10 24 2007

Page 1

RUNNING TOGETHER

Cross country runs deep for one Bobcat family SEE SPORTS PAGE 10

DEVILISH JOURNEY Spooky spectacles often seen at one of the most haunted regions in Central Texas SEE TRENDS PAGE 7

DEFENDING THE FIRST AMENDMENT SINCE 1911

WWW.UNIVERSITYSTAR.COM

OCTOBER 24, 2007

WEDNESDAY

VOLUME 97, ISSUE 27

ASG hosts final City Council debate ASG loses two senators to policy violations By Andy Sevilla News Reporter Two Associated Student Government senators were removed from office Monday for violating the organization’s Constitution and Code of Laws. ASG Sens. Christopher Fender and Michael Flowers lost their positions. Sen. Ryan Clay, public administration senior and chairman of the external relations committee for ASG, said Fender is one of his friends, but inevitably had to be removed because he has not shown up to at least three of the last meetings. He said it is inappropriate to keep someone in the Senate who will not attend scheduled meetings and actively participate in the democracy. In the weekly e-mail ASG Vice President Alexis Dabney sends to the senators, she said “there are 60 people in this organizaMonty Marion/Star photo tion, yet only about 20 people are truly acting like it.” MAKING A POINT: Gaylord Bose, Kim Porterfield, moderator Vincent Luizzi and Betsy Robertson Dabney, public relations selisten as City Council hopeful Jude Prather gives his opening remarks during the ASG-hosted debate nior, urged the senators to keep held Tuesday evening in McCoy Hall.

By Kristen Williams News Reporter San Marcos City Council candidates faced off one last time Tuesday night in preparation for early voting on the Texas State campus. The debate, hosted by the Associated Student Government and moderated by Vincent Luizzi, ASG adviser and philosophy professor, consisted of three parts. First, the candidates had two-minute introductions and then each was asked four questions. Finally, the audience was invited to pose questions. Kim Porterfield and incumbent Betsy Robertson are running for Place 1. Jude Prather and incumbent Gaylord Bose are running for Place 2. Bose said one of his main goals includes improving students’ quality of living. “In the future, I support the commuter train between Austin and San Antonio,” Bose said. “Together we can protect the river, recycle and continue to build bike and pedestrian facilities.” Bose said there is a need for housing because the population along the Interstate 35 corridor continues to grow. “There are apartment complexes going up because they were ap-

proved by the City Council,” Bose said. “I’m in favor of the rental permit system. All segments of the community system meet together so we can come out with a win-win situation.” Next up was Porterfield, Texas State director of community relations, who said economic development is key in the retention of Texas State graduates. “We have a major university in this country and all we are thinking is retail?” Porterfield asked. “We should look at what other universities do to try to find alternatives.” She further said the ongoing problems at Sagewood must be solved. “All the enforcement at Sagewood is leaving other areas of our city unprotected,” she said. “We can’t put Band-Aids on this issue and expect people to be satisfied.” Prather, public administration senior, said he wants to see more student involvement when it comes to city politics. “What’s our greatest export and resource?” Prather asked. “(It’s) college students. A group of students wrote the legislation bill that we took directly to our legislator (to change the university name to Texas State). I wasn’t experienced, but we saw the results.” If elected, Prather said he would

change the early voting procedures. “I want to see more days of early voting to increase the student vote because (Wednesday) and Thursday I guarantee you there will be lines,” Prather said. Robertson said if she is re-elected, she would pursue an economy where students have better jobs. “I want the city to be such a great place that you will want to stay here and have a job waiting for you when you graduate,” Robertson said. “I would like to concentrate on healthcare jobs, high tech jobs and (environmentally focused) jobs.” ASG Sen. Ryan Clay, at large, was present at the debate. “I support Prather and Porterfield because they have the best vision for where San Marcos needs to go,” said Clay, public administration senior. “They will provide the most economic development to the city and help reduce poverty and retain graduates in the city.” Anthropology sophomore Justin Krudop said he supports Prather, but still agrees with some of Bose’s ideas. “I endorse Jude because I think he can make a change,” Krudop said. “Jude has brought up the enforcement and city ordinances. Gaylord has brought students into his perspective. I think he’s got the right idea when it comes to Sagewood.”

Bridgette Cyr/Star photo EMPTY SEATS: ASG Senators wait for Monday night’s meeting to begin. There have been some issues concerning senators skipping out on the weekly meetings, leading to the removal of those chronically absent.

in mind they were elected or appointed for a specific reason – to represent the voice of the Texas State student body. “(Senators) were elected or appointed because (they) are the leaders on this campus and therefore (they) should be proactive in

taking on issues, writing legislation and being educated on the issues we vote on,” Dabney wrote. According to the ASG Constitution and Code of Laws, if See ABSENT, page 4

Texas State University System loses one school By Stephanie Kusy-Wilson News Reporter The Texas State University System is the oldest multi-campus system in Texas, which used to consist of nine institutions. Now, only eight remain. Effective Sept. 1, Angelo State University left the Texas State University System after five decades to join the Texas Tech University System. “This is a thrilling day for Texas Tech and a great day for ASU,” said Kent Hance, chancellor of the Texas Tech University System. “It’s something that is a natural fit, and we are very excited about it. We look forward to working with the people at ASU.” Many groups, such as the Coalition for the Future of Angelo State University and the ASU Alumni Board of Directors believed realignment would provide numerous benefits for the school. Kyle Box, first vice president of the ASU Alumni Association, said Texas Tech currently rejects several thousand qualified student applicants each year because of limitations on the main campus infrastructure. He said applicants will now have the option to attend

ASU instead. ASU graduates in the honors program who are declared premed or pre-law will now be guaranteed acceptance into the Texas Tech medical school or law school if they maintain a particular GPA and earn a certain score on the entrance exams, Box said. He said the groups were not against the Texas State University System. However, many people found the Texas Tech University System related more to the ASU community including state Rep. Drew Darby, R-San Angelo, who authored the bill in Congress. State Sen. Robert Duncan, RLubbock, sponsored the same bill in the Senate, which was quickly passed by legislators. “I’m excited beyond words,” Darby said. “The work of a lot of people paid off.” While the switch became official Sept. 1, there was continual cooperation between the boards of regents from both systems to complete a smooth transition, Box said. The last step to realign the ASU to the Texas Tech University System will take place on Election Day, when the city of San Angelo will vote on Proposition 1. The constitutional amendment will relocate

the Higher Education Fund and other capital items to the Texas Tech University System. Currently 6,239 students attend ASU, down 26 from last year, according to its Web site. Freshman enrollment increased, though, by 108 students. ASU President Joseph C. Rallo said the figures revealed a need for more student housing. Construction on Centennial Village, a 526-bed residence hall, was scheduled to open this fall, but was left dormant for eight months under the Texas State University System, according to the ASU Web site. Construction has since resumed under the Texas Tech University System and is projected to open next fall. The Texas State University System did not return The University Star’s phone call. According to the Coalition for ASU’s Future, realignment has not affected the status of any students or faculty members at ASU and the university will not change its name now that it is part of the Texas Tech University System. “The San Angelo and Lubbock communities united on this issue, and I look forward to the great things ahead,” Duncan said.

New class schedule complicates commuting

Tina Phan/file photo Troublesome Transportation: The overcrowding of the Texas State trams is one of many issues that have arisen since the implementation of the four day class schedule.

By Ryan Seater News Reporter Students congregate Monday through Thursday at campus bus stops, waiting to elbow into

a tram already filled to capacity. Once aboard, students stand for the short ride to other stops or assorted parking lots. In extreme cases, students stand on routes servicing Austin and San Antonio.

Today’s Weather

Windy 77˚

Precipitation: 20% Humidity: 41% UV: 7 High Wind: N 14 mph

The crowded buses may be the result of what will be the uniform class scheduling system, or what many students call the fourday class schedule. “I’m one of the standees,”

said shuttle service manager Paul Hamilton. “Nobody likes to stand, and we’ve made every effort to accommodate.” The urban-transit routes have been split up and two buses are simultaneously servicing different stops. This increases the total number of riders traveling on the route at the same time. “There is a limit to which we can expand, partly due to the popularity of the routes,” Hamilton said. “Even though we’ve put more buses out there, more people are riding every single bus.” Auxiliary Services is looking into a federal grant in order to purchase two or three more buses for the inter-city routes. Under the current contract, the bus fleet is at maximum. Any additional vehicles will have to be paid for through grants or by the university. “When dealing with federal grants, nothing is quick,” Hamilton said. “We have to do the best we can with the fleet we have for the next two to three years.” As for on-campus and San Marcos routes, carrying capacity is being increased for the spring semester, Hamilton said. This will be done with the number of buses operating under the

Two-day Forecast Thursday Sunny Temp: 72°/ 45° Precip: 0%

Friday Sunny Temp: 77°/ 48° Precip: 10%

current contract. As the campus population rises, proportional increases in provided service could be made on certain routes. However, if too many buses are added, a new problem is created. Buses will overtake each other, and total carrying capacity for the route will suffer. Hamilton said long lines of buses will congest stops, causing delays and traffic jams. “As we can afford to add buses, there is a benefit, but there comes a point when you can’t add buses to a route and solve the problem,” Hamilton said. “We strongly suggest people come to class 40 to 50 minutes early instead of 30 when 5,000 other students are also traveling.” The new schedule started as a possible solution to meet the course requirements of students. “Students were having increasing difficulty scheduling a full class load,” said Michael Heintze, associate vice president of enrollment management and marketing. “We wanted to make class scheduling more uniform.” The administration looked at the old scheduling system and found a number of issues they wanted to address. More than 100 courses were offered during non-

standard times, creating a conflict between classes students needed to take in order to graduate on time. Subsequently, they found Tuesday and Thursday classes were more popular than Monday, Wednesday and Friday classes and the average GPA was higher. “If Tuesday/Thursday classes were most popular, would Monday/Wednesday classes be attractive to students?” asked Heintze. “A small task force was put together and one of the first things they asked was, ‘could you make this work?’” The task force conferred with university departments and was told the schedule was possible. Further positive input was given by the Associated Student Government. The schedule would provide more time to study and work on Fridays and would save driving time for commuters and necessitate less cost for childcare. So it was decided the new schedule was worth pursuing. “I think departments did a good job of offering courses to incoming freshman and sophomores,” Heintze said. “The first take is that it worked well. We do know

Inside

The rising STAR of Texas

News ........ 1,2,3,4 Opinions ............ 5 Trends ............. 6,7

Texas State University-San Marcos is a member of the Texas State University System

Diversions .......... 8 Classifieds ......... 9 Sports .............. 10

See FRIDAY, page 4

To Contact Trinity Building Phone: (512) 245-3487 Fax: (512) 245-3708 www.UniversityStar.com © 2007 The University Star


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