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Go to www.tjcnewspaper.com to see the extended version of the Mike Carter Baseball field story on the sports page.
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Opinion.............................2
News.................................3
Student Life......................4
Verve.................................6
Sports................................8
www.tjcnewspaper.com Tyler, Texas Friday, aPriL 1, 2011
The
The official newspaper of Tyler Junior College since 1927
Mike Carter Field is 71 years old this year. Built in 1940, the field held minor league and Tyler Junior College baseball games.
[ Story on page 8]
The history of Mike Carter Field
Non-profit organization works towards making students more successful and decreasing the drop-out rate.
[ Story on page 4]
Achieving the Dream helps students
The Good Samaritan
Former TJC student attempts to rescue classmate from wreck
PickinG uP The PieceS Top: in-vestigators look over the charred car of deShawn Smith. above: Facebook picture of Brittany Kirkley before the accident.
courtesy Photo Tyler Morning Telegraph
college rewards community withpositive economy
Tyler Junior College brings in new money, more business, and provides the economy with educated workers that boost the Tyler and Smith County economy to a new level.
Tom Mullins, President and CEO of the Tyler Economic Development Council and of the Tyler Chamber of Commerce, explained how Tyler’s economy is infused with new money being poured into the higher education system.
“It brings in a lot of new money to Tyler in the form of tuition…to go to class and the books that they [students] have to buy and the supplies and the rent and groceries, ” said Mullins. “If students are working, then they’re taking the revenues from that and putting it into the higher education system and that supports the teachers and all of the activity that goes on at both campuses of TJC.”
Dr. Mike Metke discusses the hard numbers that TJC puts in to Tyler.
“The taxpayers pay about $14 million to support the college and TJC has a $99 million operating budget which means that about seven times more money comes back in to the community than what the community pays in taxes.”
Not only do supportive parents and working students pro-vide money to the East Texas economy, the state helps by pouring outside money into the local economy. According to a state-wide study TJC took part in concerning the economic impact junior colleges have on communities in the 2008-09 reporting year, the state and local governments’ investment is worth it.
The results concluded that taxpayers see a return rate of 7.3 percent on their investment in TJC. Texas will also be able to pocket the $2.9 million it saves because of the social impact TJC students have on society. This is linked with improved health, reduced crime rates, and reduced welfare and unemployment.
Fred Peters, Director of Marketing and Public Affairs for TJC, spoke about the three pronged table the Tyler community sits on.
— see Economy page 12
By Joshua MumphreyEditor-in-Chief
By caylee StampsStaff Writer
By howard SlacumStaff Writer
Students can help improve safety on campus
Columbine. Virginia Tech. UT Austin. The road to safe campuses is paved with conflict. It is a road that school officials and lawmakers continue to travel.
The horrors of campus shootings resurface in the news even years after they have happened. Thousands of acts of violence mar the picture of safe campuses every year. The viral nature of media spreads these stories to millions and often propels the is-sue of campus safety to the forefront of the public’s mind. The need for increased safety led TJC to implement changes over the past year from the controversial lanyard policy to the installation of hundreds of cameras.
While the changes appear to have helped, both administra-tors and Campus Safety officials see more opportunities to im-prove safety. Among them are ways in which students can help
themselves. Executive Director of Campus Safety Tom Johnson wants more people to show respect for each other and to tone down the loud and negative language.
“That language seems to inflame a lot of the issues that we’ve had,” he said. “A lot of it has been because of negative, harsh, foul language that drives someone else to want to fight.”
A safer campus is a goal of both proponents and opponents of the proposed legislation to allow concealed handguns on cam-pus. But some are concerned that the escalating conflict that propels people from a disagreement to a heated argument then to a fight may lead them to even more violent action if they are allowed to carry a concealed handgun.
“It’s a dynamic,” said Director of Campus Safety Randy Melton. “We have disputes out here among students or some-times a student goes to an instructor to dispute a grade. That’s going to change the dynamics. That professor is going to wonder, ‘Is that student armed or not?’”
Students also see a danger in introducing concealed hand-guns into those dynamics.
— see safEty page 12
“We’re trying to train these students for the work force and professional life. If you’re walk-ing around with your pants around your knees, it’s probably a good chance that you won’t get hired right off the bat in a professional organization,” -Dr. Tom Johnson
Executive Director of Campus Safety
Photo courtesy McT campus
When “The Good Samaritan” awoke on a Wednesday morning, she never expected anything out of the norm.
This single mother started her morning out as usual, like the day be-fore and the day before that. She looked out of her window at the rising sun slightly peeking over the trees, prepared for the tasks that awaited her and her wide-eyed 2-year-old daughter, Lilly, to come running in with excitement, eager to play outside on the porch.
Brittany Kirkley, 22, a brown-haired, green-eyed “country girl to the bone” as she calls it, spent the majority of her life in New Chapel Hill with friends and family. Being surrounded by good company was some-thing she has always enjoyed for as long as she could remember.
Much like Brittany, was a quiet but ambitious, humble and adven-turous 19-year-old TJC student, Randy DeShawn Smith of Groveton. Both never knew their paths would cross in such a grim and tragic way on March 9.
“It happened so fast,” said Kirkley. “I was traveling during the af-ternoon two cars behind, when his vehicle collided with an SUV and flipped. I remember running towards the scene after the crash to see what I could do, telling him that I would try and get him out, but I
— see samaritan page 12
Car accidents have cost lives since the automobile was in-vented, but recently the consequences of unsafe driving have been hitting Tyler Junior College students close to home. Au-tomobiles are huge weapons and, if operated carelessly, they will lead to drastic consequences.
Driving aggressively and wanting to cause harm to other drivers is a huge factor for wrecks and highway accidents. Ac-cording to NHTSA.gov, aggressive driving occurs when “an in-dividual commits a combination of moving traffic offenses so as to endanger other persons or property.” Aggressive driving hap-pens when a short-tempered person gets angered by other drivers on the road and then transforms their anger into unsafe driving.
This is a deadly combination of carelessness and aggressive-ness. By taking into account that an automobile is 2,000 pounds of deadly steel and like putting a gun into the hands of a crazed maniac, putting an angry person behind the wheel of an automo-bile is a deadly combination. Students need to think with their heads instead of their emotions and realize that driving is not a time to start a fight.
Distracted driving can be as fatal as aggressive driving, and it’s a serious problem with students.
When a student is doing something while driving, it takes their attention away from driving and this can lead to car ac-cidents.
Operating a vehicle is a mechanical process that involves a lot of concentration and attention. If a student is texting, put-ting on makeup or even talking while driving their mind is not fully targeted on operating the car and mistakes are more likely
to occur. It’s just not worth putting lives at risk to answer a text message while driving. Driving is for transportation, not for Fa-cebooking.
Not everyone can help what others are doing on the road, so the best thing for students to keep in mind is to drive defensively. The best safety precautions one can take while driving is to watch the other drivers and take the correct steps to avoid accidents.
This just means to keep eyes open to the way others are driving, use the correct signals, follow the laws of driving like with speed limit and stop signs, and always wear a safety belt. Following the laws of the road is the safest choice while on the blacktop.
Students just need to remember how much power a person has while operating an automobile and with that power comes many responsibilities. Everyone else’s lives are in each driver’s hand.
MeMberTexas Intercollegiate
Press Association
TIPA
e d i t o r i a l
FrIdAy, APrIL 1, 2011 | www.tjcnewspaper.coM The APAche Pow wow | page 2
The Apache Pow Wow invites students, employees, parents and alumni
to submit letters to the editor.
FIrst copY Free Additional copies may be purchased for 50 cents each by contacting the TJc jour-nalism office. Newspaper theft is a crime. Those who violate the single copy rule may be subject to civil and criminal prosecution and/or subject to university discipline.
© the apache pow wow 2010 All rights reserved. The Apache Pow Wow, the student newspaper of Tyler Junior college, is published by journalism students bi-weekly during the fall and spring terms except during holidays and final exams. The Apache Pow Wow is a student publication and the opinions ex-pressed herein are not necessarily those of the administration, faculty, staff or the adviser.
Letters to the edItor The Apache Pow Wow invites its readers to share views by writing letters to the editor. All contributions will be edited for grammar, spelling, length (300 words maximum), profan-ity and personal attacks. All letters must include the author’s name, address, telephone number and academic classification. editors reserve the right to deny publication of any letter. Letters should be e-mailed to [email protected] or brought to P204.
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editor-In-chief Joshua Mumphrey
Managing editor haley Smith
news editor Stacey Gonzalez
student Life editor reginald white
verve editor chrisopher Jones
associate editor Jarah wright
contributing writer Andrea Masenda
photo editor Staff
adviser Laura Krantz
The official newspaper of Tyler Junior College since 1927
Results of PRevious Poll
to Review the Results of this Question, Go to: www.tjcnewsPaPeR.com
aRe students awaRe of the conseQuence of not PRoPeRly PlanninG foR the futuRe??
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Taylar Belt
Katavious daniel
Mollie Jamison
Karena Love
Jasmine Millican
Madeline Munoz
dalisha o’Neal
staff writershoward Slacum
caylee Stamps
LaToni Thomas
The Apache Pow Wow welcomes readers to voice their opin-ions on articles at tjcnewspaper.com or by sending a letter to the editor at [email protected]. Full articles and comments can be found at tjcnewspaper.com.
RePly to this Question at: www.tjcnewspaper.com
has beinG ResPonsible become the least PoPulaR standaRd amonG colleGe students these days?
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POLL QuestiOn
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Unsafe driving may cost students more than cash
Posted March 19, 2011Response to Hell Story and Protest:
“The rule to allow handguns on campus can be good and bad.
If you think about it, not everyone is go-ing to go out and buy a handgun. You have to go through certain procedures and certifica-tions, so I don’t think it will be that popular.
What about bullying? Students can get hurt like the Virginia Tech shooting. There are other methods that the school can enforce to make the campus better, like wearing lan-yards.
I have to admit, as much as I don’t like wearing lanyards they are actually a good idea, I wore them in high school so I’m kind of used to it.”
“I am familiar with Jesse and the minis-try he is a part of, he is brave to to do what he does. I do not know him personally, I have only followed him and the ministry he is a part of for a while now.
I can believe that he might have been excepted as hatefully protesting. But, what I know of Jesse is that, he is far from hateful, and unless someone can show video footage of him making a racist comment, then such comments I will defend him by saying are an out right lie.
The ultimate desire is to get people to realize they need to repent, but even if they don’t, Jesse is still doing what needs to be done. For the Bible says:
Matthew 24:14 “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”
Posted March 21, 2011 Response to Hand Guns On Campus:
tjccOmmentsWe care what you think...
the story we write every day: our Lives
by joshua MumphreyEditor-In-Chief
Since I was young, I’ve always heard people say that the key to success is hard work and good planning, but if you live a little and take the time to learn from life’s many lessons, you begin to question that philosophy.
Life is unpredictable and whether we are willing to accept it or not, things tend to happen that are unplanned regardless of our preparation. The truth is I’ve been dreading this time of year. It represents so much sorrow and pain not just to myself, but to parents, professors and friends.
On April 18, 2010, TJC lost a bright, talented and pure hearted-student named Molly Katherine Stanley. She excelled at
everything she set her mind, to never giv-ing up regardless the obstacle. She was willing to help any and everyone she could, but her dreams of success were tragically short-lived, as she lost her young life com-ing home from church one Sunday after-noon.
I will always remember Molly, not just for the type of person she was, but for what she left behind. Her love and kindness lives on in all our hearts and encourages us to be better mothers, fathers and friends. It was her dream to make a mark on the world and now her dream lives on through our accomplishments.
As college students and as young adults, we are determined to meet our goals and fulfill our aspirations, but life some-times has a different path it wants us to travel. Regardless which route we take, we must always remember to never quit even when we’ve hit a dead end. We must learn to retrace our steps and find the right way that best fits us.
We must learn from our mistakes if we make them and seriously try to reach our wildest dreams no matter what stands in our way. Even if nothing is certain in life, you still must try to excel the best you know how.
From what I learned from life and
from Molly, my best friend, it has changed the way I look at my future and everyday life. You never know what day is your last, but you also never know what day will for-ever change your life for the better.
I guess living life is a gamble, a 50-50 chance at success or failure, but that’s the fun part about being alive. We are given the choice to write our life stories one day at a
c o l u m n
The unplanned and unpredictable journey
What students think... on campus.Response of week 4 | Sex On Campus “Exposed...”
“I think sex on campus is a bit trashy and I would tell whoever does it to get a room. Showing affection isn’t bad, but just don’t show too much!”
- Chaaless March
Posted March 21, 2011 Response To: Responsibility, is a part of being an adult
cOmment of the week
“I personally don’t think a lot of students at TJC are re-sponsible, just because a lot of them are late to class and don’t do their work on time. I believe that responsibility is a big part of being a college student, and I think being responsible equals success. ”
- Chelsea Berry
f R e s h m a n
“You never know what day is your last, but you also never know what day will forever change your life for the better.”
“If a student is texting, putting on makeup or even talking while driving, their mind is not fully targeted on operating the car and mistakes are more likely to occur.”
HaVe your quote In our opInIon sectIon next Issue!!!
Contact The Apache Pow Wow Associate Editor Jarah Wright with questions, comments or concerns at [email protected].
friday, april 1, 2011 | www.tjcnewspaper.com The apache pow wow | page 3
news SPEAKout
News Briefs
campus2011
spring job fair
The Spring Job Fair will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on April 6 in the Apache Rooms.
Local businesses such as Austin Bank, East Texas Medical Center, Longview I.S.D., Trinity Mother Frances Hospital and Sud-denlink Communications will be there.
Admission is free and students are welcome to at-tend. Students are encour-ages to dress professionally and bring their resumes.
carter blood drive
From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on April 12, on the second floor of Rogers Student Center, the Center for Stu-dent Life and Involvement will host a blood drive.
trio achiever
award luncheon
Former TJC student and TriO member Tam-my Clements Burnett has been chosen to receive the TRiO Achiever Award at the Texas Association of Student Special Services Programs Conference. She received her award at the TRiO Achievers Luncheon on March 22 in Austin.
TJC chosen to host national automotive conference
by jasmine millicanStaff writer
The North American Council of Automotive Teachers (NACAT) conference will be held at Tyler Ju-nior College in 2012.
According to NACAT’S website, The North American Council of Auto-motive Teachers is the only international organization devoted to teachers and trainers of automotive technology and its related fields. NACAT’s mission is to promote, update and improve automo-tive service education.
After the Tyler Junior College au-tomotive staff went to their first NACAT conference in Long Beach, CA in 2007, Associate Dean Jeff Parks proposed the idea to host the annual confer-ence in Tyler. The staff was open to the idea and in 2008, Parks proposed the idea to NACAT.
“Six months later, May 2009, it became official,” said Parks.
The annual NACAT conference would be held at Tyler Junior College’s West Campus.
“We have begun preparation[s] and have a great planning committee to help move along the progress of the conference,” said Parks.
The conference entails various seminars, a banquet, a tradeshow and valve cover racing that attendees may participate in. Value cover racing is where attendees build model cars to race on a metal track. Events will be held in the Skills Training Center at the West Campus. There will be hands-on workshops taught by elite professionals
and employees from different automotive vendors.TJC automotive staff member David Briscoe, who
was also the recipient of the first Jack Erjavec New Au-tomotive Instructor Scholarship, will be coordinating vendors at the conference.
“It’s a really big deal,” said Briscoe, “We are hop-ing to have 40-60 vendors at the trade show.”
TJC’s automotive de-partment is very excited to be hosting this event next year. Although it is a conference ded-icated to teachers, they plan on getting some of their automo-tive students involved by allow-ing them to assist in ways such
as announcing speakers and helping people locate the different classrooms where the workshops and seminars will be held.
Shari Rickman, Vice President and general man-ager of the Tyler Convention and Visitors Bureau, plans to help with the conference.
“We provide complimentary services to increase the experience that the attendees will have in Tyler,” said Rickman.
The Tyler Convention and Visitors Bureau has helped find host hotels, meeting spaces and possible venues for the banquet. Rickman will be traveling with Parks to this year’s conference in Canada to promote the 2012 NACAT conference held in Tyler.
They are expecting anywhere from 400-500 people to attend the conference. There are automotive teachers that are members of NACAT from all over the world.
“There are members in Germany, Australia, Sweden and England,” said Parks. “We hope to have some at-tend.”
There are several things that the attendees will gain from the conference.
“There is a chance to network and they [get] a look at the latest training equipment and aids,” said Briscoe.
P ump it upby andrea masendacontributing writer
In the past month, it has become clear to every-one on the road that gas prices are on the rise. With the price of gas increasing nearly 40 cents a month, drivers are now spending close to $4 per gallon.
Many Americans are taking different measures to cut back on how much gas their vehicles are using. A list put out by AAA listed that practicing meth-ods such as controlling acceleration and driving at a slower speed, or driving without air conditioning, and picking better routes are simple methods that have proven to be beneficial to some.
On TJC’s campus, the inflation for many Tyler residents has done little to affect their lifestyles and their wallets, but for commuter students traveling from surrounding cities such as Van, Mineola, Jack-sonville and Palestine, extreme measures are being taken in order to keep their education and pocket-books on track.
TJC sophomore Lydia Sullivan puts about $100 of gas into her Ford Escape every week to make her 45-minute trip to campus from her home just north of Mineola. She has already begun making subtle changes in her day-to-day life in order to keep her finances in order.
“I have to cut back on something in order to pay for gas. Basically, it’s probably going to be food be-cause that’s the easiest thing to cut back on. I mean, it’s not like I can cut back on my bills. It’s just going to be going out to eat less, you know, all that good stuff.”
While dining out less can be a solution for some students, others have plans to take more drastic mea-sures.
TJC sophomore Kyle Money spends anywhere from $100-$120 in gas every week to fill his Subur-ban for his 30-minute journey from Van. While he said he’s done a decent job of cutting corners with fast food and his savings account, he has an even bigger change in mind.
“I’m thinking about getting a motorcycle, the more they [gas prices] go up, the more I want one. If I could get a motorcycle, it would definitely help me out. Then I could just sell it back when I’m not commuting as much, sell it back for as much as I got it. That’d be a plan.”
The Distance Learning department at TJC is also doing its best to cater to long-distance students and keep money in their pockets. Online classes and hybrid courses are offered to students to decrease the amount of time spent physically on campus.
“The obvious idea is, if you can spend less time on campus, and making less trips to campus, then you’re going to save money, and that’s what the online and hybrid courses can do for students,” said Director of Distance Learning Ken Craver.
Online courses through TJC are taken by stu-dents all over the world and eliminate the need for time on campus entirely, while hybrid classes are split between online work and a once-a-week classroom meeting.
“Normally, I do online classes. I do have three online classes that I’m doing now, but I do have two classes that I have to come here for. Had I known that
gas prices were going to skyrocket, I would’ve done all of my classes online,” said Sullivan.
The Distance Learning department also strives to make sure that students are prepared for the changes that come with taking classes at home as op-pose to in the classroom. By visiting www.tjc.edu/de a student can access the R.E.A.D.I. online assessment that thoroughly examines the student’s readiness to take an online course.
“Obviously online classes are going to be a great way to save money, but there are some problems with that. An online class may be something that some students just aren’t ready to look at yet. It may scare the heck out of them. They [students] may need an instructor and the interaction, or they don’t feel disci-plined enough to work on their own,” said Craver.
The R.E.A.D.I. assessment is designed to dis-cover the students’ habits, such as whether or not they have the tendency to procrastinate, tests their techni-cal skills regarding what they know about computers and also assesses their learning styles.
“It really helps them understand what they’re getting into,” added Craver.
Regardless of which fix commuter students choose, the constant rise in gas prices shows no sign of slowing down in the near future. Students travel-ing long distances to campus do, however, have many different options at their disposal, but ultimately are encouraged to keep the “big picture” in mind.
“My encouragement would be that their money that they’re spending on gas is not just a wasted cost, they’re investing in their future to ultimately earn that money back,” said Craver.
commuter students feel pinch at pump
oklahoma 3.353
3.407
3.733
3.958
4.162
Texas New york california hawaii
photo illustration by jarah wright
national gas averages
case awardsAt the Council for
Advancement and Support of Education conference in New Orleans. TJC’s entry “Large Alumni Program on a Small Budget” won first place in the Best Low-Cost Alumni Program cat-egory. TJC’s Marketing and Public Affairs Depart-ment earned an honorable mention in the website animation category for the redesigned homepage on the TJC website.
japanese visit tjcOn March 24, Japa-
nese Consultant-General Atsushi Yonezawa visited the TJC campus to seek support and also say thanks for the goodwill and sup-port from the East Texas community. Tyler has been sending letters and money to help with the recovery of Tyler’s sister city Yachi-yo, Japan. Donations are still being accepted by the Tyler Sister Cities board and will be given to the Japanese Red Cross. Any-one interested can contact Tyler Sister Cities at 315 N. Broadway Ave., Tyler, TX 75702.
Plasma donations help save lives
by madeline munozStaff writer
The average adult human body con-tains about 12 pints of blood. One of the products found in human blood, a protein-rich substance known as plasma, is more valuable than most people believe it to be.
Biolife Plasma Services in Tyler col-lects high quality plasma donations from volunteer donors that are processed into life-saving therapies.
“Human plasma donations are ex-tremely beneficial to patients who lack the ability to make their own,” Dr. Glenn Rout-houska, a family physician, said.
Plasma is a pale yellow liquid that consists mainly of water and proteins. It controls bleeding and helps fight infection. Blood cells float around in it waiting for dis-tribution throughout the body. In a healthy person, the body easily replaces plasma if it has been lost or in this case, donated.
“Plasma cannot be artificially made or produced in some laboratory,” said a Biolife representative, who wished to remain anon-ymous. “It can only be obtained from living, breathing, healthy adults.”
When plasma is donated, it is used for a number of different medical treatments that benefit thousands of people daily.
According to the Biolife Plasma Ser-vices website, it is used in the treatment of serious disorders such as hemophilia and immune system deficiencies. It is also used to make products that help treat and pre-vent diseases such as tetanus, rabies, measles, hepatitis B and rubella.
— see PLASMA page 6 —
jazz ensembles
TJC’s jazz ensembles won multiple awards from the Temple Jazz Festival including two Superior Performance Awards.
“It’s a really big deal. We are hoping to have 40-60 vendors at the trade show.”
-David BriscoeTJC automotive instructor
Contact The Apache Pow Wow News Editor Reginald White with questions, comments or concerns at [email protected]
Friday, april 1, 2011 | www.tjcnewspaper.com The apache pow wow | page 4
studentLIFE SPEAKout
By Latoni thomasStaff writer
Achieving the Dream is a non-profit organization Tyler Ju-nior College has adopted to take an initiative for the betterment of student education.
“Achieving the Dream is an initiative that colleges accept to help improve student success on campus,” said Dr. Butch Hayes, provost of Tyler Junior College.
Hayes has been associated with Achieving the Dream for 10 years. He feels drawn to take student success under his wing. According to Lee Allard, Director of Institutional Research, for students registered in Fall 2010, 5.1 percent (618 out of 11,418) withdrew from all of their classes before the end of the term, and 19 percent did not return for the Spring 2011 semester. Hoping to decrease the dropout rates, Hayes and the board are doing everything in their power to help make the students successful.
“The people working on Achieving the Dream look for the barriers that do not help students. We can help the students by trying to overcome these barriers,” said Hayes.
One hundred and thirty colleges have adopted the Achiev-ing the Dream program, hoping to improve the success rate at their institutions. TJC was accepted into the program in June of 2010, and is hoping to make its statistics skyrocket. TJC gradu-ation rate as of now is 11 percent and the board is certain that Achieving the Dream will raise this. A lot of the colleges have been successful at doing so, and we currently look at the success other schools have had with the program, such as Blinn College, to model after.
“We look at other institution practices, to see which ones work for them, and see if it will help us on our campus,” said Hayes.
Achieving the Dream is not for all students on campus, but puts most of the focus on students of color, or coming from low-income families. The program has many tasks to tackle in academics, and TJC is directing most of their attention to devel-opmental math courses. But according to the evidence presented, African-American and Hispanic men currently possess the low-est numbers in academic success at TJC.
“We know on our campus we are not doing the best job we can,” said Hayes. “Particularly African-American and Hispanic men, according to our evidence, are not doing as well as others. So we need to help our men, while still focusing on the campus as a whole.”
African American student and freshman, Steven Walker, had a theory of why this could be so.
“I think it’s probably because most of them grew up in an environment where education was not a priority,” said Walker. “I’m not saying all of them are like that, but most of the guys are walking around in saggy pants listening to rap artists. What kind of rap artist emphasizes education?”
Some other students do not see it as a race issue. They think students are finding other things that make them lose their mo-tivation for education.
“There’s no motivation in college except making money,” said Connor Tucker, sophomore at TJC who is not a minority. “And if that’s the case, there’s no motivation so they are doing the minimum it takes to get them by. I don’t think it’s a race thing, I think it’s a lack of concern to make the world a better place.”
Lisa Harper, dean of Academic Foundations, is also a col-laborative source with Achieving the Dream, and has a strong passion for the organization.
“I have known about the initiative since it began. For me, if you’re in higher education, I feel the need to help every single person,” said Harper. “I don’t care about race, age, or economic status. You have to have the desire to help every student that comes in have a better life. That’s what Achieving the Dream is all about.”
Harper also said that hosting events and programs is a big part of Achieving the Dream to make the initiative well-known, but it’s up to the colleges to establish them. TJC will be looking
at its top three priorities, and has been drafting a resolution for future events for the program on campus. Achieving the Dream is not very well known on campus, but it will soon start expand-ing so that others will know of the great things the program is bringing to the campus. The board is looking to form a Student Advisory Council to get a survey on how the students like to be taught, want to be treated, and their opinion on upcoming pro-posals. Harper feels that there is a miscommunication between the faculty and the students, and that adding students to the de-cision-making process will increase their chances of succeeding at the program. But when it comes to Achieving the Dream, they focus on the key phrase: student success.
“You have to start finding out what the students really need,” said Harper. We are starting to change the way we operate the college for the students.”
photo by Latoni thomas
teacher assisting a student professor harriet renner left: teaches austin right: about different learning styles because she wants to know her student would like to learn best so he can succeed, something that achieving the dream is angled towards.
By reginald whiteStudent life editor
The Spring Fling concerts have always been one of TJC’s highlights because it gives students a chance to relax and have fun with their fellow Apaches. For anyone who does not attended the school, they are given the chance to pay to participate in the events.
Since 1995, Tyler Junior College has been known for hosting these concerts where it in-
vites different musical artists or groups to come out and perform while food and games are sometimes provided.
Students who have attended the Spring Fling concerts before say that they’re anxious to see who will come out and perform this time while some of the newer students say that they just want to see what it’s all about.
“Last year the school had the New Boyz, The Crisis and SwitchFoot come out and the year before that Gym Class Heroes were here and that was one of the best ones so far. I sort of can’t wait to see who they might bring out this
time, if they’re still having one this year,” said Bre’anna Loftis, a sophomore student.
For students like Duane Johnson, a fresh-men student, this will be the first Spring Fling he has been to. “At first I didn’t know TJC had different music people come here and play. I heard that the concerts are fun, so I guess I’m ready to see what this one will be like,” Johnson said.
When asked if the school was hosting another Spring Fling this semester, Vincent Nguyen, the director of Student Life and In-volvement, “As of now, we do not know for sure
if we’re having the Spring Fling this semester because of certain factors that we have to work around right now. We currently do not have a budget for the event, meaning we don’t know how much money we need to pay for the enter-tainment, food and other requirements needed.
“There is no set date for it, but if an event does come into production, we want to make sure that it is a fun event for our students, pro-vided with food, games, and activities so that they can have an overall good feel and experi-ence,” said Nguyen.
TJC fulfilling its mission to Achieve a Dream
2011 spring Fling: cancelled?
photo by jarah wright
taking a Break: above: dominic “legacy” Thomas lays down on the job during the 2010 Spring Fling concert.
photos by jarah wright
singing out: above: Switch-Foot singer Jon Foreman walks over the crowd to get to the stage at the 2010 Spring Fling concert. left: Tim Foreman sings during the song “Stars.”
photos by jarah wright
serenading the crowd: left: a member of New Boyz belts out “you’re a Jerk.” above: Brian carrion, lead singer for The crisis, sings “pigeon hole” during the 2010 Spring Fling concert.
the not so Fun Facts aBout Learning - according to the Literacy company’s dataBase
reading statistics
it is estimated that as many as 15 percent of american students may be dyslexic. 46 percent of american adults cannot understand the label on their prescription medicine.
56 percent of young people say they read more than 10 books a year, with middle school students reading the most. Some 70 per-cent of middle school students read more than 10 books a year, compared with only 49 percent of high school students.
15 percent of the population has specific reading disorders. of these 15 percent, as many as 1/3 may show change in the brain structure.
education statistics
The educational careers of 25 to 40 percent of american children are imperiled because they don’t read well enough, quickly enough, or easily enough.
it is estimated that more than $2 billion is spent each year on stu-dents who repeat a grade because they have reading problems.
Since 1983, more than 10 million americans reached the 12th grade without having learned to read at a basic level. in the same period, more than 6 million americans dropped out of high school altogether.
Literacy statistics
over 50 percent of NaSa employees are dyslexic. They are deliber-ately sought after because they have superb problem solving skills and excellent 3d and spatial awareness.
More than three out of four of those on welfare, 85 percent of un-wed mothers and 68 percent of those arrested are illiterate. about three in five of america’s prison inmates are illiterate.
approximately 50 percent of the nation’s unemployed youth age 16-21 are functional illiterate, with virtually no prospects of ob-taining good jobs.
www.tjcnewspaper.com Friday, April 1, 2011 | Page 5
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Questions? Comments? Concerns?Share a comment in tjcnewspaper opinion section
“INSIDIOUS”REVIEW
By Joshua Mumphrey Editor-In-Chief
This eerie film “Insidious” por-trayed in the modern-day, tells a ter-rifying story of a normal, working class family that happens upon an evil force that threatens their lives and the soul of their young son.
The creepy scene is set as forces of evil torment the daily lives of everyone living in the home. The mother at-tempts to find answers to her questions and her son’s mysterious condiction.
The plot will keep you guessing until the very end with many scares and twists around every corner. It’s hard not to find yourself locked up by fear, with adrenaline pumping shock-ers lurking within the darkness, behind doors, in bedrooms or down the dim lit hallways.
This terrific, fear-gripping piece of work, created by the people who brought you “Paranormal Activity,” will be one of the most sought after horror film tickets in the box office this year.
You can’t afford to miss out on such a mystery and pure evil representation of vengeful spirits.
Are you prepared for the most un-settling roller coaster ride of the film world since The Sixth Sense? See it soon in theaters April, 1, 2011.
Poster Courtesy of Photobucket
“Scream 4”REVIEW
By Joshua Mumphrey Editor-In-Chief
“Do you like scary movies?” This was one of the most memorable hor-ror movie phrases that kept the audi-ence on edge. The killing has begun again, but this time things have most definitely got a lot more shocking, and not to mention interesting.
In this fourth installment of the Scream series, the game of cat and mouse has evolved with more gore, blood and outright scares, that will leave you wanting more.
It draws you in with the every-day average Joe, having fun with friends to only end up being tracked and chased by a cold-blooded killer, who plays a twisted game of life and death by phone.
This film holds true to its former predecessors, but the mystery of the plot might leave you more confused than scared in the middle. But all and all, this is a must-see if you’re a follower of the last three films.
“Scream 4” will be in a theater near you on April, 15, 2011. It is a much-anticipated release that many die-hard fans would kill to see.
Poster Courtesy of Photobucket
verve Contact The Apache Pow Wow Verve Editor Christopher Jones with questions, comments
or concerns at [email protected]
Friday, april 1, 2011 | www.tjcnewspaper.com ThE apaChE pow wow | page 6
SPEAKout
TJC ART DOMINATES
The entire night to themselves
ZUmBa: The new sexy for workout
photo by chris jones
“self portrait”: work by lorianne hubbard won a $2,000 art scholarship.
photo by chris jones
“elements”: work by Erika Garrett won a $1,000 art scholarship.
photo by erin ethridge
“portraitUre”: work by Erin Ethridge won a $2,000 art scholarship.
photo by David maldonado
“kaBooky”: work by david Maldona-do won a $1,000 art scholarship.
Students sweep college art competition art competition
Christopher Jones
Art students at TJC take top spots in the 2011 College Art Day and Juried Art exhibi-tion with both drawing and paintings.
The competition was held at the Fine Arts Complex lecture hall on the UT Tyler campus.
It gives students the chance to meet with
professors, tour the facilities and learn more about the UT Tyler Department of Art and Art History. There are also art scholarships to be won in the juried competition.
Lorianne Hubbard and Erin Ethridge won the only two $2,000 art scholarships, while David Maldonado and Erika Garrett both won $1,000 art scholorships.
On March 4 these four students, along with other junior colleges from all around East Texas, had their art judged by faculty
from UT Tyler and were presented with awards and scholarships.
Art Students use their creativity for themselves and for the pleasure of others. They use their creativity to express emotions and attitude. So expressing themselves when they win a competition for their creativity is sometimes different.
“I was pretty much speechless. Re-ally happy and very excited. It was awesome,” said Hubbard.
It was the final day to enter the competition and Hubbard had really not given any thought to entering the event.
“Mrs. Philana actually took care of it for me. It was the last day and she asked me if I wanted her to take it over there [UT Campus] and enter it. I said sure. She has re-ally been a help to me,” Hubbard said.
The teachers show their pride in their students and all the hard work the stu-dents put into their pieces.
By taylar BeltStaff writer
It’s 7 a.m. and most students are hitting their snooze buttons, begging for a few more minutes, while Jasilyn Schaefer, interim director of the Apache Belles, is getting ready to coach the Belles for the upcoming spring show.
“The Belle show is the only event during the entire year that features just the Apache Belles. This is our championship, our Superbowl,” said Schaefer.
The theme for the spring show is “Get Real” and the entire show is based on reality TV.
“Reality TV is such a craze and we want to explore why America is so addicted to reality TV and how true is reality TV,” said Schaefer.
The Apache Belles are putting in overtime to prepare for this show.
“A lot of preparation goes into making this show possible,” said Aubrie Borelli, a sophomore at Tyler Junior College. “We have practice every morning to perfect the dances and to make the show wonderful. We also have the occasional Saturday practices.”
While working hard for the show, the soph-omore girls are realizing this is the last spring show for them.
“Honestly, I am gong to cry my eyes out at the last show,” said Tara Broussard, a sophomore at TJC. “Belles has been a huge part of my life. It has been my steppingstone into becoming a bet-ter person, a better dancer and a better friend.”
Others have formed a sisterly bond. “[I’m]leaving this show with a close bond to
many girls that I can now call my sisters,” said Borelli.
The sophomore Belles have left their direc-tor with nothing but kind words to say.
“They have made me proud of each and ev-ery one of them and have upheld the integrity of the team,” said Schaefer.
Although the show is bittersweet for most, it also symbolizes a new beginning for some.
“For the freshmen, this symbolizes the ending of their year and learning how to be an Apache Belle. They’ll learn how to take over the sophomore positions as [the] new leaders of the team,” said Schaefer.
The spring show begins at 7:30 p.m. on March 31. There will be a special matinee per-formance at 2 p.m. on April 2. The Belles will be performing in the Wise Auditorium. Students are encouraged to get tickets now.
“Students get free tickets with their IDs, and I’d encourage them to get ahead of time at the cashier’s office,” said Schaefer. “The box office will
be open on show night, but [ there is]no guarantee of extra tickets.”
For more information contact Jasilyn Schaefer at (903)-510-3162 or [email protected].
By karena loveStaff writer
Working out is more than just a daily routine to some. It’s fun, exciting and sexy. It’s the new trend of breaking out into a sweat. It is Zumba.
According to energiezumba.com, “Beto” Perez, a celebrity fitness trainer, stumbled upon the concept of Latin-in-spired fitness in his native country of Co-lombia in the mid 1990’s.
Perez realized one day that he had for-got his aerobics music and his only option was to grab whatever tapes he had in his car, which were traditional Latin salsa and merengue music. He was challenged to im-provise a whole class using non-traditional aerobics music. After the last-minute im-provisation, Zumba the fitness program, was born.
“I like zumba because it uses rhythm. It’s more like you’re able to dance and use your body parts like curves and your atti-tude, helps express yourself, relieves stress,” said Shanell Jackson, a TJC Fitness major.
Zumba is not a dance class. It is a dance-based aerobic fitness class. Even though it is basically an exercise, people will still be learning the four basic rhythms based on simplified dance steps such as the cha cha and salsa, mixed with a bit of mam-bo, flamenco, rumba and calypso.
“I love it. I like that it’s not exactly a particular dance as much as it is used for workout purposes,” said Cordy Collins, a TJC Dance major. “It’s usually a lot of younger people that want to dance around to up-tempo stuff.”
In 1999 after Beto’s success in Colom-bia, he brought the class over to the United States where he was approached by en-trepreneurs Alberto Perlman and Alberto
Aghion to create a global company based on the Zumba fitness philosophy.
According energiezumba.com, there are two types of Zumba; Zumba basic fit-ness and the Golden Zumba fitness. Zum-ba Basic is the primary type of workout routine that provides the basic movements and exercises to stay lean and trim. Zumba Gold is specifically created to help indi-viduals who may not be capable of follow-ing Zumba Basic. This is a special type of workout that focuses more on individuals, physically incapacitated people, true begin-ners and senior citizens.
“It’s a great workout. It’s a lot of cardio. I’ve average between 600 to 700 calories burned per class. It’s just a lot of fun. It’s a great way to exercise,” said Jennifer Lewis, personal trainer/and/Zumba instructor at Anytime Fitness in Lindale. “You’re danc-ing so you don’t really feel like your exercis-ing, like it’s work. It’s just more fun.”
According to zumbadance.us, the fit-ness program Zumba can provide benefits such as fat loss. This workout is a good ap-proach to burn fat. An individual can burn about 1,000 calories during a single Zumba workout.
“Zumba is very positive, fun and mind-freeing,” said Jackson.
According to energiezumba.com, peo-ple who do Zumba achieve long-term ben-efits while experiencing an absolute blast in one exhilarating hour of caloric-burning, heart-racing, muscle-pumping, body-en-ergizing movements meant to engage and captivate for life.
“A good time,” said Lewis. “I want them to get some exercise and get some cardio in but [having] fun is the most important thing.”
courtesy photo
getting reaDy: The apache Belles spring show is pro-moted in the poster above. The spring show will be the only time of the year when the Belles preform by them-selves.
photo by karena love
BUrning off calories: Jennifer lewis, in black, personal trainer and fitness instructor at anytime Fitness in lindale, leads a Zumba fitness class.
wHo: The TJC apache Belles.
wHat: Their only Spring Show performance with just members of the team.
wHen: at 7:30 p.m. on March 31. also on april 2nd at 2p.m. there will be a spe-cial matinee performance.
wHere: at Tyler Junior College, in the wise aduito-rium.
NOTE: Students get free tickets while supplies last and a TJC photo id must be provided upon pick up.
spring sHow info
Belles get the spotlight during Spring Show
www.tjcnewspaper.com Friday, April 1, 2011 | Page 7
VIDEO FOOTAGE & NEWS
digital edition onlineAvailable 24/7 online at
tjcnewspaper.com
Available 24/7 online at
tjcnewspaper.com
campusScene
Photos by Joshua Mumphrey
Making the cut: Above, winning students are gathered together to become apart of ‘Bell Tower’ history, being the new generation of artists to be published in TJc’s literary maga-zine. The published material ranges from pho-tography, to art and writing.
2011 TJC Bell Tower Party In Art Hall
Photos by Joshua Mumphrey
getting in print: Left to right: Rebecca Stewart, Torrey Wylie and Tamara Haynes, Graphic Arts in-structors pose for a photo with the finished prod-uct of TJc’s arts journal designed by their students. Above: Linda Gary professor of english, is photo-graphed with one of the published artists.
Photos by Joshua Mumphrey
sharing MeMories: Above: The Stanley fam-ily poses for a photo with graphic arts instruc-tors. This issue of The Bell Tower was dedi-cated to a graphic arts student Molly Stanley, who edited a previous edition of the magazine. She passed away on April 18, 2010. Right: A student artist eliseo Viramontes Jr. shares his work in the new inside layout.
Contact The Apache Pow Wow Associate Editor Jarah Wright with questions, comments or concerns at [email protected].
friday, aPriL 1, 2011 | www.tjcnewspaper.com The aPache Pow wow | page 8
sports SPEAKout
tennis
UPCOMING TJC ATHLETICS: APRIL 2011
GO APACHES!
BaseballCoached by: Doug WrenApril 4, 2:00 vs. East Texas Baptist UniversityApril 9, 1:00 vs. Lonestar College-MontgomeryApril 11, 1:00 vs. Brookhaven College
Coached by: John Peterson
April 1-2Oklahoma City Tournament
April 8-9SWJUCO in Temple, Texas
*Times to be announced
Around The Horn
By jarah wrightassociate editor
Many have heard our moms say that we needed to eat our Wheaties so we could grow up big and strong like the athletes on the cover of the box. However, we didn’t realize they didn’t eat Wheaties. They were paid to endorse the cereal.
Athletes have multi-million dollar salaries but team contracts only make up a small portion of their income. Companies pay athletes millions of dollars to endorse their product and/or be spokespeople.
Some athletes are willing to make fools of themselves if it means a hefty paycheck. For example, Ray Lewis was in an Old Spice commercial that premiered this past Sep-tember. In the commercial, he comes out of a shower in a huge layer of suds that looked like he was covered in bubble bath. He then picked up a saddle, got on a terri-bly crafted raven that flew off and blew up Saturn. Lewis stated that his teammates mercilessly made fun of him. Who wouldn’t? But I guess that means his dignity was worth the price they paid him.
Losing endorsements can also hurt athletes. Tiger Woods is a prime example of how damage from a scandal can affect an athlete’s wallet. Woods is one of the highest earning athletes in the sports market. According to Forbes Magazine, Woods reportedly made $110 million in 2009. Woods is sponsored by several major companies including Nike, who paid Woods a reported $30 million each year. That doesn’t include Woods’ cut of all Nike golf apparel and equipment sold. Nike Golf makes around $700 mil-lion in revenue each year.
In late 2009, there were several women who came forward with claims of extramarital affairs with Woods and they had the tapes and messages to prove it. On Dec. 11, 2009, Woods released a statement stating that these stories were true. The day after his statement was released, several major sponsors dropped him including Accenture, a management consultancy firm, and AT&T. This re-duced Woods’ income but also caused shareholder losses in the companies that sponsored him. A study was done by two economic professors, Victor Stango and Christo-pher Knittel, at the University of California at Davis that explored the financial losses that Woods’ scandal caused. They concluded that shareholders lost approximately $5 billion to $12 billion due to the reduced values in the companies’ stock.
Some may think that endorsements can be limiting. For example, if an athlete had an endorsement with Adi-das, they would be expected to wear nothing but Adidas. But some companies are willing to work with athletes to let them have the choices they want and let them have free reign to design what they want. Steve Nash, a point guard for the Phoenix Suns, stated that he has an apparel and lifestyle deal with Luyou, a China-based company. They allow him to design shoes and apparel.
Endorsements may offer more opportunities to make money but products shouldn’t be bought just because your favorite athlete is on it. The American public has bought into this idea of celebrity and it seems to take away the ability of making our own choices and having our own thoughts. We shouldn’t depend on the person on a cereal box to tell us what we need. It has been my experience that many bad products are endorsed by athletes just for the payday. But then again, you wouldn’t buy a product from a man riding a robotic raven, would you?
Coached by: Sandy TerryApril 4-5Texas State Championships- Harbor Lakes G.C., Granbury, Texas
Tennis
Golf
$how Me The Money
celebrating 71 years of baseball history
Mike Carter Field
By jarah wrightassociate editor
Before every Tyler Junior College baseball home game, the announcer welcomes fans and players to “historic Mike Carter Field.” Over the past 71 years, Mike Carter Field has been through a lot of ups and downs while providing a venue for America’s pas-time.
One of the first baseball games played in East Texas was at Camp Ford in Tyler dur-ing the Civil War. The first minor league team in Tyler, the Tyler Elbertas, played in the South Central League in 1912. Tyler had various teams until 1955.
According to “A Chron-ological History of Smith County, Texas,” by Donald Whisenhunt, construction on what would become Mike Carter Field began on June 12, 1940, as a Works Progress Administration Project. The WPA was the largest New Deal agency. Construction projects such as the ballpark helped local workers find jobs during the nation’s struggling economy. The ballpark opened in 1941 but didn’t host any
games for at least five years due to World War II. The Ty-ler Trojans played their first season in the new Trojan Park in 1946.
The park was heavily damaged in a devastating fire in 1948. According to a Tyler Courier T i m e s
Tele-g r a p h a r t i c l e f r o m Aug. 6, 1948, a student at nearby Butler College re-ported seeing the fire from his dorm room. The fire destroyed the main grandstand, dress-ing rooms and the concession stand. The Tyler Trojans lost their equipment and uniforms. Local teams offered help as well as the parent club of the
Trojans, which was based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Trojan Park was repaired in less than two weeks. All of the hazards from the fire including the damaged roof were demolished. Bleach-ers were positioned behind
h o m e plate. The Trojans p l a y e d
their first home game on Aug. 17, 1948. After the season was over, the com-plex was repaired.
Minor league baseball continued in Tyler until 1955. According to “A History of Minor League Baseball in Ty-ler” by Patrick Whitham, in June 1955, J.C. Stroud, club owner of the Tyler Tigers, re-alized he could no longer fi-
nance the team. The Tyler Ti-gers folded and minor league baseball didn’t return until the Wildcatters in 1993.
Although minor league teams no longer used the field, Trojan Park was still the home of Robert E. Lee and John Ty-ler high school baseball games
and Tyler Junior College baseball games.
One standout player from this time was Mike Carter. The
ace pitcher led the way for the John Tyler base-
ball team in 1968. The team only lost two games.
He turned down a con-tract with the Cincinnati
Reds to play for TJC after he graduated. On Dec. 6,
1969, he collapsed and died of a brain aneurysm. Carter’s death prompted TJC’s head coach Frank Martin to form a group to rename Trojan Park in Carter’s honor. In the spring of 1970, the field was renamed Mike Carter Field.
According to a Tyler Cou-rier Times article from June 16, 1991, TJC had not fielded a baseball team since the early 70s. The athletic director, Dr. Billy Doggett, said if a play-ing site became available, the baseball program would be
— see MCF page 9 —
TJC tennis alum ranked one of the best pros in the worldBy mollie jamison
Staff writer
From Canada to Texas, to New Zealand, to California, Guillaume Gauthier conquered language barriers and natural disasters, all for the love of tennis.
“I owe thanks to Tyler Junior College for a lot of things, but first and foremost for my ability to speak English. When I moved here I didn’t know any English. They helped me blossom and learn this new language,” said Gauthier.
In the fall of 1991, a 17-year-old, Gauthier moved to the small town of Tyler and enrolled in TJC. Little did he know he
would spend over fifteen years of his life here preparing for a big move to the west coast. He spent most of his junior and senior years of high school through Canada and the U.S. playing ten-nis. While at TJC, he majored in journalism and played on the varsity tennis team. He claims to have met the most influential person in his life during this time.
“I always went to Coach Peterson for advice, not only in tennis but personal things too. He really cares about his players. He has a heart as big as this earth,” said Gauthier.
Gauthier also left a lasting impression on TJC head coach John Peterson.
“In 23 years, Guillaume was the second hardest worker I met,” said Peterson. “He was very talented, even as a 17-year-old freshman coming from Canada.”
In 1993 he transferred to the University of Texas at Tyler
and graduated in 1995. In April of 1997 he got a job at Tyler Tennis and Swim and continued to work there until March of 2011.
Gauthier was fortunate enough to continue his career in tennis long after college. In February 2011, he was chosen to represent America in the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The team traveled to New Zealand to compete against Argentina on Feb. 21.
The next day, on at 12:51 p.m. in New Zealand, the earth shifted beneath his feet. The 6.3 magnitude earthquake hit the city of Christchurch. Gauthier was in his hotel located in the center of the city.
“We were lucky enough to get out with just a few scrapes
— see PRO page 9 —
BaseBall
First game played at Mike Carter Field.
Construction began on Mike Carter Field.
1940
1946
1948Fire destroys the main grandstand.
1955The Tyler Tigers can’t afford to keep playing. The baseball club folds.
1970Trojan Park is renamed
Mike Carter Field.
1991The Tyler Baseball Com-mission begins renovations on Mike Carter Field.
1993The Tyler Wildcatters
play their season opener.
2001The Roughnecks
leave Tyler after one season.
www.tjcnewspaper.com Friday, April 1, 2011 | Page 9
restored.Mike Carter Field fell into disrepair
and teams no longer used the facility. Sev-eral remember the field being used for ex-tra parking during football games.
In 1991, the Tyler Baseball Com-mission was formed. According to former TJC head coach Jon Groth, the commis-sion was made up of businessman and fa-thers who had sons who wanted to play baseball. However, there was not a play-ing facility up to par. According to a Tyler Courier Times article from July 7, 1991, Tyler City Council approved the lease of Mike Carter Field to the Tyler Baseball Commission, which began renovations.
There were many renovations over the next two years. The old turf was exca-vated, new topsoil was installed, an irriga-tion process was set up, the backstops were taken down, the dugouts were cleaned out and the seats were replaced.
Many events were held to help raise money to fund renovations.
“They held several fantasy events,”
said Groth. “They would bring in ma-jor league players and local businessman would pay to play in exhibition games with these players. They also had silent auctions with things like Nolan Ryan paraphernalia.”
Baseball clinics were also held along with a ‘Standing-Room Only’ Night fea-turing an exhibition game between Rob-ert E. Lee and John Tyler.
The Tyler Wildcatters, a minor league team, played at Mike Carter Field for four seasons. The team fixed the locker rooms, updating the concession stand and added bleachers. The Wildcatters moved from Tyler to Lafayette, La., after the 1997 season.
Four years later, another minor league team called Mike Carter Field home. The Tyler Roughnecks played in Tyler for the 2001 season before they were transferred to another city.
Since then, Mike Carter Field has continued to be the venue of choice for Tyler high schools and TJC.
continued from page 8 MCF
Get the free mobile app athttp:/ /gettag.mobi
Read the extended version of this story at www.tjcnewspaper.com
and bruises. Mostly I’m just trying to recover men-tally,” said Gauthier.
It took several days to make it safely home to the U.S. Shortly after returning, his life would continue to shift as he and his family planned a move to southern California.
After Gauthier expe-rienced an earthquake that resulted in a death toll of 180, he is moving to yet an-other “quake-zone” where he will be continuing his career in tennis while work-ing at a country club.
“I believe everywhere you go, you’re at the mercy of Mother Nature,” said Gauthier.
His wife, Veorinque, and 7-year-old son Jacob, are excited and supportive of the big move.
Gauthier was an All-American in college and is currently ranked number 3 in the world for his age division. Even after accom-plishing so much, he still has big dreams.
“Every year I go back to the drawing board and set new tennis and family- oriented goals. Every year I have been blessed to stay involved in tennis.”
He gives thanks to all his teachers, coaches and friends at TJC because that is where his jour-
ney started. He said each person was an important piece of the puzzle.
Gauthier felt that TJC was important to him, but some people thought he was important to TJC
as well.“He helped
the other students out a lot,” said Assistant Tennis Coach Kimm Ke-telson. “I was very lucky to have him around. Once he graduated and got a job, he actually employed some of my students.”
L o o k i n g back at teaching Gauthier almost 20 years ago, Pe-terson still feels proud that this is where it all start-ed.
“ P e o p l e definitely are not teaching for the money. They teach because when you get to see a stu-dent mature and
succeed, especially in tennis, it is so gratifying,” said Peterson.
continued from page 8 PRO
TeAChing The nexT gen-eRATiOn: Left: One Little Leaguer gets ready to field the ball after TJC infielder Nolan Rose throws it against the net during a clinic on March 23 at Mike Carter Field. Right: TJC pitcher Cody Ellerbee observes another LIttle Leaguer’s form while he throws the ball.
campusSCENE
Little League Clinic
Courtesy Photo
WORking As A PRO: Guillaume Gauthier smiles at Tyler Tennis and Swim Club where he has worked as a tennis pro.
Photos by Jarah Wright
Page 10 | Friday, April 1, 2011 The Apache Pow Wow
Submit comments and concerns to The Apache Pow Wow every issue by sending an e-mail to [email protected].
Friday, aPriL 1, 2011 | www.tjcnewspaper.com The aPache Pow wow | page 11
variety UPdate
Firestation Auto CenterRight Down The Street From T.J.C.
We Have Great Student Vehicles & Values
Call Us At 903-593-2552Corner of Glenwood & Vine
visit us at www.firestationauto.com
“Donating plasma is a safe procedure. It is low-risk, usually with minimal or no side ef-fects. The most common side effect is feeling weak or dizzy after donating. This can be fixed by eating a healthy meal and drinking water,” said Dr. Routhouska.
Hospitals and emergency rooms around the world use plasma-derived products to treat patients with traumatic injuries such as shock and severe burns.
“I really cannot stress how important these donations are. Without them, many patients would have died due to severe blood loss and dehydration,” said Dr. Routhouska.
There are some requirements that must be met before a person can donate their plasma. To be eligible, a prospective donor must be at least 18 years old, weigh at least 110 pounds and have no illegal drugs present in their body. A recent piercing or tattoo may also affect eligibility.
“Donors must pass a thorough medical ex-amination and answer a survey about their own medical history. Vital signs will also be taken,” said Dr. Routhouska. “As a donor, not only are you helping your community, you receive a free physical exam as well.”
Every plasma donation that is received is screened for viral infections including hepatitis and HIV. Periodic tests are also administered
on donors to check for infections including syphilis.
“The FDA takes plasma donations very seriously. Plasma donation centers must follow strict regulations to ensure donor safety as well as the safety of patients receiving plasma prod-ucts,” said Dr. Routhouska.
Donating plasma is a personal choice, but one that comes with both instant and long-lasting results. Compensation is made for the plasma received from each donor. It has become popular in recent years, probably due to the eco-nomic crisis the U.S. has been experiencing. Not only do the donors make a profit each time they donate, their plasma is also used to help others in their community and around the world. For students, this appears to be the selling point.
“I have never donated plasma before,” said Tyler Junior College student Nova Esparza. “But knowing that I can make a profit from it and help save lives, it sounds like something I would actually be willing to do.”
The Biolife Plasma Services in Tyler is lo-cated at 1827 W. Gentry Parkway. Their num-ber is 903-592-1144. They also have locations in Denton, Eagle Pass, Laredo and Austin, as well as in 21 other states. Visit biolifeplasma.com or donatingplasma.org for more information.
continued from page 3 pLasma
Page 12 | Friday, April 1, 2011 The Apache Pow Wow
out, but I didn’t even know his name. I wasn’t concerned with questions or anything at that point. All that mattered was mak-ing sure he was safe.”
The red 1996 Ford Explorer lay overturned in the glass-cov-ered street. Meta McDaniel, 46, the driver of a tan 2008 GMC Yukon plowed into the passenger side of the Explorer as it turned to quick in the right hand lane on University Drive.
The impact of the wreck caused extensive damage to the vehicle. Gasoline was beginning to leak. The strong scent was undoubtedly filling the air.
A light haze of smoke was seen escaping from beneath the hood, but that didn’t stop Kirkley from doing what she could to try and save Smith’s life.
“There was a seatbelt dangling that kept hitting him in the face, so I reached in to try and move it,” said Kirkley. “I wanted to make him as comfortable as I could, but as my arm made it in to reach the seatbelt, the car burst into flames and I was forced to back away.”
Orange and yellow flames shot out and engulfed the red Explorer as spectators watched helplessly at a safe distance. Kirk-ley began wiping away singed strands of hair before feeling the pain of the second-degree burns to her face, arm and neck.
She stood motionless taking it all in. Confused. In shock. Emotional and in pain. She didn’t know whether to be strong or to weep.
Kirkley described the accident in three words, “horrific, dev-astating and tragic.” No matter how hard she tried, the images of Smith would not fade away from her memory. The accident is something that will haunt her for the rest of her life.
“Thinking about it now, after knowing a lot more about Randy, I feel he’s helped me in many ways. He has had some really bad medical issues among other things, but regardless he still tried his best at life. He made me want to get off my butt and actually do something with my future. I feel it’s how he’s helped save my life,” Kirkley said.
Smith was one of those people who, when someone met him, they just knew he was special. But he was also very quiet, explained Spencer Ellison, professor of Criminal Justice at TJC.
“The Randy Smith I knew was a very colorful person who didn’t say much. I remember him sitting in the back of the class-room in my Introduction to Criminal Justice course last fall. He participated when requested, but he never was a big talker.”
There was a time when Smith actually talked. He had a con-
versation with his Ellision after being asked if he was feeling OK.
Smith had been laying his head down on the desk, later ex-plaining that he was feeling sick due to some medical issues and a relapse of Sickle Cell Anemia. His eyes were always very yellow and pale in color, and on somedays he seemed fragile and weak.
“Randy was one of my more memorable students because of his demeanor. I will never forget how he always wore different color baseball caps every day to class. Like I said, he was a very colorful person. Other students would say what they wanted, but he was different. He spoke when he had to and kept to himself. You could tell he was there for a reason and that reason was to earn his degree.”
Smith was one of four foster children in Emmitt Horace’s and his wife’s care. He brought joy to their lives and when he first arrived, they knew it was the right decision. They bonded instantly.
“When Randy arrived he was scared, skinny and hungry,” said Horace. “But as he headed off to college, he was fearless, strong and full. He was one of the first foster kids to go to col-lege. We had a lot of hope in him going on and making some-thing out of himself. He was a good person who loved to help who he could.”
Smith will be remembered for more than his colorful per-sonality or the baseball caps he wore to class every day.
“He has inspired so many in his life and encouraged so many through his death. He has encouraged me to do my best,” Kirkley said. “It’s not about how much time we are given but about what we do with it. I’m sure from what I know now about Randy, that he made every minute count.”
continued from page 1 ECONOMY
continued from page 1 SAFETY
continued from page 1 SAMARITAN
“Students already have problems with different neighbor-hoods and where they from so why would you let them have guns,” said Freshman Travoy Martinez.
Both Johnson and Melton agree that whether the law will make campuses safer or not is unknown. But they emphasize that Campus Safety’s focus is on preventing crime. Practicing civility can prevent a disagreement from becoming deadly and is a focal point for school officials.
“We’re working on civility on campus,” said Melton.The work is being spearheaded by a Civility Task Force
which TJC President Mike Metke appointed. Members of the task force include faculty, students, staff and Melton.
“We discuss things about civility [and] try to make our cam-pus East Texas friendly,” said Melton.
According to Johnson, dressing for success encourages civil-ity.
“We’re trying to train these students for the work force and professional life. If you’re walking around with your pants around your knees, it’s probably a good chance that you won’t get hired right off the bat in a professional organization,” Johnson said.
Johnson also sees it as a way to minimize differences that can lead to conflict.
“That actually incites,” Johnson said. “Because then you get some group calling another group this or whatever … because if you have one group against another group then that’s just not
right … and a lot of it comes from the dress.”According to Johnson, students should apply the idea of
maintaining a professional appearance not only to their personal image but also to their environment. He encourages students to use the trash receptacles and to take care of the new outdoor furniture. Not only does doing so maintain the aesthetics of the campus, it plays a key role in preventing crime.
“It’s called the Broken Window Syndrome,” Johnson said. “In a neighborhood, let’s say someone has a broken window and they don’t fix it. Before long there could be some graffiti there. In other words, it keeps getting worse, whereas, if you fix that broken window as soon as it’s broken then it’s less likely.”
Seemingly little things lead to other little things which be-gin to add up.
“It’s a slippery slope,” Johnson said. “That’s how if you go to a neighborhood they say, ‘30 years ago this was a beautiful neighborhood,’ is they allowed it to creep up on them slowly, but it creeps up on them.”
Johnson also added that people can help keep the campus safe by simply wearing their lanyards.
“I would put in big print ‘Not In Your Pocket’,” Johnson said. “We’re not interested in seeing the lanyard holder, we’re interested in seeing the actual ID because it allows us to know who is actually supposed to be on campus.”
TJC faces loss Students share concerns for tragic accident
Quote by Annecia Davis
FEElINg EMPAThY:
“Its really sad. I do have much empathy for the family. I just pray that God will give them comfort, and that this doesn’t hap-pen to anyone else.”
Quote by Kaitlyn Starkey
FEElINg EMPAThY:
“My thoughts and prays are with the friends and family at this time.”
Quote by georgianna Reed
FEElINg EMPAThY:
“I feel really sorry for the family, I couldn’t imagine loosing some-one like that. The situ-ation makes me want to concentrate more on how I drive and how to be more careful.”
“It’s a sad time for us right now. It hit my wife really hard. We are sure going to miss Randy.”
- Emmitt HoraceCourtesy Photo
lIvINg lIFE: Left, Randy DeShawn Smith a TJC student and wreck victim.
“I attended a conference a couple of weeks ago in Philadel-phia and one of the directors of the Tourism Bureau said, ‘We look at Philadelphia as providing Beds, Meds, and Eds to keep the economy boosted,’” Peters said.
Peters went on to explain how Tyler’s own economy reflects that with the medical region, tourism, and the education pro-vided by TJC and UT-Tyler.
TJC supplies the community with educated and skilled workers from the various majors and programs provided, with a high community hiring rate. Mullins pointed to the nursing and the automotive programs in particular. One of the most rec-ognized automotive tech programs in the Southwest part of the country in located at TJC’s West Campus.
“You ask any of the car dealers in Tyler or the surrounding part of Texas whether or not they use that program and they will say absolutely. In fact, they are standing in line, waiting for students to complete the training so that they can hire them,“ said Mullins.
The report concluded in 2008-09 included that students will receive an average of 12.6 percent return on their investment in TJC. This will recover all costs including tuition, fees, and for-gone wages in approximately 12-13 years. An associate’s degree earned about $9,600 more per year when compared to persons with a high school diploma and no higher education.
Because of the reputation of graduates, businesses have mi-grated to Tyler. Some have paired up with the junior college itself to have students trained to be ready to work by graduation date. Luminate [used to be TXU Energy] is an example of one such company. It provides the student with training and the opportu-nity to immediately enter Luminate’s work force after graduation into a well-paying job.
Peters explained the relationship with the Tyler Economic Development Council and other potential business-TJC part-nerships.
“We work very closely with the Tyler Economic Develop-ment Council. When they want to recruit for a large business or manufacturing site… they come to us and they ask, ‘What role can we [TJC] play in training or retraining? Can we help provide skilled labor force for that employer?’” Peters said.
This is beneficial for both TJC and the Tyler community. Dr. Mike Metke, president of Tyler Junior College, added his opinion on the benefits of TJC working with the Economic De-velopment Council.
“[The] Economic Development Council would almost be out of business without us, in terms of attracting new businesses and doing the training for those businesses and adding to the skilled labor force,” Metke said.
Not only does TJC contribute economically but the stu-dents are involved in the activities of the community as well.
“TJC also supports a lot of things in the community,” Mul-lins said. “They are actively engaged in every area of the com-munity. They are active in the Chamber of Commerce, in the Economic Development Council; they have volunteers that help out with organizations like United Way. They are constantly sup-porting just a multitude of activities that go on in the commu-nity, which makes them a great community college. “
Going to college provides opportunity for students as well as businesses and the economy of the community.
“National Surveys show that 90 percent of all of the jobs that are available and that will be created over the next 25 years are going to require someone to have at least 1-2 years after high school,” Mullins said. Junior and community colleges are the best positioned institutions in the country to provide that 1-2 year training program.”
Dr. Metke commented about the student-based goal of TJC.
“We try to position all of our students to be in a position to be successful in the next arena whether that is a transfer or in a job field or wherever their life takes them,” Metke said.
