C A L I F O R N I A
S T A T E
U N I V E R S I T Y ,
F U L L E R T O N
INSIDE n PERSPECTIVES: One student relates 5 the painful experience of losing a parent
Baseball loses weekend series to Stanford
DETOUR: “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” pre9 nmiers Friday at Plummer Auditorium
—see Sports page 19
T U E S D AY
Vo l u m e 7 2 , I s s u e 1
Fe brua r y 6 , 2 0 0 1
Power crisis threatens nCAMPUS: Potential for blackouts forced campus to shut down for the first time in 40 years By Samantha Gonzaga Daily Titan Copy Editor
Spring semester has more to contend with than the nuances of adding classes and dealing with limited parking spaces. California’s energy crisis that first struck last summer and again this winter has placed Cal
Shoppers encounter dim
State Fullerton in a state of readiness in the event of a Stage Three alert. For the first time in 40 years, the school was forced to close down on Jan. 11 due to the high possibility of an energy interruption. The university closed at 4 p.m., and although intercession classes were not canceled, campus staff was forced to leave early. “There was a high possibility that we were going to be blacked out,” said Tom Whitfield, director of Environmental Health and Instructional Safety. “It was for precautionary purposes, to avoid sustaining a blackout.”
As the semester commences and solutions for the state’s energy dilemma provide little alleviation, campus committees are looking for ways to prevent another shutdown. Groups involved in decision-making processes like Environmental Health, Public Safety, Physical Plant, and President Milton Gordon find themselves weighing the effects on academic and financial levels. Evening classes run the bigger risk of being caught by rolling blackouts, even perhaps cancellations. Students returning from winter break have been greeted with dimly lit hallways in classroom buildings and offices and elevator doors
posted with signs encouraging the use of stairs. With the unpredictable energy supply, conservation methods have been implemented on campus grounds. “We have shut down as many lights as possible without presenting any hazards,” said Willem Van der Pol, director of the campus Physical Plant. “Our boilers and chillers take up a lot of energy, so we’ve been using them differently. Rooms are cooler than usual...life is bearable, but not comfortable.” Campus shutdown also rides on another consideration — the safety
ENERGY/ 18
DAVID RIVERA/Daily Titan
Evening classes face cancellation in the event of blackouts.
Web bookstores’ popularity drops
Whoopi shines!
nCOMMUNITY: Fullerton businesses react to California’s energy crisis
nINTERNET: Visitor hits for online textbook stores decline after a year of media hype and flashy promotions
By Samantha Gonzaga
By Darleene Barrientos
Daily Titan Copy Editor
At the Ralph’s grocery store on Yorba Linda Boulevard, food aisles are no longer fully lit with fluorescent lighting. Its freezers still run: the quality of the food cannot be compromised in spite of an unstable power supply. Manager of Operations Todd Totman would rather have customers shopping in a dimly lit supermarket rather than buying warm frozen food. California’s energy crisis has forced businesses to re-prioritize their power usage. For most businesses, this means cutting back on lighting, which reaps significant savings in budgets and keeps power grids from overloading. Conservation methods being employed range from leaving unused sections in restaurants dark, to having every other aisle lit in grocery stores. Totman has not seen any changes in the volume of customers that come into his store. Employees know that office lights need to be turned off when no one is inside the rooms. The only thing that remains unchanged is the parking lot, which had not undergone any cutbacks for safety purposes. “In about half the places that I go to, I notice that only half the lights are used,” said Michael Smith, a new Fullerton resident. “I think that will hardly, or not at all, dissuade consumers. We understand why it’s like this, and personally, I’m thankful that this is all that we’ve got to bear with.” While rates that consumers pay are still capped, economic analysts are already anticipating a rate hike when the expiration of deregulation unfreezes them. The way Southern
COMMUNITY/ 20
Daily Titan Production Manager
LORRAINE DOMINGUEZ/Daily Titan
Whoopi Goldberg headlines the CSUF annual fundraiser, Front & Center, at the Arrowhead Pond Saturday evening, along with Walter Cronkite and Jane Goodall. —See page 3
During 1999 and the early part of 2000, online textbook stores seemed to be a student’s best friend. Not only did these companies quote cheaper prices for books, they kept users happy with games, interactive chat, message boards, sweepstake contests and a variety of other features offered on each particular web site. Cal State Fullerton students didn’t even have to go online to enjoy the perks that a particular Web site wanted to offer. During past semesters, VarsityBooks.com representatives clad in brightly colored jumpsuits handed out bright orange nylon bags stuffed with promotional materials and samples from companies like NesCafe, America Online, and eBags. Meanwhile, BigWords.com representatives literally scrawled their name throughout the campus in the form of chalk drawings on the sidewalks. The new year has not been as kind to these online textbook stores as previous years have been. With the bull market of 1999 turning into a frustrating bear market for the upcoming 2001, many online entities have been dying in droves. Dot-com companies like eToys. com, Pets.com, and WebMD.com, once making headlines with their extravagant employee perks and preInitial Public offering parties, are now making news as they announce dwindling funds and massive lay-
Stacking and shuttle services ease impact of crowded nPARKING: Students complain available parking spaces are too far from campus By Amy Rottier
Daily Titan Staff Writer
CHRIS TENNYSON/Daily Titan
Congested parking lots are an ongoing problem on campus.
It is no secret that students view parking as a problem. As a commuter school, Cal State Fullerton has about 9,001 parking spaces to offer and over 28,000 students. The Parking and Transportation
Services Department is working diligently to stretch its limited funds to satisfy the needs and demands of the students. The new program “Titan Park ‘N Go,” also known as stacked parking, provides room for about 500 extra cars Monday through Thursday. The system is being used in Lots A and B from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. Stacking survived a six-week trial period last semester. Although it is expensive at about $10,000 per week, the overall student reaction is very positive, said Paulette Blumberg, associate director of Parking and Transportation Services. The program was initially implemented to help ease the extra stress
http://dailytitan.fullerton.edu
of parking at the beginning of the fall semester. The stack program will continue through the entire spring semester to help soften the blow of the upcoming loss of 500 parking spaces to plans for new housing. “With the loss of spaces, something has to be done until the parking structure is built,” Blumberg said. “We will have to continue to use a mixture of things, including the stacked parking.” According to Mieka Bledsoe of Parking and Transportation Services, Lots A and G don’t fill up. These lots are known as remote lots because they are farther away
PARKING/ 3
offs. Online textbook stores and their retail book counterparts have not been excluded from the reality of economics. Professor Barry Pasternack, Department Chair for Management Science and Information Sciences, was not surprised at the near-demise of many online textbook stores. “It’s a difficult business to crack,” Pasternack said. “Books need to be in stock, returning is a hassle, and all just to save a few bucks with an online retailer.” Pasternack, who consulted VarsityBooks.com when they started out, noted that although books are a practical product for an e-commerce model, textbooks were a more difficult product to sell at a profit. “There is only a short window to sell textbooks,” Pasternack said, referring to the first few weeks of a semester or quarter. During the time that online textbook stores flourished, Director of Titan Shops Jerry Olson never felt that sales might be threatened. “Year after year, book sales have increased,” Olson said. Offering many of the same perks that online textbook sites boasted of, like free shipping, low prices and a rebate program, Titan Shops also had the valuable trait of being a “brick-and-mortar” store – how physical businesses are referred to on the Internet – that allowed customers to immediately return a book and receive a refund if they weren’t satisfied. “There is always a certain amount of profitability in textbooks,” Olson said. Referring to why so many sites failed after trying to break into the textbook market, Olson speculated that “the pricing structure of many of these companies did not allow for costs.” Dot-com textbook retailers offered bonuses of 20-50 percent off prices, automatic registration to various types of sweepstakes, and
ONLINE/ 3
TITAN
extras online n
Check out the Daily Titan online this year at http:// dailytitan.fullerton.edu.
d ow n l o a d n
Need to announce an event? Visit our Web site to download our NEW events calendar form. Get your club’s events noticed!!
2 Tuesday, February 6 , 2001
NEWS
two
A GUIDE TO WHAT’S HAPPENING
BRIEFS Outstanding Professor Lecture to focus on air pollution Environmental economist Jane V. Hall will discuss “Fifty Years of Regulating Air Pollution: What Has it Gotten Us? What’s Left to Do?” at Cal State Fullerton’s Outstanding Professor Lecture Wednesday, Feb. 7 at 11 a.m. in the Portola Pavilion of the Titan Student Union. Hall, a Cal State Fullerton economics professor who was recently honored as one of the university’s Outstanding Professors, will focus the discussion on such topics as whether regulation efforts have produced cleaner air and what still needs to be done. The lecture is free and open to the public.
Advising Center says goodbye to long-time Coordinator Sonia Leyva Advising Center Coordinator Sonia Leyva retired Jan. 29 to spend more time with her husband and family. After nearly 20 years with Cal State Fullerton, Leyva said goodbye at a farewell party on Jan. 31 in the new advising office at College Park. Students, faculty and staff dropped in throughout the day to thank her for her many years of dedication.
Coca-Cola targets several majors for new internship The Coca-Cola Corporate Intern Program will offer 50 summer internships to minority college juniors in the areas of chemistry, engineering, finance, human resources, information technol-
Denise Smaldino Vu Nguyen Joel Helgesen Collin Miller Gus Garcia Seth Keichline Darla Priest Marlayna Slaughterbeck Raul Ascencio Damian Calhoun Magda Liszewska Jamie Ayala Lorraine Dominguez David Rivera Lori Anderson Samantha Gonzaga Debra Santelli Darleene Barrientos Kari Wirtz Robert Kelleher Jeffrey Brody Editor in Chief Managing Editor News Sports Main Photo
278-5815 278-5814 278-5813 278-3149 278-2128 278-2991
ogy, marketing, and business management. Eligible students will also have an opportunity to earn academic scholarships. Each student will receive a $5,000 internship stipend, $2,000 housing allowance as well as a transportation allowance and will be eligible for a $10,000 scholarship. Deadline to apply is Feb.16. For more information, call The College Fund at 1-800-331-2244 or visit www. coca-colaoncampus.com.
McNair Scholarship Program offered to sophomores and juniors The Ronald E. McNair PostBaccalaureate Achievement Award Program is accepting applications for the 2001-2002 school year. The McNair Scholars Program is designed to prepare undergraduate students for their masters and doctoral studies. The program is geared toward sophomores and juniors who are first generation college students or low-income and underrepresented in various post-graduate majors. Applicants must have a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.0 and 3.25 G.P.A. in an approved major. The program allows scholars to work closely with a faculty member who will guide them through the final two years of undergraduate work. Additionally, scholars will participate in a 10- week paid summer internship and attend workshops to sharpen academic skills, as well as attend research paper conferences. Interested students may pick up an application in room 125 of University Hall or contact Director Gerald Bryant at (714) 278-7315
Editor in Chief Managing Editor Business Manager Advertising Sales Manager Advertising Production Manager News Editor Asst. News Editor Asst. News Editor Sports Editor Asst. Sports Editor Detour Editor Opinion Editor Photo Editor Photo Editor Internet Editor Copy Editor Copy Editor Production Manager Production Manager Associate Editor Faculty Adviser Advertising 278-3373 Editorial Fax 278-4473 Advertising Fax 278-2702 DT online: http://dailytitan.fullerton.edu e-mail: dailytitan@yahoo.com
The Daily Titan is a student publication, printed every Tuesday through Friday. The Daily Titan operates independently of Associated Students, School of Communications, CSUF administration and the CSU system. The Daily Titan and its predecessor, the Titan Times, have functioned as a public forum since inception. Unless implied by the advertising party or otherwise stated, advertising in the Daily Titan is inserted by commercial activities or ventures identified in the advertisements themselves and not by the university. Such printing is not to be construed as written or implied sponsorship, endorsement or investigation of such commercial enterprises. The mail subscription price is $45 per semester, $65 per year, payable to the Daily Titan, College Park 670, CSUF, Fullerton, CA 92834. Copyright ©2001 Daily Titan
CALENDAR OF EVENTS Campus Financial aid workshops for the 2001-2002 school year are scheduled for Feb. 6,7,8,9 and 12 on campus. Today’s workshop is at noon in EC579. Workshops are scheduled through March 2. For more information visit: www.fafsa.ed.gov The Kaleidoscope Players present “The Salt that Saved the Kingdom” Feb. 9 through 11 in the Arena Theatre. The show starts at 8 p.m. on Friday, and 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. A Musical Recital by Salem/ Ko/Delgado Trio will be present-
A concert by David Trasoff, Sarode, and friends will be presented Feb. 9 in Recital Hall at 8 p.m. Tickets are available at the CSUF Performing Arts Center Box Office for $8 ($5 with advance Titan discount).
Community PAIR Celebrity Series presents “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” by Tennessee Williams, Feb. 5 through 11, at Plummer
Auditorium in Fullerton. Tickets available at CSUF Performing Arts Center Box Office. For more information visit: www.arts.fullerton.edu/events The NHRA Junior Drag Racing is at Pomona Raceway on Feb. 10 and 24. For more information visit: www.fairplex. com The Computer Fair is at Fairplex 4 in Pomona on Feb. 10 and 11. Hundreds of exhibitors will present wholesale computer supplies, accessories, modems, monitors, games and furniture. For more information visit: www. fairplex.com
CALENDAR OF EVENTS COP BLOTTER
Sunday, Jan. 28
Police responded to a drunken male who became violent at 4:48 a.m. The male was taken to the hospital.
Monday, Jan. 29
Police pulled over a driver of a white Cadillac at 3:55 a.m. The subject was driving with a suspended license. A non-injury accident on West Campus Drive was reported at 6:47 p.m.
Tuesday, Jan. 30
ed Feb. 11 in the Little Theatre at 4 p.m. Tickets are available at the CSUF Performing Arts Center Box Office. Tickets are $8 ($5 with advance Titan discount).
A parking dispute in Lot C ended with the female owner of
a red Toyota Tercel warning the owner of a black Honda Accord to watch out for damage to his car. When the owner of the Honda returned to his car after class at 1:21 p.m., the car had been keyed. The suspect was about five feet tall with short brown hair.
A possible theft of a calculator from the campus bookstore was reported at 2:42 p.m.
Wednesday, Jan. 31
The owner of a ’96 Ford truck reported a damaged canopy at the Titan House at 9:46 a.m.
A pedestrian flagged down an officer at 12:01 p.m. to report that a cell phone had been stolen from the men’s bathroom on the first floor of the Performing Arts Center.
Thursday, Feb. 1
A subject driving a green Honda westbound on Nutwood Avenue. was pulled over and had less than one ounce of marijuana in the car.
Friday, Feb. 2
At 4:01 a.m. the Fullerton Police requested assistance chasing two male teens on bikes. The suspects dumped
During Black History Month, the Hollywood Entertainment Museum will host an AfricanAmerican Film Fest. This exhibit is on African cinema and is a special on “Literary Hollywood.” It is open Tuesdays and Thursdays 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is $7.50 for adults and $4.50 for students. The museum is located at 7021 Hollywood Blvd. For more information call, (323) 960-4833. A concert by The Fullerton Friends of Music presents The Clavino Trio (clarinet, viola and piano), in the Performing Arts Center at Sunny Hills High School in Fullerton. This concert begins at 3:30 p.m. on Feb. 11.
their bikes and ran. The teens were not detained.
Saturday, Feb. 3
At 1:24 a.m. a drunken driver going westbound on Nutwood Avenue was pulled over. Police took a suspicious pedestrian from the Eastside Church parking lot to the Orange County Jail at 2:29 a.m.
Sunday, Feb. 4
A soon-to-be ex-husband followed his wife and her date back to an office at the Visual Arts Center and threatened to harm his wife’s date if he came out.
Daily Titan Online Poll Voice your opinion through the Daily Titan’s online poll! Just go to http://dailytitan.fullerton.edu and click on the News or Opinion tabs and vote.
Who is your favorite boy band?
A. 98 degrees B. ‘NSync C. Backstreet Boys D. O-Town E. BBMak F. Boy bands suck
Results will be published in Tuesday’s Daily Titan. Poll is unscientific
NEWS
Tuesday, February 6, 2001
3
Whoopi dazzles the Pond nEVENT: Front and Center fundraiser entertains largest crowd since inception By Kelly Mead
Daily Titan Staff Writer The diverse personalities of Whoopi Goldberg, Walter Cronkite, Jane Goodall and Jim Abbott attracted an estimated 6,000 Cal State Fullerton supporters at the Arrowhead Pond
last Saturday for the annual Front and Center fundraiser. This year’s show gained the highest attendance since its inception in 1996. The audience gathered to enjoy a night filled with entertainment, food and philanthropy for CSUF scholarships. The Front and Center event was created by University Advancement and receives thousands of dollars for scholarships every year. One thousand guests gathered for the donation dinner, which kicked off the evening. Guests who donated from $500 to $2,500 were invited to a special black tie dinner before the other 5,000
LORRAINE DOMINGUEZ/Daily Titan
Whoopi Goldberg shares a laugh with journalist Walter Cronkite.
arrived for the event. The fundraiser was expected to pull in about $200,000 for the university, said Executive Producer Larry Zucker. The night ended up being as much inspirational as it was entertaining, while the guests chose to use the spotlight to encourage the audience to excel. The night started with CSUF honoring Disneyland Resorts with the Orange County Titan Award, the first time this award was given to a corporation. While presenting the award to Cynthia Harris, from Disneyland Resorts, President Milton Gordon gave out the award by pointing out the enormous impact Disneyland has on CSUF students. “I think the number one employer for Cal State Fullerton students in Orange County is Disneyland,” Gordon said. The university also honored primatologist Jane Goodall. She was presented with the Front and Center Award and started her acceptance speech with an authentic chimpanzee greeting call. Goodall discussed her current project, “Roots and Shoots,” which helps educate the youth on the environment in more than 50 countries including Tanzania and China. Goodall announced that the program is to be instituted at CSUF. “One person can make a difference,” Goodall said, talking about the importance of educating the youth of the world. Goodall also asked the audience to be conscious of whether the products they choose to buy are environmentally friendly. According to Goodall, this is a consumer-driven society, and the products consumers choose not to buy will no longer be made.
ONLINE
Goldberg and journalist Walter Cronkite headlined the event. Cronkite, who attended Front and Center two years ago, is the first guest to return since the annual gala started. Goldberg entertained the audience with a fortyfive minute combination of a stand-up routine and a personal speech. During her performance she shared her fears with the audience of growing older in an ever-changing society. Towards the end of the evening, Goldberg and Cronkite shared a conversation with the audience. They discussed the evolution of the media and the general problems the world faces today. “Every one of those problems could be solved with ease if our population could intelligently make a decision,” said Cronkite when speaking on the importance of education. Retired baseball pitcher Jim Abbott, the master of ceremonies for the night, also emphasized the importance of an education. Abbott played for the Anaheim Angels from 1989 to 1992, returned to the club in 1995 for a year-and-ahalf, and also helped the United States win a gold medal at the1988 Summer Olympics. Abbott told the audience how much his partial college education at the University of Michigan helped him make the right judgements in his career. “It was the best decision I ever made,” Abbott said about his education, which he did not complete after being drafted by the Angels. He said he would make a commitment to finishing his education. Throughout the night, the Department of Theater and Dance put together song-
PARKING
n from page 1
n from page 1
even free shipping for purchases exceeding a set price. Olson said that users often didn’t take into account that many sites did not offer used books and that more often than not, shipping costs caused the final prices of textbooks to be higher than in a brick-andmortar retail store. Traffic statistics show that online textbook stores aren’t as popular as they once were. According to PC Data Online reports, during early January 2000, online textbook stores like efollet. com, ecampus.com, varsitybooks. com, and bigwords.com were four of the top five most visited Educational Resources. For the same period of time in 2001, only efollet.com and ecampus.com remain within the top 20, at numbers nine and 18, respectively. Though brick-and-mortar sites like barnesandnobles.com and borders.com continue to strive, the current economic forecast predicts that many of these online textbook stores will soon succumb to the same fate as other dot-coms into depleted funds or Chapter 11. But even with the bleak economic future that so many Internet entrepreneurs face, new and cutting-edge ideas still emerge. Cambire.com is a site that seeks to connect students to each other with the intent to exchange books, rather than to sell them. In the spirit of Internet ingenuity, this idea capitalizes on a service rather than on e-commerce, unlike
from campus. The farthest point in the north lot is about a 12-minute walk to the quad, according to Blumberg. “The north lots always have empty spaces,” Blumberg said. “I have always said that we have a walking problem, not a parking problem.” To quench student complaints that the lots are too far of a walking distance, the Parking & Transportation Services began Titan Shuttle, a service that is free to students, faculty and staff. The shuttle runs from Lots A and G and Campus Park to the Quad. The east and west loops run continuously from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. The south loop runs from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Titan Shuttle costs about $300,000 a year. This extra cost could possibly
DAVID RIVERA/Daily Titan
Primatologist Jane Goodall was honored with a Front & Center Award for advancing knowledge of human and animal species. and-dance routines that were backed by an orchestral band of CSUF music students. The performances introduced each of the special guests of the night with altered songs for each particular guest’s accomplishments. The songs featured original lyrics specially tailored for each guest. During Goldberg’s introduction the students sang mock rock ‘n’ roll songs reminiscent of “Sister Act” and even listed the movies Goldberg has appeared in to the famous Righteous Brothers’ song “Unchained Melody” postpone plans for a new 2,000 space parking structure, according to Blumberg. Campus Police Community Services Corporal John Brockie suggests that a possible reason these farther lots are not being filled is because all students may not know that the lots are there. Most students enter the campus off of Nutwood Avenue and think that Lot E is the only parking lot, said Brockie. This leads to an endless amount of cars circling and squatting. “By the time a car gets from row one to row six, about three new cars have already taken spots in the first row,” Brockie said. “It’s very frustrating.” To help solve this problem, assisted parking was offered the first week of school. Parking officers directed traffic from filled lots to available ones. In addition to stacking and shuttles, Parking and Transportation Services are reissuing all perma-
from the movie “Ghost.” Three CSUF alumni — Dana Meller, Larry Daggert, and Regina Le Vert — also performed numerous songs for the audience. The trio has separately flourished on Broadway and other stages, and decided to come back to participate with the current CSUF students with their production numbers. Some of the net proceeds will go to the President’s Scholars, the Guardian Scholars, the Bright Scholarship and the College of the Arts.
nent permits. Four hundred of these permits were reported stolen or lost. The reissue will help dissipate the use of illicit permits. They are also looking to lease 250 additional spaces in the College Park Building lot, totaling 500 spaces, according to the web-site. Parking & Transportation Services are also trying to find land to build a temporary parking lot this semester. Other options for students include a student carpool program, discounted Orange County Transportation Authority and Metrolink prices, and simply coming early. “I get here about 7:40 a.m. and have the pick of the lot,” junior David Keller said. “I just sit back and read in my car.” More information about parking and services is available online at http://parking.fullerton.edu.
http://dailytitan.fullerton.edu MAYRA BELTRAN/Daily Titan
Traditional bookstores thrive despite online competition. many failed attempts at business on the web. But even with fresh new ideas, online textbook stores don’t seem able to compete with the safety,reliability and dependability
Brian’s 3*2
Semesrtia 3*4
of a campus bookstore. “Our sales are doing great, with Internet orders up and over our expected $400,00 in orders,” Olson said. “And this is just the first day.”
Kaplan 3*8
NEWS
Tuesday, February 6, 2001
Daily Titan Crossword Puzzle
NY Times 3*10.5
Answers will be published in the Feb. 13 Daily Titan
ACROSS 1. Mythological animal with a head of a horse and a body of a man 7. The cover of a pot 8. Points north 11. Fame was doing covers for Saturday Evening Post 13. A board with four legs 14. Wood, sugar and candy
15. Not mean 18. To hand down 19. A fight 21. A South American nation 22. Is north of Fullerton DOWN 2. A German car 3. Bulwinkle’s friend 4. Save Our Ship 5. A maroonish color 6. A weighted object
Lil’ Professor 3*10.5
affixed to the rear of the car 7. AS Vice President 9. NHL teams are playing for this. 10. Home of William Randolph Hearst 12. Not translucent 16. The first portion of the big rig truck 17. An indicator of being a virgin (sometimes exaggerated) 20. To decay
Sony Saving Silverman 3*10.5
7
12
NEWS
Tuesday, February 6, 2001
Bush surprises many with aggressive policy agenda nPOLITICS: The 43rd president quickly makes his mark in the first two weeks of his administration By Marlayna Slaughterbeck Daily Titan Asst. News Editor
Defying the predicted rocky start of his administration, newly elected President George W. Bush surprised many with an issue-packed agenda. Disregarding the advice of some Republicans, the forty-third president took more of an aggressive approach to policy. On his first full day in office, Bush reinstated former President Reagan’s Mexico City plan (also called the “Global Gag Rule”), denying U.S. funding to foreign, non-governmental agencies that provide abortion services. Bush contends this policy is necessary to prevent the use of American taxpayer money to perform or promote abortions overseas. The controversial proposal is viewed by many who advocate choice as an indicator of what is to come in America. “To me, there is no question that Bush plans to do everything in his power to strip American women of their rights…this is just a mild signal, really -- the calm before the storm,” said 26-year-old women’s studies major Jennifer Reiss. Unconcerned with the prospect of ruffling feathers, Bush then proposed
a plan to lend support to faith-based organizations that provide social programs like drug rehabilitation and after-school youth activities. Supporters of Bush’s plan, known as the White House Office of FaithBased Action, praise the President for recognizing the hard work religious institutions have provided to the community and extending much needed financial support. Proponents for the separation of church and state, however, including many within the religious community, are concerned with the constitutionality of the plan. Although certain elements of the president’s most recent plans for education raise concern, Bush’s plan to give the federal government an aggressive role in local schools has been welcomed by both sides of the political aisle. Late last week, Bush dropped in on a private Democratic retreat, attempting to demonstrate the bipartisan dexterity he promised after winning such a close election. The move came after a divisive two weeks between Democrats and Republicans during Senate confirmation proceedings. Democrats took issue with many of Bush’s appointees, expressing disappointment with Bush’s failure to reach out to unite the parties. In his appearance at CSUF Friday, retired CBS news anchor Walter Cronkite voiced similar views, remarking that the Bush cabinet was “not likely to increase the getting together of the American public.” Cronkite believed, however, that the
cabinet was a mixed bag with some members worthy of their given posts. “Some [cabinet appointments] are excellent and others give pause,” Cronkite said, “Particularly the Attorney General.” Cronkite was referring to former Missouri Senator John Ashcroft, who, like Bush himself, won his post by a narrow margin. With only eight Democrats voting in his favor, the passionately pro-life Attorney General came under fire by Democrats during the confirmation hearings for his uncompromising views on abortion. While most Republicans are prolife, Ashcroft publicly denounces abortion even in cases of rape and incest, a position with which some conservatives, including the Commanderin-Chief disagrees, though Bush is unwavering in his support otherwise. Ashcroft continues to be criticized by civil rights activists for what they view as his intolerant views toward gays and lesbians and racial minorities. Their concern is that Ashcroft will not faithfully execute his duty to those laws with which he does not agree. “America is a land of laws…and you cannot simply say that there are good laws and bad laws and then pick and choose between the two,” said Asian Studies Coordinator William Haddad. Noting that in the past there have no doubt been instances when Attorney Generals have had views contrary to the laws they were entrusted to enforce, Haddad nonetheless takes exception to Ashcroft.
GEORGE BRIDGES/Knight-Ridder Tribune
President George W. Bush shakes hands with former Vice President Al Gore after his inauguration. “I can’t remember one who opposed so many,” he said. Alan Saltzstein, Chair of the Division of Political Science and Criminal Justice said he believed that Ashcroft can be trusted to enforce the laws, but that his duties and power as the highest law enforcement official in the land go well beyond that. “The question is, ‘what does he emphasize and where does he allocate funds?’” Saltzstein said, explaining that the enthusiasm with which an Attorney General approaches certain
questions of law has a subtle but powerful impact on how those laws are perceived. It “sends signals to the public,” he said, about how strictly a particular law may be enforced. In a strong show of support for the President’s judgement, many Republican senators have defended Ashcroft, insisting that although he is passionate about his views, it is unfair to assume that he is incapable of differentiating between his personal convictions and the law. Republicans also point to Ashcroft’s
National Bartenders 2*3
Mario’s 2*2
solid record as Missouri’s Attorney General, which they believe is the best indicator of how he will fulfill the obligations of his post. Emphasizing that the only way to judge the fitness of any new administration and its individual members is by giving them the chance to demonstrate their intentions, Cronkite cautioned against a rush to judgement. “It’s far too early to assess the Bush Administration, we’re just going to have to wait and see how things play out.”
Planned Parent 2*3
Western State Univ 4*5
Amer. Univ 2*3
OLDE 2*5
Univer. Village 2*5
Univ. of Hawaii 2*5
NEWS
Tuesday, February 6, 2001
15
Theatre and Dance Students add spice to Front & Center The lineup included CSUF alumni who have gone on to careers on Broadway By Taylor Goldman
Daily Titan Staff Writer Students adorned in costume and full of enthusiasm sang out to a crowd of women in glittery gowns and men clad in tuxedos, describing
the careers of Jim Abbott, Whoopi Goldberg and Walter Cronkite through song and dance. Twenty students from the Theatre and Dance Department entertained the crowd Saturday night at Cal
LORRAINE DOMINGUEZ/Daily Titan
Brandon Roberts sings “Making Whoopi,” a pun on Goldberg’s
State Fullerton’s sixth annual Front and Center, a fundraiser designed to raise regional scholarships for future students. Susan Hallman, the show’s adviser, said that these 20 students had been hard at work in rehearsals for the past three weeks.-Their effort was evident from the reaction of the audience. “You could transport these students to Broadway tonight and they would be ready,” President Milton Gordon said, praising the performance. His claim was supported by the presence of three CSUF alumni that have already made it to Broadway. Dana Meller, a member of the musical “Les Miserables”; Larry Dagget, famous for his performance in the hit musical “Ragtime”; and Regina LeVert, a cast member who is currently touring with the musical “Fame” also performed throughout the evening. Larry Zucker, the executive producer of Front and Center, said that it was wonderful to watch the veteran performers interact with the students, adding that it was interesting to observe the alumni coaching the students. Zucker said the stars were very positive and encouraging toward the students. Together, the CSUF alumni, along with students, introduced each guest through an original or classic song with lyrics altered by Disney lyricist Cynthia Gardner to suit the occasion.Zucker explained that this method of introduction helped eliminate the monotony that might have been created had the entire evening consisted of speeches. For instance, the students sang a song praising Disney’s FASTPASS, the park’s new program to eliminate
LORRAINE DOMINGUEZ/Daily Titan
Theatre and Dance Department student Lydia Heinen sings a solo outlining the careers of the Front & Center special guests to entertain and amuse the audience. the long wait for rides such as Space Mountain.Accepting the award, Disneyland Resort representative Cynthia Harris, was impressed by the introduction. “That was an introduction that rivals a Disney production,” she exclaimed. The students introduced Whoopi
Goldberg by singing altered versions of many songs from her most popular movies, outlining her impressive career in the process.- There were several songs from Sister Act, such as “Whoopi,” done to the tune of “My Guy,” as well as creative versions of “I Will Follow Him,” and, of course, “Making Whoopi.”- Songs from the movie “Ghost” were also
included. Goldberg walked onto the stage with tears in her eyes after her introduction, describing the performance as “brilliant.” Susan Hallman, accurately predicting the show’s success said, “Front and Center gets better and better every year.”
Walter Cronkite shares an intimate conversanEVENT: ‘The Most Trusted Man in America’ talks about his 46 years in the journalism business By Marlayna Slaughterbeck Daily Titan Asst. News Editor
LORRAINE DOMINGUEZ/Daily Titan
Walter Cronkite listens intently to a question presented by a student during his question-and-answer session.
My OC Com 2*5
Walter Cronkite appeared before a packed room in the TSU Pavilion last Friday for an hour-long question and answer session sponsored by Front and Center and Associated Students. President Mary Grace Cachuela said she was pleased by the heavy turnout, but that it was certainly no surprise. “It’s Walter Cronkite, after all. The man’s a legend,” she said. Nicknamed “Old Iron Pants,” the longtime anchor of the “CBS Evening News” and one of the most influential newscasters in the history of broadcasting, fielded questions on topics ranging from healthcare to personal integrity. President Milton Gordon made the introduction as the CBS special correspondent waited alongside the stage in a wheelchair. Gordon explained that the chair was necessary simply because the
legendary journalist had recently undergone surgery. Despite the torn tendon he suffered playing tennis, Cronkite rose from the chair and ascended the stairs, aided solely by the crowd’s enthusiasm. As the applause subsided, the retired anchor’s assistant explained the event’s question and answer format. There was a pause as audience members searched for the perfect question. Without missing a beat, Cronkite filled the potentially awkward moment with his deep, reassuring voice, quickly putting the room at ease while the audience got its bearings. Many questions put to Cronkite dealt with his distinguished career in journalism. Now in his mid-eighties, the broadcast veteran effortlessly recalled events from his long, richly experienced professional life, discussing events from 40 years ago as if they happened yesterday. Weighing in on the contrast between journalism in his day as compared to today, Cronkite took a less extreme view than some might expect. “I don’t see a great deal of difference, although, of course, there are some,” he said. “We’re doing so much feature
UCI 4*5
material as opposed to in my day when we crammed as much hard news as possible into the allotted 30 minutes,” he added. “And we spend too much time on scandal.” Cronkite said he believes the most dramatic change in journalism came a long time ago, with the advent of television. “Television took people away from radio and print; it took the public away from words,” he explained. “I believe you get more from reading than from television,” he added, explaining that “words are more complete in many ways than pictures.” When asked if an anchor today could have as much impact on public opinion as he did, Cronkite explained that the enormous expansion of networks and increased viewer choice make that virtually impossible today. “I doubt that today anyone is going to have the kind of impact my colleagues and I had,” Cronkite said, deflecting praise and crediting his contemporaries. “We had an advantage that journalists will never have again.” Cronkite’s expertise was not limited to the past, however, as the venerable newsman navigated present day issues with equal prowess. Speaking to some length, Cronkite covered the controversial media
coverage of the presidential election and other current issues with wisdom that rivals the most informed and respected journalists of today. “He was very insightful- his opinions about media coverage of the recent election were astute and interesting,” said journalism instructor Tom Clanin. Cronkite also discussed, in some detail, the differing views of Republicans and Democrats regarding military strength. “The military is not as weak as Bush claimed during the campaign,” Cronkite said. “And if you look at the president’s final proposal, you’ll see that it is far less money than the military wants or even than Gore had proposed.” Regarding how the responsibility of being known as the “Most Trusted Man in America’” affected his work, Cronkite easily explained that it didn’t. “My whole life as a journalist was to be honest and factual and as impartial as possible,” he said. “You can’t be more than honest.” Cronkite added that while it was an honor to have inspired such trust in the public, he did not lend much weight to the poll in US News and World Report credited with bestowing the now legendary title. “Besides,” he added, “They never polled my wife!”
16
NEWS
Tuesday, February 6, 2001
MAYRA BELTRAN/Daily Titan
A fireman searches the remains of the scorched Suburban.
SUV catches fire close to campus nACCIDENT: Mother saves her son from burning vehicle adjacent to Western State University By Kathleen Gutierrez Daily Titan Staff Writer
Billowing black smoke stopped traffic on the corner of Dorothy Lane and State College Boulevard last Thursday. A local woman grabbed her small boy and ran down the street as she watched her 1995 Chevrolet Suburban catch fire. The Fullerton Police Department received the call at 12:18 p.m. but it was too late to save the vehicle. The car was already destroyed. The driver, Lesia Rante, was on her way to Rolling Hills Elementary School to pick up her daughter. She said she did not know how the fire began, but just grabbed her son and ran. The boy’s car seat was still inside
the vehicle. She said she had no time to grab anything and did not realize her purse was still inside. It was melted into the vehicle’s console and was not recovered. Her son was quiet, though he had mentioned within earshot of the officers that his Dalmatian video was still inside. One fire fighter offered consolation with a fire department sticker shaped like a badge. In the background, another firefighter hosed the backseat of the Suburban a second time. The remains of the boy’s car seat was visible through the window frames, which were still smoking. “For some reason I went this way,. it’s easier,” Rante told a police officer. She said she normally takes Brea Boulevard and was thankful she had gone this direction instead. She was still trembling as she spoke. Chairs had melted down to their wire frames. The dashboard, including the steering wheel, was entirely melted off. The cars front end was lying near the curb and shards of window glass were scattered across the sidewalk. All that remained were the car frame and the tires. No one was injured.
AD Club “Fed 2*4
Ivy’s game Parlor 2*8
Collegiate Funding “College Exit” 4*21
18
NEWS
Tuesday, February 6, 2000
Communications college relonCAMPUS: Faculty and departments made the transition to College Park over winter break By Alex Douvas
Daily Titan Staff Writer The College of Communications has a new permanent address. After a scattered existence in five different buildings on Cal State Fullerton’s main campus, the college will unite in the College Park Building across Nutwood Avenue. The move, which was mere speculation a year ago, is now fully underway. As many communications students discovered last week, the Communications Department office, faculty offices and the Daily Titan newsroom have already made the move to the new building. Eight classrooms, several computer labs and a new Speech and Hearing Clinic are being built in time for fall classes, while large communication lecture classes will continue to be held on the main campus. Plans to build a state of the art TV/Film studio are also in the works, Associate Dean Fred Zandpour said. The decision to move was made by the Communications College Relocation Task Force, which was created by College of Communications Dean Rick Pullen to assess the needs of the growing college. The task force, which is headed by Zandpour, determined that new facilities were necessary to stay current with changing technology and to accommodate the growing student population. Before the move, the university was renting office space in what would later become the new building. The university purchased the building last summer, after the task force determined that it was ideal to relo-
LORRAINE DOMINGUEZ/Daily Titan
The College of Communications is in the process of moving to offices across from Langsdorf Hall at the corner of Commonwealth and Nutwood avenues. Classrooms will be ready in the fall. cate the School of Communications to one building. Zandpour said the new building offers the College of Communications a new sense of identity and unity after being scattered for so long. “This is a great opportunity to create a collaborative environment where students can interact with professors and different faculty can actually interact with each other,” Zandpour said. “To be able to unite all the different areas of communications will be an asset to all of us.” In keeping with the goal of unity, there will be a new student-faculty interaction room as well as an academic advisement center for commu-
nication students. “With the new building, we have our own sense of identity and greater visibility as a school, which is extremely important for students and faculty to have in a place where they spend so much time,” Zandpour said. Journalism instructor Tom Clanin is pleased with the move so far, but with one small reservation. “The only drawback I’ve seen is my walk to class is 15 minutes rather than three minutes, and I have to make sure that I’ve got everything I need,” Clanin said. “I can’t run back to my office if I’ve forgotten something.” Zandpour said a plan to solve the problem is in the works with the
state. The plan, which calls for closing Nutwood Avenue between Titan Street and the Marriott entrance, would turn the street into a quad area, re-routing traffic elsewhere. Zandpour says that the move has gone smoothly so far, thanks to the hard work and patience of students and faculty. “It seldom happens that faculty and students have the opportunity to build something this lasting together.” However, for some, the move has gone all but unnoticed. “I didn’t even know that the school was moving”, said communications major Heidi Redfox.
ENERGY n from page 1 of the students. “The biggest risk factor is the evening,” Chief of Police Judy King said. “The peak time for [an interrupt] is between 4 to 7 p.m. when demand is high.” This puts night classes is a tight position. Caught between accessibility and starved resources, evening students are more likely to suffer than those scheduled during the day. “Our first duty is to keep the campus open, and that is for the purposes of serving students,” said Keith Boyum, the acting Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs. “However, we will consider closing it if safety is in jeopardy. Consider people being trapped in elevators; a dark parking lot where people won’t feel safe; those who are in wheelchairs will find it harder to get around. These are big concerns.” Should interrupts be frequent this semester, the possibility of moving these classes to Saturdays or even Fridays are being considered. Solutions are hard to come by, however, as there are more uncertainties with the energy available for usage. The possibility of a re-haul in the class schedule system presents its own uncertainties. Moving classes up earlier would place more strain on a campus that is already near capacity. “The first thing we have done is to encourage the faculty to consider alternative ways of learning,” said Boyum. “Thirty percent of classes offered are after 4 p.m. This means that students who wish to attend classes after their work will find themselves in trouble,” Boyum explained. In staying open, CSUF leaves itself to the inevitability of penalties. Like other institutions, CSUF is bound by an agreement with its energy provider, in this case, Southern California Edison, to use a certain amount of energy during
read The Daily Titan ONLINE
http://dailytitan.fullerton.edu
Council Travel 1*4
Goat Hill Tavern 1*6
Cingular Wireless “Give Her a Ring” 5*12
a particular time slot. Exceeding the amount will cost the campus up to $50,000 an hour in penalties. The starkness of these charges has sent the CSU Board of Trustees to find conservation measures that can be applied to all CSU universities. According to Ken Swisher, a spokesperson for the Chancellor’s Office, the means by which these charges will be paid for is another major topic of concern. “The penalties are large in terms of our system budget,” Swisher said. “[The] budget is at $3 million. We’re in the process of working as a system to deal with this.” Money from student tuition is not a consideration as a means to pay for the penalties. “[A Rate hike] is not in the picture,” Swisher said. The CSU system has received $7.6 million from the legislature and the Public Utilities Commission for the implementation of energysaving plans. These projects aim to save up to 8.3 megawatts of power by this summer. A list has also been submitted, one outlining demand reduction projects that could save about 93 megawatts by next year. The savings generated by the $184.7 million project would be permanent, according to a press release from the Chancellor’s Office. “We are working to come up with solutions that will be the most effective and beneficial to all campuses,” Swisher said. There is no definite projection of what will become of CSUF as the semester deepens. The campus, like other public institutions, is being pushed along the torrent of the state’s volatile energy crisis. “It really does depend on statewide energy,” Van der Pol said. “Everything is related, from weather circumstances that affect the transmission of energy, to water levels in the hydro-generators. It is hard to make any predictions because circumstances change so
20 Tuesday, February 6, 2000
NEWS
COMMUNITY n from page 1 California businesses are and will be affected varies significantly from those of Northern California, in that their consumption are different. “Most of Southern California businesses are not big electricity users,” said Professor of Economics Robert Michaels. “The area attracts different industries, and these rates for now have not been changed.” Orange County, in particular, is
Long lines are just one of the problems of growing campus community.
LORRAINE DOMINGUEZ/Daily Titan
University makes plans for campus expansion nGROWTH: As the third largest CSU, Cal State Fullerton is nearing its full-time student capacity By Jamie K. Ayala
Daily Titan Opinion Editor Administrators play the number guessing game in order to predict and prepare for the reality of future growth at Cal State Fullerton. Faculty, staff and administrators participated in an academic forum on Jan. 24 to address the university’s expected growth and resolutions. According to the Office of Analytical Studies, Fullerton is the third largest California State University. The university is nearing its master plan capacity of 20,000 full-time equivalent students (FTEs). An FTE represents a student taking a full load. Two part-time students each taking seven units can represent one student taking on fulltime units. As the numbers begin to rise, the drive to accommodate the mounting number of student enrollment has the university looking for ways to solve the problem. The Master Development Plan, in effect since last semester, seeks to find solutions to problems like impacted classrooms to the outnumbered parking spaces available. “The increasing pressure [to accommodate more students] is happening everywhere,” President
of the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education Pat Callan said. As keynote speaker, he informed participants of higher education trends, discussing how the public feels about higher education and grades on California’s report card. “The public generally believes everyone should be able to go to school,” Callan said. The center gives each state a report card annually. California received low grades this past year with a B in standards and accountability, a C in the improvement of instructors, a C+ in resources and a low grade in preparing students to take advantage of higher education (Callan did not state the grade). “Our plate, to say the least, is very full with the added pressure of an increased student population,” Callan said. Callan said that when the economy is up, higher education is given more priority. Sheri Newcomb, chief financial officer, presented information regarding this and funding for campus growth. “Because the economy is doing well now, we must develop strategies and make investments to prepare for a contracting economy, which is certainly possible in California with the energy crisis,” Newcomb said. Other presentations included information regarding Orange County trends, growth and space, and the role of branch campuses and off campus centers. From 1990-2000, K-12 enrollment in Orange County grew by 35 percent. The Office of Analytical Studies predicts that enrollment will
Army ROTC 3*7
comprised largely of businesses that deal with recreation and entertainment, with different demands. Its industries are not heavy industrial users, where production depends heavily on the availability of power. “This can be trouble for those who are in the business of fabricating microchips,” Michaels said. “It is an industry where production flows when energy is also at a constant flow. This also goes for industries that smelt metals.” That does not necessarily mean that Orange County will not be feel-
grow an additional 12 percent in the next 10 years. “This is important because it is the driving roll of high school graduates,” Director of Analytical Studies Dolores Vura said. “In the next 10 years we expect the number of public high school graduates to grow 45 percent in Orange County.” High school graduates lead to potential college students. “Growth is challenged on this particular campus,” said Associate Vice President of Facilities Management Jay Bond. “Parking is strained and the campus is constrained because of geographical reasons.” Bond said that for every 2000 students, 230,700 square feet of assignable space and 850 more parking spaces must be obtained. This is comparable to three, fourstory cluster of buildings and two parking structures. Concepts as to where these facilities would go are still being discussed. One possible solution is to purchase land off-campus. As for now, the only campus additions include adding on to the current health center, creating more offices for the physical education building and building a performing arts auditorium in 2002. “Even if we don’t move to offcampus locations, needed facilities include a student recreation center, a childcare center, and possibly an events center,” Bond said. After the presentations participants split into smaller groups to discuss and brainstorm solutions.
KAPLAN 3*8
Bobrow 3*10.5
ing the burn of the energy crunch. Interruptible rates, penalties reaped when power is used above an agreedto level, are forcing businesses to devise energy-saving methods. “Interruptible rates are beginning to matter,” Michaels said. “Those power limits are being reached in the power companies. There are companies with elaborate systems for the purpose of saving power, and there are those who do a lot of cut-backs. “When forced into situations like this, people invent ways to make things as bearable as possible,” he
arts & entertainment February 6 , 2001
Irish dancers stomp their way to America By Barbara Lake
Daily Titan Staff Writer “Riverdance- The Show,” one of the most culturally diverse and entertaining spectaculars around, premiered at the Shubert Theatre in Los Angeles on Tuesday Jan. 16. The international phenomenon not only included all Irish dancers, but it culturally mixed three American tap dancers, eight Russian folk dancers, the Moscow Folk Ballet Company and one Spanish Flamenco dancer. The show is a celebration of Irish music, song, and dance, involving creative stomping feet and a touch of ballet. The entire performance focused on the evolution of Irish dance and its similarities with, and influences on, other cultures. The show was not limited to dancing only. There was also a live orchestra, singers (soloists-Aidan Conway and Lisa Kelly), violinists, and drummers throughout the performances. “Riverdance- The Show” opens with a musician playing the flute as a cloud of white smoke elevates from the ground. Then, a live band rises in the background playing Irish folk tunes as a troupe of Irish dancers begins filling the stage. The dancers gracefully accompany the band with the vigorous rhythms of their feet. As disciplined, direct, and neat dancers create various circle and triangle formations on stage, they present a pleasant visual for the eye. In Act I, a powerful scene called ‘Thunderstorm’ convinced the audience that there are no limits in dance. ‘Thunderstorm’ was an all-male dance where they forcefully executed many turns, leaps, Russian splits in the air, and strong movements one by one. The dance had no music accompanying the dancers, just the beat of their own feet created melodic tunes. Another interesting scene in ACT I called ‘Firedance’ added a little Latin spice to the show. Here a Spanish flamenco dancer, Marta Jimenez Luis, stomped her way on stage. With a flaming red ruffled dress and red light-
Tara Barry, Michael Patrick Gallagher, and the members of the Irish Dance Troupe in a scene from “Riverdance- The Show.” ing in the background, Luis vibrantly swirled her hands and conferred her Spanish attitude. This dance was a brilliant combination of Spanish and Irish movement united with the tunes of the feet. A dance that received overlapping applause was in ACT II, ‘Trading Taps,’ where three charming African
American tap dancers compete with three Irish Folk dancers to see who can out do each other in their cultural movement. In the end they both end up winning but not without a tough and delightful competition of genius feet work between the two groups. Following this scene male and female dancers displayed their clever
and amazing dance tricks in ‘Morning in Macedonia.’ Here couples showed off difficult turns, extravagant leaps and great lifts with each other. One couple performed repeated leaps while another couple executed never-ending turns on the floor. The finale was a grand one, where the Riverdance troupe carried out
their famous signature movement in ‘Riverdance International’. This is where they all come together, wearing red and black costumes and form a long line across the floor. They kick, tap, and move in unison while often holding hands. As legs kick up, they are all at one same height. Brilliance and strong discipline is implemented
in ‘Riverdance International’. At the end of the night, everyone, including the American tap dancers and the Spanish flamenco dancer, came out and join the troupe on stage. Here, Riverdance- The Show establishes a well-known performance as they received never-ending applauds and cheers from the audience.
By Rita Freeman
500 people, Farrelly added that the audience should look forward to the poetic language. "Tennessee Williams has a way of creating metaphors in his plays," Farrelly said. "The language he uses is very rich." Set designer and CSUF professor Ann Sheffield said a lot of work and time was used in designing the sets. She said she wanted to make it look like the hot climate of the south. "I used very warm colors, like green edges on the set," Sheffield said. "I wanted to lend to the atmosphere. The environment is just as a bayou, lush but not too bright and happy." She added that behind the furniture was a painted scrim, a transparent fabric used as a theater backdrop or curtain, and not all the walls were filled. "The essence feels like a memory, very soft." The cast includes Jennifer Erin Roberts, Geoff Elliott, who also codirected the play, Jill Hill and Robertson Dean. All are resident actors of the repertory theater company A Noise Within, which produced the event. Based in Glendale, the small company started in 1991. Because of high demand, it soon started touring
and will appear for the one night at Plummer. "When I met the company, I liked the sensibilities," Sheffied said. "It was like simpatico, it felt good." Farrelly added that the company is about the play and the audience. "The audience is really important in a live production," he said." The audience reaction dictates how the energy will be." Because of the strong content, Farrelly said the play was written for a mature audience. "This is not a play for kids, but it is a play accessible for general audiences," he said. He added that because the movie was so censored the show provides much more. This is a show definitely for adults," he said. "The show is much more real on a stage." For those interested, tickets may be ordered online at www.tickets.com or call the Performing Arts Center Box office at (714) 278-3371. Prices are $20 and $25 and $2 off with Titan Discount-this includes full-time students, senior citizens or a CSUF ID holders.
Family skeletons uncovered Daily Titan Staff Writer
Courtesy of College of the Arts
Maggie the Cat (Jennifer Erin Roberts) hopes a seductive pose will rekindle her husband’s interest in this scene from “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” to be played Feb. 9 in Fullerton’s Plummer Auditorium.
Audiences familiar with the film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman will be surprised at the stage version of Tennessee William's play "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof." The ProfessionalArtists in Residence (PAIR) Celebrity Series presents the play at the Plummer Auditorium for one performance on Friday, Feb. 9 at 8 p.m. "This is a very talky play but very full," said Wallace Farrelly, director of cultural events at Cal State Fullerton. "It is so true to human nature, the desires, fears and the whole issue of family." The play, written in 1955, takes place on the Mississippi Delta where most of the plot surrounds the characters: Maggie the Cat, as she is nicknamed for; Brick, Maggie's husband; Big Daddy and Big Mama. Farrelly said the several themes are involved in the play including greed, fertility, trust and sexuality. During the show, many family secrets are revealed. "A key word in the play is mendacity," Farrelly said. With an expectation of more than
Local restaurant gives traditional taste of India By Debra Santelli
Daily Titan Copy Editor Throughout my culinary travels I find people sometimes fall into ruts with the foods they consume. Recently, Fullerton, a somewhat small conservative town that encompasses the standard "American" style restaurants, as well as the staple Mexican, Italian and Asian cuisines, has been delightfully greeted with the unique and exotic tastes of India. Taal Restaurant and Bar looks like a pale peach version of the standard Coco’s \ Denny’s box styled restaurant from the outside, but looks can be deceiving. Upon entering, it’s quite obvious that the owners spent their money on the interior decor. Plush chairs covered in tapestries look and feel like thrones, adorned tables lined with crisp creamcolored tablecloths. The dining room is extremely spacious with lots of light and places to sit. The front sitting area is equally welcoming, giving it a lounge feel. Satin throw pillows in turquoise, burgundy and varying shades of oranges align a satin covered Ushaped bench. Crystal chandeliers dangle from the traditional Indian-style, arch-shaped architecture. The best way
to describe the interior design of the restaurant is luxuriously palatial. Indian food is packed with exotic spices and bountiful curries, but what sets average Indian restaurants apart from the extraordinary ones is the detail to traditional flavors without being afraid to fuse new ingredients. Taal does not promote itself as an American fusion Indian restaurant, but rather a traditional Indian restaurant. We started with the Matar Panir. In Indian cuisine, Matar Panir is a standard dish, which consists of homemade Indian cheese and green peas in a mild cream sauce. The peas were fresh and firm and the cheese rich and velvety, but the cream sauce was a bit thin. At $8, the dish is a little pricey due to the fact it’s just a vegetable entree. Tandoori Roti, a wheat flour bread cooked in a clay oven and Kashmiri Pulao, which is a basmati rice that contains a buttery popcorn flavor cooked with dry fruits, enriched cream and nuts and raisins. Each item held true to Indian cuisine. They were all consistent with tradition and detail to flavor. The portion sizes are bountiful, however the prices match.
I’ve never been a lover of buffets, but Taal’s lunch buffet exceeds the typical sad and somewhat grotesque buffets out there. For $6.95, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. a lunch buffet includes everything from salad to dessert. The buffets change everyday but always offer a salad, Naan (Indian bread), a few meat dishes, at least two vegetarian dishes, rice, chutneys, and desserts. They also offer a half of dozen condiments to go with the dishes ranging from spicy curries to sweet fruit flavored sauces. The Taal staff is very attentive. Buffet styled eating sometimes equals non-existent service; not the case here. Drinks were refilled, fresh hot bread replaced and dirty plates where constantly being attended to. The other food items we ordered from the menu came in a very timely manner, to show no disregard for people choosing to order from the menu rather than the buffet. The day we dined, there were two dessert selections. Pistachio Kulfi and Gajar Halwa. Pistachio Kulfi, Indian ice cream, is made with pistachios, almonds and flavored with saffron and cardamom. The ice cream is not served cooled but rather room temperature
JOAN MARCUS/Courtesy of Shubert Theatre
and is of a solid consistency. I’m an almond lover and the flavor of this dessert was smooth but rich with sweet decadent flavors. The Gajar Halwa is a carrot pudding in a milk-flavored cardamom. The carrot pudding had a decent flavor to it but the carrots were mashed up with lumps that reminded me of strained carrots my mom used to make me eat as a child. For first timers to Indian cuisine, Taal is a good start. It’s also a nice welcome to see different cuisines making their appearances in areas not accustomed to different foods. Ambience: Elegant, spacious and comfortable dining room. Service: Attentive and friendly. Appetizers: $3 to $7. Main Course: $7 to $14. Dessert: $3 to $5. Located: 2720 Nutwood Ave., Fullerton, Ca 92831 Phone: (714) 871- 7846 Toll Free: (866) 4MY-TAAL Hours: Daily- 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.-lunch, 5:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.dinner
LORRAINE DOMINGUEZ/Daily Titan
Customers enjoy Indian food in an elegant dining room.
Tuesday, February 6, 2001
Stanford wins two of three in opening
Titans old and new nEXHIBITION: Titan greats swap at-bats and advice during the Goodwin field reunion
nBASEBALL: Timely hitting and solid pitching propels Stanford to the series victory as Titans look to regroup for nationally-ranked rival USC. By Damian Calhoun
Daily Titan Asst. Sports Editor There is something about the Stanford Cardinal that Cal State Fullerton hasn’t figured out. For the third consecutive season, CSUF lost the season series to the Cardinal, this time, in heartbreaking fashion. Despite Friday’s thrilling comefrom-behind 5-4 victory, the Titans (1-3) were unable to solve the mystery that is the Cardinal dominance over the Titans. Since 1997, Stanford has won 12 of the last 16 meetings. “I’m tired of losing to them,” Titan Head Coach George Horton said. “Since I’ve become head coach, it seems that they have turned the tables on us. Before, we were winning two out of three.” The tables began to turn Saturday when Cardinal second baseman Chris O’Riordan’s three-run double in the top of ninth inning broke a 6-6 tie and Stanford held on for a 9-8 victory. In the series finale, Tim Cunningham and Mike Wodnicki shut out the Titans on four hits and on the strength of back-to-back solo home runs in the sixth inning by Jason VanMeetren and Jason Cooper, the Cardinal won 3-0. The last time that CSUF was shut out was in 1999, by Long Beach State. Kirk Saarloos (0-2) suffered his second consecutive loss. Saarloos pitched seven innings and stuck out eight, but the two home runs proved to be his downfall. “The first one was a fastball up in the zone,” Saarloos said of the first home run to VanMeetren. “The sec-
ond was a pitch that didn’t sink. They made me pay for my mistakes.” Staked to a 2-0 lead, Cunningham went to work. The sophomore lefthander did not allow a Titan to reach third base and walked only one. “I was relaxed and I just made my pitches,” Cunningham said. “The good thing about being the Sunday starter is, you have the first two games to scout and analyze the opposition.” With the win, Cunningham improved his record to 2-0. Cardinal Head Coach Mark Marquess expressed his satisfaction with the southpaw’s solid performance. “This is his second straight good outing,” Marquess said of Cunningham. “He has good stuff and he has excellent command of his off-speed pitches. He got a little tired at the end and we turned to Wodnicki, who has a rubber arm.” “We’re both young teams and I knew that this would be a measuring stick to see how good we can be,” Marquess said. “We may have won the majority of the games in the series recently, but when you play these guys, you have earn them and we did this weekend.” For the third consecutive season, the Titans are slow coming out of the starting gate. In 1999, CSUF started 1-3; and last season they started 23. With the 2001 Titans consisting mostly of freshmen, Horton knows it is his job to right the course. “We played like we were off it a little,” Horton said. “We looked lackadaisical at times and nervous other times. But that is what happens
Softball takes tourney with offensive nTOURNAMENT: Titans go 5-1 at three day long New Mexico Tournament as several players shine By Caesar Contreras
Daily Titan Staff Writer The runs came in early and often and so did the wins as the Cal State Fullerton softball team won the New Mexico Diamond Invitational Tournament title over the weekend. CSUF not only won the tournament but they did it in convincing fashion, winning five of six games and outscoring their opponents 6315 in the six-game span. “Everyone contributed this weekend and our offense really stuck out,” Titan Head Coach Michelle Gromacki said. It was definitely an offensive explosion as the Titans got off to a quick start in the tournament on Friday with a 14-1 victory over Colorado State and a 12-1 romp over Kansas. Both games were cut to five innings by the 10-run Mercy Rule. In the first game against the Rams, Titan first baseman Monica Lucatero had five runs batted in and Jenny Topping went 4-for-4 in her Cal State Fullerton debut. The sophomore transfer from Washington also had four RBI. Sophomore Gina Oaks led the way on the mound as she held the Rams to three hits and struck out 10 en route to her first victory of the season. Against the Jayhawks, it was once again Oaks, who led the way -this time with her bat, as she belted two grand slam home runs. Sophomore pitcher Jodie Cox also contributed, allowing three hits and striking out seven to get her first win of the season. On Saturday, the Titans faced the host team of the tournament and split a pair of matchups with the Lobos. The Titan offensive show continued as Yasmin Mossadeghi hit a pair of home runs and Amanda
Hockett added a home run and four RBI in CSUF’s 10-2 victory. Oaks struck out seven and got her second win. But the Lobos would get their revenge as they exploded for nine runs in the fourth inning and despite solo home runs from Mossadeghi and Topping the Titans couldn’t get enough offense and lost 11-3. Cox took the loss for CSUF. “They just hit the ball a lot more against us and we had one bad inning,” Gromacki said. CSUF bounced back the next day as Cox threw a pair of shutouts and the CSUF offense continued its dominance as Lucatero went 6-for-8 with 6 RBI as the Titans defeated Mississippi 9-0 and beat the Rams for the second time over the weekend 7-0. Rebounding from her Saturday loss, Cox allowed only three hits and had 12 strikeouts against the Rebels and allowed only two hits and had 10 K’s against the Rams. Cox and Oaks pitched in all six games due to an injury to CSUF starting pitcher Christy Robitaille. “She has a stress fracture in her shin, she will probably be out for a couple of weeks,” Gromacki said. Despite a thin pitching staff, if the CSUF offense continues to produce like they did this past weekend, it may not matter who the Titans send to the mound. Just this weekend alone, Mossadeghi hit five home runs, Oaks hit two grand slams, Lucatero went 12-for-19 and Hockett went 10-for-15. Lucatero earned Big West Field Player of the Week honors while Cox earned Pitcher of the Week honors. But don’t expect things to get easier for the Titans as Wednesday brings the team an early test as they face the USA Today/National Fastpitch Coaches Association number one ranked team and 2000 National Champion runner-up in the UCLA Bruins. The Bruins went 5-0 over the weekend in the Spartan Early Bird Classic. “We wanted a nice crowd and a big home opener,” Gromacki said. Wednesday’s doubleheader is set for 5:00 p.m. at the new Titan
By Damian Calhoun
Daily Titan Asst. Sports Editor
DAVID RIVERA/Daily Titan
Following in the footsteps of Adam Johnson, senior Jon Smith has taken over the reign as the ace of a very deep and talented staff.
to young and inexperienced teams at the start. It is my responsibility to get them ready and shore things up.” It didn’t help matters that the Titans have hit the ground running. CSUF has already faced two nationally ranked teams and is preparing to face two more: tonight at 6 p.m. at USC and next weekend at Baylor. “Playing a schedule as tough as ours, makes you play. We’re not playing some Division II schedule,” Saarloos said. “When you’re playing USC and Stanford and Baylor, will help us by the time Big West play starts.” Up next for the Titans is a midweek
tilt against their crosstown rivals, the USC Trojans (3-0). USC began the season ranked No. 2 in the country. The teams played four times last season, including once in the NCAA Regional with USC winning three of the four. Scheduled to take the mound for CSUF is Darric Merrell, one of the heralded freshmen who has already made his presence felt this season. Merrell pitched four and one-third innings in relief of starter Jon Smith on Friday . Merrell only allowed three hits and shut down the Stanford Cardinal attack.
Before the rigors of the 2001 baseball season began, both former and present Cal State Fullerton baseball players, joined together for the annual alumni game. The lineage dated from Tim Matz to Ed Delzer, who was the winning pitcher in the Titans’ 1984 NCAA Championship game, to Jake Epstein and Steve Woodward from last year. The 1999 team that went 50-14 and advanced to the College World Series ranking among CSUF”S highest scoring teams, was represented by Ryan Owens from the Arizona Diamondbacks, Reed Johnson from the Toronto Blue Jays and Spencer Oborn from the Chicago White Sox. “This event shows a lot of the guys on the current team, that if you stick with it, then there is a chance for them in the pros,” Jerome Alviso said. “When you look in our (Alumni) dugout, you see guys from the 70’s to last season, and we all are one big Titan family that understands what it takes to be a Titan.” Alviso played from 1996-1997 and was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 17th round. Alviso is slated to play either in the Double-A or the Triple-A level this season. “It’s amazing to see how the program has advanced since I was here,” Alviso said. “This is a quality program and I believe that it will stay that way for a long, long time.” One former Titan that made his impression at the plate was last season’s first baseman Jake Epstein. Epstein, who tied for the team lead in home runs last season with nine, returned to Goodwin Field and went 3 for 4, with a grand slam home run. Epstein, who transferred to CSUF after playing at Missouri University,
signed a free-agent contract with the Angels and played short-season rookie league ball in Butte, Mont. Another one-year Titan, Steve Woodward also returned to the scene where he hit a team-high .431 last season. Woodward, who was drafted in the thirty-fourth round by the Arizona Diamondbacks, played last season at Lancaster in the California League. He says that the differences between professional ball and collegiate ball, are not as tough as he figured they would be. “The only major difference is playing everyday. Pro ball is a full-time job, eight hours a day and you probably get one day off a month, but it’s fun,” Woodward added. “To get paid to play a game that you love, is a dream come true.” Some of the other returnees included: San Diego Padres’ third baseman Phil Nevin (1990-1992); Minnesota Twins’ second baseman Jeff Ferguson (1992-1994); Houston Astros’ catcher Frank Charles (1990-1991); and San Francisco Giants’ pitcher Erasmo Ramirez (1998). “All of the guys in that dugout are all great Titans,” Titan head coach George Horton said. “They’re playing pro ball for a reason. This is great educational experience for our guys.”
DAVID RIVERA/Daily Titan
Padre Phil Nevin modeling his textbook swing during exhibition.
Winter Sports Recap nWomen’s Basketball Record: (1-19)
The turbulent winless season of the Titan women’s basketball teambore its silver lining Sunday night, in the form of a commanding victory over the Vandals of Idaho.
LORRAINE DOMINGUEZ/Daily Titan
Nikki Lee lets a jump shot go.
nMens Basketball Record: (3-16) Utah State came into Friday’s game having just lost a tough game against UC Irvine a couple nights earlier. The best recipe for getting back on the winning track—a game against Cal State Fullerton. The defending conference champion Aggies (19-3) rolled to a 76-52 victory Friday against the Titans in front a crowd of 825. From the initial whistle however, the Aggies had trouble distancing themselves from the persistent Titans, and late in the first half the two teams battled to a 24-24 stalemate. But Utah State then went on an 110 run to close out the half, beginning with three consecutive put backs after missed shots and ending with guard Bernard Rock’s miraculous buzzerbeating three-point shot as he fell out of bounds near the Titan bench. “We played with them for a while and in the last three minutes of the half, the game got away,” Titan Head
With the win, the Titans (1-19) snapped a 32-game losing streak that dated back to last season. CSUF’s heaviest contributor was junior transfer Chante Gifford. Gifford, who played just her seventh game as a Titan, conducted her team with a keen assertiveness as she posted a game high 16 points while limiting her team’s turnover production to a mere 13 in the hard-fought 57-50 win. Sophomore Heather Hansen and Freshman Tamara Quinn also chipped in with eight points apiece and combined for 18 rebounds. The victory refreshed the drought -ridden season and was a hard-earned accolade for first-year head coach Babara Ehardnt and her youthful squad. But their newfound winning ways may soon dissipate when the Titans visit second place Pacific (12-8) on Friday night. The January 12th meeting between the two squads featured a Tiger offensive explosion, which led to a 28-point devouring of the Titans.
nWrestling Record: (2-7)
The Titans, positioned in the most fiercely-competitive conference in the nation, have struggled, managing only two victories in two months. One CSUF leader, however, has risen amidst the perils of pinfalls, senior Babak Nejadmaghaddan. The 197-pound two-time NCAA qualifier is mopping the mat with all the opponents he encounters and seems destined for All-American honors in 2001. Nejadmaghadden’s duel-meet record remains unscathed. In bouts against Wyoming and San Jose
nGymnastics Record: (2-2)
—Raul Ascencio Daily Titan Sports Editor Coach Donny Daniels said. In the second half, Utah State’s topscorer Shawn Daniels ended all Titan hopes for a comeback as he orchestrated a devastating 15-0 run . CSUF went without a field goal for more than eight minutes during that run. Despite Friday’s loss, the Titans (316) remain in the playoff race, even though they’ve had more than their share of bad luck in recent weeks, primarily in the form of key injuries. The team lost junior swingman Brandon Campbell for the season after he decided to redshirt due to a nagging knee injury. Another critical loss was senior forward Ike Harmon, who suffered yet another stress fracture in his foot, marking the possible end of his collegiate career. The injury-hampered Titans next play at Boise State (12-9) Thursday night, where CSUF hopes to end its losing steak at three games and solidify a position in the playoffs.. —Fermin Leal Daily Titan Staff Writer
State, the vibrant and vocal 6-footer knocked off the 17th and 19th ranked wrestlers in the nation. Fellow senior 125-pound Brian Gilliland and heavyweight newcomer Chad Troxler also have a stern stranglehold on their respective weight classes and will look to the two remaining duel meets to polish their technical skills before the Pac10 championships. The first of the two contests is a home meet on February 10 against Oregon State, followed by a meeting with on Feb. 16 at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. —Raul Ascencio Daily Titan Sports Editor
MICHELLE GUITERREZ/Daily Titan
Theresa O’ Gara starts routine.
nMen’s Soccer Senior forward Duncan Oughton became the first Cal State Fullerton men’s soccer player to be drafted in the first round by Major League Soccer when he was selected as the 10th player by the Columbus Crew on Monday. The native of Wellington, New Zealand competed over the weekend in the sixth annual Umbro Select AllStar Classic. This past season, Oughton was selected player of the year in the Pacific Division of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. He also has been selected as CSUF’s Male
The Lady Titans sprung into action Saturday night and posted their second duel-meet victory of the season, disposing of the 17th ranked California Golden Bears by the mark of 194.750192.600. CSUF showcased its versatility and experience wondrously in front of the home crowd as Titan tumblers snagged the top spots in three of the four competitions. Sophomore Kelly Mathiasen, the most consistent Titan in school history, produced yet another stellar showing as she won the all-around 39.300. Up next for CSUF, a Sunday quad meet at national champion UCLA. —Raul Ascencio Daily Titan Sports Editor Scholar-Athlete of the Year and will be honored by the Big West Conference during its annual award breakfast held in conjunction with the basketball tournament in March. In his four-year Titan career, Oughton established school scoring records for goals [41] and points [97]. He also tied the single-season point record with 42 points in 2000. This marks the second consecutive season a Titan has been selected in the MLS draft; last season, Antonio Martinez and Colby Jackson were both draftees. —Caesar Contreras Daily Titan Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 6, 2000
My father and I always had a special
as a
en I w olding me wh h m o m d n a Dad s old. couple month
connection with each other. Maybe it was because I was the baby. My mother tells me that I reminded dad of himself.
”
D
’ addys little M y life forever changed at my family’s mountain cabin just days before Christmas 1987. I never realized it would be the last time I would ever see my father again.
STORY BY
Denise Smaldino PHOTOS COURTESY
the Smaldino Family
It was a beautiful and sunny afternoon in Running Springs. The cold, brisk air pinched our faces. My parents, older sisters and I spent the day sledding in the snow with our bright green saucer, and were warming up by the fireplace. A foot of fresh powder had covered our front porch, so dad asked me if I wanted to learn how to shovel snow. I thought, “why not?” My job was to sit there and supervise in case dad missed any important areas. Suddenly, my dad said he wasn’t feeling well. I remember him handing me his shovel and rushing inside. My mom scrambled into their bedroom to check on him. Within seconds she ran back out to call 911. She was anxiously explaining to the emergency operator that her husband was having shortness of breath and chest pain. I remember tugging on her sweater and asking, “What’s going on, Mommy?” Huddled together with my two older sisters and our aunt, we watched a dozen paramedics rush in and out of our parents’ bedroom. They worked on my dad for several minutes. It seemed like hours. We overheard them say that they had him
stabilized and needed to get him off the mountain to a hospital immediately. My mom and uncle followed the ambulance down the windy road back to San Bernardino. My aunt and a family friend took the three of us to Lake Arrowhead to help distract us from the serious situation. We watched the John Cusack movie “Say Anything,” and I remember actually having a great time until we walked into my uncle’s cabin. I saw the look on my mother’s face and knew at that moment that my daddy was dead. A tidal wave of guilt rushed over me because while all this was happening, I was having fun. I ran over to my mother and hugged her as she cried over the loss of her best friend. My tears wouldn’t come until days later at the funeral. At 42, my father managed 16 liquor stores (the family business) and was married 14 years. At 22 (my age now), he was a Marine during the Vietnam War. Luckily, he was picked to learn computer programming for the Armed Forces from stateside (South Carolina). My father and I always had a special connection with each other. Maybe it was because I was the baby. My mother tells me that I
Dad and I pose for our family picture in 1981 .
y day
famil ak from a long Dad takes a bre Farm. at Knott’s Berry
reminded dad of himself. Sometimes I wish I could go back in time when I was just “Daddy’s Little Girl”. I still miss my father. If only I could see his smile, his eyes behind his oversized eyeglasses or even hear his gentle laugh just once more. If only I could touch his dark skin, hug his rounded body, or hold his large warm hand just one more time. My most vivid memories are when I would watch television with him. It usually began with me stretched out on the plush, carpeted floor but after a while I would climb up and share his recliner with him. I would lie on top of him and use his big tummy like an extra soft cushion. He was the best pillow imaginable. I remember my little head bouncing up and down with his rhythmic breathing. So there we were, father and daughter, in the family room, where the only light was the illumination of “Star Trek” or “Hawaii FiveO” reruns. We would practice our favorite technique of “checking our eyelids for leaks.” It usually started with heavy blinks or a turn of the head — the end product was always the same. We would dose off with the TV still on, a practice I do to this day. Today, I have lived the majority of my life without my father. I will be graduating Cal State Fullerton in May and wonder if he’s proud of what I have done with my life so far.
After his death, I discovered my love for journalism and began to write. I was editor in chief of my high school newspaper, graduated from my community college with honors, and I am now the editor in chief of The Daily Titan. I have gone through two graduations already in my life without him; this will be the third. It’s difficult sometimes, but I try not to dwell on how my life would be different if my father hadn’t died. Although painful, his death has made me a strong, independent woman who has learned to work hard for what I want. While researching for this article, I searched through my mother’s boxes of photographs and family mementos, only to find two pictures of my father and me together. I couldn’t believe that after nine years, these were the only remnants of our time together. I was so hurt and disappointed. There were so many photos of my sisters with him before I was born. My mom claims there must be a box somewhere with more pictures but I have never found them. It feels as though all that I have left of my father are my distant memories. If only I could ask him about my Italian heritage, learn my native language, or even hear his stories about our family. I wish I could hear about my great-grandparents growing up in Bari, Italy or my grandparents living in Los Angeles. Maybe the memories
Tuesday, February 6, 2001
Too many students, not enough solutions
Who turned out the lights?!!!
While the population increases, solutions of accommodating students are vague. JAMIE K. AYALA Lifeless, squeezed and compressed into a tin can, multiple salty sardines are packed in a liquid preservative for consumer purchase and consumption. No wonder 20 people in an elevator are compared to this analogy. The horror! The horror! This comparison is similarly appropriate for the future of Cal State Fullerton where five percent more students are expected to attend. This semester the student population is expected to top a record breaking 28,400 students. Overcrowding has been a growing problem that administrators have inadvertently addressed within the past year through town hall meetings and proposals. It is a problem that must be handled soon due to the increasing California population. The 2000 census reported California having a population of 33,871,648 people. Fullerton alone has a population of approximately 128,255. Everyone is going to college and this trend affects housing, parking and classrooms drastically.
How will the administration curb the growth? The current housing facility holds 400 beds. Six individuals share approximately 1,100 square feet. For the spring semester 210 people wanted to move in, but only 25 people left the dormitories last semester. Darlene Stevenson said that the fall semester waiting list is much longer at 1,100-1,400 people. To accommodate more students construction for another 400-bed facility will be underway in March. This will alleviate one dilemma while encouraging another. Approximately 400-500 parking spaces will be removed in order to make room for the new housing. There are only 6,957 out of 9,001 spaces as it is. On a daily basis students fight for parking spaces even going as far as picking up strangers who are finished for the day and driving them to their parking space in order to gain it. Some faculty members believe that students are too lazy to walk from far out parking lots. As I’ve observed students utilize all parking. I spent last semester walking 15 to 20 minutes to class each day because I had to park out in Lot E or across the street from campus. In fact, I would spend 2 hours of in-between class time on campus because I didn’t want to lose
my parking space. This semester my friends feel sorry for me because my first class starts at 7 a.m., but hey. . . at least I know I’ll get a parking space and not have to circle lots 10 times before someone pulls out. The conversion of the Arboretum into more parking spaces has been dismissed. The powers that be are still pondering proposals for parking structures in Lots E and B and off-campus parking in which students will be shuttled over to campus. In the mean time, students suffer the frustration and aggravation it takes to simply park. The growth similarly affects the classroom. It’s hard to concentrate on the subject while sitting on the floor. Last semester I took a sociology and communications class where there was either not enough seats or working equipment. I’ve seen instructor offices in what looks like storage closets. I really enjoy the high-tech theatre classrooms where more than 100 students can be crammed in seats three inches apart from each other. Heaven forbid I have to use the restroom or get something from my backpack after the class begins. I know change is slow to come on this campus. I just hope it relieves the growth spurt in time before we become packed in like sardines. —Jamie K. Ayala is the Daily
Education on the rocks: factors in plan debated (Energy crisis frustrations)
DAILY TITAN EDITORIAL
Pro: The impact of the President George W. Bush’s educational plan may be greater than the proposition itself. By Samantha Gonzaga
Students get the short end of the stick once the lights go out When the California Senate approved electricity deregulation with a unanimous vote in 1996, legislators hoped to lower consumer energy bills. They rationalized that energy prices would naturally fall if providers were forced to compete for customers. But due to a sharp rise in demand in recent years and limited resources in generating their own energy, suppliers have been scrambling to find enough energy. The insatiable need for power has driven up prices, leaving the state’s largest utilities struggling to buy enough electricity to meet its needs. California law bars companies such as Southern California Edison from increasing consumer rates and, despite a bail out from the state, the utilities are facing billions of dollars of debt. Some legislators are pushing a plan for the state to negotiate long-term power at reasonable rates to keep the utilities from going under. In response to the energy crisis, Cal State Fullerton has come up with several solutions. Although these answers may be best suited to conserve energy and money, they might not be suited to meet the academic needs of students. One concern that the school has to deal with is the threat of rolling blackouts. In that event, instructors would be forced to cancel classes, sending students home. If electrical interruptions were to happen — probably during the peak electrical usage hours of 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. — the university plans to reschedule classes at an earlier time or have them on Friday and Saturdays. The problem with that solution is that a number of students who sign up for evening classes have full-time jobs. The schedule change will interfere
with their jobs. Having students come in on the weekend could also prove to be a hard sell to students. Campus officials have aggressively looked for ways to conserve energy with consideration to safety and cost efficiency. The CSU system, which uses approximately $50 million a year in electricity, has received a $7.6 million grant from the state legislature and the Public Utilities Commission “to implement energy savings projects that will save 8.3 megawatts by summer 2001.” But as the semester continues, there are few immediate resolutions for the state’s energy dilemma. And it doesn’t look like it’s going to get better any time soon. Another issue is trying to force more students in day classrooms that are already filled to capacity. School officials estimate more than 28,400 students attend CSUF this semester and earlier rescheduling doesn’t seem feasible. Parking is difficult enough without having 30 percent of all classes being distributed into the daytime. For now, students are left with very few options. There is not much that university officials can really do, but the plans of how they are going to take care of students in case of an electrical failure is not very inviting. It’s almost kind of scary. There are many questions that remain. What happens if a class is cancelled during a quiz? What happens if an important project is due? Or worse, when finals come around. University officials will just have to wait for the energy crisis to end and hope for the best. Until then, we’re all stuck in the dark.
Letters to the Editor should be brief and are subject to editing.
They should
also include a signature and telephone number. Editorials are the opinion of the editorial board, comprised of the Executive Editor, News Editors and section editors. Columns are the personal opinion of the writer. They do not reflect those of the university, the faculty, or the student body.
Con: The right of education should not be jeopardized in the wake of distributing federal money. By Jamie K. Ayala
The drive to improve the quality of schools first emerged at the forefront of former President George Bush's campaign, as it was in Bill Clinton's. But come the time to actually touch America's education system, a political divide makes it near impossible to allow big changes. The role that money plays in the system is significant. Funds are often limited or even lacking to provide the materials and instruction students need. Even the most clever handling of the funds can't meet the demands that stem from an increasing student body. Teachers are overwhelmed and that affects the quality of education a student gets. Many elements involved with education don't pertain to the act of learning, but to the things that impede it: language barriers, the threat of violence, and youth apathy. This has led President George W. Bush to ask for accountability in the system. While critics are quick to say that his new plan's efficacy will not be as strong as he hopes, it may yet do the opposite. The incentive aspect of Bush's plan looks as though it may be the catalyst needed to spur the drive to excel. Testing in weak areas like math and reading to gauge the progress of students from grades three to eight can benefit schools and their districts with financial rewards. A voucher program has also been included in Bush's agenda. The effectiveness of such a program is still met with some skepticism, especially from those who fear that vouchers may actually take away from the public schools. And so while critics are quick to slam down the idea of vouchers, some states actually have such programs already. Money, understandably, is an issue when it affects public school education, but that does not necessarily mean that choice should be forfeited. As it is, some parents find that they cannot send their kids to a more favorable school because the area of their residence limits their children to one or two schools that may be lacking. Like their parents, the student will find himself or herself settling. And settling is even worse than picking a bad school simply because the choice was not there to begin with. The $1,500 voucher value has been taken in bad stride. Why would a parent settle having their child attend a school that failed to show improvement and cannot get funds, instead of sending them to a better school? There will be a chance to excel because a choice is within reach.
Students hold onto your peanuts. The elephant is in the oval office. Inaugurated on January 20, George W. Bush is eager to begin his presidential reign. His first act of business – to push his educational plan. A plan that includes standardized testing and increased federal spending may seem harmless, but as Ross Perot once said,“the devil is in the detail.” Bush supports teachers having the right to enforce parental discipline in the classroom and the highly opposed voucher system. In the November election, 70.6 percent of California voters voted against Proposition 38, which proposed annual state payments of $400 per student for private/ religious schooling. In Orange County alone, voters opposed it by 64.5 percent. The people don’t want money taken away from public schools and cashed into private arenas. Vouchers will not encourage public schools to meet standards and will not provide accountability towards tax payers. State money for public schools is not an incentive, it is a support. Without it, schools can’t function as far as supplies, increasing technology and other proper tools needed for a successful educational environment. Our learning system is meant for all and should not be subject to punishment. Only a select few will benefit, while the rest of the student population suffers. Misleading the public by referring to vouchers as scholarships, Bush intends to submit his proposal to the Senate without any opposition. Why is he so bold and confident that his plan is what America needs? “We will reclaim America’s schools, before ignorance and apathy claim more young lives,” Bush said in his inaugural address. Instead of criticizing the years and policies before he became president, Bush should accentuate the positive. Educators work hard at what they do and can’t afford not to be supported. Bush should incorporate teacher training and professional development into his plan. The population is growing — he should address this by trying to find solutions to smaller classes. The Bush plan also includes the increase of federal money towards education for after-school programs and college grants. This sounds alright, but how does he plan on supplementing the increase? Taking away from Social Security? Welfare? Increased taxes? Perhaps he should have tried another battlefield before attacking education — our future and the future of our children.
– Samantha Gonzaga is a Daily Titan Copy Editor
– Jamie K. Ayala is the Daily Titan Opinion Editor