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Thursday, March 24, 2016
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NIU certifies 9 ‘green offices’
certification, an office must fulfill five of 11 listed green characteristics, which include the reuse of office supplies, direct deposit payment for employees and the use of rechargeable batteries. The Student Association office, Division of Information Technology office, a mathematics office and College of Visual and Performing Arts dean’s office are silver level certified.
Madison Kacer Staff writer
DeKalb | Nine offices have been certified under the revamped NIU Green Office Initiative, which began at the start of the semester. The NIU Green Office Initiative seeks to make offices more environmentally friendly with minor and feasible tasks in the offices on NIU’s campus, according to its mission statement. The coordinating offices include the Student Association, the Green Team and the Office of Student Engagement and Experiential Learning. The program has been in place since 2012, but was completely revamped during the fall 2015 semester to make certification less complicated and allow for student involvement, said Melissa Burlingame, research associate for the Center for Governmental Studies. After it was decided that the program needed to be revamped, a group of students took on the task of volunteering to reconstruct the program. In spring 2016, $337.40 was funded for materials and $800 was funded as a stipend to pay students from the Student Engagement Fund, Burlingame said. “Melissa [Burlingame] got in contact with me and because of my policy emphasis she saw me as a good person to work with administration and staff on pushing the idea and
Atlee Hargis | Northern Star
Taylor Richier, junior rehabilitation services major, reaches for a stack of papers from the Stevenson Hall computer lab printer. Nine offices have been certified under the NIU Green Office Initiative, which began at the start of the semester.
getting people involved with the program,” said Stuart Nissenbaum, Green Office Initiative director. To earn a green certification, offices begin by completing a selfevaluation form at the bronze level. If they fulfill the requirements for bronze, they can self-evaluate for silver level. If those requirements are fulfilled, they must meet with Nissenbaum or Dan
Kenneally, Green Office Initiative coordinator, to verify their prior certifications, after which they have the opportunity to meet the gold level standard. Bronze level In order to earn bronze level certification, an office must fulfill five of eight listed green characteristics, which include the recycling
of toner and printer cartridges, the availability of recycling bins and the use of pen recycling. The survey research team at the Center for Governmental Studies office and College of Liberal Arts and Sciences dean’s office are bronze level certified. Silver level In order to earn silver level
Gold level In order to earn gold level certification, an office must fulfill at least five of 11 listed green characteristics, which include at least 50 percent Rainforest Alliance Certified coffee, tea or snacks and the availability of an office compost bin. The Environmental Health and Safety office, Office of the President and Student Involvement and Leadership Development are all gold level certified. Because new certification did not begin until this semester, not all offices have been reached out to. Offices are contacted via email and face-to-face interaction, Burlingame said. Nissenbaum said that he has started receiving multiple requests from offices to receive further information about the certification process. “The thing that’s going to push environmental change is environmental education,” Nissenbaum said.
Mock Trial team seeks funds for competition Alexander Chettiath News Editor
Photo courtesy of the U.S. Particle Accelerator School website
William Barletta, director of the U.S. Particle Accelerator School (left), gives the Iron Man award to NIU physics professor Michael Syphers at the opening ceremony of the U.S. Particle Accelerator School held by the University of Texas at Austin at the Sheraton Austin Hotel at the Capitol on Jan. 24.
Physics professor wins award for ‘extraordinary teaching’ Julia Martinez Staff writer
DeKalb | Physics research professor Michael Syphers won the first “Iron Man” award, from the U.S. Particle Accelerator School, for teaching aspiring scientists and technologists. Syphers has taught physics at NIU since September and has taught more than 500 students at the U.S. Particle Accelerator School for nearly 30 years. The U.S. Particle Accelerator School is a national graduate program that provides graduatelevel training and workforce development in the science of particle beams and their associated accelerator technologies that are not otherwise available to the scientific and engineering communities,
according to its website. “I think there are thousands of people in my field who could do this sort of thing, but I’ve done it probably more than anyone else,” Syphers said.
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I expect my students to develop enthusiasm for wanting to improve the field.” Michael Syphers Physics research professor
Susan Winchester, U.S. Particle Accelerator School group leader, said Syphers has taught at the school 15 times, which is more than any other instructor. Syphers said he believes the physics department at NIU has
received more interest lately because the department participates at U.S. Particle Accelerator School. As a result, NIU has hired a total of five physics professors to do new accelerator research every day. “Most universities have only one to two accelerator professors, if they’re lucky, but we have about five, so we really are growing as a field,” Syphers said. Winchester said the award was given to Syphers because he is an extraordinary teacher and many of his textbooks are used in courses at the U.S. Particle Accelerator School because it is the perfect textbook to read when you’re starting out in accelerating physics. “I expect my students to develop enthusiasm for wanting to improve the field,” Syphers said.
DeKalb | The NIU Mock Trial team is searching for funds to help them attend the 48-team national tournament which they advanced to for the first time in NIU history. Mock trial is a collegiate activity where students engage in a trial simulation where six teammates play the role of three attorneys and three witnesses. They are judged by practicing attorneys and judges. The group practices one to three times a week in the fall and every night for about three hours in the Mitch Pickerill spring during Mock Trial team competition sea- coach son, Stoicescu said. “It’s a team sport. My team meets every night with or without me,” said Mitch Pickerill, coach of the Mock Trial team. “The students that we have are so dedicated.” The Mock Trial team was given about $3,000 from the Student Association near the beginning of the season, much of which has been spent on six competitions, Pickerill said. The group started a GoFundMe account to raise $7,000 to pay for the flights of ten students, hotel accommodations, tournament registration and presentation materials. They have raised $1,535 and are reaching out to the Student Association and alumni for funding as well. “We don’t have a budget,” Pickerill
National Championship When: April 15-17 Where: Furman University in Greenville, S.C.
said. “We are in our fourth year so we don’t have [a] budget line.” The American Mock Trial Association serves as the governing body for intercollegiate mock trial competition. They host 25 regional tournaments, eight opening round championship tournaments and a national championship tournament each season. Approximately 600 teams from more than 350 universities and colleges compete in these tournaments, according to its website. The 10-member Mock Trial team, which was started by Pickerill in 2012, began its season in August and competed in invitationals and open competitions through February. The team advanced through the Regional Tournament and the opening round championship Series Tournament to earn a bid to the National Championship Tournament. The case that will be put to trial is the hypothetical murder of an undercover cop, Pickerill said. “I think we have a lot of momentum behind us. I think we are very determined and I think there is a lot of talent on this team,” said Kristen Stoicescu, president of the Mock Trial team. “I’m just excited, I think we are all just very excited more than nervous or anxious.”