Celebrating 125 Years President Cheryl J. Norton leads the parade to mark the start of the anniversary year events.
Friday, January 31, 2013 • Volume 97, Issue Number 13 • Slippery Rock University's Student Newspaper
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Slippery Rock celebrates 125 anniversary
NEWS
Credit Cards For Vending Machines With RockDollars no longer being accepted in vending machines, some will be accepting credit cards. Page A-2
OPINION
Textbook costs Hinder Students The cost of textbooks, access codes, and other classroom extras are breaking students' banks. Page B-1
SPORTS REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET
Blue Devils Coach Hits 900 Steven Bartley discusses the legacy of Duke's Coach K in his new column, "A View from the Cheap Seats." Page C-1
CAMPUS LIFE
Seniors Share SRU Bucket Lists Seniors preparing for graduation are checking off the last items on their lists of things they want to do before May. Page D-3
Basketball Falls To Golden Eagles In the final seconds of overtime, Clarion University takes the win from Slippery Rock's men's basketball team Wednesday night. Page C-1
Stephanie Grabowski, 19, safety management major, Alyssa Kallenbaugh, 18, exercise science major and Gabby Kuster, 19, early childhood education major pose to have a caricature created in their likeness Thursday during common hour during the "Rocking into the 125th." In addition to the caricatures, the event featured airbrush shirts, photographs, and a chocolate fountain and was hosted by the University Program Board as part of the kickoff festivities for Slippery Rock University's 125 anniversary.
By Jonathan Janasik News Editor
Kicking off the celebration of Slippery Rock University’s 125 anniversary, SRU President Cheryl J. Norton led a parade of SRU students, alumni, faculty and administration from oldest building on campus, Old Main, to the newest building, the Robert M. Smith Student Center Thursday at noon. “I invite each of you to join us throughout 2014 as we celebrate 125 years of Slippery Rock University history, an inspiring story of community, resilience, and bold innovation” Norton said after arriving at the student center. “We are, have always been, and forever will be, the Rock.” Council of Trustees President and Board of Governers member Robert Taylor, city council member Ken Harris, SGA President Buddy Clements, and SRU Vice President of Student Affairs Robert Watson each spoke about the history of SRU. “In December of 1887, hardly more than a heaping handful of concerned citizens of the Centerville area, later to be renamed Slippery Rock, gathered in the Presbyterian Church to discuss the possibility of an education beyond eighth grade for their sons and daughters,” Watson said. “It’s almost unfathomable to comprehend that in just 14 months that small group of extremely dedicated people had acquired the original 10 acres of land, designed and constructed three buildings, appointed a principal, selected a faculty of six, and recruited, enrolled 106 students
and laid the foundation upon which we stand today.” Members of the faculty then took turns reading the names of the first class that graduated from SRU. According to Executive Director for University Public Relations Rita Abent, every student who has graduated from SRU will be read at various locations everyday from the opening ceremony until December. The names of the students were researched by the Green and White Society. “Throughout the course of the year, there will be other major events that will be [related to the 125 anniversary]. For example, Black History Month will also tie into the history of the institution.” A webpage dedicated to the anniversary launched Thursday to coincide with the first day of the celebration. It can be accessed through the official SRU website. The webpage includes a calendar of upcoming events related to the anniversary. Abent stated that one of the biggest events will be Founder’s Day on March 26 which celebrates the first day that SRU opened its doors. In June there will be a picnic for the families of the original members of the university. “It’s great to make sure that we always remember that we grew from fact that there were families here who said, ‘we need this, and we’re going to do whatever it takes to do it,’” Abent explained. Abent said planning for the 125 anniversary started eight months ago and a lot of time was spent creating the webpage, logos and organizing the events. There have been over 300 students that have volunteered to join the student committee.
Winter weather requires extra preparation from staff By Haley Barnes Rocket Contributor
Due to harsh weather conditions throughout the week, several departments of Slippery Rock took action to ensure the safety of students and staff. SRU’s Assistant Director of Campus Services Dallas Cott explained how the removal of snow works. Cott said there are three different crews that each fulfills their own responsibilities in the process of snow removal. He said there is a 5 a.m., a 6 a.m., and an 8 a.m. crew. “If we get snow after hours the University Police call the Grounds Supervisor who then calls out staff members based on the amount of snow we have received,” Cott said. “We are not staffed nor funded for a 24 hour operation like PennDot is.” Cott said the 5 a.m. crew is responsible for the plowing and salting of roads around campus that need to be cleared for 6 a.m. He said the 6 a.m. crew is responsible for the starting of shoveling around buildings A through F, the upper, and lower campus. He said they also continue working on the parking lots. Lastly, the 8 a.m. crew adds
additional help to the previous jobs. Cott said there is roughly eight to 10 miles of roads back and forth that need plowed. He said it is not the university’s responsibility to plow Keister Road and Harmony Road, as those roads belong to the borough and township. Cott said there are two products used to melt snow and ice: rock salt and rock salt/calcium chloride mix. He said rock salt is the primary ice melter for roads and parking lots and the rock salt/calcium chloride mix is used for the sidewalks around campus. “We cannot be everywhere at once when it snows,” Cott said. “My top priority is trying to provide the safest conditions as possible given the conditions we are dealing with for the students, faculty, staff and visitors to this campus.” Cott said the amount of snow heavily impacts how much the crews can get done in a timely manner. For example, the crews can clear one to two inches of snow in about a half of day. He said if staff calls off, there is no backup and those areas must be covered by employees who are already working.
“This same crew is responsible for all trash pickup on campus including the small cans out on campus and the large green totes next to each building,” Cott said. “Trash removal is a five and a half days a week job to keep up with the demands.” “This crew has a lot of responsibilities that occur on a daily basis so again and we do the best we can to accommodate all of these duties.” Cott said. SRU Director of Environmental Health and Safety Paul Novak commented on shoe wear during times of snow. Novak said the risk of someone falling during times of snow and ice are greater with common shoe wear. He said shoes with rubber treads decrease the risk of falling. “Additional factors include whether a person is carrying books, a backpack, or a gym bag that could affect their center of gravity,” Novak said. “How much in a hurry are they that might affect how fast they are walking, do they hold onto rails, etc. Being as careful as possible to not fall is the best course of action anyone can embrace.”