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News
Heavy
mailings may have led students to discard integrity code
Kristin Davis
- Academic Affairs Beat
The majority of students
may still not be aware of the existence of a new Academic Integrity Code
handbook handed out earlier this month, according to senior Rachel Bowling,
Student Government Association (SGA) Director of Academic Affairs.
ÒA vast majority
of my students say they did not get a copy of the code,Ó said Dr. Patrick
Rardin, philosophy and religion professor.
Rardin believes students
may have mistakenly thrown the handbook away due to the heavy amount of
mailings to Appalachian post office boxes at the beginning of the semester.
He approached Bowling,
concerned that many seemed unacquainted with the existence and importance
of the code.
ÒThe code includes
standards most would think to be obvious, but students sometimes donÕt
realize they can get kicked out of school for academic dishonesty,Ó said
Bowling.
She pointed to outlined
principles including plagiarism of any kind, unauthorized assistance and
multiple submissions of work without prior permission from professors.
It is important students
know and understand the code, according to Bowling. ÒYou canÕt plead ignorance,Ó
she said in reference to instances where the code has been violated.
ÒEveryone received
a copy of the Academic Integrity Code. The bins in the post office are
filled with student handbooks,Ó said Dr. Bill Ward, associate vice chancellor
for Academic Affairs. ÒIgnorance is no excuse,Ó he said.
The Faculty Senate
and members of SGA recently revised the code, replacing the one developed
in the 1980s, according to Ward. Chancellor Francis T. Borkowski approved
the new code in May.
ÒIÕm impressed that
the new code was a student initiative. ItÕs a tribute to the students
who put years of work into it. There is a publicity job to be done,Ó said
Ward. He hopes SGA will assist in the promotion of the handbook.
Students without
a handbook can pick one up in the Judicial Affairs office or the SGA office.
Both are located on the second floor of Plemmons Student Union.
College
Street construction in early stages
Robyn Dailey -
Business Affairs Beat
Although the new
AppalCART turnaround on College Street is almost finished, congestion
due to construction on the road is just beginning.
Within the next three
to five years, along with the turnaround, the area will see renovations
of the bookstore and student union and construction of the new library,
according to Dr. Clyde Robbins, director of Design and Construction.
The turnaround for
the AppalCART will make the route more efficient and prevent harmful carbon
monoxide fumes from buses from seeping into the entrance of Whitener Hall.
ÒWe had several complaints
from faculty and students,Ó said Robbins.
The funds for the
project came from annual repair and renovation state funding called ÒRoads,
Walks and DrivesÓ and from bookstore funds, said Robbins.
Allison Kemp-Sullivan,
project manager, said they are relocating the two bus shelters to make
sure they are accessible to the handicapped.
The project is tentatively
scheduled to be completed in the next few weeks, she said.
University Bookstore
The bookstore project
is expected to start within the next 30 days, said Robbins. He said the
two-year project will impact College Street even more for the next 18-24
months.
ÒIn preparation for
the new bookstore project, we had to pull the street away from the bookstore
and closer to Whitener,Ó said Robbins.
The bookstore project
includes an addition of a solarium to Plemmons Student Union.
According to Kemp-Sullivan,
the gravel area beside the road near the bookstore is only temporary.
ÒThe stone is a temporary measure so it will at least be a clean surface
to walk on and [the students] wonÕt be walking in the road,Ó said Kemp-Sullivan.
That area will be torn up again once the next construction project begins.
She said the College
Street entrance to the bookstore will be a construction access during
the bookstore project.
ÒThe addition theyÕre
going to be doing to the student union and bookstore is going to be very
nice when itÕs finished,Ó said Kemp-Sullivan. ÒItÕs just painful to go
through.Ó
Whitener Hall
Construction will
continue on College Street when the new library is built. The library
project will include renovation of Belk Library and the building of a
new library and parking deck.
According to Kemp-Sullivan,
all of the plans are still preliminary and no drawings have yet been made.
Whitener Hall will
be torn down and the parking deck will be in its place with the new library
in the adjoining parking lot.
The classes in Whitener
will be relocated to the renovated Belk Library.
Robbins said when
the new library is built, College Street. will be closed to traffic from
the loading dock behind the bookstore.
It will be open only
for emergency traffic, he said. The area around the new library will be
mostly a pedestrian system.
Rental
system under review
Anthony Debetta
- Faculty Senate Beat
The Faculty Senate
recommended last year, 22-1, that Appalachian State UniversityÕs rental
book system be dropped.
The senate-approved
recommendation then moved to the Appalachian administration.
The Faculty Senate
is a recommending body to the chancellor and the provost.
The textbook rental
system began in 1938, when the university was known as the Appalachian
State Teachers College. The program has been in operation since then,
except for one year.
Minutes from the
senate meeting reveal some senators believe the current system limits
textbook choices, diminishes the quality of education and is a violation
of academic freedom. Others also believe many textbooks become outdated
during the three-year rental cycle.
Senator Patricia
Allen, associate professor of physics and astronomy, said during the December
meeting she had contacted over six UNC system universities, and a buy-back
program would not cause students to spend that much more money. She said
the rental system was not even an option at other universities because
some felt it is a violation of academic freedom.
Dr. Fred Webb Jr.,
professor of geology and former chair of the Bookstore Advisory Council,
said, ÒI think it would be a mistake to get rid of the rental system.
Books are more expensive than ever and most do not change fast enough
to warrant the change.Ó
Webb, who has previously
expressed his views to the senate, feels it is in the best interest of
students and the university to continue the book rental system. Webb said
some of the books freshmen and sophomores use, such as history texts,
do not need to be replaced as rapidly as science and technology books.
He said some believe a buy back system would cost students money instead
of saving them money. ÒThe idea that you will sell the books back at the
end of the semester and get rich is not true.Ó
Many students asked
about the bodyÕs recommendation, expressed unease. Laura Whitley, a junior
from Greensboro, noted that the rental book system was one of the reasons
she chose Appalachian State, ÒThe rental system just works out better,Ó
she said. ÒIt saves us money and is really convenient.Ó
Chris McCollum, sophomore
from Mayodan, cited the stark difference in book costs between Appalachian
and other universities. ÒMy brother spent $800 at Carolina for his books
this semester.Ó
Walk
makes statement against violence
April Klaassen
- Features Beat
Jeni Gray, a staff
writer for the Appalachian News Bureau, took a walk one fall day through
the Appalachian State University campus and through downtown Boone. She
never returned from her walk. A man kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and
strangled Jeni to death, leaving her body on a mountain road about 10
miles outside of Boone.
Another afternoon,
not long after the disappearance of Gray, Leigh Cooper, also an Appalachian
student, decided to run through the Boone area where she was abducted
and raped by the same man. According to Barbara Daye, dean of students,
Cooper was able to escape from David Brian Lee, who was later convicted
of murdering Gray.
Twelve years later,
members of Watauga County and Appalachian communities remember Jeni Gray
and support victims like Cooper with the Annual Walk for Awareness.
Barbara Daye organized
the first Walk for Awareness in 1990, a year after Gray was murdered.
Although the community was concerned with personal safety after GrayÕs
murder, their concern did not last long. Daye wanted to continue to raise
awareness in the community about personal safety, as well as remember
Jeni Gray. Daye told The Mountain Times in 1990 the idea for the walk
Òcame about after Jeni GrayÕs death because awareness tends to fade with
time after highly publicized tragedies.Ó
Daye began the walk
in the fall because she felt it was an opportune time to focus on freshmen
who were new to the area and may be unaware of the dangers of violence.
The Walk for Awareness
occurs every fall in order to raise awareness of violence in the community,
to make a statement against violence and to support victims and survivors
of acts of violence. Through the years, the walk has grown to encompass
an awareness of violence not only against women, but also men, children
and the elderly.
Today, it also raises
awareness about issues of tolerance of a personÕs religious, cultural,
and gender differences, while still honoring the memory of Jeni Gray.
Participators begin on Sanford Mall walking in silence, showing support
and respect for victims. They carry flashlights or candles, symbolizing
how darkness in the world cannot snuff out even a little bit of light.
For the first 10
years of the walk, Leigh Cooper Wallace, now a track and cross country
coach at Watauga High School, spoke to the community about her traumatizing
experience. In 1999, she resigned from her position as the main speaker
because she felt it was time to leave her experience in the past and move
on with her life.
The annual walk has
personal meaning for several students. Joe Kellum, a fourth-year student,
participated in last yearÕs walk because he felt it made a statement for
people to Ònot be afraid and to remember those who have suffered.Ó Kellum
plans to participate again this year. ÒI think the walk helps bring awareness
and awareness is the only way the world is going to change,Ó Kellum said.
Senior Sharon Hecker
walked for the past three years of her college career and plans to walk
again this year.
During her freshmen
year, she heard about the walk from friends and decided she could learn
from participating. ÒI guess I originally started as a way to educate
myself about the percentage of rapes in this area and keep educating others,Ó
Hecker said.
Hecker participates
every year because she feels the walk is successful. ÒI definitely feel
the walk raises awareness about rape and violence towards women and the
fact that it happens in this area. I think people certainly are aware
but IÕm not sure peopleÕs knowledge extends as far as it should.Ó
Coinciding with the
freshmen reading selection, ÒA Lesson Before DyingÓ by Ernest Gaines,
this yearÕs Walk for Awareness theme is ÒA Lesson For Living.Ó Speakers
include the Assistant Director of the University Counseling Center Susie
Greene, Counseling center member Dorothy Edwards and Appalachian student
Justin Farmer. The Appalachian State Parents Association is the main sponsor
of this yearÕs walk, providing flashlights, which will be given out to
participants.
The walk will occur
on Sept. 4 at 9 p.m., beginning on Sanford Mall. Participants will walk
through downtown Boone and end at the Jones House Community Center.
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