Eastern News
Tuesday
“Tell th e t r u t h a n d d o n ’ t b e a fr a i d . ”
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OC TOBER 2, 2012 V O LU M E 9 7 | N o. 3 1
EASTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY CHARLESTON, ILL. D A I LY E A S T E R N N E W S . C O M T WIT TER.COM/DEN_NE WS
Donations requested for less fortunate
Record-breaking plays highlight ‘stat attack’
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Page 8 FAIR TR ADE
C AMPUS
Student community service increases By Robyn Dexter In-depth Editor
MARCUS SMITH | THE DAILY EASTERN NE WS
Seong-Oea Hibner, a senior family consumer sciences major, along with Alayna Graham, a senior sociology major, and Lena Elmuti, a senior chemistry major, tell a student about the Fair Trade For Global Justice Committee Monday in the Library Quad.
Fair Trade Committee works for fair trade at Eastern By Robyn Dexter In-depth Editor
The EIU Fair Trade For Global Justice Committee is continuing its movement to get 1,100 signatures in a petition to offer fair trade items at Eastern such as the Union Bookstore. Lena Elmuti, a senior chemistry major and member of the committee, was handing out free coffee along with other members of the committee to passersby and talking to them about the group’s goals in the Library Quad. “We’re trying to get 1,100 signatures so we can try to get Eastern to become an affiliate of the Worker Rights Consortium,” she said. Currently, Eastern is affiliated with the Fair Labor Association, but many schools the same size as Eastern are affiliated with both the Worker Rights Consortium and the Fair Labor Association, she said.
“The reason why we really want WRC is because we did a lot of research, and we found out that WRC is actually better at monitoring on the ground in the developing countries to check for unfair wages and treatment of the workers,” she said. Elmuti said the group was unable to find out what countries specifically Eastern works with to get its products, but that they did find some practices that they believed should be changed. “We found out that they’re affiliated with FLA, and they have their business heads as part of the group, which is good because it gives them a voice,” she said. It also means the factories have advance notice when they come through to do checks so they can do what they need to in order to prepare, she added. “That’s not necessarily good because they could be getting away with things they shouldn’t
be able to get away with,” she said. The group started the petition in April 2012 during Fair Trade Week and has been acquiring signatures since then. “Our goal is to have the signatures in the next two months,” Elmuti said. Alayna Graham, a senior sociology major and a member of the committee, said she has been making extra efforts to get the signatures. “I’ve been making presentations to classes and different RSOs,” she said. “We’ve talked to groups like the Sociology Club and the Asian American Society.” Seong-Oea Hibner, a senior family and consumer sciences major, said she has been talking to students in her residence hall to try to get them involved too. “People have been pretty supportive so far,” Hibner said. TRADE, page 5
FACULT Y SENATE
Chick-fil-A controversy continues, 2 previous motions to be addressed Staff Report
The Faculty Senate will resume discussion about the Chick-fil-A franchise during its meeting Tuesday. The Faculty Senate will meet at 2 p.m. in Booth Library Room 4400. Two motions made during the previous meeting regarding the controversy will be readdressed. Amy Rosenstein, a Faculty Senate member, moved that the last two lines of the university mission statement be included at the top of all the school’s media sites. The statement reads, “the University community is committed to diversity and inclusion and fosters opportunities for studentfaculty scholarship and applied learning experiences within a student-centered campus
culture. Throughout their education, students refine their abilities to reason and to communicate clearly so as to become responsible citizens and leaders.” Stacey Knight-Davis, a Faculty Senate member, moved to talk with President Bill Perry about sending out an email reaffirming that mission statement. Andrew Methven, the Faculty Senate chairman, said they will not talk about the second proposal much because Perry has already sent the email. Methven said they will continue to discuss collaborating with the Student Senate to open a fall forum to the campus for continued deliberation on the issue. Wendy Williamson, the director of study abroad, will speak to Faculty Senate members about a proposal to allow students to
use study abroad experiences coupled with coursework as a senior seminar waiver. Her presentation will be based on information and feedback. The Council on Academic Affairs typically deals with this type of business. Karla Sanders, the director of the Committee for the Assessment of Student Learning, will present a summary of an assessment of the four academic colleges and graduate schools. She will also describe how well students are writing, speaking, critically thinking and meeting their academic goals. Blair Lord, provost and vice president for academic affairs, will lead discussion about recruitment and admissions, declining enrollment, and Eastern’s consulting group Noel-Levitz.
Over the years, Eastern has tallied hours upon hours of community service, and the increase continues each year. Rachel Fisher, the director of student community service, said Eastern students have already gotten a great start on tallying hours for this year, totaling about 32,000 hours. “Last year, EIU students completed just over 108,000 hours of volunteering,” she said. “This year, we are completely on track to do that again or more.” Fisher said the service program provides students with a service resume whenever they wish. “It is a great way to highlight and remember all the fantastic volunteering you complete during your time at EIU,” she said. Some of the big service events that have already taken place this year include JumpStart 2 G.I.V.E. and the annual service day on Sept. 11. Fisher said during JumpStart 2 G.I.V.E., volunteers traveled to 18 non-profit agencies to provide on-site assistance. Volunteers also produced 3,500 items while on campus that were distributed to 21 nonprofit agencies. “Jumpstart 2 G.I.V.E. activities aided nonprofit agencies in five counties including Coles, Moultrie, Cumberland, Douglas and Champaign,” Fisher said. She said these agencies aid more than just the five counties, however, and benefit people across central Illinois. “In regards to Sept. 11 Service Day, this year we expanded the service day to actually provide service opportunities throughout the week,” Fisher said. “We had super volunteers helping at a number of events, and it was great to see all the positive energy and enthusiasm for our community.” The number of volunteers and service hours logged at Eastern continues to increase each year, Fisher said. “We are seeing and working with more and more students who are looking to make a longterm sustainable change in our community,” she said. “We are seeing more and more tangible, strategic partnerships coming together between students and local agencies.” Fisher said her department has many plans to continue the increase of volunteering across campus. “This year, we are expanding our weekly events, such as providing transportation Tuesday through Friday afternoons to a local agency for a great chance to do volunteering,” she said. These projects include the Douglas Hart Nature Center, Crosswinds Equine Rescue, Soup Stop and Teen Reach. Fisher said students can also join the student service newsletter, which goes out every Tuesday. Fisher said she is looking forward to all the possibilities the rest of the year will bring. “I am excited about these longer-term projects and partnerships that will offer so much to both our students and the community,” she said. The next big service day is National Make A Difference Day on Oct. 20. More information about National Make A Difference Day and future volunteer activities can be found at www.eiu.edu/volunteer. Robyn Dexter can be reached at 581-2812 or redexter@eiu.edu