1,800 More Tickets for Snoop Dogg Oct. 15, Noon osa.uark.edu PAGE 1 WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2010
Vol. 105, NO. 9
Confused to the Core
UATRAV.COM
by KRISTEN COPPOLA Staff Writer
Students in Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences may soon be experiencing changes in their required course load. Faculty in Fulbright will vote to change the core requirements Thursday, Oct. 14. If passed, the core would shrink from 66 credit hours to the same 35 credit hour core accepted by the rest of the colleges within the UA. These potential changes are raising varied reactions not only among the faculty and students, but also among state legislators. The reason the curriculum change is drawing so much attention from outside the university is because of state legislation known as Act 182, which was passed in the 2009 session. The act, also known as the Roger Phillips Transfer Act, will allow students who transfer into a four-year institution with an associate’s degree to fully apply the courses toward a bachelor’s degree. The controversy centers around the differing interpretations of Act 182 by officials at the university, who feel that the act mandates changes to the core, and state legislators, most notably Sue Madison, who believes that changes in Fulbright core and the act are completely separate. “It’s to provide that seamless transfer,” Madison said, “I’ve been very vocal on this issue because memoranda keep coming out from the university that say, ‘We have to do this because of Act 182. We have to change our core in Fulbright College.’” “There’s core revision; there’s state mandate, and then there’s how we deal with that,” explained Sharon Gaber, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, about why the act requires change to the core. “Act 182 says you can’t require a student coming from a two-year school into a four-year school to take additional lower-division credit hour courses.” A main subject of turmoil is subsection C of the act, which states that it “does not remove the requirement that a transfer student must meet total baccalaureate degree program credit hour and course requirements.” “That section C means students still have to meet the degree credit
Confusion about state legislation regarding the core graduation requirements in Fulbright College has created friction between UA officials and state representatives. Sen. Sue Madison contends that Act 182 does not require the core to be changed, but some members of the Fulbright College think differently, fearful that a reduced core would compromise the overall quality of education. Photo Illustration Photo by Maggie Carroll
see CORE on page 5
Nuclear Plant Draining UA Funds by SABA NASEEM Staff Writer
Although the Southwest Experimental Fast-Oxide Reactor (SEFOR) has been deactivated since 1972, the University of Arkansas continues to pay anywhere from $25 to $50,000 a year to maintain the plant. The money comes from the overall university resources budget, said Mike Johnson, associate vice chancellor for facilities. The money is used to keep the plant intact, secure and is used for the salary of a parttime employee who keeps an eye on the area. SEFOR was constructed for the U.S. Atomic Energy
Commission in Strickler, Ark. in 1969 to test the feasibility of breeder reactors in the production of electricity. “It was a pilot test facility to demonstrate whether liquid metal could be used for power generation,” Johnson said. The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, General Electric, European nuclear agencies and 17 independent electric companies built this plant, where the experiment was conducted until 1972. It was then deactivated and given to the University of Arkansas in 1975. “At the time, it was thought by people in the university that the reactor
could be used for teaching purposes for students studying nuclear engineering,” said Dennis Brewer, associate vice provost for research and economic development. “As far as I know, it was never used for that purpose and has no purpose now.” Despite having “no purpose”, the UA still maintains the plant. “I think its good stewardship from the university,” Johnson said. “We do not want it to become contaminated.” Although radioactive material was removed from the site, it still contains residual radiation and chemicals. This radiation, however,
is contained and does not pose a health risk to the population around the plant, said Jared Thompson, program manager for the radioactive material at the Arkansas health department. The health department makes sure that the site stays contained. Once decommissioning begins, their job is to oversee the site and make sure all materials are handled safely and within federal regulations, he said. The UA has proposed a $26 million plan to the Department of Energy for
by MIKE ROACH
advance, and are paid for by tickets sold to the general public, as well as a student fee per credit hour that is included in tuition. The increase in enrollment this year means that there is more money available to the committee to bring in even bigger acts. “There’s definitely a little more money in the pool to bring an act like Snoop Dogg,” Flanagin said. “But in the scheme of things he wasn’t any more expensive than The Foo Fighters, or anyone else that we’ve brought.” “It takes a whole lot more to put on a show than what people think,” Flanagin said. “Let’s say we brought Snoop Dogg in and paid him $100,000. If he doesn’t bring his own mikes, stage and security and all of
Snoop Dogg Coming to Barnhill Staff Writer
Courtesy Photo Rapper Snoop Dogg will take the stage in Barnhill Arena Oct. 24 at 8 p.m. for this year’s fall concert, put on by the Headliner Concert Committee. The 5,000 free student tickets were all claimed within about four hours of their release.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2010 VOL. 105, NO.9 UATRAV.COM
see SEFOR on page 3
Ben Flowers Contributing Photographer SEFOR, Southwest Experimental Fast Oxide Reactor in nearby Strickler has been owned by the University of Arkansas since 1975. The University continues to spend around $50,000 a year to maintain this facility, but hasn’t used it since 1986.
Every semester the Headliner Concerts Committee tries to bring a big name act to campus, and this semester is no different. Sunday, Oct. 24 students and non-students alike will have the opportunity to see Snoop Dogg at Barnhill Arena. “Headliner Concerts Committee is purely big-name headliner concerts,” said Scott Flanagin, director of communications and outreach for the division of student affairs. Started three years ago, the committee has brought acts such as The Foo Fighters, John Mayer, T.I., The Roots, Third Eye Blind and O.A.R. Concerts are free to students who procure tickets in
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that, okay well now you’ve got to also purchase all of that… There’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes.” Students wishing to get involved in the Headliner Concerts Committee can apply in the spring for the following school year. “Its work, people might think we get to go to the show for free but you may be running backstage, and never get to see the show,” Flanagin said.
For past concerts, students have had to get their tickets at the Arkansas Union, which led to people having to camp out the night before tickets were available. “We’re trying to find something that works a little bit bet-
see CONCERT on page 2