Unable to make it to Mason Day? Read about last Friday’s events in the style section! Pg. 5
George Mason University’s Student Newspaper www.broadsideonline.com
May 2, 2011
Volume 87 Issue 23
OSAMA BIN LADEN DEAD
Mason finds heir to the throne Former Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt tabbed as new coach for men’s basketball Cody Norman Sports Editor
Photo By David Bier
Thousands gathered in front of the White House in celebra on of Osama Bin Laden’s death, according to The Washington Post. People began gathering before President Barack Obama addressed the na on, explaing that Bin Laden had been killed by U.S. forces in Pakistan. The crowd outside the White House cheered, chanted and sang the na onal anthem, according to The Post.
Proposed budget would raise in-state tuition by 5.7 percent Photo courtesy Panoramio.com
The Aqua c and Fitness Center will be closed for the installa on of a new ven la on system this summer.
Aquatic Center closing for summer Repairs to HVAC system cause of May 23 shutdown Michael Lagena Broadside Correspondent The Aquatic and Fitness Center on George Mason University’s Fairfax campus will be closing over the summer to replace the facility’s ventilation, said Connie Benson, director of recreation. “[The heating and airconditioning units] are past their lifespan so they aren’t working efficiently and they need to be replaced,” Benson said. Since they were installed in 1997 when the Aquatic and Fitness Center was built, the units have been exposed to pool chemicals and the elements. The HVAC system is critical to maintaining indoor temperatures and humidity levels, especially in the recreational and competition pool areas. The new system will regulate temperatures and humidity better than the old and will make both pool environments cooler than before, Benson said. Also part of the improvements will be the installation of a timer on the spa in the recreational pool area, so the spa is not constantly releasing heat into the air and users can control the jets themselves. “The spa is shooting out bubbles with its water temperature at 104 degrees, so [the air temperature] is an issue you’ve got to deal with when you’ve got that kind of heat coming into the pool
area,” Benson said. Additionally, a new fire sprinkler system and a new vent will be installed. The new vent will draw hot air out and improve circulation in the pool areas, contributing to cooler and more comfortable pool environments. With the Aquatic and Fitness Center closing for the summer, students, faculty and staff will have to use the Recreation and Athletic Complex instead. Students living on campus over the summer are both thrilled and aggravated by the change. “I feel that the improvements at the AFC will be inconvenient for me over the summer because I will be living in Liberty Square and I will not be able to use it,” said Colleen Zimmerman, freshman business management major. The planning process began in September 2010, and the total cost of the HVAC system replacement will be $2.5 million. Members of the Mason community who began membership to the fitness facilities before May 23 and go until August 15 will have their memberships extended for 90 more days, according to an open letter from assistant director of recreation Nathan Dougan. The Aquatic and Fitness Center will be closing May 23 until August 16 to allow time for the new HVAC system to be installed without delays.
Out-of-state tuition would increase by 5 percent for 2012 Gregory Connolly News Editor George Mason University Senior Vice President Maurice Scherrens and Provost for Academic Affairs Peter Stearns cohosted a budget forum Friday in which they announced they were submitting a budget for 2011–12 to the Board of Visitors that calls for a 5.7 percent in-state tuition increase. The budget also outlines a 5 percent tuition increase for outof-state students. In-state students are looking at a $432 increase in tuition, a $150 increase in fees and a $430 increase in room and board. Out-of-state students will face a $1,146 increase in tuition, a $150 increase in fees and a $430 increase in room and board if the Board of Visitors accepts this budget at its meeting Wednesday. Mason’s proposed 5.7 percent increase is in the middle of the pack, with University of Virginia and Virginia Tech among the schools with a higher percent-
age increase. William & Mary and James Madison University are two schools with a smaller increase. Changes in the state budget have forced Mason officials to make difficult decisions — while some faculty and staff members haven’t had pay raises in years, the amount of money the university receives from the state per student has steadily decreased since 2009. “If we simply transmitted our budget cuts we were suffering [onto] students, the increase would be in the 10- to 12-percent range,” Stearns said. “Having said that, we have faculty and staff who haven’t received a salary increase in four years. It’s [faculty and staff going four years without a pay raise] a serious issue in humane treatment of people and frankly in keeping our most talented folks here.” The budget calls for compensation improvements to employees in addition to $1.5 million to increase undergraduate and graduate financial aid. The state will also contribute $3.5 million
for financial aid, which should cover 25 to 30 percent of the overall cost facing students, Scherrens said. Scherrens said increasing pay for faculty and staff who haven’t had a raise in years is a high priority of the university and of the Board of Visitors. Scherrens said it costs $15,000 to educate a student over the course of a school year. “One of the real reasons that we’re struggling is the paradigm shift in terms of whose paying for higher education,” Scherrens said. “Three or four years ago, the state was giving us $137 million per year. What we’re looking at in fiscal year 2012 is $35 million less than that.” Scherrens said this is the reality across the country and that he hopes the decreases flatline. The state general fund once gave as much as $7,267 per student in 2008, but the number has since declined to $4,797 for 2012.
See BUDGET Page 3
George Mason was picked as an early preseason top-25 team and they will likely be favored to win the CAA this season. They return four of five starters, losing just two players, Cam Long and Isaiah Tate, to graduation. Everything seemed to be falling right in to alignment. Students and fans in the Fairfax community were counting down the days until the season opener in November. Then, the unthinkable happened. After 14 seasons at the helm of the Patriots, coach Jim Larranaga resigned from the program and accepted a job in Florida, making him the new head coach of the Miami Hurricanes. Mason fans were up in arms for the better part of the weekend, declaring the season over before it began via Twitter and Facebook. But the long-awaited announcement came on Saturday afternoon: coach Paul Hewitt, formerly of Georgia Tech, will become the new basketball coach at George Mason University. Hewitt was fired by the Yellow Jackets in March after posting a 190-162 record in 11 years at the school. He was just 72-104 in the Atlantic Coast Conference but coached his team to the 2004 national title game before losing 8273 to Connecticut.
See HEWITT Page 11
Best of Mason Pilot House number one late-night option Jeffrey Giorgi Asst. News Editor At George Mason University, students have a multitude of options on campus, ranging from food and alcohol to books and concert tickets. However, in spite of the abundance of choices, it seems that the student body has its favorites, which rarely change. According to an article in The Mason Gazette, chicken tenders and ice cream are the first items students approach when they enter Southside dining hall, though there are some outliers.
See BEST Page 3
The financial side of studying abroad Cost of a semester away tied to gas prices and airline tickets Jeffrey Giorgi Asst. News Editor With summer fast approaching, students will spend their time going home and visiting friends, working and saving money or furthering their education by studying abroad. But how has the continuing economic recession affected the study abroad program at George Mason University? “We do a good job of keeping our costs down,” said Kevin Stoy, marketing coordinator for the Center for Global Education. “I think it’s more perception than anything. When there’s a reces-
sion and the economy is struggling, people tend to think [studying] abroad is a luxury and less of a necessity, which we think is a huge mistake. I don’t feel that because the economy is struggling our costs have gone up.” What have affected the study abroad program costs, however, are international events. “I’ve been in study abroad for 25 years now,” said Mary Arnold, general manager for the Center for Global Education. “There [are] always ups and downs with pricing and expenses. They often correspond to gas prices because airline tickets
go up, and the rise and fall of the dollar effects our pricing a lot.” The Mason study abroad program does its best to keep costs to a minimum by avoiding third parties and spreading the price out. Arnold said that they try to manage the students’ expectations of service, like the quality of hotels, meals and academic experience abroad with the “need to keep things as [inexpensive] as possible.” One problem facing the study abroad program is a lack of student involvement. The fewer students who travel, the more costly it can be for individual stu-
dents. “Students are looking at it as more of a luxury and not looking [into] study abroad as much,” Arnold said. “That raises the prices because then we have fewer students to spread out the cost on the ground.” The average scholarship for traveling abroad is anywhere from $500 to $1,000. However, when the cost of tuition for a semester at the University of Oxford costs up to $17,000, it can make the idea of traveling abroad daunting for students
See ABROAD Page 3