PICKIN’ ’BOUT POLITICS
RAGE IN CAGES
Austin Lounge Lizards bring satirical fold music to Texas State
Renegade Extreme Fighting premiers in Central Texas at Frank Erwin Center
SEE TRENDS PAGE 4
SEE SPORTS PAGE 10
TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS
www.UniversityStar.com
FEBRUARY 15, 2006
WEDNESDAY
TEXAS STATE TRIPLE THREAT
JAQUE IN THE BOX: Senior Jaque Iwuchukwu runs box drills during track practice Tuesday afternoon at Bobcat Stadium. Jaque won first place in the triple jump and eighth in the long jump at the Albuquerque Invitational.
VOLUME 95, ISSUE 54
Newer HPV tests available at Student Health Center By Magen Gray The University Star
More than 100 types of HPV exist. Candice Schwab, graduate assistant at the Health Education Resource Center, said that symptoms of HPV can include genital warts, but HPV can also exist without visible symptoms. Although not an actual test for the virus in women, if a Papanicolaou smear, or Pap test, returns abnormal results, HPV could be the cause. Most HPV cervical cell changes return to normal as the body’s immune system rejects the virus. However, if this does not occur, cell abnormality increases over a period of years, possibly developing into cervical cancer. “Cervical cancer is the changing of cells, which is shown in a Pap smear,” Schwab said. The Student Health Center now offers an advanced Pap test called ThinPrep Pap Test. According to a press release from Schwartz Communications, Inc., a public relations agency for technology and healthcare, it is common for women younger than 30 years of age to produce abnormal Pap test results due to the presence of HPV. If the ThinPrep Pap Test finds abnormalities, an HPV test can be conducted from the same Pap sample, saving the patient from a repeat visit to the gynecologist.
Feb. 14 was Valentine’s Day, the day celebrating love, and National Condom Day. According to ABC News, National Condom Day serves to remind the public about the importance of sexual protection. The American College Health Association’s 2005 National College Health Assessment found that only 43.2 percent of sexually active Texas State students used a condom the last time they had vaginal sex. According to sexually transmitted disease information produced by the Health Education Resource Center, two-thirds of all STDs occur in people 25 years of age or younger. Condoms greatly reduce the risk of contracting an STD. Texas State’s Health Education Resource Center estimates that the human papilloma virus, more commonly known as HPV, is one of the top-three sexually transmitted infections diagnosed at the Texas State Student Health Center. The other top two infections are chlamydia and herpes. According to pamphlets produced by the American Social Health Association, HPV is a virus that causes skin infection.
“The ThinPrep Pap Test is a liquid-based test. A sample is taken and put into a liquid to pull out abnormal cells. A Pap smear is an annual test, and if abnormal results come back to the patient, then the doctor has noticed a change or something in the sample looks different,” said Jasmine Fielding, assistant account executive at Schwartz Communications, Inc. Fielding said that patients must request the ThinPrep Pap Test. May 2006 marks the 10-year anniversary of Food and Drug Administration approval for the ThinPrep Pap Test as “significantly more effective” than conventional Pap smears. According to the press release, although HPV is primarily a benign disease, about 80 percent of sexually active people contract the sexually transmitted infection at some point. Health Education Coordinator Michael Wilkerson confirmed the current use of the ThinPrep Pap Test at the Student Health Center. Wilkerson said that studies show HPV may be linked to cancer in men, but it is only suggested. However, men need to treat HPV so they won’t spread it to their sexual partners. The SHC Women’s Clinic opened its doors in July 2004.
Internship fair offers students career opportunities
Armando Sanchez/Star photo
By Magen Gray The University Star
Track team flies to the top in Albuquerque By Carl Harper The University Star
A
t the Albuquerque Invitational, the biggest story of the meet and possibly of the year, involved senior Jacque Iwuchukwu, as she placed first in the triple jump and eighth in the long jump. She flew just .01 meters farther in the triple jump than San Diego State’s Decontee Kaye, with a jump of 12.85 meters. “It was her last jump, so it was really just a clutch deal,” assistant coach Blaine Wiley said. “She was focused and landed a huge
jump.” Iwuchukwu now leads the Southland Conference for this event. After placing second in the weight throw last week in Houston with a mark of 17.21 meters, Sarah Stultz continued that streak as she placed second with a throw of 17.80 meters. Wiley talked about Stultz’s performance last week and his expectations for her to throw farther as the season progresses. “She’s getting stronger each week and is getting closer to a NCAA provisional,” Wiley said about Stultz’s performance in Albuquerque. More exciting news broke out later in the running events as sophomore Katya Kostetskaya See THREAT, page 10
offer internships and jobs that won’t be at the fair,” Garrott said. Up to 10 documents, including résumés and cover letters, can be uploaded onto the student’s Job4Cats account. According to a Career Services press release, although some internships are unpaid, other potential employers may offer scholarships, academic credit and salaries. Vanessa Lee, mass communication junior, said that she has interned with the Lance Armstrong Foundation since September. “I want to work in nonprofit (public relations). You have to love a nonprofit organization because it’s not about the money. Since I’m working there now, I will appreciate it more later,” Lee said. According to the press release, along with a college education, internships make graduates more
Students will find spring, summer and fall internships offered to all majors at the Career Services Internship Fair on Thursday in the LBJ Student Center Ballroom. Between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., students are encouraged to speak with a variety of companies offering internships to all classifications. “The benefit of an internship over a job is that the internship is career related. It says to the employer that the student has experience in that field of study,” said Josie Garrott, associate director of Career Services. “The key in all of this is Jobs4Cats on the Career Services Web site. It probably takes about five minutes to register, and there are employers on Jobs4Cats who
marketable. The undecided students can try out potential career paths through internships. Karen Julian, assistant director of Career Services, coordinates internship opportunities and job shadowing, which allows students to follow companies in major Texas cities and Central Texas during Spring Break in March. The job shadowing application deadline is Feb. 17. Garrott said when attending the internship fair, students should dress business casual, have copies of their résumé and research their companies of interest ahead of time. A list of companies with background information and Web site links is posted on Jobs4Cats. For more information, visit www.careerservices. txstate.edu.
ASG collaborates with Auxiliary Services on bus contract By Clayton Medford The University Star
The Associated Student Government is working with Texas State Auxiliary Services on the details of a new service contract with Cognisa Transportation, the current provider of bus service to Texas State students. If ASG approves the renewal of the seven-year contract, which will increase the student transportation fee from $52 to $78 per long semester, then it will go to a student referendum for final approval. Currently, the aging fleet of maroon buses is not only unpleasant to the eyes and ears of students, but service disruptions have caused problems beyond aesthetics. Repetitive breakdowns and other mechanical problems with the nine-year-old buses led to the purchase of five new buses in August 2005, and a $10 increase in the student transportation fee. Manager of shuttle services at Auxiliary Services Paul Hamilton said the reason for what he calls “possibly the biggest increase we’ve ever seen” in the student transportation fee is not only for the purchase of new buses, but to ensure predictability and stability in cost and service. If the contract is renewed in the fall of 2007, when the current contract ex-
pires, Cognisa will immediately purchase 23 new buses for the Texas State routes. The new buses will be the same white Blue Bird XCEL models purchased in 2005 and will have approximately the same rider capacity as the current maroon buses, Hamilton said. An added bonus of the new buses is their capability to run on ultra-low sulfur diesel. The Environmental Protection Agency will require all diesel powered road vehicles to use the ultralow sulfur diesel by September 2006. Illnesses like chronic bronchitis and asthma have been attributed to particulate matter released by sulfur in diesel fuel. Hamilton said he was unsure when the cleaner diesel will become the standard for operation, but he said the university wants to buy it directly to avoid paying a federal tax. Once the new buses are put into rotation, Cognisa will reserve the 10 most able of the old buses. One purpose of keeping so many vehicles in reserve is to provide more buses during peak hours of service to compensate for demand increases throughout the length of the contract. Buses from the reserve fleet can also fill gaps created when newer buses undergo routine maintenance. ASG senators involved with the con-
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tract renewal have been addressing the problem of higher student fees from several angles, one of which is to increase the overall efficiency of the bus service. Hamilton said increased efficiency would also ensure the stability of the fee. “That is the one biggest reason for us to be more efficient than we are now,” Hamilton said. “We must increase efficiency in order for the $78 fee to be good for seven years.” Before their Feb. 6 meeting, ASG members and Hamilton discussed investigating parking lot utilization at certain hours, reducing hours on underused bus routes and encouraging students who live near a route to use their neighborhood buses instead of the commuter lots as ways to increase efficiency. During the discussion, communication studies senior and Sen. Cat Reed asked Hamilton how to “sell” a higher fee to students who are already struggling to pay for school. “The higher fee means new buses, new air conditioning, fewer breakdowns and it’s good for seven years,” Hamilton said. The possibility of the higher fee resulting in a surplus would be a positive outcome for students, Hamilton said. This “cushion” would cover a number
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of services, including any unexpected maintenance, an increase in fuel costs and possible integration with the Capital Area Rural Transit Service in Hays County. According to statistics compiled by Auxiliary Services through counts conducted at all heavy flow stops on campus, the maroon buses completed almost 2.5 million trips in 2004. One trip is defined as one rider boarding the bus and one rider exiting the bus. Additionally, the buses have driven between 175,000 and 200,000 miles each, according to the statistics. Zachery Cleghorn, account manager at Cognisa, said the relationship between Texas State and his company benefits the students. “This company knows the university, and we’ve always had a working relationship,” Cleghorn said. “Cognisa aims to please the university.” ASG President Jordan Anderson said the increase in the student fee would not hurt most students. “Holistically, the average student isn’t going to look at the individual fees, they are going to look at the sticker price — how much does it cost for them to go here,” Anderson said. Anderson said he plans to present legislation supporting the fee increase at the ASG meeting next Monday.
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TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS
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David Racino/Star photo WHEELIN’ AND DEALIN’: ASG is looking into a new service contract with Cognisa Transportation that would increase the student transportation fee from $52 to $78 in order to improve the quality of the tram transportation at Texas State.
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