VOL. CXVIII, NO. 99
DAILYBAROMETER.COM
FRIDAY, MARCH 4, 2016 OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY
A cleaner school
OSU begins tackling opportunity President Ray, administration admit change is necessary Gaby Mudd News Contributor
Oregon State University’s energy consumption during the 2015 fiscal year.
OSU working to reduce greenhouse emissions By Chloe Stewart News Contributor
Right now, they are working to develop the mechanics and options within the plan itself. Specifically, Trelstad hopes to develop a list or “menu,” of sustainable practice options ranging from decreasing paper use to incentivizing the inclusion of sustainability in curriculum to engaging with students. The plan allows each college can select which policies work best for them. According to Ann Scheerer, advisor for the sustainability double degree and instructor, this new model shifts the focus of the plan
to taking more practical steps. “I definitely think it is a great model for implementation,” Scheerer said. Scheerer’s past research has focused on climate action plans developed by cities like Portland and New York. Another critical element to implementing the climate action plan will be involving students. Carter Frantz-Geddes, energy projects
Revising their climate action commitment, OSU plans to offer specific options for individual colleges to implement localized action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. According to Brandon Trelstad, OSU sustainability coordinator, this new plan is designed to let each of the different colleges decide how they can implement sustainable practices in their own operations. See Climate Page 4 In the past, the climate action plan took the form of a single, broader document that sought to implement sustainability across the entire university. The plan first came to be in 2007, when President Ray signed the President’s climate commitment stating that OSU would combat climate change by eliminating the school’s greenhouse gas emissions and become completely climate neutral by the year 2025. This year, after the Sustainability Office and the OSU Policy Analysis Lab revisited the plan, the idea for a more localized action plan emerged. “I was at first a little skeptical because that isn’t standard procedure,” Trelstad said. “But that doesn’t mean that it’s not the best procedure.” This January, Trelstad and his colleagues began meeting with the deans for each of the colleges present on campus to HONG LIN | THE DAILY BAROMETER discuss the plan and build connections. According to Trelstad, The Oregon State University Energy Center currently produces 41 percent of the energy the responses have so far been that OSU consumes in a year. OSU is planning on cutting down greenhouse emissions. mostly supportive.
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Oregon State University has pledged to address the inequality in receiving a degree in higher education based on socioeconomic status. According to OSU President Ed Ray in his State of the University Address in Feb., the university is going to work towards increasing the success of students in the bottom quartile of income in the country. “Higher education in America is deepening the divide in our nation between haves and have nots, and this chasm is tearing at the fabric of society and undermining our democracy,” Ray said in the address. According to Ray, receiving a degree in higher education ranges from 82 percent for students from the upper quartile of income distribution, to 9 percent for students that come from the lower quartile. Ray also addressed the university’s’ lack of providing a respectful and inclusive educational experience for diverse students. “It is well past the time for OSU to improve how we serve all students of diverse backgrounds,” Ray said. Susie Brubaker-Cole, the vice provost for student affairs, said OSU recognizes financial need as one of the factors in students’ acceptance, retention and graduation rates on campus. “We have begun to calculate the unmet need for students,” Brubaker-Cole said. “We know that our current financial aid resources leave a gap between the cost of attendance and the aid we can offer. We need to make up that gap through other means, and we are committed to closing that gap as much as possible.” There are several programs and facilities on campus that target students that come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds and help them persist to graduation. The Director of Educational Opportunities Program (EOP), Janet Nishihara, said some students face many difficulties in college. The mission of the EOP supports students that have traditionally been denied access to higher education including first-generation students, low-income students and students of color. According to Nishihara, the EOP offers services in counseling, smaller course sizes for core subjects such as reading, writing and math, as well as additional programs. “In our country there is a strong tie between being a person of color or being first-generation in college and coming from a low-income background,” Nishihara said. “This compounds to what can feel like very high barriers to overcome.” Nishihara also spoke about how students who qualify for these services do not have to be enrolled in the program in order to take the specialized smaller-sized classes that provide higher levels of success. “It is a common misconception, you don’t have to be enrolled in the program to take the classes,” Nishihara said. “If a student wants to take the classes we offer, and they qualify to do so, we can help them.” The College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) offers students who come from migrant and seasonal farm work services with education. This program works more specifically with the enrollment and completion of first-year CAMP students. Greg Contreras, an academic counselor for the program, said these students face challenges more traditional students don’t. “CAMP exists to serve students of farm working backgrounds, agriculture or farm related activities and to assist these students in their transition into a university,”
See opportunity Page 4
Trump wins big, NEWS, PAGE 2 Gymnastics honoring seniors, SPORTS, PAGE 5 Yeas and Nays, FORUM, PAGE 7