VOLUME 103, ISSUE 71
www.UniversityStar.com
WEDNESDAY
MARCH 26, 2014
Defending the First Amendment since 1911
SPORTS | Page 5
VIDEO | UniversityStar.com
Baseball: Augie Garrido became the winningest coach in college baseball history Tuesday after the Longhorns defeated the Bobcats.
Will Arrington, English junior, now performs regularly at Cheatham Street Warehouse after getting his start in San Marcos.
TRANSPORTATION
COUNTY
Commissioners continue to discuss Lone Star Regional Water Authority agreement By Scott Allen
News Reporter
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Andrew Smith | Staff Photographer Robert Bratton, school bus driver, waits to pick up students at Travis Elementary School March 24 in a bus equipped with a camera.
Officials discuss impact of SMCISD school bus camera ticketing system By Raquel Kimm
Special to the Star
S
an Marcos officials say they are beginning to see positive results from a new automated ticketing system put in place for drivers who pass stopped school buses. City councilmembers passed an ordinance Jan. 7 that allows external cameras to be installed on all San Marcos Consolidated Independent School District buses, according to a Jan. 14 University Star article. The cameras record drivers who pass stopped buses, and $300 tickets are issued by mail to violators after the system manufacturer and San Marcos police review the videos. As of March 25, 52 citations had been mailed, said Carter Hutson, SMCISD Associate Director of Transportation. Many of the tickets were issued in problem areas where the district has noticed high numbers of violations, Hutson said. “Our biggest problem tends to be
stops on multiple-lane crossroads,” Hutson said. “If there is no permanent median placed in between the road with traffic going the opposite way then the vehicles have to stay stopped, and we have had a problem with them not stopping.” Students who go to school within the district live on both sides of Interstate Highway 35 and around the Texas State campus, which forces the children to exit the buses at inconvenient places, Hutson said. “Some students have to get off on access roads on the side of (IH-) 35,” Hutson said. “That, along with all the vehicles driving to and from Texas State, has forced students to have to get off the bus in dangerous places.” The program, which was initiated Feb. 17, seems to be working well and has received positive reviews from parents, said Chase Stapp, assistant police chief for the San Marcos Police Department. "In the end I hope it raises awareness so people understand to stop for
the children's safety," Stapp said. There has been a noticeable difference in the way drivers are reacting to stopped buses, Hutson said. “The school bus drivers have noticed an increase in vehicles stopping when they are supposed to.” Hutson said. “For our bus drivers their primary concern is the safety on the children getting on and off the bus as well as a car hitting a bus and injuring students on it so they are very happy
See BUS TRAFFIC, Page 2
Andrew Smith | Staff Photographer
ounty commissioners looking to join a water authority program decided Tuesday to postpone the final decision for further discussion. The Texas Legislature created the Lone Star Regional Water Authority in 2011, which acts as a legal entity and serves as a financing mechanism for water or wastewater infrastructure projects. It provides additional assurance of readily available water to residents. Commissioners decided to postpone their decision of whether to join the authority until additional information is obtained. “The court decided they needed to look into it more to get a better idea of what sort of plans and process they need for the county,” said Laureen Chernow, communications specialist for Hays County. Hay County Judge Bert Cobb spoke about the importance of preserving water at the meeting. Cobb said joining the organization, or another regional association, will bring connectivity to the people of central Texas. “It’s really important we participate in a district approach to have a regional answer to the problem,” Cobb said. The water authority can issue bonds on behalf of member governments but cannot obligate members to act financially without their approval. Each member pays $12,500 a year to sit on the board, according to the court agenda. If commissioners decide to join the water authority, Hays County would join four other govern-
mental entities that have already done so. These include the Sonterra and Capital Land and Livestock Municipal Utility Districts (MUDs), the City of Jarrell and Williamson County. Chernow said the water authority gave a presentation to county commissioners last week detailing what the group offers. One week later, citizens were allowed to speak for three minutes about their views on the topic. Larry Hoffmann, a resident of Spicewood, spoke in favor of joining the authority. Hoffman said water is a complex issue that he has been following for 20 years. “There is nothing easy about water,” Hoffman said. “It’s a complex issue, but it’s important and in Texas, we are exceeding, rapidly, our consumption of water.” Hoffman said although joining the authority may be a good idea, it might be too soon. “I just believe there are so many things to be considered and what you do in one area may affect someone in another area,” Hoffman said. Jim McNeese, a Hays County resident, is opposed to joining the water authority. McNeese said the county is too large to join such an organization. “The Lone Star Regional Water Authority is not the answer at this time,” McNeese said. “Hays would be a minority player on the board despite its much larger population and financial capability.” Cobb said the issue remains important, even if he may never be able to drink the water he is helping to preserve.
EDUCATION
Administrators say SAT changes may not affect admission By Kelsey Bradshaw
Senior News Reporter
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dmissions standards are set to change after high school students begin taking a revised version of the SAT in spring 2016. The essay portion of the test will be optional after the changes are implemented. Students will be able to take the exam on paper or on a computer, and the test will be scored on a scale of 1600 points instead of the current 2400. Previously, the SAT was a standardized test, but it will now coincide with current coursework and curriculum students are being taught in school. “Instead of it being just a generic test, it will be more equivalent to what the students are studying within high school,” said a College Board representative whose name has been withheld for security reasons. The redesigned test will not launch until spring 2016 and will not have any immediate impacts on the current admissions process for the 2014 and 2015 fall
semesters, said Michael Heintze, associate vice president of Enrollment Management. It remains unclear if the revisions will make an impact on enrollment. The College Board will provide public and private universities with information on which scores compare to the ones currently accepted, Heintze said. Concordance tables will help officials determine the equivalency of current scores to the new grading system, said Stephanie Anderson, associate vice president of Enrollment Management and director of Undergraduate Admissions. The concordance tables will be used in a “systematic fashion,” Heintze said. Changes to the SAT that will impact admission standards are not new, he said. “The SAT and ACT have gone through revisions periodically in past years, and this is not anything particularly unusual,” Heintze said. “This has been a discussion item at the national level for about a year.” College Board officials are still
redesigning the test, Anderson said. The test is not yet finished, so officials cannot look at it to determine any changes to admission processes, she said. “College Board will do extensive research, validity testing, etcetera to give us an idea of continued predictability and validity,” Anderson said. College Board officials have not confirmed exactly how the test will look and operate, said the College Board representative. “It’s a process,” the representative said. University officials will look at how the revised SAT will relate to current use and admission requirements, Anderson said. “We’re active members in the College Board, and Texas State will work with the College Board as they give us more information as to changes in the test to determine if there will be any changes in Texas State requirements,” Anderson said. Anderson said she does not anticipate any changes will need to be made to requirements.
When changes are made, the testing agency provides concordance information to “bridge the gap” and covert older scores for those who took the test before 2016, Heintze said. The test is currently being revised and work on the changes has been “going on for some time,” Heintze said.
Anderson said “the changes make sense” after hearing rationale from the CEO of the College Board. “I do believe that these changes will help make the test continue to be relevant,” Anderson said. “I don’t anticipate us making any changes that aren’t just referencing the new scale.”
Austin Humphreys | Photo Editor