The News Record 4.8.13

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THE 132-YEAR-OLD AWARD-WINNING INDEPENDENT STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI

VOL. CXXXIII ISSUE LVVVVVVVVV

The News Record MONDAY | APRIL 8 | 2013

FREE - ADDITIONAL COPIES $1

Ono appointed to state financial board UC president to influence state funding for job growth, technology-based projects LANCE LAMBERT STAFF REPORTER NEWSRECORDNEWS@GMAIL.COM University of Cincinnati President Santa Ono now has influence over funding for innovation and job growth in Ohio, following his new appointment from the governor. Gov. John Kasich appointed Ono to serve as an advisory board member for Ohio Third Frontier — a technology-based economic development initiative that was created to help Ohio become competitive in the new century. Ono will serve on the 16-member board that oversees how funds for technology projects are allocated. He is one of five representatives from the higher education field on the board, while nine seats are for

business representatives and the other two are for Ohio House Speaker and Senate President. “I am very honored to have been appointed to the Third Frontier Advisory Board for Ohio by Governor John Kasich,” Ono said on Twitter Monday. Ono’s appointment could be beneficial for southwest Ohio, which has not received as much funding for projects as the rest of the state. As of 2012, the region was awarded $118 million for projects, while Third Frontier spent $1.1 billion statewide since being created. Third Frontier has invested in various local companies and organizations. Cintrifuse, an organization created to link entrepreneurs with businesses and research institutions, is one of the local companies

aided by Third Frontier. Cintrifuse also received $10 million from UC to support promising local startups. Ohio voters supported Third Frontier’s creation, allowing the state to issue bonds totaling $2.6 billion for its inception. Started under former Gov. Bob Taft, the group invested into projects for the Hamilton County Business Center and Cincinnati Children’s Computational Medicine Center. Ono will join Mark Peterson, director of Global Business Development at Procter & Gamble, as the only southwest Ohio members of the advisory board.

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STATE FUNDING Ono will serve as an advisory board member for Third Frontier.

Cincinnati sees decrease in bed bugs UC researchers survey population, data shows lower percentage of residents affected ALEXIS O’BRIEN SENIOR REPORTER NEWSRECORDNEWS@GMAIL.COM

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LAUREN PURKEY | PHOTO EDITOR

CONNECTION DISRUPTION The College of Arts & Sciences, CCM and DAAP currently offer no distance learning programs.

DISTANCE DISCONNECT Several UC colleges excel in distance programs, others lack services RYAN HOFFMAN NEWS EDITOR NEWSRECORDNEWS@GMAIL.COM Online degrees are a way for nontraditional students to get a college education, but students seeking an online degree at the University of Cincinnati may notice a lack of options in the College of Arts & Sciences. A&S, UC’s largest college, is one of four colleges to not offer any online programs, according to the 2012 UC Student Fact Book. College-Conservatory of Music, the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning, and the College of Law currently offer no online programs. “You might say that we’re playing catch up with some of the other colleges,” said Joanna Mitro, associate dean for undergraduate affairs. “But you have to realize those other colleges are professional colleges and a lot of their students are working adults.” The College of Nursing and the College of Education Criminal Justice and Human Services offer the largest number of online programs. “We saw this as where higher education was moving,” said Laura Dell, academic director of teacher licensure and online

learning in the school of education at UC. “It was not a what if, but a when.” Dell has worked in online higher education for 14 years. In that time, the number of online courses and programs at American universities has increased drastically, she said. Other UC colleges and universities from across the country typically come to CECH seeking advice for constructing online programs. “I actually met with officials from Louisiana State University, it makes us more marketable,” said Luahna Carter, associate director of criminal justice distance learning. Faculty members from A&S recently met with CECH officials to discuss their faculty member’s interaction with professors and online courses. “There hasn’t been a systematic transition and now the college is trying to put more programs online,” Mitro said. The psychology department in A&S is currently working to create an online program for the 2013 Fall semester. The college is also working on adding more online courses, including calculus. Several students have contacted A&S enquiring about online opportunities

within the college, Mitro said. Many students seeking an online degree are non-traditional students. “We offer a number of choices because our students appreciate the flexibility,” said Suzanne Perraud, associate dean for academic affairs in the College of Nursing. “It’s time to move beyond traditional teaching and I think many other colleges are getting involved.” The College of Nursing currently offers eight distance learning programs. The Nurse Midwifery and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner master’s degree programs all went online in 2005, Perraud said. The college offers programs online and hybrid courses that mix online and oncampus learning. “We’re finding that the hybrid courses are very popular,” Perraud said. CCM and DAAP both offer online courses, as does A&S, but offer no online programs. CCM currently offers two online courses and plans on adding five more for the 2013 Fall semester, said Curt Whitcare, public information officer for CCM. Officials from DAAP did not respond in time for publication. SEE LEARNING | 2

Cincinnati is no longer the bed bug capital of the world. A recent survey conducted by researchers from the University of Cincinnati shows a decrease in the number of Cincinnatians who had a problem with bed bugs in 2012. UC’s Institute for Policy Research measured the percentage of people with residential bed bugs in the past four years. The data shows the percentage of the city’s population that faced the pests went from 22 percent in 2009 to 15 percent in 2012. The Cincinnati Health Department believes the bed bug decline is due to public education efforts, and UC Housing and Food Services said residents haven’t found them to be a problem. “For the last three years, we have averaged about 75 reports per year, with 23 percent of the reports having confirmed bedbugs on inspection,” said Todd Duncan, UC housing director. Out of 4,000 on-campus residents, the percentage of students who have bed bugs is less than 0.5 percent annually. The Cincinnati Health Department blames the bed bug outbreak on increased international travel and the bugs’ growing resistance to pesticides. As an effort to lessen Cincinnati’s number of infestations, the department has distributed a series of brochures, fliers and public service announcements to the community since 2008. The materials tell how bed bugs spread, what should be done to limit their transmission, and how to best exterminate them. “We are one of the few cities in the nation to have actual population-based knowledge about the extent of the problem,” said Camille Jones, assistant health commissioner. “It is encouraging to know that our efforts are making a difference.” Though the bugs are not known to transmit disease, they can be an expensive nuisance and cause substantial embarrassment for those experiencing an infestation, Jones said. “The [department] will continue to be aggressive in our response to this very difficult problem,” Jones said.

Memorial fund created after student’s death Galley family partners with local organization to assist children with health needs BENJAMIN GOLDSCHMIDT CHIEF REPORTER NEWSRECORDNEWS@GMAIL.COM After a student from the University of Cincinnati died in a car accident Dec. 26, 2012, her family is partnering with a local organization to assist children with disabilities. The Jess Galley Memorial Fund was set up through Building Blocks for Kids, an organization that helps families pay for treatment and care of their children. Galley studied special education at UC, and the fund is meant to be something she would have wanted to contribute to, according to the organization. “We assist children who have a health related need who’s need is not met

elsewhere, so we are a last resort funding source for things like hearing aids, therapy services, minor home modifications, adapted vans, displacement costs to see a specialist out of your area, and many other things,” said Jenny Ensley, assistant director for BB4K, in an email. The memorial fund is almost at its $5,000 fundraising goal, and the Galley family chose the first recipient. Serena, an 8-year-old girl with William’s Syndrome — a degenerative disease causing low muscle tone, impaired motor skills, developmental delay and speech impairment — attends speech, occupational, physical and music therapies, and sees an urologist, optometrist, cardiologist and a developmental doctor on a regular basis.

Serena’s last name was not released due to BB4K’s privacy policy. Her family is from China, which creates language and cultural barriers, “making the already tedious and intimidating process of special education even more difficult,” according to BB4K. Serena’s family will be receiving anywhere from $1,800 to $3,000 to finance help from Inclusion Advocates, an organization that assists families navigate the special education system. BB4K raised $4,107 so far. In order to be eligible to receive money, children must be under the age of 18 and have ties to Cincinnati.

CHIEF.NEWSRECORD@GMAIL.COM | 513.556.5908

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IN REMEMBERANCE Jess Galley died in a car collision Dec. 26, 2012. Her family partnered with Building Blocks for Kids.


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