Wednesday September 28, 2011 year: 132 No. 8 the student voice of
The Ohio State University
www.thelantern.com
thelantern Semester switch website supports students
sports
STEPHANIE KARIUKI Lantern reporter kariuki.2@osu.edu
Hall charged up
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After a two-game suspension, junior running back Jordan Hall has been named a captain for this Saturday’s game against Michigan State.
arts & life
A new tool for Ohio State students to use in planning for the semester conversion is not yet being utilized by students. Myswitch.osu.edu, a website created by the Undergraduate Student Government, was made to help students understand how the quarter-to-semester switch will affect them in the aspects of academics, athletics and around campus. The main goal is to help students transition easily during the quarter-tosemester switch beginning Summer Quarter 2012. “I haven’t followed it that much,” said Trey Schafer, a third-year in business. Schafer said there have been countless emails, presentations during orientation and even booths on the Oval to inform people about the conversion, but the switch is not a concern of students right now. Schafer said there is a lot of other stuff that students have going on.
Myswitch.osu.edu contains: Information on: graduating in quarters and semesters, and where you, the student, fall. the first semester in Summer 2012. how the conversion will affect both on-and-off campus living. study abroad and how the programs will change under semesters. A calendar of important dates. Compiled list of each department’s personal plan for the switch. source: myswitch.osu.edu CHRIS POCHE / Design editor
Nick Messenger, USG president, said he was not surprised that many students have not visited the website. “As the year goes on, we will see more students using the website,” Messenger said. “My guess is that we will see more traffic in week five or six.” Messenger spoke to The Lantern about the progress of the website
Interracial marriages increase in the US, education plays role
thus far. He said the website turned out better than he thought because it included information from different departments. Messenger said the website was created by Student Life Information Technology, and the total cost to create it was $3,862.50. The website has tabs that explain how the semester change will affect
many areas such as study abroad, finances and living. There is advice about graduating under both systems, quarter and semester, and what students need to do to ensure a smooth graduation under either system. There is also information about living on- and off-campus both during the conversion and after the switch. Myswitch.osu.edu has received more than 4,000 hits within the first week-and-a-half of classes, Messenger said. Messenger said he understands why students aren’t visiting the site yet. He said students probably won’t focus on the semester switch until it’s time to start scheduling classes again. Brady Klein, a first-year in marketing, said he agreed that it is too early to think about the switch. “Maybe not right now, but people will use it when it is closer to that time,” Klein said. In Summer 2012, the seven-week summer term will be followed by a 14-week autumn 2012 semester, according to the Office of Academic
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ZUMBA in the RPAC Students participate in a high energy, dance-influenced workout that is inspired by traditional salsa, hip-hop and more. ZUMBA takes place at the RPAC at least once a week.
COLLEEN CAREY Lantern reporter carey.259@osu.edu
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Starting with a ‘Bang’
Chiddy Bang, a two-man alternative hip-hop group, will be opening for Lupe Fiasco at the Lifestyle Communities Pavilion on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
campus
Crime Briefs: Open container arrests abound
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Interracial marriage between blacks and whites has been on the rise in the U.S. since 1980, according to a study conducted by Ohio State professor of sociology, Zhenchao Qian. Qian hypothesizes that the smaller the barrier between racial ethnic groups, the more likely they are to intermarry. Using about 3 million people from the U.S. Census Bureau, Qian was able to analyze the data and notice changes in race relations over a period of almost 30 years. A white person is still most likely to marry another white person. This is likely due whites being the majority population in many areas, according to Qian’s study. This tendency to marry within one’s racial group is true of almost all other racial groups as well. Aside from American Indians, in which about half marry whites, races are most likely to marry among themselves than among other racial groups. One possible reason for intermarrying different races is population size, according to the study. If there are not many suitable options for marriage within a race, a person might turn to other races to find a partner. Another possible reason for interracial marriage is integration, the study said. “American Indians tend to be more integrated over time, especially those who live in large cities and metropolitan areas. They’re far more integrated than those living on reservations or tribes,” Qian said. The same trend can also be seen with other races. If certain racial or ethnic groups stay in a secluded community as opposed to an integrated city, they’re more likely to intermarry, according to Qian. Socioeconomic status and education also play a role in interracial marriage. “What we found is the more educated a person
THOMAS BRADLEY / Campus editor
is, the more that person is involved in an interracial marriage. This is not only true for minorities but also true for whites,” Qian said. When people are educated about another culture or race, they are less likely to be ignorant and integration becomes easier, according to the study. Sheila Smith, wife of OSU’s athletic director Gene Smith, said their family exemplifies interracial marriage. Gene Smith is black, Sheila Smith is white. “My husband and I work with a group of young African-American males on campus, and we listen to their stories. Yes, ignorance still exists,” Sheila
Smith said in an email. “When you recognize it as ignorance it is easier to rise above it.” Sheila Smith said the best way to combat ethnic ignorance is education, which mirrors the findings of Qian’s study. “Education, as always, is the key to fostering understanding and mutual respect,” Sheila Smith said in an email. Caitlin Po, a fourth-year in biology, said that OSU is a great place for cultural integration. Po’s parents are in an interracial marriage. “I think it is really important for understanding
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OSU mixes housing, dining on new site
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THAILYR SCRIVNER Lantern reporter scrivner.2@osu.edu Information concerning housing and dining services can now be found on one website, urds.osu.edu instead of two separate sites, housing.osu. edu and food.osu.edu. Although the site is currently live, Cheryl Lyons, associate director for University Residences and Dining Services, said the process for building the new website is still going on. She said they will continue taking feedback from students, parents and staff, and make changes throughout the upcoming months to make the site more accessible and easier to navigate. “I think part of building a brandnew website is knowing that it will continue to grow as time goes on,” Lyons said. URDS, comprised of both housing and dining, is a part of the Office of Student Life. The new website launched the day before classes started and features
more graphics and photographs, as well as the ability to have important announcements and reminders highlighted on the main page. This component was not available in the previous design. Ideas were thrown around for about a year before coding and design started a few months ago, according to Lyons. All campus locations are grouped into a database so that students can click their location and see which dining options are available in that area. The same applies for the learning communities, which can be searched for associations such as Honors and Scholars. Karri Benishek, marketing manager for URDS and the leader on the redesign team, said the last setup of a two-website structure had been in place for at least seven years. Benishek said distinguishing between a current, future or regional student was one feature that was taken off the site due to confusion for students. She said each of these categories gave different information
Screen capture of urds.osu.edu.
and it was often hard to connect the statuses with the results. “We really just wanted to streamline copy and categorization so that people can do what they need to faster,” Benishek said. Needs of the site were prioritized with the Student Life Information Technology Department to develop the best results with the three areas within the housing and dining
departments: residence life, workers in residence halls and dining facilities. The department had been consolidated for two years before implementing a redesign of the website. “It really just created a lot of confusion for students,” Benishek said. She said students’ emails sent from either the housing or dining
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