"InQuiry"
"Let Your Voice Be Heard!"
UTRGV's First Year Compostion Magazine
A First Year’s Odyssey
Written by: Leslie Guerra
In the exact moment you walk away from your high school’s closing doors, you think about how many other ones you’ll open. At least in my experience, as I walked away, the wind hit my face and demanded I didn’t look back. With proliferating nostalgia, I simultaneously longed for the uncertainty of where I’d go and who I’d become. I knew that the most certain thing about doors was that closing one opens another one or a thousand and one. I knew that regardless of what, the opening door led you to the place or places one is meant to be. The months leading up to graduation, I desperately yearned for the change I thought I needed. That meant moving away from home would solve all the problems one 18-year-old could possibly have. Perhaps I was bored in my routine or needed new awakenings. In a matter of time, I came down to Earth and realized it was up to me to drive me to the places I want to find myself in and this time, I wasn’t necessarily referring to miles and time zones. The common trigger in a cliche like “it's up to me to save the day” or “it’s up to me to make a difference” is that when people hear that “up to me to” it’s mustered as an immediate threat of responsibility. And what the heck? Sure. Responsibility is malicious if that’s the way you choose to look at it. Yes, it’s against you. Yes, it doesn't want you to succeed. However, what’s so ironic about it and why it’s pushed since the beginning of time, is that you are responsible. In fact, (hoping this doesn't come as news) you are in complete control of it. You decide what responsibility means to you and implement that to your character. Now if it’s a part of you, it’s not against you, you're against yourself. Variably meaning you don't want yourself to succeed- but in essence. Life and college make sure you’re aware of this. They often say that you only get two best years of college. Your first two or your last two years. There’s no in-between. But what you don't hear quite often is how your very first year of college is life changing. Actually, life changing. Any expectations you had of college, boom! Destroyed. Of course, this is different for everybody and experiences like this are as variable as the weather is. But to bring some down to Earth for a second and let you in on a little secret, it’s acutely isolating. Now that’s not necessarily a dreadful thing, most college students prefer that since that allows them to be more productive. You go from walking everywhere with your friends and eating lunch with them, to seeing them once a week if you're lucky and eating lunch with YouTube at the library. Then, inevitably you meet new people in college that are vastly different from who you're used to and realize, “maybe I wouldn't like them as much if they were just like my high school friends.” College is not as loud as you’d think (avoid taking this too literal). Another misconception about college is that you must graduate in four years. That couldn't be far from the truth. Only one in five students graduate in four years. It’s completely acceptable to graduate in five or six or eight years. It’s a self-paced process where the common goal is to graduate. There's no pressure to graduate when students must learn to balance attending classes, study, attend meetings, extracurriculars, eat, have a life and get sleep. My advice, get a planner (IMO digital planners are the best), and plan your day to the hour. You own your time now, consume responsibly. Speaking of responsibility, it’s encouraged to attend all your 8 a.m. 's and 9 a.m.'s but two 9 a.m. 's in particular... registration. These are the actual hunger games and Peeta will be the reason you join the waitlist for the class you really wanted to sign up for. There’s an unknown chance of you moving up the waitlists but for all worst-case scenarios, always have a backup class that works best for you. There are classes as early as 8 a.m. and as late as 8 p.m. As a commuter myself, I found going to school three days out of the week instead of five was the most financially convenient. You do own your availability now, and you get to choose how much time you want to dedicate to attending school, studying and working. It’s not like the earlier schools you've attended where your breakfast and lunch are scheduled, and you're chained to a building for eight hours. So really, you can be anywhere you want to be at any given time with of course the consequences of your own actions. What’s so funny and ironic is that professors will tell you just that. But they never talk about guilt. At least in my case I didn't know I’d associate guilt with college. If you don't go to class and end up passing it, you feel guilty for those that did attend and maybe didn't pass. But if you don't go to class and you don't end up passing it, you may rest with guilt. I promise you, the “high” of being somewhere you're not supposed to be won't work throughout college.
Episode 1: International Trade and Technology Building
Episode 2: Learning Assistance Center
Episode 3: U Central
Episode 4: Library
Interviews conducted by Leah Flores
Dr. Marshall Saenz
Leah Flores Course Analysis: Dr. Marshall Saenz
During my experience, talking to Dr. Marshall Saenz, he was an amazing person to talk to and is super lively. He expressed to me that he didn’t want any simple classes when designing all his classes and he wanted to explore different ideas and topics, he likes to add his interest and implement them into his classrooms. He also likes to make sure that his classroom is a place for students to speak their mind and be included to their communities. He has a wide range of students starting from highschoolers all the way to seniors and graduates.
English 1302- (name of the class itself), Monday & Wednesday
This is a class offered for the MAS program, typically intended for high schoolers taking college-level courses, though they are considered freshmen. Unfortunately, it is currently available specifically to high school students and a few freshmen. Dr. Marshall has dedicated a lot of time and effort to creating this class, spending around two months in preparation. The class structure involves regular discussions about the week's information, followed by applying that information to an assignment in the library on Wednesdays. While the context remains the same each semester, the main project changes. This semester, they are developing a program for the library to create a guide with different tabs for accessing information, and the students are responsible for generating the content.
For this assignment, students divide into sections, each working toward a common goal. They have access to resources for researching their questions and information, as well as opportunities to listen to experts from the library and various fields. Work is due at the end of each week, with Dr. Marshall conducting work check-ins to gauge students' progress. He was inspired to create this class to provide students with a more hands-on experience, fostering greater investment in their work. He emphasized the importance of applying what they're learning and actively participating in the research process. Overall, this class is ideal for anyone seeking to create something welcoming to the community and expand their ideas.
● Monday & Weekdays
● Get to use Library
● Help from experts
● Add something to the community
● Can be added to your resume
● Work is due end of the week
● Group Work
English 1302 - Online
This class is specifically only for high schoolers. It is more of a traditional idea where we have articles and books involved. This is because it's Dr. Marshall’s first time working with the ECISD students, and he didn't want something that was too explorative because this is first time working with them. Even so he still adds his explorative idea to this class. His assignment for this class is for his students to look at different discord communities that involves something that they are interested in. He wants them to understand the different communities that they can be a part of and to learn from their differences.
● Online
● Topic Freedom
● Explore their community
English 1302 - Monday & Wednesday
This class is about changing the way of just using the traditional idea of just PowerPoint, or just looking at textbooks and articles, instead Dr. Marshall wanted to “flip the script’. In this class it was more of experimenting with the idea of different types of media also be a use for learning. Dr. Marshall explained to me a lot about different medias that he has in his class and a specific assignment that was assigned to students. Example of this was to create information without the use of text. He also talked to me about a Spotify playlist that he has with music so people can learn about a specific topic through music. Even though the purpose of this is to explore different medias that still doesn’t mean that he doesn’t use articles and some texts so students can understand things, but he does primarily add in some li`le mini skits and videos that are sBll related to the class that students can use and learn in this class. He does have an end goal, which is how different media can be used to learn in a class-based setting. Another example of this, is that he recently had a midterm that instead of having this regular midterm, he ripped up the midterm and instead played a game with the students. This game was to allow the students to use all the strategies and all the rhetoric and all the information that they learn throughout the class and put it in a game setting where they had to find clues and see if they could rely on each other to play the game. The inspiration that made him create this class was to really think outside of the norm or in his words “flip the script”. He said it came to him over just looking at the books and thought to himself why only books and articles. He believed that since we are in a digital age, he wanted to explore and make himself get out of his comfort zone and get into the comfort zone of the students who were grown up using media.
● Lots of videos and movie skits
● Spotify music to listen to
● Explorative
● Maybe fun midterm
English 3302
For advanced students, he offers a class that allows you to explore the idea of what it means to create a business and gives you the opportunity to experience life as a business owner. You have to be able to create your own company, have a label, and handle all the other tasks involved in making a company. That means creating resumes, completing applications, and managing all the necessary information to understand what goes into creating a business. With the setting being that you own a company, the professor provides some problems and challenges to see how you come up with ideas to improve or fix those challenges within your company. A standard specific thing that he implements in this class is involving Legos. He uses the idea of Legos, and you are tasked with creating instructions on how to build a Lego structure. Your instructions need to be specific because they will be used to create tests to ensure clarity and specificity. This is a primary assignment that involves exchanging instructions with other companies and testing them to create the main Lego build. And of course, if you fail to get the instructions right the first time, with sensor Legos, you can simply rebuild and restart. This is all designed to facilitate learning on a physical level. You are placed in the setting of a building and a business to understand what goes into it, and you're given the assignment of creating instructions for specific tasks. This way, you gain experience in creating connections and understanding what is necessary to succeed in this class. When he conceived this class, he aimed to challenge students without overwhelming them, making it a challenge that seems possible with effort.
● Advance
● Challenging
● Legos
● Make your own company
● Group work
Ayla Galvan
Leah Flores Course Analysis: Ayla Galvan
Talking with Professor Ayla Galvan showed me that one of her main goals is to help students find themselves through their writing. When talking with Professor Galvan, she mentioned that many students start their educational journey with her course, and because of this, she poses the question to her students, “Is this really what you want to do?”, when discussing their major or career goals. I think that having a professor who allows students to reflect upon their decisions within their own writing is important because it can allow for a discovery of purpose or even solidify a person’s goals and aspirations.
ENGL 1301: Rhetoric & Composition
This class is for incoming freshmen, students fresh out of high school, or non-traditional students who have not been to university in a long time. It is the first writing class in college, which will be one of the initial steps in their educational journey. This class helps them think more about meeting the needs of the audience and ensuring that they consider what and who they are writing for. Students will need to create an Information Essay with a focus on reading, writing, and learning skills. A reflection of your own experiences will be used to compare with what you learned about your own literacy history.
● Feedback
● Form Ideas
ENGL 1302: Rhetoric & Composition II
This course would be for mostly sophomores and some freshmen if needed. A research proposal, which leads into an Argumentative Essay, will be one of the main focuses of this class. There will be a lot of feedback from the professor and partners within the class. The proposal will be about something that the student comes up with, as long as there is approval from the professor. ENGL 4368: Language Development Junior/Senior level course, which examines how infants, toddlers, and children learn to use language. The idea of how a child's environment can influence their language development will be analyzed within this course. This class will be taught along with the textbook, and videos will also be shown to enhance the understanding of how different a child's development can be. Professor Galvan believes that future educators will need this course because it allows them to better understand how children are curious and commonly ask the question "Why?" A project to create a lesson plan will be discussed within this course, and social behaviors such as culture and religion will also be addressed.
● Online Course
● Discussion Boards
Cynthia Guerrero
Leah Flores Course Analysis: Cynthia Guerrero
When talking to Miss Cynthia Guerrero, she shares a similar concept in her classes: she wants students to be curious and interested in the work they create. While I may not require that, she desires them to be explorers and discover new things in their surroundings or within their societies and communities. According to her, there's freedom for exploration. Additionally, she wants students to understand why the classes she offers are important in their society. She encourages students to have a voice and to be curious because she doesn't want carbon copies of ourselves; she wants to foster the expression of people's ideas.
English 1301: Rhetoric and Composition. Mondays and Wednesdays
This class takes a more traditional approach as it is an introductory course. There are four main projects: a literacy narrative, a research paper, a remix story, and a reflection. For the literacy narrative, it’s simply an introduction of who you are and telling your story to the instructor. The research paper involves researching a topic of your choice, and the remix offers a new perspective derived from that research. Finally, there's a reflection on your overall experience in the class. Primarily, the focus is on understanding the importance of literacy in the world. The instructor provides examples of its demonstration in everyday life and offers practices to reinforce understanding. For instance, she asks you to examine flyers and evaluate their effectiveness. There are numerous activities in her classes because she prefers not to lecture extensively; instead, she encourages students to discover things for themselves and within their groups. Additionally, she poses questions of the day to nurture curiosity among her students. Overall, the instructor was inspired to create this class to provide students with the opportunity to discover things for themselves and to realize the presence of rhetoric in their surroundings.
English 1302: Rhetoric and Composition II. Mondays and Wednesdays.
In this class, the instructor encourages students to focus on positive aspects around the world. There are four major assignments: a podcast, a research paper, a public project, and a reflection. Additionally, she introduces the concept of counter-stories. These counter-stories highlight the experiences of individuals who are often marginalized or overlooked in society. The instructor challenges her students to incorporate this theme into their assignments. She also does not impose limits; she encourages exploration of challenging topics, emphasizing the importance of acknowledging and discussing difficult issues. However, she emphasizes the importance of mutual respect, especially when discussing sensitive topics. Group work and daily questions are integral parts of her class. The instructor was inspired to create this course based on her own experiences as a student pursuing her PhD. She felt like an outcast among peers who were unlike her, and she aims to create a space where students can freely express their voices.
Ms. Crystal
Leah Flores Course Analysis: Crystal Bazaldua
Ms. Crystal Bazaldua. When I was talking to Miss Crystal, she had an amazing, soft-spoken voice and such a great personality. When discussing her classes, she expressed passion for how they reflect her growth in learning and development. As Miss Crystal is pursuing her PD, she incorporates her experiences from those classes into her teaching. She is an inspiring woman, referred to by many titles: a co-teacher, a collaborator, a student, and a professor. She puts in a tremendous amount of hard work into her field, which is truly inspiring.
WRLS 0301: Reading & Writing Jumpstart
Note: This class is not offered to most freshman students. It is primarily for students who did not meet the TSI criteria and must take this class. The course consists of two-hour sessions and covers all the basic necessities required. However, some assignments are subject to change. One major assignment discussed in this class is a paper where you create your own audience and define their characteristics. This entails thorough research to understand your chosen audience and justify your selection. Since this course is a requirement for specific students, there isn't much room for exploration beyond the prescribed themes and concepts.
● Special Requirement
● Traditional
ENGL 1301: Rhetoric & Composition I
This class serves as an introduction to writing rhetorically and its main goal is to introduce students to media literacy. Despite taking a more traditional approach, the instructor incorporates movies and TV series into assignments. Within these media forms, she likes to discuss three different theories: medium, age, gender, and critical visual. Each of these theories will be explored over four weeks, allowing students to fully understand and grasp their meanings while practicing their application. Understanding these theories is crucial as they will be used in the final paper.
There are four major assignments in the class: the literacy narrative, the theory paper (spanning six weeks), the remix project, and a reflection paper. The literacy narrative paper serves as a reflection on the student's existing research knowledge and writing skill level, allowing the instructor to get to know each student better. The theory paper requires students to choose a movie and explain it to an audience unfamiliar with the film, while also discussing how the chosen theory applies to it. The details of the remix project vary depending on the semester setup, and the reflection paper allows students to reflect on their class experience and personal improvement.
Some of these assignments are subject to change in subsequent semesters. Miss Crystal mentioned considering changing the theory paper to a theory PowerPoint presentation while retaining the same concept.
The inspiration behind creating this class stems from Miss Crystal's master's course experience, where she learned about these theories and wanted to share them with her students. In previous iterations of the class, she attempted to cover all the theories but found it impractical due to time constraints. Therefore, she focused on three major theories that were commonly selected and delved deeper into them. She also aimed to inspire students to think critically about these theories and their reflections in movies and TV series.
● Traditional with some videos
● Feedback and practice
● Evoke theories
ENGL 1302: Rhetoric & Composition II
This class primarily focuses on research. You'll create your own surveys and collect data for your assignments and paper. The initial phase involves spending approximately three weeks exploring your interests and identifying your research topic and question. Depending on your topic, you'll determine the best approach to address it. This may involve conducting interviews, surveys, experiments, or engaging in self-reflection. You'll practice these methods to find what works best for your specific topic.
Afterward, you'll have about two weeks to plan your data collection process before proceeding to write your paper. Throughout these steps, Miss Crystal will provide guidance and assistance. For instance, she'll help formulate interview and survey questions tailored to your topic. She may assist in distributing surveys to her peers and other classes to gather data. If you opt for self-reflection, she'll suggest practices to help you observe relevant aspects about yourself.
Overall, this class is designed for individuals who are likely to conduct research in their field. It offers opportunities for exploration and provides valuable research skills.
● Research
● Explorative
● Feedback Based
Photographer Gael
By Esteban Rodriguez
In recent times, the arts have started to become overshadowed, and most people have forgotten what makes human beings human beings. I talked to photographer Gael about his time at UTRGV, the things that helped him, and his experiences of being a photographer.
(One of Gael’s photos that manipulates lighting)
What was your journey with photography? What brought you to this specific art form?
I feel like photography was very simple at first. I remember using an iPhone 5 back in elementary school and taking pictures of random stuff with my old phone. When I took my first photography class, I learned how to use a camera. All those years using my phone gave me a sense of frame, and all I needed was the knowledge to capture better-quality images. Last semester helped me a lot in growing as a photographer.
Can you tell me the approach in photography to frame an aesthetic?
Many would say I stick to the foundation of photography. Light is very important to me, and most of the pictures in my portfolio are made with artificial light. I carry around my own light source, and the time of day has a big effect. It's really important not to have a really big light source. It’s important to have the perfect day. The most important things are the light source, location, and subject.
As A student at UTRGV, how does school affect your photography?
It kind of helped me find my sense of style. I'm taking all these art classes, and I’m really trying to find my style, and studying for hours helps me find my own style on photography.
Do you have any inspirations from other sources that you are trying to capture yourself?
Social media would be my biggest source of inspiration, but it would also be my biggest source of insecurity. The quality of other photos looks 100 times better than mine on social media, but it helps me try to find my own way and how to do things. Even if I don’t have the same equipment as them, I still try to find my own way to show off my style.
What are your goals and aspirations as a photographer?
Well, my major in photography is graphic design, and I think they go hand in hand. I don’t want to be getting stock images. I want to take these pictures and use each part that goes into graphic design. I want to own every part that goes into it and make it really my own.
What do you do to overcome things like artist's block?
With artistic block, it is a big thing. I feel the pressure after each project to do better, and if I don’t perform, it affects me in the long run, and I end up procrastinating. I would say to step back and look at different ideas. I had this problem last semester when I was working on this project. I was told to step back and sleep on it, and I ended up taking amazing pictures. I try to incorporate that now when I'm taking new classes. Whenever my pictures aren't going my way, I take a step back, and in the next day, I go again.
Are you working on any projects right now?
Right now, I’m working on my main portfolio. I'm trying to work on my weak points, which are portraits and landscape photos. In the future, I want to have a portfolio that shows off every subject and my skills on each subject.
Gael shows off what photography does best. He freezes not only the setting in time but also the lessons he learns while taking them. UTRGV also helped him discover what he wanted out of photography while helping him get his degree. His creativity and appreciation for life are vibrant on campus, and the courses, professors, and people he met pushed him to become better and more skilled behind a camera. Still, I don’t think that it is limited to just photography. When Gael and I met up, we could see people discussing new ideas, helping each other out, and enjoying their lives and all the simple moments, which Gael is able to capture on a daily basis through his own personal projects and through his class project as well.
Dorm Life
By Esteban Rodriguez
Life at the dorms is often a scary proposition, and most incoming freshmen will find themselves overwhelmed with starting a drastic new school life and a new home life, so we’ve decided to interview students living life in the dorm to ask questions about mental health, academic, and social life there.
Aleksander Marquez (First Photograph) is a Computer Science major who is very outgoing and loves video games but loves race cars more and is in the Green Power USA.
How long did it take you to adjust to living with someone else? Are you guys friends, and if not, how did you make friends living in the dorms?
“It took a week to get really adjusted to living with someone else. You have to mind each other's personal space and try to understand each other. Now me and Josh (his roommate) are great friends.”
What are the reasons you decided to live in
the dorms? Do you regret living in the dorms,
or is it something you like?
“I chose to live here because I didn’t want to commute back and forth from home and get stuck in traffic. There are also more opportunities to do while living on campus, meeting new people and joining clubs.”
How do dorm living arrangements impact mental health?
“School hasn’t really impacted my mental health, and living in the dorms hasn’t either. I feel like I’ve been the same the last few months.”
How has living in the dorms affected your school life? has living at the dorms made school harder or easier?
Living in the dorms has made school life a lot easier. Since I live on campus, I can ask other students for help or can go to my professors and ask for help.
Does living on campus provide access to resources you wouldn’t be able to access from home?
“Living here has provided a lot more resources than at home. I can go to the career center whenever I want and they’ll help me with my resume, and I can go to the library and do research or just sit and study, or go to the dining hall and eat.”
Do the social aspects of the dorm, like having a roommate, affect how you study or learn? Does it make it better or worse for you to concentrate academically?
“The social environment is pretty nice overall. If I ask my roommate not to bother me, he's pretty cool with it, but my suitemate can bother me a lot sometimes and just talk about random stuff, but other than that, it's pretty good.”
Benjamin Sanchez (Second Photograph) is an Accounting major. He can often be described as an enigma and cookie enthusiast and enjoys his personal space quite fondly. He is also Aleksander’s suitemate.
How long did it take you to adjust to living with someone else? Are you guys friends, and if not, how did you make friends living in the dorms? “It took me a good two weeks to get situated, and I am friends with my roommate. I wouldn’t say friends, but more of an acquaintance.”
What are the reasons you decided to live in the dorms? Do you regret living in the dorms, or is it something you like?
“I decided to live in the dorms and commute back, and it would take an hour just to get here and another one back. I like it here, but I like my home better. You know it’s a place to sleep.”
In your opinion, what are the biggest issues or
problems with living in the dorm?
“The biggest issue would be...privacy. You can get it either
way. I don’t think I see any big issues.”
How do dorm living arrangements impact mental
health?
“It hasn’t really impacted me, but it really sucks. I miss my
family.
How has living in the dorms affected your school life? Has living in the dorms made school harder or easier?
The social aspects of the dorm make it better for me to learn. My roommates help me understand assignments, so I think it’s a mutual help between all of us. There’s also just a routine that you can fall into, which doesn’t affect social life and school life too much.
Does living on campus provide access to resources you wouldn’t be able to access from home? “Living on campus does give me a lot of access, like the library and multiple other ones, but I don’t really use them.”
Looking at all the information given in the interviews with Aleksander and Benjamin. Living and thriving in the dorms can vary greatly depending on the individual. Alek is a really outgoing and extroverted person. Talking to others and studying with groups of people is how he thrives at UTRGV and in the dorms. In comparison, Benjamin is very reclusive and enjoys spending his time in the dorm rooms, which isn’t a problem for him. For the most part, creating a routine and sticking with it was a common factor when talking to Alek and Benjamin. I don’t think there is a glove-fits-all answer on how to live life in the dorms. You don’t have to make tons of friends or be a complete shut-in to enjoy living at dorms, but I believe it depends on how responsible and respectful you are and the others around you. Every social situation can be solved with discussions on boundaries, talking to RAs, or getting campus security involved. Academically, both Benjamin and Alek do well in their studies, and both really enjoy living in the dorms.
Ultimately, dorm life brings a lot of different experiences and individual experiences. It doesn’t take a social guru or an academic genius to enjoy and thrive socially and academically in the dorms, and with the correct boundaries set with yourself, falling into a routine can help life at the dorms move smoothly.
