CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, LONG BEACH
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VOL. LXVIX, ISSUE 57 | MARCH 7, 2018
49er
COMMUNITY
TUITION
CSULB makes cents Low average student debt after graduation helps university’s ranking. By Jessica Jacobs Staff Writer
While the average student may be bombarded with issues of crowded parking and rising tuition on a daily basis, there seems to be a silver lining in attending school at the Beach. Cal State Long Beach was ranked 70th nationally on Kiplinger’s Best Values in Public Colleges Feb. 21. The university’s place among the top 100 public colleges was based on objective measurements of academic quality and affordability. “We are always proud to be included in Kiplinger’s rankings,” President Jane Close Conoley said in a press release. “This listing further underscores the fact that our graduates receive a world-class education, and that they do so without shouldering many of the financial burdens that other college students face today. I am pleased that the results of focusing on opportunity
and access are recognized.” A notable feature that helped the university place on the list is a low average student debt after graduation. According to Kiplinger’s list, the university’s best value is its average debt after college, $15,165, a number lower than most of the ranked public college. Overall, the university ranked among other public schools, private schools, private universities and private liberal arts colleges. “Our rankings, which weigh affordability alongside academic quality, are a great resource for students and their parents when sorting through college choices,” said Mark Solheim, editor of Kiplinger’s magazine, in a press release. “We start with a universe of nearly 1,200 schools. We then rank [them] based on cost and financial aid data.” The Kiplinger organization has been around since 1920 and has developed its focus on personal finance and business forecasting. It was founded by W.M. Kiplinger and is known as the “most widely read business forecasting periodical in the world,” according to Kiplinger’s website. see VALUE, page 2
Only eight California universities rank on Kiplinger’s Best Values in Public Colleges list, but where does each one place?
Locals only With increasing applicants and shrinking enrollment, community colleges and high schools question the accessibility of Cal State Long Beach.
#5 UC Berkeley #6 UCLA
By Hunter Lee and Matt Anderson Staff Writers
#20 UC San Diego #22 University of Santa Barbara #26 UC Irvine #27 Cal State San Luis Obispo
#70 Cal State Long Beach #87 San Diego State
Since the university has continuously broken its application record each year, a growing concern among prospective students is whether acceptance will become increasingly difficult. In 2016, Long Beach sent out a record 36,000 rejection letters, prompting President Jane Close Conoley to address the same issue of whether or not Long Beach was headed toward elite status, meaning it only accepts “the best and brightest” among students as opposed to accepting students based on geographic closeness. While acceptance into Long Beach has become increasingly difficult, Dhushy Sathianathan, vice provost of academic planning, said the school has maintained a mission of serving the local community. Sathianathan said he believes that the university’s goal of providing guaranteed acceptance for local students should serve as a role model to other California universities. “You can’t not serve your immediate region and just be an elite school,” Sathianathan said. “If you just want to be an elite school and not serve the community what function does it really have?” see ELITE, page 2
TREND
Gotta go faster Motorized skateboards and scooters are helping students get around campus quicker, but not everyone is on board. By Hannah Matt Staff Writer
At first glance, one might assume that the student zooming up West Campus Drive on a
skateboard is just really fit, but wait, they aren’t — they have a motor. Motorized skateboards and scooters are starting to zip down every sidewalk at Cal State Long Beach, changing the way students get around.
Walking from the pyramid to upper campus can add some serious time to the morning commute to class, which is prompting students to add torque to their boards. However, these devices are capable of going much faster than campus regulations permit, and have left some questioning the safety of the riders. Ravena Bailey is a freshman criminal justice major who received an electric scooter as a birthday present. “All of my classes are on upper campus, so it saves me
about 45 minutes of walking every day,” Bailey said. “My longest walk to class last semester was about 20 minutes. It was always hot and I would have to walk out of the way to avoid construction. Sometimes I would have to miss lunch just to get there on time, but now it only takes me about five minutes to get anywhere on campus.” According to the university skateboard policy, coasting desee MOTOR, page 2
There have been complaints stemming from people riding these devices in areas where they should not be riding. There have been collisions where a skateboard rider has been associated with the cause of the collision, which is due to negligence on the part of the rider.”
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Lt. Richard Goodwin, University Police