VOLUME 48 ISSUE 1
AGORA
October 6, 2005
MONROE COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Hurricane relief motivates campus, money raised for Katrina victims Jackie Pacheco Editor-in-Chief It wasn’t the largest hurricane the world had seen. It didn’t move the fastest. It didn’t even draw a significant amount of attention before it hit the United States. But when all was said and done, Hurricane Katrina had packed its punches, delivered its blows and 80 percent of New Orleans was reduced to a giant contaminated swimming pool. This hurricane became the nation’s deadliest natural disaster since the San Francisco earthquake of 1906. August 25, 2005 marked the first time Hurricane Katrina made its landfall as a Category 1 hurricane; skimming over Florida to start the death toll at 11. But a mandatory evacuation of Louisiana wouldn’t be declared until August 28, one day before the final assault. As predicted, Katrina reached Category 5 status with winds up to 175 m.p.h. and gusts at 215 m.p.h. And the rest is history.
People of the United States parked themselves in front of TV’s, eagerly tuned in to radios, scanned newspapers and fished around in their pockets for the $200 billion needed to rebuild the south. Millions of different donation stations were established across the United States, bringing a new hope, new opportunities, and a new sense of unity to American citizens. Members of Monroe County Community College’s (MCCC) staff have also started their own contributions for the people of New Orleans. Bonnie Boggs, director of respiratory therapy, challenged faculty members and administration to donate to the Red Cross. The staff responded, making a contribution of over $4,000. “I just asked them to give whatever they could. Everybody was happy to contribute and I’m very proud of the initiative they took. Some donated to the Red Cross on their own as well as contributing through the school,” Boggs said.
Agora photo courtesy of WWW.MSNBC.COM
Nothing was spared by Hurricane Katrina as the storm swept the Gulf Coast. Buildings were leveled, trees were uprooted and New Orleans was left under 20 feet of water.
Vicki LaValle, culinary arts technician, came up with the idea to donate the proceeds from the MCCC Blue Jeans Fridays (typically once a month). However, every Friday for the month of September became Blue Jean Fridays and the contributions
were sent to the hurricane victims. “I just felt so bad. There had to have been something we could do. The college staff is like a family. When there is somebody in need, everybody is willing to help out,” LaValle said.
Linda Kerste, wife of Dean Kerste, assistant professor of mechanical design technology, was one of three women from Monroe that went to New Orleans to volunteer help.
see “Katrina,” page 7
Renovations enhance MCCC campus Linda Whiteside Reporter The fall semester of 2006 has brought a lot of change to Monroe County Community College. Increased enrollment, a renovated Learning Assistance Lab/Writing Center, improved sidewalks, a new parking lot, and security cameras have greeted students. A record enrollment of 4,293 was recorded for the fall 2006 semester. “Last year was the highest enrollment we ever had, and that was several percentage points higher than the previous year. Our enrollment has been steadily increasing for the past four or five years,” Paul Shcmidt, registrar, said.
Inside:
He also pointed out some factors that influence enrollment. People training for a new job or switching careers, four year
new lot-including construction, landscaping and architecturecame to $5 million. The money came from MCCC’s maintenance and repair budget.
We said to ourselves why not just replace sections? So we went out and looked and tried to find the worst sections.
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Timothy Bennett, vice president of business affairs universities increasing tuition rates, and the ease with which MCCC credits transfer were some of them. Increased enrollment also meant a need for more parking spaces. The total cost for the
Opinion 2
Online community takeover Addicted to LiveJournal? My Space? Discover a couple reasons why you may be dealing with the addiction. (2)
Frog Leg Inn Curious about the changes in the cafeteria? Check out the new management and a new menu. (3)
H.K.P Architects designed the parking lot; and Joe Bryant and Sons Asphalt Paving Company Inc. did the construction. The parking lot was started last spring and took six months to complete.
Campus News 3
The school also started improving sidewalks around campus. Difficulty keeping up by replacing one block at a time and safety concerns were the major influences. “When you’ve replaced just one little block it makes the other two stress out. We said to ourselves why not just replace sections? So we went out and looked and tried to find the worst sections,” Timothy Bennett, vice president of business affairs. This process is expected to take four to five years. Delventhal Company was chosen to replace the sidewalks. The project’s total cost was $65,000. The Learning Assistance Lab and Writing Center both received
Feature 4-5
Upset with gas prices? Some students and staff members around campus have found ways to make traveling a little easier on the wallet. (4)
Triple threat What are the chances of having your mother and your daughter in a class? It’s a reality for student Pam Bezeau. (5)
a major overhaul during the summer. “Everything was removed,” said Cynthia S. Riedel, coordinator of the LAL. She said the increase of student population and disabled students led to campus recognition of student needs. The ultimate goal is to provide a center customized for all of these needs. Two testing areas have been added for students with disabilities. Students can also expect more confidentiality. “There is more privacy for students who may feel some kind of anxiety about being out in the open, especially when they’re reading papers out loud,”
see “campus,” page 7
A&E 6
Spotlight 8
Meet Tiffanie DeBartolo The breakout author of “How to Kill a Rock Star” and “God-Shaped Hole” sits down with one Agora reporter and talks about what makes her novels so popular. (6)
Bored between classes? See what other students do to keep busy during their down time. (8)