LISD student registration begins

Laredo Independent School District will begin registering students for the 2010-2011 school year starting Wednesday, Aug. 11, - Friday, Aug. 20. Students planning to enroll in classes may register at their respective campuses.

Registration for high school students will be held Aug. 11-17. Middle school registration is also set for Aug. 11-17. New student registration will take place Aug. 18 and Aug. 20. Elementary schools have set their registration for Aug. 11 through Aug. 20.

Students new to the district must provide proper documentation for registration purposes. Attached is the registration schedule with dates and times for elementary, middle, and high school students, as well as new students to the district.

Laredo Med Ed students visit UTHSC's San Antonio campus

Caption: Laredo Med Ed student Monica Contreras practices taking Alexandra Hernandez's blood pressure during a field trip to the UT Health Science Center's San Antonio campus this week. Med Ed students receive year-round academic enrichment, community service opportunities, volunteer programs and hands-on activities related to medical and health careers through the Health Science Center's Regional Campus in Laredo. To sign up for Med Ed, visit www.uthscsa.edu/meded or contact Griselda Rubio at Rubiog@uthscsa.edu or (956) 523-7437.

Fall semester payment due Monday

Laredo Community College students who have already registered for the fall 2010 semester are reminded to pay their tuition and fees by Monday, Aug. 9, to secure their space in class.

Payments can be made either in person at the LCC Bursar's Office at either the Fort McIntosh or South campuses by 6 p.m. or online via PASPort's student account system at https://pasport.laredo.edu by 11 p.m.

Students who fail to pay by the deadline will lose their space in class and will need to go through the registration process again.

Advising for fall classes will continue Monday through Thursday, Aug. 9-12.

Students who have declared a major can get advised from 1 to 6 p.m. at the instructional department that corresponds to their major.

All other students can get advised from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Student Success Center at the Fort McIntosh Campus or at the Counseling Center at the South Campus.

Students planning to attend LCC this fall are encouraged to register as soon as possible to lock in their classes.

Those who are considered self-advised may register for the fall semester via PASPort from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. from any computer with Internet access.

To be considered self-advised, students must have a declared major, have completed all required remediation courses, have earned at least 30 college-level hours, and have a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 or higher.

The first class day for the fall semester is Aug. 23.

To view the fall class schedule, log on to www.laredo.edu and click on the PASPort icon.

For more information, contact the LCC Registration Center at the Fort McIntosh Campus at 721-5117 or at the South Campus at 794-4109.

LISD receives multiple recognitions at the Telly Awards

The Laredo Independent School District received top honors at the 31st Annual Telly Awards for the "I'm a Read" and "Go to Class" music videos. The lyrics were written and performed by Superintendent A. Marcus Nelson and the music videos were produced by the ITV Department.

The Telly Awards is the premier award for outstanding local, regional and cable TV commercials, programs, videos and films. They are a widely known and respected national and international competition which receives over 11,000 entries annually from all 50 states and foreign countries. Entries are rated by judges and given a score from one to ten. A nine or better earns a Silver Telly Award while a score of seven to 8.9 garners a Bronze Telly Award.

LISD received a Silver Telly Award for the "I'm a Read" music video in the categories of TV5 Education and TV14 Music Videos. The district also received a Bronze Telly Award for the "Go to Class" music video in the categories of TV6 Entertainment and TV13 Music Videos. Other previous winners include the Discovery Channel, ESPN, CBS, and NBC Universal

"We are extremely excited to see the fruits of our labor. Dr. Nelson has some great ideas for motivational songs and music videos while we use our creative juices to bring those to life," said Jeanette Martinez, ITV coordinator.

For more information contact the Office of Communications at 795-3295.

Makeup artistry class to be offered at LCC

Caption: Pictured, from left to right, during a recent makeup demonstration are Martha Cortez, makeup artist and instructor, and Adriana O. Santos, model.

Since 1980, Martha Cortez has used her artistic talents to enhance the looks of actors, musicians, brides, and models in and around Laredo through cosmetics.

Now, she'll bring that 30-year knowledge to the classroom as Cortez teaches Laredo Community College's first-ever Makeup Artistry course on Aug. 6-27 from 2 to 5 p.m. Students will learn how best to apply eye shadow, lip liner, foundation, and other cosmetic products.

The course will be offered through the college's Continuing Education Department. Tuition is $55. No books or new materials are required for the class.

"Students' only requirement is to bring the makeup they currently use," Cortez said. "Usually, drawers and shoe boxes are stuffed with cosmetic products."

As the youngest of 18 children, including 10 sisters, Cortez was constantly surrounded by makeup. The sounds of blow driers, brushes tapping on blush powder cases, and hair spray hissing engulfed her home almost every day in her early years. This is how Cortez first started liking makeup.

Today, Cortez makes a living as a professional freelance makeup artist. Cortez has worked and received training from various cosmetic companies, including Estee Lauder, Clinique, Clarins, Chanel, Christian Dior, Lancome, Versace, among others.

Cortez's clientele includes Mexican telenovela actors, local artists and musicians, and she also has clients that visit her from San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, and several Mexican cities.

"It's a career that has opened a lot of doors in my life," Cortez said. "I'm happy when my clients are happy, because a makeup artist is not only an artist, but a therapist as well. I can make them feel and look better."

"Most people look at themselves in the mirror, but they see nothing pretty," Cortez said. "But, we all have hidden beauty. Makeup makes your beauty stand out."

Cortez believes that makeup and appearance should appeal to the individual and to those around them.

"You don't want people saying, 'Have you seen her lately? She already let herself go,' " Cortez added.

"I believe appearance is very important, and even if you don't want to dress up so people look at you, at least do it for yourself because it really does give you a confidence boost," Cortez said.

"A woman without paint is like food without salt," Titus Plautus, a Roman playwright, once wrote.

But, in recent years, men also have been wearing makeup.

"You'd be surprised how many men wear makeup as well," Cortez added.

"Many men have a lot of art skills. Some of them have more art skills than women do," Cortez joked. "So, makeup is for both men and women."

Men are welcome to join the class to learn how to do makeup on others or to learn how to protect their own skin from the sun's damaging UVA and UVB rays.

"Lip balm, foundation or a bronzer can help enhance their skin tones, and at the same time, protect their skin," Cortez said.

As part of the four-day course, guest speakers from Mall Del Norte's makeup kiosks will be on hand to provide additional tips to students.

Cortez said that makeup doesn't have to be expensive.

"There's actually been good makeup I've found in downtown Laredo," Cortez said. "I've used Target, H-E-B, or Walmart brand makeup, and they work just as well as the expensive ones from the high-end retailers."

"My 91-year-old mom still manages to put on her own makeup because, like she once told me, 'Es que no quiero espantar a nadie,' or, she wants to look presentable and not scare anyone away," Cortez said.

For more information on the LCC's Continuing Education Department's Makeup Artistry course, contact Sandra Cortez at 721-5374 or email sandra.cortez@laredo.edu.

Registration for the fall semester is currently under way. For other class information, contact the Registration Center at the LCC Fort McIntosh Campus at 721-5109 or the South Campus at 794-4110.

Research earns TAMIU Ph.D. students 'Best Paper Award'

Caption: Collins Okafor, left, and Nacasius Ujah, right, both Ph.D. In International Business and Finance students at TAMIU, won the "Best Paper Award" and a "Presentation Excellence Award" for their paper, titled, "Unleashing the Cracken: Does Internet Financial Reporting Matter in Africa?"

In the academic community, publishing in a journal is a necessary rite of passage for a student to be considered a scholar.

Two Texas A&M International University doctoral students just crossed that threshold when their paper was awarded the "Best Paper Award" and their presentation a "Presentation Excellence Award" at a prestigious academic conference held recently.

Collins Okafor and Nacasius Ujah, both Ph.D. in International Business and Finance students at TAMIU, received their awards for their paper, titled, "Unleashing the Cracken: Does Internet Financial Reporting Matter in Africa?" They made their presentation at the Academic World International Conference 2010, held in May in Nashville, Tenn. Their paper will be published in the Fall issue of the International Journal of the Academic Business World.

"This is very encouraging," said Okafor, "It shows that the hard work that we put into this research paid off. We are proud ambassadors of TAMIU and would like to keep representing the university."

The students, originally from Nigeria, said they decided to write on their topic for a seminar in international accounting to know the extent to which the Internet plays a role in financial reporting by financial firms in Africa.

"We found that most of the articles that are out there on this topic focus on developed countries," Ujah said, "A few have discussed the impact of the Internet on financial reporting on some developing countries but none have referenced extensively on the continent of Africa. We saw this as a challenge and as an interesting topic for business practitioners and investors."

The paper examined several indicators such as company size, profitability and efficiency that would impact the need for financial firms to publish their financial statement on the Internet.

"What past findings of scholars have found in other regions is that profitability as well as size are of great importance as to why financial firms want to publish their financial statement on the Internet," Ujah explained, "What we find in Africa is interesting. There, profitability is not synonymous to the need to publish such information on the Internet."

Okafor said that while doctoral students are often advised to publish at least two academic journals during the course of their study, the two wish to accomplish even more.

"We are trying to push and to set a high standard," Okafor said, "We are not going by the minimum or maximum amount of published papers recommended. We have no limit. We are trying to set ourselves on a limitless platform. We also thank our professors for instilling in us the knowledge and drive to aim for the zenith."

For more information, please contact the Office of Public Relations, Marketing and Information Services at 326-2180, e-mail prmis@tamiu.edu or visit offices located in the Sue and Radcliffe Killam Library, room 268.

LCC leads effort to boost workplace literacy

Caption: Components of the English language learning program, Sed de Saber, are displayed on a table, as Gonzalo Prida Medellin, general manager of Consorcio Aduanal Prida and Multimodal Logistics Inc., addresses a conclave of city, education and private industry leaders that gathered at the local transportation company

Surrounded by the sights and sounds of a bustling transportation company, leaders from the city, education and private industry sectors gathered on Tuesday, July 27, to celebrate the launch of a new project intended to enhance literacy, promote education and support career advancement for Laredo's Hispanic workforce.

During a news conference hosted at Multimodal Logistics Inc., Laredo Community College officials announced the implementation of an English language acquisition program tailored for Spanish-speaking workers in the advanced manufacturing and skilled trades industry.

Among those present for the announcement were Laredo Mayor Raul Salinas and city Councilman Johnny Rendon.

LCC President Juan L. Maldonado said that the college is proud to be part of this innovative endeavor, which is led by the LCC Economic Development Center through the Light Manufacturing Institute.

"Laredo Community College is proud to be one of only three higher education institutions in the country picked to lead this project," Maldonado said. "As the coordinator for the implementation of this learning program in the South Texas border region, LCC is working in partnership with South Texas College in McAllen and Texas Southmost College in Brownsville."

The other two schools picked to lead the project are Houston's Lone Star College System and San Antonio's Alamo Community College District.

Maldonado added that LCC is pleased to introduce this innovative language learning program in the community.

"By allowing participating employees to learn a second language, they will help propel their companies to a higher level of global competitiveness and success," he said.

Blas Castaneda, chief external affairs/economic development officer at LCC, elaborated on the positive impact the English language learning program will have on the participants and their sponsoring companies, which also include B.A. Forwarding Co. Inc. and Allied Forwarding Corporation.

“After learning core effective communication skills, program participants will be well-positioned to pursue industry-recognized certifications in the manufacturing skills certification system endorsed by the National Association of Manufacturers through degree programs at LCC," Castaneda said.

Gonzalo Prida Medellin, general manager of Consorcio Aduanal Prida and Multimodal Logistics Inc., spoke of the need for employers to encourage their employees to be the best they can be.

"We (Multimodal Logistics) are a company that provides a variety of services, and to be able to deliver the best service possible to our clients, our company must provide learning opportunities to help employees become better at their trade," Prida said. "The English language is essential to live and work in the United States, especially here on the border region. With this skill, our employees can help our company compete locally, nationally and globally with other major companies."

Designed by the Manufacturing Institute of the National Association of Manufacturers in partnership with Retention Education Inc., the program consists of an interactive technology-based curriculum derived from the proven and innovative language learning program, Sed de Saber (Thirst for Knowledge).

"In order for U.S. manufacturers to stay competitive in today's complex global economy, we must remain committed to developing the talent and skills of the manufacturing workforce and create strategies for each challenge they face," said Emily Stover DeRocco, president of the Manufacturing Institute. "Foundational skills such as English language communication and applied math and science are necessary for all careers in manufacturing, and a worker who faces barriers in these areas will not be able to advance in the workplace."

After the announcement of the new training program, 40 employees of the third-generation, family-owned transportation company were each given one of the learning systems to keep and use during their spare time. They also received an orientation of how the learning tool works by Rafael Vargas, coordinator of Retention Education Inc.

The system's communication skills focus on an array of workplace issues, such as understanding directions and important health and safety measures, using proper manufacturing vocabulary, and reading and interpreting administrative forms.

Learning is self-paced to help participants gain English language skills to perform their jobs with more efficiency and accuracy. Tutors also will be provided to the participants to ensure that they are learning and understanding the system's learning modules.

Jesus Ruiz was among the Multimodal Logistics employees excited to start using the program.

The 31-year-old was born in Laredo, but was raised and educated in Nuevo Laredo and therefore speaks Spanish predominantly.

"I feel this is a great opportunity for our careers and to learn a second language living here on the border U.S./Mexico border, where we already know Spanish very well. This will help me perfect my English language skills," said Ruiz, who has been an employee of the transportation company for six years.

As the Manufacturing Institute meets the needs of local employers and workers in Texas, it will build upon the best practices of the pilot sites to deploy English for Advanced Manufacturing and the Skilled Trades to educate and skill the growing Hispanic workforce nationally.

Local employers who wish to learn more about workplace literacy and other training programs available at

LCC may contact the Light Manufacturing Institute by telephone at 764-5793 or by email at edc@laredo.edu.