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THE APPALACHIAN TheAppalachianOnline.com
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Vol. 87, No. 11
Athletes ‘play by rules,’ no clustering found
by ANDREW CLAUSEN News Reporter
by KAITLYN THRUSTON Senior Sports Reporter
U
NC-system college athletics have been under scrutiny following the UNC-Chapel Hill clustering controversy. Last year, it was discovered some UNC-Chapel Hill athletes were placed in classes without attendance policies or generally easier classes. In the wake of the scandal there was an internal audit at Appalachian to see if there were any signs of academic clustering. The report concluded Appalachian “does not show indications of academic clustering among its student-athlete population.” “We inherently knew there wasn’t a problem, but wanted to make sure,” Athletics Director Charlie Cobb said. “Clustering” is when 25 percent of any team shares one major. The study showed student athletes have declared 96 different majors, which is 44.5 percent of the ma-
jors offered at Appalachian, according to goasu.com. In football and men’s basketball, where clustering has been found most common, Appalachian’s football program has an average of 3.02 studentathletes per major with 40 different majors represented and men’s basketball has an average of 1.08 student-athletes per major with 10 different majors represented. “The key to our work is integrity,” Director of Academic Services for Athletes Kim Sherrill said. “That’s what we teach our athletes, that here we’re going to do things right.” “If a student athlete comes to me and wants to figure out their major I do it the same way as when I advised the general student population,” Sherrill said. Criminal justice freshman and offensive lineman Tyson Fernandez said the study shows Appalachian “cares about their student athletes.” “[Athletes] are willing to play fair and play by the rules, all the athletic advisors and academic advisers care that we do succeed,” Fernandez said.
Information Sourced from Office of Internal Audits
After clustering occured at UNC-Chapel Hill, Appalachian conducted an internal audit of all student athletes. Clustering has been found to be most common in football and men’s basketball teams. The above represents major distribution among the football team. Of the 124 students on the football team 41 majors are represented. On the basketball team 14 students represent 11 majors. Of the total 508 student athletes on campus 97 majors are represented of a total 216 majors offered.
Appalachian’s Solar Homestead now on housing market by JOSHUA FARMER Intern News Reporter
The 2011 student-built Solar Homestead design is now on the market courtesy of Asheville-based homebuilder Deltec Homes. “For the foreseeable future, we could come up with other designs that the university students and professors create to offer to folks, President of Deltec Homes Steve Linton said. “It’s inspiring for us to see the magic that happens when you get a good group of people together.” The house is appraised for at least $220,000, which is a requirement for the Solar Decathlon, according to a university news release. Linton said licensing royalties will go back to support the university.
“It’s a cool idea that proceeds from the house get put back into the next generation of students,” Linton said. The Solar Homestead was Appalachian’s project entered in the U.S. Department of Energy’s 2011 international solar decathlon. The design won the People’s Choice Award in the competition. Linton said Deltec first came across Appalachian’s model at the International Builder’s Show in Florida. Deltec Homes plans to offer the Solar Homestead as one of its models for some time to come and is hopeful more designs will come from a partnership with Appalachian State, Linton said. Deltec Homes has a focus on building houses in a “green way,” according to deltechomes.
Degrees awarded compare to peer, state institutions by STEPHANIE SANSOUCY Senior News Reporter
In the 2010-11 academic year the university awarded more bachelors, master and doctorate degrees than some schools but failed to deliver more than its peer Institution University of Illinois, and fellow state school UNCChapel Hill. Appalachian awarded a large amount of bachelor degrees, but not as many masters or doctorates as some schools because the university has undergraduate programs comparable to schools such as UNC-Chapel Hill, but not graduate programs, particularly doctoral programs, said Bobby Sharp, the Director of Institutional Research and Planning at Appalachian. The number of masters and doctorate degrees fall where they do because of Appalachian’s history, Sharp said. “We were a teachers college that became a comprehensive university, but not a research university,” Sharp said. This has “constrained” us in regards to the level and range of graduate programs, he said. “There isn’t a big push for more doctoral programs at ASU,” Sharp said. “Such programs are relatively expensive and will be pursued quite selectively.” Despite the fact Appalachian
does not have many graduate programs Beck Long, a graduate student in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program chose to return to Appalachian for graduate school. Long said she chose to return to Appalachian because of the university’s strong CMHC program. “All of the professors in the CMHC are active in their field, conducting research, and other scholarly endeavors” said Long. “They are not just teachers.” Long also believes completing her graduate degree at Appalachian will help her eventual pursue a doctorate in Europe because Appalachian faculty teach there. Senior Sustainable Development major Kayla Tilman plans attend graduate school to study Urban and Regional Planning. However, she does not plan on going to Appalachian for graduate school. Tilman said she did not choose Appalachian because it does not have an accredited Planning program. But Tilman doesn’t think Appalachian’s small number of graduate programs is a bad thing. “Quality is better than quantity in this case,” Tilman said. “Appalachian has amazing graduate programs with dedicated faculty that provides students with personalized program and career development.”
com. Michael Germano, senior architectural design and appropriate technology major, worked on the Solar Homestead. “We always had the goal of not only producing a highly efficient home but also a truly livable home,” Germano said. “Now that Deltec has taken the Homestead to production it reaffirms the People’s Choice Award, I’m proud to have been a part of it.” Deltec played a “vital role” in the Solar Homestead by donating most of the lumber to build the home, Germano said. “They also invited us into their shop in Asheville to use their tools and learn their methods for mass producing wall assemblies,” Germano said. “We were able to build all of the walls in 3 days which greatly reduced
time.” Senior construction management major Austin Westmoreland said it was “amazing” Deltec is offering the Solar Homestead design. “I’m glad to see something that a bunch of students can do actually [sold on the market],” Westmoreland, who worked on the Solar Homestead, said. “Four or five people that work at Deltect are Appalachian alumni,” Linton said. “ [We liked] the ground breaking design with the expandability of the home. There were a lot of other great projects, but they were all onebedroom. ASU’s home was something that my [family of four] could live in. Expandability set them apart - that’s why they won the People’s Choice Award.”
Appalachian student’s pet pig is a ‘ham’ by KELLI STRAKA News Reporter
Junior marketing major Clint Callahan’s roommate is a pig. Literally. About two months ago, Callahan got a pig named Olive as his pet. His oldest brother’s girlfriend worked with someone who had a litter of pigs and convinced Callahan to have one, he said. “She just kind of fell in my lap and I fell in love with her,” Callahan said. Callahan is from the country where he’s been around bigger pigs, he said, but this is the first time he’s interacted with a potbelly pig like Olive. “She’s a lot like a dog except a lot lazier,” Callahan said. “Which I guess is good for me being a college student.” When Callahan first got Olive, she was very skittish he said. Callahan would lie on the floor because pigs become intimidated from animals that are taller than them, he said. “Now that I’ve been around her so long, she’s kind of a ham,” he said. Olive, who is five months old, loves to eat potato chips and pasta, Callahan said, but her main dish is dog food. “I don’t like to give her cake or anything like that,” Callahan said. “I don’t want to spoil her more than she’s already spoiled.” Olive will not only eat potato chips and pasta, if paper is left on the floor, “you better say good-bye,”
Maggie Cozens | The Appalachian
Junior marketing major Clint Callahan sits with his pet pig, Olive.
he said. “I have not let my papers hit the ground since the first week of school,” Callahan said. Olive has not been trained to walk on leash yet, Callahan said. “It’s supposed to take a little while because they’re very independent animals and they don’t like to be bossed around,” Callahan said. He also has to get Olive a special harness to fit around “her fat belly.” Although Olive can’t walk on a leash, Callahan taught her to sit, which took a couple of days, he said. Olive uses the bathroom in a litter box with pellets as litter. Teaching Olive to use the litter box has been the biggest challenge. Callahan said Olive loves to sleep on his bed. “The worst thing about when she
sleeps with me is when she wants me to wake up, she noses me until I finally get up,” Callahan said. She spends most of her time in Callahan’s bed, he said. She’s always sleeping and eating. “She’s a little bit more sassy, she’s got sass,” Callahan said. “I like to think of her as a miniature Wanda Sykes.” Junior physical education major Brandon Hill, Callahan’s friend of 15 years, was “surprised” that Callahan got Olive, he said. A pig is not an ordinary inside animal to have, Hill said. “But it’s cool,” Hill said. Hill said he likes Olive as a pet. “I wouldn’t have a pig as a pet, but whenever I go over there to hang out or whatever, I rub her, play with her, make her grunt and squeal,” Hill said. “It’s just funny.”
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