The Beacon, April 30, 2007 Florida International University
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Florida International University FIU Digital Commons The aP nther Press (formerly The Beacon) Special Collections and University Archives 4-30-2007 The Beacon, April 30, 2007 Florida International University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/student_newspaper Recommended Citation Florida International University, "The Beacon, April 30, 2007" (2007). The Panther Press (formerly The Beacon). 309. https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/student_newspaper/309 This work is brought to you for free and open access by the Special Collections and University Archives at FIU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in The aP nther Press (formerly The Beacon) by an authorized administrator of FIU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. A Forum for Free Student Expression at Florida International University Vol. 19, Issue 65 www.beaconnewspaper.com April 30, 2007 PULLIN’ AHEAD Memorable Record breaker experiences overcomes troubled past part of life SERGIO BONILLA Asst. Sports Editor The outfi eld walls of Univer- sity Park stadium exhibit three retired jersey numbers: No. 23 Tony Mendez, No. 21 Danny Price and No. 15 Mike Lowell. When Golden Panthers I sat on my own on the fourth fl oor of Deux- third baseman Brian Pullin fi rst ieme Maison, typing feverishly into my laptop. arrived at FIU, playing Division Books in mounds, papers stacked at my side and I baseball and graduating were coffee in hand, I compulsively read one book a dream. Four seasons later, he and then another. leaves FIU as the all-time hits Sound familiar? Another year, another leader, with a degree in sports fi nals week, another procrastinated semester management and good chance JESSICA MARSHALL/THE BEACON project, the kind you never believe will fi nish. his No. 8 will be retired next to LEARNING SESSION: Third baseman Brian Pullin takes some extra time after practice to teach his And yet, fi ve days later it was done and so was two FIU legends and the man teammates some skills he has picked up in the four years he has played baseball at FIU. I … with all of it — no deadlines, no fi nals. I who guided him throughout was fi nished. his tumultuous college career, Like a fog I let the concept linger for a Danny Price. Brian Pullin, Golden Panthers third baseman moment. Then reality hit, hard. “Brian Pullin is an example Even if things go wrong, I fi gure things happen for a reason and “Now what?” that giving the benefi t of the doubt “ Well, unless you plan to be a student for life, to a kid is good,” said coach Price. I try to learn from things that have happened in my life. So every- everyone arrives at this point. While a student at American thing I do, I take it for what it’s worth and I have no regerts. It’s a collegiate limbo, realizing your time Heritage High School, Pullin at FIU has to come to an end. enjoyed a state championship in to the home dugout at Uni- but deep inside he’s a good kid.” he was for Price’s patience. My stress about fi nals was quickly replaced his junior year and had a senior versity Park Stadium during Price spoke about the dif- “He gave me a chance to with fear, not fear of a test, but fear of life, and year that included a .508 bat- the summer following Pullin’s ferent times and methods play here. I don’t want to specifi cally, fear of the unknown. ting average. Several collegiate senior year of high school. he used to reprimand Pullin disappoint him,” Pullin said. But I realize now that this unknown is actu- baseball programs took notice Unlike many of his teammates, during his tenure at FIU. Pullin sees his past errors as ally very familiar. of Pullin’s ability on the fi eld, Pullin arrived at FIU as a walk- “Brian has washed every police learning experiences rather than This is a rat race that most FIU students jump but were reluctant to give him on, meaning that he was not car on campus, every golf debilitating obstacles. Running into long before their college careers, a good an opportunity to play due to his recruited or offered a scholarship cart on campus; I even sus- vertically near his ribs are a majority already in the workforce. problems off the fi eld. immediately. pended him before,” he said. few words, which he applied I worked mostly on-campus jobs, as a resi- “I always seemed to He had to prove he was The senior third baseman admit- to his past: “No Regrets.” dent assistant and editor at the school paper. be at the wrong place at the worthy of a scholarship first. ted that his behavioral prob- “Even if things go wrong, I fi gure Only now, slowly packing up the stuff I’ve wrong time,” Pullin said. “One of my assistants told me: lems cost him scholarships things happen for a reason and accumulated in my room, can I look back on Price, who has been the FIU ‘I want this guy. He can hit,’” from other schools but didn’t I try to learn from things that my four years and realize that the real world baseball coach for 28 years, Price said. “Brian’s got some want to go into detail about have happened in my life. So isn’t very different. was one of the first to meet Dennis the Menace in him. He’s his troubled past. However, he Life, like college, goes by in a blur, and like Pullin in the hallway that leads going to push you to the edge, also mentioned how grateful Ferris Bueller once told us, “If you don’t stop PULLIN, page 12 for a second, you just might miss it.” It’s a fresh breeze that an instant has come and gone, leaving in its trail good memories and Student hopes to open own university for the real lucky, good friends. I arrived at FIU hoping I’d fi nd my niche. I eventually realized that for once, I didn’t BEN F. BADGER JR. she received a bachelor’s degree need one. Instead, I made my own niche, and Staff Writer in arts and communication. To further her education, she adapted according to each experience and trial. Sometimes experiences are worth their weight Compared to her small home- moved to Miami in 2005 and is in gold, even when I realized I might never town of Plainsboro, N.J., Miami now graduating from the Col- use the skills gained. There were also those was a big place for graduate stu- lege of Education with a degree experiences that I later learned to regret, but dent Tara Warshaw, who spent in higher education administra- even those have made me better as a result. No her youth in the academically tion and a 3.9 GPA. matter what, I learned something. competitive town. She first visited the Uni- I’ve learned that DM’s grass near the bridge “It was a big culture shock,” versity as a participant in the is the sweetest in the sun, especially to take a Warshaw said. “But it was Student Affairs Graduate Asso- nap, and that the library would be a fantastic exciting. I just fell in love with ciation Days, an event where place to play manhunt (not that I have). [FIU].” students from around the coun- I’ve learned that all-nighters only work once Warshaw’s passion is edu- try are given the opportunity a semester, so you have to try and save it till the cation, something she’s been to apply for graduate assistant end. I’ve learned that here, you’ll meet only involved with since she was in positions in the various organi- CHRIS CUTRO/THE BEACON a little piece of the world, but that little piece grade school, usually volunteer- zations on campus. SHOCK: Graduating student Tara Warshaw learned to love FIU eventually becomes your entire world. ing or tutoring in neighborhood Warshaw felt instantly drawn despite the culture shock she originally received. For me, FIU became my home not because schools. Warshaw now wants to the FIU Women’s Center I lived on-campus. Rather it was because I to focus her talent on older where she applied for a job. The Being part of the Center Soon after getting on board embraced the whole experience: the good students. feeling was mutual. helped ease Warshaw into the with the center Warshaw pio- roommates (and the issues they bring); the “I love challenging college “I was just drawn to her,” community. She made friends neered two programs, the beach days and the exam days; the fi re drills level students,” Warshaw said. said Suzanne Onorato, the and expanded her network of fi rst being the Wild Succulent and the Miami traffi c; the cafecitos on Calle For her undergraduate degree, Women’s Center Associate contacts. Women event. During WSM, Ocho; the late night conversations – it’s in these Warshaw attended the Univer- Director. “I could talk about “I just had to fi nd my niche,” experiences that life is truly savored. sity of Northern Colorado where Tara for hours.” Warshaw said. WARSHAW, page 12 2 The Beacon – April 30, 2007 www.beaconnewspaper.com Spring 2007 Commencement Candidates College of Aurora G. Molina Jason Emanuel Pistana Salvador E. Briz Danae Oria Sanchez Ezekiel Alvarez Maria Marcia Prieto Mercedes Rodriguez Edward Antonio Ceballos Kristina Sanchez Nikol Leah Anderson Architecture and Maricel Ruiz Carmen Amelia Rozas Jairo Cipolla Philip W.