FEATURES "Womenfolk" exhibit | PAGE 5 CAMPUS LIFE Was it right to turn Bahamian refugees away at the border? | PAGE 9
The Etownian
www.etownian.com
Thursday, September 26, 2019
Vol. 116. Issue 3
Elizabethtown College welcomes new enrollment, admissions staff
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by Meghan Kenney Staff Writer newseditor@etown.edu
t’s no question that the class sizes at Elizabethtown College are declining. This follows a national trend for small schools and does not set the College out of the norm for schools of similar sizes. One thing that does set Etown apart from some of the other schools is that Etown’s admissions and enrollment staff are really starting to do something about it. Etown welcomed two new major players to the admissions and enrollment teams: Vice President for Enrollment Management John F. Champoli and Senior Director of Admissions Adam Smith. Both Champoli and Smith come from Husson University in Maine; Champoli had been there for four years and Smith for 10. They helped Husson see some of their largest classes ever. Champoli has also worked at The State University of New York, Lycoming College and Green Mountain College. He has worked many different admissionsrelated jobs, including a counselor and a director of international recruitment. He says that he has seen the most success in schools that are willing to change and keep an open mind. He
Photo courtesy of the Elizabethtown College Flickr
Elizabethtown College welcomes new enrollment staff: John F. Champoli and Adam Smith. Both come to Etown from Husson University in Maine. believes that Etown is very open to changes that have been proposed so far and the senior leadership team has been working very hard with assessing the programs that the school has or
Community Health Advisory, measles reported in York County by Emma Knight News Editor newseditor@etown.edu
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riday, Sept. 6, Elizabethtown College was issued a Community Health Advisory related to a case of measles reported in York County. The individual with measles travelled in and around both York and Dauphin counties, which neighbor Lancaster County. The advisory stated that though measles had not been reported in Lancaster County, students, faculty and staff should still take preventative measures. “If a student contracted the measles they would need to be isolated from others so as not to spread it to anyone who might not be vaccinated. This might mean they return home to recuperate,” Etown Student Health Liason and RN Eileen Wagener said in an email. According to the email warning, measles is a highly contagious viral disease that spreads through saliva and respiratory secretions, and it is preventable with vaccination. Affected people begin to show symptoms seven to 14 days after exposure, starting with fever, cough, runny nose and red eyes. The red rash appears after, and affected people can spread the virus between a period of four days before the rash appears to four days afterward.
The best way to prevent the measles is through vaccination, and over 99 percent of Etown students have received the required two doses of the Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) vaccination. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), two doses of the MMR vaccination can provide up to 88 percent protection against measles. The CDC also recommends avoiding sharing food and drink with others or participating in activities where the virus could be passed. They also recommend frequently washing hands and covering the nose and mouth when coughing and sneezing. “If a case were to be reported in Lancaster county, our recommendations would be the same. Be vaccinated, be aware of the symptoms, seek medical care if you are ill,” Wagener said. If a person is exposed to someone with measles, the CDC recommends they immediately call their doctor, who can make special arrangements to evaluate their condition. If a person were to contract measles, the CDC advises the person stay home four days after developing the rash so that the person does not spread it to others. Before the American Vaccination Program started in 1963, around 3 to 4 million people contracted the measles each year, though only 500,000 were reported. Among those, 400 to 500 SEE MEASLES PAGE 3
could have and setting the College up to succeed in every possible way. One of the first issues that Champoli has been directly addressing is the lack of recruiters at Etown. The College has
been trying to solve the problem of how to get more reach and have worked to solve this problem by hiring two parttime recruiters who will attend college fairs in the evenings in Mar yland, Virginia, New York (specifically Long Island) and New Jersey. This will expose more high schoolers to Etown, therefore expanding the reach. The College is able to obtain data from the College Board that helps to create a dialogue in each student's “language,” as Champoli explained. For example, this may ask students something like “What freaks you out about college?” so that colleges can target students with answers that would try to make them feel better. The main goal behind this practice is to give students what they care about, which is usually only about five percent of a college’s statement. Instead of overwhelming incoming students with information, the College only wants to include what is relevant to students as well as being transparent about student worries and fears. Another issue that is being tackled by the admissions department is how to get high school students to come to and be interested in Etown. One of the main things that is going to be used to work with this are the programs that SEE ENROLLMENT PAGE 3
New physician assistant and neuroscience programs added
Photo courtesy of the Elizabethtown College Flickr The new physician assistant and neuroscience majors have been introduced into the academic curriculum starting this academic year after interest in these programs.
by Elizabeth LePore Asst. News Editor newseditor@etown.edu
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lizabethtown College is adding new programs and majors to better support student needs and interests. The new neuroscience program is active this semester, and the physician assistant (PA) program will begin December 2020. The neuroscience major was approved last semester and is a collaboration between the biology and psychology departments. According to professor of psychology and Department Chair Dr. Jean Pretz, several students are already intending to declare neuroscience as their major.
“Neuroscience is an area of study of great interest [for Etown students],” she said. She discussed that neuroscience has been growing as a field since the 1990s as “exciting, cutting edge” tools have been developed. Students will learn about how the human brain works at both a cellular and behavioral level, as well as how it’s structured and how it develops. Students will take foundational courses in biology, psychology and chemistry. The cellular/ molecular, behavioral and computational concentrations are available for upperlevel students. The computational concentration is unique in the way that it incorporates computer science. Both SEE MAJORS PAGE 3