Vol. 110 No. 8 • Thursday, Oct. 7, 2010 • The students’ voice since 1901 • Emporia State University
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Contributions for campaigns help fuel politics H an Y an yan@esubulletin.com When Barack Obama began running for the president of the United States two years ago, assistant professor of political science Michael Smith donated $1,500 in total for Obama, according to the Federal Elections Commission database at www.fec.gov. “I just though this GamalielFoundation background and the training is exactly what we need in a president, so I’m gonna get behind that,” Smith said. The Gamaliel Foundation provides leadership training and consultation for congregation-based community organizations. Obama was a community organizer and a trainer for this foundation. Smith said the training was very powerful and life changing. “It’s all about telling people they are powerful and they can make change,” Smith said. “From the faith of religion we are trying to make the world a better place.” Smith is in the same religion as Obama, the United Church of Christ. He is active in the Gamaliel Foundation and one of his trainers was Obama’s trainer. “The other part of the story is that I inherited some money when my father died and at that time, the stock market was doing very well. So I had money to give and I spent well,” Smith said. Political life is another part of life besides
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Enrollment figures dip for ESU, climb for FHTC K enzie T empleton templeton@esubulletin.com When Emily Readinger, junior English major, chose to come to ESU, it was for the convenient location and cost of tuition. “I’ve stayed at ESU for the past three years mainly because it’s fairly close to where I grew up, and I’ve made a lot of friends so I WILLIAMS don’t really want to go anywhere else,” Readinger said. Readinger said that familiarity with campus facilities and professors has also been a significant factor in remaining at Emporia State. But fall enrollment figures released by the Kansas Board of Regents show that ESU’s overall enrollment for 2010 decreased eight-tenths of a percent, or by 52 students, from last year’s 6,314 students. James Williams, associate provost for enrollment management and vice president of strategic partnerships, said that the university was “not thrilled” by the figures, but a lot of effort was made to ensure that ESU didn’t loose an even greater amount of students. There is also no clear way to gauge which departments suffered the most losses, since each department has lost students fairly evenly. “Eight-tenths of a percent is alarming because we don’t ever want to have a negative, we want a gain – any decrease is a concern,” Williams said. Williams said that ESU is thankful that the loss was considerably small, but officials are working to see where the problem can be fixed. ESU is in partnership with Noel-Levitz, a nationally known consultant for college recruitment and retention of students. Recruitment practices will expand, Williams said, through the use of text messaging, Facebook, and other social networking sites. “Those students having a great experience here are some of out best ambassadors, and we don’t capitalize on that enough,” Williams said.
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‘Pot’ Culture THE THIRD IN A SERIES ABOUT MARIJUANA USE AT EMPORIA STATE K enzie T empleton templeton@esubulletin.com When a friend’s grandmother passed away, second year freshman psychology major Mariah Baker decided to help her peer cope with the loss by smoking a joint. “She was pretty upset, so we decided to smoke some weed,” Baker said. But shortly after Baker and her friend had returned to Baker’s dorm room in Trusler Complex, an Emporia State police officer and RA arrived to question the two about an odd smell coming from the room. Baker eventually confessed that they had been smoking pot outside of the residential halls. Baker was put on probation for the remaining two months she had left in the halls. If she got into any more trouble, she would be kicked out of the dorms. She also had to attend drug awareness classes through ESU’s counseling center. “They basically gave us a slap on the wrist,” Baker said. Cass Coughlin, Director of Residential Life, said that repercussions for marijuana use on campus depend on individual situations. Possible outcomes range from residential probation, like in Baker’s case, to immediate removal from the halls, which is the most severe consequence. Coughlin said that students who live on campus do not sign an agreement stating that they will refrain from illegal drug abuse, but the ESU housing contract states that students need to abide by state and federal law
as it pertains to drug use. The current drug policy of ESU states that the unlawful manufacture, distribution, dispensing, possession or use of illegal drugs is prohibited in buildings, facilities, or grounds controlled by the university. Coughlin said that Police and Safety Captain Chris Hoover helps train new RAs each fall to recognize the scent of burning marijuana in a “control burn.” Hoover said that marijuana has a very distinct odor, and the demonstration helps prevent false reports. Elaine Henrie, director of Financial Aid, said that in order for a student to become ineligible for financial aid for a drug-related offense, they must be convicted while also receiving financial aid. “If there is a student who is not receiving aid when they are convicted (of a drug related crime), then they may still qualify for financial aid,” Henrie said. However, if a convicted individual who is not eligible for financial aid has completed some sort of recognized rehab program, then there is a chance that he or she may regain eligibility, Henrie said. Hoover said that ESU has adopted a “no tolerance” policy towards marijuana and that in most cases, if campus police have probable cause to believe that a student is using or in possession of pot, that individual is arrested. “There’s no difference between a student at ESU and a member of the community – there is a standard protocol and students are
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Drug paraphernalia confiscated by ESU Police and Safety is held at the office as evidence. Jon Coffey/The Bulletin
Neighborhood Sweep lets students give back C harlie H eptas heptas@esubulletin.com
Rob Catlett, assistant professor of economics, helps ESU students clean out an old shed Saturday morning during Neighborhood Sweep. Jon Coffey/The Bulletin
WEEKLY
Q&A
For Rob Catlett, assistant professor of economics, the Neighborhood Sweep is more than just a way to freshen up the look of Emporia. “The project is an attempt to use student’s creative, intellectual talent as well as their physical talents,” Catlett said. Nearly 100 volunteers showed up early Saturday morning to remove trash that the city could not pick up, such as hazardous household waste and tires, as well as furniture and electronic waste and dispose of it properly. Also, teams were sent out to paint street drains to alleviate dumping of waste down them. The project was meant as an opportunity for students of ESU to get involved more in their community and for the community to embrace the students as members of the city. The Neighborhood Sweep cleaned up nearly 21.5 tons in various waste, reported Keith A. Senn, the city of Emporia Solid Waste Manager. The project received aid from the city in the form of equipment for the removal of large waste and trucks to carry the waste away. It also supplied a base camp with water and protective gear for all the volunteers. The American Democracy Project, which Catlett helps lead, is an organization for students
looking to spread knowledge and information about political happenings and was integral in making the connection between the city and ESU. The members of the project went through 36 blocks of Emporia, between 6th Street and 12thSteet and Union and Congress, taking surveys of what people were looking to dispose of and spreading the word about the event. “(The Neighborhood Sweep) is just a stepping stone to more things, more involvement in the community,” said Shane Brunner, senior economics major. The project has aided many community events, like voter registration and the congressional debate on campus. They hope to increase student awareness of what is happening in current events on a local and national scale and hope that student involvement in city activities will increase in the coming events. The previous Neighborhood Sweep had been a broad full-city event. This more concentrated sweep was planned to be more volunteer focused and improve the Main Street and surrounding neighborhoods.Patty Gilligan, director of the Human Relations Commission, was in charge of the event. “It is important to keep up the appearance of the community, this may be the only view of the city people see,” Gilligan said.
Have you contributed to political campaigns? “Yes, I have. It was a great learning experience and really taught me about all of the work that goes into running for an office.” Laura Bosiljevac, sophomore political science and communication major
“No, I don’t align with a political party.” Kayla McKinney, freshman secondary English ed. major