@southerndigest @sudigest @southerndigest
Tuesday, January 24, 2017
Volume 68, Issue 1
Tuesday . February 14, 2017
Volume 68 . Issue 4
For the Students:
www.southerndigest.com www.southerndigest.com
Student Affairs makes key moves to improve campus life BY BRANDON PRINCE
SOUTHERN DIGEST - EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
The Southern University Smith-Brown Memorial Student Union, a hangout and eatery for well over 4,000 students, has recently received several renovations to improve student life on campus. Approximately two weeks ago, contractors hired by Southern University’s Student Affairs & Enrollment Management Department replaced the union’s front entrance doors with automatic sliding doors with built in sensors. The replacement was agreed upon and set in motion after the department was notified about the automatic door for the accessible push buttons, both interior and exterior, had malfunctioned and failed to perform its intended purpose. According to Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs & Enrollment Management, Dr. Brandon K. Dumas, students in wheelchairs faced the challenge of utilizing
from that entrance, especially from the outside. Dumas said that the exterior button may have consistently malfunctioned due to Baton Rouge’s weather conditions, hence the reason for the replacement to be made. “We look at the things that need to be done and try to prioritize based on budget, those things that are attainable,” said Dumas. Along with the front entrance improvements, the food court’s decor also received renovations including new chairs, tables, dining booths and sofa-like lounging furniture with an attached small rotating table for students to place their food on for consumption. Dumas mentioned that renovations were made possible after Assistant Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, Anthony T. Jackson, met with the University’s food service provider, Aramark, to express the concerns about the
The newly installed automatic doors at the entrace of the Smith-Brown Memorial Student Union. (Nigel Gary/DIGEST)
See FOR THE STUDENTS page 3
A newly remodeled Lacumba’s Play Pen that features new flooring, furniture, lighting and free pool tables. (Nigel Gary/DIGEST)
Bridging the Divide
HARRT visits Student creates app to help students find the right HBCU the Bluff BY EDDIE BYNOG
SOUTHERN DIGEST - NEWS EDITOR
Students looking to attend any one of the nation’s 86 Historically Black Colleges and Universities now have an added boost courtesy of the smart phone app HBCU HUB. As a go to for anyone trying to find the right college, the app provides some of the most important information people look for when choosing a historically black college to attend. One of the ways the app accomplishes this is by showing users a “Report card” for each school that lists academics, costs, and the overall ranking of HBCU’s on a scale from A to F. In addition to providing detailed information on schools, the app also allows users to participate in an online chat community, provides information about scholarships, connects students with a digital personal tutor and even gives tips for resumes and job interviews. Jonathan Swindell, a 21-year-old Junior and Grambling State University student from Los Angeles, California is
idea competition at GSU. Originally, the app was loosely based on bringing HBCU students closer together but Swindell says that he saw a need in providing information specifically about HBCU’s. “It’s a lot easier to get information on a PWI,” said Swindell, “They’re a lot bigger and have a lot more resources behind them, whereas at an HBCU, the information can be a bit scattered, so I saw a pain point within our community and HBCU HUB serves to fix that.” After taking home first place at competition, Swindell decided to rebrand the app to make it a staple between high school students and HBCU’s but says that the app was created so that everyone can use it. “We offer a free service called HUB Packs where the user is asked to answer DIGEST FILE questions such as, are you ‘High School Faculty, High School Student, Transfer the designer and C.E.O of the HBCU Student, Graduate Student’, from there we make the transition easy by sending HUB. The idea and vision for HBCU HUB the information they need to apply for came about after Swindell entered an
BY KAYLA FOSTER
SOUTHERN DIGEST - PHOTO EDITOR
According to nola.com, Baton Rouge has one of the highest rates of HIV and AIDS cases in the country. The city has dropped below Atlanta in the new rankings based on 2012 data. HAART (Health Alliance for Region Two, Inc.) brings awareness to the topics by presenting health disparities in Louisiana. The presentation started off by dismissing misconceptions about HIV by stating it is not something that ‘guilty’ people get or a punishment for cheating, lying, using drugs or alcohol, having more than one partner or not asking the right questions. It is a virus whose transmission is fueled by poverty, ignorance, racism, sexism, homophobia, fear, violence and many other factors— not by people with HIV. HIV stigma is defined by having unfavorable attitudes and beliefs directed toward people living with HIV, the family, friends, social groups and
See HBCU HUB page 3
THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY AND A&M COLLEGE, BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
See HARRT page 3