The Prospector, September 4, 2018
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University of Texas at El Paso DigitalCommons@UTEP The rP ospector Special Collections Department 9-4-2018 The rP ospector, September 4, 2018 UTEP Student Publications Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.utep.edu/prospector Part of the Journalism Studies Commons, and the Mass Communication Commons Comments: This file is rather large, with many images, so it may take a few minutes to download. Please be patient. Recommended Citation UTEP Student Publications, "The rP ospector, September 4, 2018" (2018). The Prospector. 320. https://digitalcommons.utep.edu/prospector/320 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Special Collections Department at DigitalCommons@UTEP. It has been accepted for inclusion in The rP ospector by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UTEP. For more information, please contact [email protected]. VOL. 104, NO. 2 SEPTEMBER 4, 2018 THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO WWW.THEPROSPECTORDAILY.COM A search advisory committee comes together to find President Natalicio’s replacement BRIANNA CHAVEZ Natalicio announced she would be retiring after 30 years as the university’s president. The Prospector President Natalicio told The Prospector The University of Texas System an- and other members of the media during her nounced a search advisory committee announcement, “I will be happy to serve as has been assembled to help guide the long as I need to in order to make a smooth Board of Regents in selecting a new transition.” university president for The Univer- Natalicio, who was named one of TIME sity of Texas at El Paso. Magazine’s most influential people of 2017, The committee announced on Aug. said she would like for her successor to con- 31, consists of 18 members, including tinue a commitment to access to a public Board of Regents Vice Chairman Paul higher education, particularly with low in- Foster, El Paso Mayor Dee Margo and come and underrepresented students. SGA President Cristian Botello. Several UTEP students agree. Sopho- The Presidential Search Advisory more environmental science major Frida Committee will meet multiple times over Murga, and sophomore psychology ma- the next couple of months to discuss possi- jor Alejandra Nevarez both hope the next ble candidates to replace UTEP’s president UTEP president has similar values as Dr. and will be assisted by Russell Reynold As- Natalicio, especially in regards to the repre- sociates, a global search firm. sentation of Hispanic students. They are expected to meet for the first “Being an immigrant myself I know UTEP time in the next few weeks and go before is one of the only choices for many people, so the Board of Regents with recommenda- (I hope the new president) does not change tions for candidates early next year. the mission and values because I know a lot “I wanted to make sure that we as a of people do count on those to come and get student body have accurate representation their education here,” Nevarez said. when we choose who will lead our school “I know she’s worked really hard to keep and replace Dr. Natalicio,” Botello said. “I UTEP affordable for students who have a believe the students here at UTEP deserve lower income and Hispanic families,” Mur- the best possible representation and I’m go- ga said. ing to do my best to help the committee in According to UT System Regents’ rules any way possible.” and regulations, the selection criteria for the The UT System will also post a website to next president must relate to the needs of the provide a timeline of the search process and individual institution. The advisory com- an opportunity for members of the public to mittee must submit to the Board an unbiased privately submit candidate nominations. selection of no more than 10 recommended Back in May, UTEP President Diana candidates and they must receive a majority vote of the committee. The Board then determines which can- didates will be further interviewed before naming a finalist or finalists. If none of the names submitted by the committee fulfills the Board of Regents sat- isfactions, the Board can either select a new committee or select a president “under other procedures as in its discretion it may deem proper and appropriate,” according to the Re- gents’ rules. see NATALICIO on page 3 SEPTEMBER 4, 2018 2 OPINION WEB EDITOR ADRIAN BROADDUS, 747-7446 Attendance numbers hits new low BY ADRIAN BROADDUS product. Make up your mind Saturday showed that it’s the same old story, just a The Prospector BY JAVIER CORTEZ UTEP track and field and cross country program. different season, as they lost their 13th straight game You know the program that has 20 national The Prospector On Saturday, UTEP (the longest active losing streak in FBS). championships to its name. The program that is na- athletics debuted a new Kudos to UTEP athletics for the effort, though. It’s not a good look. tionally ranked year in year out. The program that starting time for the They helped drop the season ticket price to an afford- Losing by 20 points produces conference champions, All-Americans, football game—5:30 — able one of $55 this spring, which is less than $10 a in the home opener and future Olympians all the damn time. which had mixed reac- ticket. They took a big step forward into promotions against an FCS pro- That program. tions from fans. and marketing the team through graphic designs gram does not bode And to be clear, this doesn’t have to be an either- In fact, the majority and social media. UTEP’s uniform department did well. You can add as or situation. You don’t have to totally neglect UTEP of fans didn’t pour into a fantastic job in supplying the team with three new many ifs, ands or buts football in favor of track and field. Just stop deluding the stadium until about midway into the first quarter, combinations for the season. to it. But, the only but yourself at the start of every new season. as expected. At about halftime, the Sun Bowl’s press The attitude from the athletics department came is, that the optics on the early return from the 2018 Stop asking “when are we going to get those big- box side was flooded in a sea of orange and blue, and with so much energy and enthusiasm. UTEP football team is not good. time recruits?”, “when are we going to win that big it looked like an admirable crowd for a home opener. But the fans were already long gone. So where do we go from here? And by we, I mean game?”, and “when are we going to finally hit the big The attendance looked dense in numbers by the UTEP football has long lost its fans, even before you, the UTEP fan base. In specific, those ranging stage?”. start of the third quarter, when Northern Arizona their losing streak. Fans want answers, not excuses. from the die-hards who suffer year in year out watch- Guess where the big recruits are: out in Kidd started to pull away for the win. I thought to myself, They want wins now, not wins in the future. ing the football program to the casual come-and- Field. Guess who’s winning the big games: those big- “maybe 18-19,000, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they Right down the street, the El Paso Chihuahuas goers. What do you really want to support and why? time recruits out in Kidd Field. Guess who’s compet- said 23,000 fans.” held their final weekend homestand of the regular Regardless of how the next 11 games go and ing on the big stage: those big-time recruits out in But when I heard the final number, all I could season and saw a sold-out crowd of 9, 559 for “Harry what Dimel does with this program over the course Kidd Field. think of was how it reflected the state of the fans Potter Night.” Fans witnessed an intense 5-4 extra in- of his tenure, it doesn’t change what is true: UTEP is There is a program with a rich winning tradition, across the city and how they truly feel about the team. nings finish in Tacoma’s favor. But with the loss, El not a football school. star athletes and a bright future that deserves your Not only was this the first loss UTEP had against Paso was far from disparity. The Chihuahuas have It’s a historically bad program. That’s not an opin- fandom. They deserve your loyalty and you should an FCS program since they lost 34-13 to Cal Poly already clinched their fourth divisional title in five ion, that’s not a hot take nor is it hyperbole. It is an give it to them. in 2003—which was Gary Nord’s last year as head seasons and have put together one of the best seasons observational fact that has been laid out by the con- Granted, track and field is not the most fan- coach—but the Miners lost a bulk of their fans in at- in club history. tinuous losing seasons since the program’s inception friendly sport nor is it the most appealing. It doesn’t tendance. The Miners final record in ‘03 was 2-11. The Chihuahuas’ marketing lets their numbers back in 1914. have the visceral effect of a wide receiver going over The measley 17, 271 fans in the crowd was the speak for itself. They are always within the top five at- I won’t mention the dour numbers behind that the middle as linebacker or safety meets him at the lowest in attendance for a home opener since the tendance in Minor League Baseball and in the top five fact.