Midland College Volume XXXV, No. 1 September 28, 2007 El Paisano Student Newspaper Express Progress comes with obstacles By Lynn Blakeney and Ismael Rosa Staff Reporters Healthy U Oct. 6 The construction around the Midland College campus is well underway MC along with the Midland thanks to the $41.8 million bond issued in 2005. Police Department, the American Some of the improvements to the infrastructure have been less noticeable, but Heart Association and the Midland with the construction of the new academic classroom building and trenches Reporter-Telegram will sponsor being dug all over campus, construction is very visible, according to Dennis Healthy U – a community wide Sever, vice-president of information technology and facilities. health and wellness expo, from “It’s important that students stay away from the construction areas,” Sever 9:30 a.m. – 2 p.m., Saturday, Oct. said. This is for the students’ safety and the safety of the workers, he said. 6, at Chaparral Center. When the bond package was approved by Midland voters in May 2005, it was Healthy U is advertised as the to be used for a number of projects … from building safer crosswalks to adding “premier health education event of needed classroom space. the year.” Attendees have the Goals of the construction on campus are to address long-term problems relat- chance to receive free health ed to needed new classroom space and to insure more convenient maintenance screening, watch the preparation of facilities and meeting space for the community and college functions, Sever heart-healthy food and hear said. informative medical presentations. The raised pedestrian walkways that cross the Chaparral Circle near the Heart Walk 2007 also takes dorms and the Fox Science building now offer safety for students trekking from place on Oct. 6 at MC. dorms to other campus buildings. Registration begins at 8 a.m. with Drainage and flooding problems near the dorms have been fixed. the walk starting at 9 a.m. For The ongoing construction also brings with it inconveniences that have more information, call 640-5090. delayed its progression, according to Sever. Construction around the campus has brought with it trenches and closed parking lots. Also the weather has Pottery workshop played a big factor in the construction’s schedule. Midland Arts Association and “Having one of the wettest years has put the construction 30 to 45 days Midland College will host a two- behind schedule,” Sever said. day pottery workshop in conjunc- One of the additions to the campus is the academic classroom building. The tion with the 30th Annual building should be completed by February or March of 2008, according to the MAA/MC Fall Juried Exhibit. Midland College Web site. It will have 36 classrooms, including a 100-seat lec- Lynn Smiser Bowers of Kansas ture hall. It will also include 25 faculty offices, four administrative offices, a City, Mo., will offer the workshop University Center office suite, a conference room and a student lounge area “Embellishing Form and overlooking the campus. Surface” from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., Also under construction is Phase II of the Fox science building. Friday and Saturday, Oct. 5 – 6, in Trenches 8-feet deep will be filled with double insulated pipe that carries the Room 182 of the Allison Fine Arts hot and cold water to be used to heat and cool every building on campus. building. The fee for the workshop The Cogdell Learning Center, located on Florida Avenue will soon be fully is $150. remodeled as well. Bowers will also offer a free Sever said that measures have been taken to ensure MC students, sports slide talk at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, teams and faculty who travel thousands of miles within one season are safe. Oct. 4, in Room 193 of the Allison The vehicles previously used proved unreliable and were found to be danger- Photo by Joy Pruitt Fine Arts building. ous in safety tests, Sever said. Two pickup trucks, two minivans, two 15-pas- Construction workers, including welders, work in one of the trenches MAA/MC fall show senger buses, three 24-passenger buses and o ne 38-passenger bus have been near the new academic classroom building on the southeast side of campus. Campus visitors are urged to drive and walk carefully. Bowers is the juror for the annu- See Construction, page 4 al joint show which will accept entries from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 6, in McCormick Enrollment drops slightly as ecomony booms Gallery, AFA building. For more information on the By Lindsey Stamper and about 65 percent are part-time “The economy has caught up with year is the non-base year, which workshop, please contact Carol Staff Reporter students. us,” Haines said. He said he expects means that it will not affect the fund- Bailey at 685-4652. The bustling economy seems to “The full-time and part-time ratio the numbers to go back up when peo- ing the college receives. For information on the have had an impact on Midland stays pretty consistent throughout the ple start realizing they need to go back “Since the base year was last year, MAA/MC Fall Juried Art Exhibit, College’s slightly lower enrollment years,” Haines said. to school. this is one of the best years, financial- call Karen Lanier, 685-5597. this fall, according to Bob Haines, One of the reasons why there are so “Everyone is looking to hire work- ly, the college will ever have,” Haines dean of enrollment management. many part-time students enrolled ers in Midland. Jobs are so plentiful, said. Roadrunner Room The Fall 2007 semester enrollment every year is because of the dual-cred- people would rather work than go to According to Haines, under the gets name change stood at 5,750 students as of Sept. 5, it courses offered in area high school, school,” Haines said. condition of a “booming economy,” 2007. This includes 55 percent according to Haines. The Texas Legislature meets every the enrollment at MC is “looking One of the most frequently used females and 45 percent males. About Online classes represent about one- two years and considers college fund- quite well.” rooms at Midland College will get 35 percent of students are full-time third of enrollment, Haines said. ing. Last year was the base year. This a new name this fall, thanks to a donation from Dr. Arnulfo T. Carrasco. Constitution Day panel discusses immigration The college board of directors approved changing the name of the By Joy Pruitt spectrum of views. courses and is now a U.S. citizen. The panel discussed that Mexican Roadrunner Room in the Staff Reporter The panel included: Rex Peebles, Garcia said her first experience in immigrants are taking American jobs. Scharbauer Student Center to the Midland College celebrated vice president of instruction; Jerry the workforce as an immigrant was in An audience member said immigrants Carrasco Room. Constitution Day in the Scharbauer Franks, professor of government and housekeeping. take the jobs no American wants such Carrasco of the Carrasco Pain Student Center with quizzes, prizes, philosophy; Todd Houck, assistant She said that her employer told her as construction and harvesting of Institute in San Antonio made a voter registration, food and a panel professor of history; and students she would never grow beyond the role crops. $100,000 donation resulting in the discussing immigration. Jonathan Dumire, Sara Clifton, of housekeeper. This inspired her to The audience then posed the ques- name change. Tuesday, Sept. 17, marked the Bianca Perez, Josh Milam, Jeremy become a U.S. citizen and pursue a tion: “Who will build the wall?” “It is because of the impact that 220th anniversary of the signing of Lysinger and Brian Van de Boogaard. college education. Josh Milam, a student panel mem- Midland College had on me per- the United States Constitution. Gilmour said she was pleased to see “If you’re not Latin, you don’t get ber, said, “I will.” He said he and his sonally that I established the A.T. Professors Terry Gilmour and Sondra so many students had something to it,” Garcia said. “There’s a difference father are in the construction business Carrasco Educational Founda- Richards were the key organizers. say. between being born in America as a and know how to build things. tion,” Carrasco said in a letter to The main topic of the panel discus- MC student Osiris Garcia said that Latino and being born in Mexico.” Many references to the Berlin Wall MC President David Daniel. sion was the proposed Mexico/United she is a second-generation immigrant Student Joseph Merrell said, “We’re and the Great Wall of China were At MC, Carrasco established the States border wall and its necessity. who entered the United States illegal- all immigrants here, immigration made regarding them as failures. Leonardo B. and Eva Carrasco Students and faculty from the audi- ly. reform should not start with a wall but It seems that some believe the pro- Commitment to Education ence participated and shared a broad Garcia completed U.S. citizenship people.” posed border wall would fail as well. Scholarship, which gives $500 per semester to graduating sopho- mores going on to four-year uni- League of Women Voters hosts expert panel versities. By Joy Pruitt ator. Carrasco and his nine siblings Staff Reporter Carson shared a presentation with are the children of Eva and Immigration experts presented a statistics on legal and illegal immigra- Leonardo B. Carrasco of Kermit. forum discussing immigration law, tion. Nine siblings have graduated from the proposed wall, Muslims and Arabs “Since 1820, legal immigration is at MC and gone on to successful crossing the Mexican border and the a historic high,” Carson said, “… careers.