PALOMAR COLLEGE, SAN MARCOS, CALIF.
MONDAY APRIL 28, 2008
FOCUSED ON PALOMAR
VOL. 61, NO.l9
the-telescope.com
Students w¡ant improvement to campus safety KARl STANICEK FOR THE TELESCOPE
As Palomar College student Allyson Topp sat in her night class, all of the lights went out in every building. Her teacher dismissed class, and Topp was left to walk to her car in the dark, by herself. "My car was in the very back of the parking lot, I had a long walk ahead of me," said Topp, 20. "It was so scary by myself, especially at night." A number of Palomar College students were asked if they felt secure on campus, most students admitted that there were times they felt unsafe. All students agreed that more safety precautions should be taken to make Palomar a safer campus. During the day, thousands of people crowd the halls of Palomar College. Student Ashley Marshall, 20, said she tries to take day classes because she feels safer. "I go to school during the day because there are lots of people, and you always see security guards patrolling around," Marshall said. Although day classes are more popular, some students are left with no other choice but to take night classes because of their work schedule.
ELLIOT DE LISSER
I THE TELESCOPE
Campus Safety Officer Tim Rodriguez directed Robert Lee to the "CH" building from the Police Kiosk located at the San Marcos campus' main entrance last week. The kiosk is manned from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday as part of regular campus safety measures.
Scott Sommer, 20, said he feels safe on campus no matter what time of day it is. His opinion changed though when he thought how women felt about walking around at night.
"If I was a little woman, I wouldn't feel safe at all," Sommer said. When students were asked what things could be added to the campus to make it a safer
atmosphere, they all agreed that more lighting in the halls and in the parking lots would make a great difference. "I attended Texas A&M for a year, and one thing I loved about
the school was that they had hundreds of emergency boxes throughout the whole campus," Topp said. "If you felt unsafe, you could go to a box, press a button that would set off emergency lights, and be connected to the police in less than 30 seconds." Karen Boguta, a campus police official, said that the Palomar College administration is working hard to make the campus as safe as possible. She said while these safety precautions are developing, there are simple things every student can do to feel safer on campus, whether it's during the day or at night. "Don't talk on your cell phone if you are walking alone and always be aware of your surroundings," Boguta said. "And if you ever feel like you are in danger, don't hesitate to call campus police at (760) 7441150, ext. 2289." The campus police provide an escort service to anyone who doesn't want to walk alone. Boguta also said that students can get more information on campus safety by attending meetings during National Campus Safety Awareness Month. These meetings provide all types of information regarding earthquake safety, theft and other crimes. Some of these safety tips will soon be on the campus Web site.
Trustee to run again to work Enrollmnentsurpassesrecord on funding, aiding programs for second time in one semester MELISSA RAYMOND THE TELESCOPE
Palomar is one of the least funded schools in the community college system. Why doesn't the community value education? Why aren't we willing to pay taxes as a community to fund education? These are questions recently voiced by
Ruth Larson, current Vice President of the Palomar Community College District Governing Board. As a member of the board that controls fund allocation, teacher employment, curriculum, campus location and programs selection, Larson said TURN TO
LARSON PAGEs
MELISSA CASTON THE TELESCOPE
There are more students taking classes than ever before, with enrollment breaking previous enrollment records, according to school officials. As of April 8, enrollment had grown to 32,496, surpassing the record in March with 32, 259 stu-
dents enrolled in at least one class at Palomar, It is difficult to determine the number of students taking credit classes compared to those taking non-credit classes. "A lot of students will say they are majoring in something, but we are really not sure they are," said Herman Lee, Director of Enrollment Services at Palomar.
"There are 6,400 non-credit students and the rest are pursing credit programs; at least that is what they tell us." Lee contributes three factors to the continued surge in enrollment at Palomar. "One major factor is the economy," Lee said. "State-wide TURN TO
ENROLLMENT PAGE 3
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