THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
“Little good is accomplished without controversy, and no civic evil is ever defeated without publicity.”
da
Wednesday March 19, 2014
Volume 126, Issue 112
www.THEDAONLINE.com
City talks cost of living adjustment, new businesses By Daniel Schatz Staff Writer @DailyAthenaeum
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The Morgantown City Council discussed several ordinances that may prove to be beneficial to the city’s economy and improved benefits for city employees at their regular meeting Tuesday. City Councilor Mike Fike was pleased to discuss the new cost of living adjustments afforded to the employees of Morgantown this year. “Last year we could not give (city employees) a cost of living adjustment because the budget last year was pretty short,” Fike said. This year, the budget is considerably larger, which allowed city employees to receive a cost of living adjustment increase of 1.5 percent. “We owed it to them,” Fike said. “Anytime you can pay people more, you’re going to get better work from them and more people applying for positions.” In addition to the brand new Panera Bread restaurant that has recently opened on High Street, new businesses are on their way to Morgantown. The plowed lot behind the downtown BB&T Bank location is currently under construction for a new CVS Pharmacy. A Sheetz gas station is making its way into the downtown Morgantown area. One potential location in question for the store is the current Larry Smith Buick property. The City Council has also decided to pass an ordinance renting open office space to Helicopter Analytics Incorporated and have begun a campaign to extend the airport runway and create a more efficient route to the airport. “We’re looking to expand the airport a little bit; extend the runway (and) hopefully get larger aircraft in
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see city on PAGE 2
Saint Patrick’s Day
crime by the numbers Doyle Maurer/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
Kasey O’Connor, a student at WVU, plays his bagpipes in front of Jimmy John’s on Saint Patrick’s Day.
by jacob bojesson staff writer @dailyathenaeum
The West Virginia University Police Department has released crime logs and statistics for this year’s Saint Patrick’s Day celebrations in Morgantown. The reports show a significant decrease in crime compared to previous years. UPD issued 10 citations and made two DUI arrests during what police chief Bob Roberts called, “a quiet Saint Patrick’s Day in Morgantown.” This is a decrease from UPD’s 2013 reports when 73 citations were issued and four arrests for DUI’s and five liquor law violations were made. “From our department’s standpoint, (Monday) was kind of like a weekend,” Roberts said. “It wasn’t anything like we’ve had in the past.” Roberts said he believes a combination of factors resulted in the low crime numbers this year, but the University just re-
turning from spring break and the holiday falling on a Monday were the biggest. In recent years, many of the crimes committed have been by non-WVU students who come into town for the weekend, and it seemed this crowd did not show up to the same extent this year. “It was on a Monday right after spring break, and also the University has been steadily telling people what the expectations are,” Roberts said. “I think all that combined and the visibility of the officers was obviously a deterrent.” The peak in crime during Saint Patrick’s Day weekend in Morgantown came in 2012: 33 arrests were made and 256 citations were issued from both Morgantown Police Department and UPD. “I think our students are acting more responsible,” Roberts said. “Crime is up and down, but we have not seen a significant increase in any area.”
80 70
40 30 20 10 0
Citations
DUIs
2014 Stats
Citations
DUIs
2013 Stats
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Carlee Lammers/The Daily Athenaeum
“It was on a Monday right after spring break, and also the University has been steadily telling people what the expectations are. I think all that combined and the visibility of the officers was obviously a deterrent.”
danewsroom@mail.wvu.edu
danewsroom@mail.wvu.edu
IF YOU GO
West Virginia University offers many opportunities to create their best possible future, and one of the most significant are the career fairs. The WVU Career Services Center is sponsoring a University-wide career fair today and tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Mountainlair Ballrooms. Nearly 140 employers, including state and federal agencies, will be in attendance, and all students are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity. “This one is different because they have new jobs. This one is University-wide, and employers are looking for students across all majors,” said David Durham, the director of Career Services. The recruiters are not all necessarily looking for students from specific majors, and some may be looking for an engineering student as well as some business students for different branches of the company. “The one thing I cannot stress enough that a lot of students don’t realize is that there are different employers each day. About 75 the first day and about 70 more the second day,” Durham said. “About 2,000-3,000 students are expected to attend, and it will be a really fast-paced and busy atmosphere.” Durham said seniors should take additional time to prepare for the fair. “This will be the (seniors’) last opportunity to be in the same room as about 135 companies within two days. After that, they will need to just apply online, and it is not as easy to make that connection without being face to face,” he said. Dressing professionally is one of career services biggest concerns this year, and they are taking it very
61° / 38°
LIFE GOES ON
INSIDE
“Rain,” a Beatles tribute band performed at the CAC Monday. A&E PAGE 6
P.M. LIGHT RAIN
News: 1, 2 Opinion: 4 A&E: 3, 6 Sports: 7, 8, 10 Campus Connection: 5 Puzzles: 5 Classifieds: 9
staff writer @dailyathenaeum
seriously. “Too many kids just end up walking through the lair and decide to go to the fair last minute without preparing, and they walk in with jeans and a hoodie on, and that sheds a bad light on the University,” Durham said. “We are strongly encouraging dress code and come next semester, we are going to start turning kids away who are not dressed appropriately.” Alexa Potenza, a junior communications student, said she is guilty of deciding to go to career fairs at the last minute. “I’m actually really excited for this career fair because I planned ahead for it,” Potenza said. Students need to bring copies of their resumes and are encouraged to have an “elevator speech” prepared. Students can also visit http://careerservices.wvu.edu or call at 304-293-2221 for assistance with preparation for the career fair. Students can also visit Mountaineertrak to find out information about job fairs, and there is also a new app, WVUJOBFAIRS, for students to download that gives a full list of employers as well as updated information about the job fairs. It is available on iPhones, iPads, Androids, Blackberries and web browsers.
– Bob Roberts, University Police Chief
Career fair helps students get head start on professional careers, life after WVU staff writer @dailyathenaeum
by meagan carpenter
The West Virginia University WeDesign program will host a networking event this evening at Bartini in Suncrest Town Centre from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Asayo Creative, a marketing and design agency in Morgantown, W.Va., created WeDesign in 2013 to promote networking among West Virginia’s creative community. WeDesign hosts an event each month where people can come together and share ideas, socialize and network with those around them. Those attending this month’s meeting will need to be at least 21 years old to attend. WeDesign is a relaxed environment where peers can come share drinks, laughs and ideas. The program is composed of a network of people from all across the state in marketing, advertising, public relations, design and other related fields who come together to talk about passions and interests in a relaxed, casual atmosphere. Brittany Lavenski, a content strategist for Asayo Creative, works hard to get students to understand how to network creatively. “There is so much talent in and around Morgantown, and WeDesign does a great job of connecting that talent and shedding light on the environment of agency, freelance and corporate creatives right here in our home state,” Lavenski said. Lavenski said Asayo Creative reached out to WVU and its students because of the growing interest in networking with industry professionals. WeDesign will host its first guest speaker Rachel Angry, a WVU Integrated Marketing Communications Recruitment Specialist, at tonight’s meeting. Angry has attended previous meetings with WeDesign but said she is excited to be a guest speaker at this month’s meeting. “I’m looking forward to seeing new faces that I’ve never seen before at previous meetings,” Angry said. “I’m looking forward to seeing as well more people that are interested in learning how to network and become more interested in the IMC program.” Angry will be at the WeDesign event to promote the WVU IMC annual conference that hosts highly recognized and successful industry professionals from across the country. “We want more people to come to these meetings to learn about how to really get their names out to business professionals,” Angry said. For more information about WeDesign and how to get involved, visit http://wedesignwv.com.
danewsroom@mail.wvu.edu
by taylor mcsorley
WeDesign gives students networking experience
Students need to bring copies of their resumes and are encouraged to have an “elevator speech” prepared. Students can also visit http://careerservices. wvu.edu or call at 304-293-2221 for assistance with preparation for the career fair.
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CONTACT US Newsroom 304-293-5092 or DAnewsroom@mail.wvu.edu Advertising 304-293-4141 or DA-Ads@mail.wvu.edu Classifieds 304-293-4141 or DA-Classifieds@mail.wvu.edu Fax 304-293-6857
EDITORIAL WVU Saint Patrick’s Day crime was lower this year in comparison to other years.
same time. same place. 8.0
OUT FOR THE COUNT WVU fell to Georgetown in the first round of the NIT Tuesday. SPORTS PAGE 10
WELL ®