ACTING ON AIDS
D-FENSE
Lonely Planet, a play about a man in 1993 who has AIDS, took place at the Doudna Fine Arts Center Wednesday and will go through Saturday.
Defensive coordinator Kane Womack has experience in college football’s most elite conference, the Southeastern Conference.
PAGE 2
PAGE 8
Dai ly Eastern News
THE
W W W .D A I L YE A S TE R N N E W S. C O M
Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014
Moment of silence to recognize Sept. 11
FALL ENROLLMENT 12,000
VOL. 99 | NO. 14
“TELL THE TRUTH AND DON’T BE AFRAID”
11,630 STUDENTS 11,178 STUDENTS
By Lauren McQueen Staff Reporter | @DEN_News
11,000
10,417 STUDENTS
10,000
9,775 STUDENTS 8,913 STUDENTS
9,000
8,000
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
PAST FIVE YEARS GR APHIC BY ANTHONY C ATEZONE
Enrollment down 9 percent from last fall By Debby Hernandez Administration Editor | @DEN_News Eastern’s enrollment declined this fall semester by 862 students, which is about a nine percent decrease from last fall’s enrollment. A total of 8,913 students are currently enrolled, compared to last year’s 9,775 graduate and undergraduate students. Blair Lord, provost and vice president for academic affairs, said one of the factors affecting low enrollment is a decline of students interested in the teaching preparation programs, which Eastern has heavily depended on. “At one point, teacher prep counted for almost 40 percent of our undergraduate students,” Lord said. According to the university press release, the number of Illinois high school graduates was projected to fall by 6 percent.
While Eastern experienced a slight increase in incoming freshman last year, breaking a five-year trend, incoming freshman numbers are once again down. In fall 2014, numbers are down to 1,129 incoming freshman. In 2013 the number of incoming freshman went up to 1,311 from 1,279 in fall 2012. Lord said expectations were high during the recruiting season. “We were optimistic that new student enrollment would look more favorable,” he said. The number of overall freshman this year is 1,693 compared to last year’s total of 1,941, making it a decrease of 248. However, Lord said attitudes changed toward the end of the spring semester. “Our expectations are pretty much what we now see here,” he said. This year, Eastern is down 66 sopho-
mores, 149 juniors and 236 seniors. Additionally, the number of new transfer students is down by 50, while the number of graduate students is down by 155. According to the press release, state community college enrollment has declined by 9 percent. A decrease in students attending community college has affected the number of transferable students, Lord said. Lord said initiatives such as using financial aid to attract students have been used to help with enrollment. However, efforts have been jeopardized because of competing institutions. “We have diverted a lot of institutional resources towards financial aid, but so has everyone else,” he said. “Our ability to divert more is getting seriously stressed.”
ENROLLMENT, page 6
Faculty gives final ideas for president search By Braden Harp Staff Reporter | @DEN_News Faculty had the chance to voice their preferences to the Presidential Search Committee at a final search forum Wednesday. They brought attention to several concerns about the selection of a new president including where the candidate was from,
bringing a sense of camaraderie to the faculty, and helping the university improve their online academics. Roughly 20 faculty members poured into the Charleston-Mattoon room to speak up about issues facing the campus as well as what type of person the potential president should be. Mo s t o f t h e m e m b e r s i n a t t e n d a n c e
agreed the president filling Bill Perry’s shoes should help university employees develop a strong sense of fellowship. History professor Bailey Young said his fellow faculty members will be more likely to continue going beyond their job duties if the new president brings a sense of companionship. FACULTY, page 6
The Military Student Assistance Center is spending the day Thursday commemorating the events that happened on Sept. 11, 2001. The MSAC will be displaying a memorial consisting of pictures, posters, videos and stories from the terrorist attack in the Bridge Lounge of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union. The memorial will be starting at 7 a.m. Thursday, and will most likely be up until Friday. MSAC coordinator Scott Shaffer said it will be a simple program because of the fact that it is such a solemn day. Brandi Binder, an administrative assistant for the MSAC and the coordinator of the event, said at 7:46 a.m. CST there will be a nationwide moment of silence to remember the nearly 3,000 people who died in New York; Washington, D.C.; and Shanksville, Penn. 13 years ago. The moment of silence is being held at this time because the first plane struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center at 8:46 a.m. EST. “Everyone across the nation should give a moment of silence,” Binder said. Along with the memorial, the clock tower on the south side of Booth Library will be playing “God Bless the U.S.A.” every hour on the hour, starting at 11 a.m. and ending at 8 p.m. In December 2001, President George W. Bush signed into law the designated Patriot Day, to take place annually on Sept. 11. The purpose of Patriot Day is to remember, mourn and respect the people who were injured or died during the act of terrorism. Patriot Day is not a federal holiday, but instead is a national observance. In 2009, President Barack Obama declared the observance as a recognized National Day of Service and Remembrance. American flags will be flown at half-staff at all U.S. government buildings across the country. Across the nation, the event is remembered with parades, prayer vigils, special church services, and military and political events among others. Binder said she thinks this is an event that will still be commemorated for many years in the future. “Even if you’re not old enough to remember it, you still should know about it,” Binder said. “It’s a part of American history.” This is the second year the MSAC has put together this memorial. Binder said being educated about the events that happened is important. “History repeats itself,” she said. She said she thinks the more educated people are, the less likely something similar will happen again. At Eastern, the main purpose of the commemoration is to make people aware, Binder said. “We have 300 some students here who have served in the military, are currently serving in the military, or are veterans’ children, so it’s a tribute to them as well,” Binder said. The ROTC students will be participating in the moment of silence. Binder said the ROTC is very supportive of the MSAC’s events, and the ROTC works with the MSAC on many other projects as well. This is just one of the events the MSAC will be doing to honor the military this year. Lauren McQueen can be reached at 581-2812 or lnmqueen@eiu.edu.