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"It don't mean a thing, if it ain't got the swing." Check out Palomar's new fast paced class.
Page6
OPINION
SPORTS
How does a tall cold one after class sound to you? Imagine meeting with a professor or a study group at a campus pub. Do you think college campuses should have bars available for students after class? Page 4
The wrestling team is ready to rumble for the new season. Find out who will be doing the b slamming and pile driving.
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Faculty accused of abusing parking pass Jennifer Braun Staff Writer
Warren Allen / The Telescope
Left: The Palomar College bookstore is facing a budget deficit due to increased operational costs and competition from OffCampus Books. Above: Off-Campus Books, located one block from Palomar, has attracted student business due to lower prices.
During the meeting Patton presented the board with financial statements for the bookstore for the past nine years. "We have experienced both ups and downs in revenue," Patton said of the situation. "Gross operating income peaked in 1994, but it started to decline after that because our competition started their business." The competition Patton was referring to was Off-Campus Books, a small operation run by former Palomar student Hamid Radvar. Radvar opened his store in 1994 and the Palomar Bookstore has seen a significant drop in its revenue ever since. According to Patton this drop in revenue amounts to about $250,000. Although this drop amounts to a small percentage of the bookstore's annual revenue of $4 million, it's enough to put the
Dustin Schwindt Feature Editor
A continuing budget deficit and a threat of bankruptcy has led the Palomar College Bookstore to take a serious look at its financial situation. During a September 8 Governing Board meeting Jerry Patton, vice president of finance, addressed the bookstore's financial problems and discussed ways in which to increase revenues and decrease expenses. Although Patton addressed three major areas of expense, he stated that the first step the district was looking at taking was the reduction of salaries and benefits for the bookstore's employees.
net profit into negative numbers. Mike Schaffer, Palomar Bookstore manager, attributes Radvar 's success to one major factor. "The advantage for Hamid is that he doesn't have to carry all the titles," Shaeffer explained, "We don't have the power to limit titles." Schaeffer pointed out that when the bookstore has to order small quantities of books from several different publishers it costs significantly more money. Schaeffer also stated it is an added problem when professors constantly change titles and editions. Even though this is a problem, the book store is still required to accommodate the faculties requests. In order to do this the bookstore must compile a list of all the requests, a project that costs them approxi-
Grade inflation takes its toll on American education, report says Herbert London College Press Services
•
NEW YORK - In what can only be the affinnation of long -held suspicion, the College Board has issued a report indicating that Scholastic Aptitude Test scores have descended while grade-point averages have ascended. For those who have labored in the vineyards of higher education, this conclusion isn't a surprise. However, systemic examination of the numbers offers stark evidence of a deep-seated American problem. The College Board, which sponsors the SAT, contends that test takers with A averages increased from 28 percent of the total to 38 percent in the last 10 years, but the SAT scores of those students declined an average of 12 points on the verbal score and three points on math. Moreover, these decreases have as a backdrop the norming of SAT scores so that the 490 of yesteryear is the 510 of today, and 780 has become a "perfect" 800 score. The president of the College Board, Donald Stewart,
says, "We don't know why grades are rising." Some have their suspicions, however . First, it should he noted that in an era of radical egalitarianism that cannot accept stratification, the Lake Woebegon influence is quite evident. Everyone is above average. As a student of mine once noted, in today's school environment, a C is tantamount to an F. So widespread is grade inflation that when I was a dean, I suspended the dean's list because it was so lacking in discrimination, it was like reading the student roster. Second, since the psychological well-being of students has been superordinated over a display of knowledge grades are designed to make students feel good about themselves. This is the self-esteem hoax. In the last international exam, students were asked to evaluate their prowess in math and other disciplines.
SEE
GRADES PAGE 3
mately $30,000 a year. Once the list is compiled, Radvar is allowed to copy the list for his own personal use. "Because facully members are paid with public money their signatures on the orders makes the list public domain," Schaeffer said. Radvar pays $250 to photo copy the list and uses it to place his orders for each semester. Radvar , however, doesn't order all the books. "I couldn't carry the volume for the entire school," Radvar said, "I don't carry ESL books and some of the trade books." Mark Vernoy, president of the faculty senate, talked about the benefits of the off
SEE BOOKSTORE PAGE 3
While students are dealing with finding a place to park, Palomar 's faculty and staff are dealing with another problem. Some faculty are not able to find a faculty/staff parking space because students or relatives are borrowing parking permits from faculty/staff members. There have been incidents involving several faculty and some staff members allowing relatives and students to use their Palomar parking permits. This behavior occurred last spring, and is going on during this fall semester as well. In fact a faculty/staff member's parking permit was already confiscated less than five weeks into this semester because a student was found using it. In an incident last spring, a student security officer was assaulted by a faculty member's relative because the student confronted a woman using a faculty parking lot and was met with a slap in the face before the woman attempted to flee inciting a chase between the woman's vehicle and campus security. Martha Evans, a Spanish teacher who has been at Palomar for more than 20 years, believes it is unethical for faculty/staff members to loan out their parking permits. "I wouldn't give my son or daughter my parking permit. I don ' t think it's fair," said Evans. Evans also feels there should be some guaranteed parking for faculty, especially for those professors who have been at Palomar for awhile. Some students agree with Evans that permit abuse is unethical behavior for faculty/staff members while many others disregarded the subject stating that it is not an important issue for students, therefore they are not concerned about the problem. Lisa Frank, a first semester student, said "I don't feel it matters. If I had a connection I'd want it." According to Campus Security Director , Mike Alleman , it does matter. He explained by saying the parking lots are not owned but are loaned to the faculty/staff members of Palomar. He also said, "It is a privilege not a right for faculty to park because they do not pay for their parking permits. For students it is their right." Campus security will confiscate all permits belonging to faculty/staff members if the privilege is found to be abused.
Growing UpandDown Palomar College's student population peaked in fall 1997. Even though enrollment dropped this semester, Palomar's population is second only to San Diego State University in San Diego County.
1993 1994
= ct
23,621
t-
students
z
LI.I
1995
23,910
I:
students
...I ...I
LI.I
► · 1996
25,937
students
0
=
z 1997 1998 Source: California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office and Palomar College
27,244
25,235
students
LI.I
students Daniel Kwan I The Telescope