DN TUESDAY, SEPT. 3, 2013
THE DAILY NEWS
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DISSECT RECENT POP HITS Explore the four chords that show up again and again in modern music
SEE PAGE 3
WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
Fatigue affects final result
SEE PAGE 6
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MAT MIKESELL CHIEF REPORTER @MatMikesell
Packed Scheumann, had best attendance since 2009 opener
f Ball State athletic director Bill Scholl were to grade the crowd and atmosphere at Scheumann Stadium for the season opener, he’d give it a high grade. “I think it’d be the in B+ to A- range,” Scholl said. “Like [head coach Pete Lembo] said, we have a lot to work on, but we did a lot of good things. I think that sums up the crowd situation as well.” See FOOTBALL, page 3
SEASON OPENERS Here’s at the fluctuation of attendance A look ata look the fluctuation of attendance to to 2008 for home homeopeners openersdating datingback back 2008. 18,000
Fall 2013 season opener 2013 season
opener
12,000
6,000
0
2008 ‘09 ‘10 ‘11 2008
DN PHOTO JORDAN HUFFER
University prepares for renewal process Denied accreditation could impact student degrees, financial aid SAM HOYT CHIEF REPORTER | sthoyt@bsu.edu Students could be affected if Ball State does not renew its 10-year accreditation in October, but the Higher Learning Commission says the university is in good standing. Marilyn Buck, associate provost and one of the co-chairs of the steering committee for accreditation, said a university without accreditation doesn’t receive federal financial aid. “That would make it much more difficult for students to get a degree,” she said. Another consequence could be the impact of the degrees themselves, Buck said. “Graduate schools won’t recognize the degree unless it’s
‘12
‘13 ‘13
SOURCE: BallStateSports.com DN GRAPHIC
from a regionally-accredited institution,” she said. “Some employers won’t recognize the degree unless it’s from an accredited institution.” Ball State has been accredited since 1925, and John Hausaman, process administrator of public information with HLC, said the university is in good standing when it comes to the upcoming review. One of the main steps to getting accredited is the selfsurvey the university conducts. The survey studies five criteria from the Higher Learning Commission, one of the six regional organizations in the country which grants accreditation. The five criteria categories are Mission, Integrity: Ethical and Responsible Conduct, Teaching and Learning: Quarterly, Resource and Support, Teaching and Learning: Evaluation and Improvement, and Resources, Planning and In-
Global response, developments to Syrian situation
THE PROCESS OF GETTING ACCREDITED The path to accreditation started back in May 2011. Here are some of the major events that have occurred along the way and will happen in the next few months:
stitutional Effectiveness. The self-study is sent to the HLC and released to the public. Ball State released its selfsurvey in August. Hausaman said the idea is to have the university look at itself and hold itself to the criteria. In gaining accreditation, he said, the university legitimizes itself. “The institution needs to provide evidence to a team of peer reviewers that they are meeting these criteria,” Hausaman said. Some of the main areas that are being used as evidence Ball State meets the criteria are immersive learning opportunities, its progress in geothermal plans and the Ball State Bold campaign, which raised more than $10 million more than the goal of $200 million to support university programs.
See STANDARDS, page 4
May 2011 Steering Committee appointed, first meeting held
Obama decides US should take military action, seeking Congress authorization
July 2011 Subcommittees established August 2011 Subcommittees begin collecting data, interviews and analysis
| THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
October-December 2012 First draft of the self-study is circulated to campus, community January-February 2013 Feedback received and a final draft compiled July-September 2013 Finalized draft sent to Higher Learning Commission and peer review team, campus prepares for review team’s visit October 2013 Peer review team will visit campus for accreditation evaluation
SYRIA
Spring 2014 HLC will announce accreditation decision
SOURCE: bsu.edu
STUDENT HEALTH CENTER DEBUTS ELECTRONIC CHECK-IN SYSTEM
DN PHOTO JONATHAN MIKSANEK
The Amelia T. Wood Health Center features a new check-in system this semester. The system is made up of a freestanding computer that gathers the student’s information and then transmits it to the staff to prioritize the waiting room.
With a new check-in system at the Amelia T. Wood Health Center, students are no longer just a number. The program, which debuted at the start of the school year, allows students to input their name and reason for a visit instead of just taking a number. A freestanding computer at the Health Center transmits the student’s information to the office staff workers and helps them assess the needs of those who are waiting, in a way the old system did not. Health Center director Kent Bullis said the previous number system received a lot of negative feedback from students. “Students expressed an emotional reaction to pulling a tab,” he said. “Emotionally, a lot of students feel like they are treated as a number or they feel like cattle. There were negative emotions and environmental concerns.” The computer check-in cost around $2,500, which came out of the general operating funds of the Health Center. –
The United States is considering launching a punitive strike against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, blamed by the U.S. and the Syrian opposition for an Aug. 21 alleged chemical weapons attack in a rebel-held suburb of the Syrian capital of Damascus. The U.S. said the attack killed 1,429 people, including at least 426 children. Those numbers are significantly higher than the death toll of 355 provided by the aid group Doctors Without Borders. President Barack Obama said he has decided that the U.S. should take military action against Syria, but is seeking congressional authorization for the use of force in a vote expected after Congress returns to work Monday. Here’s a look at key Syria developments around the world Monday amid heightened tensions over potential military action:
STAFF REPORTS
Assad said military strikes against his country would risk triggering a regional war. He said the Middle East is a “powder keg” and no one can say what will transpire if the West takes military action against Syria. He warned, “the whole world will lose control of the situation. Chaos and extremism will spread. The risk of a regional war exists.”
UNITED STATES
Sen. John McCain told reporters at the White House that Obama must make a strong case for attacking Assad’s Syria if he wants to win congressional backing for the operation. He also said Obama’s intervention now will be more difficult because Assad “is moving his forces around.” Both McCain and Sen. Lindsay Graham, who spoke after meeting Obama, questioned the wisdom of the administration publicly signaling in advance its intention to strike.
FRANCE
A French intelligence report estimated that the Syrian regime launched the alleged Aug. 21 attack involving a “massive use of chemical agents” and could carry out similar strikes in the future. The government, on its website, published a nine-page intelligence synopsis about Syria’s chemical weapons program that found that at least 281 deaths could be attributed to the attack in rebel-held areas outside Damascus.
RUSSIA
THE PULSE OF BALL STATE
The Russian news agency Interfax said President Vladimir Putin hopes to send a delegation of lawmakers to the U.S. to discuss the situation in Syria with members of Congress. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said evidence the U.S. showed Moscow to blame the Syrian regime for the alleged chemical weapons attack was “absolutely unconvincing.” He said, “there was nothing specific” in the evidence. THE PULSE OF BALL STATE
See SYRIA, page 4
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21. SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS
VOL. 93, ISSUE 9
THE PULSE OF BALL STATE