Feb. 11, 2016

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DOWN BUT NOT OUT: MEN’S BASKETBALL ENDURE INJURY OF KEY PLAYER

SPORTS Pg. 7

NEON arts district Region in downtown Norfolk showcases murals by local artists. THE WEEKENDER page 10

THE MARLIN CHRONICLE THURSDAY 2.11.16 || MARLINCHRONICLE.VWC.EDU ||

VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE

Hoverboards and drones banned on campus amid safety concerns VWC joins other colleges in prohibiting devices due to fire hazard and other risks, despite having previously acquired a drone

Kayla Skeete| Marlin Chronicle The tiny flying drone owned by the college sits awaiting takeoff on a tabletop in the Batten Student Center. BY ASHLEY KLINE aakline@vwc.edu

According to an email sent out on Jan. 13 by Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Keith Moore, a ban was placed on drones and hoverboards on campus. As stated in the email, the ban on drones and other devices that fly via remote control was instituted due to new Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations. The new FAA regulations prohibit the use of drones and

other related devices in areas within close proximity to airports. Campus is located only five miles from Norfolk International Airport. The ban on hoverboards was placed to ensure student safety, since they have been deemed a fire hazard. Across the country, reports of injuries resulting from hoverboard use have been documented. “Students’ health and safety governed

the way we approached the policy regarding hoverboards and drones. Hoverboards specifically were deemed a fire hazard, and subsequently most of them were pulled off of amazon.com. Given that they were a fire hazard, we simply felt it would be best until better information came out about their safety,” Moore said. Schools across the country are beginning to institute similar bans.

“Given that most institutions across the country have or were in the process of creating a policy regarding hoverboards to include our ODAC schools and the schools in the commonwealth and local public schools to include Old Dominion, we thought it would be best to follow suit,” Moore said. Virginia Wesleyan administration also contacted outside sources to aid in making the decision to ban the hoverboards. “We even contacted our own insurance company as well as looked at what other carriers were doing that are specific to higher education and they were also encouraging schools to put a policy in place to ban hoverboards on college campuses,” Moore said. As it pertains to drones, Moore said the FAA requires that all drones be registered. All owners must also contact air traffic control and gain permission to fly their drones. This is due to our close proximity to Norfolk International Airport. Clearly the process of being able to legally fly a drone in the Virginia Beach area is a long and complicated one. In the case someone uses one of the banned items on campus, Moore said the school would first request the individual remove their drone or hoverboard from campus. All other disciplinary procedures, if any were required, would vary from case to case depending on the circumstances. There have been no problems with drone or hoverboard usage thus far.

SEE BAN Pg. 2

Adjunct availability a priority for students BY BECCA LAZZERI ralazzeri@vwc.edu

Virginia Wesleyan students fear pedagogic disadvantages when registering for classes with part-time or adjunct professors. A handful of adjunct professors teach for almost every major offered at Virginia Wesleyan. Adjunct professors teach classes part time and are generally involved with other colleges or universities in the area, or are invested in some sort of research that deals with their academic discipline. At most universities, adjunct professors are uninvolved and distant from the campus. They do not receive the same benefits or salary, and therefore are not held to the same standard as full-time faculty. At VWC, our administration boasts of the personal relationships that students will form with their professors in their four years as Marlins. This however does not always apply with adjuncts. “This college preaches maintaining a relationship with professors. With adjunct professors, this is harder to do. When you have adjuncts, it puts a gap in your learning capabilities,” senior Kwame Harris said. Harris is majoring in Business, which has more full-time professors than most majors at VWC. During each campus tour given by Wesleyan Ambassadors, student tour guides stop outside of Vice President for Academic Affairs Timothy O’Rourke’s office to present the curriculum written by VWC faculty. Each of the books on display was either written, coauthored or edited by one of VWC’s professors. Ninety percent of the professors at Virginia Wesleyan College have a terminal degree in their field. The sign reads ‘These are the people who will be teaching your classes and writing your

recommendations!’ These relationships, however, are more common with full-time faculty. Adjuncts are not as well-known on campus, and are less available to students. By the time students reach 300 and 400 level classes, they are so well acquainted with the faculty within their academic discipline that they are able to avoid adjunct professors altogether. “Most adjuncts are hired because of their specialty that no one currently on faculty has,” professor of philosophy Dr. Hultgren said. “They are teaching something that is unique to their skill set. In order for us to hire them, they have to meet the same stan-

dard or bring some sort of unique experience.” Hultgren said the adjunct professors offer very unique insights to students that full-time faculty may be lacking. Forbes magazine wrote about adjunct professors, “What’s more, poor salary and benefits are the proverbial tip of the iceberg. Unhappy, underpaid, overworked and sometimes under- or differently-qualified instructors provide less-than-ideal instruction.” According to Forbes, in 1975, 30 percent of college faculty were part time. By 2011, 51 percent of college faculty were part-time. At VWC, as of 2014, only 20

percent of classes are taught by part-time or adjunct professors. According to the VWC fact sheet, the most popular majors at VWC as of 2015 are Business, Education, Biology, Criminal Justice, Recreation & Leisure and Communication. Many of these fields have a significant amount of adjunct professors to help lighten the workload of full-time faculty. Although the business program has eight full-time faculty and three adjunct professors, adjunct professors outweigh full-time professors in the education

INSTRUCTORS AT VWC IN THE SIX MOST POPULAR MAJORS 23 Adjunct/parttime/staff instructors 44% 29 Full-time faculty 56%

Infographic by Sarah Antozzi

SEE ADJUNCT Pg. 2

To read about the humanitarian cross-country trek of political science adjunct professor Wayne Lavender, see page 3 in Community


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Feb. 11, 2016 by The Marlin Chronicle - Issuu