VOLUME 90 | ISSUE 8
February 20, 2020
“
Gender has no effect on the dream you are pursuing.
Women shatter
STORMIE SANCHEZ I The Ranger
stereotypes
By STORMIE SANCHEZ
Staff Reporter
At Amarillo College, women are disregarding stereotypes and pursuing careers that have been considered traditionally “male.” According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 13.9 percent of engineers in 2019 were female. The numbers are lower when it comes to welding, with 5.3 percent being women. The gender gap may be daunting for some, but it isn’t keeping local students from pursuing their dreams. One of those women, Ashley Scott, a mechanical engineering major, said she always had a love for math, but, through the encouragement of professors, branched into engineering. “I began taking a few engineering classes and enjoyed the academic challenge, therefore, I continued with my pursuit,” Scott said. Passion isn’t the only motivator. Faith Harm, a student in AC’s welding program, said she just wanted to “try different things. I like hands on things. I didn’t want to be stuck in an office all day.” However, being in the minority has its disadvantages. “I have had men doubt my knowledge on a subject just because I am a girl.” Scott said. Continued on page 5 Illustration by SHAWN McCREA
Winter weather causes chaos By JENNIFER FERNANDEZ AND RANGER STAFF Staff Reporters
A recent snow and ice storm led college officials to close the Amarillo campuses the evening of Feb. 4 and all day Feb. 5. The next week, it snowed again, but classes remained in session. Joe Wyatt, assistant director of marketing and communications, said AC follows the Amarillo Independent School District weather closing policy because the schools have a lot in common. “There are many people that work and attend the college that have kids in the schools. We need to be aligned with them to have the best outcome
for everyone,” Wyatt said. When it snowed again Feb. 11, both AC and AISD stayed open. Some students said that was a mistake. “Missing that day caused no issues; however having class on another day the next week when it was even more dangerous was somewhat problematic,” Maeve Emersyn, a psychology major, said. For one student, the road conditions during the second snowstorm led to a car accident. “I had trouble getting to class because of the roads and ended up in a fender bender,” said Danielle Salas, a medical laboratory technology major. When the college is closed due to weather issues, AC uses a system called “AC Alert”
www.facebook.com/acrangerpaper
that notifies students and staff through phone calls, text messages and email. “AC did a good job alerting me on the cancellation of classes,” Cecilia Mendoza, a visual arts major, said. Salas, however, did not receive the alert, though she said she has received AC Alerts in the past. Most students said they enjoyed the unexpected day off from classes, but, in some courses, the cancellation has put them behind schedule. “My speech class had to cut out an entire speech. We were only doing three, so now we’re doing two because we ended up being so behind from the snow,” Alice McDonald-Pate, an English major, said. Wyatt said that regardless www.acranger.com
of whether the campus is closed, students must use their own judgment about traveling to campus. “We always tell people to
please make their own decision based on where they live. While you may get a foot of snow at your house, at my house I may get an inch of snow,” Wyatt said.
COURTESY PHOTO
Oh, snow, you didn’t. Recent snowfall turned college parking lots into a guessing game, creating potential hazards and road blocks for other drivers. Twitter and Instagram: @acranger