01-31-2023

YDSA students campaign for higher student worker wages

By Carlota Pulgar News Contributor

Many services offered at Texas State are run by student workers who subjectively, may not be paid a livable wage, giving the title "broke college student" a new meaning. The Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA) at Texas State is seeking to raise wages for student workers to at least $15 an hour. The organization launched its labor campaign on Nov. 17 with a press conference and informational picket.

YDSA Co-chair Andrew Maglich, a political science sophomore, wrote the proposal and the chapter voted to make it their official campaign. Maglich, a former Alkek Library student worker, said he liked the job but struggled to compensate for the lack of pay.

"I worked at Alkek. It's a great job if the pay was livable," Maglich said. "I really enjoyed working at the library, I think there's a lot of good that comes from it. You can provide a lot of good services to people, but it just doesn't pay enough for people to be able to do that and live."

During his time as a student worker, he saw a merging of departments which affected his job and workload. This led him to realize the lack of a voice for student workers on campus.

"It was a decision that was like, fully opposed by every single student worker I talked to about it," Maglich said. "That was one driving factor to where I kind of realized that there's a lot of discontent in on-campus positions where student workers are not being paid enough, but they also don't have a voice on the job."

Noah Jefferson, a biology senior, worked as a desk assistant for the Department of Housing and Residential Life from his freshman year up until last semester. He was paid $9.50 an hour and said employees were told they were replaceable by the department when they complained about treatment.

"In my job the first point of contact for the dorms was the student workers, that front desk is the first person they’re going to," Jefferson said. "Pretty much every amenity that Texas State offer is done under the assistance and labor of students."

Larry Adisa, a communication studies senior, has worked as an orientation leader and as a PACE peer mentor. He was paid $10 an hour as a peer mentor and said student workers are integral to Texas State.

"They are basically like the blood of the campus. They basically keep everything running. The rec student workers, LBJ front desk student workers — everywhere is student workers," Adisa said. "So we have to make sure that student workers are taken care of because you always have to remember like, we're also going to classes. They always tell us that we should put our academics first, but we can't put our academics first if we're not being paid a livable wage."

Despite the pay, Adisa believes there are positive opportunities that come from working on campus like building connections and honing skills. Still, he believes there should be more benefits.

"We should definitely pride ourselves on doing more than just the bare minimum for students, especially here at Texas State," Adisa said. "We need to have some more benefits to working on campus [like] if you're working during lunchtime, they give you meal swipes or if you're working a job for the entire school year, they give you $200 in Bobcat Bucks."

According to Madeline Davila, director of the Office of Payroll and Tax Compliance, there are a lot of factors that go into the pay grade of student workers.

"It all depends on the position and also federal guidelines," Davila said. "How much you're going to get paid an hour above the minimum [wage] depends on your duties, responsibilities and your position that you held as a student worker."

THEATER

San Marcos theater company tells story of love in upcoming play

By Brianna Chavez Life & Arts Reporter

Love, tears and laughter are in the air at Broke Thespians Theatre Company in San Marcos, Texas, as the company gets ready for its opening production of "Love/ Sick" on Feb. 10 at the Price Center.

Written by playwright and actor John Cariani, the story is told through nine vignettes that each present different couples in different stages of their relationship. Starting with a love-at-first-sight encounter and ending with a divorced couple running into each other, the short plays express love in all of its forms.

The universal story of love that anyone can relate to is what co-director and co-founder of Broke Thespians Theatre Company Mitchell Oden loved about "Love/Sick." Compared to Cariani's popular play "Almost, Maine," "Love/Sick" is a darker yet even more hilarious play. Oden said that it will leave audiences emotional.

"'Love/Sick' shows the successes, failures and hardships of a relationship and will make you cry laughing," Oden said. "Crying both ways, happy and sad."

SEE THEATER PAGE 3

Texas State Athletics offers free tuition for half-court shot

By Rhian Davis Sports Contributor

At each of the remaining men’s and women’s basketball home games, one randomly selected student will have the chance to make a half-court shot and win one semester of free tuition.

The tuition will be awarded for the fall 2023 semester with a max payment of $4,611. If the winning students already receive scholarships from Texas State, that dollar amount will be subtracted from the half-court tuition winnings.

Broke Thespians Theatre Company rehearse lines and go over cues for "Love/Sick."

summer?

assignment.

Texas State finance freshman Braden Gregory shoots for a chance at free tution, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023, at Strahan Arena.

PHOTO BY SARAH MANNING

Texas State communication design senior Chinny Egbuna observes students entering the building, Thursday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Joann Cole Mitte Building. She checks if students enter the art galleries' and records how many enter with a clicker device.

PHOTO BY SARAH MANNING

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FROM FRONT UNIVERSITY

With these factors in mind, various departments that employ student workers use a pay scale that has been determined by the Office of Human Resources. As of September 2021, the pay scale of student workers and undergraduate instructional assistants ranges from $7.25 to $14 an hour.

The initial campaign by YDSA is going to be centered around university jobs in the public sector.

"Texas is a right-to-work state, and part of that means that public sector workers like those who work for the university don't have collective bargaining rights," Maglich said. "To kind of work around that, we’re instead launching a department-by-department pressure campaign, so the university is able to raise wages unilaterally across the board, but that’s a decision up to the Board of Regents."

YDSA has laid some groundwork for canvasing student workers and collecting information through an anonymous interest form regarding their jobs on campus.

"I don't think we've gotten any answers that said, across the board, yes, people can afford to live," Maglich said. "We really want to make sure that we're that we're building this campaign in a way that workers are comfortable in participating and don't like the fear that they're going to lose their jobs."

By following a department-bydepartment strategy, YDSA hopes to see the largest departments raise wages first so that smaller departments will follow suit. Maglich said they plan to use public media and public pressure to see results.

Texas is a right-to-work state without collective bargaining rights for public sector workers which means

TRANSPORTATION

public sector unions like the Texas State Employees Union are ineffective when negotiating with the university for pay raises.

This is not a union campaign, but rather a wage campaign. With this in mind, the purpose of the informational picket and press conference in November was not only to launch the campaign but also to help gain awareness for the cause.

"I think for a lot of people who are fortunate enough to not have to work on campus ... they might just not know that Texas State pays so low," Maglich said. “I think that's part of you know ... just a lot of people just aren't aware that the university pays so low."

Maglich describes the effects that this campaign can have if achieved can help students and their quality of life.

"I think I think it would be immense. When the university is undervaluing and underpaying student

workers, they're underinvesting in everyone because it's the student workers that make the university run." Maglich said. "If workers are not able to afford their rent or food, then they're not able to do the best job that they can at the university. A lot of employers want to talk about work performance or productivity, but if you're not being paid enough to survive, how are you going to perform your best?"

More information on Young Democratic Socialists of America at Texas State can be found at https://www. dsasanmarcos.org/ydsa. The Campus Worker Interest Form can be accessed at https://linktr.ee/txstydsa.

By Christian Martinez News Contributor

Students continue to raise concerns about parking on campus regarding space, tickets and ticket prices. Texas State Parking Services have cleared the air about different questions students have and what the plan is for future parking issues.

Steven Trentice, associate director for parking and transportation services, works with various departments like the Student Government and the Office of the President to figure out different parking rules and regulations.

A large concern among students regarding parking is the price of a semester pass. Trentice said current parking pass prices have been in place for years.

"Those prices were developed in 2014 and they haven't changed,” Trentice said. "We're not a rulemaking body. We don't write the rules. We don't write the policies. Of course, anytime something may change, or somebody makes a recommendation for change, we're involved but we don't have the authority."

tiny little thing in the world goes up to a vice president that we talked about rates, all the rules and regulations are essentially blessed at the president's cabinet. Not on a weekly basis, but if it's substantial or significant would have to go through that level," Trentice said.

Since Texas State welcomed its largest freshman class this past fall, some students raised concerns about how that would affect parking spaces, but Trentice said they have no correlation to parking space availability.

"The new freshman class hasn’t affected parking at all," Trentice said. "There's no correlation between the number of people on campus and the number of vehicles brought. There's no predictive element that you can run a power analysis to determine a correlation. Why does that mean more cars? Where are people drawing that correlation? Where's the data to support that that's the way it is?"

Currently, there are no plans to create any new parking accommodations for students according to Trentice.

"Even if we wanted to, there’s no more space to build ... The school cannot accommodate that. The infrastructure around the school, and the roads, there's only three major points of ingress to this university," Trentice said.

Sydney Morgan, a business management junior, has had negative experiences with parking and transportation services on campus, even having her car broken into.

"I genuinely detest the lack of parking that campus offers to students," Morgan said. "My freshman year I couldn’t afford to park my car at my dorm, as a result, my car was broken into and hit while being parked far away at the Mill Street perimeter lot. Parking Services seems dedicated to ensuring they get their funds from passes and continuous ticketing but can’t be bothered beyond that. The price of parking passes for the value received is a rip-off and I believe parking should be more affordable."

Catching Valentinis-Dee, an urban and regional planning senior, and Taylor Tade, a political science sophomore, are both advocates for their petition to reduce the parking ticket fine from $40 to $20.

"The university has the capability to lower these fines, and our students are being treated unfairly because they are not already doing it," Tade said. "This is an unfair charge to our students, most of who are already paying hundreds of dollars to park on campus. We are a university that swears we protect low-income students, and that's not being reflected in this policy."

Valentinis-Dee encourages students to speak out for what they believe in and said that other people might believe in the cause too.

"The university pays attention when you speak, and change is possible. When students come together to talk about something that they need, the university understands that students are facing challenges with parking every single day. If the students are ready to talk about it, then it can be changed."

To President Kelly Damphousse, the push to create more space for parking via parking garages is not feasible at the moment due to costs.

"You could build parking garages and so every parking garage cost about $40 million and so I could do that but I'm going have to raise parking fees to do that or raise tuition or something," Damphousse said.

Trentice said that parking and transportation services just enforce the rules, they do not make them.

"It is just a change within something that exists that every

For more information about parking and transportation services at Texas State, visit https://www.parking.txst.edu/. For more information about the parking fine petition, visit @ ParkTXST on Instagram.

2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 *AVERAGED ALL MONTHLY MEDIANS FROM ZUMPER.COM* $995.67 $1,008.5 $1,129.17

$1,205.25

$1,379

Year-to-year

change is about 10 percent increase

University addresses parking concerns

Texas State Matthew Street Garage residenital parking thrid floor is completely full minus two handicap spots, Friday, Jan. 20, 2023.

PHOTO BY SARAH MANNING

& ARTS

Bri Bagwell: a new voice in country

By Conner Ek Life and Arts Contributor

Born in Las Cruces, New Mexico, country musician Bri Bagwell keeps with the traditionalism of country pioneers by paving her own path while sticking to her roots and prides herself on carrying the torch of Texas country music that so confidently stands as a pillar for the music she was raised on.

"My family's always been like, 'do music while you can,' and I'm so thankful for that and it wasn't ever like I didn't have stage parents either," Bagwell said. "I've been playing guitar for 16 years 17 years, but I you know, I always joke [that] I play well enough to write songs. I know all the chords but I don't have any desire to like shred or anything."

Bagwell continued to pursue music throughout her life until attending the University of Texas at Austin. She started to play music and officially perform her original work during her senior year.

"It was super welcoming, and they had like a Texas country Monday nights at the first bar that I played at on Sixth Street that's no longer there, which is sad," Bagwell said. "I would play the reddirt-Monday and everyone was super kind and super nice and then I actually would come down to San Marcos a lot."

By frequenting the Central Texas area for shows and performing at venues along the I-35 corridor, Bagwell gained an audience of supporters. She played at Cheatham Street Warehouse in San Marcos as well as other venues in the surrounding areas including New Braunfels, San Antonio and Austin for the first few years of her career going into the early 2010s. Her first official studio release, "Banned from Santa Fe," was released in 2011.

Channeling stage presence and aesthetics of Texas country, Bagwell is a force to be reckoned with, being nominated Best Female Vocalist from the Texas Regional Radio Music Awards. Bagwell has been regarded as one of Texas' brightest female stars to date by People Magazine, interacting with

FROM FRONT THEATER

legends and even getting to work with some of her childhood heroes.

"I was at The Sound Emporium [and] Robert Plant and Alison Krauss [were] recording next door and I walked out and we got to hang out and talk to them. He just wanted my bandana and I wouldn't give it to him. I was like, 'I'm making a record. You could buy it,'" Bagwell said. "And then I got to open for Willie Nelson, and he asked me to sing with him and then he signed my guitar so I just retired it."

guitar."

Bagwell believes in the power of local music. She played a show at Enchanted Ranch, a wedding venue in San Marcos, on Jan. 20.

"After the busy fall wedding season, we decided it was time to showcase our space as a concert venue," Becki Phelps, the venue manager for Enchanted Ranch, said. "Who better to introduce us to the music community than Bri? She's well known locally, and her talent has taken her all over the globe, so her

KZSM, a local San Marcos radio station, hosts a variety of musical artists on air, on their live country session every Friday from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Bagwell was a guest on air for an interview with Blake Farrar. He said they were happy to have her on air and to highlight a local country music artist.

"Bri Bagwell is one of the hardest working musicians in Texas and we were proud to have her in studio to talk about her newest album Cabeza y Corazon," Farrar said. "The songs on this record are beautifully written and produced, highlighting a variety of influences. Not only is Bri extremely talented but she is also a class act who’s humble, hungry and determined to leave a legacy as she hangs her hat with the best of 'em."

To keep up with Bri Bagwell and her music, visit @bribagwell on all social media platforms.

fan base is wide."

Bagwell blends her interpretation of traditional, classic country music with flecks of her individuality and her Las Cruces influences. It all culminates in her most recent album "Corazon y Cabeza" which was released last August.

"If you look at just what country music has been, you look at the people that were like 'screw Nashville, we're doing it our own way.' It's like the outlaws, you know, the Willie Nelsons, Johnny Cashes," Bagwell said. "They weren't considered country and now they are country legends. I think it's just sticking true to who you are and mine is country music with maybe a little Spanish mixed in or some flamenco

Rehearsals started at the end of November at the Price Center with a complete read-through with the cast. According to Oden, rehearsals were very different than the usual plays, since nine individual scenes needed to be rehearsed with various actors on stage. Co-directors Leah Pullin and Oden collaborated with the actors about their roles.

"We would talk about their character, their possible objectives, their wants and needs, and create a backstory that we liked," Oden said. "We also wanted the actors to feel connected to their characters so we made sure to listen to our actors."

Pullin, who joined the theater company last year and also serves as its parliamentarian, said the turnout of people who auditioned for "Love/Sick" was the biggest she'd ever seen. This is her first time directing with the company, having only had experience in her college classes at Texas State. She said she has a newfound respect for directors after being on the other side of a production.

"'Love/Sick' is a very good show for me to jump into directing because I get to take 10-minute scenes and work with them," Pullin said. "It's been a lot of fun and everyone involved is incredible to work with."

The Broke Thespian Theatre Company had its beginnings in a Shakespeare class at Texas State in 2019. Oden and his co-founder Nate Nelson would hold theater productions in Centennial Hall and wanted to bring the experience to a wider audience.

Pullin grew up in San Marcos and has loved acting since she was young. She remembers her parents having to travel around Texas to take her to auditions and is glad that there's now a place for anyone wanting to enjoy theater from the audience or from on stage.

"I think having opportunities in San Marcos makes it a lot more accessible for those who want to do theater and be exposed to theater," Pullin said. "Sometimes kids get to see theater here for the first

Phelps said Bagwell's fanbase and audience range is national which has helped bring publicity to Enchanted Ranch.

"She really puts on a great show," Phelps said. "Her talented songwriting skills mixed with her voice is just something you've gotta experience."

Bagwell's sets consist of her newer songs, the ones off of "Corazon y Cabeza" that she is the proudest of as well as classics that fans love. Her musical influences like Selena Quintanilla and Spanish culture mix with her storytelling ability in her songs.

time, which I really appreciate."

Oden expressed that his main goal for the company is to be seen as a community theater for all, whether an actor has performance experience or not. San Marcos has a flourishing art scene and vibrant music scene, but public theater was something that he noticed was missing. While he admired Texas State's theater program, he said it's great to have a place for anyone who wants to pursue their acting passions.

"Our biggest goal is to have this community theatre here in San Marcos that's affordable and open to everybody," Oden said. "The town has art, it has music and now has theater."

Six of the "Love/Sick" actors are Bobcats. Hanna Prince, a public relations freshman, is acting with Broke Thespians for the first time and has two roles in "Love/Sick." In scene one, "Obsessive Impulse," Prince will play the role of a woman who meets a man at a grocery store, and in scene four, "The Answer," she will play the character Celia who is getting ready for her wedding day. Prince's love for theater led her search to find local theater groups in San Marcos and was excited to discover Broke Thespians. After discovering the theater company through Instagram, she took it as her sign to join and auditioned for "Love/Sick."

"I was super excited, like, this was my chance," Prince said. "So I auditioned and I'm super excited to be part of the production."

Jacob Zimmerman, a theater freshman, decided to audition for the production after Prince informed him about Broke Thespians. This will also be Zimmerman's first production with the theater company. In scene four he will act alongside Prince as Keith, the groom who gets tense and jittery before his marriage to Celia. Scene seven titled "Forgot" has him playing the role of Kevin, a husband who celebrates his wife's birthday.

Zimmerman said Broke Thespians brings a sense of community to theater. He believes joining the company is a great change of pace for anyone, whether they are pursuing a theater degree or not.

"Not coming from a background of community theater, this is a fun and new experience," Zimmerman said. "There's now new opportunities for people to go do theater if it's one of their passions."

The nine scenes are different from each other yet all come together to create a love story that anyone can relate to. Zimmerman encourages people to come to see "Love/Sick" to watch the story of love and its challenges told through various short plays unfold on the stage. Prince said for anyone looking for a one-ofa-kind, laugh-out-loud experience, "Love/Sick" is the play to see.

"These individual love stories have a twist, it's insanely comedic," Prince said. "This show will be a really unique experience to come see."

"Love/Sick" will be shown at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 10-11 and 17-18, and at 2:30 p.m. on Feb. 12 and 18 at the Price Center located at 222 W San Antonio St.

For tickets and more information, visit https://www. brokethespianstheatrecompany.org/now-playing.

Bri Bagwell poses for the cover of her album "Corazon y Cabeza."

PHOTO COURTESY OF HALEY HAYES

Seek interdisciplinary opportunities

By Andrew Hodge Opinions Contributor

The benefits of a well-rounded education are worth pursuing.

Texas State is an institution dedicated to expanding the horizons of human understanding. But like all universities, Texas State eventually hits a wall in this pursuit: the walls between different academic fields.

Classification helps clarify and allows different fields to have appropriate and specialized standards. However, it also means that there are inherent limitations to each field. For that reason, students should attempt to pursue an interdisciplinary education.

Luckily, many programs already exist at Texas State that can help students incorporate Interdisciplinary into their undergraduate education.

First, students can consider choosing a minor. Although choosing a minor that closely complements their major is encouraged, choosing one that provides a greater breadth of experiences might be valuable. This will give students opportunities to expand their horizons and find exciting new ways to bring both fields together in and out of the classroom.

Second, students can join a club focused on topics they are interested in, even if it is not related to their studies. For example, the Texas State Film Club is open to all students passionate about film regardless of their major or minor. According to Texas State's Student Organizations Council database, there are over 300 organizations on campus with interests ranging from Aquatic Biology to Wakeboarding.

Students can also look into applying for the Honors College. According to its website, The Honors College emphasizes interdisciplinary learning methods meaning students from all majors are encouraged to take classes that they find interesting, even if it doesn't relate to their major or minor. Honors students can even minor in Honors Studies, which allows them to combine this

flexibility with the opportunity to study abroad.

Peter Tschirhart, a senior lecturer in the Honors College, said honors courses are designed from the ground up with an interdisciplinary mindset.

"We find faculty from their home discipline and we ask them, 'what would this problem look like from another point of view?'" Tschirhart said. "You're not typically going to find a pure history course here. You're going to find a course which includes public outreach or aesthetics."

Students can get involved in the Common Experience during their first year. As the nation’s number one initiative of its kind, the Common Experience is a yearly collection of events that transcends the barriers between disciplines, all united by a single theme. While students may dismiss the Common Experience as irrelevant to their academic plans, it would be better

to take advantage of the opportunity it represents to expand their horizons.

This year's Common Experience is Systems Thinking, a discipline that examines the systems surrounding us. One of the systems in which college students are most embedded in academia. By its very nature, this system divides human knowledge into boxes to better categorize it. While it is a valuable system, it is still an artificial construct and has limitations.

Interdisciplinary education is not without its detractors, who typically point out that there is nothing in the job description of an engineer which indicates that they need to know anything about interpretive dance or gender studies; doing so is decried as impractical and unnecessary. However, this line of thought ignores the benefits of having diverse viewpoints.

Todd Salmi, a minister for United Campus Ministry at Texas State, said

every academic discipline has strengths and weaknesses.

"Each field offers a gift in how it views the world, but it also has certain blinders and shortcomings that it doesn't consider," Salmi said. "You do need data, but it's also important to hear people's stories."

Students benefit from recognizing the value of seeing our scholarship as part of a single, larger project we are all working toward. Interdisciplinary principles have facilitated some of the most incredible breakthroughs, innovations and discoveries. Leonardo Da Vinci, George Washington Carver, Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein made significant advancements in multiple fields. Their knowledge of one area often gave them a unique insight into another, allowing them to see problems from a unique angle and craft novel solutions. This same spirit lives on today, as Popular Science reports, in projects like a new satellite design based on origami. Don't think the benefits only extend to academic research. Interdisciplinary education is well-suited for the modern workplace. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average person will have about 12.4 jobs in their lifetime. Gone are the days when people could make a career out of a narrow set of skills. By broadening their horizons, students can equip themselves with the necessary skills.

Einstein wrote that the sciences and humanities are "branches of the same tree." By stepping outside the box, students can enhance their college experience and benefit from the freedom and innovative potential of interdisciplinary education.

- Andrew Hodge is an English and communications senior

The University Star welcomes Letters to the Editor from its readers. All submissions are reviewed and considered by the Editor-in-Chief and Opinions Editor for publication. Not all letters are guaranteed for publication.

ILLUSTRATION BY EVA BOWLER

Opinions in The University Star are not necessarily those of our entire publication, Texas State University’s administration, Board of Regents, School of Journalism and Mass Communication or Student Publications Board.

STAR SNAPS

Texas State biology senior Marianna Saucedo (right) provides information to psychology sophomore Hannah Lee about the Women in Medicine Club, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023, at the LBJ Ballroom. Texas State's Organization Fair allows students to find like-minded groups to network with and join a community.

PHOTO BY JEFFREY HALFEN

Texas State studio art freshman Izzie O'Brien looks at a camera obscura their art core class made, Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2023, at Joann Cole Mitte Building. Any light within the studio was covered except for a tiny hole through the window, which created the reflected image on the poster paper.

PHOTO BY SARAH MANNING

Texas State political science senior Serenity De Leon (left) provides information to political science senior Julia Charles about the Supporting Women in Political Science Club, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023, at the LBJ Ballroom.

PHOTO BY JEFFREY HALFEN

Texas State senior forward Nighael Ceaser (22) layups the ball against Georgia Southern University, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023, at the Strahan Arena. The Bobcats won 70-67.

PHOTO BY SARAH MANNING

Carson Weaver Sports Editor starsports@txstate.edu

Bryan Miller, executive senior associate athletics director, said the idea for this promotion came directly from Texas State President Kelly Damphousse.

“He is a supporter of all things Texas State Bobcats,” Miller said. “He comes to several games and wanted to do a promotion that he thought students would get excited about... we want all students to know that they’re all equally able to participate in it... it truly is random. We wanted it to be fair for everybody."

To take part in the challenge, students must scan into the games with a valid student ID and must be enrolled in courses for the spring 2023 semester. Participants will be randomly selected and notified via email or phone. The selected students will be notified as the game approaches halftime and the shot will take place at some point in the second half of the game in order to give students as much time as possible to arrive.

"I think athletics can provide a great way for students to engage with the university," Damphousse said. "It's all about all those things, creating experiences for students they might not think about on their own. They may be sitting in a dorm room going, 'I don't know what to do tonight.'"

Participants will have only one opportunity to sink the shot at each game. There will be two winners —

one for the men’s game and one for the women’s.

There is a chance that no students will make the shot at the games. If this occurs, all previously selected participants will have the opportunity to attempt the shot once more at one of the remaining home games.

If nobody makes the shot then all Texas State students in attendance will have the chance to participate. Once the shot is made then nobody else will have the chance to compete.

“[This is] a good opportunity to give people a chance to save up for the following spring semester instead of worrying about the one that's in front of them,” Ailed Garza, a political science freshman, said.

Though not everyone will win free tuition, every selected participant will attend a lunch with Damphousse. Damphousse wanted to be sure that each student was able to walk away from the promotion with something meaningful.

“I think it's nice because it shows that he cares about all of the people at Texas State, especially with it being his first year and trying to be in the community as much as possible,” Garza said.

Miller said students can expect to see more events like this at Texas State in the future.

“We have promotions that happen across the board at all of our sporting

events,” Miller said. “In terms of free tuition continuing on, that will be a discussion after basketball season to see how successful this promotion was.”

According to men’s basketball head coach Terrence Johnson, this is a shot that students will just need to have fun with. It’s not the type of shot that one necessarily prepares for.

“You might need a little bit of luck,” Johnson said. “Just don’t come up short. If you can go long, you can give yourself a chance... in a world as divisive as we have right now, we want things that will bring people together, and there’s nothing better to do that than sports,”

Damphousse said that increased attendance from promotions like this can have longer-lasting positive effects on the university.

"The more students are engaged, the more likely they are to be successful, to retain, to graduate in a timely manner and have a great experience and someday become donors," Damphousse said. "It's also about the impact that has on the game itself and about the impact that has on the fans."

The schedules for remaining basketball games and other events can be found on the Texas State Athletics website.

Into the history books: Texas State track stars break records

By Xavier Zamarron Sports Reporter

The Texas State track and field team has come out blazing to kick off its 2023 indoor season. In just the first two meets of the season, the team has broken eight school records, including a few of their own.

On Jan. 14, the second day of the season’s opening meet, the Corky Classic in Lubbock, Texas, history was made.

Senior Sedrickia Wynn nabbed her first-ever school record when she ran an 8.28 in the women’s 60-meter hurdles. After breaking the record and setting a personal best, Wynn couldn’t believe what she had accomplished.

“I was kinda shocked,” Wynn said. “My coach had told me I broke it and I was just like ‘really, I did?’ I’m still in shock now because I was just like wow, it’s only the first meet and I broke a record already.”

Trent Edgerton, Texas State’s assistant coach for sprints, hurdles and relays, was happy to let Wynn enjoy the moment, but also wanted to make sure his star stayed locked in.

“She verbally expressed that she was in shock cause she didn’t know she could run that fast, but we quickly kind of had to regroup because she had a busy day, so once she ran, she had to get right back on the track. We let her embrace the moment, but reminded her, ‘hey we still got some work to do.’”

Senior Dominick Yancy bested his own school record by running a 20.97 in the men’s 200-meter and helped break a 37-year-old school record as part of a men’s 4x400 relay team that ran a 3:08.23.

Yancy, who bested his old record of 21.15 in the men’s 200-meter, said he was eager to hit the track before he went on to make school history.

“I was feeling great, you could ask coach Edgerton,” Yancy said. “I was anxious, I wanted to get out there, I wanted to run, I kept telling him, ‘I’m so ready to run’ and I just proved it out there. Mentally I was ready, physically I was ready, I was just ready to go.”

After resetting the record, Yancy was excited and happy with his accomplishment but said he likes to take a different perspective when reflecting on his success.

“It’s a [personal record] so for me, I didn’t really look at it as a record,” Yancy said. “It was just a [personal record] for me and I was just happy with that. That’s what track is really all about, just getting better and better each time you step on the track. That’s the feeling I like the most, not so much the record, but seeing myself progress.”

Yancy’s efforts in the Corky Classic led him to be named the Sun Belt Men’s Track Athlete of the Week. Texas State’s hot start turned the heat even higher the following weekend, as the track and field team went on to break five more school records.

The second meet of the 2023 indoor season, the Red

Harrell injury creates opportunity for new faces

By Carson Weaver Sports Editor

During the first half of a Texas State men’s basketball 81-73 loss against Marshall on Jan. 19, graduate guard Mason Harrell didn’t appear in the second half due to an undisclosed injury.

“He was going up for a floater and kind of took a shot… definitely impaired him for the rest of the game [against Marshall],” head coach Terrence Johnson said following the loss against Marshall. “Mason’s a tough player… he’s been knocked down a whole bunch of times and gotten back up… this particular time he wasn’t able to respond in the second half.”

This injury, which has been acknowledged but not fully revealed by Johnson, has kept him out of the lineup for three games thus far against conference opponents. The absence of Harrell, who leads the Bobcats this season with 16.2 points per game (PPG), has forced other contributors on the team to get more minutes on the court.

Raider Open in Lubbock, Texas, saw Wynn set the school record for the women’s 60-meter sprint with a time of 7.33 and reset her own record in the women’s 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.14. A performance she still couldn’t believe.

“Going into the next meet [I knew] what the record was because I had just broke it,” Wynn said. “So I just looked up at the board and I saw that 8.1 and I was just like, ‘wow, really? I did that?’”

Yancy also collected another school record with a 46.48 in the men’s 400-meter and saw senior teammate Bervensky Pierre match his 200-meter record of 20.97. Senior Daniel Harrold also broke the school record for men’s 60-meter hurdles with a time of 7.80.

Edgerton knows that setting eight school records in a matter of one week is a big deal, but he knows the season is still young and that his team must remain focused.

“It’s been a really humbling experience because to have broken that many school records in the first two meets, and those were long-standing records, it just goes to show how much work they put in,” Edgerton said. “The buy-in that everyone has in our program and what we’re trying to accomplish, it just says a lot about us as a whole. At the same time, I still have to keep 10 toes down and keep pushing forward.”

Wynn is on the same page as her coach. She knows what she’s already done is incredible, but there’s still more to do.

“I’m enjoying the moment, but I’m also trying to build off it because it’s only the second meet,” Wynn said. “Running track and field, athletes have ups and downs so I’m just taking it in and using it to motivate myself to keep going.”

The Red Raider Open was certainly an “up” for Wynn and it earned her a spot as the Sun Belt Women’s Track Athlete of the Week, making it the second week in a row a Texas State athlete has earned the award.

All this early success can be difficult to put into perspective, but Yancy said he knows to cherish every second.

“Just being out here every day, healthy, being able to do something I love doing, that’s my favorite part,” Yancy said. “I’m soaking in every moment because I know it’s not gonna last forever."

The night of Harrell’s injury, three Bobcats picked up the slack of the leading scorer and finished with career-high points; senior guard Drue Drinnon finished with 17, freshman guard Jordan Mason finished with 10 and junior forward Nate Martin finished with 16.

“Understand that there’s a void to be filled,” Martin said. “If no one steps up to it… it’s going to lead to hurting us.”

The void was filled by Mason the following game, a 60-51 loss to Louisiana on Jan. 21, when he netted a career-high 19 points and spent 32 minutes on the court, nearly doubling his season average minutes of 16.2.

In a 70-67 win on Jan. 26 against Georgia Southern that snapped a three-game losing streak, junior guard Davion Coleman also stepped up in lieu of Harrell’s injury. With a season average of nine minutes on the court, Coleman spent 34 minutes on the court in the victory and finished with a careerhigh 16 points.

In the victory, Mason finished with 12 points in 33 minutes, his third straight game with 10 or more points. Johnson said that defensively, Mason still needs to adjust but he believes in his player and is happy with how he’s stepped up.

“It’s not that often where you call a play down the stretch for a freshman,” Johnson said. “The sky's the limit for the kid.”

In a competitive Sun Belt Conference, the Bobcats have missed its leader, both in scoring and on the court. Coleman said, however, that the mindset of the team has helped them throughout Harrell’s injury.

“Our team is so connected that it doesn’t matter who comes off the bench or who starts,” Coleman said. its leader, both in scoring and on the court. Coleman said, however, that the mindset of the team has helped them throughout Harrell’s injury.

“Our team is so connected that it doesn’t matter who comes off the bench or who starts,” Coleman said.

Texas State freshman guard Jordan Mason (5) drives down the court against Georgia Southern University, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023, at the Strahan Arena. The Bobcats won 70-67.

PHOTO BY SARAH MANNING

Senior runner Sedrickia Wynn competes at the 2022 Sun Belt Indoor Track Championship, Monday, Fe. 21, 2022.

PHOTO COURTESY OF TEXAS STATE ATHLETICS

Senior runner Dominick Yancy competes at the 2022 Sun Belt Indoor Track Championship, Monday, Feb. 21, 2022.

PHOTO COURTESY OF TEXAS STATE ATHLETICS