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The Appalachian | Archives | 2001-2002

 

 

SGA Beat
Senate passes anti-increase bill as BOT vote looms

John T. Bennett - Editor-in-Chief

The Student Government Association Senate Tuesday unanimously approved a resolution calling for the retraction of an administration proposal that would increase tuition to a level 71.4 percent higher than the fall 2000 mark.

“I have a problem paying for this [increase], especially when it should be the state paying for this,” said Allison Laffin, a SGA senator who co-authored the bill.

Under the plan, monies generated from the proposed $150 hike would be used to increase the wages of a portion of the university’s lowest-paid employees who are paid through state allocations and fall under the State Personnel Act.

While she said she sympathized with those employees, Laffin adamantly stressed students should not be shouldered with the burden of making up for the state’s current financial woes.

If implemented, the increase would cause in-state tuition at Appalachian to swell to $1,581 next fall, up from $1,222 this year.

Laffin also criticized Vice Chancellor for Student Development Dr. Gregory S. Blimling’s inability to sketch a detailed plan of how the administration would distribute the approximately $1.8 million the proposed tuition hike would generate when he presented the plan to the senate last month.

“If [the administration] cannot tell us where [the money] is going, I have a problem with this,” said Laffin.

The senate’s passage of the resolution comes less than four days before a University Board of Trustees conference call to discuss the tuition increase proposal.

Friday’s teleconference will be considered a formal meeting of the trustees, and the university’s governing body is now expected to vote on the proposal at that time, said SGA President Xan Harrington, who is a member of the board.

The SGA chief executive said he plans to counter any motion made Friday to bring the increase proposal to a vote.

“I talked with the chair [of the trustees] Glenn Wilcox … and put in a motion to suspend the vote until the next Board of Trustees meeting,” said Harrington.

“... Because I was having conversations with other Board of Trustees members lobbying for the student interest, they decided to speed it up and make a conference call for this Friday,” said Harrington. “There is a little bit of politics coming into at play.”

If approved by the university trustees, the tuition hike proposal would next move onto the docket of the University of North Carolina system’s governing body, which will either approve or kill the plan at its March g meeting.

Of the 16 campuses that comprise the system, 13 are expected to petition the BOG for a tuition increase next month.

If given the stamp of approval by the trustees, this will mark the second consecutive year Appalachian officials have asked the BOG to increase student tuition to boost employee salaries.

The BOG signed off on an Appalachian request last year for a two-year $300 tuition hike to bolster faculty pay.

Such requests were made possible when the BOG implemented a new tuition policy that allows campus requests in 1998. Since that time, the board has interpreted the policy loosely and approved 11 campus-based tuition increase requests in the last two years.

With a BOG committee currently conducting a comprehensive review of the 1998-adopted policy, the practice of campus-based increase requests could soon be haulted.

“There is a big push at the [Board of Governors] to eliminate campus-based tuition increases,” said Harrington. “The [Appalachian] administration is trying to get this [increase] before that happens.”

Harrington said the senate’s passage of the anti-tuition resolution would provide him a powerful persuasion tool during Friday’s conference call.

“The Senate passed it unanimously; it isn’t like there was any opposition. Therefore, I think you get a good overall feeling of how the student body would react to this,” said Harrington. “… We just need more information if there is going to be such an increase.”

Nate Grubbs | The Appalachian

Police Beat
Internship provides glimpse of reality

Becky DiVerniero - Staff Writer

igning up for tougher classes and gaining experience before graduation.
Along with several other academic departments, criminal justice majors must complete an internship as part of their coursework, giving them an advantage in the real world.

Criminal justice majors must sign up for an internship to be conducted during the summer, fall or spring of their senior year. After finding a position, the students must then commit at least 40 hours a week to the job, said Mona Brandon, professor of criminal justice and internship coordinator for the department.

“It’s an opportunity for the student to experience what they’ve been learning in class,” said Brandon.

On the downside, many internships do not offer a salary, as companies believe the experience gained is more than enough payment.

“You can’t really expect them to pay [you] when you are asking them to take on an untrained student who has to be taught everything,” said Brandon.

The Appalachian State University Police Department has offered internship opportunities to students for the past five years. Applicants must be approved by Chief Gunther Doerr and pass a background check.

If a student is hired, they will eventually work with every part of the department, from crime prevention to telecommunications.

“We give them a little taste of each area,” said Maj. Larry Foster of the University Police.

University Police intern P.J. Boccia is currently working in investigations with Sgt. James P. Minton.

“He takes the time to explain what he’s doing and why,” said Boccia. “It’s [mostly] paperwork.”

As a student athlete, the University Police was the best possible choice, said Boccia. “It’s real convenient being close to campus. [I] can go to practice right after I leave here.”

After wrestling season ends, Boccia will work at night with the patrol officers but will not be allowed to intervene if the officer becomes involved in a situation, said Foster.

“He has no jurisdiction … his job is to sit back and observe, unless [assistance] is requested by the officer,” said Foster.

Boccia hopes one day to work for the U.S. Marshals, a career choice for which his parents have been preparing themselves.

“They’ve been expecting [this]. It’s been something I’ve wanted to do my whole life,” said Boccia.

Opportunities are also available at the Boone Police Department, said Maj. Bob Kennedy.

“It’s a step into the reality of the pressures and stresses that come with the job,” said Kennedy.

Several students have been offered jobs at both departments after the completion of their internship.

“We’ve had several students that we would have liked to have kept, but they had other plans,” said Foster.

For underclassmen, there are several other opportunities around campus to gain extra experience in the field.

Students may work in the Office of Judicial Affairs, on the student judicial board or the academic integrity board, said assistant director of Student Judicial Affairs Judy Haas.

Jobs are also available in the Parking and Traffic office, where students would perform duties such as answering phones and filing.

“We’ve had mostly bad experiences with students issuing parking citations because of peer pressure,” said director Barry Sauls, “We found that students work better in the office.”

Other internship opportunities are available in areas such as the Department of Juvenile Justice and the district attorney’s office.
“It’s a real valuable experience,” said Kennedy.

 

 

 

Faculty Senate withholds endorsement;
trustees may vote on proposal Friday

Faculty Senate Beat
Pointed rhetoric, heated debate
dominate meetings

Sean Oakley - Staff Writer

Vice Chancellor for Business Affairs Jane Helm criticized Faculty Senate’s lack of support for a proposed $150 tuition increase that would benefit State Personnel Act employees.

“I am disappointed that the Faculty Senate didn’t approve this,” said Helm at Tuesday’s Staff Council meeting. “Certainly they weren’t worried about student objections when their salary was the issue.”

Helm’s comment referred to a two-year $300 tuition hike to bolster faculty salaries, which was approved last year.

A proposed motion to support a $150 tuition increase plan to increase select staff salaries was tossed around in a brief discussion at Monday’s Faculty Senate meeting.

“We’ve gotten ourselves into a bind with this motion. I feel if we pass this we are making a statement,” said Sen. Dr. Patrick Rardin, associate professor in the Philosophy/Religion Department, before proposing the motion be tabled. “If we don’t pass it, we are making a statement, too.”

A 12-11 vote effectively tabled the motion, meaning any actions regarding the motion were postponed to a later date, giving the senate a chance to further ponder the issue. However, the next senate meeting will be March 11, and the Board of Trustees could vote on the proposal during a conference call Friday.

Helm’s comment came while she and Dr. Harvey Durham, vice chancellor for Academic Affairs, were entertaining questions from Staff Council members regarding the proposed tuition increase and the accompanying opposition that has emerged since the plan was unveiled.

“None of us are in favor of putting more money on the students’ backs, but there’s simply no other way,” said Durham.

If approved, this proposed increase would add to students’ mounting bills next year.

The in-state tuition rate at Appalachian State University as of fall 2000 was $982. Appalachian State tuition increased to $1,220 last fall.

If this staff-salary aimed increase is approved, tuition next year at
Appalachian would climb to $1581, a 71.4 percent increase since fall 2000. That figure does not include a BOG-proposed 4.8 percent statewide tuition increase, which will be voted on at the body’s March 6 meeting along with the $150 Appalachian increase request.

The proposed $150 increase in tuition would specifically benefit the lowest-paid staff members, said Helm. But the chancellor has not yet set criteria stating exactly which staff members would receive salary raises from increase-generated dollars.

Watauga County has the third-highest cost of living in North Carolina.
Yet the State Employees Association of North Carolina lists the average statewide staff salary at $32,000; the average Appalachian State staff salary is $28,673, said Len Johnson, director of Human Resources.

Since the body implemented a new tuition policy in 1998, similar increases have been approved by the BOG for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, despite loud opposition from the student bodies. After approving 11 campus-based hike requests in the past two years, the board is expected to receive such plans from 13 of the system’s 16 schools next month.

“This has made the Board of Governors think a little more about campus-based increases,” said Helm.

Chancellor Francis T. Borkowski will discuss the university’s proposition with the BOT during a conference call Friday, and the body could vote on the proposal at that time. Should the BOT accept the proposition, the next step would be the BOG.

“Nobody’s expressing much opinion on the subject in the BOG,” said Durham.

While Durham said talk from BOG members has been minimal, Peggy Ellis, Staff Council president, said her colleagues have been vocal on the issue.

“I’ve had staff calling me opposing this,” said Ellis at Tuesday’s meeting. “They feel it should not be the burden of the students.”

Business affairs beat
Wey Hall, other projects remain at standstill
$2.4 million worth of initiatives at ASU remain frozen due to state financial woes

Carrie Baker - Staff Writer

The repair and renovation budget at Appalachian State University has been frozen due to North Carolina’s ongoing economic woes, said Clyde Robbins, director of Design and Construction.

Repair and renovation projects totaling more than $2.4 million are presently frozen at Appalachian, said Robbins.

One of the largest repair projects frozen at Appalachian is the ventilation improvement project for Herbert W. Wey Hall, said Robbins. That building houses the Department of Art and a portion of the Department of Communication. Also housed are a sculpture lab, foundry lab, metal smithing with kiln, a clay area which does firing, woodshop, photography area, serigraphy and screen printing area and the WASU campus radio station.

“Good ventilation is crucial for anyone occupying the building,” said Carol Anderson, who works for the Department of Art. “It is an issue that needs to be addressed, and the sooner the better,” said Anderson.
Wey Hall is also on a list of buildings in need of updated fire alarm systems. John A. Walker Hall, W. Kerr Scott Hall and the B.B. Dougherty Administration Building are included on the list.

“These buildings have no modern fire alarms,” said Robbins. The $625,000 for this project has also been frozen by the state, said Robbins. The updated fire alarm systems will replace the older lever-pull systems in these buildings.

Another frozen project is the renovation of the former Bible Alliance Fellowship Building for use as the new Communication Disorders Clinic, said Robbins. Robbins said the $100,000 to be funded by the state is now on hold.

“It has slowed our ability to renovate but has not stopped us,” said Cliff Poole, administrative assistant in the Communication Disorders Clinic. Poole said funding had been frozen in July 2001, and the department is now working on campaigns to raise private monies to renovate the facility.

Poole said the Communication Disorders Clinic is currently working out of both Edwin Duncan Hall and the old Bible Alliance Fellowship Building. Poole said the current Communication Disorders facility is “not nearly as full scale as we would like it to be.”

Other projects on the repair and renovation list include roof replacements for the Miles Annas Student Support Building and Varsity Gymnasium, said Robbins.

Some repair and renovation projects are going on as planned with the use of extra repair and renovation money, said Robbins. “Some prior projects didn’t cost as much as we forecasted, so we could go ahead with certain projects,” said Robbins. Repair to the bridges by Varsity Gymnasium is included in projects to be covered by extra repair and renovation money.

 

Chancellor Student Development Beat
''Plan B’ in place if center is delayed
Living Learning Center residents would move to Doughton Hall

Kristina Egger - Staff Writer

Students assigned to the Living Learning Center will be temporarily housed in Doughton Residence Hall if the facility fails to open by the beginning of the 2002-2003 academic year, said Peter Vandenberg, assistant director of Housing Operations.

Doughton is scheduled to go offline next year as Appalachian State University begins a series of residence hall renovation projects. However, if the Living Learning Center fails to open by the start of the fall 2002 session, Doughton will remain online.

“We wanted to have a plan B just in case the center does not open,” said Vandenberg. “It is one of those situations where we are just going to have to play it by ear.”

If the university implements plan B, approximately 290 students will be forced to move into Doughton, only to relocate once the Living Learning Center goes online, said Vandenberg.

“We have traditionally had more demand for housing on campus than we have space available,” said Vandenberg. “We don’t want to exceed Doughton’s maximum capacity of 290 students, just in case students have to be housed there temporarily.”

After completion, the Living Learning Center will have space for 312 students.

Eventually, Watauga College will be housed in the Living Learning Center, but not until the 2003-2004 academic year because the academic portion of the facility will not be complete this year.

A lottery was held for the rooms in the Living Learning Center Monday.
Approximately 60 suites, which house three to four students each, have already been assigned for next year.

“It is not likely that there will be any freshmen living [in the Living Learning Center] next year,” said Vandenberg. “Next year’s housing situation for the Living Learning Center will be very similar to what we are seeing now in Newland Residence Hall.”

Currently, the Living Learning Center is still on schedule to be open by next fall, said Clyde Robbins, director of Design and Construction.

“The residential component of the building is scheduled to be ready by July 1,” said Robbins.

Close to 5,000 students are housed in on-campus facilities. Each residence hall currently houses between 200-300 occupants.
Renovations will include 14 residence halls, said Tommy Wright, director of Housing Operations. Wright hopes the renovations will be done by 2010.

“Right now all we are worried about is getting through this first building [Doughton],” said Wright. “With construction projects, our time frames and architectural time frames don’t always coincide.”

 

Academic affairs beat

Officials mull shorter semesters

Chris Bohle - Staff Writer

The University of North Carolina Board of Governors approved a shorter semester policy for all 16 system campuses Friday, a move Appalachian State University administrators say they would like to implement as soon as possible.

The new calendar requirements will permit universities to count the one-week exam period as part of instructional time, thereby reducing each semester by a week.

“The UNC system told us several years ago to not count exam periods, but apparently they want to be more consistent with other schools now,” said registrar Brooks McLeod.

The policy change is a reversal of a 1996 ruling by former UNC system President C.D. Spangler Jr. that required the exam period to not be included in the 150-day academic year.

Initial feedback toward moving to the new calendar has been almost exclusively positive on the Appalachian campus, since some people have been pressing for the change for some time.

“We’ve been pushing for this for several years now,” said McLeod. “Many of us just need more time in between terms to better prepare for the upcoming semester.”

The extra time now available will be crucial for summer programs, as well as course preparation, cleaning of residence halls and a variety of other tasks that have been shortchanged in the past, said McLeod.
The policy also guarantees more flexibility in allowing each campus to set their own holiday periods, study days and final examinations.
The only question remaining is when the policy will be implemented at Appalachian.

Realizing that universities often set their respective academic calendars years in advance, the Board of Governors is allowing each campus to determine when or even if they will apply the new calendar.

“Although we would all like to approve the new calendar for the 2002-2003 academic year, it is not definite,” said McLeod.

“We still have to vote on it and have our plan approved by the chancellor.”

The Calendar Committee will meet tomorrow at 3 p.m. to discuss the new requirements and when those will be installed.

If the new calendar is adopted for next year, the committee will go to work, finalizing the dates for the 2002-2003 academic year by the end of the month.

Dr. Harvey Durham, vice chancellor for Academic Affairs, admits drafting a new schedule will be harder than some may think.

“If we cut a week off the semester, we have to be careful in planning things such as athletic and performing arts events,” said Durham. “We wouldn’t want to schedule an event and then have no students up here.”
Although the new calendar will indeed mean students will be spending less time in the classrooms, McLeod reminds students and faculty the exam period will be handled a little more strictly once on the new system.

“Right now, exam week is handled pretty casually by teachers, not always having a set class meeting,” said McLeod. “When we move to the new schedule, exam week will be included in the mandated class time, so it won’t be an optional thing.”
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