Football falls in double overtime
Sex myths debunked see page 5
see page 8
Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio
October 11, 2011
Volume 46
Cancer claims life of visionary Steve Jobs
Issue 8
Henry J. Anderson Three apples that have changed the world: Adam’s apple, Isaac Newton’s apple and Steve Jobs’ “Apple.” History is filled with common themes and leaders who through their vision define their times. Jobs was one of them. His ideas changed the way people interact, spend their free time and go about doing business. Jobs passed away Wednesday, Oct. 5 at the age of 56. Apple’s co-founder was a pioneer in the personal-computer and the music industry. His career began with a trace of genius, endured a catastrophic collapse only to rise again with projects that culminated into one of the greatest comebacks of our time. Comparisons to Thomas Edison and Henry Ford have been heard. All of these men had ideas that they followed with a passion and resulted with some of the most beneficial advancements in modern times. Jobs had 317 registered patents involving different electronic inventions and redesigns. Tim Cook Apple’s CEO said, “No words can adequately express our sadness at Steve’s death or our gratitude for the opportunity to work with him. We will honor his memory by dedicating ourselves to continuing the work he loved so much.” Jobs was associated with his animated and passiondriven product launches. He always took pride in what Apple developed. Despite a series of well-known ads, Jobs rarely compared Apple’s products to other companies’. “He was a huge symbol of innovation and progress. I am interested to see if his death will have any large impact on the way Apple operates in the future with new products” freshman Jake Lehle said. Valued at $337 billion by Forbes magazine, Apple with Jobs’ leadership became the world’s most valuable company, followed closely by Exxon Mobile and Petro China. Apple became, in the course of 12 years, the largest retailer of online music and along the way sparked interest in animated films through Job’s brainchild, Pixar Animation Studios. The son of a Syrian immigrant who gave him into adoption, Jobs was born in 1955 and was adopted shortly after by Paul and Clara Jobs with a promise to put him through college. He grew up in Silicon Valley and eventually enrolled in Reed College.
See JOBS, Page 2
AP Photo
news@paisano-online.com
President Barack Obama and U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan visit a science class at Parkville Middle School Center of Technology.
Obama waiver leaves no school behind Plan provides flexibility in No Child Left Behind law Daniel Crotty
news@paisano-online.com On Sept. 23, President Obama announced his plan to offer waivers for No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirements to schools that fail to meet the 2014 deadline for 100 percent proficiency in math and reading. Most states are expected to apply for the waivers. California, Michigan and Tennessee have already applied. According to the Wall Street Journal, 80 percent of K-12 schools would be categorized as failing under the current requirements. When a school is deemed failing, under the current law, the state must step in and make changes. If 80 percent of schools would be failing in 2014, then the states would be required to take extraordinary steps to reform the education system. NCLB has changed the way students are educated. Since students are required to take annual standardized tests to measure school performance, many educators focus on teaching to standardized tests so that their school will not be deemed failing. States have also decreased the level of dif-
ficulty in their curriculum, so they will not have to dismiss school staff, convert the school to a charter school or close the institution altogether. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said, “No Child Left Behind is fundamentally broken.” “Our administration will provide flexibility from the law in exchange for a real commitment to undertake change,” President Obama said on Sept. 23. NCLB focuses on accountability; the Obama administration wants to raise the bar on education overall, but allow states more room to self-evaluate under the new system. “If we are serious about building an economy that lasts, an economy in which hard work pays off, with an opportunity for solid middle-class jobs, we have to get serious about education” said Obama. “Teachers too often have been forced to teach to the test. States have perversely lowered their standards in a race to the bottom.” Obama explained that the change is meant to increase standards for education by allowing the states breathing room to achieve them. Instead of focusing on technical standards for NCLB, the schools will now focus
on holistic performance of students. Under the new plan, only the bottom five percent of schools will face similar circumstances to those of failing schools under NCLB. Principals and teachers’ performance will be measured through trends in standardized test scores over time. Schools will also be adopting a common curriculum. According to Time magazine, 44 states have already adopted the curriculum. The plan is controversial because it is an executive order and not a repeal of NCLB. The Obama administration had been waiting for legislation to pass regarding NCLB, but no bills were ever passed. Members of Congress are saying the executive order circumvents their authority. According to The New York Times, the new law gives the secretary of education the power to some of its provisions but doesn’t give him power to force schools to adopt an educational agenda. “I simply cannot support a process that grants the secretary of education sweeping authority to handpick winners and losers,” chairman of the House of Education, John Kline said.
Victor H. Hernandez news@paisano-online.com
“Back in the day,” recounts chicano poet Gregg Barrios, “I went to the University of Texas at Austin, where there were only 200 Hispanics enrolled in a university of 30,000,” “One of the other 200 Hispanics was a young man named Ricardo Romo, who I befriended,” Barrios said. And yet, it was Krisellen Maloney, dean of libraries, who had to excuse the absence of UTSA’s President Ricardo Romo at Barrios’ poetry reading. “He has been looking forward to this for so long, but I am afraid he won’t be able to come,” Maloney said while the audience mumbled. “He got a call from the White House, where he was appointed by President Obama to be part of the Committee for Hispanic Excellence. He hopes you will excuse
him.” The audience bursted into applause. While Romo was at the Presidential Mansion, Barrios was being honored by some of the most influential literary figures in the Chicano movement which included, Sandra Cisneros, author of the acclaimed novel, “The House on Mango Street,” selected as The New York Times Book of the Year, and John Philip Santos, author of “Places Left Unifinished at the Time of Creation”, finalist for the National Book Award, the Distinguished Scholar in Mestizo Cultural Studies at UTSA. Among the speakers on Oct. 5, were UTSA’s professors Ben Olguín, and Norma Cantú. It was Santos who acted as master of ceremonies in the event which was considered one of the highlights of the Hispanic Heritage Month. The poetry reading, called The New Latino Gen-
eration was accompanied by an art exhibit that will be on display until Nov. 5 at Gallery 23 in the University Center. “Buenas tardes, y’all,” Santos said jokingly before beginning the event, which was held in the Acacia Room in the University Center. Later came Barrios’ poems in the voices of Frances Treviño-Santos, Olguín, and slam poet Anthony Flores. Cantú followed. She said, “Somos la tierra y el cielo. Esta tierra y este cielo./ We are the land and the sky. This land and this sky,” giving an introduction to the much expected reading by Cisneros. “I am very glad we are honoring you this evening, Gregg,” Cisneros said. “Most of the time authors are not honored until they die. It is a shame, really. What good are all those words and homages once the writers are gone?” Barrios, a former journalist for the Los Angeles Times and a book editor
Courtesy of Arturo Almeida/ UTSA Today
Literary figures come together to honor inspiring local poet at heritage event
Wednesday, Oct. 5 poet Gregg Barrios was honored by literary figures for the Hispanic Heritage month event.
for the San Antonio Express-News, is also a playwright whose work “Rancho Pancho” is based on “the tempestuous love affair between Tennessee Williams and Pancho Rodriguez, who inspired the character of Stanley Kowalski in Tennessee Williams’ ‘A Streetcar Named Desire,” according to the Barrios’ publisher. His incursion into theater left, along with other publications, a coming-of-
age poem written by Barrios dedicated to actors that debut in show business that was performed by Brad Milne. “This is what happens when sparks of creativity meet each other,” said Santos, before introducing actor Rick Frederick. See HERITAGE, Page 2