M
90 years
THE MUR R AY STATE
NEWS
of excellence
September 21, 2017 | Vol. 92, No. 5
Chick-fil-A plans fall through Destinee Marking
dmarking@murraystate.edu Staff writer
e incident
Graphic courtesy of Savanna Hatfield
This message appears when Equifax believes a user’s information was breached. The credit reporting agency offers those affected the opportunity to enroll in TrustedID Premier.
Were you affected? Nationwide breach exposes private data of millions Lindsey Coleman
Assistant News Editor lcoleman7@murraystate.edu
On Sept. 7, Equifax, one of the nation’s three credit reporting agencies, informed consumers that 143 million customers’ private information had been hacked. From May through July, the Federal Trade Commission said hackers had access to names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and driver’s license numbers. 209,000 credit card numbers were also stolen. Personal information was also obtained from 182,000 customers who disputed issues on their credit report in the past. “In cases such as the Equifax hack, consumers are really at the
mercy of the hackers,” Stephen Lacewell, professor in the Arthur J. Bauernfeind College of Business at Murray State, said. “While banks and credit reporting agencies are constantly trying to improve their data protection process, there will always be individuals working hard to steal your data and use it for financial gain.” Those affected include roughly half of the American population, therefore, experts say every American should assume their information has been compromised and take precautions now. The first step is to see if Equifax believes you are one of the millions affected by this breach. Log on to www.equifaxsecurity2017.com/ potential-impact/ and enter your last name and the last 6 digits of
your social security number. Equifax will then tell you if you may be one of those affected. Too add to the confusion and frustration of customers, it was reported by The Verge on Sept. 19 that Equifax tweeted out the wrong website for the breach. Turns out the company tweeted out www.securityequifax2017.com instead. The problems didn’t stop there. Equifax offered breach victims a free year of its credit monitoring service but required customers to sign an agreement that they would not sue the company. The company later lifted that restriction after customer complaints. According to CNN, the SSRS research firm conducted a study about
see EQUIFAX, Page 2
Contrary to the discussion started last spring, a Chickfil-A restaurant will not be built on Murray State’s campus. In March, Paula Amols, former director of Dining Services, was looking into ways to expand on-campus dining options. She even met with Chick-Fil-A representatives for a site visit. Amols had in mind a ChickFil-A with a full menu and indoor seating. She said if approved, the restaurant would be located near the science buildings and students would be able to use flex dollars to purchase meals. During the Aug. 30 Student Government Associaton meeting, Jackie Dudley, vice president of finance and administrative services, said the Chick-fil-A franchise chose not to come to Murray State’s campus. Dudley said it was determined Murray State was not a market for the fast food chain. Zachary East, senior from Princeton, Kentucky, takes classes in Alexander Hall near where Chick-Fil-A would have been built. He said he sees a need for dining options in that area, as well as more options on campus in general. “We do have food options for a college campus,” East said. “However, I think if we were to bring in a couple of name brand restaurants, students would be much more content with on-campus dining options.”
Jessica Tillson, sophomore from Benton, Kentucky, said it is unfortunate our campus does not possess a larger chain restaurant. She said Murray State needs more options. “I believe Murray State needs to get up-to-date and develop a form of a food court like all of the larger universities have,” Tillson said. Tillson is a barista at Thoroughbrewed Café, and she said a new dining facility would have opened more job opportunities for students. “When the semester began, I would have one to three students during each of my shifts ask if the Café was hiring and how to apply,” Tillson said. “With the closing of Hart Cafe, I could potentially see the need for a new venue.” Javus Yandal, senior from Hickman, Kentucky, said he would like to see more variety on campus when it comes to eating options, but he is also fine with going off campus to get fast food. Yandal said he is content with Zaxby’s, which is similar to Chick-fil-A, but he understands the popularity. “Chick-fil-A is arguably a more requested and comparable, recognizable fast food chain that more people appeal towards,” Yandal said. Yandal, a supervisor at Thoroughbrewed Café, said the increase of different job opportunities that would have come with the restaurant would have been beneficial. “Dining services offers jobs, but the hours are limited, which upsets some people,” Yandal said.
Outsourcing hits Health Services Katlyn Mackie Staff writer
kmackie2@murraystate.edu
The days of getting free health care at Murray State’s Health Services may be coming to an end as the university is seeking alternative options including outsourcing. University officials updated students and faculty at a Sept. 14 meeting about the request for proposal process involving the future of Health Services, which is currently funded by the university.
PROPOSED CHANGES
During the summer, Murray State officials met with prospective vendors to see if there was any interest in coming to campus to provide health services. Vendors ranged from groups that specialize in college health to local operations such as hospitals and urgent care centers. Don Robertson, vice president for student affairs, said the need for a change in health services comes from “quality of service” as well as “finances” with the strained budget situation. Robertson said the intent is for the new model to be selffunded with no university money given to those operations. Considering this, Robertson said there is a good possibility that insurance will be billed or there will be a service fee charged as opposed to the free health care students are currently receiving. Robertson told the dozens
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“We have been and continue to be a viable unit on this campus.” - Kim Paschall, director of Health Services
of people in attendance at the meeting that the reason for the proposed changes to Health Services is not due to dissatisfaction with the services currently being offered but rather because of the rising cost of higher education. “We want to make sure, if the change occurs, that we have the same quality of service and focus on the customer would be there,” Robertson said. The request for proposal was mailed out on Aug. 23 to fourteen vendors. It is unknown how many sent proposals back to the university by the Sept. 18 deadline. Some areas included in the 40 pages of the RFP are concerns for the current staff and their employment opportunities, providing and expanding laboratory services, funding options, expansion on health awareness and educational programming, experiential learning for students and services provided in conjunction with counseling services. Robertson said that University Counseling Services, which has licensed mental health professionals in the Counseling Center, is not part of this potential outsourcing. The Center provides an array of free services to Mur-
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ray State students including individual therapy, couples therapy, group therapy, and family therapy, according to its website. University officials hope to have a decision by Oct. 25, based on what they hear from the vendor presentations. Robertson said they have asked for information such as what the cost will be for students who do not have insurance, what will the charge be for those with insurance, what would happen to the current staff, will they use the existing building or potentially construct a new one and what commission would the companies give to the university for allowing them to be on campus, among others. Robertson said the purpose of these vendor presentations is to be transparent with students and faculty. “We want to provide all the information we can to you,” Robertson said. “Your feedback is very important.” The service is expected to switch next academic year. The selected vendor would be required to sign a 3 year contract with the option to renew. Robertson said the Board Regents would have to approve any changes and hope to be able to present the changes at the December meeting.
Nick Bohannon/The News
Dozens of people turned out to the open campus meeting Thursday, Sept. 14.
HEALTH SERVICES NOW
Kim Paschall, director of Health Services, said the clinic currently operates under five health care professionals. She said the staff has over 40 years of college health experience and is “sensitive to the needs and concerns of college students, faculty and staff.” Health Services offers free and confidential health care for a variety of issues, which Paschall said often reduces the number of work and classroom absences. Most of the treatments are for respiratory and stomach illnesses, but they also tend to a significant number of injuries, urinary infections, and lab testing for STI’s, di-
abetes and pregnancy. There is also a 24-hour on-call telephone triage nurse available through campus police. Paschall said she often hears Health Services referred to as “a band-aid station” but that is not the case. “We have been and continue to be a viable unit on this campus, and I sincerely thank my staff for their hard work and dedication to our clients that come in,” Paschall said. Jennie Rottinghaus, director of development of the Jesse D. Jones College of Science, Engineering and Technology, said she has utilized Health Services since she was in college, and that she is a frequent customer.
“It’s so convenient to just be able to walk across campus, and in a few minutes, be seen quickly, professionally and not have to take the time to make an appointment with the doctor,” Rottinghaus said. Robertson said it is important for the service to stay on campus but that the $500,000 currently allocated to Health Services could be put back in the general fund for other uses on campus based on where the greatest need is. During the 2016 calendar year, health services treated 7,609 students and 1,454 faculty and staff. As of this August, they have treated 4,558 people thus far in 2017.