EAT ‘EM UP
S OCCER SHUTOUT Late goals keep ’Cats winless in 3-0 loss to
Tailgating: 101 has good eats for the perfect pre-game party.
Texas Tech
SEE TRENDS PAGE 7
SEE SPORTS PAGE 14
DEFENDING THE FIRST AMENDMENT SINCE 1911
WWW.UNIVERSITYSTAR.COM
SEPTEMBER 6, 2007
THURSDAY
VOLUME 97, ISSUE 7
‘Back to basics’
CURRENT EVENT
campaign proposed by Texas State student, hopeful councilman By Matthew Champion Special to The University Star
Spencer Millsap/Star photo The San Marcos River will be one of the main points of focus of the newest Texas State Common Experience Series “The Water Planet: A River Runs Through Us.” The series will start with the screening of the film The Unforeseen at 8 p.m. Sept. 11 at Sewell Park. For more SEE PAGE 4.
A&E falls short on agreement with students, faculty member Philip Hadley Assistant News Editor
A group of former Texas State students and a faculty member are disappointed after working with the A&E television show “Flip This House.” The show “Flip This House” with Armando Montelongo of Montelongo House Buyers Inc. of San Antonio, produced an episode during the fall 2006 semester in conjunction with a Texas State Architectural Design 3 class. According to the A&E Web site, the reality show chronicles real-estate developers who buy homes, renovate them and then “flip” them for a profit. Montelongo planned to enlist the help of the undergradu-
ate class to “flip” an empty lot at Smith Lane in San Marcos, and construct nine buildings with four condominium units
“T
he project itself was extremely well received and I’m sad to know that it won’t be aired.”
—Robert Tisdel Senior lecturer for engineering and technology
in each structure, all the while maximizing the return on his investment. The students were instruct-
At the age of 25, Texas State student Jude Prather owns three businesses and a home in San Marcos. But now he has higher ambitions — he will be running for Place 2 on the San Marcos City Council in the upcoming general election. “I love this town, and I want to focus our tax dollars on what is really important,” said Prather, public administration senior. Prather said he would like to use a “back-to-basics” approach by maintaining streets and street lights, fixing storm drainage on the south side, improving water, wastewater and electric utilities and providing the best protection possible through the police and fire departments. “It is very important to stimulate the economic development here,” Prather said, “Forty-three percent of our general revenue fund comes from the sales tax in the outlet mall.” Instead, Prather said he would like to see a heavier reliance on multiple streams of income.
ed to form teams and develop site diagrams for the project. Montelongo planned to judge the team’s work and choose a winner at the end of the show. The winner’s diagrams were then to be implemented by Montelongo at the site. Charles Carpenter, graduate assistant for the class, said students were told the team with the best diagram would win a cash prize that never materialized postproduction. “The winning team composed of six students was promised a cash prize of $500 per student,” Carpenter said. “The show was filmed, the winning team was announced in a board room scene and a check was presented to the students. See A&E, page 4
A new law went into effect this semester limiting the number of courses students can drop to six and specifies how soon they will be reimbursed for dropped classes. State Rep. Patrick Rose, DDripping Springs, said the bill originally started with three drops as opposed to the six that were eventually written into the law. “First of all, three is too low a number — I think six is more reasonable,” said Rose, who serves on the House Committee on Higher Education. “Second, there has to be exceptions for illness of a student, illness of a dependent of a student, death in the family, military service and those things. We made sure those protections were included in the bill as finally passed.” State Rep. Fred Brown,
“W
here the real effect comes in is if students get in the habit of dropping classes just to drop classes; then, other students can’t get the classes they need to graduate.”
—Fred Brown Texas State Representative
R-Bryan, introduced the language limiting the number of drops. He said up to one-third of students drop a class within the first 12 days depending on the institution. “A&M, UT and Tech all
Today’s Weather
Isolated Stroms 90˚
Precipitation: 30% Humidity: 71% UV: 8 Very High Wind: SSE 11 mph
have a policy of three Q-drops for the undergraduate experience, and we had no policy in effect for our open enrollment schools,” Brown said. “Where the real effect comes in is if students get in the habit of dropping classes just to drop classes; then, other students can’t get the classes they need to graduate.” Brown said the most important effect is that it will help the students get the classes they need in order to graduate. He said the drop limit will save the taxpayers, especially parents, a considerable amount of money. “(The amount) depends on the institution,” he said. “They’ve never had to estimate this before.” Texas State registrar Lloydean Eckley said in an e-mail the new law only applies to See DROP, page 4
Two-day Forecast Friday AM cloudy Temp: 92°/ 73° Precip: 20%
Saturday Isolated Storms Temp: 92°/ 72° Precip: 30%
See PRATHER, page 4
ADA compliance subject of Trauth, Faculty Senate meeting
New law affects number of courses students can drop By Bill Lancaster News Reporter
“If something happened to our tourism and the outlet mall, we would have a big problem,” Prather said. He said the city budget continues to grow each year, and the increased spending is carried on the shoulders of the working class and property owners. “As a homeowner and small business owner, I know that regular people have to balance their checkbooks at the end of the month,” Prather said. “I will work to limit the government’s growth to economic growth.” Prather said he wants to encourage more students to plant roots in the town and buy a home. “Our greatest export is college graduates,” Prather said. He said currently businesses do not seem to have the desire to invest their time or money in San Marcos and he would like to see that change. Prather further seeks to improve the quality of life while maintaining the town’s unique environment and vibe. “The river is the soul of our town,” Prather said. “It has the
Monty Marion/Star photo LONG WAY UP: The wheelchair ramps outside Elliot Hall pose a challenge to those who require their use.
By Scott Thomas News Reporter University compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 was brought to the table during the President and Academic Affairs Group meeting with the Faculty Senate Wednesday. University President Denise Trauth raised the issue after being asked by Faculty Senate Chair William Stone, criminal justice professor, if she had any agenda items of her own she wished to discuss. Provost Perry Moore said what the law required should only be
the minimum of what the university should do, saying it was only a foundation. Trauth invited Joanne Smith, vice president for Student Affairs, to discuss accessibility for the disabled with the Faculty Senate. “We already have an (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliance meeting,” Smith said. “They meet at least once a year.” Smith said a new group, which she described as an interactive team, was being developed by the Office of Disabilities Services, Human Resources and Equity & Access which would handle problems dealing with disabled staff when departments
lacked the funds to do so. “The department is responsible for disabled staff,” Smith said. “But if the department can’t, it works its way up the chain.” Smith said the university has an allocation of $75,000 a year to handle disability compliance issues. The allocations roll forward each year, accumulating unused dollars each year for future problems. Smith said all staff requesting accommodations should include documentation of the need, a description of the desired accommodation, an explanation of how the request relates to the disability and steps that have been attempted to address the need and possible alternatives. “Does the federal law require it in writing?” asked Faculty Sen. Gary Winek, engineering and technology professor. “Because we know from experience that if someone verbally requests it we have to comply.” Moore said the university was aware of what the act required. “I think the idea of an interactive team is fabulous,” said Faculty Sen. Audrey McKinney, philosophy professor. Further discussed at the monthly Faculty Senate meeting with the president was the new four-day schedule. “It’s a little early to say if it’s definitely working,” Trauth said. She said the new schedule was a real step forward in several ways, saying it put the university on a conformed schedule and required less commuting for students living off-campus. “I think we just need to see how this thing develops,” Moore said. “There’s always unintended consequences; so far, it’s working as intended.” Trauth said she would be giving a presentation at the next University Council meeting on the new university budget. “We’ll take the new money and show where it goes,” Trauth said. “It’s not complex, but it’s important.” At the meeting, Trauth will also discuss adjustments the university has made since the Virginia Tech massacre. “I think you’ll be happy with the concrete changes we’ve made,” Trauth said.
Inside News ........ 1,2,3,4 Opinions ............ 5 Trends .......... 6,7,8
Texas State University-San Marcos is a member of the Texas State University System
Diversions .......... 9 Classifieds ....... 10 Sports ......... 11,12
To Contact Trinity Building Phone: (512) 245-3487 Fax: (512) 245-3708 www.UniversityStar.com © 2007 The University Star