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Senate considers faith-based hiring
Synchronized strumming
Federally funded groups to hire based on religion if bill passes
The U.S. Senate is currently considering a House of Representatives bill to legalize discriminatory hiring practices for faith-based organizations, even if that group receives taxpayer money. Controversy surrounded the White House-backed bill from the beginning. HR 27, also known as the Job Training Improvement Act, contains a clause that is creating great debate over millions of dollars in social service funding. Rep. Robert C. Scott (D-Va.) pushed an amendment to delete the
clause, allowing federally funded organizations to hire as they choose. However, the controversial clause stayed, and the House’s Republican majority sent the bill to the Senate for further consideration with a vote of 224-200, according to The Los Angeles Times. House Republicans and Democrats alike claimed the moral high ground in the debate. Both sides cited the landmark 1964 Civil Rights Act as a basis for their positions on the bill. “The 1964 Civil Rights Act explicitly protected the ability of faith-based institutions to hire individuals who share their same faith, and to do so when they receive federal funds,” said Kevin Smith, a spokesman for Rep. John A. Boehner (R-Ohio). Boehner, chairman of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, criticized Democrats
for failing to “take advantage of the positive role faith-based institutions play in our communities in serving those most in need,” according to an online press release titled “House Passes Job Training Reforms, Rejects Attempts to Undermine 1964 Civil Rights Act Protections for FaithBased Institutions.” Scott said Republicans are the ones trying to undermine the 1964 Civil Rights Act. “They’re just making stuff up,” Scott said. “The fact of the matter [is] if you are offended by someone being denied a federally funded job because of religion, I mean you can’t dress it up any kind of way to make it something that it isn’t … you can put lipstick on a pig but you can’t pass it off as a beauty queen. And you can dress up ‘We don’t hire Catholics,
or completely new to juggling,” Fero said. “Once the club becomes better established, I anticipate that it will encompass a wide range of skill levels, where the more experienced jugglers can learn from each other and help new jugglers advance more quickly to that level.” The Juggling Club considers expanding its appreciation for juggling even further by incorporating contact juggling, plate-spinning, ballspinning, club-swinging, poi balls, balancing and more juggling techniques into their weekly meetings, Fero said. “The club is a nice way to take a break from the classroom and work environments and focus on something
different,” said club member Sara Jerzykowski. According to the CSUF Juggling Club Web site, the Juggling Club plans to have local jugglers speak or perform on campus, but also hopes to find funding for professional jugglers to perform at CSUF. “Eventually, I’d like to start holding and attending competitions and performances with the Juggling Club, but we have not done so yet. I’m looking into having the Juggling Club perform in a local Fourth of July parade,” Fero said. The Juggling Club has 20 members, and it recruits members by attracting passers-by during their weekly meetings or by recruiting friends.
“Mostly it’s been word of mouth, or grabbing our friends and telling them that they have to come to the meetings,” said Juggling Club Vice President Manya Ettner. The Juggling Club, created in October 2004, meets for an hour or more every Wednesday at noon on the Engineering and Computer Science Lawn in front of the Health Center. The Juggling Club provides enough equipment for several members during their meetings, but also sells juggling beanbags for a small fee. “Juggling is a lot of fun, and it’s not as difficult to learn as most people believe. Absolutely anyone has the ability to learn how to juggle,” Fero said.
By David Barry Daily Titan Staff
Eric Tom/Daily Titan
Max Mendoza, a freshman classical guitar major (left), and Drake Price, a freshman cello performance major, practice their art outside the Performing Arts Building Monday afternoon.
HR 27 3
Time Students juggle more than just classes to ‘rock your refund’ Campus juggling club welcomes all skill levels, plans to expand By Christina Schroeter For the Daily Titan
TurboTax aids young people with tax return filing on new site By Ishell Linares Daily Titan Staff
For some college students, April 15 might not seem like an important date to mark on the calendar, yet this is the IRS deadline for filing taxes. As the date draws near, an increasing number of people will flock to tax franchises for last-minute tax preparation. For those who want to avoid the lines, filing online is an appealing alternative. Web sites exist to help the technologically-inclined tax-filer. TurboTax has developed a Web site, www.rockyourrefund.com, that caters specifically to 18- to 24 year-olds, many of whom are firsttime filers. The Web site was created to ease young tax-filers through the process by providing simple, stepby-step guidance and tax jargon avoidance said Colleen Ferrin, spokesperson for Intuit, the makers of TurboTax. The Web site is a result of research conducted by Intuit in which 300 participants ages 18 to 24 were surveyed. Their research determined that there are 18.4 million taxpayers in this age group. “Ninety percent of tax filers in this age group get a refund of $939,” Ferrin said. “But many may not be aware that they are entitled to this type of refund.” Their research also concluded this age group is not very involved in its finances. “The overall attitude is that they don’t care so much about taxes,” Ferrin said. “They just want to get it done fast, easy, and correctly,” which is the goal that the Web site is trying to help them achieve. The Web site includes other services that young tax filers may find taxes 4
Many Cal State Fullerton students spend their time juggling classes, homework, work and time with friends. How many actually spend their time juggling? Now that there is a juggling club on campus, students can juggle that too. Most people are familiar with juggling, but many aren’t aware of the diversity of the sport. CSUF’s
Juggling Club incorporates the use of devil sticks (juggling sticks), diabolos (Chinese yo-yos), scarves, clubs, rings, bean bags and unicycles in hopes of expanding the appreciation of juggling as both an art and a sport to CSUF students. While most of the members of the Juggling Club are relatively new to the sport, the club welcomes students of all skill levels to join. Raymond Fero, president of the club, can ride a unicycle and is training himself to juggle seven bags, but also enjoys sharing his knowledge of the sport and teaching new members the basic skills of juggling. “We welcome everyone to join the juggling club, whether experienced
Finding sanctuary in nature’s wonder CSUF’s wildlife center provides an out-of-theclassroom experience By April Miller Daily Titan Staff
With buildings, cars and signs covering almost every square inch of space around the Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary, the area, owned by Cal State Fullerton, seems a bit out of place in congested Orange County. Rolling hills are covered with green shrubs. The only signs of civilization are the paved roads and a few
the telephone poles along the drive. “You kind of think you’re going the wrong way,” said Karon Cornell, director of the sanctuary. “Suddenly you see the sign.” It’s right at the doorstep to the Cleveland National Forrest, said Birkin Newell, the Tucker site manager. “From the ridge you can see the ocean. It’s a great opportunity for folks to learn about the mountains.” Tucker is really popular with hikers and mountain bikers, Newell said. It’s the peacefulness of the place that strikes people. Tucker’s a great place to take photographs, he said. Tucker serves as an off-campus site for CSUF students, Cornell said. It’s
April Miller/Daily Titan
Jerry Unrich brought his own bird, Max, in case they didn’t seen any birds at Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary.
By April Miller Daily Titan Staff
From Goodwin Field, one would never suspect that just a few feet away is an incredible sampling of trees and foliage from all over the world. The Arboretum’s signature tree isn’t a tree at all, but a shrub. The Ombu tree stands over 35 feet tall, and its roots spread outward on the surface of the ground, making walking precarious. “The Arboretum is a large, out-
door classroom kept as natural as possible,” said John Shea, a volunteer nature guide. “The Arboretum is not a park for throwing Frisbees. It’s kind of like a zoo for trees.” Free tours of the 26-acre grounds take place on the second Saturday of each month. Tours range from four to 40 people. The tour features a conifer collection, which is characterized by needle-like leaves and pinecones. Shea said that some people take little potted Christmas trees and plant them in the ground. “It’s hard to believe that was a baby Christmas tree,” Shea said pointing to massive 30-foot-tall tree. Shea said conifers are wind-pollinated. The seeds are like little
Food drive aims to aid needy families in time for Easter holiday
a unique opportunity for students to conduct field research. Students from the Volunteer and Service Center planted a sensory garden with fuzzy, sticky and fragrant plants stimulating
the five senses. “It’s pretty remarkable, such a neat resource being so close to us in
helicopters flying in the air. A thousand seeds can fly, but only a few really mature into a tree, he said. “Oh, I see you found the baseball vine,” Shea said to the boys from Placentia troop 798, who found four Cal State Titan’s baseballs hit over the Arboretum fence. The Arboretum also features a Bunya Tree from Australia. “These cones can get to be the size of bowling balls,” he said. You wouldn’t want to stand under one.” Margaret Williams, who was on the tour and tried to locate one of the pinecones, said, “We see trees, but we never really look at them.” A pond at the Arboretum is a temporary home for mallard ducks. “We don’t encourage feeding
the ducks.” Shea said. “They are not residents. They are migratory ducks who come here to eat, and nest.” On sunny days, turtles line up on the bank of the pond. In the afternoon they face a different direction, Shea said. “They’re all lined up like cars on a used car lot getting sun out of their eyes.” Sometimes, nature plays little tricks on us, Shea said. He brushed the gray film off of a leaf and underneath the film is green. The film is nature’s sunscreen, he told the tour group. Shea discussed the petals of flowers from trees. One is a little stronger, he said. It’s like a little
Cal State Fullerton’s El Toro Campus is in the midst of its first spring Canned Food Drive. Cardboard boxes were placed in various locations around the campus on March 1 to encourage students and faculty to donate dry, non-perishable foods to Families Forward of Irvine for the upcoming Easter holiday. When the drive is completed on March 23, the collected food will be delivered to Families Forward where it will be distributed to Orange County families in need. The organization feeds over 1,500 families throughout the year said Jessica Fournier, a Families Forward staff member. The goal of the drive is to collect non-perishable food items, but Fournier encourages students to donate any items they are able to give for the drive. “We don’t only give the families food, we give them anything that can be found in a supermarket,” she said.
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Tucker 4
Arboretum brings nature into suburbia Monthly nature tours are more than just a nice walk in the park
El Toro campus helps hungry By Dennis Olson Daily Titan Staff
2 Tuesday, March 15, 2005
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If for any reason you’ve been searching for a good deal on foamcore board, there is a foam-core board special going on at the Titan Student Union Graphic Services in the TSU. It’s buy one, get one free all week so head down between 8:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. to take advantage of the offer. Call (714) 278-3915.
Filipino police attack inmate-held jail MANILA, Philippines – Police fired a barrage of tear-gas canisters and bullets Tuesday in a major assault on Muslim suspects who took over a maximum-security jail in Manila, following a botched escape attempt that left five people dead. The assault came shortly after Interior Secretary Angelo Reyes gave the inmates 15 minutes to surrender after a deal Monday to end the drama fell apart over the militants’ demand for food.
They are women Titans, hear them roar. It’s an all out sports day as the Titan women’s teams face off at home. Tennis against Amherst will start at the Titan Courts at 2 p.m and softball against Syracuse will be at the Titan Softball Complex starting at 6 p.m.
Thousands march against Syria in Beirut BEIRUT, Lebanon – Hundreds of thousands of anti-Syrian demonstrators flooded the capital Monday in the biggest protest ever in Lebanon, surpassing the turnout for an earlier pro-Damascus rally organized by the Islamic militant Hezbollah. In a show of national unity, Sunnis, Druse and Christians packed Martyrs’ Square as brass bands played and balloons soared skyward. The rally, perhaps the biggest anti-government demonstration ever staged in the Arab world, was the opposition’s bid to regain momentum after two serious blows: the reinstatement of the pro-Syrian prime minister and a huge rally last week by the Shiite group Hezbollah.
The Pollak Library Technical Services Research Committee invites faculty, staff and students to Research Trends, a lecture series that will take place in the Pollak Library North, room 130 between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. The series will provide attendees with a glance at teaching faculty and their current curriculums and research.
Nation
Working wardrobes will be holding a “Formal Dress and Accessory Drive” to reach a goal of collecting 3,000 formal dresses for young women in Orange County. The event will take place Tuesday, March 22 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and donations can be dropped on the Titan Walkway near the Titan Student Union. Call Casey Roderick at (909) 496-7492 for more information.
Courthouse suspect’s rape case a mistrial ATLANTA – Prosecutors on Monday dropped a weapons charge against a man accused of opening fire in an Atlanta courthouse, and a mistrial was declared in the suspect’s rape case as officials continued sorting out charges in the slayings of a judge and three others. The suspected gunman, Brian Nichols, could appear in court as early as Tuesday, authorities said. He was arrested Saturday morning after a rampage that began when he overpowered a sheriff’s deputy who was escorting him to his rape trial.
State
The Women’s Center will feature a lecture by Valerie O’Krent on “Breaking the Mold of Traditional Gender Roles”. The lecture will take place between noon and 1 p.m. in University Hall, room 205.
Judge says Calif. can’t ban gay marriage SAN FRANCISCO – A judge ruled Monday that California’s ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional – a legal milestone that, if upheld on appeal, would open the way for the most populous state to follow Massachusetts in allowing same-sex couples to wed. Judge Richard Kramer of San Francisco County’s trial-level Superior Court likened the ban to laws requiring racial segregation in schools, and said there appears to be “no rational purpose” for denying marriage to gay couples.
Accuser told Dean Jackson did nothing
SANTA MARIA – The teenage boy who says Michael Jackson molested him acknowledged under cross-examination Monday that he told an administrator at his school the pop star “didn’t do anything to me,” and that Jackson was like a father to him. Striking at the heart of the prosecution’s allegations of child molestation and conspiracy, defense attorney Thomas Mesereau Jr. confronted the now-15-year-old boy with a video tribute by the boy and his family in which they credited Jackson with changing their lives and helping to cure the boy of cancer.
Single-engine plane crash injures two
BIG BEAR CITY – Four people escaped serious injury when a singleengine plane got caught in a downdraft on takeoff at Big Bear City Airport and nosed into the lake. Only the nose of the plane was under water after Sunday’s 3:50 p.m. crash, fire Capt. Rick Flint said. The pilot and a passenger suffered minor facial cuts and two other passengers weren’t hurt. The pilot and three teenagers were aboard, but their names weren’t disclosed. Reports compiled from The Associated Press
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Christian Del Giorgio, holding his daughter Madeleine, checks his list of plant species at the CSUF Arboretum’s Giant Tomato and Pepper Sale on Thursday.
Did you
know?
Markets enable customers to pay with touch of finger
BERLIN - Customers of a German supermarket chain will soon be able to pay for their shopping by placing their fingers on a scanner at the check-out, saving the time spent scrabbling for coins or cards. An Edeka store in the south-
west German town of Ruelzheim has piloted the technology since November and now the company plans to equip its stores across the region. “All customers need do is register once with their identity card and bank details, then they can shop straight away,” said store manager Roland Fitterer. The scanner compares the shopper’s fingerprint with those stored in its database along with account details. Edeka bosses said they were confident the system could not be abused.
China solves missing manhole cover predicament BEIJING - China’s capital is testing a new kind of manhole cover to put a lid on rampant theft, Xinhua news agency said on Sunday. Missing manhole covers are a hazardous fact of life on the sidewalks and roads of Beijing where they are stolen to be sold as scrap for a couple of dollars each. “The new manhole covers will be made of non-metal materials with no recycling value,” Wang Xin, spokesman for the city’s utilities management department, was quoted as saying. Beijing has more than 600,000 manhole covers across the city owned by 18 companies. “Approximately 240,000 manhole and street- drain covers were stolen in Beijing in 2004,” Xinhua said.
Feel the urge to meet other student assistants like yourself? The Student Assistants Social Club, a new club whose purpose is to bring student assistants together to network, will meet at 5 p.m. in McCarthy Hall, room 141. All events are free and on campus unless otherwise indicated. If you would like to have a specific entry put in the calendar section, please send an e-mail to news@dailytitan.com.
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Tuesday, March 15 Sunny Low 48°
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Wednesday, March 16 Sunny Low 51°
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Thursday, March 17 Partly Cloudy Low 51°
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Underwater sex overrated, students say
arboretum
from page 1
landing pad, so the bugs can land on it and it won’t bend. In the desert area cactus apples littered the ground and not even the animals ate them. “If the critters aren’t going to eat them, I don’t want to eat them,” said Eric Small, who was on the tour with his son. The pomello tree in the rare fruit grove, is bursting with fragrant flowers indicating fruit just months away. As tempting as the fruit on the trees looks, the Arboretum asks that visitors leave the fruit so other people can see it. You can’t just come once and think you’ve seen the Arboretum, Shea said. Come back another time of year, and it’s an entirely different place. When the trees lose their leaves, the bulbs planted underneath get some sun and burst into colorful, vibrant flowers. “Sometimes, I don’t even recognize the place,” he said.
HR 27
from page 1
Jews and Hindus but you can’t pass it off as anything other than ugly discrimination.” Scott said that the 1964 Civil Rights Act did have an exemption that allowed individual churches to hire employees according to their religion, but that this exemption did not apply to federally funded organizations. Not only do both parties lay claim to the 1964 Civil Rights Act, but to other legislation as well. Vartan Djihanian, press secretary for the congressman who sponsored HR 27, Rep. Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-Calif.), said, “President Clinton signed four laws that allow faith-based groups to take religion into account when making their hiring decisions.” Djihanian said the Clinton-era legislation applied to federally funded faith-based groups. Scott said executive orders from Presidents Lyndon Johnson and Franklin Roosevelt prohibited federal government contracts with organizations that discriminated in their hiring
Experts, Titans discuss pros and cons of submerged copulation By Courtney Salas Daily Titan Staff
April Miller/Daily Titan
John Shea, nature guide for the Fullerton Arboretum, shows Jonas Mason and Joey Towbin how a leaf repels water due to its waxy surface. practices. Finding the applicable law to the current controversy will likely be an ongoing task for Republican and Democratic lawmakers. Smith, the spokesman for Boehner, said he expects to fight the same arguments in the near future on issues such as welfare reform, the Head Start early education program and the Community Services Block Grant, which Smith characterized as “an anti-poverty program.” “We strongly believe that faithbased providers should be able to help out and provide these services and the other side does not, so it’s going to continue to be subject to a lot of debate,” Smith said. Whatever issues are debated in Washington, D.C., the day-to-day challenges faced by local agencies will likely remain the same, said Peter Daniels, a program coordinator for employment services with Catholic Charities in Anaheim. Daniels said that despite its name and affiliation with the Catholic Diocese of Orange, his organization does not proselytize, does not hold services and is thus not a faith-based organization. Daniels said the current legislative controversy probably
reflects the growing competition for scarce funding that coincides with the growing national deficit. Among the faith-based organizations that the legislation could have an impact on, is the Salvation Army, which is publicly supporting HR 27. According to a story in The Los Angeles Times, the Salvation Army is facing legal action in New York from former employees claiming religious discrimination. If the Senate approves HR 27, it would dramatically alter the outcome of such cases in the future. Although the bill in the Senate involves real taxpayer funding, it also involves a symbolic component, said Benjamin Hubbard, chair of the Department of Comparative Religion at Cal State Fullerton. “I’m opposed to the Bush plan, strongly opposed, because I think they are crossing a line between what is permissible under the First Amendment Establishment Clause [for freedom of religion] and what is not permissible … there are all kinds of wonderful groups that do great indispensable work, but if they’re going to get federal funding and they are able to discriminate as to who they hire, I’ve got a real problem [with it],” he said.
food drive
from page 1
Robert Flores, assistant coordinator of Student Affairs at El Toro, contacted Families Forward after CSUF student Erin Fisher suggested the idea of a food drive. Fisher is a member of Rotaract, a Rotary-sponsored service of young men and women ages 18 to 30. Fisher has become involved in community service and decided an event like a food drive might get CSUF students involved as well. “The goal of the drive is to get people to open their minds. It’s not about the amount of food we collect,” she said. Flores, who helped put together a Thanksgiving food drive in the fall semester, said he hopes this drive will exceed the ten boxes that were collected in that drive. “We think we can collect more cans than we did for Thanksgiving,” he said. On the other hand, Flores also believes helping those in need is more important than the amount of canned food that is collected. “On any level, we want to support the families the best we can,” he said. Families helped by Families Forward can access a food pantry six times a year where they are given a shopping cart and are able to pick out the items they need. Fournier said she wants donators to know how appreciated donations to Families Forward are as they try to help the over 35,000 homeless in Orange County. “We couldn’t keep our doors open without support from the community,” she said. Fisher said she thinks students will find enjoyment in assisting underprivileged people and hopes that the feeling will spread. “It feels good to help others and encourage others to help,” she said. Fisher said while it is sometimes difficult to get El Toro students involved in events like this, she hopes students will see the boxes and feel like donating to less fortunate families. “Every little bit helps. Even one can goes a long way,” she said.
As summer approaches, the weather heats up and attraction to the opposite sex increases. The idea of having your significant other hot and wet is a huge turn-on, which leads to couples exploring their sexual options. “Guys seem to be more interested in underwater sex than girls,” said Fullerton-based Dr. Don Armstrong. “They seem to let the little head control the big head.” According to Men’s Health magazine, most underwater views of the human body are a bonus due to the body’s visually increased perfection and clear view of the private areas. This causes immediate arousal that can lead to underwater action. “I would highly recommend it [underwater sex], because if you are getting some in a place like that, you are definitely having a good day,” said Ryan O’Neil, a humanities and social sciences major. Underwater sex appears hot and glamorous in movies or dating shows, but there are many aspects to underwater sex that couples might be unaware of. According to the magazine, those who have sex in a freshwater lake or lagoon need the support of a floatation device to help them conquer the buoyancy of the water. Once conquered, mutual cooperation leading to balance is the key. The magazine said the secret to sex in a lake or lagoon is to find the ideal place for the man to stand still while having the woman’s legs wrapped around his back. This allows for deep penetration that increases the stimulation for both participants. Couples should also avoid extremely cold water; this could lead to male shrinkage that could ruin the entire sexual experience. The article also warned that waterborne diseases, parasites and pollutants might also be enjoying the couple’s sexual experience. These bacterial organisms can lead to infections or irritations. “It is easier to transmit viruses into the females during underwater sex, but it depends on the water environment,” Armstrong said. “It is more common to get a bladder infection from underwater sexual activity.” Couples are also advised to keep their moans to a low volume during intercourse in a lake or lagoon. The water can carry noises for a great distance, which could attract unwanted attention from locals or tourists. For those couples who are not near a lake or lagoon or who do not want to travel the distance, the swimming
pool is another option. The article said the edges and steps of the pool provide for new sexual positions. The buoyancy helps the man lift the woman entirely off the ground, allowing for deeper insertion. Like the lake and lagoon, couples who have intercourse in the pool are prone to infections or irritations from bacterial organisms. In all kinds of weather, sex in a hot and steamy whirlpool spa is a huge turn-on, especially for women. According to the Seduction Science Web site, women’s blood circulation races through her pelvic area, causing immediate sexual arousal. The Web site said the woman’s sexual energy rubs off on her man, resulting in a whirlpool spa romp. According to the Sex 101 Web site though, the hot water can also strip away the woman’s natural lubricants, making whirlpool spa sex extremely uncomfortable. “Underwater sexual activity decreases lubrication yet increases friction,” Armstrong said. “You need lubrication to decrease friction so it can be more comfortable for both participants.” If a condom is used, the hot water can wash off the condom’s spermicide, making the condom uncomfortable and increasing the chance of the condom breaking, said Armstrong. “After awhile [underwater sex] became uncomfortable and started to hurt,” said Katie Alba, a child and adolescent development major. “It wasn’t that great.” Like most underwater sex, Sex 101 reported that some bacteria and chemicals found in spas or hot tubs might irritate the vagina. “Knowing the side effects has never crossed my mind,” O’Neil said. “This would probably not change my mind because I think my hormones would take over.” In movies and music videos, sex on the beach or in the ocean seems like a pleasurable idea. In fact, there is even an alcoholic beverage named after the idea of two people rolling around on the sand. MHM said although the waves provide enjoyable motions and the sand is smooth on the skin, sand and salt water can enter the vagina, causing an infection or irritation. “I prefer to have sex outside of water,” said Brandie Burke, a health science major. “You don’t know who or what has been in the water.” It’s also very unlikely that the couple is entirely alone on the beach, which could attract unwanted attention. Although underwater sex seems like a pleasurable sexual experience, couples may want to stay on dry land to avoid health risks and maintain a healthy sexual relationship. “The idea of having sex underwater was hot but actually doing it wasn’t what I expected,” Alba said. “Stick to the bed people.”
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taxes
from page 1
convenient. E-filing, which allows for electronic filing results that result in a faster refund, is offered at the Web site. The feature also permits the taxfiler to get confirmation that the IRS has received completed tax forms a few hours after filing and allows filers to check the status of their refunds, Ferrin said. For the 25 percent of individuals in this age group who do not have a bank account and want to e-file, a Rush Prepaid Visa card, which works just like an ATM card, is available. While the easy filing of the Web site may be an incentive for young tax-filers, there is a fee. For $15.90, both state and federal forms can be filed. The research conducted by Intuit determined that members of this age group are most likely to spend their tax refunds on electronics or vacations, which is why they teamed up with Best Buy and Worldwide Travel Exchange: to provide coupons and discounts, which are available upon completion of the tax preparation process. Gabriella Rodriguez, a senior business major, said she thinks that these offers are just bait.
“The government gives refunds just to put the money back in the economy,” Rodriguez said. “And that is essentially what these offers are doing. I think it’s a good idea but it wouldn’t be an incentive for me.” Rodriguez completed her tax forms this year with help of a tax preparer and said that she will continue to do so because she finds it more reliable and convenient. “It’s simple to just take all my receipts to someone and pick up my refund later,” Rodriguez said. “And it’s intimidating to do it yourself. I don’t want to be in trouble with the IRS.” Melvin Quezada, who has been helping people with their tax preparations for five years at his small business establishment in Palm Springs, agrees. “I think that people learn to trust the person that does their taxes and that’s why they keep going to the same person,” Quezada said. “And by filing online you just won’t have that.” Quezada admits that with online filing as an option, his business faces competition but feels confident that his loyal costumers will keep coming back. “People who like things the good old fashion way will still resort to someone to help them with their taxes,” Quezada said.
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CSUF’s Chief Information Officer Michael Parker enters retirement Friends, colleagues honor retiree after 31 years of service By Laura Peltakian Daily Titan Staff
Michael Parker, chief information technology officer for Cal State Fullerton, celebrated his retirement Monday with a farewell reception at the Titan Student Union, where he was honored for 31 years of service. TSU Pavilion A was fully decorated in CSUF colors with balloons, vases filled with orange and white flowers, a Tuffy the Titan cake and a banner that read “Best wishes on your retirement Mike, we will miss you.” Those words rang true as more than 80 faculty members and staff joined the retiree at his farewell reception. The celebration honored Parker for his years of service, including
his roles as chair of the Counseling Department, dean of the Human Development and Community Service Department and lastly as chief information technology officer at CSUF. CSUF President Milton A. Gordon honored Parker and his wife, Barbara, with wine glasses and carafe, an official CSUF watch for Parker, an official pin for Barbara, a frame dedicated to him for his service-accompanied by a photo of Langsdorf Hall-a championship baseball cap and an alumni T-shirt. Lastly, Parker was dedicated as an emeritus, which is bestowed upon a faculty member after 25 years of teaching. During the reception, several faculty members went up to the podium to give Parker their best wishes and share his legacy. “He was a great boss,” said Amir Dabirian, interim chief information technology officer for CSUF. “Like the Nike commercials would have said, if you know
Mike [Parker], you want to be like Mike,” he said. Then after everyone gave Parker their best wishes, he went up to the podium and said his farewell. “I don’t really know quite what to say. I always imagined a room full of people thinking positively of me, but that was usually for money for projects,” he said. “It hasn’t really been 31 years, really it’s been three or four. I don’t know how 31 years passed by so quickly.” Finally, Parker gave Gordon a few words of appreciation. “I didn’t always feel so comfortable and proud of the place that I worked at until [Gordon] came along,” Parker said. “It will be very interesting Monday mornings without seeing all of you,” Parker added. Parker completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in counseling at San Diego State University and his doctorate degree from Claremont University. He joined CSUF in 1974 when
he said the university was really growing. Now that Parker is retired, he is moving to Prescott, Ariz., where he said he and his wife plan on building homes. “We have been buying and remodeling homes as a hobby and we love it,” Barbara said. She said they did a lot of research to find the best location to continue their work and they decided Arizona was the perfect site. Barbara said that she met her husband when he was a professor and she was one of his students. “I was always attracted to Mike for his vision of education,” said Barbara. Parker’s wife, Barbara, is also an educator and will be retiring next year from her position as a principal with the Orange County Department of Education. “This reception will really solidify the warm memories he has working with all of you,” Barbara said. “He is going to be a lot more fun in retirement.”
Tucker
ence and nature among younger students, Tucker offers guided tours from kindergarten through high school, which are based on the California State standards for science education, Cornell said. “Nature is a nice way to get kids interested. It peaks their interest in school,” she said. Students find out how Native Americans turned acorns into medicine and, when planted, how these acorns turn into trees, Hoese said. Legend has it, Mr. Tucker invented the hummingbird feeder to keep the birds in Tucker long after the seasonal flowers had died, said Cornell. An enclosed bird observation area with windows looks out to a wooded area where hummingbird feeders hang and trays are stocked with birdseed. In the small museum, life-sized stuffed animals-raccoons, quail, coyotes, mountain lions and a blue jaysare set against a painted backdrop
incorporating different habitats and allowing visitors to attain a perspective of foliage of the area. Here, visitors also can see snake skin, skeletons of animals and obsidian used by Native Americans for arrowheads. Tucker is so far away from the city lights that it is considered a great place to star gaze. During certain astrological events, Cal State Fullerton brings out big telescopes for viewing, Cornell said. “Our biggest event was Mars,” Cornell said. “The sky is so clear. You can really see the stars.” Despite these draws, funding is always an issue at Tucker. “It takes money to feed the birds,” Cornell said. Disney provided a grant to provide at-risk students with the opportunity to experience nature. It’s fun to see their expressions when they get into nature, Cornell said.
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Orange County,” said Dr. William Hoese, assistant professor in the biology department. Each semester Hoese takes his students to Tucker to study plants and learn about nature. Some of the plants are fire adaptive, responding to fire to reproduce. “Fires are part of the ecosystem,” he said. Through nature study, students learn about plants reproduction and growing cycles. “Tucker has a duel mission promoting science education and secondly to act as a nature and wildlife preserve,” said Cornell. It’s an offcampus site for science and landscape students to do research on native plants, she said. In order to spur an interest in sci-