September 29, 2007

HESTEC (Hispanic, Engineering, Science and Technology) Week kicked off its 10th year Monday with Educator Day plus symposiums by the College of Education and Science and Engineering. The latter drew a crowd of eager students wanting to catch a glimpse of engineer and television host Bill Nye the Science Guy.

Many students, like senior biology major Mandy Carin, grew up watching Nye’s show.

“I watched him growing up, so I was really excited to see what he’s doing nowadays,” Carin said. “I’m really glad that he’s authentic. He does practice green energy and supports sustainability and other world-changing methods of energy conservation.”

As Carin said, one of the main focuses of Nye’s presentation was the need for energy conservation in a world with a growing population.

“By Halloween, there will be 7 billion people on the world,” Nye said. “In my lifetime, the population more than doubled. I hope it does not more than double in your lifetime. But it will increase.”

He went on to tie the theme of

HESTEC into his discussion.“Everyone wants you to do less,” he

said. “Environmentalists want you to drive your car less, they want you to use less clean water - wear dirty clothes, and if you don’t have to, don’t eat. But just doing less is not going to do it. What we need to do is find ways to do more with less. And my friends, that is where you come in. That is where the scientists and the engineers of tomorrow are going to change the world.”

As important as this week is to those who are in science and engineering fields, Mark Allen, a UTPA junior who attended the event dressed as the Transformer, Bumblebee, is proof that this event draws in students who study the humanities as well.

“There’s something for everybody,” the social studies composite major said. “If you’re interested, why not go and hear about something in science and engineering? It’s going to help your life in one way or another. Especially with events like this, the speakers are just paying it forward. They’ve done their time in their youth and now they’re giving back to the community so that future generations know what kind of direction we need to go to. We need all majors to go to these things.”

Allen, whose father is a forester and mother is a biologist, has been attending HESTEC events since 2007 due to his interest in science, engineering and technology.

“2007 was definitely the most hands-on year,” he said. “We had the NASA stuff, the kids really liked it, I think this year has the potential to be the best year or at least coming close to 2007. I think there’s a lot

of potential.”As much as he enjoys HESTEC,

he still thinks there is room for improvement in future years.

“It has such a base here in the Valley where everybody knows about it, a lot of families come,” Allen said. “HESTEC really needs to focus on the Valley’s needs. What does the Valley need? What can the Valley do? What can the average family do to improve the air quality and the water quality? And getting active in the community to make sure we’re all looking after each other- companies and individuals. ‘Cause we’re all on this planet together!”

The second day of HESTEC, appropriately titled “Student Leadership Day,” welcomed astronaut Michael Fossum. In addition, the College of Health Sciences and Human Services and the College of Social Behavioral Sciences held symposiums.

The presentation was led by Congressmen Ruben Hinojosa and UTPA President Robert Nelsen, both of whom were just as impressed with communicating with Fossum via downlink as the middle school students in attendance.

“Did you ever dream you were

going to talk to an astronaut in outer space?” Nelsen said. “You’re going to talk to an astronaut that’s on a space station right now.”

The excitement continued as Fossum recounted his past experiences on campus.

“The first university I attended was Pan American University, where you are right now,” said Fossum, a McAllen native. “I remember taking night classes at Pan Am and looking up at the sky and dreaming about being up here some day. And now I really am here. It’s been a great challenge for me. It’s been an adventure of a lifetime to be here.”

Keeping with the theme of the day, Fossum reassured the “leaders of tomorrow” that no goal is out of reach.

“(Becoming an astronaut) didn’t even seem like something I could dream of,” he said. “But you know what, that’s not true. It’s really not true. Part of me didn’t believe it could happen, but another part of me never gave up on that dream. I tried to do my best in school. I wasn’t always in the top of my class; I was pretty rarely in the top of my class.

“But I worked hard and kept dreaming and using that dream to give me the direction and motivation to stay in school and keep working hard. And I knew one day that my education and hard work would pay off. And I’m really blessed that it’s paid off in this way.”

Junior graphic design major Jared Ballejos believes that speakers like Fossum and what they have to say are integral to HESTEC.

“They had the MythBusters last

year and there was this one kid in the audience who said ‘because of you, I absolutely love science,’” Ballejos said. “He was just so intrigued and so motivated by them to seek out science and stuff like that. Definitely the speakers-they have an impact on us, our generation and the younger generations to come.”

Ballejos, who participated in the student intern panel at the College of Social Behavioral Sciences symposium, was there to discuss the work he did in the African nation of Togo through the Cultural and Language Deployment Program (CULP) in conjunction with the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC).

“If you want to be known and get yourself out there you have to be involved in the University as well as anything else,” Ballejos said. “It was really to see what other students have done in terms of internships and to share my unique story. Be there as a leader and say ‘I’ve accomplished this, so can you.’”

Ballejos, who likes to demonstrate his “natural leadership skills,” was very excited to participate in HESTEC on Student Leadership Day and views the event as a great opportunity for students.

“I think it’s absolutely wonderful that Pan Am can host such a big event and have so many speakers and innovative ideas,” he stressed. “It’s opened up to the students and not only gives them a chance to soak in the ideas but also have the chance to speak one-on-one with some of the people and speakers that are here. I think it’s great.”

DAY 1 Science

guy

DAY 2 AweSome FoSSum

www.panamericanonline.comVolume 68, No. 5 September 29, 2011

Erick Gonzalez/The Pan american

By Susan Gonzalez The Pan American

PAN AMERICANT H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F T E X A S - P A N A M E R I C A N TM

For up-to-date HESTEC coverage visit: panamericanonline.

September 29, 20112Opinion

The Pan American accepts letters of 300 words or less from students, staff and faculty regarding recent newspaper content, campus concerns or current events. We reserves the right to edit submissions for grammar and length. We cannot publish anonymous letters or submissions containing hate speech or gratuitous personal attacks. Please send all story ideas to [email protected].

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THE PAN AMERICAN

Vol. 68, No. 5

Opinion on the Opinion

The UT Vista Summit, which will take place Oct. 5 and 6 at the University of Texas at Brownsville, will bring together local, state and national leaders to discuss topics such as education, industry, economic development, policy, health, government and philanthropy in South Texas. The summit may have the potential to improve the future of The University of Texas-Pan American, UTB and the Rio Grande Valley as a whole.

Chief executives and other leaders of nonprofits, including the Ford Foundation, the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, Gates Foundation and the Greater Texas Foundation, will be in attendance.

UT Chancellor Francisco G. Cigarroa will host the event and discuss ideas on how these organizations can help the Valley and advance its education, health care and economic development.

Janice Maville, the interim dean for the College of Health Sciences and Human Services at UTPA, looks forward to learning how the summit will improve education in South Texas. She has been at UTPA for 35 years and anticipates more growth on campus.

“This is an exceptional event because it is bringing nationally recognized, very high-level caliber foundations to the Valley to enter into discussions about education and what we are doing here,” Maville said. “I think that this summit is something that is going to highlight the activities and the potential that we have to become major players in the state and in the nation in healthcare and on the STEM aspect as well.”

Maville hopes that the topic of improving research opportunities in South Texas will be discussed in the conference panels at the summit.

“We are hoping to get some understanding and support from the foundations because, in order to do the research, education and community outreach that needs to happen. We need their support,” she explained. “One of the things that (the leaders) will be working on is to really emphasize how we need to work together.”

A topic that will also be discussed is economic issues in South Texas. Alberto Davila is the chair of the Department of Economics and Finance in the College of Business Administration and is aware of how important this is at UTPA.

“There are things that are of concern in our area, things that have to do with our lower levels of

education, work experience, and are relative to the interior of our state,” he said. “When you look at the earnings of people in the Valley, they tend to be about two-thirds than those in the rest of the state.”

Discussion of the economy is designed to gather leaders’ opinions on ways to aid the two universities in improving education in an area where the per capita income is $11,000 below the national average and more than a third of the population below the poverty line,

according to Census figures. “A lot of the reasons for these

depressed earnings have to do with the relatively low levels of education and human capital of residents compared to those in the exterior,” Davila said. “Any efforts to enhance the level and quality of education in our area are good for our economy.”

Many UTPA students don’t know about the summit. Nabyl Kalaf, a senior majoring in biology who plans to attend medical school after

graduating, had not heard about it.“The summit sounds great and is

worth looking into, but I have hardly heard any information about it on campus,” she said. “It sounds like it has the potential to impact the valley in a very positive way, especially for those of us majoring in STEM degrees. I hope that the university will market the event more so that students will hear about it and be interested in attending.”

In light of recent budget cuts to

education on the state level, many welcomed this opportunity for the universities to discuss South Texas’ needs. The summit also follows on the heels of the 10th annual HESTEC, which focuses on science, technology and mathematics, among other areas.

“Anything that has to do with promoting education is good for the Valley,” Davila said.

To RSVP your attendance to the summit, visit http://vistasummit.com/.

September 29, 2011 3

Summit to promote discussion on RGV’s needs

By Daniela Diaz The Pan American

Francisco Rodriguez/The Pan american

Advertisements September 29, 2011

For more information or if special accommodations are needed, call (956) 665-7989.

The University of Texas-Pan American

i s p l e a s e d t o p r e s e n t

Doors will open at 7 p.m. for UTPA students,faculty and staff with a valid UTPA ID.

Doors will open to general public at 7:20 p.m.FREE ADMISSION. SEATING IS LIMITED.

FINE ARTS AUDITORIUM, 7:30 p.m.

View the program live at www.utpa.edu/live.

Dr. Maya Angelou, hailed as a global renaissance woman, is acelebrated poet, memoirist, novelist, educator, dramatist, producer,actress, historian, filmmaker and civil rights activist. She has authoredmore than 30 bestselling books including “I Know Why the CagedBird Sings,” published in 1970. She continues to appear on televisionand films and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Arts in 2000,the Lincoln Medal in 2008 and has received three Grammy Awards.

Monday, October 24, 2011An Evening with Maya Angelou

Thomas L. Friedman is an internationally renowned author, reporter, andcolumnist – the recipient of three Pulitzer Prizes and the author of fivebestselling books including “From Beirut to Jerusalem,” “The World Is Flat”and his latest bestseller “Hot, Flat and Crowded: Why We Need a GreenRevolution – and How It Can Renew America.” Friedman, a foreign affairscolumnist for the New York Times, is a frequent guest on programs such asMeet The Press, Morning Joe and Charlie Rose.

That Used To Be UsWednesday, February 29, 2012

Dubbed “the most remarkable talk-show host on TV ever,” Larry King, the former host of CNN’s Larry King Live, the first worldwide phone-in TV talk show, has been a mainstay in network broadcasting for over 50 years. After bidding farewell to the show in fall 2010, the Emmy Award-winning hostremains the man responsible for one of CNN’s highest-rated programs.King has done more than 50,000 interviews throughout his half-centurycareer in broadcasting.

An Evening with “Larry King Live”Tuesday, April 3, 2012

DR. MAYA ANGELOU

THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN

LARRY KING

ADVERTISEMENTSSeptember 29, 2011

Students might have to wait slightly longer for a campus shuttle due to a high number of incoming freshmen, limited parking space and two of the � ve shuttles being out of commission, according to driver Robert de la Garza.

� e shuttles are available for students, faculty and sta� at the University and many students use them to get to class faster from their homes or satellite parking lots, staying out

of the South Texas heat in the process. “Since I reside at Bronc Village and my

classes are located at the engineering building, which is located across campus, I frequently rely upon taking the shuttle bus for the reason that it gets me there a lot faster,” said Sarah Wright, a mechanical engineering major from Raymondville.

De la Garza said this semester has been the busiest for the shuttle service so far with about 3,500 incoming freshmen, many of whom � nd it di� cult

to locate parking. “(Riding the shuttle) saves time, especially

when you are lucky enough to � nd parking, which is still a pretty good walking distance to class,” said freshman art major Rodolfo Mendez.

As students pile into the shuttles, de la Garza said the shuttles reach capacity four times a day and need occasional maintenance.

“� e amount of time it takes to get a shuttle back to running smoothly varies because it depends on how severe the problem is,” he said. “Most of the time the problems the shuttles will encounter is because of the basic wear and tear due to constantly being on the go.”

� e shuttles have been out since Monday and should be � xed some time later this week, but until then students might experience slight delays. Some students blame the shuttle drivers for the delay, but de la Garza said there is little they do.

“Students complain to the drivers, but it is not our fault. All we can do is tell them we are doing the best we can at the moment,” he said.

Joel Rivera, a dietetics major from Edinburg, agreed with de la Garza.

“It is easy to blame the driver and automatically assume it is their fault when there is a delay because they are the � rst ones you come in contact with,” Rivera said. “You demand answers but easily forget they are only the drivers, not the director of the service.”

De la Garza said that students shouldn’t use the shuttle delays as an excuse to be late to class.

“I suggest students leave earlier than usual if they want to avoid both walking and being late to class,” he said. “Most students, however, are very understanding and patient when we are short a shuttle.”

TWO SHUTTLES SHORT By Victoria RoblesThe Pan American

EVERYDAY I’M SHUTTELIN’ - Two of UTPA’s fi ve campus shuttles are out of service, but should return later this week. Shuttles run Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Reynaldo Leal/THE PAN AMERICAN

CHECK THE WEB:

panamericanonline.com

On the road || The Bronc volley-ball team takes on Chicago State Sept 29. Don’t forget to catch all the post-game comments and reactionsonline Friday.

Solar Measurement || College of Engineering and Computer Science installs a new solar ra-diation tracking system. Look for it online Friday.

Rocky Horror Shadowcast || Look for a sound-slide of the perfor-mance Monday.

The Science Guy || For a closer look at Bill Nye check out extra footage of his speech and an interview today.

Visit us for this and more news at:

THE PAN AMERICANTHE PAN AMERICAN September 29, 2011 September 29, 2011 Page 7 Page 7September 29, 2011 September 29, 2011September 29, 2011

From the sandy beaches of Hawaii to deep South Texas and back.

Approximately 4,000 miles and 18 years (along with playing club volleyball here and there) is what it took for Bronc volleyball teammates to � nally meet. Both Juri Franzen and Krysta Freitas grew up in

Hawaii, Franzen in Honolulu and Freitas in Waianae, but didn’t get acquainted un-til they ended up together at � e Univer-sity of Texas-Pan American.

Even though the duo wound up as Broncs, they had very di� erent routes that led here.

Franzen, a junior college transfer, spent her � rst two years of collegiate volleyball at Laredo Community College before get-ting an opportunity to play at the Division I level.

“I started o� playing volleyball in sixth grade, actually, at the Boys and Girls Club, and from there I started playing club vol-leyball. I played high school my four years along with still playing club,” Franzen said. “When you play club you get to travel a lot. We played in a tournament in Vegas and that’s basically how I got recruited.”

On the � ip side, while Franzen was at LCC, Freitas was competing at Hanalani High School.

“I started playing volleyball when I was in elementary school and competi-tively when in high school,” Freitas said. “I started playing right front, but I think I play all over the court really. I knew of Juri when I played high school when I was a freshman, but we really never met.”

During high school, Freitas was named to the Honolulu Advertiser Girls Volleyball All-State team and also select-ed to the Fab-15 OC16 All-Star Senior Invitational. She played for the Jammers Volleyball Club and the Asics Rainbows Volleyball Club. She helped lead ARBC to a second-place finish during a Las Ve-gas Classic 18U tournament in which 176 other teams competed. As part of

the Jammers VBC, Freitas helped take the team to the 2009 Las Vegas Championship.

Much like their Hawaiian home, the Rio Grande Valley isn’t known for hav-ing cold winters or snow storms like the rest of the United States. When Freitas was deciding which university to pick, it was pretty clear where she wanted to go.

“I had di� erent scholarship options, but they were all in the East Coast, and I don’t really like the snow, and I like the weather down here,” recalled the six-foot right side hitter. “It’s like Hawaii weather, so that was the deal breaker right there.”

While Freitas’ decision came down to weather, Franzen’s rationale for going to LCC was quite di� erent.

“Well, I had no clue where Laredo ac-tually was,” she admitted. “But I chose them because one of my teammates from my club team signed there. I would know someone going there, so I decided that (Laredo Community College) was the right choice for me.”

During her freshman year at LCC in 2009, Franzen was selected to the All-Region Team. As a sophomore she made an All-Tournament Team, the All-Region Team, and Libero of the Week. � e � ve-foot-seven Libero also received 2010 Aca-demic All-American accolades. � rough-out her time at LCC, her goal was still to play Division I volleyball, and UTPA of-fered that.

“For the most part UTPA was my � rst choice simply because it was the best o� er I had at that time. I also signed early, so I pretty much made my decision quick,” Franzen said. “Playing Division I was my

main goal, and UTPA gave me that op-portunity as well.”

Once Franzen completed her two years at LCC, she set her eyes on UTPA. Being an early commit, she eagerly awaited the chance at complet-ing her volleyball goal. To her surprise, she found out that she wouldn’t be the only Hawaiian to put on the orange and green.

“I found out about Krysta on the UTPA website, so we decided to get together over the summer just to meet each other and hang out,” Franzen said. “We didn’t necessarily know each other, but we knew each other’s mu-tual friends from like volleyball and all that.”

Freitas, being the younger of the two, was able to � nd her own connec-tion to UTPA as Franzen did when she started o� at LCC.

“She (Juri) signed before me, so I knew of her when I was playing,” Frei-

tas said. “We met up in Hawaii before we came down here, so we bonded be-fore we came down here.”

The duo began their journey to the Valley a few weeks after the meet-ing in Hawaii, and even though the transition would appear to be dif-ficult, that wasn’t the case for “The Flyin’ Hawaiians.”

“I found it to be a really easy transi-tion. You know, normally for a fresh-man it should be hard, but it was really easy for me,” Frietas said. “My fam-ily still lives in Hawaii, so it’s kind of tough, but I do have a relative that lives in Austin, so she comes and sees me as much as she can.”

As the Broncs begin the latter part of the season, the entire young squad continues to grow closer. Many have to look for similarities between each other, but Franzen and Frietas need look no further than the place they call home.

By Michael SaenzThe Pan American

FLYIN’ HIGH AGAIN - (L-R) Freshman Krysta Freitas, right side hitter, and junior Juri Franzen, libero, make up the UTPA volleyball “Flyin’ Hawaiians.” Although they lived 33 miles apart on the Hawaiian island of Honolulu, they had to travel over 4,000 miles before playing together.

The F lyin’ Hawaiians


THE PAN AMERICANTHE PAN AMERICAN September 29, 2011 September 29, 2011 Page 6 Page 7September 29, 2011 September 29, 2011September 29, 2011

From the sandy beaches of Hawaii to deep South Texas and back.

Approximately 4,000 miles and 18 years (along with playing club volleyball here and there) is what it took for Bronc volleyball teammates to � nally meet. Both Juri Franzen and Krysta Freitas grew up in

Hawaii, Franzen in Honolulu and Freitas in Waianae, but didn’t get acquainted un-til they ended up together at � e Univer-sity of Texas-Pan American.

Even though the duo wound up as Broncs, they had very di� erent routes that led here.

Franzen, a junior college transfer, spent her � rst two years of collegiate volleyball at Laredo Community College before get-ting an opportunity to play at the Division I level.

“I started o� playing volleyball in sixth grade, actually, at the Boys and Girls Club, and from there I started playing club vol-leyball. I played high school my four years along with still playing club,” Franzen said. “When you play club you get to travel a lot. We played in a tournament in Vegas and that’s basically how I got recruited.”

On the � ip side, while Franzen was at LCC, Freitas was competing at Hanalani High School.

“I started playing volleyball when I was in elementary school and competi-tively when in high school,” Freitas said. “I started playing right front, but I think I play all over the court really. I knew of Juri when I played high school when I was a freshman, but we really never met.”

During high school, Freitas was named to the Honolulu Advertiser Girls Volleyball All-State team and also select-ed to the Fab-15 OC16 All-Star Senior Invitational. She played for the Jammers Volleyball Club and the Asics Rainbows Volleyball Club. She helped lead ARBC to a second-place finish during a Las Ve-gas Classic 18U tournament in which 176 other teams competed. As part of

the Jammers VBC, Freitas helped take the team to the 2009 Las Vegas Championship.

Much like their Hawaiian home, the Rio Grande Valley isn’t known for hav-ing cold winters or snow storms like the rest of the United States. When Freitas was deciding which university to pick, it was pretty clear where she wanted to go.

“I had di� erent scholarship options, but they were all in the East Coast, and I don’t really like the snow, and I like the weather down here,” recalled the six-foot right side hitter. “It’s like Hawaii weather, so that was the deal breaker right there.”

While Freitas’ decision came down to weather, Franzen’s rationale for going to LCC was quite di� erent.

“Well, I had no clue where Laredo ac-tually was,” she admitted. “But I chose them because one of my teammates from my club team signed there. I would know someone going there, so I decided that (Laredo Community College) was the right choice for me.”

During her freshman year at LCC in 2009, Franzen was selected to the All-Region Team. As a sophomore she made an All-Tournament Team, the All-Region Team, and Libero of the Week. � e � ve-foot-seven Libero also received 2010 Aca-demic All-American accolades. � rough-out her time at LCC, her goal was still to play Division I volleyball, and UTPA of-fered that.

“For the most part UTPA was my � rst choice simply because it was the best o� er I had at that time. I also signed early, so I pretty much made my decision quick,” Franzen said. “Playing Division I was my

main goal, and UTPA gave me that op-portunity as well.”

Once Franzen completed her two years at LCC, she set her eyes on UTPA. Being an early commit, she eagerly awaited the chance at complet-ing her volleyball goal. To her surprise, she found out that she wouldn’t be the only Hawaiian to put on the orange and green.

“I found out about Krysta on the UTPA website, so we decided to get together over the summer just to meet each other and hang out,” Franzen said. “We didn’t necessarily know each other, but we knew each other’s mu-tual friends from like volleyball and all that.”

Freitas, being the younger of the two, was able to � nd her own connec-tion to UTPA as Franzen did when she started o� at LCC.

“She (Juri) signed before me, so I knew of her when I was playing,” Frei-

tas said. “We met up in Hawaii before we came down here, so we bonded be-fore we came down here.”

The duo began their journey to the Valley a few weeks after the meet-ing in Hawaii, and even though the transition would appear to be dif-ficult, that wasn’t the case for “The Flyin’ Hawaiians.”

“I found it to be a really easy transi-tion. You know, normally for a fresh-man it should be hard, but it was really easy for me,” Frietas said. “My fam-ily still lives in Hawaii, so it’s kind of tough, but I do have a relative that lives in Austin, so she comes and sees me as much as she can.”

As the Broncs begin the latter part of the season, the entire young squad continues to grow closer. Many have to look for similarities between each other, but Franzen and Frietas need look no further than the place they call home.

By Michael SaenzThe Pan American

FLYIN’ HIGH AGAIN - (L-R) Freshman Krysta Freitas, right side hitter, and junior Juri Franzen, libero, make up the UTPA volleyball “Flyin’ Hawaiians.” Although they lived 33 miles apart on the Hawaiian island of Honolulu, they had to travel over 4,000 miles before playing together.

The F lyin’ Hawaiians


Girls in short skirts and old school skates stretched in the dim light of the roller rink. � ey chatted as the place � lled with people and thrumming music. Ten minutes passed, and the girls began yelling, pushing and racing around the rink vying for victory.

� e South Texas Rolleristas held an exhibition bout at Weslaco’s Rink-n-Roll on Sunday. Girls blurred by as they made turn after turn; there were spills, pileups and injury to people with names like Lucha Lita and Glitterpop. But it takes more than picking an exotic name, putting on a pair of skates and shoving people around to be a derby girl.

Becky Arjona, a rehabilitation major at UTPA who joined roller derby this year, a member of a group of newcomers called, “fresh meat.”

“As soon as I walked into practice, I saw a whole lot of girls stretching together. It was pretty intimidating,” Arjona said of her training. “Aside from the physical, there are a ton of rules that you need to know.”

� e South Texas Rolleristas

are a � at-track roller derby league consisting of three teams: � e Nerdcore Harlots, Traumakazes, and � e Fallout Brigade. � e exhibition, or “Squares versus Drapes” was a 1950s-themed bout during which the teams were mixed together for a scrimmage game.

It takes 10 weeks for newcomers to get from tryouts to the main stage. � ere is a two-week boot camp to put potential girls through the ropes, followed by an eight-week training school. Trainees must pass a physical and written test. � ey are then drafted into a team in the league by the captains.

A derby consists of multiple “jams,” two-minute sets in which a “jammer” scores one point for each “blocker” or “pivot” she passes on the

opposing team. With nine refs for the

10 girls on the “� eld,” a shrill chorus of whistles lets everyone know when someone earns time in the penalty box. � e list of violations can range anywhere from tripping to elbowing.

Cassandra Velasquez, a kinesiology major at UTPA, is a lively and con� dent young mother who is currently

“fresh meat” as well. She heard about

the derby from a cousin

and decided to check it out.

“I liked the way the girls presented

t h e m s e l v e s , ” Velasquez said.

“� ey were very friendly

and down to earth.”

Ve l a s q u e z feels more

involved and con� dent because of her participation and this translates to everyday life as well.

“I was able to teach (my daughter) how to skate,” beamed Velasquez, who loves the bonding time and the bene� ts of teaching her daughter to be active and � t.

Linda Avila, known as Linda Lovecat on the rink, is a UTPA alumni, speech pathologist and derby veteran. She had a baby three months ago.

“It’s liberating,” she grinned when asked about being back in the action so soon.

Lita N. Leal, known as Lucha Lita, is an assistant manager of the Rolleristas and co-captain of � e Fallout Brigade. She skated by during halftime of the exhibition, saying, “We don’t feel it now but tomorrow.” Gesturing at her upper thigh, she added, “� is will be a big one right here.”

� e bout went by quickly with girls sliding into chairs in the “suicide seating” placed right outside the track. When it was done some of the girls collapsed, exhausted but proud. � e squares beat the Drapes 120-87.

Afterward, Velasquez, who held up a sign during the game that said “Boom Boom Pow” rolled by.

“I’m tired and I didn’t even do anything,” she laughed, knowing that, if she passes the tests, she’ll get her chance on Oct. 23 in Mercedes for the next derby night.

Derby girls can be intimidating on the � eld but the experience gained can be worth it.

“My � rst impression was I’m going to get my butt kicked,” Arjona said. “I didn’t want to let a little fear scare me away. In fact, it has made it all the more exciting.”

By Sandy DavisThe Pan American

Down and DerbyExtreme skating inspires con� dence among newcomers and veterans alike

September 29, 20118

ROLLING HARD - Derby girl “Ann Hooligan” (center) passes opposing jammer “Jo Jo Bombshell” (left) for the lead, scoring 10 points for her team. The rumble between team Squares and team Drapes took place Sunday at Rink-n-Roll in Weslaco.

Modern Dictionary of Derby terms and applications

jam (jăm) n.- A two-minute play in which teams can score points. � ere are 30 minutes of jams per game.jammer (jăm'mƏr) n. - Girl who scores one points for

each opposing blocker passed.

lead jammer (lēd)·(jăm’mƏr) n. - 1. � e � rst jammer to break

through the pack. 2. only one who can call o� the jam.

pack (păk) n. - � e formation of four girls per team that serve as blockers.

blocker (blŏk'Ər) n. - A player who tries to prevent the opposing jammer from getting through the pack.

pivot (pĭv'Ət) n. - Same as the blocker, sets the pace, last line of defense for their team. In certain plays, she acts as the jammer.

blocking (blŏk·ing) v. - Legal ways of stopping opposing players.

fresh meat (frĕsh)·(mĕt) n. Slang. - Newbies who are in training and not yet on a team.

helmet panty (hĕl'mĭt) · (păn'tē) n. - � e covering that pivots and jammers wear to distinguish themselves from the rest of the pack.

(Fig. 1) Jammer� ere is one jammer

per team.

(Fig. 2) PackTwo opposing teams

make up a pack.

with people and thrumming music. Ten minutes passed, and the girls began yelling, pushing and racing around the rink vying for victory.

� e South Texas Rolleristas held an exhibition bout at

after turn; there were spills, pileups and injury to people with names like Lucha Lita and Glitterpop. But it takes more than picking an exotic name, putting on a pair of skates and shoving people around to be a

Becky Arjona,

which the teams were mixed together for a scrimmage game.

It takes 10 weeks for newcomers to get from tryouts

kinesiology major at UTPA, is a lively and con� dent young mother who is currently

“fresh meat” as well. She heard about

the derby from a cousin

and decided to check it out.

“I liked the way the girls presented

t h e m s e l v e s , ” Velasquez said.

“� ey were

to earth.”

feels more involved and con� dent because of her participation

Freddie Martinez/THE PAN AMERICAN

Karen Villarreal/THE PAN AMERICAN

� ough the presidential election remains more than a year away, a group new to the Rio Grande Valley plans to get a head start in its e� orts to increase Hispanic voter turnout in 2012.

Volunteers with Voto Latino RGV will be out at HESTEC Community Day Saturday promoting their mission and recruiting members to make a greater push to register voters.

“Even though the election is going to be a year away from November…we’re going to need a lot of manpower,” said Andrea Gutierrez, the group’s chief organizer and a college adviser at Nikki Rowe High School in McAllen.

Gutierrez, a McAllen native, graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in political science last December.

“I wanted to give students a chance to learn why voting is important,” she said. “Especially here in Texas, just the sheer expansion is going to shape the issues in the next election. Politicians are going to have to start listening to Latinos just because of the population boom.”

Data from the Pew Hispanic Center, a non-partisan think-tank, shows Latinos remain underrepresented at the polls despite a spike in population and increase in voter turnout during the 2010 midterm elections. While just over 21 million Latinos were eligible to vote last November, only 6.6 million actually did so.

Political science professor at � e University of Texas-Pan American Jessica

L a v a r i e g a - M o n f o r t i said that the election isn’t yet on the radar for most people.

“People who are not hardcore partisan don’t pay attention this early in the election,” she said.

In a February poll by impreMedia-Latino Decisions, based at the University of Washington, 43 percent of registered Hispanic voters surveyed named immigration and the DREAM Act as issues important to their community. Jobs and the economy followed with 21 percent and 20 percent respectively.

However, Lavariega-Monforti warned against making generalizations about Latinos across the United States.

“� ere’s always this assumption that there’s this one Latino community and people are voting together and share issues, and that’s not true,” she said.

Immigration is not a hot-button topic among Puerto Ricans, who are born with U.S. citizenship. � e same goes for Cuban-Americans and Cuban exiles, who can gain residency as a result of the Cuban Refugee Adjustment Act, she said.

“Really we’re talking about the Mexican-origin population, Central and South American-origin populations who do not

have any other avenue to pursue other than comprehensive immigration reform,” she said. “Certainly there are people of Mexican origin who are eighth generation Tejano. When we get down to the bottom of it, it isn’t the Latino community, but there are many Latino communities.”

President Barack Obama promised to put comprehensive immigration reform front and center during the � rst year of his campaign, but the issue was lost amid the controversy surrounding health care legislation. Lavariega-Monforti said the drawn-out struggle over the Patient Protection and A� ordable Care Act, which passed Congress in March 2010, left the president with little chance of bringing immigration to the spotlight.

“I think that he spent a lot of his political and social capital on the healthcare bill and getting that through…and he really didn’t have very much left at the end to spend on anything else,” she said. “You add that to a worsening or very slowly recovering economy, and people (think), ‘Why should we worry about anything else other than jobs or the economy right now?’”

Hispanic voters’ concern over jobs and the economy belongs closer to the top of the agenda, Lavariega-Monforti said.

Eduardo Robles, a Mexican-American studies and anthropology double major at UTPA, said that � nancing education is at the forefront of students’ minds when it comes to political issues.

“� e main thing they’re talking about is � nancial aid,” the 24-year-old said. “Is money coming in? Am I going to get the same scholarship I got last year? (Immigration is) not at the top. Maybe number three or four of the top � ve.”

� e Edinburg native said immigration is more likely to be an issue when it’s somehow connected to college admission or � nancial aid.

“It’s all pretty much tied together,” he said. “We’re already at the point where it’s going to a� ect us. We hear these politicians saying, ‘We’re going to create these or those jobs.’ Of course we’re going to listen because we’re the one going out into the workforce.”

Gutierrez said she and her students have seen the e� ects of recent budgets cuts � rsthand. Guidance counselors were reduced from eight to four, and the college-preparation program GEAR UP lost its funding recently.

“Here in the Valley, we already knew that our education wasn’t up to par,” she said. “Now these cuts are making that more disparate.”

Whatever issues students may � nd most important, both Lavariega-Monforti and Gutierrez said that the only way to get lawmakers’ attention is to vote.

“Even though one or two votes might not decide election, if a whole neighborhood votes or a whole community, that’s going to make a di� erence,” Gutierrez said.

PICKSOF THE WEEK

ICKSOF THE WEEKTV

Film

Music

Say What?

TV

Music

ay What?

Film

Speaker

Online

University Theatre Productions will give two performances of William Shakespeare’s “King Lear” in the Albert J. Jeffers Theatre. The play opens next Wednesday at 7:30 p.m., followed by an Oct. 9 performance at 2 p.m. Students, faculty and staff with a valid UTPA ID get free admission for themselves and one guest.

Making it count

Taking Back Sunday will perform at

the Pharr Events Center Saturday

with The Main and Bad Rabbits. The

show runs from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Tickets are available at pharrevents.

com for $22.50 plus fees.

The UTPA Music Department will open its season with a choir concert next Tuesday and a band concert Oct. 6. For a complete list of perfor-mances, visit utpa.edu/dept/music. All events start at 7:30 p.m. in the Fine Arts Auditorium and are free and open to the public.

The Anzaldua Speakers Series in Philosophy will host Natalie Cisneros of Vanderbilt University Tuesday for a lecture on Chicana writer Gloria Anzaldua and immigration. The presentation will be from noon to 1 p.m. in COAS 161.

By Nadia Tamez-RobledoThe Pan American

Theater

Too busy25.8%

Not interested14.9%

Forgot 13.3%

Illness 8.7%

Out of town 7%

Disliked candidates

7.2%

Why didn’t registered Hispanic

voters vote?

2010 unvoting registered voters

Voting group to push for increased turnout at next presidential election



28.7 %

49.3%

29.6%

Mexico Cuba

Puerto Rico

Latino voter turnout by country of origin

SOURCE: PEW HISPANIC CENTER

SOURCE: PEW HISPANIC CENTER


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STUDENTS & TEACHERS

Not Just a

Newspaper

Anymore!

La facultad de negocios originó una organización que ideÓ una campaña llamada, “Yo soy C.E.O.” Cuya organizaciÓn se basa en motivar a futuros empresarios emprendedores de la Universidad de Texas- Pan American para poder atraer más estudiantes de todas las facultades de esta universidad.

El “Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization,” o C.E.O. por sus siglas en inglés, es una organización dedicada a promover y exponer a estudiantes al mundo de los negocios. Así mismo se basan en invitar oradores con experiencias empresariales que se han destacado públicamente en el mismo medio. Estudiantes que toman parte de esta organización tienen la oportunidad de interactuar y aprender sobre las experiencias de cada orador invitado.

“(Me gusta tener) el poder de aprender e impactar positivamente el campus en el que estudiamos. Poder

demostrar nuestra objetividad como futuros empresarios ambiciosos,” mencionÓ Francisco GodÍnez, como meta principal para la organizaciÓn. “Creo que esta meta se va a lograr atreves de eventos y actividades, ya sean creados por la escuela o por nuestra propia organización.”

GodÍnez, Presidente de C.E.O., estudia finanzas con una especialidad en diseño gráfico, para tener su propio negocio. Godínez solo ha sido parte de esta organización por cinco meses y ya ha demostrado que si se trabaja en equipo, y todos tienen el mismo objetivo, se puede lograr lo deseado.

Por ejemplo, en su corta etapa en C.E.O. tuvo la oportunidad de invitar al empresario Carlos Garza, quien funge como el presidente del Banco Nacional de McAllen, Texas.

“El objetivo de traer a estos invitados es para darle la oportunidad a los estudiantes que conozcan a los lideres bancarios y empresariales de nuestra región,” menciono Garza.

La organización tiene planeado

invitar a Lauren Berger en noviembre. Berger se dedica en guiar a futuros empresarios emprendedores para que puedan hacer sus prácticas, o “internships” como mejor conocido en inglés, antes de terminar sus carreras universitarias y de esa manera prepararse para un futuro empleo.

La organización de C.E.O. ya cuenta con más de 15 miembros activos en el cual han participado en eventos como el “ENCORE”, una fundación que se dedica a mejorar

la educación. En esa actividad se participÓ voluntariamente en crear competencias de plan de negocios entre los estudiantes de secundaria y preparatoria.

Miembros de C.E.O. se enfocan en expandir sus conocimientos en los medios de negocias, � nanzas y mercadotecnia con el � n de conquistar el entorno al mundo de la economía. Todo lo que estudian y las actividades que emprenden es con el � n de estar a un paso más cerca de un futuro

exitoso, sin embargo también se enfocan en servir a su comunidad para poder ser un ejemplo a seguir.

“C.E.O. tiene grandes líderes y miembros, motivados por la idea de un futuro emprender su propio negocio o empresa,” compartió GodÍnez.

Para futuros empresarios emprendedores que deseen tomar parte del “Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization” pueden ser hallados en Facebook como “CEO at UTPA” (www.facebook.com/ceoatutpa).


“Yo soy CEO”

Por Mayra GodínezThe Pan American

FUTURO EMPRESARIO - Francisco Godínez es el nuevo presidente de “Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization.” Su objetivo es que todoes en la organizacion trabajen en equipo.


Riesgo a la vía automovilística

Tal parece que hoy en día la gran mayoría de las personas poseen un BlackBerry, un iPhone, o cualquier otro tipo de teléfono celular con un teclado avanzado. A pesar de que estos dispositivos electrónicos son inevitables para la rutina diaria, también pueden ser un peligro que puede resultar en muerte.

El mandar mensajes de texto, o “textear” como es comúnmente dicho, ha crecido rápidamente en popularidad. Cada día más y más personas están involucradas en este mal hábito.

El “textear” mientras se conduce es un peligro que ha ocasionado el 25 por ciento de accidentes automovilísticos. Estudios recientes han comprobado que el mandar mensajes de texto mientras se maneja es aún más peligroso que conducir bajo el estado de ebriedad.

“Si estás en estado de ebriedad aun prestas un poco de atención, pero cuando estás con el teléfono tu mirada y

tu mente están completamente retiradas del manejo,” comento el O� cial H. Mariscal del Departamento de Policía de la ciudad de Pharr, Texas.

Se ha comprobado que los adolescentes o adultos jóvenes entres las edades de 16 a 20 años son quienes comúnmente están involucrados en esta actividad, no obstante los mayores de edad también lo cometen.

Según el Departamento de Transportación, la causa principal de adolescentes que mueren es ocasionada por accidentes automovilísticos. O� ciales de tránsito comentan que son precisamente los jóvenes quienes corren el riesgo de estar involucrados tres veces más en una colisión vial que otros conductores.

Estadísticamente, también se ha comprobado que el conducir y mandar mensajes de texto ha aumentado el riesgo de un golpe entre menores antes que los 23 años de edad.

De hecho, cada tres de cuatro estudiantes de la Universidad de Texas- Pan American admitieron que “textean”

y manejan a la vez, aun conociendo el peligro que pueden enfrentar u ocasionar. Aún más sorprendente, el 20 por ciento de las colisiones automovilísticas están relacionadas con algún tipo de distracción.

“A mi casi me atropella un estudiante mientras yo caminaba al REC (Wellness and Recreational Sports Complex),” dijo Denise Alaniz, quien estudia terapia de lenguaje en UTPA. “Tuve que detenerme porque el muchacho nunca levanto la mirada por estar texteando.”

El o� cial H. Mariscal informó que ha visto que los accidentes vehiculares involucrados con el “mensajeo” causan más daños que cualquier otro tipo de accidente.

Desde el 24 de junio la nueva ordenanza de la ciudad de McAllen #2011-04 implementó una nueva ley al mundo vial, que exige que las manos estén libres de teléfonos al manejar y, si no es seguida, se enfrentarán multas de hasta 500 dólares.

Salva una vida, “textea” después.

“Texteando” al manejarPor Saira Treviño The Pan American


Futuros empresarios emprendedores

No estas Mane-

jando, verdad?

Te amo - Mama

the pan american September 29, 2011

September 29, 2007

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Transcript of September 29, 2007