JANUARY 27, 2015 VOLUME 86, ISSUE 17
’ THE LION S ROAR S O U T H E A S T E R N L O U I S IA NA U N I V E R S I T Y
A Student Publication
Lower oil prices may bring budget cuts BY WILLIAM SCHMIDT Staff Reporter
When the price of a barrel of oil decreased, budget cut predictions once again surfaced for Louisiana higher education. “The price originally used to calculate the revenues for this fiscal year was $95.80 per barrel. The price of crude oil has continued to fall and has been hovering around $60 per barrel for the past week,” according to the article “Dropping oil prices continue to impact state budget” in The Advocate. The prediction of having a budget cut on higher education is based on this drop of oil prices. Oil prices are used to calculate severance, taxes and other royalties that the state government collects. The article “State may have to change spending plan a second time” found in The Advocate tells that The Revenue Conference expected to collect $10.6 billion in collection from taxes, fees, royalties and other revenue sources for the current fiscal year. Current predictions have changed the estimate to a collection of $171 million less. One positive prediction is that sales and personal income taxes are a larger portion of the state general fund pays for services such as health and higher education. One article that helps to explain the basics of why oil prices effect the economy of Louisiana is “Louisiana is going to have another round of budget cuts: Answers to common questions” found on the nola.com website. According to the article, “[The] sales tax for the year—at least so far—looks like it might be a bit higher than originally expected. Still, for every dollar the average price of oil per barrel drops, Louisiana state government loses around $10 to $12 million. A slight uptick in sales tax collections will not make up for the large drop in oil prices.” Over the years, laws have been implemented into the Louisiana constitution, causing difficulty for budget cuts due to legal constraints. Some areas such as funding for nursing homes require that two-thirds majority vote of the legislature to change the budget. Currently, higher education has no bar blocking cutting from colleges and universities. According to sources such as nola.com, The Sunday Star, The Advocate and The New York Times, the higher education of Louisiana has taken $673 million out of the budget for public colleges and universities since 2008. With the state trying to make up a projected $1.4 billion shortfall in revenues for the 2015-16 budget, predictions from legislators and higher education officials say that this total could reach closer to $380 million. If oil prices continue to fall, the predicted deficit could grow. Gov. Bobby Jindal is meeting with the Revenue Estimating Conference on Jan. 26 to determine how much money Louisiana’s government has as well as having the Governor’s Executive Budget proposed to the legislature on Feb. 27.
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Drop in gas prices aids commuters BY MORGAN LEDET Staff Reporter
With gas prices dropping, commuter students are saving money while attending college. Recently, gas prices dropped to below two dollars. “It benefits students a lot, especially here. We have our reward card that also offers to lower the price of gas,” said Exxon Nightshift Manager Jessica Morris. “With the price of gas decreasing, our business is picking up a lot.” The gas prices dropping may be helping commuters with money, but it is affecting the oil industry. Louisiana’s economy is driven by oil sales. “And thanks to lower gas prices and higher fuel standards, the typical family this year should save $750 at the pump,” said President Barack Obama in The State of the Union adress given last Tuesday. Current commuter students are thankful for the money they are saving in order to attend classes located on campus. “The gas prices being low benefits me a lot. I drive
01.2015
60
more money for
06.2014
115
8,896
commuter decals from Aug. 2014 to Jan. 2015
Americans save
(according to Southeastern Office of Parking. It includes freshman and upperclass commuters)
(according to The Bank Rate Analysis of Petroleum Statistics)
New Orleans Amite Walker Houma Covington Denham Springs
lower gas prices
drive more than
fuell-efficient cars
(according to a survey conducted in 2013 by the office of Institutional Research)
Graphic by Fernanda Chagas
20 miles each day to come to school,” said sophomore mechanical engineering major Nick Curry. “I like how it is saving me money.”
According to a 2013 survey by the office of Institutional Research, there are over 8,000 students who commute to campus every day. Twenty-
three percent of students who commute to campus come from more than 30 miles away. “I like the fact that gas prices are dropping because I
travel a little over 20 miles a day,” said junior mechanical engineering technology major
see COMMUTERS pg. 8
Making students Real World Ready University preparing for reaccreditation committee BY SARA PATRICK Editor in Chief
Every 10 years the university must put together a Quality Enhancement Plan as part of the reaccreditation process. “The last [Quality Enhancement Plan] was actually SE101,” said Dr. Eric Summers, assistant to the vice president of Student Affairs. “This one is ‘Real-World Ready.’ Basically, it’s a plan to provide our students with real world experience before they graduate.” The university went through a lengthy process in spring 2012 to come up with the “Real-World Ready” concept for the new QEP and has spent the past few years developing it. “The QEP team has done a
wonderful job refining the topic and developing all of the detailed elements of the project, including a time line for implementation and assessment plan,” said President John L. Crain in a recent message for faculty and staff. The plan aims to prepare students
for professional life by providing authentic learning opportunities that connect academic courses with realworld experiences. “A ‘Real-World Ready’ experience is a learning event that a professor includes as a course component,” said Dr. Jayetta Slawson, QEP Coordinator and associate English professor. “It is a hands-on activity designed to reinforce classroom instruction.” Real-World Ready experiences will include students gaining professional experience through internships, study abroad, service learning, research projects, civic engagement and more. According to David Norwood, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Physics, students in his department will research in a lab with professors as an adjunct to what
they learn in lectures. Some students in the Southeastern Association of Law Schools program have the opportunity to research problems as a service to local businesses. “[The plan is going to be implemented] in a series of phases,” said Summers. “The first phase was actually developing the plan. Then we’ll assess the programs we already have and try to improve them. Then the programs that don’t already have a Real-World Ready experience will implement Real-World Ready experiences. It will be phases over a number of years occurring in all academic departments.” According to Summers, the intention of the plan is to ensure that all students
see QEP pg.8
Hammond named metropolitan area BY MARIA GODDARD Staff Reporter
The Lion’s Roar / William Schmidt
The city of Hammond became the ninth metropolitan area in the state because of industry and population increase. Because of this new status, the value of homes and schools increased because businesses were able to contribute more economically.
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Weather Tuesday H 70 L 39
Hammond has become the ninth metropolitan area due to increased industry, population and traffic. This title has led to the growth of the city and brought in more revenue for the city, increasing the worth of homes and schools. Local businesses in Hammond are receiving further opportunities and advertisement. “This is a wonderful partnership for Hammond as well as Tangipahoa Parish to be involved in,” said Mayor Pete Panepinto. “Hammond and the surrounding area now have the marketing ability to promote the area because of the resources within this organization. The cost of hiring these resources for Hammond and the surrounding cities in Tangipahoa Parish alone
would not be possible [without this status].” Hammond received the designation in 2012 because of population increase in 2010. There must be more than 50,000 residents to be considered a metropolitan area, and this new area includes other sections of Tangipahoa Parish. According to Lacy Landrum, director of administration for City of Hammond, the Federal Highway Administration and Federal Transit Administration uses this classification to distribute transportation funds. “The City of Hammond has been planning for this designation since the initial release of population numbers from the 2010 Census,” said Landrum. “We knew that our area had grown post-Katrina
see METROPOLITAN pg. 8
Reminders Wednesday H 65 L 42
The last day to apply for spring graduation is Feb. 18. The $35 fee should be paid at the Controllerʼs Office.