Vol. 66, Issue 6
Est. 1981
October 3 - October 10, 2023
THE PAISANO
Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio Community /PaisanoOnline
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Jazz is more alive than ever: Jazz’SAlive historic 40th anniversary Read at paisano-online.com
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UTSA works on SB 17 internal review process University releases website with plans and timeline
By Jessica McLaren News Editor
S
enate Bill 17 (SB17) was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott in June, requiring colleges and universities in Texas to close their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) offices by Jan. 1, 2024. UTSA is currently in the process of reviewing current DEI-related operations and has been working with UT System since May to finalize its strategy. Originating in the 88th Texas Legislative session, SB17 amended Texas Education Code 51.3525 to prohibit DEI offices, duties, training and statements in higher education institutions. Any kind of preference based on sex, race, ethnicity or national origin is prohibited. UT System released working guidance regarding SB17 on Sept. 15, detailing the specific restrictions, requirements and
exceptions included in the law. According to the document, SB17 “specifically states that the bill’s restrictions do not apply to academic course instruction.” The prohibitions also do not apply to data collection, scholarly research or creative work, short-term guest speakers and performers, recruitment and admissions processes and all functions of student organizations. Specific definitions for each exception as well as guidelines regarding hiring and training processes can be found at utsa.edu/ president/documents/SB-17UTS-FAQs.pdf. After receiving this guidance in August, UTSA committed to “develop[ing] an engagement strategy to review programs, activities and initiatives that may be impacted” that is “broad and transparent.” In the statement, which was shared with all faculty, staff and
students via email on Aug. 28, UTSA stated that “[they] are committed to adhering to [their] core values and supporting academic freedom while creating a strategy that aligns with UT System guidelines.” In another email sent out in September, UTSA stated that they have “begun a process to collect, screen and review current operations” and provided a website where the university will share its ongoing plans and address frequently asked questions developed by UT System. The review process includes an Executive Leadership Review Committee, a Working Group of appointed campuswide stakeholders and a Program, Activity and Initiative Review (PAIR) team. The process also involves consultation with an SB17 advisory group, featuring representatives from the faculty
How to vote in the 2023 Texas amendment elections By Amber Serio Assistant News Editor The 2023 Constitutional Amendment Election will occur in Texas on Nov. 7. Texans will have the opportunity to vote on 14 different constitutional amendments that have been approved by state lawmakers. Read on to discover how voters can ensure they are registered and prepared when they head to their local voting location in early November. Amendment details According to the Texas Tribune, many of the proposed amendments will produce or alter funds that would support higher education research, water infrastructure, gas-fueled power plants, broadband infrastructure and maintenance and creation of state parks. Several other amendments are associated with taxes and propose raising the homestead exemption for homeowners from $40,000 to $100,000, creating some tax exemptions for medical equipment and child-care facilities and
banning lawmakers from applying wealth taxes without voter approval. Texans within certain occupations could also be affected by the amendments that propose granting retired teachers cost-of-living raises, raising the mandatory retirement age for state judges and protecting commonly accepted farming and ranching practices from state and local regulation. Two of the amendments would directly impact Galveston and El Paso. If passed, Galveston County would be allowed to eliminate the position of county treasurer and El Paso County would gain access to using bonds for parks and recreation development. How to register According to Ballotpedia, “To register to vote in Texas, an applicant must be a United States citizen, resident of the county in which he or she is registering and at least 17 years and 10 months of age.” Texans interested in voting on the proposed amendments must be registered to vote by Oct. 10.
Early voting Texas permits an early voting period for all registered voters. This will begin on Oct. 23 and end on Nov. 3. Early voting locations can be found online or voters can contact the Early Voting Clerk for State and County Elections within their county. Accepted forms of ID When arriving at a polling location, voters will be asked to present one of the seven acceptable forms of photo identification. This includes a state driver’s license, a Texas election identification certificate, a Texas personal identification card, a Texas handgun license, a U.S. military identification card with the voter’s photograph, a U.S. citizenship certificate with the voter’s photograph or a U.S. passport. Voters between the ages of 18 to 69 must display a current form of identification that has not expired for more than four years before being presented at the polling place. For more information on the amendments and what they entail, visit texas.gov.
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and staff senates as well as UTSA’s Student Government Association. President Eighmy will make all final determinations based on the recommendations provided in the review process. The implementation timeline, which spans until SB17 becomes law on Jan. 1, states that the “internal review process is intended to move swiftly to provide the Roadrunner community with timely guidance” and that “regular communication will be provided throughout the process.” For more information and future updates regarding UTSA’s internal review process and timeline, visit utsa.edu/president/ campusandcommunity/SB17. html. Further questions and feedback can be directed to the PAIR team at pairteam@utsa. edu.
Chloe Williams/The Paisano
ASAP transitions to myUTSA By Adine Bahambana Contributor Last week, UTSA officially moved away from the ASAP system and introduced the myUTSA system with an updated website for students to access all of the university’s resources in one place. Previously, students would use ASAP to register for classes, pay tuition, accept financial aid and more. In addition to all of these capabilities, the myUTSA system will add access to resources from other UTSA apps such as DegreeWorks and Canvas.
Students can view the updated platform at my.utsa.edu/, selecting the orange “Modern View” button and entering their myUTSA ID and passphrase. “We’[v]e rebrand[ed] the [ASAP] student portal to a nomenclature that makes more sense to students, versus this random acronym that does stand for something, but has no meaning to students,” Associate Vice Provost of Enrollment Marketing, Communications & Systems Tina Garza said. “Students already have a myUTSA email address, students have a myUTSA ID, so this sort of wraps it all together under myUTSA account because students also have various accounts to manage.” According to One Stop Enrollment, the new platform has streamlined navigation with a more user-friendly design that will make
it easier for students to find what they are looking for. In addition, the platform has responsive design capabilities, meaning the interface will adapt to the device that is used whether it is a laptop, phone or tablet. Students will still be able to use the original ASAP system throughout the launch. “We wanted to slowly roll out upgrades so that students can leverage them now instead of having to wait. But with that, we have to kind of navigate between
two existing systems,” Garza explained. “[The] old ASAP is now going to be the ‘Classic view’ of your student portal, and this new modernized view is going to be called the ‘Modern view.’” While it might seem unfamiliar at first, the key components of ASAP will be consistent with myUTSA. “They’re directly correlated to the tabs [on ASAP], but we have way more now. Think of these tabs that are essentially menus, and what we’ve done is, you know, expanded them out,” Garza said. Getting used to the modern view is important for students because it will become the primary platform in the future. “Basically this is just the first step into many more future iterations. Over the next year, eventually, [the] classic [view] will go away.” See myUTSA on page 2