The Collegian Editorial Board endorses the on-campus stadium | Page 4A
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No guarantees
CSU walk-on offensive lineman dreams of D-1 success
THE RO CKY MOUNTAIN
Fort Collins, Colorado
Monday, August 20, 2012
COLLEGIAN
Volume 121 | No. 10
www.collegian.com
THE STUDENT VOICE OF COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY SINCE 1891
ASCSU
the
STRIP
New admin. active over summer vacation
CLUB
While the debate rages on over CSU’s proposed on-campus stadium, we here at the Collegian scoured the country for the top-5 worst college football stadiums in the country based on appearance, fan turnout and tradition.
RamRide, student loan projects on agenda By ANDREW CARRERA The Rocky Mountain Collegian Summertime for the campus student government is traditionally dead. But the 20122013 Associated Students of CSU administration is the second group of student legislators who’ve bucked this trend, working on issues like student loan interest rates and RamRide’s efficiency during the past three months. “Historically, ASCSU would’ve been lucky to have either the president or the vice-president –– let alone both –– over the summer on campus or even in the office,” said last year’s student body president, Eric Berlinberg. His administration was among the first to meet regularly over the summer to get a head start on ASCSU projects, before courses could distract from student government work. “You’re elected to serve students, not take a vacation and then serve students,” he said. It’s new thinking that this year’s elected officials hoped to implement during their tenure. For example: the interest rate for Stafford loans –– federal financial grants to help undergraduate and graduate students pay for their education –– were set to double from 3.4 to 6.8 percent over the summer. ASCSU President Regina Martel issued 50 position papers to Colorado’s congressional delegation and others about the issue, lobbying them on the importance of keeping the rate low. Martel also held discussions with RamRide’s director, Becky Ewing, about how to run the program efficiently despite having a small staff. Buying a new dispatch system was a suggestion. Student government also spoke with Fort Collins city officials about a proposed social host ordinance, which “punishes people who provide a
Top 5 worst stadiums No. 5 Hughes (CSU)
KELLY KEEN | COLLEGIAN
Kenny Lindquist, 5, and mother Ardith prepare to move Kenny’s brother, Erik, into Parmalee Hall Thrusday afternoon. The Lindquists have experi-
Ram Welcome ushers in new crop of students
Program aims at helping 5,300 freshmen adjust to college life By CHRISTOPHER BOAN The Rocky Mountain Collegian Thousands of recent high school grads, transfer students and international students arrived in Fort Collins this week, as CSU’s Ram Welcome program kicked off the start of the year. The program, which aims at helping the record 5,300 enrollees adjust to the fast-paced college lifestyle, helped fresh-faced students like Ruby Rodriquez and Danae Lemieux settle into their new digs on campus between Thursday and Sunday. Rodriquez and Lemieux took part in the festivities associated with the program, which they said helped them relax. “All in all I have really enjoyed the program,” Rodriquez said. “I think it helps us get focused, and is a good experience.” Lemieux agreed with Rodriquez’s assessment of the program, though she noted her relative dislike of the icebreaker games, which she said were awkward. “For the most part the program has been fun,” Lemieux said. “Those icebreaker games were the most awkward moments, but other than that, everything’s been great.”
This year’s program is charged with helping the school’s largest incoming class, which orientation leaders said has given them an added challenge, though they said it’s been a great group overall. “The energy and excitement surrounding this group has been incredible. It gives you a huge sense of pride,” said orientation leader and sophomore psychology major Zach Lucero. Orientation leaders Vanessa Ybarra and Morgan Caron said their favorite part of Ram Welcome was a speech by CSU President Tony Frank. “Listening to [Frank’s] speech at the convocation yesterday was amazing,” Caron, a senior sociology major, said. “The level of enthusiasm when he talked, and the immediate respect shown for him was very memorable for me.” Another moment that both Ybarra and Caron mentioned was the feeling of unity shared by the class, which added to the experience. “The immediate unity shared by the class as a whole was incredible,” Ybarra, a sophomore equine science major, said. “My third group called me Dora, and we truly bonded over that connection.” Another Ram Welcome memory
that stuck out to Caron was a flash mob performed during the carnival, which featured a “wobble,” or choreographed dance. “Watching the group do the wobble together, combined with the flash mob at the carnival, were the moments that I will remember,” Caron said. “It’s going to be amazing to watch this group change CSU, and I look forward to seeing the change that they will make here.” Collegian writer Christopher Boan can be reached at news@collegian.com.
No. 2 Wallace Wade Stadium (Duke)
STADIUM PARAMETERS CSU President Tony Frank’s initial parameters for the stadium: It will not be built on open green space, including the intramural fields It will not be placed in front of significant existing view sheds so as to protect views of the mountains All recommendations must take into consideration the stadium’s impact on university neighbors State appropriation, tuition, fees or taxes will not be considered as
mittee co-chair and university Vice President for Operations Amy Parsons said an on-campus stadium is feasible. But Frank said he still had reservations about moving the project forward. His biggest concern was whether or not he was willing to dip into CSU’s
general fund to subsidize funding shortfalls in the event that private donations and naming rights aren’t enough to pay for the estimated $246 million undertaking. If approved, the stadium could be open by 2015. “I don’t intend to be hurried in my decision, nor do I
want it to dominate our university discussion as it has come to,” Frank said. According to a study from the market analysis and funding sources subcommittee, the amount of private support for the stadium could total anywhere from $45 to $220 mil-
While the stadium itself is beautifully nestled against the Flatirons, students are forced to buy their tickets, and in exchange, they get a subpar product on the field. Talk about a rip-off.
For starters Wyoming’s football stadium is located in Laramie. It’s small, old and could get blown over at any second.
Waiting for an on-campus stadium decision The decision was supposed to be made in May. And then in August. And now, the fate of CSU’s proposed on-campus stadium won’t be decided until the October 4-5 CSU System Board of Governors meeting. “There was never a hard deadline,” said CSU Spokesman Kyle Henley. “It just became a more thorough process, and the committee just wanted to look at more information.” The Stadium Advisory Committee (SAC), which was formed earlier this year, was initially charged with presenting CSU President Tony Frank with a recommendation whether or not to move forward with an on-campus stadium. Over the course of the SAC’s process, giving Frank a recommendation morphed into conducting a feasibility study. During the committee’s final meeting on Aug. 9, com-
No. 4 Folsom Field (CU-Boulder)
No. 3 Jonah Field at War Memorial Stadium (Wyoming)
See ASCSU on Page 3A
By ALLISON SYLTE The Rocky Mountain Collegian
Let’s face it: CSU football is far removed from its glory days at this point. We play football in a small, outdated 32,500 seat cement stadium and it reaches half capacity on the best of days.
lion. Committee chair and Vice President for Advancement Brett Anderson emphasized that fundraising will not begin until Frank makes a decision about the stadium’s future. During the Aug. 9 meeting, the SAC also discussed the potential fate of Hughes Stadium. In a study conducted by the design and best practices subcommittee, it was determined that, in order to keep Hughes operable, more than 40 See STADIUM on Page 3A
I know what you’re thinking, “Duke has a football team?” Yes, but nobody would know it due to its roots as a basketball powerhouse. Apparently the fans forgot too because the stadium has gotten smaller since it was built in 1929.
No. 1 Roos Field (Eastern Washington) Roos Field’s red turf might make it visible from space, and that’s not a good thing. It seems like a desperate attempt to look stylish like Boise State’s “smurf turf,” but they failed... miserably. The Strip Club is written by the Collegian staff and designed by Design Editor Kris Lawan.