April 5, 2012

Conference season Page 10

the

Broncs set to open GWC season against NYIT tonight

Volume 68, No. 24

Taboo?

Artists, students on

April 5, 2012

the draw of tattoos

Pages 6-7

Empowerment VOX discusses female sexuality

Page 8

After Dark

Dorm policy contested Page 5

panamericanonline.com

Video: Distinguished

ONLINE

Speakers Series concludes with Larry King

Under Scrutiny

Student organization quarrels over bylaw

Page 4

2

editorial

April 5, 2012

Photos of the week

opinion

That tattooed guy Reynaldo Leal

Co-Editor-in-Chief When my mom first saw the tattoo on my right arm, the only thing she could muster from her bag of motherly advice was, “Aye, mijo! How will you get a job?”

The piece, which is clearly visible with a few folds of a longsleeve shirt, is a memorial to the nine Marines in my company who died in Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004. It is gray and black with a K-Bar bayonet running down the middle of it and reads, “MY FALLEN BROTHERS.” My poor mother couldn’t see the meaning or importance of that, though. For a woman who came to the United States in the 1970s, picked fruits and vegetables from California to Texas, and worked three jobs when things got tight and bills got high, a tattoo was the same thing as her son throwing away everything she had done for more than 25 years.

She didn’t care if I was an adult. As far as she was con-

cerned, the American Dream was over for her misguided spawn.

Hadn’t she taught me better than this? What the hell had happened to her little “Reynaldito?”

Even though it annoyed me

that she couldn’t see the significance and thought that went into my tattoo, I couldn’t really blame her for feeling that way because, to a certain extent, she was right. It’s hard enough to get a spot in the ever-shrinking U.S. job market without giving some uptight interviewer an easy reason to throw your resume away.

People need to understand that a tattoo does have the potential to completely screw up their career choices. For some people in society, there is no difference between a gang tattoo

and a memorial to close friends.

To them, a tattoo is a mark of an irresponsible person who cannot be trusted.

Luckily for me, most of those people are retiring and living off what I pay into Social Security.

Relax, mothers of America (and Mexico). Tattoos aren’t the

end of the line for your rebellious children. There’s a thing called work ethic, and if you teach your kids the meaning of it, they will never have problems getting/keeping a job.

Those of you who are tattooed may have problems getting a foot in the door, but if

you prove you can work harder than anyone else in the office, your employer will have to get over their initial shock of seeing a flaming eagle pop out from under your shirt.

This may be easier for a photojournalist to say. People usually don’t care what’s on your arm if you’re willing to work for nothing, but the reasoning is sound. Trust me.

My dear mother eventually got over all my tattoos, even the belly dancer holding an AK-47, on my left arm. She saw that the ink on my skin didn’t change my character. Her son hadn’t gone

Reynaldo Leal/The Pan American The NTC Drug and Alcohol Testing Services van on 23rd Street in McAllen, Texas, holds up the company’s sign which fell due to high winds in the area March 29.

Like The Pan American Facebook page to view the “UTPA Frame of the Day.”

Clarification: crazy and - gasp - had actually become a success.

And it’s all because she taught me how to work.

In last week’s Page Four story, “Home is where the art is,” the last quote should be attributed to Marta Salinas-Hovar.

Vol. 68, No. 24

The Pan American

tweets

thepanamerican@gmail.com

Having such a difficult time caring about my classes and paying attention. I dunno. Thought paying this semester would up care-levels. #utpa

1201 West University, CAS 170 Edinburg, Texas 78539 Phone: (956) 665-2541 Fax: (956) 316-7122

Co-Editors-in-Chief:

Reynaldo Leal Nadia Tamez-Robledo

-@nHyena

News Editor:

#LarryKing in #UTPA. Great speaker, stupid crowd.

-@EdMireless33

Karen Antonacci

Sports Editor:

Michael Saenz

Arts & Life Editor: Norma Gonzalez

Tweet at us!

Hopes, dreams, story ideas...

- @ThePanAmerican

Photography Editor: Ruben Gutierrez

Design Editor:

Erick Gonzalez

Multimedia Editor:

Letters to the Editor The Pan American accepts letters of 300 words or less from students, staff and faculty regarding recent newspaper content, campus concerns or current events. We cannot publish anonymous letters or submissions containing hate speech or gratuitous personal attacks. Please send all letters to thepanamerican@gmail.com.

Pamela Morales Thomas Garza/The Pan American

n o i t duc o r P otes N week 11 I missed the season finale of Happy Endings writing this week’s cover story.

Let me just say, that I hope

you enjoy my article. I spent a lot of time on it, and I suffered for it.

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m very proud of how my story came out, and I hope that you all enjoy it (and if you don’t, then you kick puppies as a hobby), but while writing it, I realized what it meant to be a journalist.

Before this week, my stories usually consisted of routine events and a bunch of stuff that didn’t require much work, just had to have facts thrown into my face and write about it. For this story, I

actually had to do research.

Cut to me flipping through pages and pages worth of documents to see what I could uncover, attempting to contact as many people as I could for an interview (which several of them declined by the way, first time that’s happened to me), and of course, staying in the newsroom later than usual to do last-minute corrections to my story, something I rarely do.

Throughout all of this, I saw how much time one needs to

invest in a story. And that means giving up on a lot of stuff one regularly does, like studying. Or watching my favorite comedy, Happy Endings, a show people should seriously be watching.

Something you all should take under consideration in case you want a career in journalism, it takes a lot of your time. Worth it, though.

- Jose S. De Leon III News Writer

Adviser:

Dr. Greg Selber

Administrative Associate:

Anita Reyes

Advertising Manager:

Mariel Cantu

Webmasters:

Jose Villarreal Selvino Padilla

The Pan American is the official student newspaper of The University of Texas-Pan American. Views presented are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the paper or university.

Delivery:

Thursday at noon

April 05, 2012

Page 3

the pan american

the

Earn $95 this week Donate your plasma to help save the lives worldwide. If you qualify as a new donor, you can earn up to $95 this week.

TPR_1010_A_1001

{HERE YOUR AD

For more information please contact us at 665-2541 or come by COAS 170

{ spubs@utpa.edu }

500 S. Bicentiennial Blvd.

Ste. 200 McAllen, TX (651) 501-0800 Monday: 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Tuesday - Friday: 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Saturday: 8:00 a.m. -3:00 p.m. www.talecrisplasma.com In addition to meeting the donation criteria, you must provide a valid photo I.D., proof of your current address and your Social Security or immigration card to donate.

4

April 5, 2012

newsbriefs Corte and Galindo send-off President Stephanie Corte and Vice President George Galindo presided over their last Student Government Association meeting March 30.

“Time goes fast when you work very hard...We haven’t had a break, but it’s been very fulfilling,” Corte said.

Galindo added that he felt their term had been very successful.

The outgoing executive team expressed faith in President-elect Matthew Garcia will be inaugurated along with Vice Presidentelect Yadira Mejia on April 13.

“Matt has the qualities of a great president, so I am very confident in him.

He has a passion for SGA,” Corte said. “It’s going to be a great term.”

The Pan American

Police Beat Tuesday, March 27 A student reported a stolen vehicle in parking lot S. UT Police and EMS responded to a call for medical assistance for a student at the Intramural Fields. The student was transported by EMS to Edinburg Regional Hospital.

Thursday, March 29 A student reported the theft of an unattended laptop at the University Library.

A student in parking lot S-1 was cited for possession of drug paraphernalia.

Friday, March 30 A non-affiliated person was arrested on Schunior for possession of marijuana and reckless driving after being stopped for a traffic violation.

UT Police responded to a call for medical assistance for a student at the Wellness and Recreational Sports Center.

The student received medical aid at the Student Health Center.

Tuesday, April 3 A student was arrested at Unity Hall for possession of marijuana.

news 3

November 10, 2011

Under Scrutiny Student organization quarrels over bylaw

By Jose S. De Leon III The Pan American When Samantha Magdaleno sent out a mass email to the members of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars about officer elections, she had no idea the upheaval that would ensue.

The message, sent out March 20, explained how the officers of the local student chapter of the national organization were not going to have elections for their positions, having chosen to remain in power for another academic year based on existing policy.

According to Magdaleno, the officers’ decision to opt out of elections was due to a clause in their organization’s constitution, located in Article IV, Section 4, detailing that officers must serve a minimum of one year and a maximum of two years in NSCS. A tentative compromise was reached Friday, making the positions of vice president for publicity, vice president for community service and fundraising chair open for members who want to run against an incumbent. Other coveted and occupied positions like secretary and president will

still not have elections this year.

And Magdaleno has taken a lot of heat for questioning the drill.

NSCS is an honors organization that promotes

“I’m just following directions from the national office... I know that there’s some confusion, but I’m just doing my best.”

- Nancy Limon NSCS UTPA Chapter President

higher education and community involvement for students through various service projects. The UTPA chapter was founded last spring by Nancy Limon and is already embroiled in controversy.

“I wrote the email to bring attention to this issue from other members,” said Magdaleno, the 20-year-old from Belleville, Mich. “It may say that about officer positions, but it also says (under Article VII, Section 2) that the leadership group must be elected by a fair and

democratic process, something that I’m not seeing.”

Now Magdaleno is in hot water with the organization for speaking out about the issue.

She said she could be ousted from her position as the vice president of Planning to Achieve Collegiate Excellence, a group within NSCS that specializes in helping middle school students.

According to emails sent to Magdaleno from the NSCS national office in Washington, D.C., by talking about the issue, she was “dividing the officers and members and creating conflict within the organization.”

Representatives of the national office told Magdaleno to stop sending emails on the subject and to let the faculty adviser, UTPA Professor Banil Banik, handle it.

Banik declined to comment on the matter.

Limon, the president of the UTPA NSCS chapter, said she does not understand why there is outrage.

“I’m just following directions from the national office,” said Limon, a native of Linares, Mexico. “That was already in the constitution when we got it. As a local student chapter, we can amend the constitution we receive from the national office, but we didn’t

make any amendments. I know that there’s some confusion, but I’m just doing my best.”

One of the members who received Magdaleno’s email was Vanessa Garza, a 20-yearold McAllen native, who also supported making other members aware of the situation.

“The fact that the officers didn’t, and from my understanding still are not, wanting to at least be reelected for their positions is ridiculous to me,” said Garza, a sophomore majoring in mass communication, via email.

According to Rebecca Gadson, UTPA assistant dean of students, however, NSCS and its constitution aren’t breaking any

“They’re using the article as a loophole to stay in power.”

- Chelsea Davila NSCS UTPA Chapter Member

University rules.

“Currently, there is no University policy that dictates term limits for students elected to officer positions within student organizations,” she said.

Sharice Evans, the member

engagement manager for NSCS in the national office, noted that giving incumbent priority is the group’s norm. “We are treating the UTPA chapter just like the other 300-plus chapters,” she said.

Some members, though, are still upset about the situation and are voicing their opinions.

Chelsea Davila, a member of the UTPA chapter, said that while she agrees with the rule and thinks it’s fair, she doesn’t like how the officers are implementing it.

“They’re using the article as a loophole to stay in power,” the 20-year-old Harlingen native said in an email interview. “They read the parts of the constitution that are favorable to them, and ignore the parts that say that they must hold elections.”

At first, the idea was that if a candidate beats an incumbent, then they could both serve as officers so that the incumbent could mentor the new officer.

However, co-officer positions were eliminated by the assistant dean of students because University policy does not allow them.

Limon said that there is a possibility for changing the constitution. If the majority of members want to amend it, then it could be done with approval from the national office, she said. Even if this were to happen, Magdaleno may not stick around.

“I’m thinking of dropping out of the board,” she said. “I’ve gotten too much flak from other officers and the national office.

I just think it’s a rather vague clause, I’d be OK with them using it if it weren’t for the fact that this is their first year in office. It makes them seem as if they’re abusing their power.”

UTPA organization hosts autism awareness fundraiser

By Michael Chavez The Pan American UTPA is going blue for autism.

Blue balloons and ribbons line the quad for the National Student Speech Language Association’s first autism awareness event, which took place on April 2, World Autism Awareness Day. NSSLHA, a pre-professional association for students interested in studying communication sciences, donated event proceeds to the Autism Council for Educational Support and Scientific Studies (Aces³), a local organization hosting a 5K run April 21 at Sharyland High School.

A band played at the event, which ran from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

NSSLHA members displayed artwork created by autistic children.

But the event had humble beginnings.

“We were going to just make bracelets and sell them,” said NS-

SLHA adviser Sonya Salinas.

With time, more ideas came into play and eventually snowballed into Monday’s event, band and all.

Speaking of the snowball effect, the number of children diagnosed with autism nearly doubled from 2006 to 2008, increasing from 1 in 150 in to 1 in 88, according to the Center for Disease Control.

“The increased diagnosis rate might be a relatively good thing,” said communication sciences and disorders lecturer Keri Gonzales. “It could mean that professionals are getting better at detecting autism.”

If this is the case, it could allow for some preventative measures, but even with early identification and treatment, raising a child with autism can make even simple tasks difficult.

“Some parents ask me, ‘Where can I go get my child’s hair cut?’

‘How do we go to a restaurant?’”

Gonzales said.

The answer, she says, is to “stay informed” about autism, which more children are diagnosed with yearly than AIDS, diabetes, and cancer, combined. For a condition that costs the U.S. $126 billion annually and has no cure, autism research receives relatively little funding, $79 million yearly.

Along with low funding, the autism community faces misinformation: Some folks think that people with autism are either savants, like Dustin Hoffman’s character in the 1988 film Rainman, or brainless layabouts.

“People think of autism and they think of a kid who can’t think or talk at all. [But] there’s a spectrum,” Associate Professor Shawn Saladin explained.

The autism spectrum contains conditions of differing severity, all of which affect communication and social interaction.

“More and more people are being diagnosed with autism, ” said Saladin. “One in 97 kids will potentially need [speech and language] services.”

According to the Department of Labor, employment of speechlanguage pathologists, a group serving children with autism, is expected to grow by 23 percent

from 2010 to 2020, faster than the average for all occupations. Saladin and the 600 plus students studying communication disorders are ready.

“We are training the next generation of speech-language pathologists to meet the growing needs of the population,” he said. “We are strategically planning for growth.”

Natalia Rocafuerte/The Pan American

Jamming out - Del Viento perform at the quad on Monday during the autism awareness fundraiser.

news

1102 ,01 rebmevoN

April 5, 2012

DO NOT DISTURB

5

Students ponder merits of dorm visitation policy

By Daniella Diaz The Pan American Francisco Cardenas was studying for his pre-calculus exam with a friend when a resident assistant knocked on his door at 1 a.m. to ask the visitor to leave.

At Unity, Troxel, and Heritage halls, residents must be either back in their dorms or in the lobby and visitors must be out of dorm rooms by 1 a.m. The only exception is for visitors who are the same gender as the resident.

Same-gender visitors have the option of paying an $11 fee to stay the night.

Cardenas, a 20-year-old Brownsville native, disagrees with the rule and thinks residents should be able to have guests of whatever gender over at any time.

“There is a reason why I left home,” the economics major said.

“We’re supposed to learn to live on our own now, and college is the start.”

Erika Trevino, a sophomore who has been living at Unity since last fall, said she feels indifferent about the policy but understands why other residents might be upset about it.

“It doesn’t bother me because you can get away with it if (the

visitors) live there at the dorms already, but I think it should be that you can have whoever you want stay over with the consent of your roommate,” the chemistry major said.

Becca de Leon is the housing coordinator for Unity and believes that since she lived at the hall the rules have gotten more lenient. Females and males did not used to be allowed to visit each other’s sides at all.

“The rule is also courteous for roommates. They get to sleep or work on their studies knowing that guests are not in the room,” she said. “For safety reasons, with my staff I always tell them to know that the residents are supposed to be in their designated areas.”

Last year, Residence Housing Association President Kasandra Armendariz helped start a failed proposal with other residents to remove the rule. In the summer, the vice president and associate vice president of Student Affairs decided to keep the guest-andvisitation policy, but did approve residence hall lobbies being changed to 24-hour visitation spaces, according to Residence Life Director Eric Booth.

Armendariz said that the

RHA may try to abolish the rule again, but needs resident help to do it.

“Most of (the RHA officers) live at Unity,” Armendariz said.

“We tried to get more residents to come to meetings, but it didn’t happen. Residents need to get more involved (in RHA) if they want things to change.”

IS IT ENFORCED? Many students said that the rule was not always enforced or enforced on different levels depending on the residence hall.

Juan Cano, an art major from Roma, mentioned that Unity Hall is split according to gender between north and south sides.

Heritage and Troxel, while they don’t allow rooms with males and females, do have men’s and women’s rooms side by side on each floor.

“At 2 or 3 in the morning, you still see people around,” Cano said. “I think since Heritage and Troxel are coed, the rules are harder to enforce.”

Other students mentioned various ways to get around the rules, like having another resident of the opposite gender sign in guests, or sneaking people past resident and office assistants.

Michael Yahnke, a Bronc basketball player from Delano, Minn., said he was okay with the rule even though it was more drastic than it was at other universities he has attended. The 19-year-old biology major mentioned that although the rule is on the books, it doesn’t mean it is being followed.

“To be honest, college kids are going to be college kids,” he said. “The rules are there, but many kids are going to try to get around them.”

RULE’S REASONS Booth reiterated De Leon’s assertion that the rules exist for safety purposes such as helping identify unattended guests and decreasing roommate complaints about privacy. Ninety percent of campus residents surveyed last year said the policy was the main reason they felt safe in the halls, Booth added.

Trevino said she would not feel any less safe if the rules were abolished. She believes that parents’ expectations and Valley culture, rather than safety, are a big part of the rationale behind the policy.

“Especially coming from such a strong Mexican background, our parents are all about

having no guys overnight, and then they think the worst in certain situations,” she said. “I think it has a lot to do with where we come from.”

The proposal to end the policy was written by Student Government Association RHA Senator Pedro Salazar III. According to the proposal, there is nothing specifically stated about same and/or opposite gender visitation of residents of the same hall in the current Residence Life Handbook.

The proposal also references policies from other university residence life handbooks. For example, it notes that The University of Texas at El Paso does not limit visitation hours of non-resident or registered guests.

The proposal also states that Northern Arizona University does not enforce visitation hours among residents.

“I have worked at four different institutions in residence life, and all of them had a similar policy that I was not responsible for instituting,” Booth said in response to the existence of the policy, adding that the rules have made UTPA residence halls safer than some of the local apartment complexes.

BSM opens coffee shop to public

By Francisco Garrido-Garza The Pan American In the corner of the Baptist Student Ministry, which is on the corner of Sugar Road and Schunior Street, there is a window that serves as a new, strange little coffee house.

There, David Cardoza and a group of volunteers sell coffee, smoothies, desserts and bubble tea at the Global Coffee House to raise money for student mission trips.

And they do it without setting any prices.

The initiative, started this semester, operates on a dona-

tion model and allows patrons to choose how much to pay for what they receive.

“Many people believed students were not going to give much,” BSM Director Robert Rueda said. “However, our experience taught us that students are generous and donate towards the cause of sending students worldwide to serve others.”

The volunteers at the coffee house estimate that they receive $2 on average for every item, enough to cover their expenses and make a profit. Rueda said many patrons compare the coffee to some of the Valley

coffee houses.

The money helps BSM students travel to more than 20 countries where they do do charity work, according to Rueda. Money from similar initiatives helped BSM students providing medical clinics in countries in Asia and Africa and working with orphans in Russia and Venezuela.

The Global Coffee House is open Wednesday from 1 to 3 p.m. and Thursday 12:30 to 3 p.m. and is located in the BSM, across the street from the Wellness and Recreational Sports Complex.

GLOBAL COFFEE HOUSE MENU

SMOOTHIES DESSERTS COFFEE BUBBLE TEA SUGGESTED DONATION:

HOURS

Wednesday

1 - 3 p.m.

Thursday

$2

12:30 - 3 p.m.

Nadia Tamez-Robledo/The Pan American

World Drinks (above) - Accounting major Qiang “Leo” Ding, 23, serves bubble teas as part of Baptist Student Ministry’s drink selections at its Global Coffee House location inside the BSM building on Sugar Road and Schunior Street.

Sipping (below) - Emma Baldazo, a 20-year-old bilingual education major, drinks some freshly brewed coffee at the BSM cafe. Baldazo attends Bible study classes at the BSM and likes to volunteer whenever she can.

Norma Gonzalez/The Pan American

Erika Guerrero admits that her first tattoo was not a long, drawn out decision and didn’t have deep meaning or reason. She was 18 and she wanted a tattoo. It was as simple as that.

“I always thought they were beautiful,” Guerrero said.

The recently transferred UTPA management major recalled how she walked into a tattoo shop for the first time knowing only that she wanted something small and easy to hide for her first piece of body art.

“I remember the guy standing up and yelling out, ‘She’s getting her first tattoo,’” the 23-year-old said. “Everyone in the shop started to come around the counter. It was

The soprano

Tino Va lenzue la, 28, Senior

The constant buzzing of a tattoo gun is the only sound penetrating the cloud of rock music coming from the speakers at Octopus Ink in McAllen. Framed sketches, a painting of a snake-haired temptress and a large dragon stencil on transfer paper line the dark gray walls and hint to the artistic pedigree of the resident ink masters.

Three artists intently and quietly inject ink into the surface of their client’s skin, occasionally looking up to wipe away the mixture of blood and color from the living canvases.

Nobody speaks as the pen outlines turn into permanent masterpieces.

Sitting in the middle of the tattooing stations is former UTPA professor and Art Institute of San Fran-

The Artist

April 5, 2012

exciting.”

Although she was young, the Weslaco native said she knew what she was getting herself into and that the little red heart on her collarbone was permanent.

Since her first tattoo five years ago, Guerrero has accumulated more ink on her skin.

Each new design is more important and meaningful than the previous one. More than clothes, hair or piercings, her tattoos are how she expresses herself.

“It’s about beauty for me,” she said. “I don’t see it as trying to be different or rebellious.”

She doesn’t have any tattoos that are visible when wearing clothes, and she doesn’t feel

With reality TV shows turning tattoo artists into celebrities and ink parlors opening up in what seems to be every single strip mall in the Valley, it may feel that tattoos are more visible and socially accepted than ever.

What was once reserved for military men, criminals and circus freaks is now fair game for anyone who can brave a few minutes or hours under the tattoo needle. Grandpa no longer has to be a fringe character in his community to get that eagle tattoo he always wanted.

“Tattoos are a fashion now,” said Eddie Gracida, owner of El Loco Tattoo in Harlingen, “whereas back in the day, they were taboo.”

The 40-year-old former Marine decided to come back home to the Valley and open up his shop in his hometown when he was done with his service in 1998. He found that although ink had been accepted in other areas of the United States, the Rio Grande Valley was still behind the tattoo curve.

“Even in ‘98 we had problems opening up here in the Valley,” Gracida said. “We couldn’t even get someone to rent a building for us to start. I still have 50-year-olds who want to get a tat, but are still afraid of what their parents might say.”

Gracida, who organizes the annual South Texas Tattoo Festival in Harlingen, began to see the shift in mentality towards body art in the area after TLC’s Miami Ink premiered in 2005 and the Ed Hardy brand became a household name.

“It was a double-edged sword,” Gracida said. “It was a big boost for our business and tattooing, but every person who thought they could tattoo started opening up a shop.”

According to a 2010 study conducted by the Pew Research Center, almost 40 percent of American adults ages 18 to 29 have a tattoo, with at least half of them having more than one “piece” on their skin.

“These kids are really thinking about what they want for their first tattoo,” Gracida said. “They really take their time to get it right, but after that first one they just get more [tattoos] because they like them.”

It would seem that the millennials have become more than interested in continuing the legacy their Gen X counterparts started in the 1990s, except they are slightly less worried with hiding their body art than the older generation. Another Pew survey shows that compared to the 75 percent of 30 to 45 year olds who have tattoos that are not visible, 70 percent of millennials with tattoos hide them.

“It’s easy to accept ink when you’ve grown up with your parents tattooed already,” Gracida said. “I don’t think kids should get a full sleeve when they’re 18, but things are changing and it’s not looked down on as much.

before both of her parents had to stop working and claim disability. She dropped out of college, put her singing career on hold and started working two jobs to keep her family afloat and the bills paid.

However, the large tattoo on the right side of her torso isn’t a tombstone to a dream, Guerrero said. It’s everything she cares about in life. The music elements hint to her passions while the flowers are a reminder of her mother.

“Everything happens for a reason,” the soprano said. “I didn’t get to finish my music education, but I will always sing. It’s who I am.” they have the potential of hindering her future job prospects.

“I feel like I’m conservative with my tattoos,” she said. “They’re mostly for me.”

As much as Guerrero uses body art to express her identity and decorate her figure, she also uses it to inspire and remember the trials in her life.

The treble clef surrounded by flowers and text reading, “My Music, My Life,” is a reminder of the sacrifice she made for her family when she was a freshman attending The University of Texas at Brownsville as a music major.

Guerrero had been invited to go to Italy and sing with the Scorpions’ master chorale

Amancio Chapa, 20, Junior

them.”

As time went on and the athlete came to study and compete in South Texas, the UTPA junior became more comfortable explaining, “PROMISE.” He found that it was a conversation starter that allowed him the opportunity to tell others who he was. Curious peers no longer bothered him, and he told them about his grandmother, her strong will and how it shaped his life.

“I tell them it’s a reminder of who I need to be and all the things I stand for,” said the Long View, Texas, native. “She never quit, and neither shall I.”

The Memorial

Erika Guerrero , 23, Junior

parents the tribute tattoo several months later.

His father was mostly upset because Bann never talked to him about getting the body art, and his mother just hated the idea.

“It’s a generational thing,” Bann recalled.

“They thought tattoos were for thugs or gang members... It’s not.”

For Bann, the word etched into his skin symbolizes a way of life that means standing for something. It’s a promise to himself to never forget his grandmother and her daily battles.

When he explained this to his parents, they began to understand his motivations.

Still, after his parents gave him the OK on the tattoo, Bann kept the meaning of the memorial to himself.

“When my classmates found out, they would ask me what it meant,” he said. “I would say I couldn’t tell them. I wasn’t ready to tell

“I tell everyone who comes through the door, ‘You get what you pay for,’” Everhard said. “There are a lot of shops out there, but they’re closing as fast as they are opening. Not everyone can tattoo.”

Everhard thinks a person should look at someone adding a permanent piece of art on skin the same way they might look at a doctor.

“You don’t ask a doctor how long he’s been doing his job,” he said. “You look at his work.”

In the case of Octopus Ink and Everhard, the work can be found walking around the Valley. He chuckles at the thought of hundreds of mobile canvases with his artwork on them.

get my tattoo.’ I walked in, sat down and got it done.”

The tattoo artist applied the stencil to his left arm and asked him one last time whether he was sure about going through with the tattoo. Bann was sure. He recalls feeling relieved at how little the process actually hurt as the needle outlined the first old English letter.

When it was over the permanent black ink ran from the top of his left shoulder down his arm and read “PROMISE.” The young man looking in the mirror couldn’t help but feel pride.

“It looked great,” Bann said, “and looking at it reminded me of everything my grandmother did for others, how loving she was and how she lived her life.”

But things weren’t so smooth for the then17-year-old Bann when he had to show his

“A sparrow, let’s say, is going to mean different things to different people,” he said. “We learn not to ask why.”

Whatever the reasoning behind his client’s ideas, tattoos are serious business with serious implications for Everhard, and skin is not an easy medium to master.

“In a sense, you’re doing a painting on a sculpture, and the bodies are always different,” Everhard said. “It’s not a piece of paper. The f--ing thing moves, it cries and moans.”

For him, tattoos are luxuries that are earned. It is not enough to pay for them.

Those who make the decision to finally take the plunge and go under the pulsing needles must endure the pain and, in the end, the criticism of having their skin inked. Only those with thick skin need apply.

Scott Bann remembers calling his grandmother when he was younger and ending every phone call with, “Hug around the neck and a kiss on the cheek.” It’s the memory that immediately comes to him when thinking about the person he looked up to the most in life.

He remembers his grandmother, Nancy Grisham, as a caring and giving person. When the community leader and elementary school principal lost her 12-year battle with breast cancer, he could only think about how she never stopped fighting for her life.

Bann, a kinesiology major and track and field athlete, was 15 when his grandmother died in 2005. Two years later he decided to dedicate a piece of himself to the memory of the Grisham family matriarch.

“One day I was walking around town with my aunt,” Bann said, “and I said, ‘Let’s go

cisco graduate Carlos Everhard. The slender Mexico native has an air about him that is both thoughtful and assured. He sees tattoo as another manifestation of his art and makes correlations between economic, social and religious backgrounds for why people walk into his shop.

“It comes down to the information we take in,” he said. “We’re completely immersed in culture and it’s hard to escape it. People get tattoos done because they identify themselves with certain groups or belief systems. Some even look for that little bit of rejection and want to be rebellious to a certain extent.”

Everhard recounts instances when two people have come into the shop asking for similar tattoos but have competing reasons for wanting them.

Design: Erick Gonzalez Illustration: Francisco Rodriguez

by Reynaldo Leal

d e k in

THE PAN AMERICAN

Erika Guerrero admits that her first tattoo was not a long, drawn out decision and didn’t have deep meaning or reason. She was 18 and she wanted a tattoo. It was as simple as that.

“I always thought they were beautiful,” Guerrero said.

The recently transferred UTPA management major recalled how she walked into a tattoo shop for the first time knowing only that she wanted something small and easy to hide for her first piece of body art.

“I remember the guy standing up and yelling out, ‘She’s getting her first tattoo,’” the 23-year-old said. “Everyone in the shop started to come around the counter. It was

The soprano

Tino Va lenzue la, 28, Senior

The constant buzzing of a tattoo gun is the only sound penetrating the cloud of rock music coming from the speakers at Octopus Ink in McAllen. Framed sketches, a painting of a snake-haired temptress and a large dragon stencil on transfer paper line the dark gray walls and hint to the artistic pedigree of the resident ink masters.

Three artists intently and quietly inject ink into the surface of their client’s skin, occasionally looking up to wipe away the mixture of blood and color from the living canvases.

Nobody speaks as the pen outlines turn into permanent masterpieces.

Sitting in the middle of the tattooing stations is former UTPA professor and Art Institute of San Fran-

exciting.”

Although she was young, the Weslaco native said she knew what she was getting herself into and that the little red heart on her collarbone was permanent.

Since her first tattoo five years ago, Guerrero has accumulated more ink on her skin.

Each new design is more important and meaningful than the previous one. More than clothes, hair or piercings, her tattoos are how she expresses herself.

“It’s about beauty for me,” she said. “I don’t see it as trying to be different or rebellious.”

She doesn’t have any tattoos that are visible when wearing clothes, and she doesn’t feel

With reality TV shows turning tattoo artists into celebrities and ink parlors opening up in what seems to be every single strip mall in the Valley, it may feel that tattoos are more visible and socially accepted than ever.

What was once reserved for military men, criminals and circus freaks is now fair game for anyone who can brave a few minutes or hours under the tattoo needle. Grandpa no longer has to be a fringe character in his community to get that eagle tattoo he always wanted.

“Tattoos are a fashion now,” said Eddie Gracida, owner of El Loco Tattoo in Harlingen, “whereas back in the day, they were taboo.”

The 40-year-old former Marine decided to come back home to the Valley and open up his shop in his hometown when he was done with his service in 1998. He found that although ink had been accepted in other areas of the United States, the Rio Grande Valley was still behind the tattoo curve.

“Even in ‘98 we had problems opening up here in the Valley,” Gracida said. “We couldn’t even get someone to rent a building for us to start. I still have 50-year-olds who want to get a tat, but are still afraid of what their parents might say.”

Gracida, who organizes the annual South Texas Tattoo Festival in Harlingen, began to see the shift in mentality towards body art in the area after TLC’s Miami Ink premiered in 2005 and the Ed Hardy brand became a household name.

“It was a double-edged sword,” Gracida said. “It was a big boost for our business and tattooing, but every person who thought they could tattoo started opening up a shop.”

According to a 2010 study conducted by the Pew Research Center, almost 40 percent of American adults ages 18 to 29 have a tattoo, with at least half of them having more than one “piece” on their skin.

“These kids are really thinking about what they want for their first tattoo,” Gracida said. “They really take their time to get it right, but after that first one they just get more [tattoos] because they like them.”

It would seem that the millennials have become more than interested in continuing the legacy their Gen X counterparts started in the 1990s, except they are slightly less worried with hiding their body art than the older generation. Another Pew survey shows that compared to the 75 percent of 30 to 45 year olds who have tattoos that are not visible, 70 percent of millennials with tattoos hide them.

“It’s easy to accept ink when you’ve grown up with your parents tattooed already,” Gracida said. “I don’t think kids should get a full sleeve when they’re 18, but things are changing and it’s not looked down on as much.

before both of her parents had to stop working and claim disability. She dropped out of college, put her singing career on hold and started working two jobs to keep her family afloat and the bills paid.

However, the large tattoo on the right side of her torso isn’t a tombstone to a dream, Guerrero said. It’s everything she cares about in life. The music elements hint to her passions while the flowers are a reminder of her mother.

“Everything happens for a reason,” the soprano said. “I didn’t get to finish my music education, but I will always sing. It’s who I am.” they have the potential of hindering her future job prospects.

“I feel like I’m conservative with my tattoos,” she said. “They’re mostly for me.”

As much as Guerrero uses body art to express her identity and decorate her figure, she also uses it to inspire and remember the trials in her life.

The treble clef surrounded by flowers and text reading, “My Music, My Life,” is a reminder of the sacrifice she made for her family when she was a freshman attending The University of Texas at Brownsville as a music major.

Guerrero had been invited to go to Italy and sing with the Scorpions’ master chorale

Amancio Chapa, 20, Junior

them.”

As time went on and the athlete came to study and compete in South Texas, the UTPA junior became more comfortable explaining, “PROMISE.” He found that it was a conversation starter that allowed him the opportunity to tell others who he was. Curious peers no longer bothered him, and he told them about his grandmother, her strong will and how it shaped his life.

“I tell them it’s a reminder of who I need to be and all the things I stand for,” said the Long View, Texas, native. “She never quit, and neither shall I.”

The Memorial

Erika Guerrero , 23, Junior

parents the tribute tattoo several months later.

His father was mostly upset because Bann never talked to him about getting the body art, and his mother just hated the idea.

“It’s a generational thing,” Bann recalled.

“They thought tattoos were for thugs or gang members... It’s not.”

For Bann, the word etched into his skin symbolizes a way of life that means standing for something. It’s a promise to himself to never forget his grandmother and her daily battles.

When he explained this to his parents, they began to understand his motivations.

Still, after his parents gave him the OK on the tattoo, Bann kept the meaning of the memorial to himself.

“When my classmates found out, they would ask me what it meant,” he said. “I would say I couldn’t tell them. I wasn’t ready to tell

“I tell everyone who comes through the door, ‘You get what you pay for,’” Everhard said. “There are a lot of shops out there, but they’re closing as fast as they are opening. Not everyone can tattoo.”

Everhard thinks a person should look at someone adding a permanent piece of art on skin the same way they might look at a doctor.

“You don’t ask a doctor how long he’s been doing his job,” he said. “You look at his work.”

In the case of Octopus Ink and Everhard, the work can be found walking around the Valley. He chuckles at the thought of hundreds of mobile canvases with his artwork on them.

get my tattoo.’ I walked in, sat down and got it done.”

The tattoo artist applied the stencil to his left arm and asked him one last time whether he was sure about going through with the tattoo. Bann was sure. He recalls feeling relieved at how little the process actually hurt as the needle outlined the first old English letter.

When it was over the permanent black ink ran from the top of his left shoulder down his arm and read “PROMISE.” The young man looking in the mirror couldn’t help but feel pride.

“It looked great,” Bann said, “and looking at it reminded me of everything my grandmother did for others, how loving she was and how she lived her life.”

But things weren’t so smooth for the then17-year-old Bann when he had to show his

“A sparrow, let’s say, is going to mean different things to different people,” he said. “We learn not to ask why.”

Whatever the reasoning behind his client’s ideas, tattoos are serious business with serious implications for Everhard, and skin is not an easy medium to master.

“In a sense, you’re doing a painting on a sculpture, and the bodies are always different,” Everhard said. “It’s not a piece of paper. The f--ing thing moves, it cries and moans.”

For him, tattoos are luxuries that are earned. It is not enough to pay for them.

Those who make the decision to finally take the plunge and go under the pulsing needles must endure the pain and, in the end, the criticism of having their skin inked. Only those with thick skin need apply.

Scott Bann remembers calling his grandmother when he was younger and ending every phone call with, “Hug around the neck and a kiss on the cheek.” It’s the memory that immediately comes to him when thinking about the person he looked up to the most in life.

He remembers his grandmother, Nancy Grisham, as a caring and giving person. When the community leader and elementary school principal lost her 12-year battle with breast cancer, he could only think about how she never stopped fighting for her life.

Bann, a kinesiology major and track and field athlete, was 15 when his grandmother died in 2005. Two years later he decided to dedicate a piece of himself to the memory of the Grisham family matriarch.

“One day I was walking around town with my aunt,” Bann said, “and I said, ‘Let’s go

cisco graduate Carlos Everhard. The slender Mexico native has an air about him that is both thoughtful and assured. He sees tattoo as another manifestation of his art and makes correlations between economic, social and religious backgrounds for why people walk into his shop.

“It comes down to the information we take in,” he said. “We’re completely immersed in culture and it’s hard to escape it. People get tattoos done because they identify themselves with certain groups or belief systems. Some even look for that little bit of rejection and want to be rebellious to a certain extent.”

Everhard recounts instances when two people have come into the shop asking for similar tattoos but have competing reasons for wanting them.

Design: Erick Gonzalez Illustration: Francisco Rodriguez

by Reynaldo Leal

THE PAN AMERICAN

Inked d e k in

The Artist

April 5, 2012

8

arts & life

April 5, 2012 Jennifer Rodriguez

ARTscene MFA Graduate Exhibit Graduate student Idalia Lara is currently showing her exhibit “Symbonifide” at the Fine Arts Gallery. The exhibit, which opened March 26, will remain available to audiences until April 13.

For more information or special accommodations, contact Elena Macias at 665-3480.

Vagina Monologues frankly addresses female sexuality

Hawaiian Party 4 a Cause The student organization Soñar Despierto will be hosting their next fundraiser Thursday, April 5 at 10:30 p.m. in McAllen’s Nox Diem club. The $5 cover charge will go to child cancer patients who are currently patients at Renaissance Hospital.

For more information, contact Curt Miller at 250-5178.

2012 Pan American Cello Festival This year’s Cello Festival will take place April 13 and 14. The application to participate is due Thursday, April 5, along with a $50 application fee. The festival will feature

By Lea Victoria Juarez The Pan American The vagina. It goes by many names: hooha, vajayjay, South Texas trim, and many moreamong others.

It is generally considered a private topic, taboo and sometimes even forbidden. Treated almost like an ominous being that lurks in the shadows. Both men and women alike know it’s there, but they don’t talk about it.

VOX: Voices for Planned Parenthood, a UTPA student organization, quite literally put the sometimes uncomfortable topic on center stage with its annual production of The Vagina Monologues Sunday night at the Student Union Theater. The play, written by activist Eve Ensler in 1996, explores reallife stories of women and the humorous and painful truth behind their vaginas.

“There’s a whole taboo aspect in sex, it’s something that you’re not supposed to talk about, but the monologues bring all that stuff out onto the table,” Gloria Lee, a 24-year-old

psychology major and volunteer performer, said. “It’s giving off the message where it’s okay to talk about those things and, most importantly, to relate.”

As hosts for awareness events, the members of VOX advocate healthy relationships, educating students on the importance of safe sex as well as reproductive rights. The women in red and black took turns performing their pieces on stage, ranting about pubic hair and men, recounting horrific tales of rape.

“I think the whole point of it all is to really get out of your comfort zone,” Jasmine Hernandez, a 21-year-old VOX member said. “We want to be more open-minded with the issues that are going on and more knowledgeable as well.”

Director Alyssa Treviño explained that women responded most to the monologue Because He Liked to Look at It. This piece goes into the mind of a woman who believes her vagina to be repulsive until she meets “Bob,” who thinks her vagina is a thing of beauty.

“Each monologue has an experience everybody can relate to in one way or another,” Treviño explained. “There is a certain stigma attached to having a vagina, and there’s a double standard when it comes to men and women. The Vagina Monologues crosses that line.”

The Vagina Monologues have been performed in over 140 countries, working side by side with local and international campaigns to put a stop to violence against females. As mentioned in the monologue “Not-So-Happy Fact,” approximately 130 million girls have been victims of genital mutilation. For 15 years the global activist V-Day campaign has used The Monologues to spread awareness and raise money to continue funding the fight.

“I want [people] to appreciate, especially women, all the difficulties we have to encounter and everything we have to go through,” Hernandez said. “We all have something hidden, and we all need to speak out.”

Diana Cedillo

“The clitoris is pure in purpose.

It is the only organ in the body

workshops, classes, ensembles and recitals.

Asaf Kolerstein, principal cellist of La Orquesta Sinfonica del Estado de Mexico, and Dr. Tido Janssen, UTPA music and dance professor, will be guest artists and teachers. For applications and detailed information, contact Janssen at 6240220 or at janssent@ utpa.edu.

designed purely for The clitoris is of

pleasure.

simply a bundle

nerves: 8,000 nerve

fibers, to be precise.

”

- Vagina Happy Fact by Natalie Angier

read by Rosalva Resendiz

arts & life

April 5, 2012

9

Dorms participate in yearly athletic event

By Justin O’ Donnell The Pan American In the Residence Life House Cup, teams do not compete for money, trophies or glory. They compete for their community.

The residents of Bronc Village, Unity Hall, Troxel Hall and Heritage Hall vie for the House Cup throughout the academic year. Each month, the dorms put together teams to participate in athletic and nonathletic competitions.

Flag football was the name of the game during Monday’s competition. The largest of the halls, Unity, was divided into two teams, Odds and Evens.

Heritage and Troxel competed together against Unity, while Bronc Village residents played on a team of their own.

Heritage Hall/Troxel were named the victors after three games. The team is currently

leading the House Cup standings with Unity Odds hot on their heels in second place.

Eight different events make up the tournament, and the winner of the entire deal will be determined after the final event, soccer, next month. Unlike most competitions, however, the House Cup is not about rivalries as much as bringing people together.

“We organize and build community for the residents so that they feel more comfortable living [here] and so they have other people to relate to,” said Flor Martinez, Bronc Village event coordinator and UTPA alumna.

Martinez, who helps coordinate events for the over 800 student residents, said other events include volleyball, dodgeball and soccer. In addition to the physical competitions, the

tournament keeps itself wellrounded with mental contests like Jeopardy and Family Feud.

a senior double majoring in psychology and biology. “But with my entire floor or my

“It’s part of the game, you win some you lose some. It’s not so much about winning or losing, it’s about building community in our homes.”

- Rodolfo Duran III

Senior psychology major

The annual tournament, which began five years ago, allows residents to interact with students from other dorms and even folks from their own building they otherwise might not have met.

“I’m not only interacting with one person,” said Unity Hall resident Brittany Peña,

building and through that I can introduce this person to this other person that they might not have ever met otherwise. It’s a lot easier for people to get along and get to know each other than if they were confined to their bedrooms.”

Because the event was created as a friendly competition, participants remained in good

spirits and sportsmanlike even in defeat. Rodolfo Duran III’s team, Unity Odds, was defeated by Heritage Hall in the first round.

“They were really good and they gave us a good challenge,” said Duran, a senior psychology major from Harlingen. “It’s part of the game, you win some you lose some. It’s not so much about winning or losing, it’s about building community in our homes.”

Part of the goal is to engage students and make them feel more involved in their dorm community.

“A lot more people are talking to each other,” said Darral Simmons, senior finance major from New Jersey. “It brings out a lot more people who don’t (usually) interact with each other.”

Simmons is a Bronc Village team member who has lived in the dorms and competed in House Cup for three years. He

remarked how the event brought out people who usually keep to their own buildings, pointing out a group of spectators from different buildings gathered together in conversation.

Education major Julio Roel, quarterback of Heritage Hall, helped his team win the event, 38-14 against Unity Evens.

Roel commented, over the sound of his cheering teammates, on how his house won, explaining that its members were able to learn to work together as a team.

After the event, many of the residents got together and made plans for the rest of the evening.

Some mentioned returning to their dorms to play games while others were going out to eat.

“We want everyone to feel like they have a community,” Peña said.

“We have all these games so that (the dorms) can feel more homey.”

Maná Photo story by Norma Gonzalez

The Mexican rock band Maná kicked off the second leg of its Drama Y Luz tour April 3 at the State Farm Arena in Hidalgo. The tour started mid-2011 with 24 concerts scheduled in three countries. After a seven-month hiatus, the band added 17 performances across the United States, including six in Texas. Along with hits from their 18th album Drama Y Luz, Maná performed some fanfavorite hits from previous records.

Visit our website panamericanonline.com for more photos and video.

10

sports

April 5, 2012

Conference BALL Broncs look to rebound after rough stretch

12-6

Overall record

the road for the Broncs, and the team has a 3-6 record away from home. So they must be happy to be back at home for a while to open conference play.

“The travel definitely takes some getting use to, especially when you travel across differ-

13

Norma Gonzalez/The Pan American

armed - Junior Pitcher Colby McCasland winds up for a pitch during the Broncs' victory over the Texas A&M-CC Islanders March 20.

By Matthew Padron The Pan American After losing five of their last six games, the UTPA Broncs baseball team feels the urgency to get back on the roll they enjoyed during a hot 11-1 start.

It’s been a tough stretch for the club, but it’s given them a learning experience and has provided an un-quenching attitude for things to come such as a conference championship — something they know they will need to work extremely hard for.

“This is a team that believes in themselves and in their teammates,” Broncs coach Manny Mantrana said. “They are confident, and our confidence level is as good as it’s been all year.”

After losing all four games to New Mexico State last week, the Broncs stopped by San Antonio to pick up a “W” on their overall record by beating UTSA. They then traveled to Austin to face the UT Longhorns, competed well and gave the ‘Horns a fight

3-6

Road record

19-37 GWC record last two years

before coming up short against the nation’s No. 18 team 9-5.

The Broncs now open Great West Conference play tonight at 7 p.m. against the New York Institute of Technology. They will be playing at home for the first time in two weeks, where they have not lost at all this season.

9-0 Home Home record record Things are looking up for the Broncs as their next 10 games will be played at Edinburg Baseball Stadium, but conference play will test what

they are made of. It has yet to be seen whether they are serious conference contenders, and only their level of execution over the course of these upcoming games will tell.

Mantrana says he wants his players to understand that conference play is what they prepare for. Now that the Broncs have arrived at that point in the season, he wants them to take full advantage of the games and try to pull out as many wins as possible, especially since the stakes are higher.

“We would like to compete for a conference championship [and to do that], a 30-win season is a realistic goal for us this season,” the fourth-year coach said.

Although it will be tough, it definitely can be done, espe-

cially with the confidence and good character that this 2012 baseball team has carried.

Infielder Roger Bernal, the NCAA leader in batting average, has showcased phenom-

Remaining

road games

ent time zones,” Mantrana said.

“Your body has to adjust, and that takes a little time and will power.”

Mantrana understands that in order to win, the men must experience losing, it's what teaches winning.

“We are always looking to improve in all areas: as players, as students, as

coaches and as human beings,” he said.

Anybody can blame the losses due to the travel or to road games, but now that there’s a Great West Conference Championship and a 30-win season in sight and set in the eyes of the Broncs, it merely comes down to which conference team wants it more.

One can take into account the win at No. 8 Texas A&M or their 9-0 record at home, or winning by mercy rule five times, or their first win in their first ever trip to UT-Brownsville. They know what they’re made of and so does Mantrana as he leads a Broncs baseball team - whose confidence has no variableness into the beginning of conference play. As the rest of the season unwinds, there’s only one more that needs to know how “for real” the Broncs can be. The rest of the Great West conference.

.494

Bernal’s NCAA Leading Batting Avg.

enal hitting by getting a hit in almost half of the at-bats that he’s received, .494. Bernal went 2 for 3 with a double and a run scored against the Longhorns.

Senior infielder Vincent Mejia has also been playing well as of late. He hit a three-run home run, his third of the season, to tie the game in a crucial moment for the Broncs against the Longhorns. Junior Angel Ibanez is also key this season and carries a .333 batting average. Colby McCasland, recently named conference pitcher of the week, has been throwing exceptionally well by issuing 13 strikeouts in four appearances.

Thirteen of the remaining 31 games on the schedule come on

Ruben Gutierrez/The Pan American

Hey Batta, batta - Junior outfielder Derek Hagy swings at the ball during UTPA's win against Arlington Baptist College March 3.

sports

April 5, 2012

From here to there and back International tennis player fills niche for Broncs

By Dana Nazarova The Pan American

Every international student has a story. And that goes for the tennis athletes. But Rolf Niederstrasser isn’t the conventional transfer student.

He has gained experience in very unique ways along the path that eventually brought him to UTPA. Niederstrasser is a citizen of two ideologically opposed countries, Germany and Cuba.

He was born in Germany to a German father and Cuban mother and through his lifetime he and his parents have traveled back and forth from Cuba to Germany. He is a freshman tennis player for the Broncs.

At age 10, Niederstrasser had to leave Cuba and move to Germany in order to play in better

tennis academies and improve his tennis skills.

He traveled between a number of cities and played in several academies. Every time he moved, he had to adjust to the new circumstances, make new friends, and get used to the new environment. After playing several years in Germany and winning six tournaments, Niederstrasser decided to move back to Cuba where he graduated from high school; then he decided to make the move to the United States at age 18.

While living in three different countries, Niederstrasser learned how to adjust to each of them.

There are significant cultural differences between Europe, Cuba and America. In Cuba, people have a sense of united community and, no matter the

Ruben Gutierrez/The Pan American

backspin - Freshman Rolf Neiderstrasser extends to slice the ball during a match at the Orville Cox Tennis Center.

race, they see themselves proudly as Cubans without distinction or discrimination. The society is more relaxed and friendly and has a secure environment. Cuba has a special mix of simple, happy and honest life he said.

“We have a lot of artistic people,” Niederstrasser added.

“Good schools and good foundation for education. At the same time we really haven’t had a chance to prosper due to the economic and political blockade.”

In Germany, though, he faced a different environment, a more strict system and faster pace.

“When you live between two countries, it is like living in two places,” he continued. “You get to love both places and identify yourself with both of them. I want to learn more and more about my two very different cultures because Cuban and German cultures flow through my family.”

Though both countries seem different, in each case, peoples’ support was very significant along the way.

“In Cuba, people would always ask about my German side, where in Germany they would always be interested in [my] Cuban side,” Niederstrasser admitted.

At the same time, after one travels so much, a sense of home diminishes and the view opens up. In the States, he has had a different experience. The Valley society seems to be a little bit more conservative in some ways but at the same time more open in others.

For a moment it felt as if the Broncs were going to knock off the No. 2-ranked junior college in the nation, Laredo Community College. But in the end the Palominos were just too much.

It wasn’t a skill factor or a discrepancy in talent, but more of an effort and a “how bad do you want it” afternoon for the Broncs (now 7-8) who fell to LCC 6-1 on April 1. The only bright spot on the day for the home squad was senior Beau Bernstein.

“They were a good team, I was expecting a good team,” first-year coach Paul Goode said. “They had a weapon on every court and they competed and played well. I felt like we could’ve competed better on a couple courts. Beau Bernstein at one, he did a great job and

we gave ourselves chances to win the doubles point, so we did a lot of good things but just needed to bring a little bit more fire and emotion. Some of our guys just kind of didn’t bring it today.”

The afternoon started off promising for UTPA as the combination of Bernstein and Chetan Panditi won a doubles match with ease, 8-2, but soon after the Broncs would drop spots two and three in doubles, losing the point to the Palominos.

“I really thought that me and Chetan played really well,” Bernstein said. “We really like playing on our court here for sure. On your own court you know the surface and how the serves come off the court and the conditions. I feel like a lot of people have trouble with that. The ball comes off the court real fast here, and me and Chetan like to come inside

the baseline and pick it off and stuff, so that’s what we were doing a lot today.”

One could probably find excuses to cover up the Broncs’ lackadaisical effort against LCC, blaming the intense heat or perhaps maybe overlooking the Palominos because they come from only a Division II school, but Goode refuses to take those routes. He believes that the answer lies beneath.

“I don’t think that we think so highly of ourselves that we can come out and not be ready to bring absolutely everything we’ve got,” Goode said on playing the Division II foe. “I think every time we step on the court we have to be ready to play and give absolutely everything that we’ve got, and to play like it’s our last match every time.”

Even though the Broncs have lost their opening three matches of a five game

Sports Briefs Athlete of the week It was announced Friday, March 30 that senior runner Andrew Lopez was named Great West Conference Track and Field Athlete of the Week for his performance at the Victor Lopez Classic March 24.

Lopez earned a second-place finish in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:50.68, the best mark in the GWC this season. This is the senior’s second honor of the year after he earned one during the indoor season.

Program record

Ruben Gutierrez/The Pan American

Advantage - Freshman Rolf Neiderstrasser strikes the ball with a forehand swing during his singles match April 1.

“We are all pretty much people of different cultures living in one place,” Niederstrasser said about living here. “America has the unique circumstances of being a multiracial and multinational melting pot. In no other place can you find such diversity of heritages living side by side.”

When he arrived in America, he took a year off from tennis and was just an international student.

After watching the UTPA team

practicing, he decided to give it another shot. Niederstrasser has an overall singles record of 5-8 and a doubles record of 4-7 so far this season while majoring in political science and history.

“I’m pretty happy to be on the team and I’m very excited to see what else tennis is going to bring me in the future,” he said. “I always like to cite Cuba’s national hero and poet, Jose Marti, who says: ‘There is happiness in duty,

Positives in negatives Men’s tennis falls to No. 2 LCC

By Michael Saenz The Pan American

11

homestand, Goode feels that this loss will help them pick up momentum for the final two, all Southland Conference matches.

The Broncs will host the University of Texas at Arlington on April 9 at 11 a.m. and Lamar University on April 15 at 10 a.m. to close the regular season.

“I think tomorrow is a new day and a different match and a different type of team,” he said.

“I believe that we can win the rest of the matches. Every one of those matches are winnable, and we’ve shown throughout the season that we can win matches like that and we’ve played at that level. I think we will play at that level. We just have to come out and be a little bit more ready to play.”

The Broncs also fell to the Islanders of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Tuesday, April 3 5-2.

The UTPA men’s distance medley relay team shattered the program record in the event by more than 23 seconds on the final day of the 85th Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays on the University of Texas campus March 31. The Broncs recorded a time of 9:55.00, finishing in

Andrew Lopez 11th out of 17 teams in the competition. Andrew Lopez started the DMR by running the first 1,200 meters in 2:57; Edgar Moreno was the second leg and went 400 meters in 49 seconds; Sebastian Benavides ran the next 800 meters in 1:54; and anchor Martin Casse sped the final 1,600 meters in 4:13.

In total, the DMR competition accounts for 4,000 meters as four runners take part.

Cowboys in the Valley

Ruben Gutierrez/The Pan American

break point - Sophomore Chetan Panditi backhands the ball during his match against Laredo Community College April 1.

The UTPA athletics department announced that it will host a basketball game featuring a squad of Dallas Cowboys Saturday, April 28, to raise money for the athletics scholarship fund. There are seven members of the Cowboys who are scheduled to be in attendance at the Field House for a 2 p.m. game, including running back Demarco Murray, quarterback Stephen McGee, running back Phillip Tanner, tight end John Phillips, offensive tackle Tyron Smith, wide receiver Jesse Holley, and cornerback Teddy Williams.

The Cowboys will play the UTPA All-Stars that will consist of alumni of the Broncs men’s basketball program, UTPA leaders, community leaders, and local police officers and firefighters.

Page 12

the pan american

Aril 05, 2012