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Independent Collegian IC The
Monday, June 18, 2012
Serving the University of Toledo since 1919
www.IndependentCollegian.com 93rd year Summer Issue 2
Proposed budget includes tuition hikes “
By Danielle Gamble News Editor
Tuition rates will increase 3.5 percent for undergraduates and graduate students if President Lloyd Jacobs’ recommended budget is accepted by the Board of Trustees today. This increase meets Ohio’s tuition cap, which mandates public colleges and universities cannot raise undergraduate tuition and mandatory
fees more than 3.5 percent. Tuition for those in PharmD, Medical Doctorate, Doctor of Nursing Practice, and Law programs, as well as out-of-state surcharges for Law students, will increase 4 percent. Also, scholarships will be cut by about $69,000 due to a projected decline in enrollment. President Lloyd Jacobs said this was due to a $7.6 million decrease in state funding and
The cost of higher education has risen too high and too rapidly in our country.
Lloyd Jacobs President, University of Toledo
”
in order to adjust for inflation. Jacobs said while the university tried to reduce student bills by with projects like the restructuring of dining services, they must maintain a certain standard for students. “For those that would say this is unfair, I would agree with them, absolutely,” Jacobs said. “This is the product of a larger issue. The cost of higher education has risen too high and too
Possibly stubbed out
rapidly in our country.” According to the College Board’s 2011 report on the price of higher education, average tuition rates for a four-year college have risen at an average of 5.6 percent a year since 2001. Despite the price increase, Jacobs said UT is still “the best education bargain in the country.” — Tuition, Page A2
TPD offers advice after alleged robbery By Veralucia Mendoza IC Staff Writer
Vincent D. Scebbi/ IC
Gary Gorton, a senior majoring in music education, takes a drag of his cigarette in the designated tobacco use area near Dowd, Nash and White Halls. Gorton said he believes should a statewide smoking ban in public universities is implimented, less students would smoke.
Statewide smoking ban for public institutions to be proposed to Board of Regents By Danielle Gamble News Editor
The Ohio Board of Regents will vote on a resolution this month that would urge a ban on tobacco use at the state’s 23 community colleges and 14 universities. Supporters of the proposed
tobacco prohibition include Board of Regents Chancellor and former Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro. President Lloyd Jacobs has remained neutral. Some smokers, like senior music education major Gary Gorton, are unfazed by the
idea of UT imposing a ban. Gorton, a pack-a-day smoker, said he agrees with the health-conscious attitude behind the resolution, but he believes lack of enforcement will continue to encourage policy-breaking. “I can say that this will serve
as a nuisance, but nothing more,” Gorton said. “I learned to like the atmosphere of a smoke-free restaurant, and I can learn to appreciate a smoke-free campus.” However, Gorton said equating a smoke-free environment with a clean one
might be an exaggeration. “The risks associated with secondhand smoke from a passing smoker while outside are insignificant compared to other air pollutants, especially in this area,” Gorton said. — Smoking ban, Page A2
Students to have more flexibility to customize degrees By Danielle Gamble News Editor
Administrators, deans and faculty are developing a new program structure to help students reach across colleges to personalize their degrees. These structures, called “schools,” ask colleges to collaborate and build programs that will “create new degrees to solve new problems,” according to Ben Pryor, vice provost of academic program development. Pryor said the best example of this structure is the School of Green Chemistry and Engineering, a program that formed last summer. “Green chemistry combines classes from engineering and
chemistry mixed with tools from the College of Business [and Innovation.] It teaches students how to work with cheaper materials and how to create less wasteful ways of production. If we can cut the waste of companies, we can help the environment.” Pryor said the SGCE is the most developed of all current schools and should be fully functional with catalogue offerings by fall of 2013. “Older degree programs don’t respond to some of the newer, more relevant issues we face now,” Pryor said. “New problems require new approaches to curriculum.” In relation to the current administrative layout, Pryor
describes the idea of schools as “orthogonal.” “In relation to colleges and departments, schools leap off the page, almost perpendicular to the system structure,” Pryor said. “Schools foster relationships between colleges, departments, and other schools.” Pryor said current plans predict the creation of 5 to 10 schools, but that amount is only limited by the creativity of students. “We want to let administrative structure support faculty and student collaboration rather than the other way around. Our goal is to respond in a sensible way with relevance to new problems
— we need to see what the world needs.” While cross-college deans and faculty will be the driving force behind school creations, Pryor said he will collaborate with the Office of the President to oversee the development of these projects. Other institutions like Arizona State University and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University have similar programs in place, and Pryor said UT hopes to raise the bar of this new form of cooperation. “Schools are really a way of raising visibility of projects on an international scale.” Pryor said every school must have a business plan
that will keep the program sustainable, including ideas for grants or state contracts. While the university may give schools “start-up money,” or hire faculty for the school, Pryor said it is important that each school be able to support itself. Pryor said other ideas include a School of New Media Studies, School of Information Technology and even a School of Humanities. “Schools are bringing us together to do new things,” Pryor said. “People may think we’re replacing colleges or departments, but we’re really building on something. We’re leveraging our strengths.”
In the wake of a case in which a UT student was charged with robbing four fellow students in their Dorr Street apartment, the IC asked the Toledo Police Department for tips students can follow to stay safe. Police say two men, including Cassious Cook, 20, of Dayton allegedly entered the students’ apartment around 2:30 a.m. Saturday, May 5, through a back door that was left unlocked. Cook allegedly held the victims up at gunpoint and ordered them on the floor. After collecting several laptops, cell phones, wallets, a 40 inch LCD TV and a PlayStation 3 game console with controls and games, Cook allegedly ordered the victims into the bathroom and told them to turn off the lights, according to the police report. Cook was caught when the victims chased down his car and flagged down an Ottawa Hills patrol car to assist. He was arrested and later charged with aggravated burglary. There have been no updates on the other suspect. These are safety tips provided by Sgt. Joseph Heffernan of the Toledo Police Department. • Be watchful and careful of where you are, where you are going and who you are with. Heffernan said if students are more watchful of unlocked apartment and car doors, and of what time of night they are out, they can significantly reduce their chances of being attacked. Would-be criminals will target people and areas where the least amount of effort is required to commit a crime, he said. • If you are the victim of a robbery, Heffernan advises not fighting back and simply giving the person what they are asking for. “Personal belongings can be replaced and are not worth getting hurt over,” he said. • Although it’s stressful to be in that position, it’s important to focus on something that stands out about the perpetrator, Heffernan said. Look for hair styles, facial hair and clothing, and try to remember a detailed description of the person so they can be easily identified by the police. • If you are directly threatened with violence and need to fight back, Heffernan said biting the attacker will cause involuntary release of their grip. He advises women to scream and talk while they are fighting, in case someone overhears and comes to help. Also, talking helps with breathing which allows a person to be more alert. Finally, if these things do not work, he advises going limp and allowing the body to become deadweight because a relaxed body is harder to move.