Student Government Association E-News

1. First TAMIU Film Festival Friday
2. Early Registration at TAMIU Continues
3. Spring Dance Concert at TAMIU April 11
4 . Una Primavera Mexicana Concert Set April 17
5 . Mariachi Vargas¹ Violinist Admirer of TAMIU¹s Mariachi Internacional
6 . TAMIU Researcher on Top Ten List
7 . TAMIU EMSAP Student Makes Choices, Finds Career
8 . TAMIU Students Get Valuable Research Experience at Texas Center
9 . Lamar Bruni Vergara Memorial Garden Dedication April 16

First TAMIU Film Festival Friday

Amateur filmmakers will screen the debuts of their artistic work during a
Film Festival at Texas A&M International University that targets showing the
best of independent films from the community on Friday, April 4 from 2-10
p.m. in Bullock Hall 118.
José Angel Jiménez, president of the TAMIU Film Club, said featured works
include documentaries, animated shorts and dramas that range from 10 seconds
to 90 minutes in length.
³This will be TAMIU¹s and Laredo¹s first film festival,² Jiménez said, ³One
year ago, we got together as a club and we asked ourselves what we wanted to
do. The answer was unanimous: we wanted to first make our own film and have
a film festival.²
The Festival is free and open to the public. A total of seven works will
be shown and a discussion will follow after each, Jiménez said.
Jiménez collected Festival films through an aggressive announcement
campaign targeted at directors in the local and surrounding areas, and said
there is strong interest in filmmaking in the community.
³We put the word out and I got a lot of response. People called me up
and they were interested,² Jiménez said, ³Hopefully, for next year, we can
have an even larger selection.²
Jiménez said concession items will be available and that films will be
repeated throughout the day so that those who could not attend the Festival
during the day can enjoy the same works during the night.
For further information, please contact Jiménez at 337-0083 or visit the
Film Club¹s site at http://groups.msn.com./tamiufilmclubinfo.

Early Registration at TAMIU Continues

Early registration for summer and fall sessions at Texas A&M International
University continues through April 11.
Early registration provides students with an opportunity to get their
summer and fall schedules planned in advance and assure their place in
critical classes.
"We always encourage students to pursue the early registration offerings
as they can do much to provide them with ease of mind in knowing that
they've already taken care of registration and have secured their place in
classes that they may need to graduate," said Registrar Barbara Lunce.
Summer registration offers an ideal opportunity for many to continue
their progress on additional degrees or certifications.
This summer, students will be able to choose from an expanded number of
course offerings.
"Although the University has experienced budget cuts, we are actually
offering an increased number of summer session course sections which should
be very beneficial to our students. In addition, the Summer courses will be
presented in a four-day schedule with no classes being offered on Fridays.
As part of our budget adjustments, the University will be closed on
Fridays," Lunce explained.
For early registration, returning students should see Faculty Advisors. New
transfer students can register by appointment with Registrar's Office
advisors, while first time freshmen may register on-site at their respective
high schools throughout the month of April.
For additional information, contact the Registrar's Office by calling
956.326.2250, or visit their www site at tamiu.edu/affairs/registrar/.
Spring hours for the Office of the Registrar are from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Monday, Tuesday and Friday and 8 a.m. - 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday.

Spring Dance Concert at TAMIU April 11

Spring will arrive at Texas A&M International University dressed in flowing
skirts and featuring joyous flamencos at the annual Spring Dance Concert
Friday, April 11 at 8 p.m. in the Kinesiology/Convocation Building.
The concert, which will present a potpourri of dance styles including
flamenco, jazz, tap, ballet and modern dance, will also serve to honor
assistant professor of dance Bede Leyendecker for her 20 years of teaching
experience.
The event is free and the public is invited to attend.
Also at the event, the D.D. Hachar Charitable Trust will be awarded the
Terprsichorean Award for its support of dance education at TAMIU. The Trust
has provided $12,000 for costumes, student travel and scholarships.
In addition, one student will be chosen to receive the Blanche Flores
Leyendecker Scholarship during the concert.
Blanche Flores Leyendecker was a pioneering dance teacher in Laredo. Aside
from her artistic and educational contributions, Leyendecker was considered
one of the kindest people whose genuine interest in her students is still
remembered by many Laredoans. The scholarship is awarded every year in her
memory.
Bede Leyendecker said that some of the songs the audience can expect to hear
at the concert include "La Boda de Luis Alonzo" by Giménez, "Volare" by
Gipsy Kings, and "Angel" by McLachlan.
Also introduced at the event will be guest artists from Zapata and Alexander
High Schools.
For further information on the Spring Concert, please contact Leyendecker at
326-2625, e-mail bleyendecker@tamiu.edu or visit offices located in
Pellegrino Hall 215C.
Spring semester University office hours are 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through
Friday.

Una Primavera Mexicana Concert Set April 17

On April 16 and 17, joyful accordion notes and lively polkas will beckon
Texas A&M International University¹s Ballet Folklórico to the stage for ³Una
Primavera Mexicana² featuring dances dating back to the Mexican Revolution.
The annual dance concert by the 30-member group celebrates the arrival of
spring and will be held on two dates. Two concerts are geared especially
for children, while the third is open to the general public. Both take
place at TAMIU¹s Kinesiology/Convocation Building and are free of charge
and open to the community.
The children¹s presentation is Wednesday, April 16 at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. and
also features guest ballet folklórico groups from González Middle School and
the Vidal M. Treviño Magnet School. More than 2,700 children are expected to
attend both shows.
The general public presentation is Thursday, April 17 at 7 p.m. Guests will
include the Ballet Folklórico Juvenil, a children¹s ballet group, and
TAMIU¹s Guitar Ensemble under the direction of Dr. Gilberto Soto.
Gabriela Mendoza-García, director of the Ballet Folklórico, said that the
Concert, fully adorned in the colors and sounds of Mexico, serves to remind
and educate the public about the centuries-old traditions, customs and
culture of Laredo¹s closest neighbor.
Founded in 1996 by Mendoza-García, TAMIU¹s Ballet Folklórico has included
students from Brazil, Canada, China, France, India and Mexico, the United
States and Zambia, and is well versed in dances from all regions of Mexico.
³This performing dance organization is comprised entirely of TAMIU students
and alumni whose positive attitude toward work has produced a dedicated and
talented group of dancers that are also storytellers, historians and
cultural ambassadors,² Mendoza-García said, ³Each dance the group performs
tells a story or provides a unique history lesson in motion on Mexico.²
Mendoza-García said dances at ³Una Primavera Mexicana² are authentic
renditions of traditional steps and incorporate teachings of Pedro Serna, a
folkloric dance consultant from Zacatecas, Mexico. A former member of Ballet
Folklórico de Zacatecas, Serna has danced with Amalia Hernández¹s famous
Ballet Folklórico de Mexico. He currently directs his own dance group in
Jalpa, Zacatecas.
³Our choreography is also a product of what students learned from various
master teachers at national and international conferences,² she said.
Dancers will present selections from throughout Mexico including the states
of Veracruz, Nuevo Leon, Chiapas, Michoacan, and Jalisco, Mendoza-García
said.
³We encourage the public to come, bring their families and enjoy these
stories in motion. By doing so, they will help us to preserve an art form
for generations to come,² she said.
For further information, please contact Mendoza-García at 326-2281, e-mail
gabym@tamiu.edu or visit offices located in Student Center, room 226B.
TAMIU Spring semester office hours are 8 a.m. ­ 5 p.m. Monday through
Friday.

Mariachi Vargas¹ Violinist Admirer of TAMIU¹s Mariachi Internacional

As the youngest member of Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, Mexico¹s legendary
mariachi ensemble, Steven Sandoval is an ardent fan of Texas A&M
International University Mariachi Interncional students because they¹ve
decided to keep one of Mexico¹s oldest music forms alive.
Sandoval, 31, was himself apprehensive to learn at first, when his
musician father pulled him by the ears to begin violin practice at age 16 in
Mexico City.
³At that age, you want to be having fun with your friends and not going
for a practice,² he said smiling.
But thanks to his father¹s insistence, Sandoval is today a cultural
ambassador of Mexico, trotting the globe with a group of veteran musicians
who give concerts at packed coliseums to deliver the heart and soul of their
country through songs like ³La negra,² ³El carretero², ³El tren², and
³Fiesta en el corazón².
Sandoval and Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán will be in Laredo for the first
time April 26 in a concert at the Laredo Entertainment Center benefitting
TAMIU students. The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. and the public will have
an opportunity to know in-depth the group that sealed its name in history
with appearances along Mexico¹s artistic powerhouses like Lola Beltrán,
Pedro Infante, José Alfredo Jiménez and Miguel Aceves Mejía.
Mariachi Vargas¹ appearance comes through a generous partnership by sponsors
Sames Motor Company, Ford Motor Credit, Ford Salute to Education, the Laredo
Entertainment Center and TAMIU.
Proceeds from ticket sales benefit student scholarships. Tickets are $10,
$15 and $25 and can be obtained at the Laredo Entertainment Center¹s box
office or at ticketmaster.com.
The concert caps off the University¹s two-day Fiesta de Mariachi, an annual
mariachi competition scheduled at TAMIU April 25-26. The Fiesta de Mariachi,
which includes mariachi workshops and a competition, is expected to draw 20
high schools and 10 middle schools from throughout Texas and the nation.
Sandoval said the ensemble is excited to visit the Gateway City and meet
Laredo fans, as well as future mariachi musicians who are in middle, high
school and college.
"We feel very excited," he said, "Wherever we go, people treat us so well
and we cannot wait to start the show."
Sandoval, who served as one of the judges at the Mariachi Extravaganza in
San Antonio in November, said he admires young mariachi artists such as
Mariachi Internacional for preserving Mexico¹s culture and tradition.
"I'm in awe because in Mexico, you don't see the degree of support that
schools here get to maintain a mariachi group," he said, "I think some
schools in the United States even have a class in mariachi built into their
curricula. I think it's very important to continue this tradition because it
is a part of our roots. We have the responsibility to pass this on to new
generations."
But perhaps Sandoval¹s biggest admirer is his father, a mariachi musician
whom Sandoval surprised when he was chosen from countless musicians to join
the elite 12-member Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán.
³My father, who was traveling to Puerto Rico for his group¹s performance,
didn¹t know that I had been chosen to be a part of Mariachi Vargas, much
less, that I was coming to visit him there on my own business trip,²
Sandoval explained. ³When I got to the place my father was working, he was
playing the trumpet as usual and I covered his eyes from behind with my
hands. When he finally saw me with five other members of Mariachi Vargas,
he put two and two together and congratulated me with the tightest hug.²
Sandoval said his exposure to Mariachi Vargas began when he was a child.
³Even since I was a kid, my father would take me to a place in
Guadalajara called El Troje, a usual venue for Mariachi Vargas,² Sandoval
said, ³Back then, I was so shy I didn¹t even have the courage to say hello
to them. Every time I would see them, I would leave wondering, ŒWould I ever
be good enough to play with them?¹²
But today, Sandoval has grasped his long-cherished dream and when he arrives
in Laredo, will take the stage with a mariachi group that encourages others
to realize their dreams.
For further information on the Mariachi Vargas concert, please contact the
Office of Public Affairs and Information Services at 326-2180, e-mail
pais@tamiu.edu or visit offices located in the Sue and Radcliffe Killam
Library, room 268.

TAMIU Researcher on Top Ten List

A song is popular when it makes the top ten of the radio play list and a
film is a hit when it's in the top ten of box office receipts. For a
science researcher, having one's article be one of the top ten most
downloaded articles from Elsevier Science, one of the premier science
publishers, means that one's research is well-received and important to the
scientific community.
Dr. Juan H. Hinojosa, Texas A&M International University professor and
dean of the College of Science and Technology, and his co-author, Dr. Kevin
L. Mickus, professor at Southwest Missouri State University, found
themselves in this unique position.
They knew that their article, "The complete gravity gradient tensor derived
from the vertical component of gravity: a Fourier transform technique,"
which appeared in the March 2001 issue of Journal of Applied Geophysics,
offered a unique and cost-effective method for identifying and mapping large
structures beneath the surface of this or other planets. When they learned
that the article was in the top ten of most downloaded articles from the
Elsevier Science Journal for all of 2001, despite the fact that the article
appeared in the March issue, they also knew that researchers worldwide found
it helpful.
Dr. Hinojosa said the research in their paper was important for a number
of reasons.
"First, it advances scientific knowledge in the area of geophysics and
provides a cost-effective subsurface mapping capability, which was
previously unavailable. In addition, the technique can be applied to
gravity data from any of the planets, including terrestrial planets like
Earth and Mars, which have solid surfaces, and the moons of the Jovian
planets, such as Jupiter and Saturn, which are gas giants," explained
Hinojosa.
He also said that the method described in their paper had other unique
features.
"Because the method can be applied at a variety of length scales, from
tens of meters to thousands of kilometers, there are also practical
applications of the technique, such as groundwater and oil and gas
exploration," said Hinojosa.
For more information about the College of Science and Technology, please
contact 326.2440, visit offices in the Dr. F.M. Canseco Hall, room 301 or
e-mail jhhinojosa@tamiu.edu. University hours for the Spring 2003 semester
are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

TAMIU EMSAP Student Making Choices, Finding Career Answer

Thomas Fredrick Martin Jr. thought he wanted to be a doctor when he grew
up. As a senior at St. Augustine High School, he even knew he wanted to
study dermatology.
To pursue his dream, he applied to and was accepted into the Early Medical
School Acceptance Program (EMSAP) offered collaboratively by Texas A&M
International University and the University of Texas Medical Branch at
Galveston.
After his second summer of specialized training at UTMB-Galveston, and more
than a year of attending classes at TAMIU, Martin started thinking about his
reactions to the work and the effect of human patients on his psyche.
"I lived on a ranch all my life and had always thought I had wanted to be a
doctor," said Martin, "and then my dad suggested being a vet would combine
the two: living on a ranch, working with animals and the medicine part that
I had always liked, so I decided to pursue that."
Like his earlier dream of being a doctor, Martin pursued his new career
choice with concentration and dedication.
"To get into the vet school at [Texas A&M University - College Station],
you don't need a degree. They just have a list of prerequisite courses that
you have to take. I'm finishing the last of the prerequisites this semester.
One of them is an animal nutrition course, and they don't offer it here at
TAMIU, so on Tuesdays and Thursdays I've been driving to Kingsville,"
explained Martin.
He has been getting hands-on experience as well, working with Laredo
veterinarian Dr. Sandra Leyendecker whenever Martin has time or if Dr.
Leyendecker is working on something she thinks would interest him. He has
even helped with emergency surgery.
"A couple of days ago, one of my horses at the ranch cut herself on the
fence, under her shoulder, between her front legs. She had a cut that was
four or five inches deep; it was real bad and it severed the muscle. I took
her to Sandy and she let me clean the wound and do a lot of the stitching,"
explained Martin.
He said that even though he decided not to become a medical doctor, he is
very pleased to have had the experience of the University's EMSAP program.
Without it, he said, he might not have known his true career path until
after many years of medical school training.
"That's the good thing with the EMSAP program, you get exposed to how it is
to be a medical student or to be a resident and get to decide if that's what
you want to do. Every summer we'd go to Galveston for anywhere from four to
six weeks to the medical school and we'd follow around medical students or
residents, and we'd get to see surgeries," Martin said, "That's why
[originally] I had leaned towards something like dermatology, something not
so invasive. I guess some people can. . .it doesn't really bother them,
but it kind of bothers me. I think I'd have an easier time working with
animals."
After only two years of undergraduate study, Martin has already been
accepted into the veterinary school at TAMU, and plans on beginning classes
in the fall. In four years, he expects to have his Doctor of Veterinary
Medicine and possibly return to Laredo to practice.
He said it is important for people to realize that going to TAMIU can help
one get what one wants out of life, including getting into professional
programs such as medicine or veterinary school. And for those who are
already enrolled, he says that getting to class is the most important thing
to do as a student.
"It seems to me if you go to class and pay attention and be active in class,
that's all you really need to do well on tests or in classes. But if you
start missing classes, you get so far behind that it's hard to catch up. So
I try my best not to miss class," said Martin with a smile.
For more information on the EMSAP program, please contact Dr. Mario
García-Ríos at 326.2585, visit offices in the Dr. F.M. Canseco Hall, room
313C or e-mail mgarcia@tamiu.edu.
University office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

TAMIU Students Get Valuable
Research Experience at Texas Center

At a University, one learns theories and ideas, reads about the past and
thinks about the future. But two students at Texas A&M International
University are getting the opportunity to conduct hands-on research and are
creating documents that can serve people now and in the future.
Both José Baez and Eleni Athanatou work for the Texas Center for Border
Economics and Enterprise Development (Texas Center). Baez has completed a
photographic directory of businesses along Highway 359, outside of Laredo,
and is working on a second directory of businesses in Rio Bravo and El
Cenizo. Athanatou has helped create the monthly publication Border Business
Indicators (BBI) since May 2002. The directories and the BBI can be used to
facilitate growth and economic enrichment along the border.
The directories contain a photograph, address and phone number for each
of the business listed, which are sorted by category. Baez, a junior
majoring in marketing at TAMIU, explained that about 75 copies have been
printed for the Highway 359 directory and distributed to the Laredo Chamber
of Commerce, area banks, gas stations and other places where a maximum
number of people will see it. He explained that he was responsible for
going into the field and speaking to the various owners about having their
business included.
"The first question they asked was 'How much is this going to cost me?'
and after I told them it was free, they were more open about it and more
willing to give out the information. Some of them were hesitant about
letting me take a picture of the business, but in the end, most of the
people on Highway 359 were open to it. I guess it's kind of weird for them
that someone comes to their business and tells them that they want to
promote them without costing anything to them," said Baez.
Having spent many hours collecting the information, Baez feels that he
has learned from his time at the Texas Center.
"It's going to help me a lot [in my career], because I'm learning how to
deal with people, how to approach them, how to envision a project and go out
there and do it and all the effort it takes to put it together. It's a lot
of work to do," explained Baez.
Athanatou, an MBA student with a concentration in international trade,
has been organizing and compiling the data for the BBI. Each month, the
Texas Center publishes this short but informative publication. It lists the
statistics of life along the border, including border crossings, border
revenue, power connections, employment figures, airport and sea port
activity. Information is collected for a variety of border towns including
Brownsville, Del Rio, Eagle Pass, El Paso, Laredo, McAllen-Hidalgo and many
others.
Athanatou spends her time ensuring that all the information to be
included is received by the Texas Center, and that it all goes in the right
place.
"I am working on a daily basis with 40 different folders. The data is
local and state and there's some nationwide. For example, the airports: we
have the Laredo airport, El Paso, Brownsville, McAllen . . . all of South
Texas and the data comes in for in-bound and out-bound for each city and
each airline. So that's very challenging," said Athanatou.
She too believes the work at the Texas Center will help her in the
future and in her graduate classes at TAMIU.
"When I started working for the Texas Center, I didn't actually know,
when they send you pages and pages of reports, which one to use, to be
selective, to know how to analyze the numbers. It helped me on my research
papers. I actually can see numbers and tell you which ones you can use and
which ones you don't have to use," said Athanatou.
She is also pleased to contribute to research about the U.S.-Mexico border.
"I helped to make something and I know that these ten pages comes out and
goes all over the world, it's very rewarding," she said.
The Texas Centers program, created in 1987 by the Texas Legislature, is a
consortium effort between Texas A&M International University, The University
of Texas Pan-American, and The University of Texas-El Paso. Its central
purpose is to provide leadership and support to Texas border communities in
their economic development efforts, including activities in the areas of
business development, education, health care, public administration, and the
environment.
For more information about the Texas Center, please call 326.2545, visit
offices in the Western Hemispheric Trade Center, room 221 or visit their
website at http://texascenter.tamiu.edu/
University office hours for the Spring semester are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday
through Friday.

Lamar Bruni Vergara Memorial Garden Dedication April 16

One of the largest green spaces in the city will be dedicated to the
memory of one of Laredo¹s most generous philanthropists, the late Lamar
Bruni Vergara, in special ceremonies scheduled Wednesday, April 16 at 10
a.m. at Texas A&M International University.
The Lamar Bruni Vergara Memorial Garden, as it will be known, is an
8-acre park that fronts the University¹s Student Center and was developed
through a significant gift from the Lamar Bruni Vergara Trust.
Wednesday¹s ceremony includes a Mass celebrated by the Most Reverend
Bishop James Tamayo and an exhibit featuring Bruni Vergara Trust-funded
projects.
University president Dr. Ray Keck said the Memorial Garden will enhance the
lives of students at the University and the community it serves.
³Great universities have great campuses and we feel that the addition of
the Lamar Bruni Vergara Memorial Garden enhances this campus¹ greatness,
the lives of our students and our community. It will offer a welcome green
space for all to reflect, to gather, perhaps read a book and to tap into the
many restorative gifts of nature,² Dr. Keck said.
He noted that the Garden offers a fitting tribute to its namesake and
helps to underscore the dramatic support that the Trust has provided the
University.
³In many ways this Garden will physically represent the fertile growth that
the Lamar Bruni Vergara Trust has made possible here at TAMIU. Through the
years, the Trust and its trustees have provided remarkable support that has
included program growth assistance, student scholarship and research funding
and brick and mortar construction, making us the most fortunate educational
beneficiary of the Trust. This partnership has had, and will continue to,
dramatically impact our growth. A garden thus becomes the most appropriate
representation of our proud partnership,² Keck explained.
Trustees Judge Solomon Casseb Jr. and J.C. Martin III said they hope that
the Garden will become a favorite place for students and members of the
community to celebrate its namesake¹s legacy.
³I think it¹s a fitting testament to her lasting affection for this
community,² said Judge Casseb, ³ and will become a favorite destination for
students and all who visit the campus to pause and reflect on the power of
the individual.²
Martin concurred.
³The Trust has extended Lamar Bruni Vergara¹s legacy in many ways. This
Garden is a place where we can all go and celebrate her love for Laredo and
the ways that she changed lives now and in the future,² Martin explained.
A footbridge from the University¹s main plaza leads between Dr. F. M.
Canseco Hall and the Anthony J. and Georgia A. Pellegrino Hall into the
Lamar Bruni Vergara Garden.
The Garden features a series of garden ³rooms² that are defined by
ligostrum hedges and live oak tree parades and anchored by an impressive
stone gazebo and decomposed granite footpath. Benches will soon be
strategically placed to allow for visitors to pause and take in the Garden¹s
vistas.
It merges with the University¹s existing landscaping and links through a
series of walkways to the new Center for the Fine and Performing Arts, the
Student Center and the Kinesiology-Conovcation Building.
The Garden follows a xeriscaping approach for water conservation and
prominently features plantings indigenous to South Texas, including lantana,
buddleia, coreopsis, salvia, plumbago, rosemary and verbena. The University
has also made it possible for those interested to purchase trees in memory
of or recognition of others. These rows of dramatic live oaks are found
throughout the garden and will include special plaques honoring these
individuals.
Landscape architects for the Garden are Rialto Studio of San Antonio.
Project architects are Kell Muñoz, also of San Antonio. Engineering for the
Garden was provided by Shah Smith and Associates, Inc., of Houston and
construction was by Don Kruger Construction Company of Victoria.
Lamar Bruni Vergara, born in 1910 to Annie Reiser Bruni and Louis H. Bruni,
was raised and educated in Laredo and spent much of her life becoming
acquainted with the city and its citizens.
Her love for the city, and a fondness for its people lead naturally to a
sincere interest in the welfare of the community. Over the years, she
dedicated many unselfish hours to the Catholic Church as well as local
social service organizations.
As her health declined in later years, Vergara called upon her cousin J.C.
Martin Jr. and longtime friend, Solomon Casseb Jr. to ensure that her
mission of caring for the community would continue after her death by
stipulating that the majority of her will be shared with charities of the
area.
Upon her death in 1989, Martin and Casseb Martin and Casseb worked
diligently to execute the legacy of Lamar Bruni Vergara through the Trust's
continuous support of religious, health and educational initiatives in the
community.
When Martin passed away in 2000, his son, J. C. ŒPepito¹ Martin III,
became trustee and joined Casseb in continuing to direct the charitable
activities of the Trust.
For additional information on the Lamar Bruni Vergara Memorial Garden at
TAMIU, please contact the Office for Institutional Advancement at 326.2175.
University office hours for the Spring Semester are from 8 am. ­ 5 p.m.
Monday-Friday.