VALENTINE’S GUIDE
Chico State’s Independent Student Newspaper since 1975
MR. RODGERS’ S’ OOD NEIGHBORHOOD
Va
Read about the Chico local’s rise from humble beginnings innings to Super Bowl MVP Story B1
G
VOLUME 66 ISSUE 3
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 9, 2011
CAMPUS >>
nt
id
by arrt by a er art cove co cover
eiin te dssttein Golld Go ierrrra Golds ie C Cierra
u
le
in
e
Get advice and entertainment for this year’s “V-Day” Special section
e’
s
2011
FIRST COPY FREE
news all week at theorion.com
additional copies 50¢
CSU presidents still receiving pay raises Alexander Seymour STAFF WRITER
Chico State’s Staff Council will be hosting a BloodSource Blood Drive today between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. at the Bell Memorial Union auditorium. Those who are interested in donating blood must bring a donor card or ID, be at least 110 pounds, generally healthy and be at least 17 years old, or 16 years old with parental consent,. It is good to eat and drink plenty of fluids before and after donating. Blood donations typically go to hospitals in Chico, Paradise, Gridley, Colusa, Yuba City, Willows and Oroville.
The California State University board of trustees has raised the bar for executive salary levels in the midst of California’s budget drought. As of January, Jeffrey D. Armstrong, president of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, is the highest paid president in the CSU system, with an annual salary of $350,000, a $1,000 monthly transportation stipend and $30,000
in supplements from the Cal Poly Foundation, which supports fundraising activities and travel expenses, said Claudia Keith, assistant vice chancellor of public affairs for the CSU. With faculty cuts, less classes and limits on CSU’s enrollment the new salary could be seen as foolish, said Kalli Smith, Student California Teachers Administration president in an e-mail interview. Armstrong was recruited by
the CSU from Michigan State University, where he previously earned $241,000 as the dean of agriculture and natural resources, according to an article in The Tribune, San Luis Obispo. Armstrong’s $100,000 salary increase does not represent a general raise for existing CSU presidents, but rather is the nature of acquiring qualified applicants that can provide the best for a campus, President Paul Zingg said.
The market for skilled presidents is competitive, and higher salaries than what CSU presidents are currently receiving must be offered to attract quality personnel, Zingg said, who annually earns $279,000 and a $50,000 housing stipend. “It’s a recognition of the reality of what campuses in the system have to pay in order to get presidents to come to our campuses,” he said. “And Cal Poly is a premier campus with a very
Programming team cancels championship trip to Egypt
Source: Campus calendar
Chico State’s Latina American Studies Program will host an internship and volunteer work forum today at 7:30 p.m. in Trinity Hall Room 126. The forum will discuss how students can obtain international work experience in Ecuador, Guatemala and Mexico. Free snacks and refreshments will be provided. For more information send an e-mail to smuraoka@mail. csuchico.edu.
Ben Mullin STAFF WRITER
Source: Campus Announcements THE ORION • GINA SPADORCIO
RULES OF THE ROAD A bicyclist on Warner Street rides her bike on the wrong side of the road, which is against the law.
Bike-related citations increase The Gateway Science Museum on 625 Esplanade will be presenting its new exhibit Saturday. “Microbes: Invisible Invaders … Amazing Allies” will include interactive exhibits showcasing bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa. History on infectious diseases, the ways researchers analyze infections and more will also be presented. The exhibit will run until May 30 and is open Wednesday through Friday between noon and 5 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for children and free for museum members.
attractive applicant pool.” Armstrong’s offered salary presents the CSU system with a potential disparity in values, said Brian Cerney, Student Coalition for Change member in an e-mail interview. “People are asking themselves, ‘What is wrong with our system that we can afford raises for presidents while asking students to pay more tuition for less services?’” he said. The $350,000 figure is only >> please see SALARY | A5
Bryan Clendon STAFF WRITER
C
liff Anderson was riding his bike on the left side of Nord Avenue when a police officer pulled him
over. With no given warning, the officer quickly wrote him a ticket for riding on the wrong side of the road, Anderson said. After the ticket was written, the officer went on to cite other cyclists breaking laws in the area. A higher level of bicycle law enforcement by the police could be due to complaints by the campus community, said University Police Department Sgt. Corinne Beck.
Increased prevalence of bicycle citations may also have to do with the weather, said Sgt. Rob Merrifield of the Chico Police Department. When the weather gets warmer, more people ride their bikes and more officers are on patrol. Many times, the offending party is given a warning with a first bicycle offense, but it is up to the officer’s discretion whether or not to give a citation, Beck said. Offenders who get off with a warning usually get ticketed on their second offense, she said. These citations are given out to keep the campus community members safe, Beck said. Reckless cyclists have struck many
pedestrians and vehicles, and years ago a woman died in a bicycle collision. “I’ve had someone collide with my patrol car with a bike,” Beck said. Some of the most common bicycle citations handed out in Chico are for riding on the wrong side of the road, not stopping at signals or stop signs and riding on the sidewalk, Merrifield said. An important thing to remember is that bicycles are subject to the same rules as cars. “If you wouldn’t do it in a car, don’t do it on a bike,” he said. When night falls, additional rules for cycling include >> please see OFFENSES | A5
Source: Chico State news
After defeating 30 other universities in the Pacific Northwest Region of the International Collegiate Programming Contest, Chico State’s programming team trained to compete in the world finals, scheduled to take place Feb. 27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Then revolution intervened. When a series of protests began against the authoritarian regime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak Jan. 25, the programming competition had to be postponed, said AbdelMoaty Fayek, the Egyptian-American coach of Chico State’s programming team. “We were disappointed, of course, because the kids were excited about going to Egypt,” Fayek said. “But I wouldn’t take them anywhere where there’s a slight chance of risk.” The team would have stayed in a hotel next door to a resort where Mubarak is currently staying if the competition had not been postponed, Fayek said. Chico State’s team will still have the opportunity to test their programming abilities in another location, however, said Orlando Madrigal, a former Chico State department chair of computer science and current administrator of the IBM-sponsored competition. The world finals of the ICPC have been tentatively relocated to St. Petersburg, Russia. Madrigal helped start the ICPC competition in 1977, with six other department chairs across the United States, making Chico State >> please see COMPETITION | A6
New streetlights near WREC area Dario Gut STAFF WRITER
Students using the Wildcat Recreation Center on West First Street can soon breathe easy when walking home, knowing there will be a new set of streetlights guiding their path. The new streetlights will brighten campus, focusing mainly on West First and Orange streets near the WREC and possibly continuing along the parking structure, said Matt Thomas, chair for the university’s Public Safety Advisory Committee. Thomas conducts a moonlight safety walk every year in October with about 65 students and faculty to investigate lighting around campus, looking mainly for safety concerns, he said. “We look to see if there are any lights out or overgrown bush covering up light,” Thomas said. With nine bridges stretching across campus >> please see LIGHTS | A2
The Bike Cart will be celebrating its grand opening for its second location between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. Feb. 14 — 17 on West Fourth and Cherry streets. Those who stop by will be given a ticket for a free raffle for the end of the week with prizes such as a bike, tuneups, tubes and more. Specials on repairs will be available only at the second location. Source: Campus Announcements
INDEX >>
INSIDE >>
World News
A2
Directories
B5
Police Blotter
A4
Arts
C1
The_Webz
A6
Daily Dose
C5
Opinion
A8
Features
D1
Sports
B1
The Nebula
D4
Opinion
TODAY
52 35
high low
full week A2 >>
Fashionable fools forget about function — their “pants” don’t quite fit Story A9
Features Use martial arts and other self defense techniques to protect yourself against attackers Story D1
Arts Expendables to rock Senator Friday and show off surf-reggae vibes Story C2