Optimist the
Vol. 98, No. 42
Roll Out the Carpet
PAGE 5 1 section, 8 pages
Friday, March 5, 2010
BREAKING NEWS, VIDEOS, PHOTOS, DISCUSSION AND EXCLUSIVE CONTENT
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ADMINISTRATION
Tuition to increase by 12 percent Colter Hettich
residence, meal plans and other expenses. Editor in Chief Dr. Jean-Noel Thompson, dean of students and Tuition rates will rise 12 vice president of Student percent in the fall, bringing the cost of a credit Life, addressed the first hour to $717. A 15-hour question on many students’ semester will cost students minds: Where will this ad$10,755, plus fees, books, ditional revenue go?
The unusually high rise in tuition comes after several cutbacks on the university’s part. Faculty and staff did not receive raises this year and administrators have not received raises in two years – a pattern Buck James, assistant vice
president for enrollment management, said “cannot continue indefinitely.” “And we put off approximately $1 million of deferred payments [last year] because of what was happening with the economy, and you can’t do that
forever,” James said. Thompson said the issue is not unique to ACU, and the university has done its best to reexamine its policies with only the interests of the students and the future of the university in mind.
NATIONAL
“Even with the endowment and gifts, those are significantly down around the world,” Thompson said. “We have complete restructured and are being much more aggressive in our fundraising.” see TUITION page 4
RESEARCH
Speech students’ strengths unique
When It Counts
Christianna Lewis Contributing Reporter ACU students have become more idealistic and people-oriented in recent years, according to freshman personality testing. But a new study shows speech pathology students are moving in the opposite direction. Dr. Terry Baggs, assistant professor of communication sciences and disorders, has compared the personality types of about 300 communication disorders students from several universities, including ACU, between 20062009. He compared his results with those of a similar study conducted 30 years ago. The contrast was stark. Both studies used the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator to evaluate the personalities of communication disorder students. This indicator identifies four opposite pairs of personality
Uncle Sam wants you ... to help him get a head count. Ben Warton Contributing Reporter For the first time in ACU’s history, the U.S. Census Bureau is partnering with ACU in an effort to get an accurate count of the nation’s population in 2010. Census questionnaires are being sent to off-campus students March 15 and in April to students living on campus. Student involvement in the census is normally low, said Anna Perrey, administrative coordinator for Student Life and census project manager. “Colleges are generally harder to keep track of because students don’t know that they should fill out the forms,” Perrey said. “They think it is something their parents do because they live with them.” The goal of the census is to take a snapshot of the population at the time the questionnaires are gathered. The Census Bureau wants to know where every person is located at a specific time, regardless of whom they live with when they aren’t in school. ACU was chosen to help raise awareness of this process and to get as many students to participate as possible, Perrey said. Faculty and staff are also asked to participate through campus activities, classroom discussion and some speaking engagements. March 8-12 has been dubbed “Census Week,” during which a booth will be set up in the McGlothlin Campus Center from 11:30-2 p.m. every day. Students will be handing out pamphlets and brochures to inform students further about the census, Perrey said. In addition to Census Week, a booth will be set up when it is time to return census questionnaires. Students who return their questionnaires to this booth in the Campus Center will be entered in a drawing for a Chili’s gift certificate.
see TEST page 4
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
ACADEMICS
Core Curriculum revised Congress amends policies Chelsea Hackney Copy Editor Incoming freshmen are facing some significant changes this fall, not least of which is a revamped Core Curriculum. Faculty voted last week to add two courses to the Core, as well as create a new minor in Digital Entertainment Technology. “Fundamentally, it means there is a wide level of support for the new Core classes,” said Dr. Gregory
Straughn, interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “In making this move, ACU maintains its place as an innovative leader in higher education.” Core 110: Cornerstone will be a class for first-semester freshmen; Straughn said the main goal of the class is for students to learn how to fully engage in the college experience. Students will address questions such as see VOTE page 3
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Colter Hettich
QUICK FACTS The Faculty Senate voted to approve several additions to the Core Curriculum. The new courses will be offered beginning Fall 2010. Core 110 n Approved: 89 n Not approved: 24 Core 120 n Approved: 86 n Not approved: 27 Digital Entertainment Technology n Approved: 86 n Not approved: 27 n Abstained: 1
Editor in Chief When tuition increases next year, students can rest assured the salaries of Students’ Association officers will not follow suit. Wage freezes for SA officers were among a laundry list of amendments approved by Congress on Feb. 25. Amendments to bylaws and rules of order need only the approval of Congress, but constitutional amendments must be ratified by
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the student body. Students will have the opportunity to vote on the proposed amendments sometime in the next few days. Tony Godfrey, SA vice president, said the organization does not expect a budget increase any time soon, and to follow the precedent of increasing salaries as tuition increases would allow officers to pocket valuable funds. He said the unlikelihood of ACU staff receiving any wage increase contributed
to the decision. “The whole reason we do this is to divert money back to the students and help students do whatever it is they want to do,” Godfrey said. “And SA shouldn’t be unique from any other department in this area.” The proposed amendments include a process for impeachment, which students must ratify before they take effect. The controversial impeachment of SA see AMENDMENT page 4
Online
IN TRIPLE OVERTIME the Wildcats lost the lead and their hopes of an LSC championship. Get details on the technical foul that cost them the game.
EVENINGS WITH ROYCE and Pam begin in Grapevine at the Gaylord Texan on March 23. The Moneys will end their tour with a dinner in Abilene on May 20.
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LOUDandCLEAR
VIDEO
Do you have a ‘Lost’ theory? a. Yes, the black smoke is ... b. No, they’re making it up as they go. c. Don’t even talk to me about that stupid show. Rocketboys Return
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