THE
PAN AMERICAN
T h e S t u d e n t N e w s p a p e r o f T h e U n i v e r s i t y o f Te x a s - P a n A m e r i c a n
November 30, 2006
Students distraught over canceled classes By JAVIER CAVAZOS The Pan American Every semester the administration at The University of Texas-Pan American is faced with the difficult decision of whether to cancel certain classes, for various reasons. For many students, a canceled class is more than
just a schedule change. It can have serious ramifications. “As international students we have to take 12 hours in order to remain in the U.S. validly,” said Benjamin Nowak, a senior computer science major who is an exchange student from Lüneburg, Germany. Nowak and Felix Eckhardt, anoth-
er German exchange student, had their computer networking classes canceled this fall. For them, the problem was not so much the cancellation, but how they were notified about it. “We needed letters from the international office for each of our professors letting them know they have international students in their class,” said Nowak.
When Nowak arrived at the university’s international office they gave him four letters, but he had registered for five classes. “I asked about where the fifth letter was and they said the networking class had been canceled,” Nowak said. To verify the notice, Nowak and Eckhardt went to the office so Eckhardt
could receive his letters as well. “They only gave me three letters,” said Eckhardt, who was enrolled in four classes. The office informed them that their networking class had been canceled and at least Eckhardt would have to replace it in order to fulfill the full-time course-
See CANCELED page 12
Nursing program aims to end shortage trend By EDWARD ELGUEZABEL The Pan American
Rafael Navarro Roux/The Pan American COLORFUL - An enthusiastic Rigoberta Menchu-Tum, a Nobel Peace Prize winner from Guatemala, spoke to a packed Student Union Theater Tuesday night.
Nobel laureate proves crowd-pleaser By CLAUDETTE GONZALEZ The Pan American As the lights dimmed at the Student Union Theater Tuesday night, students, faculty, staff and community members filled every corner of the room. Every seat was taken and students stood along the walls, sat on the floor,
even perched on the steps leading up to the stage. The attraction? The controversial indigenous rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta MenchuTum. “We have studied her works. We have read her story. Now, we’ll hear her speak,” said Iracema Silva, the president
of the University Program Board, who introduced Menchu-Tum, the second speaker in the 2006-2007 Distinguished Speaker series. To thunderous applause, MenchuTum walked on stage waving the colorful fringed Guatemalan shawl that lay around her shoulders. Opening her
See MENCHU page 12
For Gracie Mellen, working in an environment where the adrenaline runs through your body on a daily basis is an exciting experience. However, doing this while setting someone else’s needs before your own is a sacrifice few people actually make. Mellen, a former registered nurse and now clinical instructor for The University of Texas-Pan American’s nursing program took on this “life of sacrifice” for many years. She worked at McAllen Medical Center starting in 1966, where she helped save hundreds of lives. “Being a nurse has made my life rewarding,” Mellen, who left nursing in 2004, said. “Seeing how my skills made a difference between life and death on a patient is what makes all that sacrifice be worth it, and I don’t regret a single day I did not attend a social gathering to attend an emergency at the hospital.” However, despite the field’s rewards, the American Hospital Association reported in April that approximately 118,000 registered nurses are needed to fill vacant positions nationwide. In addition, the Health Resources and Services Administration projects that the nursing shortage could grow to more than one million by 2020.
At UTPA, the nursing program is exploring ways to combat the growing problem. LACK OF SERVICE To Mellen, this shortage may even call for desperate measures, as baccalaureate programs are turning applicants away because of a shortage of faculty and clinical training opportunities. “I turned to teaching because I found it time to give back to people that are working to become nurses, and hope to prepare the nurses we need to avoid having to take in nurses from different countries to cover the manpower – or womanpower for that matter – that can be covered by our people,” Mellen said. Efforts to recruit foreign nurses to fill job vacancies have resulted in 95,000 of the 2.7 million nurses in the United States coming from outside the States. According to the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Hospital Organizations, they come primarily from the Philippines, China and India. This opens up an opportunity for American candidates. Every year, UTPA works to have more opportunities that will help nursing students find the field more compelling while they are in school, to help ensure that they are in it for the passion, Mellen said. “I think that it is important to show
See NURSES page 12
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