The Prospector

New FOIA bill will allow for more transparency

Maria Esquinca, Staff Reporter • July 22, 2014

The Freedom of Information Improvement Act of 2014, a bill that would amend FOIA, has been drafted by senators John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and has been introduced to the U.S. Senate. The Freedom of Information Act is a federal law...

Volunteers WORK with immigrants at local shelter

Jose Soto, Staff Reporter • July 22, 2014

A UTEP professor and some of his students have been volunteering at the Annunciation House, putting what they have studied and their social work skills to good use as an increased number of immigrants being sent to El Paso. This influx has created a...

Female wheeled out from Union Building by EMTs

Jose Soto • July 15, 2014

An unidentified female wearing the uniform of the food service department on campus, Sodexo, was wheeled out from the third floor of the Union East and taken by EMTs Tuesday at around 1 p.m. This happened during a clerical luncheon which was held on...

Number of immigrants entering U.S. border continues to rise, local initiatives form to aid

Jose Soto, Staff Reporter • July 15, 2014

Approximately 2,000 undocumented immigrants were flown into the El Paso area in June coming mainly from the South Texas region. They now await immigration hearings or possible deportation. Last week, two planes arrived full of immigrants, who were caught...

States use ballot initiatives to increase minimum wage

Kate Winkle, SHFWire reporter • July 15, 2014

When a bill to increase the minimum wage failed in the Nebraska Legislature, state Sen. Jeremy Nordquist, of Omaha, tried a different tactic. He and Sen. Danielle Conrad, of Lincoln, launched Nebraskans for Better Wages to put a minimum-wage initiative...

Disparities between male and female tenured professors still prevalent

Maria Esquinca, Staff Reporter • July 15, 2014

National statistics and trends reveal that women have lower percentages of tenure track positions than men despite a higher number of women entering the doctoral fields. The number of women receiving tenure counters trends of women receiveing degrees...

Local nonprofit aids undocumented with civil and human rights

Lorain Watters, Editor in Chief • July 8, 2014

Undocumented and poor—a common combination in people along the southwest region of Texas where individuals travel to the U.S. for any work they can find to help keep their family afloat. However, easy work that may come their way is not always fair...

La Copa Mundial en la frontera

Héctor Bernal, Staff Reporter • July 8, 2014

Se dice que el deporte paraliza el tiempo, y que en muchos casos acapara las miradas de millones. Pero solo existe un evento al que se le reconoce por atraer al mundo entero: la Copa del Mundo. Y aunque muchos no pudieron viajar a Brasil, la fiesta mundialista...

States prepare for Aug. 1 transportation funding ‘cliff’

Daniel Wheaton, SHF Wire Intern • July 8, 2014

WASHINGTON – After years of departmental pressure and legislative meetings, one of the nation’s reddest rectangles approved a tax increase. Wyoming, a state with 914 miles of interstate and fewer than 600,000 people, increased its state’s gas tax...

Refueling an old flame: trolley project approved for funding

Jose Soto, Staff Reporter • July 8, 2014

Funding of $97-million has been approved by The Texas Transportation Commission to restore a trolley project in downtown El Paso after service ceased 30 years ago. The project may include refurbished cars, which were originally used from 1950 to 1974....

Students sue universities for violating free speech rights

Kate Winkle, SHF Wire Reporter • July 2, 2014

This story has been updated to include a statement from Ohio University. WASHINGTON - Erin Furleigh is going to court for wearing a T-shirt. She and other members of Iowa State University’s chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana...

Senators discuss legal changes to help curb campus sexual assaults

Daniel Wheaton, SHFWire Intern • June 24, 2014

WASHINGTON - Campus administrators, lawmakers, police officers and victim advocates convened Monday on Capitol Hill to discuss how to address sexual assaults on campus. This was the third roundtable discussion held by Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo.,...