Slim Blues, RC Banks Cheatham Street Warehouse — Texas Renegade Gordo’s — Honeybrowne, Jonathan Clay

Friday Lucy’s — Five Dollar Friend, Matt Novetsky Riley’s Tavern — Texas Connection Gordo’s — Exit 380, Ruepenny Saturday The Triple Crown – The Spiders, The

Harlots, Bad Day Off, Molly & the Hatchets Lucy’s — 57 State, Silverleaf, Downfall 2012 Sunday Lucy’s — United We Jam: Hurricane Katrina Relief Beneﬁt Cheatham Street Warehouse — Island Texas

Trends Contact — Christina Gomez, starentertainment@txstate.edu

Popular Facebook friend encourages college students

to donate to Katrina relief By Stephen Lloyd Entertainment Writer

If you haven’t already heard of Steve Hofstetter, then chances are, you will soon. The 26-yearold comedian and Columbia University graduate is the head writer for collegehumor.com, hosts his own Sirius satellite radio show, 4 Quotas, and has become director of acquisitions for Comedy Express TV, the forthcoming network from National Lampoon. This makes him one of the youngest television executives in the world. Hofstetter, ﬁrst published at age 15, created the irreverent Web site “Sports Jerk of the Week,” which was featured in Sports Illustrated. While attending Columbia, he became a columnist and garnered a large readership. His column, now called “Thinking Man,” is syndicated in eight states, and his book Student Body Shots: A Sarcastic Look At The Best 4-6 Years of Your Life has recently been optioned for a TV series. He was also one of the featured comics in NBC’s

tribute to Johnny Carson. And besides all this, he has nearly 200,000 friends on Facebook.com. “It started out as kind of a joke,” Hofstetter said. “I had a quest for 10,000 friends. I play 100 colleges a year, and I talk about Facebook on stage. People will message their friends and say ‘hey, add this guy.’” Hofstetter is using this army of Facebook friends for a very timely cause, the Katrina relief effort. He ﬁrst came up with the idea after the Asian tsunami disaster and adapted it to the present situation. “A friend of mine was moved by the footage [of the Katrina aftermath] and wished there was something she could do. I developed a platform and encouraged [others] from there,” Hofstetter said. Hofstetter began by sending a letter of encouragement to his Facebook friends. The letter asks people to donate two cents for every online friend they have. “It all adds up,” he said.

He also included a link to the American Red Cross Web site. “I like the Red Cross because their effort is coordinated. Some people have wanted to buy a case of water or something and bring it down there, but I think the best course is just to stay out of the way and leave it to those who know what they’re doing,” he said. Hofstetter has donated for every friend he has in the affected area, donating part of it on Sept. 11, his birthday. “Having this day for a birthday is weird for a New Yorker. So, when anybody asks me what I want for my birthday, I just tell them to donate to the Red Cross. Also, 100 percent of the income from the door for a TV special I’m doing with Adam Hunter, another comedian, is going to the Red Cross,” Hofstetter said. A large amount of money has already been gathered for the relief effort. “There’s no way to know the total for sure, but it’s around $10,000 so far,” Hofstetter said. He has managed to keep

track to a certain extent by emails from those who have sent money. “Many people have said that if I hadn’t contacted them about this, they wouldn’t have donated,” he said. Hofstetter believes that the country’s resources have been stretched too thin. “It’s a sad state that we don’t have enough resources to heal ourselves,” Hofstetter said. He said it’s hard for some people to think they can make a difference, but “the bucket will not ﬁll up without drops from many people.” To Hofstetter, the best thing to come out of this is that people in the devastated areas can see the effort. “Thousands of college students, who have been stereotyped to be apathetic, are now known to have helped,” Hofstetter said. “That’s what I’m happiest about.” Jeffrey Cole/Star illustration

United We Jam concert to beneﬁt Katrina victims By Maira Garcia Entertainment Writer Bands and sponsors from San Marcos and surrounding areas have found a way to help victims of Hurricane Katrina this coming weekend. Skytravel.org and Lucy’s on the Square will host United We Jam, a beneﬁt concert to raise funds for the victims of Katrina on Sunday. The event is free, but donations will be accepted at the door. Additionally, all tips received by the Lucy’s staff will be donated to the effort. All bands will perform free of charge and all funds raised from Sunday’s event will be donated to the Red Cross. Music begins at 2 p.m. and

Courtney Addison/Star photo

will feature the following bands: Cari Hutson Band, Electric Mayhem, The Word Association, Rebecca Creek Band, Jared Francis, Clap! Clap!, Robbie and the Robots, Oceanus, Meatwood, The Harlots, Famous Danger Agents, Kallisti Gold, Eleven Fingered Charlie, 57 State, Jackson Parten, Bernie Calcote, J.R. Castro, Subtle Creeks, People of Habit, Five Dollar Friend, A Year in Exile and more to be announced. Skytravel.org held the ﬁrstever United We Jam beneﬁt concert in the aftermath of Sept. 11 in Austin. The effort raised more than $6,000 for the victims of the 9/11 tragedy. This time in conjunction with Lucy’s, a goal of raising $10,000 has been set.

Emilee Ausmus (left) and Erika Smits clap and dance on Saturday during Clap!Clap!’s show at Lucy’s on the Square. Clap!Clap! will perform at United We Jam, a collaborative effort among multiple bands to raise money for Hurricane Katrina evacuees, on Sunday. All proceeds from the show, including tips from the service staff, will be donated to the American Red Cross. Doors open at 2 p.m., and admission is free. Donations are accepted.

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The University Star - Page 7

Death Cab’s Plansdelves into something deep On the heels of albums are an extentheir most recent and sion of one another. successful ﬁfth alHowever, under the bum Transatlanticism, production of guitarDeath Cab for Cutie ist Chris Walla, it has a has emerged with their unique sound. much-anticipated folPlans explores the low-up, Plans, the themes of love, death band’s ﬁrst release on (both physical and the major label Atlan- music emotional) and their tic Records. Death Cab review inevitability to coinquietly gained popucide with one another. ✯✯✯✯ The album begins with larity with relentless touring through the Death Cab For the song “Marching past seven years, and Cutie Bands of Manhattan,” with a little help from Plans a soft and expressive a performance on the Atlantic Records track about trying to breakout drama The live in the moment. O.C., they gained even The song uses analomore recognition. gies involving the descriptive The Seattle-based band re- imagery of nature and human corded Plans in less than 30 days emotions. The following track, shortly after their 2004 world “Soul Meets Body,” involves tour. The little time Death Cab some of the same themes as the left between touring for Trans- previous song but adds the asatlanticism and recording Plans pect of things eventually comprovides the notion that the ing to an end, such as love and

life. “Soul Meets Body” is layered with samples, which demonstrates the inﬂuence from Ben Gibbard’s side-project, The Postal Service. The end result is a dark yet romantic song. One of the best songs on the album, “Summer Skin,” begins with short piano chords being played with soft and steady drumming in the background. Lead singer Gibbard sings, “Because the season’s change was a conduit/And we’d left our love in our summer skin.” The song is about summer love and how it eventually dismantles once the carelessness of the season comes to an end. “I Will Follow You into the Dark” is a folk-like acoustic song, which is deeply bittersweet. It continues with the previous theme of love and life ending. However, it is still a hopeful song. Gibbard sings, “Love of mine, someday you will

die/But I’ll be close behind and I’ll follow you into the dark.” The moving song is a testament to love for another person and never leaving them behind. The eighth track, “Crooked Teeth,” has a catchy hook courtesy of Gibbard and Walla, but the lyrics are deceiving as they speak of love’s regrets.

scribe, “love is watching someone die,” which encompasses the main theme of the album. Death Cab has provided the unofﬁcial soundtrack for this generation in Plans, a beautifully u n d e rstated

album with thought-provoking lyrics and mellow instrumentals. The album’s themes of love and death have given insight to the current state of the band and its role as a voice to our generation of over-emotional twentysomethings. — Maira Garcia

Photo courtesy Atlantic Records Chris Walla, Jason McGerr, Ben Gibbard and Nick Harmer take dork rock to new heights on Death Cab For Cutie’s label debut, Plans.

“What Sarah Said” takes yet another look at death. Lyrics in the song de-

The Transcenders’ sound appeals to variety of fans clever. Dallas-based band “Widespread” is an The Transcenders atmospheric song, have a sound that akin to Wilco’s last will undoubtedly aptwo albums. The song peal to fans of lo-fi begins to meander indie rock, hi-fi ’70s slightly towards the rock and alternative middle but straightcountry alike. It’s this ens itself out again middle ground — a with an echoed outro sound as boundless as music guitar solo. The mostAmerica’s heartland review acoustic “AC” has a itself — that makes the ✯✯✯ lysimilar quality. But its band’s album, What It The Transcenders country-flavor is simIs, so appealing. It Is ilar to My Morning “The Believer” has What Independent Jacket at their mela riff-heavy intro Release lowest. “Wonder Why” that builds to a creis more in the vein of scendo and then explodes before softening again. Wilco again, but the bell-like This dynamic repeats itself echoed guitar tones chanthroughout the song. The vo- nel U2. Interestingly enough, cal delivery is reminiscent of alongside the reedy vocals, the Tonic’s Emerson Hart, but bass and acoustic guitar heavy lyrically, the song weakens in verse section brings to mind one section that borrows a line Paul Simon. “The Truck Along from The Beatles’ “Taxman” Song” is pretty to a fault, much and seems more cheap than like most of the music from

’70s-soft-rock-band America. The energetic, bouncy rhythm of “A Dark Ride” brings to mind popular Austin Latin-rock group Vallejo. “The Song of Three Titles” sounds uncannily similar to Cracker’s “Low” at ﬁrst, but nearly halfway through the extended jam begins, takes the song away from any derivative formula. And just when the al-

bum appears to end, a hidden track begins. It’s an appealing, Zeppelin-esque, strippeddown piece, with vocals and acoustic guitar only. Judging by the jammy-jet professional sounding music on this album, it probably won’t be long before The Transcenders transcend Dallas.

Photo courtesy of thetranscenders.com Dallas-based band The Transcenders’ album What It Is echoes the sounds of The Beatles and Paul Simon.

— Stephen Lloyd

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Page 8 - The University Star

Thursday, September 15, 2005

Donna the Buffalo mixes it up in Ride Along with their culprit. The organ and unique band name, the fiddle mirror each New York-based Donna other here, and in the the Buffalo has crafted process, manage to a unique sound that sound almost off-key. defies easy categorizaThe next song, “Life’s tion. This melting pot a Ride,” is much more of genres is what makes pleasing to the ears, their new album Life’s music taking on a dreamy a Ride so enjoyable. review Jimmy Buffet-like soft You never really know reggae sound. exactly what the next “Everyday” channels ✯✯✯✯ Donna the track will sound like. Dave Matthews Band “Blue Skies” begins Buffalo with a funky drum and with a frenetic xylo- Life’s a Ride bass-driven rhythm phone flurry before Wildlife Records complete with bright launching into a bounguitar strumming. cy, happy-go-lucky A child chanting romp, reminiscent of the Lovin’ the word “everyday” at random Spoonful at their cheeriest. The intervals and an atmospheric, zydeco-flavored “Way Back warbling outro also adds to the When” is similar but much less song’s charm. pop leaning, partly owing to Following a haunting, unaccandid social commentary in companied wooden flute intro, the lyrics. “Love and Gasoline” abruptly Even though the repetitive transitions into one of the rhythm of the song cleverly cop- only overtly minor-key songs ies the movements of its title’s on the album. The politically subject, “Rockin’ Horse” begins charged “Deeds of a Few” folto grate after the first listen. An lows the tone of “Love and instrumental passage between Gasoline” with a melancholy each lyric section is the main waltz rhythm. The lyrics convey

the notion that those in charge cause many innocents to suffer. “These Are Better Days” has a rockabilly feel. It’s faster, jumpier, punchier and louder than the rest of the album. These aspects of the music, coupled with the vocal delivery make it very similar to much of Bob Dylan’s last album. The album features another bluesy number in “Greatest Love,” featuring an intro that would do Cream proud and Claptonesque guitar throughout. However, the verse sections sound much like traditional bluegrass. Finally, there’s “Walk on Water”, a straightforward zydeco number, complete with prominent accordion. Donna the Buffalo’s genrebending sound can only help them. It’s not hard to picture blues fans, reggae fans, folk fans, country and bluegrass fans and zydeco fans alike enjoying this music. The band is sure to draw a crowd when they play the Austin City Limits Music Festival on Sept. 25. — Stephen Lloyd

Courtesy of Wildlife Records Donna the Buffalo’s rock style bounces from zydeco to rockabilly. They can be seen when they play the Austin City Limits music festival Sept. 25.

Team Sleep veers from Deftones’ style, develops atmospheric sound band hopes to open For the past 11 years, the minds and ears of there has been a band jaded fans. forming, slowly adaptThe thing that is so ing to the changing surprising about Team world around them. Sleep’s self-titled deTeam Sleep has possibly the least proliﬁc but is that it doesn’t career ever, releasing music really sound like the their ﬁrst full-length Deftones, and it ceralbum in May. Started review tainly doesn’t sound in 1994 between gui✯✯✯ anything like Hella. The sound can best tarist Todd Wilkinson Team Sleep be described as the and soon-to-be Def- Team Sleep soundtrack to a very tones front man Chi- Maverick surreal dream as the no Moreno, the band Records music swells slowly slowly evolved in basefrom a soft hum to a ments and in traded demo tapes between friends wall of textured guitars, drums until 2001, when Wilkinson and even a sample or two. Many began recording with one of Deftones fans have already exthe best drummers in music to- pressed some disappointment day — Hella’s Zach Hill. Origi- with the project, but they forget nally intended as just a project this band has nothing really to between friends, Team Sleep do with the Deftones. The only eventually became too big of similarity is in some of Chino’s a project to not be heard, and vocal styling (although his sig11 years after its inception, the nature growl isn’t present any-

where on the album). At times, Team Sleep sounds a lot like the softer songs on the Deftones’

captivating White Pony, which seemed like a mere blueprint for what was to come. Another

interesting aspect to this album is the presence of ex-Helium singer Mary Timony. Her

Photo courtesy of Maverick Records Eleven years after its conception, Team Sleep hopes its self-titled album will catch on with fans.

smooth voice lends a whole other layer to the three songs she sings, and her performance on “Tomb of Liegia,” a Cashesque tale of crime and punishment, steals the show from Moreno entirely. This album sounds fantastic. The production is quite good, with every instrument and every word sung in a way that adds to the band’s evolving sound. However, apart from “Tomb of Liegia,” no songs really stand out from one another. It’s not that the album is boring, per se, it just takes some time to really get into it. It’s sad, because there are a lot of beautiful moments here, but it’s somewhat trying to listen to it all the way through in one sitting. It could make a fantastic bedtime album — and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. — Brian McSwain

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TRENDS

Thursday, September 15, 2005

The University Star - Page 9

✯Star Comics The Cat Bird Seat

IN MY EARS

By Jeffrey Cole

Compiled by Kyle Bradshaw

“Sympathy” — Goo Goo Dolls Shawn Jensen criminal justice sophomore “Window Pane” — Opeth

Random Acts of Violence

Erin Leeder

Daniel Golston communication design freshman

“Imagine That” — Ani DiFranco Ellen Spiller pre-respiratory care senior

We caught up with Texas State students to see what they’re listening to on the spot.

University Bookstore presents

open mic nite Thursday, September 15th 5-7 p.m.

Contact Shayne: 245.3945 or sf1032@txstate.edu

Wednesday’s solutions:

Look in Tuesday’s edition of The University Star for today’s answers.

Opens September 16 At Theatres Everywhere

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Thursday, September - Page 10 33 Wednesday, August15,24,2005 2005 - Page

All classified ads are charged 20¢ per word. Ads may be emailed to starclassifieds@txstate.edu. Check your classified ad for accuracy. Any changes must be made by the second day of publication. The deadline for all classified ads is noon two business days prior to publication. Classified ads must be paid in advance unless credit has been established. Refunds will only be given when a classified ad has been paid by credit card. The Star reserves the right to refuse, edit, and discontinue any classified ad at any time without prior notification. Classified ads will be edited for style purposes. Classified ads that do not note heading, will be put under the appropriate heading. All classified ads are published free, on-line at www.universitystar.com. Since this is a free service, posting is not guaranteed. While The University Star attempts to screen ads for misleading claims or illegal content, it is not possible for us to investigate every ad and advertiser. Please use caution when answering ads, especially any which require you to send money in advance.

Email Classiﬁeds starclassiﬁeds@txstate.edu

FOR RENT

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1 BDRM/1BATH CONDO 465sqft w/washer, dryer, dishwasher, computer desk efﬁcient appliances & A/C Close to campus & HEB Pet friendly 0 pet deposit, furnishing avail no cost $495 monthly add discount for direct billing 1624 Aquarena Springs #150G 512-787-7148.

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FOR RENT-DUPLEX SAGEWOOD TRAIL DUPLEX available now! Immaculate! 3BR/2.5bath. $1050. Call 402-9800 X86 today!

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HELP WANTED FALL SEMESTER WORK $12 Base/appt. Flex schedules around classes, sales/service. No exp. nec, scholarships possible. All ages 17+, conditions apply. Work in San Marcos, apply in Austin. Call NOW (512)4589093. www.workforstudents.com

P/T RECEPTIONIST AT Medical Clinic Must work evenings and some Saturdays fax resumes to 3928828 Attn: Megan

!BARTENDERS WANTED! $300/day potential. No experience necessary. Training Provided. Age 18+ ok. 800-965-6520 x 157.

GET PAID TO Think! Make $75 taking online surveys. www.MySurveyCash.com

EXPERIENCED NANNY wanted to care for 14 mo. old twin baby girls in my home. Must be patient and ﬂexible. Monday and Wednesday. 12:30-5:30 $7/hr. 754-0934

Johnny Carino’s 1st & 3rd Saturdays 9 - 3:30

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hiring for delivery driver and wait staff. Call 392-5665

RESTAURANT SUPERVISOR Johnny Rockets,

CLEAR SPRINGS CAFE Is

“The Original Hamburger” is coming to San Marcos this fall! Come join our Prime Outlet mall team to serve fun food with a 50’s ﬂair. FT Supervisors are needed to lead, train, and oversee this new restaurant operation. Food service experience desired but not necessary. Position salary begins at $9/hr, and increases $11/hr after training plus other competitive beneﬁts. Interested applicants should apply online at www.JR305.com

now hiring Grill cooks, Fry cooks and Line servers for night and weekend shifts. Starting wage from $7.50$10.50/hr. Insurance and vacation pay avail. Apply in person at: 1692 Hwy 46 S. (3 miles off IH-35) New Braunfels, TX.

TEXASARABIANHORSES. com needs: experienced trainers; good groomers; computer savy research and marketing secretary; web developer/designer. Apply online.

INTERNET SUPPORT technician. Telenetwork is looking for qualiﬁed technicians to troubleshoot connectivity and e-mail issues for dial up and high speed internet providers. Knowledge of windows is a must. Apply now at telenetwork.com/careers

$$$ WANNA EARN MONEY FOR SCHOOL Our Company is Seeking Hard Excited People to Assist Us Help in Appt. Setting, Cust. Service, Set-Up and Display, Marketing Or even Management If you THINK you can Fill any of these, call US AT 392-5905.

ADOBE CAFE IN New Braunfels is now accepting applications for Servers, Hosts, Bussers and Kitchen Staff. Experienced a must. Apply in person between 2-4pm at 124 S. Bus IH 35.

BOBCATSNEEDJOBS.COM We need Paid Survey Takers in San Marcos. 100% FREE to join. Click on Surveys.

MISCELLANEOUS GOT WASHBOARD ABS? Good looks? Hiring male models, ages 18-25, $100 to $250/hr. Call 512-9272226.

ATHLETIC, OUTGOING men for calendars, greeting cards, etc $75-150/hr, no exp. needed, (512)6848296.

ALCOHOL AWARENESS Classes for M.I.P - M.I.C - D.U.I - P.I. Held at Mr. Gatti’s Pizza with free meal. Next class on October 3 & 4, 2005. To reserve a seat call 1-877-7431556.

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ROOMMATES ROOMMATE NEEDED 2 miles from campus. Contact Jason (713)992-0263.

ONE ROOMMATE. CHARMING 3/1 rock house to share with female. View. Privacy. $395. 1224 Chestnut. 396-9757.

TWO STUDIOUS FEMALE roommates to share 3/2 house 512-8050299

HOME TO SHARE 3 miles from campus. Mature female student wanted. Includes your own bedroom and sharing of all common areas. All bills paid, including Roadrunner and cable TV. Washer/Dryer. All appliances. Garage and fenced backyard. $500 a month 210-365-9847

ROOMMATE WANTED, share NEW 3br/2.5ba house with one male student, ﬁve minutes from campus in quiet neighborhood. Contact Matt (512)585-4293 or matt@afbforums. com

ROOMMATE WANTED for 3/2 home. 10 minutes from campus and 5 min. from shuttle bus stop. Must like animals. rent is $450 per month and 1/2 bills. Call Laura 281-610-6845.

ROOMMATES TAKE OVER LEASE until May. Post Road Place Apartments 3/3; 2 male roommates; W/D, own bathroom, pay utility and cable bills; phone & Internet paid. Sept rent paid. Call Jay at 210-663-0423.

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FOR SALE CHEAP TANCO MEMBERSHIP. 11 months. Call Lisa (512)569-2624.

MOBILE HOMES 1997 2 bedroom/2 bath $15,000; 1998 2 bedroom/2 bath $21,000. Fleetwood single wide mobile homes 398-4553

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WANTED

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ACCIDENT WITNESS

Did you see a bike/car accident at the intersection of Sessoms & LBJ Wednesday, August 24, about 7pm? Please call: 392-2415

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SPORTS

Thursday, September 15, 2005

The University Star - Page 11

New year brings fresh recreational competition Texas State kicks off intramurals for Fall 2005 with coed flag football By Marc Cleverley Sports Reporter Intramurals have been a part of students’ lives for many years, helping to quell rivalries between fraternities and establish new competition among residence halls. The flag football kicks into gear at 6 p.m. on Sunday with the first game of the season. Along with football, golf, racquetball, the five-on-five soccer shootout, volleyball and tennis will also begin their games this fall. “So far, the meetings and practices have just been a bunch of talking. I’m ready to get out there and just have some fun,” said Steven Caparco, an undecided freshman. Along with Caparco, many other students, faculty and staff will join in on the campus tradition to bring another year of entertainment to the onlookers. Teams, such as defending greek flag football champion Omega Delta Phi, will look to have another year of fun. They will be challenged by other fraternities such as Tau Kappa Epsilon and

the colony of Sigma Pi. All of the fields used for football purposes are located right off of Aquarena Springs Drive, by Joe’s Crab Shack and by Bobcat Stadium. The intramurals aren’t just focused on men; there are many women’s and coed teams that will be playing this season, such as defending women’s division volleyball champions, the Bandits. Starting Oct. 9, the volleyball intramurals will begin giving students yet another opportunity to get some great exercise while having fun at the same time. After volleyball, the fiveon-five soccer shootout will begin Oct. 16. All games are played early in the week starting Sunday and going until Wednesday for some intramural leagues. The intramural program also offers opportunities for employment as an intramural official. No experience is necessary as training is provided. All intramurals activities offer students a little variety to toss into their own college experience, as well as a healthy alternative to sitting around the dorm all day. Intramurals are also a great place to meet new friends and develop crucial characteristics for life, such as teamwork and leadership. PHONE: 512.245.8090 ONLINE: www.campusrecreation. txstate.edu/intramural

Bradley Sherman/Star file photo Tyson Dever, kinesiology junior, anxiously awaits the snap during a game of flag football in 2003 at the intramural fields located on West Campus. This year’s intramural flag football season begins on Monday.

Bobcats bogey North Texas tournament BACKS: Bobcats make plays By Marc Cleverley Sports Reporter The Texas State golf team kicked it in gear and headed up to the Lantana Country Club for the Cobb/Ferrell Mean Green Invitational on Monday and Tuesday for the ﬁrst tournament of the season. The Bobcats faltered early in the tournament, opening up with consecutive 309 team totals for the two Monday rounds. “This is really an eye opener for us. When we started playing the freshman were really stunned. They aren’t used to all the competition of the division one schools. They aren’t used to playing against such great competitors. It really was a kick in the butt for us,” said Bill Woodley, head golf coach.

Tyler Barnes wasn’t phased one bit though; Barnes carded a 79 and a 73 the first day to slip into a tie for 49th heading into Tuesday’s final round. The Bobcats unfortunately qualified another player for the tournament, then realized he had been deemed ineligible for the tournament because he had not met NCAA eligibility requirements. The second day of the tournament found an improved Bobcat team led by Barnes once again. The Bobcats roared back with a team total of 300, only two shots worse than the best round of the day, to finish in 14th place for the tournament. Barnes came back with a roar of his own carding a final round 71 to vault into a tie for 21st individually. “We really have a bunch of room for improvement. Having so many freshmen

on the team made it interesting. I saw who was and wasn’t comfortable, and I know now the things we need to work on,” Woodley said. Rival Sam Houston State shot a team total 876 for the tournament, edging out Jacksonville State by three strokes for the team title. Arkansas State’s Andrew Ross carded a 212 total to win the medalist honors. “All this is really just preseason for us. We need to get comfortable and stay positive. Essentially, we’re just warming up for the SLC tournament,” Woodley said. The Bobcats will look forward to practice for the next tournament and will attempt to ﬁnd a way to settle down the freshmen into a more comfortable stage, which, in turn, could lead to a breakout season.

STUDENT HEALTH CENTER

Volunteers Needed for Student Health Center Advisory Committee ■ All interested students may apply. ■ This is an opportunity to provide important input regarding the operation and services of the Student Health Center. ■ Must be willing to attend monthly meeting in the fall and spring semesters.

Application Deadline is Friday, September 23rd. Pick up applications at the Student health Center, or online at www.healthcenter.txstate.edu. For more information, please call (512)245-2576 or e-mail kg02@txstate.edu.

h m l k f l a g f o o t b a l l h

c a m p u s r e c r e a t i o n b

i d f d t f y g h j p c h o p i a

e i s v d p o w e r f l e x k g l

on both sides of the football CONTINUED from page 12

as more of a mentor for the younger players on defense. In the secondary, Derwin Straughter and Walter Musgrave have taken the reigns at the corner back slot. “Straughter and Musgrove are productive as coverage players extremely, smart, technique sound and aware,” said Naivar. Some of the difference makers like newcomer Jamarqus O’Neal and Shola Obafemi who put in hard work during the off-season have given more variables for the Bobcat defensive squad. Jamiell Turner is a true freshman

that made his way to San Marcos by way of Houston Alief. “His efforts in the preseason have allowed him to come in and impacted his role as a special teams player. The ability of the offense to put together strong drives and control the clock has given the Bobcat defense ample opportunity to rest between offensive different series. “The O does a tremendous job controlling the clock and running the ball. A big part of our success is that they make us compete at practice and give us good battles every day,” said Naivar. These may be the keys to success throughout 2005.

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a d t o a a k z i e l g m b u b t

h k o s r o w h f v o m e k j m n

t c h f c e g j t c c b r h u v g

w o a e a g s d i s c g o l f l a

a f s r n s o t j g e n b s r f m

Campus Recreation Wrestling Water Polo Track Flag Football Whitewater Volleyball ��

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Racquetball Cardio Disc Golf Hiking Rock Climbing Gym

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Aerobics Tennis Soccer Power Flex Workout

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SPORTS THE UNIVERSITY STAR

Thursday, September 15, 2005 - Page 12

sports snortsquotes from the sports world “I didn’t expect him to throw a punch, and I would love to meet him by the parking lot,” —Jeremiah Trotter, Philadelphia Eagles linebacker, who claims he didn’t throw a punch in the scufﬂe during pre-game warm-ups on Monday Night Football. (Source: Philadelphia Inquirer)

kcab 2

Sports Contact — Miguel Peña, starsports@txstate.edu

A closer look at the boys with the ball By Miguel Peña Sports Editor

Douglas Sherman, seen here in his 91-yard performance against Southern Utah, runs strong as the Bobcats’ starting tailback. Adam Brown/Star photo

Strategy and precision are the keys to a solid scheme, both offensively and defensively. Through the front lines of contact, the eyes of the men in the backfield are focused not on just the play but the flow of every individual on the field. Aware of every motion, down to the flick of a finger or a sudden glance, the offensive and defensive backs play the biggest part in any game plan. Texas State finds itself with a veritable smorgasbord of options to choose from in this season’s roster. Carrying the weight offensively, Barrick Nealy and Douglas Sherman have stepped up, combining for 374 rushing yards — one of the main reasons for the Bobcats first 2-0-season start since 2000. Nealy has been attentive to the passing game as well, throwing for 335 yards thus far, with two touchdowns to Tyrone Scott in the first game against Delta State. While keeping the running game secure, the art of the short yardage play has been left to possibly the most effective back, senior Nick Session, who has only touched the ball 10 times for a total of 49 yards but has already garnered two touchdowns. Morris Brothers and Daniel Jolly have gotten some playing time but are still being used sparingly. Sherman has been given the lead for the running backs at Texas State and already managed to increase his rushing yards per game from 56.5 in 2004 to 81.5. “Douglas is elusive; he is just hard to get a hand on. He is a downhill runner with quick cuts,” said co-offensive coordinator Tom Herman, whose focus is on the quarterbacks. In an effort to give full advantage of all their offensive weapons, Herman, along with his

counterpart Blake Miller, has scaled down the offensive schemes and shifted the focus to execution. “We have limited the different plays we have and fine tuned our offense focusing on our bread and butter plays,” Herman said. “With an emphasis on pass protection, we have allowed Nealy to focus on tying his footwork into the coverage. Protection is the key so he can focus on getting the ball down the field.” With senior Luke Bomar’s from tight end to fullback, the Bobcats have even more options coming out of the Backfield. “Bomar will be used as a blocker primarily and then as a passing option and thirdly as a runner,” Herman said. In the off-season, a few newly recruited players showed their intention for the future of the Texas State running game. Former San Marcos Rattler Alvin Canady came into the program during summer workouts and impressed the Bobcat coaching staff with his raw talent. He was put down as a redshirt in order to get one year to mature and elevate his game. Mitch Odom, hailing from Houston Alief, is another freshman that has redshirted. Defensively, the outlook is strong as Texas State has the returning combination of Jeremy Castillo and David Simmons with 86 combined tackles over the course of the 2004 season. Castillo is a junior coming back with two years under his belt as a letterman for his second year at the mike or middle linebacker position. “Both of them are very intense and smart football players and big playmakers as well as emotional leaders for the defense,” said defensive coordinator Craig Naivar. “They are mirror images of each other a Blitzer’s, they can run from sideline to sideline as fast as the d-backs.” Simmons was named to the All Southland Conference team for his performance in the 2004 season. As a senior, his roll on the field has remained the same, but off the field he has acted See BACKS, page 11

Bobcat

Defensive backs Height 5’11” Weight 220 lbs.

Junior Linebacker Jeremy Castillo

Height 5’11” Weight 225 lbs.

Senior Linebacker David Simmons

Height 5’8” Weight 175 lbs.

Senior Cornerback Derwin Straughter

Height 5’9” Weight 190 lbs.

Junior Cornerback Walter Musgrove