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WEDNESDAY, MAY 1, 2013
WWW.THEDAILYAZTEC.COM
VOLUME 99, ISSUE 110
NIKA entrepreneur inspires students
campus Hannah Beausang
may 1, 2013
wednesday
CSU to offer engineering classes online campus Nikki Sachman
Senior Staff Writer
Staff Writer
Nika Water company co-founder Jeff Church visited San Diego State to speak about social entrepreneurship on Monday. Church spoke at SDSU for the 14th annual L. Robert Payne Distinguished Entrepreneur Lecture Series. Church was welcomed by SDSU President Elliot Hirshman. The event was an opportunity for students, faculty and community members to meet Church and listen to an informative lecture about social entrepreneurship. Nika Water is an eco-friendly brand of bottled water sold nationwide. All the profits are donated to help provide vital resources such as clean water, education and sanitation efforts. The company has already donated $400,000 to implement various water sanitation devices, promote education and plant trees in Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, Brazil, Sri Lanka and Nicaragua. According to Church, the company has been able to provide clean water to 26,000 people in Ethiopia. Church said he and his family were inspired to make a lasting difference by providing resources in impoverished communities after a trip to Africa. He said he wanted his children to understand the difference between relative and absolute poverty—a message that motivated one of his greatest innovations. “We wanted to create a sustainable donation model,” Church said. “It’s one thing to write a check every year … but it’s another thing to make it sustainable.” Nika Water is packaged in recycled bottles to further contribute to sustainability efforts. The company is also carbon-neutral, and Church at-
NIKA co-founder Jeff Church speaks to the audience during the 14th annual L. Robert Payne Distinguished Entrepreneurship Lecture Series. Church spoke of being innovative and being persistant.
tempts to offset the effects of plastic products by planting a tree for every 98 bottles produced. Church has also established school recycling programs in non-bottle bill states to encourage students to recycle by reimbursing the schools a few cents per bottle. Church cited companies such as Newman’s Own, Tom’s, Feed and Jedidah as successful models for social entrepreneurship. Church stressed the importance of innovative thinking and said millennials have the ability to make a lasting impact to benefit our society as well as future generations. “This age group can be part of this coming wave of social entrepreneurship that has the ability to solve some of the world’s most challenging problems,” Church said. “I think young people are at the right stage to really make a difference … Take the entrepreneurial plunge—try to put your-
self outside of your comfort zone.” Director of Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Programs Bernhard Schroeder said bringing guest speakers to SDSU helps students define their goals and learn important lessons from working professionals. “These people have a set of life experiences that are valuable,” Schroeder said. “They’ve been there and they’ve done it, so when students aren’t quite sure what they should chase or what they should do, it’s nice hearing from people who’ve have experience.” Dean of College of Business Administration Michael Cunningham said SDSU’s entrepreneurship program helps foster creativity and the guest speakers contribute relevant perspectives that provide students a well-rounded view of the professional world. “San Diego is an entrepreneurial city and our students are really ex-
SDSU campaigns for Bradley Cooper campus Shaghajegh Fatheyan
monica linzmeier , assistant photo editor
cited about creating,” Cunningham said. “It goes much farther than creating a business; it goes to the notion of entrepreneurial thinking.” Psychology and integrated marketing communications senior Elaine Farinas said the event was powerful and inspired her career. “I thought it was very insightful— it got me pumped up a lot more,” Farinas said. “I want to be a social entrepreneur, so being able to see those people who have started from the bottom and established themselves as social entrepreneurs in the community is great.” The lecture series was founded in 1996 with funding provided by SDSU alumnus and entrepreneur L. Robert Payne and has featured speakers such as chairman and CEO of Qualcomm Inc. Irwin Jacobs, co-founder and CEO of Costco Jim Sinegal and former chairman and CEO of Jack in the Box Robert J. Nugent.
Starting next fall semester, 11 California State Universities will offer online electrical engineering courses, after an increased passing rate compared to a traditional class. San Diego State, will not be offering the online class for the upcoming fall semester, however. According to U-T San Diego, San Jose State University was the first CSU to offer the “flipped” engineering class. Officials from SJSU say its online Introduction to Circuit Analysis course had a passing rate of 91 percent, while the traditional class had a 59 percent passing rate. Because of the improvement in student performance, the online class will expand to other CSUs. Engineering sophomore Cameron Candalla says the flipped classroom is a good idea, as long as student-teacher interaction is still prominent. “It would encourage students to be proactive in their learning,” Candalla said. “Flipped classes would also save a lot of time because they force you to study your material as you go. According to MIT News, the course was created as collaboration between SJSU and edX, a nonprofit online enterprise founded by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The Los Angeles Times ONLINE continued on page 2
Crime Beat
Staff Writer
San Diego State Counseling & Psychological Services peer educators are inviting actor Bradley Cooper to SDSU to help reduce the stigma associated with mental illness. The peer educators created a YouTube video titled “Get BRADLEY COOPER to San Diego State University!” in an effort to call attention to the symptoms and struggles of mentally ill students and invite Cooper to address the issue further. Since the release of his movie, “Silver Linings Playbook,” Cooper has been a key advocate for raising awareness about mental illness. Psychology junior and C&PS peer educator at Aerial Cetnar is featured in the YouTube video and understands the demands of college. Stress and excessive responsabilities are common issues many college students face. “Stress is a common theme in college,” Cetnar said. Almost every student has experienced some of these feelings at some point during their college careers. According to Cetnar, current statis-
Counseling & Psychological Services peer educators created a YouTube video inviting Bradley Cooper to San Diego State.
tics show that around 25 percent of college students have been diagnosed with, or treated for, a mental illness within the past year. She also said nearly 80 percent of college students have felt overwhelmed by assignments and deadlines. According to a recent SDSU study in 2012, more than 37 percent of SDSU students thought they needed help for mental or emotional problems. While an astonishing 17 percent of students
tom gralish /philadelphia inquirer /mct
were diagnosed with depression, even more alarming is that a staggering 7 percent of them had thought about committing suicide. Cetnar said certain factors contributing to student depression and feelings of isolation include anxiety from academics, relationships and living away from home in a new environment with unfamiliar people. COOPER continued on page 2
Man blocks woman from leaving The San Diego State Police Department responded to calls regarding suspicious activity at Alberts’ College Apartments on 55th Street Sunday evening. A woman said a middle-aged man approached her while she was in her vehicle. She said he stood behind her car to block her in and became aggressive when she attempted to leave. According to the report, the man tried to force his phone into her car and take pictures of her as she drove away. The man is described as a Caucasian male in his 50s with short gray and white hair. He has a medium build and is approximately 5 feet 8 inches tall. He was described as wearing a light-colored T-shirt and jeans. Man asks to search backpacks SDSUPD responded to calls regarding a suspicious person at Hepner Hall Monday afternoon.
Reports describe the suspect as a tall, white male, approximately 30 years old with dark hair. He was wearing a black T-shirt with an image of a creature and was carrying a clipboard. The suspect approached several students and asked if he could go through their backpacks and attempted to do so several times, even after students refused. Burglar breaks into car An unknown suspect broke into a vehicle parked in Parking Structure 5 on 55th Street between 5 and 7 p.m. Monday evening. According to reports, the burglar entered the vehicle through a broken lock in the backseat. A wallet containing a debit card, various IDs and $25 were stolen. — Compiled by Staff Writer Michelle Puss