The Hawk Newspaper Steap and Grind
Reilly lifts Hawks over rival
Fishtown’s corner café, pouring tea from across the globe
Men’s soccer tramples Temple in victory
Sports, pg. 20
Saint Joseph’s University
9.18.13 Top NEWS
Health care hike
Features, pg. 12
Volume XCI
#HawkTalk Find out the buzz around campus in this week’s edition of #HawkTalk
Features,
pg. 12
Est. 1929
TOP STORY
University employees bear burden of increase Connie Lunanouva ’16 Hawk Staff
Cat Coyle ’16 News Editor
An increase in expected health care expenses has left Saint Joseph’s University employees fronting health care costs. On Aug. 5, St. Joe’s communicated to employees that they would be responsible for covering a six percent increase in budgeted health care premiums. Earlier that day, the Advisory Board on Faculty Compensation (ABFC), the Personnel Compensation Committee (PCC), and the Health Insurance Committee (HIC) met with Human Resources (HR) and the provost to be briefed on the budget change. At the meeting HR explained that the budget would increase from five percent to 11 percent, and that the university could not pay for the six percent oversight. Ken Weidner II, Ph.D., assistant professor of management and tenured assistant professors representative of ABFC, said that the ABFC had warned that the budgeted five percent would not be enough to cover the costs of health care. Joseph Lunardi, assistant vice president for marketing communications, said that the university simply would not be able to cover any costs more than those already allocated. The reason given to employees for the university’s inability to pay the oversight was that the administration wanted to keep tuition costs affordable. Catherine S. Murray, Ph.D., associate professor of psychology and co-chair of the ABFC, debated the impact that the university shouldering health costs would have had on tuition. “I don’t think any of us really saw that the money being spent on us was of such a magnitude that increasing it, however the amount, would really make the difference between affordable and unaffordable tuition or scholarship monies…” said Murray. “We weren’t talking about that much money!” continued HEALTH CARE, pg. 4
Students voice frustation with uncompensated labor
Photo by Shannon Adams ’16
The cost of the unpaid internship The controversy of working hard for no money Cat Coyle ’16 News Editor
W
hat is the difference between an unpaid intern and a volunteer? Students, employers, and legislators are beginning to question this as more and more participate in a large national dialogue on the current internship culture in the United States. Generally, internships are seen as a way to gain invaluable experience, skills, and networking to prepare students for their future careers, but when some students receive payment while interning and some do not, the rules of compensation are questioned. As the U.S. discusses the ethics of unpaid internships, one issue that has resounded in recent times of economic hardship is idea of social filtering. Because students are not working for pay, they must have some sort of financial stability in order to take
Kinney Center moves beyond advocacy Shelby Miller ’14 Features Editor
The unspoken happiness of a mother’s tears. The gratitude voiced in a father’s loss for words. The beaming smile on a child’s face when they finally feel accepted. These powerful expressions of hope seem distant to many families affected by an autism spectrum disorder. But for the families involved with the Kinney Center for Autism Education and Support at Saint Joseph’s University, such feelings have become as natural as breathing.
on an unpaid internship. This stability may stem from financially supportive parents or savings from previous work experience. Some interns are simply forced to work an additional paying job on top of their intern hours. Others decide that the experience gained through an internship, paid or not, is worth it. Trish Shafer, executive director of the Career Development Center at Saint Joseph’s University, says that this must be something thought out very carefully. “Students have to think about the more philosophical costs: what is the cost of not doing [the internship]?” said Shafer. “It’s going to cost me some money out of pocket, but this is exactly what I want to do, and I am networking…that’s when it’s worth it.”
In the Kinney Center’s Emmy award-winning promotional video, the raw emotions and unfiltered testimonials of parents are inspirational. Their shaking voices and the tears in their eyes not only express the pain of their journeys with autism, but also the relief of finding solace—finding an organization of people as invested and dedicated to their children as they are. A place where both support and education are paramount—a place like the Kinney Center. “We’re helping every person with autism that we can touch so they can have the opportunity to live their best life,” said Ryan Hammond, executive director of the Kinney Center. continued KINNEY, pg. 11
continued INTERNSHIPS, pg. 5