THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
“Little good is accomplished without controversy, and no civic evil is ever defeated without publicity.”
da
Monday January 27, 2014
Volume 126, Issue 84
www.THEDAONLINE.com
Fake ID citations costly for students by laura haight staff writer @dailyathenaeum
Hefty fines and other penalties may not be enough to deter some students at West Virginia University and the surrounding areas from using fake IDs. University Police Chief Bob Roberts said students who get caught using fake identification are subject to paying hundreds of dollars in fines.
Campus police can cite students for presenting false IDs, but they normally send students to the judicial system and fines can be costly. Roberts said court costs alone are about $168. Roberts said most students of drinking age don’t realize the consequences of giving their driver’s license to someone else. “If you give someone your ID and it’s a valid driver’s license, we can send the card to the state,
and they can revoke your driver’s license,” Roberts said. Fake IDs are prevalent in any college town, Morgantown included, and Roberts said they became a larger issue when the drinking age was raised from 18 to 21 years old. “We probably encounter hundreds a year. It’s hard to say,” Roberts said. “But I’m sure there are a lot of students who are using them.” Roberts said it’s unclear
to him whether students realize the potential consequences of using false ID or if they simply don’t care they may receive punishment. “They’re using them to get into bars and using them to buy alcohol, so they know what they’re doing,” Roberts said. “Now with the Internet, it’s much easier to get them because you can buy them on (there) now. “I think (they) better understand what the conse-
quences can be. If you’re willing to pay the price, then you understand the risk you’re taking, but I would suggest not taking those risks.” Alex Bernstein, a senior marketing student, said he used a fake ID he bought online when he was 19 years old. Bernstein said he mainly used the ID to buy alcohol but would also use it to get into clubs and bars downtown occasionally, as well.
“I was worried, but I knew that the consequences are not that bad, because no one reports fakes in this town from what I’ve heard,” Bernstein said. “I was just worried about being rejected.” Bernstein said of all the times he used the fake ID while he was underage, he was only rejected twice. “It definitely made being underage at WVU a lot easier,” Bernstein said.
see CITATIONS on PAGE 2
STUDENTS GETTING POLITICAL
SHANNON MCKENNA/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
Congressman David McKinley meets with West Virginia University students Friday.
W.Va. 1st District representative Congressman David McKinley discusses state, university issues with WVU students by hilary kinney staff writer @dailyathenaeum
West Virginia University students had the opportunity to speak with Congressman David McKinley, representative of the 1st District of West Virginia, at a roundtable discussion Friday. Students were invited to raise their questions regarding University and West Virginia state issues. Some of the questions
posed at the meeting involved West Virginia’s energy resources, global competitiveness in education, the diversification of West Virginia’s economy and the Affordable Care Act. Chris Snyden, a WVU Student Government Association Board of Governor’s member, said he was concerned about college affordability and Stafford loans in the state. In August 2013, the House voted in favor of the Bipartisan Student Loan Certainty Act
of 2013. Since then, there has been a concern that interest levels would rise before reaching the proposed caps. “There are 60,000 people in West Virginia who depend on these loans,” Nyden said. “It’s such a huge issue, and I really think it needs to be at the forefront of a lot of Congressmen’s minds.” McKinley said had Congress not made a move, the rate would have automatically increased to 6.8 percent Jan. 1.
“We can now work on (the bill). It’s not finished. We were able to hold it at 3.4 percent,” McKinley said. “(In 2015), it may be 3.7 percent, but it’s going to stay down low while we try to address this issue.” An issue related to WVU’s special fees was a particular concern for Zhengjun Wang, president of WVU’s Chinese Students and Scholars Association. He said they are an incredible burden on international students, especially those
in the STEM fields. Wang said he believes decreasing these costs could open up the University to more students and encourage them to stay in the state upon graduation. “I want to find out how the rest of the country’s doing (it), (and which universities) that are comparable to us,” McKinley said. This was not the first time McKinley visited WVU’s campus. In December 2013, McKinley co-hosted a public energy forum in the
Mountainlair Ballrooms. Following Friday’s meeting, McKinley said holding another round table for students would be beneficial. “Most people don’t know who their representatives are or don’t really get to see their representatives,” said Brian Bellew, SGA Director of Sustainability. “It is a really cool opportunity for students to voice their opinions and meet directly with a representative.” danewsroom@mail.wvu.edu
Choose to Change program helps Morgantown volunteers join families make healthier choices national fight against homelessness by meagan carpenter correspondent @dailyathenaeum
West Virginia University is making its mark on the fight to end childhood obesity in West Virginia. Choose to Change is a childhood obesity prevention program that aims to improve the overall health and wellness of children and their families. The U.S. Department of Agriculture funds the program, and WVU was awarded $4,732,961 in a five-year grant that will help keep the project going until 2016. Elaine Bowen, WVU Extension health promotion specialist, has been working with the project since it began in February 2011 and continues to work with the program, making goals to improve the health of families in Monongalia and Kanawha counties. “We have an active part-
nership with Monongalia County schools and host a whole series of programs that aim to help families learn about healthy living,” Bowen said. In the second year of the program, Choose to Change created a new way to get families involved in program by creating I Am Moving, I Am Learning. “As part of the IMIL program, Health Hero was created as a character that helps kids, teachers and parents really focus on the healthy choices we have everyday,” Bowen said. The creation of Health Hero makes it possible to train families how to increase how frequently they exercise, as well as improving the movement experiments and encouraging healthier eating habits. Bowen said families are recruited and they sign up to participate in the control groups or the exper-
30° / -6°
TITLE FIGHT
INSIDE
Caged Power 9 crowned the state MMA champion Saturday. A&E PAGE 6
SNOW SHOWERS
News: 1, 2 Opinion: 4 A&E: 3, 6 Sports: 7, 8, 10 Campus Calendar: 5 Puzzles: 5 Classifieds: 9
imental groups. These groups are used to assess the progress of the program and the progress that families are making. “We worked with the families through the year offering familyfun events,” Bowen said. “We had four big events: choosey families eat together, choosey families play together, choosey families cook together and ended the year with a healthy summer splash.” When the grant money for the program ends, all the equipment donated to the schools for the program will remain at the schools for future children and their families. “I hope through the program that families learn to use the skills and the knowledge to better themselves and their families,” Bowen said. In the past two years, more than 150 families
see CHANGE on PAGE 2
by charles young opinion editor @dailyathenaeum
Thanks to the efforts of local volunteers, Morgantown is joining more than 200 other communities across the nation in a campaign to end homelessness. 100,000 Homes aims to survey and categorize as many homeless people as possible, so those deemed most at risk can be relocated to permanent homes. With more than 80,000 people already rehoused, the effort is well on the way toward its July end goal of 100,000. Beginning this afternoon at 4 and running continuously for the next 24 hours, teams of volunteers working in shifts will visit locations around the city where homeless people are known to be. The teams will do their best to attract participation in the Vulnerability Index & Service Discussion Assistance Tool (VI-SPDAT), the campaign’s survey.
The comprehensive voluntary questionnaire runs seven pages and has more than 50 questions. The questions attempt to paint a complete portrait of a subject by collecting their personal information, medical history, current state of wellness and other information. After successfully completing the survey participants will be asked permission to have their pictures taken to ensure information isn’t lost or confused. Zach Brown, executive director of the WV Coalition to End Homelessness, led a workshop Saturday morning to teach volunteers how to safely and professionally administer the survey. Brown said the survey is comparable to a standard “point in time count,” an annual census of homeless people taken by most municipalities. These counts take a look at a city’s homeless population on a given night and record who has shelter and who does not.
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HOOKED No. 18 West Virginia suffers setback against Longhorns in Texas. SPORTS PAGE 10
“100,000 Homes is not much different from a ‘point in time count’,” Brown said. “Except that its a ‘point in time count’ on steroids.” With its more in-depth approach, the survey is designed not just to tally the homeless population, but to identify their risk factors and the causes of their homelessness. “This type of survey gives us a more accurate picture of homelessness in your area,” Brown said. “We’re not just counting them, we’re making a register of those most at-risk and coming up with a community plan to house them.” The more than two dozen volunteers who will be conducting the survey come from all walks of life. Some are trained professionals who work closely with the homeless on a regular basis, others are community activists and conceded citizens, and some are students. Using Hazel Ruby McQuain Park as their base of
see HOMELESS on PAGE 2
COWBOYS’ CLOSE CALL West Virginia fell 81-75 to No. 11 Oklahoma State on the road Saturday. SPORTS PAGE 7