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ASG, senatorial election results Page 3
Page 7
The Telesco Friday, October 6, 1989
Palomar College. San Marcos. CA 92069
Volume 43, Number 4
Predators Generation education to control squirrels
Plus, minus grading plan stirs debate
By Michelle Van Aalst Staff Writer
By Roman Koenig Staff Writer
Recent plans to relocate a proliferating population of campus squirrels have failed, causing Buildings and Grounds to implement a new plan for alleviating the campus of the pesky critters. Perching posts for birds of prey will now be installed with the hopes that hungry hawks will eat the ravishing rodents. Last year, project "Havahart" was started to relocate the college's exploding squirrel population. Initially, the idea was to trap the rodents and set them free onto unimproved areas of the campus. The plan was botched because people were setting the persevering pests free. According to Director of Buildings and Grounds, Mike Ellis, the squirrels undermine trees and lawn areas. They also have been burrowing under the tennis courts. Water gets into these holes and starts an erosion process. The courts are now collapsing with damage estimated at $50,000. A common solution is evolving between the need for an environmental area for birds of prey and the squirrel relocation problem. The new plan will use owls and hawks to catch the squirrels. "We want to use the natural predators of the squirrel to control the animal's
Associated Student Government President John Weber vetoed a decision, Wednesday, made by ASG senators in support of a plan to implement a plus or minus grading system at Palomar. "'C' students have nothing to gain and' A' students have everything to lose," said Weber, explaining that 'C' students who are seeking a 2.0 grade point average for financial aid and other services could lose funding if they are given a 'C-' which would reduce the average to a 1.7. Students carrying an 'A' average and trying to get into a four-year college with a high GPA could have those averages reduced if they earn an 'A-.' According to a California Community College Board of Governors' analysis outlining the proposal, dated July 13 and 14, 1989, the system would affect students and teachers psychologically. It states, "Mathematical modeling shows that statistical effects are likely to be small. The effects of chance tend to even out grade point averages because each minus may be counterbalanced by a plus, and the greater the number of courses taken, the less likely it is that pure chance will have a significant effect on the GPA." It goes on to say that two colleges which converted to the system showed that teachers gave "substantially more" plusses than minuses. However, the two colleges' overall grade point averages dropped "slightly" due to the giving of' A minuses' as opposed to 'A's.' "Basically we think it's good to challenge students who are on the border line (of a 2.0)," said ASG Senator Harry Sachs. "If you have a 'C' you have a chance to get a 'C+' ." Sachs furthered his comments by saying that the system will promote "educational excellence" at
(Photo by Patrick Walter)
Twenty-two-month-old Daniel Nani watches joyfully as mom, Kate, strokes across the campus pool. Kate, who is enrolled in an intermediate swimming class, brought Daniel along while she did class work.
(see SQUIRRELS- page 3)
(see GRADING â&#x20AC;˘ page 3)
Caribbean field study offered By Karna McLaughlin Staff Writer Most teachers hold their classes ,in classrooms, but Associate Professor Lester Knapp has chosen a more exotic class setting. This year Biology 99 will be meeting in the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean from late December to early January. According to Knapp, an "unforgettable learning experience" awaits 18 Palomar College students. Students will spend 12 days studying biology in an environment that offers unique plant, animal, and marine life. "Yourememberalotmore than if youjustread itoutofa book. I even remember many scientific names of plants and animals I saw," says
Jamie Platt, a student who attended last year's class in the Virgin Islands and will be attending this trip as well. Biology 99 was initiated in December of 1969. The field study class began by taking two to three trips a year to Baja California. Students have always paid the full cost of these classes. Occasionally scholarships are offered, but this is the exception, not the rule. This year each student will pay $1,381 to participate in the Cayman Islands excursion. Since the first trip, the locations have become more exotic, including such spots as the Virgin Islands, the Amazon basin, the Galapagos Islands and Tahiti. The trip locations are not chosen merely for their exotic and scenic
beauty. They are chosen because they have "waters nice for snorkeling, plant life that is unique, terrific bird life and a relatively unspoiled environment with marine life you just can't see in San Diego," said Knapp. According to a brochure Knapp provides his class, students can expect to see species such as the queen angelfish and four-eyed butterfly fish found only in the warm waters and coral reefs of the Caribbean, as well as the more commonplace cornetfish, spiny pufferfish, sharks, manta rays, and multi-colored coral. The group will have a full schedule of lectures, tours, boat excursions and use of marine laboratory
(see KNAPP- page 8)