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OCTOBER 24, 2006
TUESDAY
VOLUME 96, ISSUE 25
Proposed tuition spike to increase faculty number, raise salaries By Nick Georgiou The University Star More than 200 students packed into a standing-roomonly LBJ Student Center meeting room Thursday to hear the university’s proposal for a 10 percent increase in tuition and fees. The proposed tuition increase would be $14, from $138 per semester hour to $152. Provost Perry Moore said the two most important reasons
Two area candidates visit ASG
for increasing tuition is to raise salaries for university employees and increase the number of faculty. Moore said the way to increase the quality of education is through higher, more competitive faculty wages and the hiring of more professors based on the merit system, as opposed to tenure. “The legislature used to provide funding for faculty and staff pay raises, but not since 1998 has the legislature funded
pay raises for higher education employees,” Moore said. The average faculty salary at Texas State is $67,053, which ranks last among large universities in the state. The University of Texas at Austin ranks first with $94,480, according to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. “The majority of the faculty and staff deserve a heck of a lot more,” Moore said. “I’m embarrassed by it.” He estimates the proposed 3
percent increase in faculty and staff salaries will move Texas State one rank above University of Texas at El Paso. Texas State has the highest student-to-faculty ratio in the state, with one teacher per 26.3 students, according to other THECB data. Texas-Brownsville has the lowest ratio, with one teacher per 9.9 students. By adding more faculty, Moore hopes to improve the ratio, but said it is difficult when there is no cap on a stu-
dent population that grows every year. Another separate proposal that will be brought before the Texas State University System Board of Regents next month involves the elimination of course fees, which act as a source of revenue for the school and its departments. Moore predicts the university will be forced to eliminate course fees because of pressure from the Texas legislature. To replace the lost revenue, the
university will have to increase the designated tuition by another $9. If both proposals are approved, the tuition rate for the 2008 fiscal year will be $161 per semester hour. The separate proposal creates some controversy because one student’s major may have lower course fees compared to another, meaning that some may benefit from the elimination of course fees while others See TUITION, page 3
Rally remembers late governor By Katie Reed Special to The Star An estimated 500 people gathered Sunday afternoon in Austin at the South Congress Bridge and marched to the capitol building in honor of former Texas Gov. Ann Richards to support Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris Bell. Bell explained the purpose of the event, titled “What Would Ann Do?” and its importance to the future of Texas. “A few weeks ago, when we had to say goodbye to Ann Richards, a lot of people woke up and realized that the Texas of not too long ago was a very different one with very different people in the governor’s office, people who really worked hard to make sure that her administration represented the face of Texas,” Bell said. “Today we come together to honor the legacy of Ann Richards because those of us who seek to follow in her footsteps really do need to remember why she blazed the trail like she did.” As the crowd grew larger, the excitement and momentum of the event increased. Hundreds of campaign signs and stickers were passed out among the crowd and music blared out of a stereo as attendees remembered Richard’s impact on Texas government and rallied in favor of their political views. Approximately 12 Texas Democratic candidates running for various offices attended the march to show support for the cause. John Courage, Democratic congressional candidate in District 21, said Texas government
By A.N. Hernández The University Star Democratic candidate for Hays County Judge Liz Sumter hammered incumbent Jim Powers’ record Monday night at the Associated Student Government meeting. “If you knew that 80 percent of his campaign funds came from outside this county, outside this state and that the campaign contributions come just a couple of months before he votes on development interests or tax abatements, would you trust him to manage your growth?” Sumter asked the ASG senators and executives. Dressed in a black suit, she continued her barrage of Powers’ eight years in office, citing his “biggest achievement” in bringing more jobs to the county in the form of Cabela’s, the hunting and fishing retail store in nearby Buda. Sumter said she intends to bring more high-paying jobs to the area because San Marcos and Hays County often “loses the talent and energy” of students once they graduate and move on to find jobs elsewhere. “How many of you have come here to graduate and become clerks at Cabela’s?” she asked. “He’s had eight years to be interested in what’s going on in the university. He’s had eight years to care about the kinds of jobs that he brings to this area to make sure you get employment if you decide to stay, and he hasn’t done it. “ She said San Marcos does not have the “economic package to compete with Austin.” But, Sumter said if cities, including Buda, Kyle, San Marcos and Dripping Springs banded together, they could boost the
needs to begin moving in a completely different direction. “This march is symbolic of what the people of Texas want,” Courage said. “They want change and they want to take our state back and our nation back. That’s what this election is all about in 2006.” Jim Coronado, Democratic candidate for the third court of appeals, urged the crowd to honor Richards as they continue their loyal support throughout the upcoming elections. “The wind of change is at the Democrats’ back,” Coronado said. “The tide is coming in, and all we need and ask from you is to help put up the sail. As we march to the capitol, let’s think of our dear friend Ann Richards and all she has done for us.” After brief speeches by the various candidates in attendance, the crowd congregated behind Bell and a large banner spanning half the width of Congress Avenue that read “The People of Texas are Back.” Participants in the march displayed smaller banners and Democratic campaign signs as they cheered in support of Bell. Many crowd members chanted, “Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Rick Perry has got to go!” and others waved to onlookers and encouraged them to join in the march. Kenneth Koym, Austin resident, spoke with fellow Bell supporters about the importance of a Democratic gubernatorial victory. “I am for Chris Bell because he represents an ethical position in a time when we have See RALLY, page 3
David Racino/Star photo MEMORIAL BOUND: Supporters of gubernatorial governor candidates Chris Bell walk toward the capitol building during their march to honor former Gov. Ann Richards Sunday afternoon in Austin. The march concluded at the capitol steps where Bell spoke about the upcoming election.
See ASG, page 3
Texas senatorial candidates debate war in Iraq, immigration onlineconnection
By A.N. Hernández The University Star Three candidates for the Texas U.S. Senate went toe-to-toe Thursday in the only televised debate of the race. Republican U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and Democratic candidate Barbara Ann Radnofsky butted heads over the United States’ continued presence in Iraq. “My opponent has said repeatedly we need to increase troops from the U.S. to Iraq and she has also said we won’t think about leaving until we have stabilized the country,” Radnofsky
For an audio feature with U.S. Democratic senatorial candidate Barbara Ann Radnofsky, go to www.UniversityStar.com.
Radnofsky
said. “Our presence is destabilizing there.” Radnofsky said it is reprehensible to suggest that we should stay in Iraq so our soldiers become targets and cannon fodder.
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Hutchison
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“We must set a time table and we must withdraw,” she said. Hutchison criticized Radnofsky’s suggestion to withdraw from Iraq but said she would not have voted for the U.S. to enter Iraq had she known there were no weapons of mass destruction. “I can’t think of anything worse than America cutting and running because times are tough.
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I think it would hurt our troops who have boots on the ground right now,” Hutchison said. “I have been to Iraq. I have been to Afghanistan. I have met those wonderful people and we need to support them. We must never cut and run that would shred the credibility of America.” Libertarian candidate Scott Jameson said he does not sup-
port immediate withdrawal from Iraq but conceded that he did not have enough information to make a decision. “I think we need to take a measured approach to Iraq,” Jameson said. “I feel that not being a current senator that I don’t have the same level of intelligence information to make a completely informed decision.” The debate, which was cosponsored by the Texas League of Women Voters and KLRNTV, marked the first time in Texas history that two women are representing the major parties in a Senate race. Hutchison, the first woman voted to the
Senate from Texas, is running for her third term. Radnofsky is the first Texas woman to receive a party nomination for the race. She won the Democratic primary with 60 percent of the vote. The issue of immigration was broached later in the debate. Just weeks ago, Congress approved a 700-mile fence along the 2,000 mile border between the U.S. and Mexico but has not fully funded it yet. Radnofsky said a fence will not work. She criticized the PenceHutchison proposal, which Hutchison co-sponsored along-
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