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The Ranger, the student newspaper at San Antonio College, is a laboratory project of the journalism classes in the Department of Media Communications, published Mondays except during summer, holidays and examinations.
Citation preview
The RangeRRace to Retire
FORGOTTEN PIPES 6
NEW GARAGE 8
MUSICAL CHAIRS 12
A forum of free voices serving San Antonio College since 1926
Vol. 85 Issue 21 Single copies free April 25, 2011
Math Professor Ronald Coleman arrived at 4:20 a.m. and was the ninth person in line.
With only $8 million to go around, the early birds were ensuring they collected a 70 percent nest egg.
As early as 2 a.m. April 18, district employees eligible for retirement waited for the 6 a.m. opening of the college information technologies office at Lewis and West Ashby.
The incentive is limited to money taken out of the district’s rainy day fund, and is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
Only about 170 of the 449 eligible employees are expected to collect. By 6:10 a.m., 42 staff and faculty members passed through the building in 12 minutes.
PAGE 5
The Ranger 2 • April 25, 2011
A forum of free voices serving San Antonio College since 1926The RangeR
3 News Board wants more time, options By Zahra Farah
4 Blotter Peeping returns to Moody By Julysa Sosa
5 News District employees wake early for retirement incentive By Megan Mares
6 May 31 deadline for study abroad trips By Ximena Victoria Alvarez RFP overlooks pump By Riley Stephens
8 Public-private proposal sprawls over 3 blocks By Megan Mares
10 Student vet shares fears in wake of shutdown watch By Dana Lynn Traugott Photo by Tyler K. Cleveland
11 Student finds talents combine in Web design By Alma Linda Manzanares
12 Department mergers reduce chair numbers to 20 By J. Almendarez
14 Inclusion, development new vision for adjuncts By Melody Mendoza
15 Sticky Note drawing for summer pay lottery By Melody Mendoza
16 District adds one-year non-tenure track position By Melody Mendoza
18 Evolution of an image By Laura Garcia
19 Project aims to help student become independent By Alma Linda Manzanares Photo by Jennifer M. Ytuarte
20 Attorney, trustees start planning 2010 redistricting By Zahra Farah Photo by Tyler K. Cleveland
22 Watching the clock By J. Almendarez Photo by JungKeun Song
23 Novelist Mark Busby reads excerpts from his work By Dana Lynn Traugott Photo by Alison Wadley
24 Annexation efforts not expected any time soon By Zahra Farah
25 Officials opt out of limelight By Zahra Farah
26 Strybos keeps light on, water running By Zahra Farah
27 Fabianke’s projects bringing colleges together By Melody Mendoza
28 Calendar
30 Editorials Why are officials hiding? Higher standards, quality
31 Fee should cover student life projects
31 Letters to the Editor Carrot 0, stick 1
32 Drastic incentive Waive down payment Hello, kitty
33 Viewpoint Life lessons, sports on the chopping block By J. Almendarez Librarian: Watchdog role vital Guest Viewpoint by John Deosdade
34 Officials & Policies
36 News Source awards honor best of the best sources
37 Ranger Web editor wins Journalist of the Year By Joshua Fechter
38 Editors take first place for in-depth reporting
39 Board sets 175-mile radius for college sports By Joshua Fechter
This issue
Digital design students sketch ponies Tuesday on the south steps of Koehler. Adjunct Akiko White brought her ponies, two dogs and a
rooster. This was the first time White brought animals to campus for her students to “catch the moment.” JungKeun Song
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 3News
By Zahra Farah
A request from district staff to
increase a contract for auditing by
$100,000 Tuesday led to a vote to
table the measure and complaints
from trustees that big-ticket items
are brought to them at the “last
minute.”
Trustees voted 5-4 at the regu-
lar April meeting to table a request
to increase a contract with Ernst
and Young LLP by $100,000, which
would raise the limit on their con-
tract to $309,140. The vote also
included approval for the district
to seek other bidders and compare
the contracts at the board meeting.
Ernst and Young was awarded
the original contract of $177,945 for
1,009 hours in April 2010 to audit
public accounts.
Trustees who voted to table
and seek competitors were James
Rindfuss, District 9; Blakely
Fernandez, District 7; Joe Alderete,
District 1; Marcelo Casillas, District
4; and Anna Bustamante, District 3.
Trustees who favored the
$100,000 increase were Dr. Gene
Sprague, District 6; Denver
McClendon, District 2; Chairman
Gary Beitzel, District 8; and Roberto
Zárate, District 5.
In the discussion, Fernandez
said the staff rushes to the board
to make fast decisions on issues,
which might not be the best finan-
cial decision for the district. She
argued this is a bad practice that
staff does too often. Fernandez
said this 50 percent increase is “too
rich for her blood and too big of a
change brought last minute.”
The firm is requesting the
$100,000 increase because they are
required by law to audit six more
government programs then the two
they did for fiscal year 2011.
Fernandez said when they first
sent out the request for propos-
als the board picked the highest
or second highest of three bidders,
entered into a three-year contract,
and now they want to raise prices.
She suggested going out for
another request for proposal and
looking at what prices other firms
have to offer. “We’re nickel and dim-
ing all over district,” she said, add-
ing she can’t accept a 50 percent
increase in a contract. She said that
money could go toward tutoring.
Even though
Ernst and Young “did
a great job and are a
fabulous” this is too
big of a jump, she
said.
Sprague said he
agrees it looks expen-
sive, but he’s been
with the lowest firms
and he’s never seen a
firm as good as Ernst
and Young. He also
said they did not charge the district
for extra work not in the earlier RFP.
Alderete said he went through
an audit with a nonprofit group he
works with and there are enough
credible companies like Ernst
and Young reputable and hungry
enough to do the job. He said the
$100,000 equals a faculty member.
Alderete said whatever they did
extra, Ernst and Young knew what
they were doing; their job is to know
what is going on.
Rindfuss, said, “This is a sub-
stantial increase in an RFP I have
ever seen since I’ve been on the
board.” He said trustees owe it to
taxpayers and students to see if a
new request for proposals could
bring a better price.
Rindfuss said accounting firms
have finished tax season, and the
board could find and approve a
firm for the May board meeting. He
then called for a substitute motion
to table the original motion and
direct staff to prepare a request for
proposals.
Alderete seconded the substi-
tute motion.
McClendon asked about solicit-
ing other proposals.
Pamela Ansboury, associate vice
chancellor for finance and fiscal
services, said the district receives
$137.6 million in federal funds, and
they have to begin planning the
auditing schedule right after the
meeting. She’s concerned the dis-
trict will fall behind and not deliver
on single and financial audits.
Ansboury said the district could
limit the work or go
with Ernst and Young
this year and look for
a new firm next year
because a 60-day
notice of termination
is required.
Casillas called the
question, seeking an
end to discussion.
The item passed and
trustees discussed
staff instructions.
Dr. Eric Reno, Northeast
Lakeview College president, said a
part of the audit relates to Northeast
Lakeview’s accreditation and any
delay could push it back a year.
In other business, trustees
unanimously agreed tuition and
taxes should not increase in fall.
In-district students taking 12 hours
will pay $819 in tuition and fees.
Out-of-district students taking 12
hours will pay $1,491.
Rindfuss said he was uncom-
fortable with adopting a tuition rate
for fall when they hadn’t discussed
a possible enrollment cap. He said
it was unfair for students who only
need a three-hour class to have to
register for a minimum of six hours.
Zárate said he agreed with the
principle, but based on the reality
the district is facing, they have to
look at increasing tuition for four-
year university students who take
one or two district classes.
Rindfuss said he was concerned
they didn’t have a preliminary
report on the unintended conse-
quences that could come out of not
raising taxes or tuition.
Zárate said he understood, but
trustees had to set tuition rates for
fall, so students could start register-
ing. He said they could always raise
tuition rates for spring. He said they
don’t have information from the
state to know what to expect.
Rindfuss worried colleges would
cut back on classes, which could
keep student out.
Zárate said it’s not going to be
business as usual.
The former elementary princi-
pal said he wants to educate the
world, but the board has a financial
responsibility to the district.
Trustees have to determine
what level of services the district
can provide, then go back to the
student success agenda.
Trustees unanimously agreed to
increase fees for private music les-
sons, diplomas and transcripts. In
fall, graduates will not be charged
for a first diploma, but duplicates
are $25.
Students will not be charged for
requesting a first transcript by mail,
but additional mailed transcripts
will cost $10 each. The first elec-
tronic transcript will be free, and
subsequent transcripts cost $5. To
send a transcript to another institu-
tion within 24 hours will cost $35
mailed or $10 electronically.
Student IDs will continue to be
free, but replacement IDs will cost
$10.
The committee also agreed
to increase the tuition of private
music lessons. Students will be
charged $150 for two semester
credit hours of private lessons and
$95 for one semester credit hour.
The colleges now charge $45 an
hour for private music lessons and
$30 for a half-hour.
Trustees were in executive ses-
sion for about an hour, but did
not vote on any items when they
returned to open session.
For more information or to see
meeting agendas and minutes, go
to www.alamo.edu and click on
Board of Trustees, then Agenda.
Board wants more time, optionsTrustees table
$100,000 increase to auditing contract.
The board has scheduled a special
meeting at 4 p.m. May 9 in Room 101 of Killen Center at 201 W. Sheridan. The next regular board meeting
is scheduled for 6 p.m. May 17
beginning with a special meeting.
4 • April 25, 2011 The Ranger
Drivers failing to use turn signals or driving recklessly can face
consequences.
Not using a turning signal is a minor traffic violation.
However, reckless driving is an offense that can result in a $200 fine
and possible arrest.There is also potential
for suspension of a drivers license.
For more
information, visit www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us and select Transporation Code,
Chapter 545 and Section 001.
Blotter
SAN ANTONIO COLLEGE
April 8 — Individual reported her
iPhone had been stolen from the rest-
room. No suspects were found.
April 11 — Individual reported losing
her cell phone.
April 12 — A non-Alamo Colleges
affiliated individual was robbed while
walking in the area of Lewis and
Laurel south of this college. The victim
reported losing personal property. No
weapons were used.
Individual reported his bicycle had
been stolen. No suspects were found.
Individual reported two district laptops
had been stolen.
April 13 — Individual reported her
vehicle had been burglarized and per-
sonal items stolen. No suspects were
found.
April 14 — Individual reported her
vehicle had been damaged.
April 18 — Individual reported a
vehicle accident damaged her vehicle.
NORTHEAST LAKEVIEW
April 11 — Individual reported a hit-
and-run vehicle accident.
April 18 — Individual reported mark-
ings on a district fountain. No suspects
were found.
Individual reported his cell phone had
been stolen. No suspects were found.
NORTHWEST VISTA
April 10 — Officer reported a broken
district window.
April 11 — Individual reported several
locks had been cut off of lockers.
April 12 — Individual reported a hit-
and-run vehicle accident.
April 13 — Individual reported her
vehicle had been damaged.
Individual reported her vehicle side
mirrors had been stolen. No suspects
were found.
April 18 — Individual reported she
had active warrants and was turn-
ing herself in. No active warrant was
found.
PALO ALTO
April 13 — Officer reported two
women arguing in the parking lot.
Individual reported his bicycle had
been stolen. No suspects were found.
ST. PHILIP’S
April 8 — Individual reported damage
to a district gate.
April 12 — Individual reported his
motorcycle had been stolen. No sus-
pects were found.
Individual reported her vehicle had
been burglarized on campus six days
earlier.
ContaCt InfoEmergency
210-222-0911General DPS210-485-0099Weather Line210-485-0189
Did You Know?By Julysa sosa
Holes of different sizes have been appearing in
stalls since the fall in men’s restrooms in Moody
Learning Center.
Facilities Director David Ortega
reported that restrooms on the
fourth, sixth and seventh floors have
had holes since the beginning of fall.
He said this isn’t a new problem; a
similar problem existed in McCreless
Hall about five years ago and “comes
and goes” in other buildings.
Since 2007, four complaints of
sexual activity in Moody have been made to cam-
pus police, 17 in the chemistry and geology build-
ing, one in nursing and allied health complex, and
one in Candler Physical Education Center.
“We’ve been plugging them as we find
them,”Ortega said. “It’s a bad situation.”
Ortega said individuals have been going into the
restrooms with drills and also removing steel plates
with tamper-proof screws.
“They come prepared,” he said. “If they can’t get
that plate off, they drill another hole.”
Deputy Chief Joe Curiel said police are working
with facilities to monitor the activity.
“Part of the investigation involves social net-
working operations and plain-
clothed officers,” he said, adding the
perpetrators communicate through
chat rooms or websites.
Curiel said students are respon-
sible for reporting anything suspi-
cious.
“They have to be our eyes and
ears,” he said. “We can’t be every-
where.”
Curiel said the perpetrators know when to act
and when to wait; now, they are holding back and
being more discreet.
Curiel explained covering up the holes is only a
temporary solution.
When individuals behind the action are caught,
they face being charged with a Class A misdemean-
or for public lewdness.
“I feel if we as a community can detect that act,
we can prevent it and make an arrest,” he said.
Peeping returns to Moody
To report any information on
this or any other incidents on
campus, call Curiel at 210-485-0184.
For more information, visit www.alamo.edu/
district/dps.
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 5News
Story and photoS by Megan MareS
April 18, as early as 2 a.m., dis-
trict staff and faculty members
eligible for retirement waited for
the 6 a.m. opening of the college
information technologies office at
Lewis Street and West Ashby Place.
During the April 2 board retreat,
trustees agreed, in a 6-2 vote, on
a retirement incentive of 70 per-
cent of base salary for one year for
employees who retire by Aug. 31.
Eligible employees must be 65
years of age with a minimum of 10
years of full-time service or have
a combined 80 years of age plus
years of service with the district.
Employees enrolled in the
phased retirement program are
also eligible for the incentive, at a
pro-rated amount that is equal to
the amount of time left on their
phased retirement program.
The incentive is limited to $8
million in funding, money taken
out of the district’s $15 million rainy
day fund, and will be allocated on a
first-come, first-served basis.
Math Professor Ronald Coleman,
at this college, arrived at 3 a.m. and
was the ninth person in line.
With only $8 million to go
around, the early birds were ensur-
ing they collected a 70 percent nest
egg.
By 6:10 a.m., 42 staff and fac-
ulty members passed through the
building in only a 12-minute time
span, all taking advantage of a 70
percent base salary retirement
incentive.
Enough coffee and orange juice
for 150 people was provided, Idalia
Velazquez, human resources ben-
efits coordinator, said.
Velazquez and Linda Boyer-
Owens, associate vice chancellor
of human resources and organi-
zational development, both said
the $8 million in funding will serve
about 170 retirees.
About 449 people in the district
are eligible for retirement.
Melinda-Jo Rivero-Lara, senior
secretary in kinesiology, is one
of the retirees, and she said that
working at this college has been
her second job.
“I’ve worked here and at Handy
Andy,” she said. “That’s it.”
Maria Serna,
learning resource
specialist, has
worked at this
college for 33
years and even
this morning was
unsure about
retiring.
“I said if a train
stops me on the
way, then that’s a
sign,” she said. “I
hadn’t even filled
out the forms
before I got here.”
Serna decided
to turn in her election forms. “I’m
still nervous about this,” she said.
“We’ll see what the future holds.”
Gloria Medellin, recruiting and
employment manager, said she’s
heard a lot of the retiring employ-
ees’ names before but hasn’t met
a lot of them. “Now to be here as
they sign these forms…” she said
looking down, nodding.
Jesse Delgado, a welding
instructor at Southwest Campus of
St. Philip’s College, is part of the
phased retirement program but was
not on the eligible list that morning.
Boyer-Owens said for him to
submit his paperwork this morning
anyway and she would look into it.
Delgado start-
ed working for the
district in 1979
and became full
time in 1980.
“I’m excited
about this,” he
said. “There was
no hesitation at
all. I appreciate
the district for
doing this.”
At about 6:45
a.m., government
Professor Bill
Byerly stopped by
to discuss retire-
ment options with the human
resources staff.
“I’m still trying to decide,” he
said. “I’m going to have breakfast
and maybe come back.”
Alice Mendez, academic unit
assistant, said Thursday that Byerly
has decided to retire.
Librarian John Deosdade, has
worked at this college 27 years but
said he is tired of the battle.
He said he would guess 300
years of experience walked
through the college information
technologies office April 18 right
into retirement.
“The people who will suffer
because of this are the students,”
he said. “It was very depressing this
morning.”
By 7 a.m., about 50 employees
had passed through and turned in
their retirement election form.
Employees who submitted the
form had to be sure before doing
so. The form reads: if they decide to
“rescind or revoke” their full retire-
ment or resignation in reference
to their employment with this dis-
trict, they will be terminated.
All election forms are due by 5
p.m. May 31 for the program guar-
anteeing 70 percent of base salary.
As of 11 a.m. April 21, $3,571,862
remained of the $8 million allotted,
and 123 employees turned in their
retirement election forms.
The human resources sec-
tion of the district website has
been updated several times since
April 18 to reflect changes in a
graph showing how much money
remains in the program.
For more information
and to see the updates, visit,
w w w. a l a m o. e d u / d i s t r i c t / h r /
RetirementIncentive2011.htm.
District employees wake early for retirement incentive
“The people who will suffer because of this are the students.”John Deosdade librarian
Hope Cintron, director of organizational learning and employee devel-opment, waits for Manuel Flores, director of enrollment management, to sign in April 18 before turning in his retirement election form for the retirement incentive program.
Math Professor Ann Parsons waits in line to turn in her retire-ment election form April 18 out-side the Ashby House.
6 • April 25, 2011 The RangerNews
Isn’t today a good dayto give back?
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WALK-INS WELCOME816 Lexington Ave.
San Antonio, TX 78212
By Ximena Victoria alVarez
Throughout February, students
received ACES emails about the variety
of study abroad programs and financial
aid or scholarship opportunities avail-
able. But the March 11 deadline came
and went and with it,
trips to Brazil, Russia,
Germany, Vietnam and
Cambodia.
The trips were canceled for lack of
student interest, Carol P. Fimmen, direc-
tor of international programs at Alamo
Colleges said.
For 2012 programs, proposals are due
May 31.
Fimmen said trips to Italy, China
and Japan proved a success, but after
the tsunami and earthquake in Japan,
that trip was canceled. Because of the
uncertainty of the situation, the deci-
sion was made to not put students’ lives
at risk. Deposits were being returned to
13 students.
At a forum here, Fimmen spoke with
faculty from continuing education,
English, media services and foreign lan-
guages who were interested in study
abroad. She talked about costs, the pro-
cess of a study abroad program and
assistance her office
can provide in find-
ing the best program
prices, and those that
include a hotel with breakfast to trim
student expenses.
Programs range from eight days to
nine weeks; prices depend on the coun-
tries as well as courses enrolled in.
Each program of 15 students must be
led by two faculty members.
Fimmen said small groups provide
a good environment for study abroad.
Fimmen also talked about a $25,000
scholarship divided among 20 students
of the Alamo Colleges with a 2.0 GPA
or higher.
May 31 deadline for study abroad trips
Visit www.alamo.edu/international.
By riley StephenS
When a bid was accepted for $8.35 million of renovation
work on the chemistry and geology building, one detail was
overlooked. A pump in the central plant that sends water
to the lowest level of the building was here when facilities
superintendent David Ortega arrived 20 years ago.
“Actually, the pump needed to be replaced when the
building was getting renovated,” Ortega said, noting it is
beyond its life expectancy. “The pump was not included
in the 2008 bid.”
The $11,049 job by Bolin Plumbing Contractors cut
water to the basement, and plastic covers restroom doors.
“Both the men and women’s restrooms have been
closed off today and tomorrow because there is no water,”
Ortega said Wednesday. The water was shut off so drains
would not clog. “All the waste from any water fixture drains
into a lift station and, from there, to the ground level.”
Wednesday, he found the pump had been left off a
request for bids on the building renovation. “Somebody
forgot to put it on the list during the renovation, one of
the engineers probably,” Ortega said. “This equipment has
to work. It’s just like using the bathroom; the pumps run
continuously. We can’t afford to have them fail.”
RFP overlooks pump
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 7
CASH IN YOUR TEXTBOOKS
Visit www.sac.bkstr.com for additionalbuyback hours and locations.
Rented textbooks are due back byMay 16, 2011
CHECK IN YOUR RENTALS
SAC BookstoreLoftin Student Center, Lower Level
50SBB11
8 • April 25, 2011 The RangerNews
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at your own pace. Choose printed lessons with
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Teaching the Word. Reaching the World!
Hope. Joy.
Love. Life!
By Megan Mares
Last spring, this college entered
a conversation initiated by the
Tobin Hill Historic District about a
public/private partnership.
The Tobin Hill Historic District
is popular for many reasons. With
five colleges and universities,
neighborhoods, restaurants, and
the zoo the district offers a variety
of strengths.
But North Main Avenue and
North St. Mary’s Street strips spe-
cifically contain a wide variety
of entertainment venues such as
clubs, bars and music halls that
have perhaps been the most noto-
rious for fun, crime and heavy-
hitting foot traffic.
One year after the initial pub-
lic/private partnership conversa-
tion began, David Mrizek, vice
president of college services, said
that the plans are still in the devel-
opmental stages.
The partnership will include
the use of Lot 26, the space south of
Luther’s Café that the college owns,
and the space where the campus
police department is located.
The two lots would be used
by a private company and would
provide parking space and educa-
tional space for this college.
Mrizek said the buildings
would consist of five elements in
three complexes — retail stores,
apartments, academic space, park-
ing garage and a central plant for
heating and air conditioning. The
ground level retail space would
include Luther’s Café.
The apartments are intended to
be private student housing for stu-
dents from this college and other
colleges, but the company will own
the apartments.
Mrizek said there will be 500 to
600 availabilities for the furnished,
all-bills paid student apartments.
The projected housing esti-
mates are $925 for one bedroom,
one bath; $1,400 for both two bed-
room, two bath and $2,300, for all 4
bedroom, 4 bath.
The estimates are all bills inclu-
sive.
Amenities in the complex could
include tanning beds, pool, cyber
café, HD theater, study rooms,
security features, flat screens in all
units, wifi and a parking spot for
each resident.
Mrizek said he does not know
what company is interested in
building the complexes, but said
that in about six to eight months,
building is expected to start.
He said the construction of the
complexes will take about three
years.
John Strybos, associate vice
chancellor of facilities opera-
tion and construction manage-
ment, said that the No. 1 rank-
ing response to Alamo Colleges’
request for proposal is a company
called NRP Group/Balfour Beatty.
According to January’s regular
board meeting minutes, their rec-
ommendations for the complexes
are a four-story, 150-unit, residen-
tial development on northwest
corner of North Main and East
Laurel.
There will be a 24-unit three-
story walk-up residential building
at the southwest corner of Howard
and Evergreen and 63 units in
a third residential building at
Evergreen and Main.
Public-private proposal sprawls over 3 blocksThe plan closes
Evergreen between Main and Howard.
April 25, 2011 • 9The Ranger News
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Recommendations also includ-
ed in January’s minutes are for the
1,000-space parking garage and
residential/retail component at
Main and Evergreen.
The idea is that the apartments
wrap around two sides of the
large parking structure, hiding the
garage from public view to tie it in
with the scale and design of adja-
cent structures and this college.
NRP Group/Balfour Beatty
also suggested to the board dur-
ing January’s meeting that the
100,000-square-foot academic
facility at Park Street and Main
Avenue combine with the parking
garage to emphasize a pedestrian
connection along Park Street to
this campus.
Mrizek said he thinks the com-
plexes will amplify the nightlife on
the strips. “It’s going to be a won-
derful addition,” he said.
President Gabriel Sanchez of
Tobin Hill Community Association
said that because of more commu-
nity involvement and new devel-
opments, crime has decreased.
Sanchez said Tobin Hill is a
safer place to live and has become
much more family-friendly.
Business partners Randy
Cunniff and Peter Becker, who own
Heat nightclub, Sparky’s Pub and
Luther’s Café, said they are really
looking forward to the public-pri-
vate partnership.
Cunniff said they are support-
ive of revitalizing the Main Avenue
area with more retail shops, hous-
ing and restaurants. He has met
many business owners interested
in space in the complexes, such
as hair salons and gift and antique
shops.
Becker added that instead of
students getting in their cars and
driving to the Quarry, they could
stay in the area to shop, eat and
hang out.
“That’s what we’re trying to
develop here,” he said.
The partners said the neigh-
borhood has been supportive of
their businesses, and the addition
of three new complexes would be a
nice compliment.
Cunniff said Carolyn Kelley,
former Tobin Hill Community
Association president, helped
them lobby for a sidewalk in front
of Luther’s Café.
He recalls speaking with the
neighborhood association about
helping them petition the city not
to pave the nearby areas into more
flat parking lots.
Dr. Robert Zeigler, president of
this college, said that he sees this
as a great opportunity.
“I see this as a ground breaking
thing,” he said. “The opportunities
are endless.”
Laura Garcia and Julysa Sosa
contributed to this article.
Proposed site of development
10 • April 25, 2011 The RangerNews
By Laura Garcia
Image is everything. This district would
know. It’s seen its share of makeovers — four
to be exact.
Thousands of dollars have been spent
renaming and branding the five colleges with a
consistent logo. According
to surveys presented by
advertising firm Anderson
Marketing Group, since
1988, not many students,
government and business leaders
or taxpayers could actually iden-
tify any of the colleges or district
logos.
Anderson found that in each
of the surveys SAC was much
more familiar to respondents
than any of the other colleges
or even the district itself.
Leo Zuñiga, associate vice chancellor
of communications, directed questions
about the district’s branding to district
director of public relations Mario Muñiz.
Muñiz, who’s been with the district
for about two years, said he man-
ages the district’s relationship with
Anderson and remembers when he
arrived the district had just adopt-
ed its latest name, and its image
was still somewhat “fragmented.”
He said there were at least 15 different logos
among the colleges and regional centers, and
this resulted in not a lot of recognition.
Muñiz said the district communications
department was scheduled to do another survey
on how recognizable the district’s image was,
but Zuñiga opted to halt the survey because of
the current budget constraints.
In early 2009, the firm estimated the image
change would cost $100,000. The Ranger report-
ed Jan. 27 that the district spent almost $16,000
to prominently brand four of the colleges with
the Alamo Colleges logo.
Anyone with a business card or need for let-
terheads felt the sting when the district changed
its image once again.
In 2007, Alamo Community College District,
still its legal name, dropped the “D” to become
the Alamo Community Colleges. In 2009,
“Community” was eliminated.
But what some
people may not
remember is from
1978 to 1982, the
district was officially named
San Antonio Community
College District.
In 1945, the district was
founded as San Antonio
Union Junior College District.
The most recent changes have
raised concern that despite a 2009 board
decision to forgo combining all of the
district’s colleges into one single college,
Chancellor Bruce Leslie appears intent
on realizing that plan.
The four individually accredited
institutions, San Antonio College,
St. Philip’s College, Palo Alto College
and Northwest Vista College,
and newlyopened Northeast
Lakeview College all fall under
the Alamo Colleges umbrella.
District has slowly garnered control of
duties that were previously handled in differ-
ent ways at each college, such as processing
transcript, centralizing the core curriculum
and a single instituting catalog of courses.
Muñiz described reworking the district’s
image was a
balancing act
because each
college wants
to be recog-
nized individually.
“When you change a brand, it can be
very traumatic for people,” Muñiz said. He
explained that marketing and branding in
higher education has been kind of taboo.
Dr. Mary Ann Stutts, a marketing
professor at Texas State University-San
Marcos, couldn’t agree more. She is a pub-
lished researcher of marketing and adver-
tising and a 2009 American Advertising
Federation Distinguished Advertising
Educator recipient.
She remembers when Texas State
University changed its name from
Southwest Texas State University in 2003.
“It’s a hard transition,” she said.
There were a lot of irate people, she said, but
many have “come around.”
She agrees with the branding move because
it may create more prestige and guesses that the
district’s premise was to elevate the college dis-
trict’s image. However, Stutts
said she isn’t sure why “com-
munity” was taken from the
name. “The word community
college isn’t negative.”
She defended
junior colleges like
this one, saying they
are feeder schools that
serve a huge purpose.
“There’s nothing wrong
with that,” she said.
Muñiz said that there seems to be a trend
across the country to pull out the word “com-
munity” from the name and that it has a nega-
tive connotation, especially from students.
Muñiz, who graduated from the University
of Texas at Austin, said he took courses in the
summer at this college and remembers the
classes weren’t easy.
He said that’s why the district communica-
tions department is pushing quality, affordabil-
ity and access in advertising.
Muñiz worries that even in the face of bud-
get cuts, the district should still advertise and
maintain its presence in the community.
There are a lot of competitors in the city,
especially for-profit schools, that may not have
the students’ best
interest in mind,
he said.
Muñiz said
he hopes to
conduct an inex-
pensive survey soon to find
out how people feel about the
Alamo Colleges logo but that
because of increasing enroll-
ment numbers he doesn’t
think the change hurt.
However, traditionally, in
a down economy, enrollment
numbers rise.
Tammy Kothe-Ramsey,
psychology sophomore
and Student Government
Association president, said
she personally thinks the
branding makes each college
appear generic.
Another complaint Kothe-Ramsey has with
the logo is that Alamo Colleges overshadows the
college’s name.
“I came to San Antonio College for a reason,
not Alamo Colleges,” she said.
Evolution of an image ‘traumatic’Expert wonders why “community”
was left out of the name.
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 11News
By AlmA lindA mAnzAneres
To help someone in need, students are work-
ing together to raise $60,000-$80,000 to pur-
chase a special needs vehicle for a student
diagnosed with muscular dystrophy.
The vehicle is for international business
sophomore Sara Gabel who was diagnosed at
the age of 13.
Muscular dystrophy is a group of inherited
disorders that include muscle weakness and
loss of muscle tissue, which worsen over time.
Gabel said once she was diagnosed, she
researched at the National Institute of
Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Friedreich’s
Ataxia Research Alliance and the Muscular
Dystrophy Association.
All of it, she found to be depressing. “I feared
for my future,” she said.
She said she decided she couldn’t let the
disease get in her way, so she became involved
in after-school activities, such as the Hearing
Impaired Kids Endowment Fund and Habitat
for Humanity.
She also is actively involved with the
American Red Cross and the Muscular
Dystrophy Association telethon and other
awareness and fundraising events.
“She always has a smile on her face and is
glad to help others,” psychology sophomore
Carmen Verastique said.
Verastique invited a trio of photography
sophomores Juan Diego Espinoza, Destiny
Mata and Leda Garcia to work on a calendar,
featuring firefighters, to raise money for a vehi-
cle for Gabel.
Espinoza and Garcia partnered with
Mata in February to enter the San Antonio
Neighborhood Film Project 2.0 sponsored by
the city.
Mata won first place in the student category for
the West Side with her film “Working for Mi Gente.”
Once Gabel’s vehicle is purchased, more
funds will be needed for modifications, such as
installing a lift and rearranging seats.
Last year, to fund her vehicle, Gabel orga-
nized a carwash with firefighters that raised
about $1,600.
This year, she thought a calendar might be
a good idea. On the project, Espinoza is the
photographer and everyone else assists with
equipment and set up.
The students have conducted photo shoots
at three fire stations and want to shoot at the
San Antonio Fire Academy, Verastique said.
Espinoza said about 700 photos have been
taken, but of every 100, only about one shot is
usable. Verastique said the project is important
simply to give back to someone in need.
“I feel like it’s important that I encourage
her, empower her and support her in reaching
this goal,” Verastique said. “If I can help one
person reach their goal, maybe I can influence
others to do the same.”
Gabel tutors mentally and physically dis-
abled students on campus and edits books for
the Kurzweil Educational Systems, which cre-
ates audio books for people with special needs.
She said she does this to give other students
the opportunities she has been blessed with.
She said she plans to transfer to Texas A&M
University-San Antonio to study international
business so she can help other disabled people
around the world have the same opportunities
she has.
Gabel said the project is to help her become
less dependent on others.
“I rely on my parents for a lot of stuff,” Gabel
said. “So this is an attempt to become more
independent so I can achieve my goals and help
others do the same.”
For more information on the project or to
contribute, email Verastique at carmen.veras-
Project aims to help student become independent
International business sophomore Sara Gabel helps library science sophomore Loree Morgan with her business calculus homework in the disability services computer lab March 31. Jennifer M. Ytuarte
The Ranger 12 • April 25, 2011 News
By J. AlmendArez
This fall, 12 departments on campus are
going to be merged into five for an estimated
savings of $340,000.
The savings are in light of the $20.4 million
budget pressure from expenses and revenue
this district faces.
The mergers also are reshaping the adminis-
trative structures within each of the new depart-
ments.
The merged departments have elected new
chairs to represent them.
Then program coordinators are selected to
represent each of the programs within a new
merged department.
For instance, Jeff Hunt, chair of theater and
speech communications, has been elected
to become chair in the fall of the new fine
arts department composed of the theater and
speech communications, visual arts and music
programs.
Current music Chair Mark Denison has been
elected music coordinator; Susan Witta-Kemph
visual arts coordinator; and Paula Rodriguez the-
ater and speech communications coordinator.
However, while Dr. Jessica Howard, vice
president of academic affairs, said the admin-
istrators originally planned for each merged
department to have a program coordinator, that
idea has changed to meet the needs of each new
department.
“It’s not going to be a one size fits all,” she
said.
The division of labor between the chair and
coordinators will change the role chairs play in
departments.
After the mergers take place, department
chairs will be responsible for what newly elect-
ed English Chair Gilliam “Mike” Burton called
“strategic planning.”
Hunt went into detail about some of the
expectations of the new chair.
He said the new chairs will be responsible
for strategic planning for each discipline, annu-
al planning to evaluate if the department has
fulfilled divisional and college goals, faculty
evaluations, second-level student grievances;
the analysis of productive grade rates, retention
of students, and transfer rates; and overseeing
advising.
They also will be responsible for oversee-
ing a five-year academic review, which will be
made easier, he said, because of the new yearly
reviews that will be required by the chair.
He said program coordinators will “be
responsible for more daily operations,” which
include scheduling classes, evaluation and hir-
ing of adjuncts and staff, first-level student
grievances and logging faculty course loads to
ensure they are paid correctly.
However, other chairs seemed less sure
about what the new role of the chairs and coor-
dinators will be.
Paul Wilson, political science and econom-
ics chair, has been elected chair of the merged
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Department mergers reduce chair numbers to 20Duties of new coordinators and
chairs remain unclear.
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The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 13News
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political science and economics, and history,
humanities and anthropology departments.
He said, “The division of labor is very vague
at this point.”
Burton confirmed that duties for each coor-
dinator and chair have been discussed, but there
has been no clear definition of the expectations
of each role by the administration yet.
Howard said a list that outlined the division of
duties was sent to chairs weeks ago, and she will
look into why some of the chairs did not seem to
get the information.
“We talked to a lot of departments for their
feedback,” she said.
Another aspect that will change within
merged departments next fall is release time.
Released time is the amount of time allotted
to a chair or coordinator to complete administra-
tive duties.
Currently, the amount of released time given
to chairs and coordinators has many variables,
which include department size, faculty, pro-
gram hours and number of coordinators within
a department.
Howard said when the administration origi-
nally considered merging departments, released
time was expected to remain intact.
However, she said the board of trustees and
chancellor are now discussing changing release
time options for chairs and coordinators.
While she said a reduction or elimination
of released time is possible, special pay may
be considered for those who are adversely
affected.
“A lot of this is still uncertain,” she said.
Effects from the mergers are not limited to
administrative and faculty changes, though.
Students also will be affected if coordinators
do not have the time to work with them because
of their day-to-day duties.
Denison said if coordinators handle daily
responsibilities, he would be left with “less time
available for certain issues.”
For instance, he said the music depart-
ment has a high-profile status on campus and
throughout the community, saying that stu-
dents in the music department regularly per-
form on campus.
“I’m not going to be able to be the desig-
nated middle man anymore,” he said.
He said this will require people and orga-
nizations interested in booking performances
to work more directly with students to orga-
nize rehearsals, plan events and decide which
resources are available for performances.
“It’s going to have a significant impact
because I will no longer be able to be the arms
and legs for the music department,” he said.
However, he said he felt “lucky” that Hunt
would be able to help with tasks the coordina-
tors would not have time for.
Other chairs are concerned their time will
not be allotted to help coordinators with large
tasks.
Wilson said the administration should “be
careful to protect the time for the chairs to do
those things if that’s the role they see them
playing.”
He is concerned that chairs will have to take
on administrative duties because of a “lack of
other administrative resources.”
He said as the district changes and has fewer
faculty members and more students, duties
likely will be added to many positions, includ-
ing the chairs.
“It happens in any academic position,”
Wilson said. “It will take us a while to discover
operational efficiencies.”
14 • April 25, 2011 The Ranger News
By Melody Mendoza
An adjunct town hall meeting at 10 a.m.
Saturday is to relay information about the bud-
get’s effect on adjunct faculty, President Robert
Zeigler said.
An all-college meeting last week was an
inconvenient time for most adjuncts, Zeigler
said, so he hopes this meeting will
accommodate more adjunct fac-
ulty.
Zeigler said he foresees concern
about the demand for adjuncts
increasing as full-time faculty opt for
the 70/50 percent retirement incen-
tives being offered.
The district decided on a 70
percent retirement incentive for
faculty who retire before Sept. 1 and
a 50 percent incentive for those who retire by
Jan. 1.
By 6:10 a.m. April 18, 42 employees had sub-
mitted retirement election forms.
As of 4 p.m. Wednesday, 121 employees
districtwide had applied, leaving an estimated
$3,628,549 of the $8 million of the rainy day fund
available for this incentive.
Zeigler said adjuncts might want to know
what this college will offer to ensure profes-
sional growth as the district relies on them
more.
He said the college is trying to make an effort
to work with the Adjunct Council to inform
adjuncts of available workshops on teaching
techniques and technology training.
Adjunct Council Chair Jerry Townsend,
media communications full-time adjunct, said
he was named the chair March 23 and plans
to include adjuncts in convocation and colleg-
ewide meetings.
He said adjuncts tend to be treated as a
separate group when it comes to things they
could benefit from, such as faculty develop-
ment.
The council has been working on a video to
encourage the other colleges in the district to
form their own adjunct council, he said.
Townsend said because “we are only one
college,” issues taken to the board of trustees
are rejected.
“We don’t have a voice,” he said. “There is no
one at the table.”
By forming councils across the district,
adjuncts can build to form a district group like
Super Senate, the gathering of representatives of
the Faculty Senates from the colleges.
Townsend said this college’s council is about
six years old and English Adjunct Amanda
Martin has served as president.
He said there was a council once before,
but disappeared for a couple of
years.
“The next stage, as I see it, is
maturation,” he said.
Townsend said he wants to try
to build links between the Chairs
Council, Faculty Senate and Staff
Council, other employee represen-
tative bodies at this college, and
meet at least once a semester.
This week, Townsend said he is
working on getting a list of adjuncts from the
department chairs so he can build an adjunct-
all email list before the semester is over.
Because of the recent consolidations,
Townsend said the representatives on the coun-
cil are no longer valid.
Townsend hopes to conduct elections in the
fall to ensure representation for the new depart-
ments.
A council member serves two years but can
be re-elected to serve up to four years.
There are nine available positions.
After the council creates an email list,
Townsend said he wants to take a survey to find
out adjuncts’ needs and priorities.
Eventually, Townsend said he wants to be
able to have monthly recognitions.
He also has an idea for the first collegewide
adjunct social event, suggesting a Christmas
party.
With the new Web content management
system, the website that district is launching
this fall, Townsend said the council will have a
Web page.
There, each possible council from the Alamo
Colleges could post information for adjuncts
districtwide.
For more information, call Townsend at
210-486-1780 or email him at gtownsend@
alamo.edu.
Inclusion, development new vision for adjuncts
Saturday meeting set to apprise adjuncts of effects of budget cuts.
Jerry Townsend
Spring, Flex 2 Final Exam Schedule
Monday, May 9(MWF and MW)
Class Time 7 a.m. 7 a.m.-9:30 a.m.10 a.m. 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.1 p.m. 1 p.m.-3:30 p.m.3:50 p.m. 3:50 p.m.-6:20 p.m.
Tuesday, May 10(TR)
Class Time8 a.m. 8 a.m.-10:30 a.m.10:50 a.m. 10:50 a.m.-1:20 p.m.1 p.m. 1:40 p.m.-4:10 p.m.1:40 p.m. 1:40 p.m.-4:10 p.m.
Wednesday, May 11(MWF and MW)
Class Time8 a.m. 8 a.m.-10:30 a.m.11 a.m. 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m.2 p.m. 2 p.m.-4:30 p.m.2:25 p.m. 2:25 p.m.-4:55 p.m.
Thursday, May 12(TR)
Class Time6:30 a.m. 6:30 a.m.-9 a.m.9:25 a.m. 9:25 a.m.-11:55 p.m.12:15 p.m. 12:15 p.m.-2:45 p.m.3:05 p.m. 3:05 p.m.-5:35 p.m.
Friday, May 13(MWF)
Class Time9 a.m. 9:30 a.m.-11:30Noon noon-2:30 p.m.
Note: Final exams for evening and weekend classes are given during class hours. Department chairs can schedule final exam dates that do not conform to this schedule.
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 15News
By Melody Mendoza
English professors and instructors were
assigned a number written on a Sticky Note,
folded similarly and drawn from a cardboard
box to see which professors would be paid at
the full-time pay rate or the adjunct rate this
summer.
Chancellor Bruce Leslie, vice chancellors
and the presidents of the colleges decided that
summer pay would be decided in a lottery to
ensure a 50-50 full-time to adjunct pay ratio in
a budget-driven decision.
English Chair Alex Bernal said there were 32
of 39 faculty members participating because
they wanted to teach this summer.
Before the lottery, he said everyone was
assigned at least one class taught at the full-
time pay rate. Then they drew numbers from a
cardboard box.
Although Bernal said he is proud of his col-
leagues, he said the lottery system had unin-
tended consequences.
He said the lottery is a “morale buster”
because it doesn’t matter if a faculty member
completed hours to get a promotion, received
tenure or did extra work to earn a Ph.D.
“None of it matters; it’s a game of chance,”
Bernal said. He said it may have been a good
system but was limited.
“It doesn’t make the best of shared gover-
nance,” he said.
He said district administrators are micro-
managing departments by telling them
exactly what to do
to save money. It
seems that loy-
alty and senior-
ity do not matter
to the district, he
said.
Bernal said if
his department had
done it by seniority,
it would have gotten
the same results.
English Professor
Janice Clayton said she has taught here for 40
years but hasn’t taught in the summer in the
last five years.
She said because she isn’t teaching this
summer, it gives her colleagues an opportu-
nity to increase their pay to meet some of their
obligations.
Clayton said she believes in “equal pay for
equal work. “I think adjunct professors are
being ripped off because they do a fantastic job
teaching,” she said. She added that administra-
tors take advantage of their expertise and hire
them as cheaply as they can.
Sooner or later, this college will be a “shop-
ping mall of adjuncts,” she said.
Although she said she hopes she is wrong,
she sees this coming, especially with the deci-
sion to hire new librarians as
professional staff instead of
faculty as they currently are.
The librarians at this col-
lege have been advocating
since March 2010 to retain
faculty status. The chancel-
lor’s decision in February
to hire new librarians
as professional staff is
expected to save about
$300,000.
“This is all part of
diminishing power and status of
faculty,” Clayton said.
In 2010, 619 sections were taught
at this college during Summer 1 by
489 full-time faculty, 79 percent, and
130 part-time faculty, 21 percent.
During Summer 2, only 278 sec-
tions were offered and were taught
by 223 full-time, 80.22 percent,
and 55 part-time, 19.78 percent.
Therefore, the 50-50 ratio
greatly impacts this college
where 180 full-time faculty mem-
bers would need to be paid at the adjunct rate
during Summer 1 and 84 during Summer 2.
At St. Philip’s College, 356 sections were
offered during Summer 1 and were taught by
243 full-time faculty, 68.3 percent, and 113
part-time faculty, 31.7 percent. There were 94
sections during Summer 2 taught by 52 full-
time, 55.32 percent, and 42 part-time faculty, or
44.68 percent.
This means that during Summer 1, 65 full-
time faculty would need to take the adjunct pay,
and five during Summer 2 to achieve the 50-50
ratio was done.
Palo Alto College offered 249 sections dur-
ing Summer 1 taught by 160 full-time faculty, or
64.3 percent, and 89 part-time faculty, or 35.7
percent. In Summer 2, there were 150 sections
offered taught by 79 full-time faculty, 52.67 per-
cent, and 71 part-time faculty, 47.33 percent.
For that college, 36 full-
time faculty would need to
be paid at the adjunct rate
for Summer 1 and four for
Summer 2.
There were 618 sections
offered at Northwest Vista
College during Summer 1,
which were taught by 301
full-time faculty, 48.7 percent,
and 317 part-time, 51.3 per-
cent. During Summer 2, 132
sections were taught by 43 full-
time faculty, 32.6 percent, and 89 part-time,
67.4 percent.
At Northwest Vista, only eight full-time fac-
ulty members would need to take the adjunct
rate for Summer 1. For Summer 2, it would have
to add 23 full-time to attain the 50-50 ratio.
At Northeast Lakeview College, 157 sections
were taught by 84 full-time faculty, 53.5 percent,
and 73 part-time faculty, 46.5 percent. There
were 150 sections offered in Summer 2 taught
by 60 full-time, 40 percent, and 90 part-time,
60 percent.
And the 50-50 ratio would affect Northeast
Lakeview the least. Six full-time faculty would
need to take the adjunct pay rate for Summer
1. And for Summer 2, Northeast Lakeview also
would have to add 15 full-time faculty to be at
the 50-50 ratio.
Sticky Note drawing for summer pay lotteryEnglish chair calls game-of-chance
drawing a “morale buster.”
Number of sections taught by full-time faculty in 2010 Summer 1 and 2 that would be paid at adjunct rate in Summer 2011 to achieve a 50-50 ratio.
16 • April 25, 2011 The RangerNews
By Melody Mendoza
A new category for hiring faculty — a one-
year full-time non-tenure-track appointment
— is being proposed in Alamo Colleges to give
colleges more flexibility in hiring, President
Robert Zeigler said Tuesday in a faculty forum.
This addition was among revisions of eight
district procedures discussed with about 40
faculty members concerning changes applying
to faculty.
Zeigler said the procedures would go before
the board in May to be executed this fall.
Dr. Jessica Howard, vice president of aca-
demic affairs, said a district Promotion and
Tenure Committee made up of two faculty rep-
resentatives from each college has been review-
ing these procedures for about a year and a half.
Then, a college team made up of Howard,
Zeigler and the two members of the district’s
Promotion and Tenure Committee from this
college — Thomas Billimek, psychology and
sociology chair, and Vernell Walker, dean of pro-
fessional and technical education — reviewed
the changes to see “what we thought was a deal
breaker,” Howard said.
The revised draft for procedure D.2.5.1,
Hiring Authority, Status, Assignments and
Duties, states that “non-tenure track appoint-
ments may be for no longer than one academic
year at a time and are limited to situations
where the program’s long-term sustainability is
uncertain.”
Howard said this category is intended for
unproved programs.
Zeigler said these faculty would not be eli-
gible for tenure or promotion and would be
paid at the adjunct rate.
He said, for example, student demand for
Japanese classes forces the instructor to teach
beyond the 11 hours required; therefore, a non-
tenure track faculty member would provide
more flexibility in such a small discipline.
Attendees suggested that district develop a
review process so non-tenured faculty wouldn’t
be hired year after year.
Zeigler said he would take it to Chancellor
Bruce Leslie to develop more specificity.
Howard said Wednesday that a full-time
adjunct has at least 12 course hours with no
expectation of them working beyond the given
semester. Non-tenure-track faculty would have
an annual contract.
Concerning proposed changes in tenure
and promotion procedures, Howard said this
college’s team response to proposed changes
includes supporting:
• Members of promotion and tenure com-
mittee should be tenured.
• Chairs should not have to do an excessive
number of faculty evaluations.
• Academic requirements for promotion
should remain the same and a portion could be
in continuing education units for both arts and
sciences and professional and technical faculty.
• Full professors should require Class 5 sta-
tus — master’s degree plus 36 hours.
First, “We felt it’s very important to have
every one on the committee to be tenured,”
she said of the department’s tenure committee.
“How can you bestow something if you haven’t
been on tenure?”
She also said the college’s team had a gen-
eral concern that chairs would have to do a lot
more evaluations, a procedure that came from
the Promotion and Tenure Committee because
chairs already have so much to do.
Although program coordinators may be
available to help with evaluations, she said they
are expected to receive little, if any, release time
beginning in the fall.
The district committee proposed evaluating
tenured faculty every other year instead of the
current policy where only chairs evaluate them
every other year.
The committee’s proposal would add class-
room observations and peer evaluations every
other year, and the majority agreed.
For adjunct evaluations, the group discussed
evaluating adjuncts more frequently than the
classroom observation in each of the first two
semesters and annually after that.
English Instructor Frances Crawford argued
that the concern is the number of adjuncts to be
evaluated. But she said if chairs don’t evaluate
adjuncts as other faculty, then they might feel
that they’re not as important.
Other faculty argued that the ability to not
rehire adjuncts after a semester is an evaluation
of sorts.
The Promotion Tenure Committee formed a
chart in Procedure D.7.1.2, Faculty Performance
Evaluations, which shows the current five evalu-
ations for adjunct faculty, full-time tenure track
faculty, full-time non-tenure track and full-time
temporary faculty and full-time tenured faculty.
The five evaluations are student evaluations,
classroom observations, peer review evalua-
tions, faculty self-evaluations and faculty evalu-
ation by chairperson.
The changes to current practices are requir-
ing classroom observations every other fall and
peer reviews for tenured faculty every other
spring instead of the current requirement of only
when necessary for promotion applications.
Another change is requiring classroom
observations each fall for full-time non-tenure
track and full-time temporary faculty. They also
would have to do a faculty self-evaluation and
have an evaluation by the chair each year.
Every semester, students in all classes will
continue to evaluate the instructor or professor.
Three-year growth plans have been discon-
tinued.
Howard discussed the Promotion Tenure
Committee’s change to procedure D.8.2.1,
Faculty Promotion Process, that the qualify-
ing degree for a full-time professor must be 36
semester hours or equivalent credit above the
qualifying degree.
District adds non-tenure trackNon-tenure-track will be hired on a one-year appointment.
Dr. Jessica Howard, vice president of academic affairs, discusses proposed changes in tenure and promotion Tuesday in chemistry and geology. Tyler K. Cleveland
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She said the college’s team dis-
agreed and said it should be what
it is now — a professor should be
Class 5 or have a master’s degree
plus 36 hours because, otherwise,
a person with a bachelor’s degree
might be qualified to teach as a
professor. She said the qualifying
degree for some professional and
technical programs is an associ-
ate degree.
In a related concern, astron-
omy Professor David Wood dis-
agreed with a faculty member’s
suggestion to have a person with
a doctorate degree begin employ-
ment as an assistant professor.
Currently, Howard said, there
is no consistency in whether a
new faculty member with a doc-
torate is given the rank of instruc-
tor or assistant professor.
He said he was hired as an
instructor even though he has a
doctorate degree, so he would
need to be promoted also.
Howard said it would be dif-
ficult to accommodate cur-
rent instructors with doctorate
degrees.
Therefore, the group decided
that the promotion procedure
should stay constant between
new hires and current instructors.
Zeigler said under procedure
D 2.5.1, Hiring, Authority, Status
and Duties, that if a faculty mem-
ber applies for a non-faculty posi-
tion, like as an administrator, the
faculty member would keep their
tenure for two years and then
have to choose to go back to the
classroom to maintain it or stay
in the administrative position and
lose their tenure.
Zeigler said this might discour-
age faculty from applying for an
administrator position because of
the pressure on job security.
Howard said Wednesday that
this would be effective starting
in fall.
Then faculty questioned inter-
im positions, and Zeigler said the
district hopes to limit the length
of time for an interim position.
Faculty argued that this was
another one of district’s attempt
to discourage faculty, which “is all
that seems to be on their agenda,”
Susan Witta-Kemph, chair of visu-
al arts, said.
Jeff Hunt, theater and speech
communications chair, added
that, “It’s a control issue.”
Also, the Promotion Tenure
Committee objected to a change
to Procedure D.8.2.1 that would
allow arts and sciences faculty to
use 25 percent of their academic
requirements toward promotion
in continuing education units and
professional and technical faculty
using 100 percent.
Howard said the team wanted
to keep it with the current 50 per-
cent for both groups.
Hunt suggested clarifica-
tion of the responsibilities of the
Department Tenure Committee in
Procedure D.2.5.5, Faculty Tenure
Process. The procedure states that
the department elects the com-
mittee and then goes to the chair
to be approved.
Hunt asked if chairs can vote
even thought they cannot serve
on the committee.
Although Howard said it is not
clarified, Zeigler said the cleanest
way would be for chairs to abstain
from voting because they get their
vote when they approve or disap-
prove the department’ election.
Even if the chair disapproves,
the candidates still go forward are
reviewed by the dean or appropri-
ate administrator, Howard said.
Then, a faculty member asked
how consolidations would affect
the outcome of voting for the
department tenure committee.
Howard said this would be
difficult for unrelated disciplines
such as the merger of foreign lan-
guages and philosophy, under
Chair Tammy Perez this fall.
“There’s no reason people
should vote on the others in
another discipline,” she said. She
suggested changing departments
to “discipline-program.”
Howard said if faculty have
questions or concerns, they can
contact her at 210-486-0950 by
next week.
18 • April 25, 2011 The RangerNews
By Dana Lynn TraugoTT
When Amanda Justice separated from the
U.S. Army, she returned to civilian life with ben-
efits to pay for her college education.
But on April 8, while the people of the United
States awaited news of a government shutdown,
the radio-television-film sophomore sat on the
edge of her seat because the Department of the
Treasury pays her monthly military veteran’s
benefits.
During the last hour before a budget deci-
sion was made, the government experienced
its seventh stopgap measure, or a continuing
resolution, before agreeing on a federal budget
for the 2011 fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30.
When Justice joined the military, she signed
a contract agreeing to pay $100 per month
under the GI Bill into her benefits.
With the contract, Justice was promised
$1,200 per month to get through college, but
with tightening of the budget, that amount has
been reduced to $1,147 per month.
“We don’t have enough money in this coun-
try,” Justice said, adding she fears budget cuts
will continue, creating an obstacle to finishing
college.
The contract states the soldier’s beginning
pay, rank, bonus (for special duty), residence,
military occupation specialty and an option to
receive GI Bill benefits.
She said length of service determines the
benefits amount for college.
If a soldier signs a three-year contract, the
military will pay 100 percent of college tuition,
and for a two-year contract, 80 percent.
Justice served two years and eight months,
so she receives 90 percent.
She signed the post-9-11 GI Bill contract,
Chapter 33, which increased benefits and
dropped the $100 per month for 12 months
requirement.
In 2005, the military allotted her $56,000
with a $6,000 sign-on bonus for college tuition
because of her experience as a saxophone play-
er.
Soldiers typically begin at $36,000 per year.
Justice, who served as specialist E-4, played
the saxophone for the Army Materiel Command
band. Her military occupational specialty name
was 42 Romeo.
She played at funerals, homecomings,
deployments, Fourth of July ceremonies, com-
munity events, and with a general’s recommen-
dation, she wrote the Army Materiel Command
band’s unit march, which begins and ends every
ceremony for the command.
The Army Materiel Command builds equip-
ment for the Army, such as bulletproof vests,
uniforms, ammunition, weapons and aircraft.
“If the Army uses it, the AMC makes it,” she
said.
She said she feels it would be a complete
breach of contract if the military stopped pay-
ing her benefits in the event of a shutdown.
Had the government closed down, her
tuition would be in jeopardy.
If she couldn’t attend school, she would have
to find a mediocre job.
“I’m glad they didn’t. I fulfilled my part of my
contract honorably. It’s asinine that they would
revoke the benefits that I already earned,”
Justice said.
Student vet fears potential shutdown
Radio-television-film sophomore Amanda Justice Tyler K. Cleveland
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 19News
By AlmA lindA mAnzAnAres
Judy Campa, who has an associate degree
in Web design, found a “craving” in creating art
though computers after bouncing back and forth
between competing interests for her major.
A panel of judges confirmed her decision
when she was named a finalist this year in the
South By Southwest Interactive awards, in the
student category, for her portfolio website.
The interactive awards focus on the most
innovative trends, products and developments
in the new media industry in several categories
including art, business, film and music.
In 2010, she won a Gold Addy award from
the local chapter of the American Advertising
Federation in San Antonio
for her interactive website
“Sagmeister” and a Bronze
Addy in the regional level in
competition with students
from Texas, Oklahoma,
Arkansas and Louisiana.
Later that year, she was awarded a New
Vistas in Media’s Best in Show, Best Web and
Interactive and Design for her interactive web-
site, Video Production Emoticons.
That earned her scholarships that totaled
$1,500 and a $2,000 internship with Northwest
Vista College’s workforce education and train-
ing department.
She interned at Sharkmatic Advertising, an
ad agency that uses edgy and traditional ways
of marketing to enhance a client’s
image and the way the image is
communicated to customers.
“This internship has taught me a
lot because these people are already
experienced so I can ask them any-
thing, and they always know the
answers,” she said. “They also give
me advice on my personal work.”
Howie Nespel, owner of
Sharkmatic Advertising, said Campa
is positive and friendly.
“(This internship)is going to bridge the
gap between what she
learned from school
and what is required
from advertisers in the
real world,” he said.
Campa said she
knew she wanted to take courses in art after
attending St. Francis Academy, a high school
geared strictly toward education. Art opportuni-
ties were limited.
Computers with art seemed like a “good fit,”
she said.
“It’s harder than what I thought it would be,
and there were times when I didn’t know if I
liked the creative pressure,” Campa said. “But
when I’m not doing it, I’m craving it.”
She said she admires and finds ideas from
the interactive art of Big Spaceship,
a digital creative agency that spe-
cializes in interactive market-
ing and communications. Clients
include Sony Pictures, Coca-Cola
and 20th Century Fox.
The agonizing part of her work
is filling up a “blank canvas,” she
said.
“Fifty percent of my work is
coming up with designs and ideas,
and the other 50 percent is imple-
menting them.”
Campa is exploring the technical side of
web design by attending this college to obtain
a web programming Level 1 certificate in hopes
of transferring to Texas State University’s com-
puter information systems to minor in com-
puter science.
“It’s interesting because I started with the
art, but now, I’m going to the technical side
which brings it all together in a nice way,” she
said.
Student finds talents combine in Web designDigital design student wins
honors at SXSW in student interactive category.
Judy Campa’s portfolio can be viewed at www.sabluetoast.
com/judycampa.
Judy Campa
20 • The Ranger News
By Zahra Farah
District trustees started the redistricting process by voting 8-0 at
Tuesday’s special board to approve guidelines for public
participation in the redistricting process and criteria for
adopting a plan to be used by Alamo Colleges.
District 6 trustee Gene Sprague was late to the meet-
ing and did not get to vote on the redistricting criteria.
David Méndez, attorney from Bickerstaff Heath
Delgado Acosta, presented to the board guidelines they
and interested community members need to follow
to avoid a lawsuit and develop a plan that will be
accepted by the U.S. Department of Justice.
At the March regular board meeting, the firm
was awarded a contract of $54,190
to redraw the nine single-mem-
ber districts of the Alamo
Community College
District based
on the 2010
a d j u s t e d
U.S. cen-
sus.
M é n d e z
said he hates
to intrude in
the middle of bud-
get problems, but they
would need to finish close
to the end of August, so the
plan can be looked at further in
Washington, D.C., and used for the
2012 presidential election.
Some of the criteria the district must
adhere to are:
• Easily identifiable geographic boundaries
must be followed.
• Splitting communities and neighborhoods
should be avoided.
• Districts should be drawn in a way that permits
precinct voting as much as possible.
• Any district plan should be based on existing districts.
• Consideration may be given to incumbents and their his-
tory representing an area.
• Each of the nine districts’ population, based on new numbers
from the 2010 Census, must be fairly equal with one another.
• The difference between the districts cannot be more than 10
percent.
District 1, represented by Joe Alderete, is the least populated district,
Méndez said. It is about 18.59 percent underpopulated compared to
the other districts.
Ideally, there should be 190,530 people per district to meet the 10
percent requirement, but District 1 only has 155,114 people.
Attorney, trustees start planning 2010 redistrictingTrustees plan for a public hearing on redistricting
July 19 before the regular board meeting.
Moving linesThe boundaries of the nine districts are
expected to rotate counterclockwise and move toward the northwest to reflect population shifts demonstrated in the 2010 U.S. census.
A consultant will draft new district boundary lines to reapportion the county population within the nine districts.
The shifts show the tremendous growth on the Northwest side.
BickerStaff Heath Delgado Acosta will present revised boundaries in a public hearing before the July board meeting, and trustees are expected to approve a new map in the August regular board meeting.
April 25, 2011 • 21News
This means they need 35,000 people to get back to district size.
District 7, represented by Blakely Fernandez, has the highest popula-
tion of 247,475 people.
District 6, represented by Gene Sprague, has the second highest
population of 247,105.
Méndez said for those two districts, there are 100,000 extra people
that need to be included in Districts 1, 2, 3, 8 and 9.
To reapportion among the nine districts, the current boundary lines
have to shift counterclockwise and to the northwest to acquire more
territory to rebalance.
“Fairly simple and straightforward if it didn’t get to the politics and
avoiding splitting communities,” he said.
Districts 1, 3, 6, 7, 8 and 9 need the most work, Méndez said.
District 2, represented by Denver McClendon, is the most racially
diverse.
The district’s population is 178,622 and has about 51 percent
Hispanics, 19.42 percent Anglos, 25.53 percent blacks and 1.72 Asians.
Méndez said the district must follow Section 5 of the Voting Rights
Act. It states any changes to redistricting, voting standards, practices or
procedures must be “preclear” before they become legally effective. This
includes changes in trustees district lines and location of polling places.
Preclear is to request approval by a federal court or the Department
of Justice for changes to voting regulations in certain states.
The fastest way to get it cleared is to submit the redistricting plan to
the Department of Justice for examination.
Méndez said the review focuses on if minorities are any worse off
with the new redistricting lines offered. He said the new lines shouldn’t
drastically decrease minority populations like Hispanic and African-
Americans.
He said they don’t want to have a discriminatory action, but fortu-
nately in San Antonio, there is sufficient minority population across the
city for each district to have enough minorities.
Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act forbids a voting standard, which
has the effect of reducing the opportunity of a covered minority to par-
ticipate or run in the political process.
Méndez said the Department of Justice laid ground rules so minori-
ties wouldn’t be “cracked” or “packed.”
Cracking would be drawing lines where minorities would never be
the majority and never elect a candidate of their choice.
Méndez said it’s impossible to crack the minority population of San
Antonio because the city is predominantly Hispanic.
In the 1996 case Bush v. Vera in Harris County, lines were purpose-
fully created to elect African-Americans and Hispanics, and this was
considered racial gerrymandering.
Méndez said the lines were redrawn, and there were still counties
that vote predominantly Hispanic and black.
He said the priority should be how trustees can successfully conduct
college business in their district.
Lines have to be identifiable so citizens know where their district is,
and they need use the current district lines as building blocks, he said.
Méndez said they should keep board members in their districts, so
incumbents don’t lose votes.
District 4 trustee Marcelo Casillas asked how citizens could work on
the redistricting map.
Méndez said the most common method is for citizens to go to state
representatives to draw a plan. The Texas Legislative Council provides
maps and reports, so citizens can draw maps.
Sometimes his other clients would allow citizens to draw lines with
them.
Méndez said the board can decide if they want citizens to draw lines
with them.
McClendon said he worried if they could finish the project by the
end of August for it to be in Washington, D.C., by September.
Méndez said once they have a redistricting plan, it takes 120 days
to adopt.
Fernandez wanted to know the timeframe to get public comments
and start redistricting.
Méndez agreed it’s good to get the community juices flowing and to
have a public hearing before a regular board meeting.
Trustees agreed to a call a public hearing the same day as the July 19
regular board meeting. A time for the public hearing has not been set.
The next regular board meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. May 17 in
Room 101 of Killen Center at 201 W. Sheridan.
For more information, go to www.alamo.edu and click on Board of
Trustees and then Agendas.
Attorney, trustees start planning 2010 redistricting
David Méndez, attorney from Bickerstaff Heath Delgado Acosta, shows trustees the Alamo Colleges nine districts Tuesday during a special board meeting at Killen. Tyler K. Cleveland
22 • April 25, 2011 The Ranger News
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By J. AlmendArez
On March 7, The Ranger reported that the
clock on McCreless Hall was stopped at 4:42.
The clock faces San Pedro Avenue and is
visible to passersby as far away as San Pedro
Springs Park.
David Mrizek, vice president of college ser-
vices, said he was unsure whether the clock was
connected to this school’s atomic clock system.
Atomic clocks are programmed by an elec-
tronic transmission from Boulder, Colo., which
provides official U.S. time.
However, Mrizek said large amounts of
metal and electronic devices within this cam-
pus can interfere with signals coming from the
system, which explains why many of the clocks
on campus are out of synch.
Facilities superintendent David Ortega
recently discovered that the large clock on
McCreless is not an atomic clock.
It is connected to a master clock system in
McCreless, but power outages in the building
caused the clock to stop.
“There’s no battery backup for it because it’s
an older device,” Ortega said.
He suspects that local power outages in
February, caused by low temperatures across
the state, caused the clock to turn off.
At this campus, at least four buildings expe-
rienced power outages and Northeast Lakeview
College also reported power outages.
Ortega said electricians generally ensure the
clock stays accurate, but the electricians cur-
rently on staff are new and didn’t know they had
to set the clock manually.
Ortega, who has been on staff with Alamo
Colleges for 20 years, said his past duties have
not required him to work directly with the clock
on McCreless and so he also was unaware that
it needed to be manually set.
“This is the first time I have worked on that
clock personally,” he said.
Ortega said after he realized the upkeep
involved with the clock, he made sure the elec-
tricians on campus were taught how to set it to
be accurate.
He said doing so prevents the clock from
being inaccurate for an extended period of time
in the future.
Now there is no excuse for being tardy to
class.
Watching the clockEmployees are trained to adjust
McCreless timepiece.
This exterior clock needs manual adjust-ments after power outages and time changes. JungKeun Song
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 23News
By Dana TraugoTT
The draft and the Vietnam War in the 1960s,
gave then-college students a reality check for
what serving one’s country is all about, a Texas
novelist said.
Tales of the era may seem like fiction to most
modern college students, English Professor
Mark Busby of Texas State University-San
Marcos said April 13 during the college’s 17th
annual Multicultural Conference.
The native Texan is director of the Center for
the Study of the Southwest Regional Humanities
Center, which promotes the interchange of
knowledge among communities, institutions
and individuals.
The program draws focus to regional
humanities issues across the four-corner region
of Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and Texas.
Busby read excerpts from his first novel “Fort
Benning Blues,” published in 2001 by Texas
Christian University Press, and his upcoming
novel “Cedar Crossing.”
“Fort Benning Blues” follows a young
Army soldier going into training in 1969 at
Fort Benning, Ga., before being deployed to
Vietnam.
He said the purpose of the Vietnam War was
to “convince our enemies that what we had in
mind for them was good for their hearts and
minds.”
Busby reminded students to prepare them-
selves for the profanity included in the excerpt.
“I can assure you the language is accurate to
what it was back then,” he said.
Busby was drafted the day he finished his
master’s thesis in 1969; however, he volunteered
for Officer Candidate School to avoid the draft.
The two novels he began writing at Fort
Benning took him 30 years to complete.
Busby’s second novel, “Cedar Crossing,” is set
in 1964, the year after President John F. Kennedy
was assassinated and the year President Lyndon
B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act into law
ending racial segregation.
The book, modeled after much of Busby’s
experiences, is about a college student who is
assigned to interview a family member who
remembers something vivid about his or her
past.
Like the lead character in “Cedar Cross,”
Busby interviewed his grandfather.
The fictional student decides to interview
his 80-year-old grandfather, who recalls the
1964 boxing match between black Cassius Clay
and white Sonny Liston. Racism surrounded
the event.
People were shocked when Clay knocked
out Liston in the seventh round because the
imposing white boxer was favored to win, he
said.
The day after the fight, Cassius Clay
announced he was changing his name to
Muhammad Ali, who went on to defeat Liston
a second time in a one round match in 1965.
Novelist Mark Busby reads excerpts from his work
Mark Busby, English professor at Texas State University, reads excerpts from his novel, “Fort Benning Blues,” April 13 in visual arts. Busby’s novel is based on the Army during the Vietnam era. Alison Wadley
Multicultural Conference session offers insight into Vietnam War.
24 • April 25, 2011 The RangerNews
By Zahra Farah and Laura Garcia
Six months ago, Chancellor Bruce Leslie
approached the board with the possibility of
annexing seven neighboring counties to bring in
additional revenue and balance the overwhelm-
ing budget shortfall. At the December regular
board meeting, trustees unanimously approved
a motion allowing Leslie to develop an annexa-
tion plan for the counties in the district’s service
area to become part of the Alamo Community
College District’s taxing district.
If community members agreed from
Atascosa, Bandera, Comal, Guadalupe, Kendall,
Kerr and Wilson counties, they could one day be
a part of the Alamo Colleges.
But annexation of these
counties may not come any-
time soon. When questioned
Tuesday, Leslie replied, “Nope,
nothing has happened.”
District officials and trust-
ees have been focused on bal-
ancing fiscal year 2011 bud-
get and preparing for addi-
tional shortfalls in fiscal years
2012 and 2013. The district is
facing a $20.4 million project-
ed gap between revenue and
expenses for fiscal year 2012.
Leslie said the district’s been so busy with
the budget, before he does anything with
annexation, he needs to go before the board to
present ideas.
The Legislature determines the counties in
a college’s service area. Leslie said annexation
is a long and complex process, which requires
multiple complex documents and begins with
building a relationship with each community
and its leaders. Leslie said he has not contacted
county leaders about annexation.
For annexation to happen, residents of each
county interested must vote to decide if they
want to be annexed and are willing to be placed
under a new taxing entity.
The Alamo Community College District tax
rate is $0.141623 per $100 of assessed value for
fiscal year 2010-11. At that rate, the tax assessed
on a $100,000 property would be about $141.62.
This tax rate includes $0.096873 for main-
tenance and operations and $0.04475 for debt
levy on the $450 million capital improvements
bond issue. Bexar County generates $92.4 mil-
lion based on this combined effective tax rate.
District 9 trustee James Rindfuss, chair of
the board’s Legal Affairs Committee and a local
attorney, said as he understands it, if a county
wants to be a part of the district, they would
take on the same share of the taxes even though
they joined the district after the district incurred
the debt. He said if the county was a part of the
district, the board could lower taxes because an
increase in the number of property taxpayers
would increase revenue.
Rindfuss said what could also happen is the
board could decide to lower tuition or even taxes
by a certain percentage because more property
owners would be paying taxes.
He said it’s not like the board is trying to cre-
ate a big pool of money; if counties do join, their
students don’t pay out-of-district tuition and
fees of $1,479 for 12 hours.
Tuition plus fees for in-
district students enrolled in
12 semester hours is $807.
An entire county does not
have to be annexed. School
districts or even a city within
a county can choose to be
annexed. Rindfuss said 15
percent of eligible voters in
a county have to petition to
get annexation on the next
election ballot. A majority has
to vote for it; if it doesn’t get a
majority vote, the item fails.
District 2 trustee Denver McClendon said
normally, the administration addresses the
community about a possible annexation.
Leslie said it took 10 years for Austin
Community College to build a relationship with
communities to finally annex neighboring coun-
ties. “It’s a long process; maybe it won’t happen
next year, or the year after, maybe not in our
lifetime.”
Leslie said he might look at annexation in
the summer. “Even if it takes 10 years, we have
to start somewhere,” Leslie said.
District 1 trustee Joe Alderete was emphatic in
opposition. “I am completely against annexation.”
In this tough economic time, no one wants
an extra tax, he said, adding the district shouldn’t
pursue annexation because it has enough to deal
with as a district. He said annexation means new
counties will demand services in their areas.
McClendon said he doesn’t lean one way or
the other and he doesn’t have enough details to
speak intelligently about specific communities.
Gary Beitzel, District 8 trustee and chairman,
and District 7 trustee Blakely Fernandez agreed
everyone’s been too distracted with the budget
to even think about annexation.
Neither voiced opposition to annexation, but
Fernandez said it’s on the backburner because
officials have been focused on the budget pro-
cess and laws affecting higher education in the
state Legislature.
Beitzel said trustees will have to see a draft
plan, and the board can’t introduce annexation;
the counties have to vote.
District 6 trustee Gene Sprague and Rindfuss
agreed the budget was the main priority. Sprague
said there is demand in those service areas. For
example, Central Texas Technology Center in
New Braunfels and the Westside Education and
Training Center continue to grow. Rindfuss, who
favors annexation, said some of the centers have
higher enrollment than private institutions here.
District 4 trustee Marcelo S. Casillas said, “I
think it was bad timing. That’s why I was against
it at the very beginning.”
District 3 trustee and board Secretary Anna
Bustamante said she wasn’t too happy to hear it
was even being considered.
“I would consider it if I felt my constituents’
needs were being met,” she said. “Let’s take care
of our area first.”
Annexation efforts not expected anytime soonBoard may see draft plan
for contiguous counties in summer.
“Even if it takes 10 years, we have to start somewhere.”
Dr. Bruce Lesliechancellor
Alamo Colleges
Service Area
Potential revenue at current tax rate Bandera County $2.52 millionAtascosa County $2.67 millionComal County $14.37 millionWilson County $3.14 millionKendall County $5.97 millionKerr County $5.67 millionGuadalupe County $11.79 millionTotal $46.14 million
Bexar County tax revenue is $92.4 million.
April 25, 2011 • 25The Ranger News
By RangeR Staff
The Ranger planned to publish profiles on each
of the vice chancellors and associate vice chancel-
lors of the Alamo Colleges to acquaint readers with
their duties.
Along with the presidents of the five colleges,
these 11 administrators rank just below the chancel-
lor in the administration of this public community
college district with 64,149 students and an annual
budget of $284,589,000.
The district employs five vice chancellors and six
associate vice chancellors. The Ranger has success-
fully interviewed two associate vice chancellors and
one vice chancellor.
John Strybos, associate vice chancellor of facili-
ties operation and construction management, and
Dr. Jo-Carol Fabianke, associate vice chancellor for
academic partnerships and initiatives, were inter-
viewed April 8. Dr. Adelina S. Silva, vice chancellor
for student success, was interviewed Thursday. Go
online for the story.
Dr. Cynthia Mendiola-Perez, who as associate vice
chancellor for student and program development
also oversees the center for student information,
said at the April 19 board meeting that she would
participate. A meeting has not been confirmed.
Dr. Federico Zaragoza, vice chancellor of eco-
nomic and workforce development, said he received
an email and a phone call but asked for another
email to remind him. An interview is tentatively
scheduled for this week.
Pamela Ansboury, associate vice chancellor for
fiscal services, misunderstood the request. She’s
attempting to schedule an interview this week.
At an April 12 board committee meeting, Diane
Snyder, vice chancellor for finance and administra-
tion, said unless The Ranger sent her interview ques-
tions, she could not participate.
She said she supports The Ranger, but she is too
busy to stop for a 20-minute telephone interview.
Dr. Thomas Cleary, vice chancellor for planning,
performance and information systems, also wanted
the questions beforehand, but The Ranger does not
provide questions prior to an interview. However,
when The Ranger needs data, reporters generally
request it in advance of an interview. He said he
would think about participating but did not commit.
Leo Zuñiga, associate vice chancellor for com-
munications, said he didn’t understand why The
Ranger wanted to do a profile on him. He said there
are 63,000 students at the Alamo Colleges that the
publication could profile.
Zuñiga is responsible for crafting the public’s
image of the district.
April 5, Zuñiga said via email he was, “unde-
serving of a story that focuses on my personal
assignments.”
The Ranger clarified that all vice chancellors
and associate vice chancellors were being inter-
viewed, and he replied April 8, “I am undeserving of
such attention. No, thank you.”
Dr. Robert Aguero, vice chancellor for academic
success, said via email April 5, “I would be happy
to visit with you.”
Then the following day, his secretary sched-
uled an interview for 10 a.m. April 13, but on April
11 called to say, “Dr. Aguero apologizes, but he
will need to cancel your interview with him,” and
requested questions via email.
When approached at an April 12 committee
meeting, Aguero said he preferred to conduct the
interview through email because he is busy and
would be better prepared for email questions.
When told The Ranger does not conduct email
interviews, Aguero said he would not participate.
He said The Ranger has written erroneous things
about him, and he did not want to talk to the pub-
lication. In fact, Aguero has never been interviewed
by The Ranger, and this was the first time he had
responded to requests through his office.
When sources encounter errors in reporting,
The Ranger requests immediate notification so
that corrections can be made when warranted.
Aguero did not report any erroneous informa-
tion. He referred to the Oct. 12 article, “Faculty
Senate sets third meeting with Aguero for
Wednesday,” which said Faculty Senate had tried
and failed to meet with Aguero twice, but he can-
celed both times. Aguero said April 12, he resched-
uled the first time, and the second time, the senate
couldn’t pick a date to meet.
The Ranger said if the publication made an
error, editors would be willing to write a correction.
He said that’s fair, but the damage has been done.
Linda Boyer-Owens, associate vice chancellor
of human resources, scheduled an appointment for
April 13, but executive assistant Rosalinda Castillo
called to reschedule to April 14. Then Castillo
called a second time to cancel, saying Boyer-Owens
would not be available for at least two weeks.
At the 6 a.m. April 18 retirement election form
submission at this college, Boyer-Owens said she
was really busy with the retirement incentive pro-
gram.
“I’m double- and triple-booked,” she said
Thursday.
Top officials opt out of limelight
Pamela Ansboury, AVC Fiscal Serv.
$137,700Robert Aguero, VCAcademic Success
$181,029.60
Linda Boyer-Owens, AVC HR
$147,901.02Thomas Cleary, VCInfo. Systems $181,029.60
Jo-Carol Fabianke, AVC Acad. Partner.
$136,843.20Adelina Silva, VCStudent Success
$181,029.60
Cynthia Mendiola-Perez, AVC Dev.
$112,216.32
Diane Snyder, VCFinance/Admin.
$181,029.60
John Strybos, AVC Facilities $157,971.48
Federico Zaragoza, VC Workforce Dev.
$186,185.70
Only three of 11 top officials have interviewed for profiles.
Leo Zuñiga, AVC Communications
$109,185.90
26 • April 25, 2011 The RangerNews
Strybos keeps lights on, water running
By Zahra Farah
Before John Strybos became associate vice
chancellor for facilities operation and con-
struction management and responsible for an
annual operating budget of $20 million and
300 personnel, he was a developmental math
adjunct at this college.
He worked at this college from 1989-1998
and was hired by the district as an associate vice
chancellor in 2003.
This semester, he teaches a freshman com-
munication engineering class at the University
of Texas in San Antonio on weekends.
He finds the most important part of teaching
is communicating with students.
Students may not want to learn, but they
have to learn to move forward from whatever
roadblock they’re facing in life, he said.
Strybos said people would come to his class
not because they wanted to, but they couldn’t
move forward in their lives with their problems
in math.
He said he would use real-life scenarios for
his students to understand the basic concept
of math.
Strybos would ask students: If you had $5
and wanted to buy a soft drink for $2.50, how
much change would you get back?
Today, his job still influences students, as he
is responsible for construction, remodeling and
maintenance of the district’s 130 buildings on
each of the five campuses.
Strybos has had more than 28 years of expe-
rience in engineering/project management,
construction management and education facili-
ties construction and design.
His biggest accomplishment is overseeing
and implementing the $450 million capital
improvements program from 2005 to 2009 at
the Alamo Colleges.
From the bond, the district was able to build
24 buildings and renovate buildings at the old-
est colleges.
At this college about $79 million went into
the renovation of 10 projects, which included
new building and a parking garage.
At St. Philip’s College about $67.5 million
went into 17 projects, which included four new
centers.
At Palo Alto College $55 million went into 13
projects, the major ones being three new cen-
ters and additional surface parking.
Northwest Vista College had $106 million
in 11 projects, which included five new centers
and additional surface parking.
Northeast Lakeview College’s entire campus
was built with the bond, which amounted to
$125 million.
He also explained in the facilities world,
they have to deal with a number of budget con-
straints and local, state and federal policy and
procedures.
They also have to follow laws such as
Americans with Disabilities Act.
New buildings go through a series of inspec-
tions and follow city codes to start building.
Strybos said they jump through hoops to
start and finish construction projects.
He said it takes a long time to build because
most of the time funding is not available or
there is not enough funding.
For a project to start anyone from the college
or district have to notify Strybos, he then has go
through the college administration or district
depending on the project.
If it’s a major project, Strybos has to get
board approval to advertise, once they get board
approval on what firm can do the project he has
to work on a specific contract.
Strybos said most of the buildings he works
on are at the older campuses like Moody
Learning Center at this college.
Moody was built in March 1968.
Strybos said renovations for Moody cost
about $4 million, and they have about $18 mil-
lion worth of renovations to do on the building.
Before renovations on the fifth floor of
Moody, contractors discovered asbestos in the
building.
Strybos said they now have to inspect each
floor of the building.
The asbestos abatement on the fifth floor
costs about $100,000.
He said sometimes, people don’t think things
are getting done, like when faculty, staff and stu-
dents have to deal with leaks in buildings.
For example, a leak in Longwith Radio,
Television and Film Building, was actually com-
ing from the second floor and not the roof.
The district hired Tremco Commercial
Sealants and Waterproofing to fix and update
all the problems with campus roofs.
It cost $77,000 the first year and $50,000 each
subsequent year.
Strybos said to increase student success the
district wants to incorporate smart classrooms
into buildings.
More lecterns, down screens and current
computers need to be in classrooms, so profes-
sors can keep up with technology.
The lecterns have the ability to control video
and audio in the classrooms and control print-
ers in classrooms.
He said this generation is more in tune then
ever with technology and the college has to
keep up with the students to better communi-
cate with them.
He said his job requires him to keep the cam-
pus running, and without it students wouldn’t
be as successful.
For more information about Strybos, visit
www.alamo.edu/district/facilities/default.aspx.
Twenty-eight years experience led to oversight for 24 new buildings.
John Strybos at 2006 groundbreaking at this college File photo
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 27News
By Melody Mendoza
Jo-Carol Fabianke, associate vice chancellor for academic success,
said her department is probably the smallest in the district, while her
duties include bringing the colleges together to make decisions on stu-
dent academic success.
Although she doesn’t get to make things happen directly, she helps
bring people together who can.
Fabianke takes pride in the colleges’ participation in Achieving the
Dream, an initiative to help low-income students of color earn a col-
lege degree. The program is funded by
a grant the district applied for seven
years ago.
She said she helps the colleges gath-
er the best practices and strengthen how
the district serves students.
Fabianke said, “For the first time,
we shared information from across the
colleges.” The district used to focus on
enrollment, she said, but now, “We’re
saying, ‘How can we make this better for
students?’”
She said a student academic success
team meets twice a month to carry out
the Achieving the Dream initiative. The
team includes the vice presidents of
academic success and of student ser-
vices from the colleges, institutional research personnel and chairs and
faculty from English, reading and math departments.
Fabianke plays another role on the Dual Credit Committee established
two years ago to bring consistency across the colleges.
Out of this, the e-catalog was created with the intention to better serve
students who want to see classes offered at all of the Alamo Colleges in
one online catalog, she said.
Also, this committee found that the grading scale between dual credit
classes offered at high schools and the colleges were different; therefore,
the committee decided that faculty would have to state the grading scale
on the course syllabus, she said.
Fabianke also does a lot in the area of developmental education.
This includes combining developmental reading and writing and link-
ing them with college-level, reading-intensive assignments.
She said a group is also looking into accelerating how the district can
offer math and reading for those who test high but may need a refresher
course.
Through the many meetings Fabianke attends each week, she said
she hears what is going on at the colleges through initiative groups and
individual calls.
She said her biggest challenge is trying to stay focused on what’s
really important. “It’s so easy, in the personalities and emotions, to get
really frustrated,” she said. “Everyone’s got to give their opinion and
everyone’s got to vent, but remember, this is not whether we agree. It’s
student success.”
She said this is an emotional business because she deals with people,
not just a product.
Although she said students are in a good place, this district is also
complex. “We’re in a lot of change.”
She said the district used to be five “rockin’” colleges that were doing
well, and now “we’re innovative” and “making changes that are best prac-
tices across the county.”
She said the internal struggles and upheaval makes the district better
because no one is sitting back being complacent.
Over the 30 years Fabianke has been in this district, she has seen the
colleges expand across the city to now struggling in this budgetary battle.
She said she was teaching at this college when Palo Alto College was
built in 1985-86.
Then she was working at the district
when Northwest Vista College was built
in 1996-97.
She moved to Northwest Vista in
2000, then returned to the district in
2006 just before Northeast Lakeview
College was added.
“In each of those cases, there’s got
to be more financial requirements,” she
said.
Fabianke illustrated the district’s
growth using the mailroom.
She said she could imagine a person
trotting back and forth between this
college and St. Philip’s College when
the two were joined in a district in 1945.
And as another college was added, the
mailroom personnel also grew.
“Isn’t it going to take more people to deliver the mail now that we have
all of these colleges?” she said.
She explained that there was a demand for the colleges to be built
when they were.
“Could we have planned it better?” she said. “You can always plan
better.”
She compared it to her daughter who is planning the arrival of a baby.
“She thinks she’s planning, but does she really know?”
But growth cannot continue unrestricted in this economy.
Trustees and district and college administrators discussed the big
question of capping enrollment at a board retreat April 2.
Fabianke said, “I’ve been in this for 30 years, and we’ve never talked
about capping enrollment because we’ve never been in this financial state.”
But this district practices an open-door policy. “We want to take
everyone in who would want to have education or think they might,”
she said.
The solution?
She said maybe colleges offer refresher courses instead of so many
developmental courses. She said advisers need to be smarter in advising
and maybe direct students to get certificates.
Then, after having been in college for a while, they’ll be focused
enough to go on to earn a degree rather than turning away students.
“I hope we don’t have to cap,” she said. “I hope we can help everyone
in a different way.”
Fabianke’s projects bringing colleges togetherAssociate vice chancellor hopes
to avoid enrollment cap in district.
“Everyone’s got to give their opinion and everyone’s got to vent, but remember, this is not whether we agree. It’s student success.”Jo-Carol Fabiankeassociate vice chancellor for academic success
The Ranger 28 • April 25, 2011 Calendar
Monday
SAC Event: HALO Reach, League Play
11 a.m.-2 p.m. Cyber Cafe and Game
room of Loftin. Call 210-486-0125.
SAC Performance: Brass Ensemble
7:30 p.m. in auditorium of McAllister. Call
210-486-0255.
SAC Meeting: Society of Mexican-
American Engineers and Scientists 3 p.m.
in the MESA Center in Room 204 of
Chance. Call 210-486-1300.
SAC Lecture: “Sexual Violence in the
Media: How it Supports a Rape and
Domestic Violence Culture” by Rick
Gippric noon-1:30 p.m. in Empowerment
Center. Call 486-0455.
Event: Free financial education course 1
p.m.-2 p.m. at Generations Federal Credit
Union-Balcones Heights Branch. Call 210-
554-3516.
SAC Meeting: Hispanic Heritage
Committee at 2 p.m. in Room 100 of
Gonzales. Call 210-486-0681.
Tuesday
SAC Meeting: Campus Crusade for
Christ 1:30 p.m. in Room 113 of chemistry
and geology. Call 210-486-1233.
SAC Lecture: “So You’re the New
Teacher” by Sylvia C. Lovelace and Pat
Johnson 3 p.m.-4:30 p.m. at Methodist
Student Center, 102 Belknap. Email tap-
[email protected]. Call 210-733-1441.
SAC Performance: Jazz Latin Combo
7:30 p.m. in auditorium of McAllister. Call
210-486-0255.
SAC Event: Excellence in Writing Award
Ceremony with lecture by Dr. Roxanne
Henkin from 6 p.m.–8 p.m. in Koehler. Call
210-486-0125.
Trinity Concert: Handbell Ensemble
7:30 p.m.-9 p.m. Ruth Taylor Recital Hall.
Call 210-999-8212.
Wednesday
SAC Meeting: Psychology Club 2 p.m.
in Room 642 of Moody. Call 210-486-
2887.
SAC Meeting: Gay and Lesbian
Association 3 p.m. in Room 644 of
Moody. Call 210-486-0673.
SAC Meeting: Kinesiology Club 3 p.m.
in Room 142 of Candler. Call
210-588-1936.
SAC Meeting: Phi
Theta Kappa, Beta Nu
Chapter, 4 p.m. in Room
241 in Nail. Call 210-486-
1136.
SAC Event: Desserts with Deans and
Directors noon to 1 p.m. in the Fiesta
Room of Loftin. Call 210-486-0125.
SAC Event: “Surviving an Active
Shooter” 11 a.m.-1 p.m. in Room 120 of
visual arts. Continues 1 p.m.-3 p.m. May
11, June 15, June 28, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. May
24, June 29, 2 p.m.-4 p.m. May 25. Call
210-486-0930.
SAC Event: Architectural computer-
aided drafting graduates portfolio show
7 p.m.-9 p.m. lobby of Chance. Call 210-
486-1482.
Thursday
SAC Performance: Jazz Ensemble
7:30 p.m. in auditorium of McAllister. Call
210-486-0255.
Reading: Caroline Kennedy from her
book “She Walks in Beauty: A Woman’s
Journey Through Poems,” with Q-and-A
followed by book signing 7 p.m. in Laurie
Auditorium at Trinity University. Call 210-
212-9539.
Friday
PAC Event: Horticulture Club plant sale
9 a.m.-5 p.m. in the new greenhouse at on
the southwest side of campus. Call 210-
486-3073.
NVC event: 12th annual New Vistas in
Media Festival 7 p.m. in Palmetto. Call
210-486-4405.
SAC Event: Xbox 360 free play 2 p.m.-
3:30 p.m. in the craft room of Loftin. Call
210-486-0125.
Saturday
Event: Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure
in Lot C of the Alamodome, 100 Montana,
6 a.m. registration, 8 a.m. race.
Visit www.komensanantonio.
org.
Event: Meditation
in Japanese Gal-
leries 10:15
a.m.-11 a.m. San
Antonio Art Museum.
Free with admission. Call
210-978-8151.
SAC Sports: Baseball vs. Lone Star
College-Montgomery 10:30 a.m. at Lone
Star in Conroe. Continues at 1:30 p.m.
April 30 and 10:30 a.m. May 1. Call 210-
260-6348.
May 2
Bexar County: Early voting. Continues
through May 10. Election May 14. Visit
www.bexar.org/elections.
SAC Concert: Choral 7:30 p.m. in audi-
torium of McAllister. Call 210-486-0255.
May 3
SAC Concert: Orchestra 7:30 p.m. in
auditorium of McAllister. Call 210-486-0255.
May 6
Event: Spring carnival 2 p.m.-6 p.m. at
Travis Early College High School, 1915 N.
Main. Call 210-733-1911.
Event: Zoo-La-La, 16th annual Feast with
the Beasts, 7 p.m.-10 p.m. at San Antonio
Zoo, 3903 N. St. Marys. For 21 and older.
Tickets $40-$110. Call 210- 734-7184,
Ext. 1045.
May 7Classes: Last day of classes for spring
semester.
Event: March of Dimes at Sea World San
Antonio Walk 7 a.m. registration, 8 a.m.
walk. Call 210-696-1030.
May 9
AC Finals: Examinations continue
through May 14.
AC Book Event: Rental check-in and
book buy back in campus bookstores.
Continues through May 14.
May 13
Event: Second Friday Artwalk with Tobin
Hill Art Alliance begins in visual arts 6
p.m.-10 p.m. Call 210-486-1030.
May 14
SAC Event: Commencement 10 a.m.-1
p.m. Freeman Coliseum with columnist
Cary Clack, Outstanding Former Student.
Ticket required. Call 210-486-0700.
May 16
SAC Tutoring: Math PASS program 9
a.m.-noon or 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Register at
Room 202 in Fletcher. Call 210-486-
0289.
May 19
SAC Event: 10th annual Women
Empowered Conference 9 a.m.-3 p.m. in
the auditorium of McAllister. Call 210-
486-0455.
May 23
AC Deadline: Fall registration continues
through Aug. 20. Call 210-486-0200.
Calendar Legend
SAC: San Antonio CollegeNVC: Northwest Vista CollegeSPC: St. Philip’s CollegeSWC: Southwest CampusPAC: Palo Alto CollegeNLC: Northeast Lakeview CollegeAC: Alamo Colleges
For coverage in Calendar, call 210-486-1773 or e-mail
[email protected] two weeks in advance.
April 25, 2011 • 29The Ranger
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The Ranger 30 • April 25, 2011 Editorial
Journalists have a reputation for being too invasive. Many more are mistaken for public relations prac-titioners or, at the other extreme, paparazzi.
News flash: Journalists are try-ing to find the truth and report it to the public. They pore over doc-uments to keep an eye on elected officials handling public money.
Of course, nobody wants scru-tiny when a situation is less than positive, but if public officials don’t like the pressure of answer-ing to the public about public funds, then maybe they shouldn’t hire on as public servants in the first place.
Journalists do a public service just like the officials they cover.
We ask the hard questions and stand up to glares, intimidation and doublespeak to protect the public’s right to accurate, timely information about their hard-earned tax dollars.
There is a reason for federal Freedom of Information and state Open Meetings and Open Records laws. It’s called checks and bal-ances.
Lawmakers know human
nature is to highlight good news and downplay or hide the bad, so they made public officials accountable.
Especially when we are facing such large shortfalls, the public deserves to know for what and for whom they are footing the bill.
So it was disturbing to discover the vast majority of the top admin-istrators in this district refused to be interviewed for short profiles of their jobs and duties. (See the story on Page 25.)
The 12-member team of vice chancellors, associate vice chan-cellors and the chancellor is a combined expense of more than $2 million annually, not counting district-paid cell phones, Internet service, health insurance, benefits, car allowances or office staff and supplies.
Daily schedules, travel plans and expense accounts should all be made available online. The public should know what these administrators do all day.
When public employees ignore requests from the news media, they reject their own responsibil-ity to keep constituents informed.
Why are officials hiding?Juan Carlos Campos
As of August, the mortuary science pro-gram requires a minimum score of 84 to pass any required course toward the major.
The department has 220 students enrolled, but for those students to become funeral directors or embalmers, they have to pass a $400 exam, the National Board Exam, with a score of at least 75.
By raising the standards in the 70-hour degree plan, students have to take their studies seriously. By doing so, they waste less time and money getting through the program.
Higher standards means greater success across the board, enhancing the program’s reputation. As a student, you are invited to bask in the reflected glow.
Instead of complaining, students should be grateful the program is ensuring the excellence of their education. Take advan-tage of tutoring and study groups to help one another.
Your program, professors and peers can only help so much before it’s all up to you.
Higher standards, higher quality
Correction: In the April 18 article, “Block Party for 85th anniversary of college,” the dancers were incorrectly identified as Code Red when it should have stated that the dance performance class would be performing.
April 25, 2011 • 31The Ranger Editorial
In May 2009, the district decided that the 3-year-old student activity fee should fund sports programs.
At this college, 85 percent of the sports operating budget has continued to come out of the college’s operating budget.
The student activity fee provided only 15 percent of the $125,000 sports budget.
Why has the college been funding a student life project anyway?
For fiscal year 2010-11, the revenue from the student activity fee was about $450,000.
By law, those funds are supposed to fund clubs and organizations, health center, staff, campuswide events, student publications and the student center.
While this college faced cut after cut after cut, more than $100,000 was going to a handful of students who could have been funded with the student activity fee.
Repeatedly, the director of student life has claimed the Student Activity Fee Committee rejects proposals of an academic nature because of the criteria imposed by the state. Who knows — their meetings are secret.
Now, after two years of “academic” funds being siphoned off, President Robert Zeigler is finally closing that tap. And in the process, sports funding is being cut from $125,000 to $70,000, leav-ing two sports at this point — boxing and baseball. In addition, sports teams may be able to travel only within a 175-mile radius to compete.
Once more, it’s the students who suf-fer. Some athletes compete here hoping to be picked up when they transfer. And how tragic for those athletes whose team is the only family they may know.
The office of student life always seems able hire new staffers out of the student activity fee. It’s the best-staffed office on campus. But what good is that to a stu-dent in need of tutoring?
There’s been plenty of money since the student activities windfall began in fall 2006. Money for flying in massage therapists from New York; a ballet folk-lorico troupe and Día de los Muertos art-ist, assistant and supplies from Mexico; buying iPads and iPods; spending a for-tune on catering and travel for student life staff.
There also has been a decidedly lopsided disbursement of funds. Each year, the same organizations and aca-demic departments appear on the list of approved proposals.
Despite claims that no funds can be spent on academic pursuits, quite a few approved proposals certainly seem to be closely aligned with the classroom.
The president has said he has the final word on the Student Activity Fee Committee spending recommendations, but perhaps he also should be reviewing the rejected proposals. There certainly doesn’t seem to be any oversight coming from the vice president of student affairs or the interim dean of student affairs.
If you only take night classes at this college, forget about seeing a dime of that $1 per semester hour you pay. They can’t even get regular college services, such access to a cafeteria on break, library, labs or the gym. Nobody welcomes them to new semesters as day students are.
Summer and Maymester students pay that same $1 per semester hour, but what benefit do they get?
A grand scheme for a summer swim party involved buying a pool, even though there’s one in Candler Physical Education Center. (Sort of like spending a fortune on a fitness room in the stu-dent center only a hundred yards from the gym.)
Then student life staffers were told that while the pool slowly filled, they would have to spend several overnight shifts standing guard because a pool in the middle of campus is a little bit of a lia-bility. But that wasn’t enough: a truckload of sand was to be hauled in and dumped on the mall for beach volleyball.
As expected, the whole ill-advised plan was scrapped. But when an estab-lished activity makes a request for $500 as last week’s 17th annual Multicultural Conference did, student life and the Student Activity Fee Committee decline.
It’s time to eliminate all student life spending from the college operations budget. Stop letting student life drain the precious little resources we have.
Staff it and fund activities from the fee and leave the ever-shrinking college budget for academics.
Fee should cover student life
Editor:
For the last few weeks, full-time
employees have been receiving ethics
training update emails from Eddie Cruz.
These emails congratulate those who
have already taken the ethics training.
However, the emails also go on to state
that any full-time employee who has
not completed the training by April 1
will be put on a list posted on the ethics
website for supervisors and employees
to see their status. (These words are
highlighted in yellow, I might add).
Since the deadline to complete the
training is given as May 31, and more
than eight weeks away from April 1, when
names will be posted, this action seems
rather unethical. According to Webster’s
New World Dictionary, the definition for
ethical is “1. of or conforming to moral
standards. 2. conforming to professional
standards of conduct.”
Neither of these definitions seems
to fit Cruz’s email campaign, which
appears to be more of a bullying tactic
with an undercurrent of you’ll-get-in-
trouble (putting my name on a list for
supervisors, other employees, and if so
desired, the general public, to see).
If I were to employ this tactic in the
classroom to get students to perform
a task, at the very least, I would take
a hit on my student evaluations (and
rightly so), but more to the point, I
would be guilty of bad teaching prac-
tices. Intimidation and public humilia-
tion went out of style around the time
lawyers started running the world.
To be honest, I probably would have
gotten around to it in those last few days
before May 31 because deadlines are
usually seen as a way to prioritize what
needs to be accomplished when and in
what order. Instead, I went ahead and
did it last week just to get it done. And
that is the pity of it all — that I, as a full-
time employee of this institution, was
forced into making a decision based on
the stick rather than the carrot.
It makes me all the more resolved to
sit firmly in the middle of the road.
Isabel B. Garcia
Architecture Professor
Letter to the Editor
Carrot 0, Stick 1
32 • April 25, 2011 The RangerOpinion
Drastic incentive
Editor:
I thought The Ranger editorial
“District: Get out of the Classroom”
of March 7, 2011, was interesting
and informative.
If the figures are correct, it’s
shocking to learn that it takes $97
million for 1,000 employees to run
district offices. This may be a bar-
gain, according to the “Ulibarri-
Mason Global HR that shows the
Alamo Colleges with the most effi-
cient administration” memos that
were sent out by email in response.
There would appear to be a lack
of incentive to reduce administra-
tive costs for all colleges across the
state. It seems as if cost reductions
appear to be at the faculty and
student ends of the organization.
What we need is a more drastic
incentive to reduce administrative
costs, it seems. Maybe one pos-
sible solution would be to offer the
chancellor a personal stake in the
process.
Perhaps that could be done if
the chancellor were offered a $10
million contract, highest in the
land. The stipulations would be
that he could keep only what is left
of the $10 million after all adminis-
trative costs have been taken from
that generous pot.
So, if the chancellor can run
the whole thing with only a few
executive secretaries that would
represent quite a chunk of reward.
On the other hand, each addi-
tional administrator and support-
ing staff that is employed would
subtract from that generous pot.
The potential to win the lot-
tery by cutting administrative costs
should serve as quite an incentive,
seems to me.
Victor L. Garza
Chemistry Professor
San Antonio College
Waive down payment
Editor:
First, the processing of
Supplemental Education
Opportunity Grants was done
improperly. Now it’s summer grant
processing.
Just as an update, several of my
family members, including myself,
had our SEOG grants taken back
after we received them. I got mine
back, but we were told my other
family members did not qualify.
Well, after talking to several
people throughout the Alamo
Colleges, we eventually all got
them back. We never did get an
explanation or an apology for the
improper handling.
My girlfriend’s refund was also
deposited into my account, which
we did not authorize. Depositing
her money into my account
because we paid part of her tuition
with my card is not legitimate.
She specifically listed her
account for refunds, and that is the
only account which the colleges
should deposit her money.
I have been attending SAC
since 2008, and summer grant pro-
cessing has always been done after
you were registered. Last year, I
tried to do it after I registered and
was told I still had to wait a week or
two because they were not accept-
ing applications yet.
This year, the date was
apparently changed to March 1.
I received no emails about this
through ACES. (What happened
to everything ACES?) So I regis-
tered today, yesterday was the first
day, and I was told that I missed
the processing deadline and would
have to make payment arrange-
ments before my aid would be pro-
cessed.
I have never done a payment
plan. I figured I could go in and
pay what I can now so my classes
wouldn’t get dropped. I found out I
have to pay half immediately. I do
not have $400 to pay.
To some extent I can under-
stand saying that students are
responsible for knowing infor-
mation that pertains to their
situation. But the Alamo Colleges
employees do not even know how
things will be done.
This is proved by the fiasco that
happened with the SEOG grants
and refund deposits. The financial
aid employee I worked with said I
should have had to list SPC on my
FAFSA last semester since I was
not enrolled in any classes at SAC,
but I did not and I still got my aid.
He said that wasn’t supposed to
happen.
So if the colleges cannot even
control their own procedures, how
are students supposed to know
them? The structure is in place
to have distributed this informa-
tion to every student to whom it
applies: ACES email.
I get hundreds of meaningless
emails that do not apply to me
in any way, but I do not get the
one piece of information that I
needed. I am extremely busy and
do not have time to search the
various Alamo Colleges websites
looking for every update that may
pertain to my situation.
I do all of my college-related
activities through ACES as “every-
thing is ACES” (registration, pay-
ments and refunds, class mainte-
nance, timesheets for work-study).
I do not go around campus
reading fliers.
Given all of the prior misap-
propriations by the colleges, I do
not think that asking for a waiver
of the 50 percent down payment is
unreasonable.
So why not go through the
proper channels? Simple. They do
not work. I have spent way too
much valuable time standing in
lines for hours to get no assistance
whatsoever. Employees are either
powerless to help students, unwill-
ing or improperly trained.
The only useful methods seem
to be going to a dean, the pres-
ident of one of the colleges or
SACALL.
Being that I know no one else
in my family was aware of this, I
would recommend a waiver of the
50 percent down payment rule for
all summer students this year.
Anything less is a failure of the
colleges to appropriately support
its students.
Mark R. Mayfield
CIS work-study
Hello, kitty
Editor:
Thank you for the article con-
cerning cats on campus. Chelsea
Peacock’s pictures of the “twins”
are excellent.
I want to reassure everyone that
there is nothing to indicate “dozens
of cats on campus” at the present
time. So far in 2011, I think I could
count on my fingers the number of
cats I have seen at SAC.
I did tell reporter Riley Stephens
that spaying is essential to avoid
having dozens of cats on campus.
A sign I saw at the vet’s office
says that one female cat can give
birth to 18 kittens within one year.
We are working to prevent that
on campus and to make certain
SAC cats remain healthy and are
protected from disease.
J. R. Poole
History Adjunct
San Antonio College
Letters to the Editor
Dr. Bruce Leslie
Campus cat
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 33Viewpoint
S l i d e
t a c k l i n g
a person
twice your
size in the
middle of
winter is
one way to
learn brav-
ery.
The fro-
zen blades of grass slice into your
thigh like icicles and teeth are
ground together while waiting to
be kicked in the ribs, face or chest.
Athletes grinding gravel under
their sneakers at a track at 6 a.m.
are not reading about discipline or
scribbling notes in day planners.
They’re actually pulling them-
selves out of bed, shoving clothes
into a gym bag and dedicating
themselves to a team.
Losing a playoff game with
grace, shelving pride to pass the
ball to a teammate who may have a
better chance at making the basket
and pulling a newbie aside to show
the correct way to swing a golf club
are not just about sports. They’re
about character.
This campus is cutting the
sports budget nearly in half next
semester from $125,000 to $70,000.
Texas law allows for 25 percent
of the student activity fee to be
allocated for sports.
This campus’ student life bud-
get is about $450,000, meaning
$112,500 of its budget cold be used
for sports.
People who were unable to
participate in sports throughout
high school should now have the
opportunity to learn invaluable
lessons through sports at a col-
lege level.
Cutting funding for sports
takes away that opportunity.
Especially if cutting is based on
“student participation and student
interest.”
Boxing, which took place in
the middle of the day on a Friday
this semester, will, of course,
have more students attending
than a soccer game being played
at Texas State University-San
Marcos on a Saturday morning.
But it doesn’t make it more
important.
The news of budget cuts in
sports was inevitable and unsur-
prising, especially coming from a
district that uses 34 percent of its
budget on district administration.
That is more money than is
spent on any one college within
this district.
Yet again, the Alamo Colleges
has demonstrated neglect for the
enrichment of students while
keeping their pockets padded.
Perhaps next, they will opt to
light night classes with lanterns
instead of fluorescent bulbs in the
name of cost-cutting.
After all, most students “par-
ticipate” and are “interested” in
day classes.
Life lessons, sports on the chopping block
Viewpoint by J. Almendarez
In the 1776 Virginia
Bill of Rights, George
Mason wrote “… free-
dom of the press is one
of the greatest bulwarks
of liberty and can never
be restrained by despot-
ic governments.”
Two hundred and
thirty-five years later,
those words remain a
fitting description of the vital role played by The
Ranger in reporting the inner workings of San
Antonio College and the Alamo Community
College District.
This is evidenced by the 13 Associated
Collegiate Press Pacemaker awards conferred
on this student publication and its online
counterpart.
The Ranger has maintained the highest level
of professionalism in its reporting on campus-
wide and district activities, budgetary planning,
news events and other education-related issues.
When I first arrived at San Antonio College
some 26 years ago, I soon learned that The
Ranger was (and still is) the most reliable source
for basic information on SAC and the ACCD.
In the intervening years, various student
editors, reporters, photographers, and illustra-
tors have come and gone.
Yet, The Ranger’s tradition of excellence has
remained constant — the product of the dedi-
cation and skill of the hard-working journalism
students and the journalism faculty and staff in
the media communications department who
teach and mentor them.
The newspaper business is a difficult one
to master.
Oftentimes, the college community does not
recognize the intricacies involved in publishing
a weekly newspaper.
It is by no means a simple task to compose
the online version and also have a fresh printed
edition on the newsstands every Monday morn-
ing.
Compiling a viable newspaper involves
planning news coverage, researching potential
stories, attending various college and district
meetings, writing and editing stories, compos-
ing galley proofs, soliciting advertising, editing
photographs, illustrating sketches, and much,
much more.
In addition to attending their regular college
classes, students spend countless hours putting
in extra time to ensure that the news informa-
tion is both timely and accurate.
Those journalistic efforts have not gone
unnoticed.
Tom Orsborn, a former SAC journalism stu-
dent and sports reporter for the San Antonio
Express-News, stated it quite well: “I learned
things at SAC that I still use and practice today,
things I have taught my own reporters and
students. I’ve been to graduate school, but SAC
remains, I believe, the best single academic
investment I ever made.”
Through the years, the students’ enthusiasm
and diligence have proved invaluable to me in
my own work here as a librarian and faculty
member at the San Antonio College library.
As I prepare to end my career at San Antonio
College, I will fondly remember the hard-hitting
news reporting, incisive editorials and often
humorous illustrations.
I have often said that The Ranger serves a
vital role in keeping the campus informed of
and alert to the various machinations of the
Alamo Community College District and San
Antonio College.
As an example, the Feb. 14 article on the
effect of the college health center closing on
disabled students brought a serious problem
to light.
The watchdog function that The Ranger has
zealously pursued is needed even more in the
current fiscal climate.
May The Ranger keep up the great work.
John R. Deosdade is a librarian and repeated
nominee for and winner of The Ranger’s “Mother
Hen” Source Award.
Librarian: Watchdog role vital
Guest viewpoint by John Deosdade
34 • April 25, 2011 The Ranger
Chancellor: Dr. Bruce H. Leslie201 W. Sheridan, Bldg. B, San Antonio TX 78204-1429Work: 210-485-0020 Fax: 210-485-0021E-mail: [email protected]
District 1: Joe Alderete Jr.1602 Hillcrest Drive,San Antonio TX 78228 Cell: 210-863-9500 Home: 210-434-6967 E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
District 2: Denver McClendon3811 Willowwood Blvd., San Antonio, TX 78219 Work: 210-281-9141 E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
District 3: Anna U. Bustamante511 Ware Blvd., San Antonio TX 78221Work: 210-882-1609 Home: 210-921-2986E-mail: [email protected]
District 4: Marcelo S. Casillas115 Wainwright, San Antonio TX 78211No telephone number providedBoard of trustees liaison: 210-485-0030 E-mail: [email protected]
District 5: Roberto Zárate4103 Buffalo Bayou, San Antonio TX 78251No telephone number providedE-mail: [email protected]
District 6: Dr. Gene Sprague14722 Iron Horse Way,Helotes TX 78023Work: 210-567-4865 Fax: 210-520-9185E-mail: [email protected]
District 7: Blakely Latham Fernandez755 E. Mulberry, Suite 200,San Antonio TX 78212Work: 210-244-8879E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
District 8: Gary Beitzel15403 Forest Mist, San Antonio TX 78232Home: 210-496-5857 E-mail: [email protected]
District 9: James A. Rindfuss13315 Thessaly, Universal City TX 78148Home: 210-928-4630 Work: 210-375-2555E-mail: [email protected]
Officials
San Antonio College, Dr. Robert E. Zeigler210-486-0959, [email protected]
Northeast Lakeview College, Dr. Eric Reno210-486-5484, [email protected]
Northwest Vista College, Dr. Jacqueline Claunch210-486-4900, [email protected]
Palo Alto College, Dr. Ana M. “Cha” Guzman210-486-3960, [email protected]
St. Philip’s College, Dr. Adena W. Loston210-486-2900, [email protected]
Presidents
Guest Viewpoints:
Faculty, staff, students and
community members are wel-
come to contribute guest view-
points of up to 450 words.
Writers should focus on cam-
pus or current events in a critical,
persuasive or interpretative style.
All viewpoints must be pub-
lished with a photo portrait of
the writer.
Letters Policy:
The Ranger invites readers
to share views by writing letters
to the editor. Space limitations
force the paper to limit letters
to two double-spaced, typewrit-
ten pages. Letters will be edited
for spelling, style, grammar, libel
and length. Editors reserve the
right to deny publication of any
letter.
Letters should be mailed
to The Ranger, Department of
Media Communications, San
Antonio College, 1300 San Pedro
Ave., San Antonio TX 78212-4299.
Letters also may be brought
to the newspaper office in Room
212 of Loftin Student Center,
emailed to sac-ranger@alamo.
edu or faxed to 210-486-1789.
Letters must be signed and
must include the printed name
and telephone number.
Students should include clas-
sification, major, campus and
Banner ID. Employees should
include title and telephone num-
ber.
For more information, call
210-486-1773.
Single Copy Policy:
Members of the Alamo
Community College District
community are permitted one
free copy per issue because of
high production costs.
Where available, additional
copies may be purchased with
prior approval for 50 cents each
by contacting The Ranger busi-
ness office.
Newspaper theft is a crime.
Those who violate the single-
copy rule may be subject to civil
and criminal prosecution and
subject to college discipline.
Editor
Zahra Farah
Managing Editor
Melody Mendoza
Sections Editor
Megan Mares
Photographers
Tyler K. Cleveland, Alison Wadley
Photo Team
Carla Aranguren, Jason B. Hogan,
Rennie Murrell, Chelsea V. Peacock,
Abiel Rodriguez, JungKeun Song,
Ingrid Wilgen
Illustrators
Juan Carlos Campos, Alexandra Nelipa
Staff Writers
J. Almendarez,
Ximena Victoria Alvarez,
Jacob Beltran,
David Espinoza,
Joshua Fechter,
Alma Linda Manzanares,
Julysa Sosa,
Riley Stephens,
Dana Lynn Traugott,
Jennifer M. Ytuarte
Web Editor
Laura Garcia
©2011 by The Ranger staff, San Antonio College, 1300 San Pe-dro Ave., San Antonio, TX 78212-4299. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without permission.
The Ranger news outlets, which serve the Alamo Community College District, are laboratory projects of journalism classes in the Department of Media Communications at San Antonio Col-lege. The Ranger is published Mondays except during summer, holidays and examinations.
The Ranger Online is available at www.theranger.org.News contributions accepted by telephone (210-486-1773),
by fax (210-486-1789), by e-mail ([email protected]) or at the editorial office (Room 212 of Loftin Student Center).
Advertising rates available upon request by phone (210-486-1765) or as a download at www.theranger.org.
The Ranger is a member of the Texas Intercollegiate Press As-sociation, the Associated Collegiate Press and the Texas Commu-nity College Journalism Association.
The RangeR
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At the end of each semester, the staff of The
Ranger stops to recognize sources who have
suffered through numerous phone calls, ques-
tions and confirmations from cub reporters.
Students look back through stories to find
the best of the best among sources who have
helped train them as journalists and prepare
them for careers in public service.
Nominations are due this week so there is
still time to butter up a reporter to get a nod in
this semester’s competition.
Certificates will be presented at our annual
Source Awards Social at 9:30 a.m. May 2 in the
newsroom of The Ranger, Room 212 of Loftin
Student Center.
Award categories highlight the character-
istics most helpful in training young editors,
reporters and photographers. Most of all, these
sources remember they are working with stu-
dents who are learning by doing.
Though categories change with circum-
stances, many are old standbys. The first is The
Informant, which recognizes a source we don’t
have to meet in a dark parking garage.
Patience is a Virtue recognizes a source
who responds promptly, politely and
efficiently to repeated requests for
information, often daily.
Mother Hen thanks a source for
nurturing a new reporter on a
first beat.
The next category hon-
ors a Defender of A Free Press,
one who not only can identify the
freedoms guaranteed by the First
Amendment but who protects them.
Leaders of The Ranger’s cheering
section are presented a Booster Club
award. Typically, these individuals show
their support by referring new students,
sharing news tips and sending words of
encouragement.
The Big Tipper thanks a source who most
consistently provides news tips — and not only
about themselves — but also ensures that this
publication serves the interests of stu-
dents and taxpayers.
The Sure Thing recognizes our
most reliable sources who always
returns phone calls, provides accu-
rate and complete information,
directs us to other sources, if neces-
sary, declines comment politely — on
the rare occasion they have to — reads
the published story and provides feedback.
Forgive and Forget trumpets our
shame at unnecessarily wronging a
source and our relief at the absence of
a grudge.
Overexposed notes a source
often photographed published.
Underexposed notes a source
photographed often but without
the satisfaction of appearing in print.
For more information, call editor Zahra
Farah at 210-486-1776.
Source Awards honor best of the best sourcesEnjoy some fellowship and laughs while we name names and explain.
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 37News
By Joshua Fechter
Journalism sophomore Laura Garcia was
named the Texas Community College Journalism
Association’s Journalist of the Year 2011.
As part of this award, Garcia will receive a
10-week paid internship to the Corpus Christi
Caller-Times this summer.
The award was announced at the Texas
Intercollegiate Press Association Convention
April 2 in Fort Worth.
Media communications Chair Marianne
Odom said she only found out about the award
the week before the convention, which left no
time to fill out district paperwork
allowing the department to send
Garcia and an adviser.
Odom said the department also
would not have had the money to
send Garcia and an adviser.
“We have to be very careful
about how we spend our money,”
Odom said.
Garcia said she feels very lucky
to receive the award. “I applied for it
thinking I wouldn’t get it,” she said.
Garcia said she does not feel entitled to
receive the award, and she is sure there are
other student journalists who are doing just as
good a job.
The Texas Community College Journalism
Association, an organization of 17 community
colleges with journalism programs and student
newspapers, has presented the award every
year since 2005.
Bob Bajackson, executive director of TCCJA,
said the association came up with the idea
because most newspapers only offer internships
to upperclassmen and ignore lowerclassmen.
Bajackson said the organization tried several
newspapers before the Caller-Times signed on.
The editorial board of the Caller-Times
decides the recipient of the award.
Garcia said she became interested in jour-
nalism because she loves art and photogra-
phy, and journalism combines them effec-
tively.
In 2004, she attended the Urban Journalism
Workshop for high school students at this col-
lege and won a Dow Jones Newspaper Fund
scholarship for photography.
In fall 2005, Garcia began taking classes at
this college, but her transportation fell through,
and she moved out of her parents’ home, which
meant she had to pay for school herself.
Garcia briefly changed her major to psychol-
ogy before switching back to journalism.
Because she did not receive financial aid or
scholarships during this time.
“It just wasn’t the right time,” she said.
Through blogging, Garcia found that she
loved and missed writing.
With encouragement from her family and
friends, she resumed classes in spring 2009 and
enrolled in COMM 2311, Reporting 1, where she
earned an A.
During this time, she also served as produc-
tion assistant for The Ranger, helping to lay out
and design pages.
The following semester, she
became the production manager.
In spring 2010, she served as
managing editor but was promoted
to editor during the course of the
semester.
From May to August 2010, Garcia
served as an intern at the Longview
News-Journal reporting as a gen-
eral assignments reporter. For this
semester, Garcia applied to be web
editor of The Ranger.
The stories that earned Garcia the state rec-
ognition were her coverage of a no-confidence
vote in the chancellor and the chancellor’s alle-
gations against the faculty.
Jeff Hunt, theater and speech communica-
tion chair and former Faculty Senate presi-
dent, said when Garcia reported on the con-
flict between Chancellor Bruce Leslie and the
Faculty Senates of four of the five district col-
leges, she reported the facts in a professional
and objective way.
The Ranger reported Sept. 17, 2009, that the
Faculty Senates of this college, Palo Alto and
Northwest Vista issued a vote of no confidence
in the chancellor.
On Feb. 25, 2010, Garcia reported the chan-
cellor’s allegations that faculty had procured
false documents in support of their vote and
admitted the documents were false.
“I was always impressed by how accurate her
reporting was,” Hunt said. “It was as balanced as
it could be.”
On April 8, 2010, The Ranger printed a letter
to the editor from Leslie in which he claimed to
have never said Faculty Senate leaders admitted
to making false claims.
An accompanying editor’s note said The
Ranger stood by its reporting.
Garcia said the incident was frustrating
because she was not sensationalizing Leslie’s
comments.
“He said it and I reported it. Why would I
make it up?” she said.
Garcia said it was a personal blow, but the
incident did not affect her reporting.
“I’m not going to let anything stand in my
way,” she said.
Hunt said having her integrity called into
question made Garcia a stronger reporter.
District 7 trustee Blakely Fernandez said
Garcia always maintains a professional balance
and that she is very careful with her facts.
Fernandez described Garcia as a tough
reporter.
“Lots of reporters want to be hard-hitting,
but when you don’t have the facts, it’s difficult
to be hard-hitting,” she said. “Laura is certainly
a good example of a hard-hitting reporter.”
Fernandez said Garcia has a bright future
ahead of her, and the district should be proud
of her achievements.
Garcia covered Fernandez’s election cam-
paign for District 7 trustee in spring 2010.
Garcia said she does not think journalism
is for the faint-hearted and that people need to
really love journalism to succeed in it.
“You have to be serious, have drive and
passion for what you’re doing,” she said. “You
wouldn’t see me in the math or music depart-
ment because I want to be here.”
After she graduates in May, Garcia will trans-
fer to Texas State University-San Marcos to pur-
sue a bachelor’s degree in journalism.
Garcia said she wants to get a master’s degree
in journalism but she does not know where she
wants to go for graduate school.
Garcia said her experience working for The
Ranger has been rewarding, and the program
is nurturing.
“If you’re struggling, faculty, staff and stu-
dents involved with the program can help you,”
she said. “Whatever level you’re at when you
enroll in the program, they can help you get to
a higher level.”
She said the program has helped her learn
to work with other people on a newspaper
team.
After her experience at the Longview News-
Journal, Garcia said The Ranger is very similar
to a professional news organization.
For more information, visit www.tccja.com.
Laura Garcia
Ranger editor wins Journalist of the YearTCCJA offers award for lowerclassmen.
38 • April 25, 2011 The RangerNews
Two Ranger editors took first
place in in-depth reporting in
Division 2 of the Texas Intercollegiate
Press Association annual competi-
tion for student publications from
two-year and four-year colleges.
Web editor Laura Garcia and man-
aging editor Melody Mendoza aced the
category for their coverage of the trial
of Alan Godin, a Northeast Lakeview
College librarian, who was convicted of
first-degree murder and sentenced to 25
years in prison and a fine of $10,000 for
the Oct. 13, 2008, shooting death of col-
league Donald “Devin” Zimmerman.
Division 2 is for two-year and four-year
colleges with large enrollments and student
newspapers published once or twice a week.
The Ranger for spring and fall 2010
placed third in overall excellence. Garcia
was editor in the spring and fall.
In other individual awards, Ranger
photographer Julysa Sosa won second
place in the feature story category for
a story on immigrant laborers seeking
work in New Orleans.
She also won third place in news
photo for a photograph of a Ballet
Folklorico performance.
Honorable mentions went to
Ranger editor Zahra Farah for news
story, journalism sophomore Riley
Stephens for sports news story,
Mendoza for feature page design
and Ranger photographer Alison
Wadley for news photo and pic-
ture story.
In other awards presented
this spring, The Ranger for
spring and fall 2010 placed sec-
ond in best all-around student
nondaily newspaper in the two-year col-
lege category of Region 8 of the Society of
Professional Journalists.
The Ranger Online also nabbed second
in the best affiliated website category for
two-year colleges. Region 8 covers Texas
and Oklahoma.
TIPA awards were presented at its
annual convention April 2 in Fort Worth,
and the SPJ awards were presented April
9 at the Region 8 spring conference in
Norman, Okla.
No one from The Ranger staff attended
either conference to accept the awards.
Editors take first place for in-depth reporting
TAKE NOTES 3
ON RESERVE 6
BUFFALO SOLDIERS 21
The RangeRVol. 85 Issue 1 Single copies free Sept. 10, 2010
A forum of free voices serving San Antonio College since 1926
GULF COAST
Lives and Livelihoods
Part 1 of a continuing series
SPRING SCHEDULE 3
SMOKERS GET FLICKED 4
SGA ELECTIONS 6
The RangeRVol. 85 Issue 8 Single copies free Nov. 5, 2010
A forum of free voices serving San Antonio College since 1926
Veterans remembered
These pages are among The Ranger’s 2010 contest entries.
The Ranger April 25, 2011 • 39News
By Joshua Fechter
The board of trustees Tuesday approved a
measure that limits college sports teams’ travel
to a 175-mile radius from the district service
area.
District 9 trustee James Rindfuss cast the
lone dissenting vote.
The measure also reaffirms board policy that
forbids using operational funds to support col-
lege sports programs and instead requires use
of the student activity fee funds along with pri-
vately raised funds. The policy as first proposed
would not have allowed teams to travel and play
teams outside of the district or use private funds
raised by the teams.
Men’s volleyball coach Henry Hines said
after the meeting he is grateful for the board’s
decision to allow teams to fundraise, but he
does not know how the teams will be able to
compete regionally and nationally.
Both the men’s and women’s volleyball
teams at this college are part of the Southern
Intercollegiate Volleyball Association, which
has 19 participating colleges and universities,
including Palo Alto College.
All the members are in Texas except
Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, La.
“We don’t know what the limits are. We
don’t know if we’re going to be able to compete
nationally,” he said.
Women’s volleyball coach Marisa Martinez
also expressed concern after the meeting about
how the teams would be able to compete out-
side of the radius because the team has previ-
ously competed in Waco, outside of the 175-
mile radius.
Hines said the men’s volleyball team has
played in Dallas about 300 miles away.
Martinez said the teams are willing to fun-
draise.
Men’s basketball coach Curtis McGlown
said after the meeting he is relieved the board
allowed the teams to raise money privately.
“We stood up there and fought for the stu-
dents,” he said.
Ernesto Olivares, social work sophomore
and volleyball player, spoke during the citizens-
to-be-heard segment of the meeting. He said
athletics exposes students to universities and
motivates them.
“It keeps me motivated to stay in school,
knowing that I have to keep my GPA over a 2.5
in order to play,” he said.
Olivares said his team tutors one another and
studies five hours a week. He said the athletic
programs give college athletes an opportunity
to grow academically and athletically as well as
giving them an opportunity to do what they love.
Hines, Martinez, McGlown and women’s
basketball coach Desiree Crawford also spoke
during citizens-to-be-heard.
Crawford said during citizens-to-be-heard
the programs are integral to creating an envi-
ronment for academia.
She said 90 percent of her athletes work
to support themselves or a household, which
shows how much drive they have to do well in
school and athletics.
“For our students to perform not only aca-
demically but athletically speaks a lot for them,
and ultimately, it speaks well for the institu-
tion,” she said.
During discussion of the policy, District
7 trustee Blakely Fernandez said she did not
understand why the board was taking action to
limit sports activity when other campus organi-
zations and teams are not limited.
“We wouldn’t limit the cyber or academic
teams’ travel,” she said. “Why would we get
involved?”
District 2 trustee Denver McClendon said
the motion was to clarify existing policy, which
disallowed colleges from using operational
funds for sports programs and allowed teams to
compete only in intramurals with other colleges
in the district.
Confusion arose during board discussion of
the policy of what constitutes intramural and
intercollegiate sports, which prompted audible
protest from the coaches.
Intramural sports involve playing teams
from other colleges within the district.
Intercollegiate sports involve playing col-
leges and universities outside of the district.
“They need to do their homework,” Hines
said from his seat in the crowd.
Fernandez introduced a friendly amend-
ment that extended travel to the 175-mile radius
and allowed teams to fundraise.
District 1 trustee Joe Alderete seconded the
motion.
Rindfuss was the only trustee to vote against
the amendment.
The board then voted on the measure, which
Rindfuss also voted against.
Rindfuss disagreed with allowing travel.
“Students can still have fun within the district,”
he said.
Baseball coach Sam Gallegos said he does
not know how the radius will affect the team’s
ability to play the College World Series if they
win the National Club Gulf Coast conference.
“Right now, we’re just focusing on one con-
ference at a time,” he said.
President Robert Zeigler said he does not
know how this policy will affect the baseball
team.
Zeigler said for the 2010-11 academic year,
$70,000 of the sports operating budget came
from the college’s operating budget.
He said $14,700 came from the student
activity fee. The Student Activity Fee Committee
decides how the student activity fee is spent.
Board sets 175-mile radius for college sports teams
Student activity fee and fundraising will pay for sports.
Lady Rangers volleyball coach Marisa Martinez, Ranger men’s volleyball coach Henry Hinesand intramural specialist Patricia Patten listen to trustees discuss the possible elimina-tion of out-of-county games for club sports Tuesday in Killen. Tyler K. Cleveland
40 • April 25, 2011 The Ranger
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