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Penn State Beaver Roar
August 2011
News
The Bistro adds Starbucks Dan Trzcianka Senior Staff Writer
dvt5050@psu.edu
Students — most notably those who are returning to campus — will notice a change in the appearance of one of the more popular locations on campus come the fall semester: the Brodhead Bistro. For nearly five years, Jeremy Lindner, director of Housing and Food Services, pushed for renovations to the Bistro and finally received the green light for the project. Lindner said that there would be more variety in the displays, hoping to appeal to more students than in previous semesters. However, the director is much more excited about the newest addition to the Bistro: Starbucks coffee. “When I got here, I had an entirely different vision, and that included adding Starbucks,” Lindner said. “What took so long for the change was the contract with Seattle’s Best,” Lindner added. “Once that was up, I requested the contract with Starbucks.” Students buying coffee from the new Starbucks can expect a 10 percent discount on all purchases when they use LionCash or their meal plan. Lindner said that the money earned from the Bistro’s sales will help Housing and Food Services with things like better food and equipment. Sophomore Ashley Schoedel said that she
The Roar / Cathy Benscoter
Ben Kuchma, an employee of Espresso Solutions of Pittsburgh that services much of western Pennsylvania Starbucks, installs the new expresso machine in the bistro.
looks forward to seeing the changes in the Bistro. “I’m excited to see what kind of changes were done, like appearance and functionality,” Schoedel said. With good change comes bad change, however. Though the Bistro has received numerous
physical changes, the hours this academic year will be shortened, and the Bistro will close at 8 p.m. instead of 10 p.m. “We know that students are going to be disappointed,” Lindner said, “but we’ll have more frozen food options.” Sophomore Crystal Johnson said that she feels that students will be upset about the
shortened hours. “I mean, there will be more people at 8 p.m. to get their food, so there might be a little more business for the Bistro,” Johnson said. Among the plans for a greener campus, reusable plates and a hydration station were added to the Bistro, with a hydration station in the dorms, as well. The hydration station is a water fountain that can also refill water bottles. The station is EPA approved and tracks the number of bottles refilled. The hydration station was installed in early summer and employees have already begun using it. “Over the course of July [Housing and Food workers] saved 133 bottles from being dumped into a landfill somewhere,” Lindner said. Lindner said he’s proud of the improvements, particularly because Housing and Food Service employees did the renovations themselves. “We really hope that the students appreciate the changes with all the time and energy we put into this,” Lindner said. Though they hired an architect at one point, the employees did the work to improve the soup station, pizza station and other displays. Freshman Ryan Campbell said that he’s glad the Bistro is getting a facelift. “It’s some good stuff. I mean, I’m glad that there are some changes going around the campus, especially the Bistro.”
Despite state budget, tuition increase less than usual Don Ware IV Assignment Editor
dww5080@psu.edu
Penn State Beaver students will face a smaller-than-usual tuition increase of 2.9 percent this fall. It’s a smaller percentage increase than last year’s 3.9 percent hike. Students at the University Park campus will see a 3.9 percent increase this fall, which is also lower than last year’s 4.9 percent jump. The board of trustees approved the tuition hike in July, but not until after the state finalized a budget that cut the university’s state
allocation19 percent. The cut in state funding was actually a relief to some university administrators, since Gov. Tom Corbett proposed slashing Penn State’s allocation by more than 50 percent. The 2.9 percent increase equals about $400 for full time tuition compared to last year’s tuition rates, according to Daniel Pinchot, director of enrollment. “Given how much the state apportion was cut, I was pleasantly surprised that campus tuition only went up 2.9 percent,” Pinchot said. “I think that it’s not an unrea-
sonable increase,” said Junior Jim Bango. “The best thing about Penn State is how they handled the cuts,” freshman Kelsey Hovanec said. “They didn’t pass it on to the students through tuition.” According to Pinchot, Penn State has been working hard to trim costs, such as making the buildings more energy efficient. Other cost-saving measures include the elimination of low-enrolled majors and freezing faculty and staff salaries for the second time in three years. Keefer said that enrollment
growth over the past five years has brought more money to the campus to support improvements such as the new wellness center. According to Keefer. because of the increased revenue from enrollment growth, the campus will be able to weather the current cut in funds from the state allocation without any drastic cut to operations or staff. Even though Penn State is taking measures to reduce spending, it might not be enough. “Unless the state finds a way to start providing more funds to public higher education, tuition will
[continue to] go up,” said Pinchot. Keefer said he’s hopeful that the state will not try to slash Penn State’s appropriation again next year. “[We’re] all hoping that this has set a base that won’t go any lower,” said Keefer. Bango urged the university to do everything it can to keep tuition low. “It’s become so important that you have a degree to get ahead in life that the powers that be should try a little harder to keep tuition down,” said Bango. “You’ve got to pay the bill to go to school.”
August 2011
Penn State Beaver Roar
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News Police Beat
RAM stolen from computers Someone stole the RAM from two computers on campus. An Information Technology Services staff member reported to University Police May 27 that a 2 gigabyte stick of random access memory, commonly called RAM, had been taken from a computer in Room 102 Laboratory Classroom Building. Then on June 3, another Information Technology Services staffer reported to police that another computer in the same lab had RAM stolen from it as well. Officers have the names of some of the last computer users to log onto the computer and neighboring computers and are investigating.
Fire extinguisher set off in Harmony Hall
Jeremy Lindner, director of Housing and Food Services, told University Police April 24 that someone had discharged a fire extinguisher throughout the second floor hallway and men’s room throughout the previous night in Harmony Hall. Police did not file any charges.
Two guilty of stealing books Sophomore Jason Muhlberger of Beaver Falls was charged with theft on May 10 in relation to a stolen text book on April 29. Muhlberger agreed to enter the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program after pleading guilty. In a separate incident, freshman Antonio Robinson of Rochester agreed May 13 to enter the ARD program for two years
and pay $126.75 restitution. Robinson was charged with stealing two text books last December.
Harassing calls A Penn State Beaver employee told University Police June 20 that she was getting harassing phone calls from a caller claiming to be a federal law enforcement officer looking for an employee. The female employee said that she had hung up multiple times on the caller until he finally quit.
Paraphernalia results in probation Samuel Press of Pittsburgh, a former Penn State Beaver student, pleaded guilty to possession of drug paraphernalia April 19. Press will be on probation for six months and is to undergo counseling.
The Roar needs you. Become a reporter. Contact: Dan Pinchot dpinchot@psu.edu
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August 2011
Penn State Beaver Roar
News
Binge drinkers take five Group says men who take five drinks in a row and women who take four are binge drinkers Ashley Roznowski Staff Writer
arr5141@psu.edu
Senior Tony Houghton, 27, said he drinks one to two times a week. “I will drink around five mixed drinks at home and have six or more shots at the bars. I like liquor, I don’t really mess with beer.” “I usually pregame at my friends or at my house, then go out to the bars to save money. I prefer nightclubs. Dive bars just aren’t my thing,” Houghton said. But despite Houghton’s drinking habits, he does not consider himself a binge drinker. “No,” he said. “Hell no.” Like Houghton, most Penn State Beaver students who consume five or more drinks a night do not consider themselves binge drinkers. But according to Teens Health at kidshealth.org, the threshold for men is five drinks in a row, and for women, four drinks in a row. Kidshealth.org is run by the nonprofit Nemours Centers for Children’s Health Media, which provides statistics on binge drinking for educational purposes. Senior Gary Miller, 25, consumes between one and six drinks when he goes out, usually four to six times a week. Miller does not consider himself a binge drinker. “I can go without it and I do not drink to get drunk,” Miller said. “I rarely have more than six beers. I drink with friends to have a good time, not to get sick and throw up on my friends. ” Miller said he’s not like the alcoholics he knows. “I have complete control over the amount I consume and when to stop.” Minhnoi Wroble Biglan, former psychology faculty member, said students fail to stop binge drinking because they don’t recognize they have a problem. “It becomes a real problem when individuals binge because once
“ “
Photo Illustration by Dana Sklack
I most definitely did [binge drink] my freshman year of college.”
Elizabeth Hain, Senior
I know a few close friends that have dropped out of college due to drinking.”
they start to drink, they cannot stop drinking. If you cannot stop drinking before you become sick, then you generally have a problem with drinking alcohol,” said Wroble Biglan. “I know people who will continue to drink as long as alcohol continues to flow,” said Miller. “They drink daily, missing classes, tests and assignments. This has led them to academic failure in college, which is stupid to me.” As stated by Binge Drinking Statistics on learn-about-alcoholism.com, a site designed to help alcohol-abuse or dependence sufferers, binge drinkers do not have
Rachelle Eidenmiller, Benior
to drink every day. They do not even need to drink every week, though most studies show they consume about twice weekly. Senior Elizabeth Hain, 22, does not consider herself a binge drinker anymore. “I most definitely did [binge drink] my freshman year of college because this was where I was opened up to it the most,” Hain said. “I didn’t party in high school. Therefore, my freshman year and the following summer I went all out, to say the least.” One does not have to be addicted to be a binge drinker. Binge Drinking Statistics shows the prac-
tice peaking between the ages of 18 and 22, making college students its main target. The same source shows nearly 25 percent of drinkers consuming alcohol before age 17 developing alcohol dependence, compared to only 10 percent of those who drink after age 21. Senior Vincent Heider, 23, spent so much time drinking at University Park that his grades began to suffer. “Luckily, I realized I needed to come back to Penn State Beaver or else I would have flunked out of college,” he said. Incidents of students of age and underage caught drinking on campus have been an issue at Penn State Beaver as well as other college campuses. “Student Affairs and University Police take proactive steps to reduce underage drinking and alcohol abuse and strive to handle incidents involving underage drinking as effectively as possible,” Bryan Cattivera, Penn State police officer, said. But he added that binge
drinking can become a problem at any school at any time. Amy Gartley, associate director of Student Affairs, said, “Although it would be very difficult to capture hard data that would prove this, I do believe that binge drinking or excessive use of alcohol can contribute to the campus dropout rate. It is hard to capture because there are many factors that lead to a student dropping out. The only sure numbers we have are for students that are forced to take a break through a discipline sanction, such as suspension.” Senior Rachelle Eidenmiller, 21, rarely drinks, but she does know people who do. “I know a few close friends that have dropped out of college due to drinking. It first started with partying a couple nights a week and then every night. It came to the point where their grades and GPA dropped so low they were forced to drop out.” Cattivera, along with other campus officers, handled five underage-drinking incidents in 2010. In spring 2011, they handled four such incidents. However, these are just instances in which the police are notified; everything else goes through the Office of Student Conduct. “If a student is a dependent and caught consuming alcohol, even if he is not intoxicated, the parents of the student will be notified,” Gartley said. As long as a student is not drinking excessively, he will just receive a first offense. However, if the student is a repeat offender living in the dorms, his contract will be reviewed, possibly ending his on-campus housing. The next step is probation, followed by suspension, which can lead to expulsion, although it rarely ever goes that far. Editor’s Note: This article was written during the spring 2011 semester as the final project for Communications 260W.
August 2011
Penn State Beaver Roar
News
Wellness center update Staff Reports
The Penn State Beaver gymnasium, which was closed for construction over the summer, scheduled to open this week, just in time for students to return to campus. Improvements to the gym include a rebuilt plaza, a new concession stand and remodeled restrooms and offices, said Luke Taiclet, campus director of business and finance. Over the next two weeks, both the building and the gymnasium will get new front doors. Other not-so-noticeable improvements include changes to the electrical and plumbing systems and installation of new storm drains. Meanwhile, work on the new wellness center contin-
THE ROAR/Cathy Benscoter
Construction crews have nearly completed work on the gym renovation, above, and will soon turn their full attention to the wellness center building project, right.
ues. Taiclet said footings have been poured and the steel frame should go up within the next six
to eight weeks. “People get excited when the steel starts going up,” he said.
Don’t throw this newspaper away! Recycle The Roar and all of the other paper you don’t need any more. Put office paper, magazines, catalogs and newspapers in one of the paper recycling bins on campus or in the Paper Retriever bin in lower parking lot near the gym.
HELP MAKE PENN STATE BEAVER GREENER
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Penn State Beaver Roar
August 2011
Sports Softball team fifth in the nation
Season ends on win From Athletic Department Reports
Penn State Beaver Athletic Department
Sophomore Cory Wagner steps up to the plate in a game during the PSUAC tournament.
Lions finish in 4th place in PSUAC From Athletic Department Reports
Despite defeating the Penn College Wildcats just days earlier at home with a 5-2 win, the Penn State Beaver Nittany Lions baseball team could not find themselves offensively and bowed out of the Penn State University Athletic Conference championship to the Wildcats in late April. Beaver fought early but struggled in the late innings, ending their season with a 13-0 loss. Beaver was sharp defensively as the team kept Penn College scoreless through five innings. Starter Ronnie Wilkins kept the Wildcats hitters at bay through the early innings. Unfortunately, Beaver could not get any offense going and managed only three hits on the day. In the sixth inning, the Penn College scored six runs and the Wildcats scored seven runs in the seventh inning to seal the victory, 13-0. Beaver ended the season with an overall record of 11-18-1 and a 11-8-1 PSUAC record. Beaver finished third in the PSUAC regular season and fourth in the 2011 PSUAC Baseball Championship Tournament.
The Penn State Beaver Lady Lions softball team finished its season on a high note with a win over No. 6 seed Penn State Mont Alto, 9-1, in five innings at the United States Collegiate Athletic Association National Softball Championship held last May in Akron. The win garnered the Lady Lions a fifth-place finish in the championship. Overall, Beaver finished the season with a 23-13 record, 14-2 in the Penn State University Athletic Conference. The women were undefeated in the PSUAC regular season and earned the PSUAC regular season title. Beaver had impressive NCAA Division III non-conference wins over Penn State Altoona, Penn State Berks, Franciscan University, Spalding University, Wentworth Institute of Technology and Thiel College. In Beaver’s final game of the USCAA tournament, senior Kayla Chambers took the mound for the last time in her storied career, striking out the first batter of the game and retiring Mont Alto in order in the first inning. Chambers pitched all five innings, allowed no earned runs, struck out four and walked just two batters. Beaver took a 1-0 lead in the
Penn State Beaver Athletic Department
Sophomore Danielle Ringel in the outfield gets ready to make a play on the next pitch to the batter in the USCAA tournament.
second as Alyssa Carver led the inning off with a single and was driven home by Danielle Ringel. Mont Alto returned the favor when they scored an unearned run off a Beaver fielding error which was their only run of the game. Beaver exploded for eight runs
on seven hits as 12 Beaver batters were sent to the plate in the third inning. Back-to-back doubles by Ashley Watkins and Kori Freyermuth set the tone for Beaver as the team had its best offensive inning of the tournament.
For the tournament, Beaver outscored its opponents by a 21-20 margin, although Beaver was outscored, 11-0, in the sixth inning. The team’s batting average was a solid .310, the third best in the tournament, while the team’s ERA was a respectable 3.36.
Two softball players honored by USCAA From Athletic Department Reports
Penn State Beaver Lady Lion junior softball players Ashley Watkins and Kori Freyermuth were honored this past spring by the United States Collegiate Athletic Association for their performances during the season when
they were named USCAA AllAmerican and USCAA Honorable Mention All-American respectively. Watkins and Freyermuth helped lead Beaver to a 21-11 overall record, including a 14-2 Penn State University Athletic Conference regular season finish and a No. 4 seed in the 2011 USCAA National Softball Championship Tournament.
Watkins scorched opposing pitchers the entire season as she batted .505, with a 1.143 slugging percentage, and a .561 on-base percentage. In addition, she tallied 46 hits, 45 RBIs, and scored 40 runs. Watkins recorded 16 doubles, 3 triples, and 12 home runs on the year. Freyermuth was a dual threat
on the mound and at the plate. On the bump, Freyermuth pitched 57.2 innings, had a 6-5 record on the year with a 1.94 ERA, and struck out a team high of 54 batters. At the plate, Freyermuth batted .420 and had 37 hits, including 4 doubles and 6 homers. In addition, she slugged .670 percent and had a .514 on-base percentage.
August 2011
Sports Soccer preview
New recruits bolster teams Matt Jones ’10 Editor Emeritus
For Coach Dan Grant, last year’s soccer season started with all the plot twists and suspense of a Tom Clancy novel. First, Penn State Beaver hired him as the men’s soccer coach just before the season started, which did not give him much time to prepare. Then, just when he was starting to settle into his new position, the coach of the newly founded women’s soccer team abruptly resigned, leaving Grant to fill the void in the inaugural season. With only a few weeks to recruit players for each team, hire assistants and come up with coaching strategies, Grant was in overdrive. Yet despite the lack of preparatory time, Grant led the men to a thirdplace finish in the Penn State University Athletic Conference. Fast forward a year, and instead of
being caught in the whirlwind, Grant and his assistant coach, Mike Collins, are the ones creating it. “I have close to 30 potential male players trying out and 20 ladies,” Grant said via e-mail from a late-summer trip overseas. And although he does not expect the final squads to be that large, he did say he still expects to be recruiting new players as late as opening day. Grant also said he expects the men to finish higher than third, adding, “I don’t think it would be unrealistic to focus on the nationals.” On the women’s side, Grant said he expects to build off the team’s first season. Despite not winning a game, there are some advantages they have over last year. In addition to the preparatory time, the presence of Assistant Coach Mike Collins will help things run more smoothly, Grant said.
“This year Mike will be my assistant on both the men’s and women’s teams, which will bring much needed consistency.” Athletic Director Andy Kirschner was also optimistic about the upcoming seasons. “I think both teams are going to be improved,” he said, adding that the men and women have more double headers than last year, ensuring that Grant and Collins can be at every game without a schedule conflict. Both teams kick off their seasons with a scrimmage at Franciscan University on Aug. 29. The women officially get their season underway Sept. 1 at Geneva College, and then the men start the day after with a game at La Roche College. Editor’s Note: Matt Jones is a December 2010 graduate of Penn State Beaver’s Communications program and a former editor and staff writer for The Roar.
Penn State Beaver Roar
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Penn State Beaver Roar
August 2011
Features
an internship in
Black and white dana sklack ’11 Former Managing Editor
Amy Green, right, feeds fish to a group of penguins in the PPG Aquarium exhibit at the Pittsburgh Zoo. “My dream job is to work in a zoo or aquarium to educate people on the importance of preserving animals in the wild,” Green said. Below, Green looks into the exhibit from the doorway.
Senior Amy Green spent her summer interning for the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium working with the penguins and sea life. “I love animals more than I love people sometimes,” said Green, who is The Roar’s art director. While working in the aquarium, Green cleaned the exhibit for the penguins, prepared food and medications, and assisted other interns and staff members. She also lead tours through the facility for visitors and explained
what the different areas are used for. When Green ran out of things to do, she would simply go to the penguin exhibit and hang out with them. She learned that the penguins have dog-like personalities, and they warmed up to her quickly. Green will be featured in an upcoming edition of the alumni magazine The Penn Stater, as a part of a profile on students who have had interesting internships. Overall the zoo experience has been a positive one. “I can’t pick a favorite part. There’s too many,” she said.
Photos by Cathy Benscoter
Above, Amy Green and fellow intern Laura Knecht from the University of Findlay clean algae off a baby sea turtle. At left, penguin parents try to keep Green from getting too close to their baby, far left. “My favorite part wasn’t being bit in the face by a baby penguin,” Green says.