Wednesday February 22, 2012 year: 132 No. 29
the student voice of
The Ohio State University
www.thelantern.com
thelantern
OSU takes swipe at new student meal plan
sports
KriSten MitcheLL Lantern reporter mitchell.935@osu.edu
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Signing with the Georges
Eddie George and his wife Tamara spent Tuesday evening on campus at a signing for their book, Marriage For Real.
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With the semester conversion about four months away, University Residences and Dining Services is planning for the coming change. URDS has planned the student meal plan conversion, which adjusts for the longer terms, and does away with the swipe system in place, creating a new block system to be implemented following the semester conversion. The block plan will be similar to the model in place at Sloopy’s Diner at the Ohio Union. “There will be a dollar value assigned to items, regular menu prices instead of the stars and numbers used now,” said Zia Ahmed, senior director of Dining Services. Ahmed said the change was made based on feedback from a committee comprised of students who live on campus and use a meal plan. Blocks are planned to be a better value for students. Ahmed said students pay about $10.20 per swipe, and
next year, they will pay about $8.50 for every two blocks, the equivalent to one on-campus meal, meaning students should save about $1.70 per purchased meal. Some students are pleased about the change, even if they aren’t planning on getting a meal plan next year. “The more money you save the better. I’m moving off campus so it won’t really affect me, but for the incoming freshmen it’ll be a better deal,” said Kim Hullings, a second-year in accounting. The roughly $4 spending value of a block should also save students money, because smaller purchases will cost only one block, instead of the equivalent of a whole meal. “Blocks will give students more grazing options, they can get a coffee and a muffin without having to give up your whole meal,” Ahmed said. Some students said they like this feature of the new meal plan. “It sounds like a cool idea. A lot of times I wake up late and I’ll grab a coffee or breakfast on my way to class,” said Tiffany
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JeFF tYndaLL / Lantern photographer
Market place employees donovan Godt (left) and John chapel (right) ring up customers during the lunch rush on Feb. 14.
Cooking classes mix up new concoctions dani WedeMeYer Lantern reporter wedemeyer.9@osu.edu
Gentle giants
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Pop band Young the Giant is scheduled to perform at Newport Music Hall Saturday with Walk the Moon.
campus
Graduation speaker chosen
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Tired of eating sodium and preservative-packed premade foods? Bored with on-campus dining options? Kitchen Basics Boot Camp classes in the Ohio Union’s instructional kitchen are providing ways for students to start learning how to cook for themselves without the stress of simple trial and error. Sam Al-Khoury, a graduate student in higher education and student affairs and organizer of the cooking classes, said there will be four more classes this quarter; the next one is this Friday at 2:30 p.m. and will be about how to “Eat for 10 Bucks.” Friday’s class will feature guest personality Pheobe Lapine, a cookbook author and private chef. Lapine will also be giving a lecture at 7 p.m. Friday about her success leaving the business world to turn her cooking passion into her profession, and participating in a Foolproof Brunch class Saturday at noon. “The classes are free, open to all students and very popular,” Al-Khoury said. “It’s great because we have professional chefs willing to help students learn.”
coLLeen careY / Lantern photographer
daniel Glasscock, a first-year graduate student in math, and wife, Katalin Glasscock, are preparing a salad at a Kitchen Basics Boot camp class on Feb. 21. The cooking classes have become so popular, in fact, that there is now a limit of two classes per quarter for students, unless a class does not fill up three days before it is scheduled, according to the Ohio Union
Activity Board’s calendar listing for the classes. Classes are geared toward students who know very little or have only basic knowledge about cooking, but could provide new ideas for those
who have more experience in the kitchen as well. Danyelle Heard, a graduate student in public health, said she
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Program works to retain Ohio graduates dani WedeMeYer Lantern reporter wedemeyer.9@osu.edu
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Forever Buckeye, a state of Ohio program designed to bring back Ohio high school graduates who have moved elsewhere, is helping students receive lowered tuition by granting them in-state residency without the 12-month waiting period. The program began Winter Quarter, or spring semester for schools not on a quarter system, and was part of the fiscal year 2012-13 budget for the state. Kim Norris, deputy chancellor at the Ohio Board of Regents, said economics is a big reason why Ohio wants its students to come back. “Ohio wants as many degree-holders as possible,” Norris said. “To (improve) our Ohio economy we need to attract students of all ages back to Ohio.” She said research has been done on the subject and having more degree-holders in the state produces real benefits. “For every 1 percent increase in degree-holders in a state, that provides about $2.5 billion for the state,” Norris said. “It is critical to Ohio’s economic growth.” Norris said in-state tuition is available to all graduates of an Ohio public or private high school, regardless of why a student might have left; though the program is not open to those who earned a GED diploma. The residency applies to undergraduate and graduate programs. Norris said she hopes students take advantage of the opportunity, and that Ohio wants students to know they are wanted here. “For students, it’s a nice opportunity to
Beckoning Buckeyes home The Forever Buckeye program, created to bring previous Ohio residents back to Ohio, assists with residency to any person who fits this criteria:
o Has earned a high school diploma in Ohio o Is a U.S. citizen or other permanent resident o Has established permanent residency in Ohio by the first day of classes
source: ohiohighered.org chriS poche / Design editor significantly reduce enrollment costs; non-state tuition is relatively high here,” she said. “(Students are) always welcome in Ohio — you are forever a Buckeye.” Aaron Minnick, assistant director at the Student Service Center, said about 60 Ohio State students have applied for the Forever Buckeye program. Syane Roy, a graduate student in law, graduated from Troy High School, a smaller school north
of Dayton, Ohio. Roy went to New York University for his undergraduate studies. He said he had already considered coming back into Ohio to study at OSU before learning about the Forever Buckeye program, but said it has made a big difference for him financially. “One of the reasons I chose to go to Ohio State was because of the lower tuition (available through the law program), which I think has made the process a little easier,” Roy said. “It was great to have the recognition since I went to high school here. You know, since I am an Ohioan, it was nice to know that the school wanted to encourage people (to come back).” Brad Myers, university registrar, agreed the program was rooted in helping the state economically but also emphasized that it’s a win-win for the state and for students. “(We) look for ways to help students go to college, graduate, stay in Ohio and help the economy,” Myers said. “(We want to) see if we can encourage them to stay after they graduate.” He said there is a broader concern about Ohio not having as many graduates in the state, because it can hurt the economy to have so many graduates leave. The OSU application for the program asks for personal information, whether the applicant is a U.S. citizen and states what documentation can be used to prove current Ohio residency. Students had until Jan. 31 this quarter to apply. Carolyn Kaplan, a graduate student in foreign and second language education, said she earned her undergraduate degree in Pennsylvania because it offered her more scholarship money. She said she
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