The BG News 01.25.13

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] THE BG NEWS [

DIVERSE PERSPECITVES Check out your FREE copy of THE OBSIDIAN, a multicultural student publication, inside today’s issue of The BG News.

ESTABLISHED 1920 | An independent student press serving the campus and surrounding community

Friday, January 25, 2013

VOLUME 92, ISSUE 59

e v a h u o y

one new [urgent] message Student government to vote on Alert BG proposal at next meeting By Eric Lagatta Assistant Campus Editor

BY THE NUMBERS

If there is an emergency on campus, it is natural to assume students would want to know, but most students aren’t even signed up for the text message system that would alert them. This is exactly what members of Undergraduate Student Government and Information Technology Services are looking to remedy through reforms to Alert BG. Alert BG is a text message and email alert system in which University Police send messages to warn the campus community of emergencies. The system emails all University account holders in the event of an emergency, said Matt Haschak, director of IT security and networking in the Department of Information Technology. The University homepage, Facebook page and Twitter account also change and 125 digital screens throughout campus also display the message. Students can also opt into a two-year subscription to receive Alert BG texts. Of a campus of more than 20,000, there are only 5,779 subscribers, which includes 1,000 faculty and staff, Haschak said. This is roughly one in four people. ITS is working with USG to find a way to make the text message program opt-out, meaning students would automatically be registered for Alert BG texts to their phone as early as fall semester. The plan would also allow for faculty and even students’ parents to sign up. “One of the things we’ve been seeing in general at the

4, 779 students are signed up 1, 000 faculty and staff are signed up

THE VOTE

USG is planning to vote on the issue at its 7:30 p.m. Monday meeting in the Union.

AIR YOUR THOUGHTS Let us know what you’re thinking by tweeting your thoughts at @The_BG_News

See ALERT | Page 2

WWW.BGNEWS.COM

FAFSA deadline approaching Applications are due by Feb. 15 By Erin Cox Social Media Editor

University students must file their Federal Application for Financial Student Aid by Feb. 15 to receive the maximum amount of federal financial aid possible. The limited funding for the Federal Perkins Loan, Federal Work Study and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant means not all students with the need will receive the funds from these three programs. Eric Bucks, associate director of Financial Aid, said Uncle Sam does not give the University enough funds to help all students who meet the need requirement. The Feb. 15 deadline prioritizes the FAFSA records received by the Student Financial Aid Office for those seeking funds from one of the three programs because of the extremely limited funds, Bucks said. Students not seeking aid from the Federal Perkins Loan, Federal Work Study or FSEOG can file the FAFSA at any time throughout the school year, but it is not required. Senior Allyson Wert said she has filed the FAFSA every year of her college career. “My family doesn’t get much, but we do it to try to get more money from grants and loans and I think one of my scholarships required it,” Wert said. Freshman Margaret Selzer said since her dad works at the University, she does not receive federal aid, but does fill out the FAFSA because she was told she still needed to. Bucks said more than half of University students file the FAFSA. “It’s not required that students do it, but for a lot, it’s a necessity,” Bucks said. Wert said she knows the FAFSA helps determine how much money each family gets and it is helpful for those who need financial aid in paying for school. “I think that since my brother was college age last year, we received more aid,” Wert said. All federal loans, federal Pell Grants and some scholarships require students to file the FAFSA in order to demonstrate need, Bucks said. Regardless of when students file the FAFSA, students are still eligible for the federal loans and Pell Grants, Bucks said. Both Selzer and Wert said they try to fill out the FAFSA by the priority deadline of Feb. 15. “It’s usually last minute, but we usually make the deadline,” Wert said. The 2011-2012 school year brought in 46,713 FAFSA records for the University. Bucks said this includes all potential students, which causes the total number to be more than the number of students enrolled in the University.

See FAFSA | Page 2

Ohio universities still adjusting after ZIGGABYTE REOPENS switching from quarters to semesters Transition was required to be finalized in fall 2012 By Geoff Burns Reporter

The state of Ohio required all of its colleges and universities on a quarter system to switch to semesters by the fall of 2012. The change was made in order for graduation rates to increase within the state and to help raise the percentage of adult Ohioans with a bachelor’s degree higher than the current 26 percent, which is 5 percentage points less than the national average, said Jeff Robinson, acting director for communications at the Ohio Board of Regents, by email. “Time and money are the enemies when it comes to students in school,” Robinson said. “When a student runs out of one or the other, he or she is less

FALCONS GROUNDED Despite leading early, BG fell short of Miami’s offensive spurts. In the end, the Falcons fell behind and were unable to catch back up. The final sore was 57-54. | PAGE 6

likely to finish school.” Dave Kielmeyer, senior director of communications, said the University has been on a semester system since the early 1980’s and knew it was the right way academically to begin with. “A semester system clearly has benefits and the University recognized it quite sometime ago,” Kielmeyer said. “The positives of a semester versus a quarter system still hold true today and the state of Ohio seems to agree.” More than 15 schools have made the transition, such as Wright State University, Ohio State University, Ohio University and the University of Cincinnati. Jeff Giesley, quarter to semester

See SEMESTER | Page 8

JUNIOR VICTOR Layton and Senior James Taylor enter in a prize raffle at Ziggabyte’s grand reopening Thursday night.

ONLINE LOVING

With the recent Manti Te’o controversy, students are talking about their experiences with online relationships and how to catch red flags. | PAGE 3

JUDGEMENT DAY

Forum Editor Matthew Thacker discusses a judge’s decision to make two teens meet the family whose driveway they allegedly vandalized. | PAGE 4

KATIE LOGSDON | THE BG NEWS

WOULD YOU EVER DATE SOMEONE THAT YOU HAD ONLY MET ONLINE? “No, because I watch Catfish!” Brittany Allen Freshman, Middle Childhood Education


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