The Aug. 25 issue of the Southern Digest

STATE & NATION

SPORTS

VIEWPOINTS

Duo backing education reform. pG. 5

Lady Jags picked 3rd in West. pG. 7

Lomotey welcomes students back. pG. 11

sharpton, Gingrich join up

sU volleyball ready for ‘09

a word from the chancellor

estABLished in 1928

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2009

VOL. 54, ISSUE 1

White not pleased with budget cuts By darriUs harrison

digest LayoUt editor/ego editor-iN-chieF

The Southern Board of Supervisors approved a systemwide budget cut proposal Saturday with savings totaling $10.6 million with a 12 – 2 vote, which directly resulted in the termination of 16 system office administrators and employees.

Student Government Association President Stanley White said Monday the budget cuts were “terrible” and takes away from one of the state’s most useful tools.

“Higher education — colleges and universities along with technical colleges —breed the leaders of the new society,” said White, a senior theatre arts major from New Orleans.

“Cutting their higher education is going to result in people going to work force training, which I’m not saying is bad, but you will not get the same outcome as attending a university.

In cutting higher education, there are less teachers, therefore less students are able to attend (universities); it’s not adding up.”

Last Spring, Southern students, along with White and SGA Vice-President Langston Williams, protested the budget

Speaker series survives cuts

cuts by rallying on the State Capitol and listening in on committee meetings.

“I don’t think it is good,” said Brittany Rawlings, a sophomore mass communications major from DeRidder La., when speaking of the budget cuts; “because students aren’t able to take the number of classes they are use to.”

Another obstacle this SGA administration must face early on, is dealing with inconsistencies in Senate personnel what White calls a “condensed work environment in the current SGA cabinet.”

White and colleagues have dual positions to combat these inconsistencies, which seem to be keeping those involved on the same page for now.

Despite the budget cuts implemented by the Board and the different emotions behind the strategy, White believes that the unity he expressed in his “1 Accord” campaign can still be reached “if the student body, faculty, staff, alumni and the community work together toward the same goal,” he said.

“From a student standpoint, we need to become more efficient with our [fund] spending,” said White. Since the budget cuts are due to the

Between budget cuts, the Tucker Commission, and the upcoming accreditation review in 2010 there are many things in store for Southern University throughout the course of the year and the Digest sat down with Chancellor Kofi Lomotey to get his view on what the future looks like.

By norman J. dotson Jr. digest iNteriM editor-iN-chieF

fundraisers, scholarships, or competitions, anything we can

Despite the budget cuts that took place over the summer, and mid-year which, resulted in the laying off of 40 faculty/staff members Lomotey stated that he is very saddened by the lay offs but remains optimistic for this year.

“The original budget plan was supposed to be a cut of $219 million across the state but fortunately it was reduced to approximately $119 million and our cut of that was around $10 million.” Lomotey goes on to add that there were many unfilled positions that there was still money for and administration decided not to fill these positions

See WHITE page 3

See LOMOTEY page 3

photo By Wil norWood/diGest

sga president stanley white questioned the southern board of supervisors’ approval of systemwide budget cuts Monday.

recession, students should become wiser and gain more knowledge on what’s really going on. As far as students in our university, we need to start

SU student section to change for home games By larry yoUnG Jr. digest sports editor

So why would the students give up something they have enjoyed for so long?

In this case, they had no choice.

As the Sept. 12 home opener against Central State draws near, a few students may be upset with the new seating changes at A.W. Mumford Stadium.

Students have enjoyed prime seating on and around the 50-yard line for years. Seating even season ticket holders couldn’t plant their bottoms on—the same seats students routinely bolt for the exit after the band performs at halftime.

SUNNY HIGH

90° | 67° LOW

At other schools across the country (example Texas), seats from the home team’s 50-yard line stretching to the 35 are reserved for season ticket holders. In high school stadiums, this arrangement is common on both sides.

By contrast, LSU has had a similar seating arrangement for years as students have enjoyed games at Tiger Stadium from the end zone.

Why the move?

“People prefer buying premium seats,” SU athletic director Greg LaFleur said. photo By JUstin Wooten/diGest

See SEATS page 3

INSIDE S O U T H E R N

sections 10-14 on the west side of a.w. Mumford stadium will be the official student section for southern home football games starting with the Jaguars’ sept. 12 home opener against central state.

CAMPUS BRIEFS................2 STATE & NATION................5 A&E.................................9 NEWS.................................3 SPORTS.............................7 VIEWPOINTS....................11 U N I V E R S I T Y ,

B A T O N

R O U G E ,

L A .

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THE SOUTHERN DIGEST 4 - DAY WEATHER OUTLOOK WEDNESDAY, AUG. 26

THURSDAY, AUG. 27

FRIDAY, AUG. 28

SATURDAY, AUG. 29

isolated t-storms

isolated t-storms

scattered t-storms

isolated t-storms

HI - 92°/ LO - 69° 30% CHANCE OF RAIN

HI - 91° / LO - 71° 40% CHANCE OF RAIN

HI - 90° / LO - 70° 30% CHANCE OF RAIN

HI - 91° / LO - 69° 30% CHANCE OF RAIN

Campus Briefs TODAY diGest pUBlication schedUle

The Southern DIGEST is scheduled to run on the following dates during the Fall Semester: Aug. 28, Sept. 4, Sept.

11, Sept. 15, Sept. 18, Sept. 22, Sept. 25, Sept.

29, Oct. 9, Oct. 16, Oct. 22, Oct. 27, Nov. 6, Nov. 10, Nov. 20 and Dec. 1. spirit BUs tickets

Get your bus tickets to the first football game of the season as the Jaguars face the Ragin’ Cajuns in Lafayette September 5.

Seats are approximately $40. 50 seats are available on a first come, first served basis. Sign up in the student union Suite 227.

Lawless Auditorium in Stewart Hall, Thursday, August 27 at 3 p.m. or Wendesday, September 2 at 1 p.m to have a better understanding of what is required to stay in good standing at Southern.

First Beep meetinGinFormational

Business organization BEEP will hold its first meeting of the year on August 27, at 11 a.m. in room 222 of T.T. Allain. The meeting is open to all majors and classifications.

Read

step oFF national competition

The national PanHellenic council organizations has partner with sprite to launch the largest stepping competition ever.

Featuring 30 events in over 20 cities, with the largest combined stepping prize pool in history with $1.5 million in scholarships up for grabs. The Sprite step off qualifying rounds will begin in September, those organizations who qualify will have an opportunity to advance to the national finals in January 2010 in Atlanta.

For more information visit spritestepoff.com.

the Digest at WWW. southern digest .com

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NEWS

Tuesday, August 25, 2009 - Page 3

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Kennedy urges job cuts, college changes Initial by the associated press

Cut 15,000 state jobs over three years, consolidate higher education management to one central board and pool purchasing and service contracts with Arkansas and Mississippi. Those are among the first recommendations to emerge as the Commission on Streamlining Government looks at ways to trim Louisiana government costs.

The recommendations —

all offered by Treasurer John Kennedy, a commission member — were approved Monday by a subcommittee led by Kennedy. The ideas would have to be approved by the full commission before being forwarded to Gov. Bobby Jindal and lawmakers for consideration.

The streamlining commission is trying to come up with ideas to cut millions in Louisiana government costs amid years of projected budget shortfalls.

It’s unclear when the full 10-member commission will review Kennedy’s suggestions.

It must pull together a report with recommendations by Dec. 15 after other subcommittees review data and take testimony as well. Any restructuring would go before lawmakers in the 2010 regular session.

The suggestion likely to be most controversial would involve cutting Louisiana’s government work force by

15,000. The Senate committee that works on the state’s annual budget stripped a similar House-backed plan from the current year’s spending plan.

Kennedy cited U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics that Louisiana — with 118,000 state government jobs — is eighth in the nation for the number of government employees per capita. Louisiana has 275 state government workers for every 10,000 people, Kennedy said.

LOMOTEY from page 1 to make better use of these funds.

These cuts however will not in any way effect the chancellor’s selection series this year. Lomotey reports that he already has conformations from Cornel West, former Essence magazine executive editor Susan Taylor and syndicated columnist Roland Martin He goes on to say that these selections will begin at 6 p.m. and will be followed by a Q&A session along with an autographing segment and will begin in September which will be followed by one each month after for the remainder of the school year.

“I am very excited for this year in spite of the reduction in funding, I think that the best thing to do is to stay optimistic about everything.” Lomotey states.

He continues by adding that there

are a few things he has in place to help incoming and returning students to better achieve in their course studies and improve performance in the classroom.

Lomotey states that he is very anxious to work with the leadership of the Student Government Association and would also like to meet regularly with Student Government officials at least twice a month to discuss the general issues affecting the student body in hopes to better help the students achieve and remain successful.

“Like I stated earlier I am very excited for this year. We here in administration understand that the students are the most important people here on campus and if it weren’t for the students we wouldn’t be here. We are going to continue to tackle issues such as customer service and other

SEATS from page 1 Though Southern’s students won’t be moving to the end zone — a move that would place them in the stands of the newly constructed field house — they will be a slight change. As LaFleur put it, the band will move from section nine to section 10. The new student section will stretch from section 10 to 14.

Quick visual: Imagine where the press box ends on the Harding Boulevard end of Mumford. The seats on the home side between the scoreboard and the press box will basically become the student

section.

Ticket prices for section 15 and 16 on the east side have been reduced to $20, equaling $100 for a season book. As of last Wednesday, only two tickets had been sold in those sections.

However, the ticket office has sold nearly 300 season books in section nine, the very section the band was once located.

“Some people want to be on that 50yard line,” LaFleur said. “That’s what the numbers indicate.”

things that we attempted to cover last year.

Many of the things that we’ve attempted to cover last year we made limited progress on partly because of spending most of our time trying to find a way to deal with the budget cuts and now that that is behind us for the time being. While they are temporarily behind us we want to refocus and double our efforts and focus on what needs to be done.”

This is the first in a two part series where SU Chancellor Kofi Lomotey speaks on his expectations for the year and issues concerning Southern. Part two which will be included in Friday Aug 28th will discuss the Tucker Commission and the upcoming Southern Association of Colleges and Schools accreditation visit.

jobless claims fall

by the associated press

The number of the newly unemployed seeking jobless benefits fell 3.5 percent last week in Louisiana.

The Louisiana Workforce Commission says there were 4,492 initial unemployment claims late week, down from 4,656 from the previous week.

For the comparable week ending Aug. 16, 2008, there were 2,252 initial claims.

Continued benefit weeks for those still seeking jobs fell 1.7 percent to 64,319 from the previous week’s 65,449. For the comparable week a year ago, there were 26,670 weeks of continued jobless benefits.

WHITE from page 1 do to generate monetary units in order to better our institution... we all need to get on one accord to get that done. We all have to open our minds, because if its closed we can’t receive or give anything.”

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Switch to LiveText leads to questions By rosalina clay digest STAFF writer

Blackboard, the free program used by Southern University students and faculty, could soon be replaced with LiveText, a paid subscription-based program with the most advanced userfriendly web-based tools.

What is LiveText? What are its benefits and what are students saying about the costs for the new program.

Described on their website livetext.com, as a learning, assessment, and accreditation solution, the program helps with lesson plans, portfolios, and special projects. It is an online database where educational materials can be created, shared, collected, stored, displayed, and organized all in

one single location.

On LiveText’s Accreditation Management System, institutions can provide students, faculty, admin-istrators, and stake-holders the means to develop, support, assess, and measure students’ performances across campuses all over the nation.

Sharon Piety-Nowell, Director of Institutional Effectiveness at Bethune-Cookman University says, “After all these years, we wouldn’t still be with the company if we didn’t feel we were supported!”

To undergraduate students on SU’s campus LiveText seems to be just another version of the free system Blackboard, only with a price tag of $98.

“We (students) have been

trying to figure out what it is… to me it’s just an upgraded Blackboard,” said Justin Evans, a sophomore computer science major from Houston.

It was rated second among web and technology-based databases, one ranking ahead of Blackboard, the online database students currently use at Southern University.

The benefits of LiveText are somewhat significant, •Exclusively for college students •Provides the latest state and federal standards for teacher education programs •Showcases work for students and teachers alike for future employers •Files are backed up and accessible, in case something

happens to your computer •Increases users’ technology skills •Eliminates bulky 3-ring binders •Subscription good for five years •Can be purchased with a book voucher “Why are they trying to force this on students when half the campus, faculty included, barely uses Blackboard,” Evans said, “Students are barely buying books and then you want (us) to pay $98. Only one of my teachers has even required it, and she said it’s only because her chairman is requiring her to do so. She doesn’t even want to use it. I’m not worried about LiveText, I’m worried about getting my books.”

Deputy booked for eBay sales EDGARD, La. (AP)—A St. John the Baptist Parish deputy who was booked with malfeasance in office has been suspended without pay after Sheriff Wayne L. Jones said he was caught selling sheriff’s office property on eBay. Sgt. Tommy Young Jr., a nineyear veteran with the sheriff’s office, was arrested Thursday night and suspended on Friday.

Jones would not say what public property was sold on the popular Internet site or for how much, but he did say that Young was apparently in a financial bind.

A sheriff’s spokesman says the Slidell resident was also booked with theft of $500 or more.

Enrollment rises at SU; effects from last year linger By mary davis digest STAFF writer

Southern University has seen a drastic decline in the number of students enrolling at the university in recent years. Many speculations have been made as to the cause of this deficit in enrollment.

Most students, especially upper-classman, see financial aid and disorganization as the main cause of students not wanting to attend the University.

General enrollment at Southern has increased to nearly 7,000 students (530 more than it was

this time last year) this semester, but still short of the university’s target of 7,700 students.

Assistant provost Cecilia Golden said she is still unsure why enrollment is down after spending one year at Southern.

She does suggest that economic difficulties and the opportunities available for students to attend other institutions are a couple of things that may be influencing the drop in enrollment at Southern.

As far as financial aid being one of the main reasons students turn away from the university, Golden said “I think last year’s

experience probably left a bitter taste in a lot of student’s mouths.

I would not deny that, but I think this year’s experience, for those who came back, everybody said it was so much better.”

To help prevent a reoccurrence of last year’s financial aid horror, the university adopted a few new techniques. Upon returning to the university this semester, many students witnessed a difference in the location of the financial aid staff. Registration and the cashier’s office were located in an area separate from financial aid.

This was done so that students

who had simple registration issues or only had to pay their balances were not subject to overcrowding and long lines. The university also hosted a financial aid resolution program over the summer that serviced over a thousand students.

“What we’re going to do next year, we’re going to separate students who have questions like, where’s the posting of my scholarship, not that I didn’t do my FASFA, I need verification; or I’ve got to file for a loan. So we’re going to move that so you’ll go to a either different line, so

you won’t have to wait behind all those others,” said Golden.

She assures the students, “We’re doing the problem solving.”

Unlike administrators, students are looking at internal reasons as major contributors to the loss of students.

The future of the university is unknown, but hope has come again as enrollment increases at the university. Though there is much speculation, no one knows exactly what has caused enrollment to drop, but it has had a tremendous effect on the university and its students alike.

STATE & NATION Tuesday, August 25, 2009 - Page 5

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Sharpton, Gingrich join forces

By LIBBY QUAID AP EDUCATION WRITER

WASHINGTON—Education Secretary Arne Duncan is joining forces with two unlikely allies, the Rev. Al Sharpton and Republican former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, to push cities to fix failing schools.

The trio will visit Philadelphia, New photo by mary ann chastain/AP PHOTO Orleans and Baltimore later this year. In this May 21, 2009 file photo, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich speaks during They plan to add more stops as their tour a conference on health care reform in Columbia, S.C. Gingrich is uniting with U.S. Education progresses.

Secretary Arne Duncan and the Rev. Al Shartpon in support of education reforms.

“These are cities that have real said. challenges but also tremendous hope and well.

Interviewed on NBC’s “Today” show Obama discussed education issues in an opportunity,” Duncan told reporters on a interview with Damon Weaver, an 11-year- Friday, Gingrich and Sharpton were asked conference call Thursday. how they had agreed to work together on The idea came from a meeting they had old Florida student.

“On Sept. 8, when young people across education in view of the many differences with President Barack Obama in May at the country will have just started or are they’ve had on other issues. the White House.

“I think that he has it exactly right, that Education is high on Obama’s priority about to go back to school, I’m going to be list. He is seeking to boost achievement, making a big speech to young people all education has to be the No. 1 civil right of keep kids from dropping out of high school across the country about the importance the 21st century and I’ve been passionate and push every student to pursue some of education, the importance of staying about reforming education,” Gingrich said. in school, how we want to improve our “And we can’t get it done as a partisan form of higher education.

The president has vowed to make the education system and why it’s so important issue.”

Sharpton said the time has come to United States the world leader in the for the country,” Obama said.

Sharpton, the liberal Democrat and “change the conversation ... to say we need number of people who graduate from community activist, said teachers and to put everybody’s hands on the table.” college.

He said he believes that “if there’s He argues that students who do better in administrators aren’t the only ones anything Americans should be mature school will help themselves in a work force responsible for improving schools.

“The parents need to be challenged with enough about to have a decent conversation, that increasingly depends on high-skilled jobs, and that the country will benefit as the message of ‘no excuses,’” Sharpton it’s the education of their children.”

Federal regulators close down Guaranty WASHINGTON (AP) — Guaranty Bank became the secondlargest U.S. bank to fail this year after the Texas lender was shut down by regulators and most of its operations sold at a loss of billions of dollars for the U.S. government to a major Spanish bank.

The transaction approved by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. marked the first time a foreign bank has bought a failed U.S. bank.

The bank failure, the 10th largest in U.S. history, is expected to cost the deposit insurance fund an estimated $3 billion.

The FDIC seized Austin-based Guaranty Bank, with about $13 billion in assets and $12 billion in deposits, and on Friday sold all of its deposits and $12 billion of its assets to BBVA Compass, the U.S. division of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA, Spain’s second-largest bank.

In addition, the FDIC agreed to share losses with BBVA on about $11 billion of Guaranty

Bank’s loans and other assets.

Guaranty Bank, with 162 branches in Texas and California, saw its investments in real estate lending and mortgagebacked securities bought from other banks sour and had been teetering near collapse for weeks.

Its parent, Guaranty Financial Group Inc., reaffirmed Monday in a regulatory filing that the company was critically short of capital and didn’t believe it could stay in business.

In April, the federal Office of Thrift Supervision said the company had engaged in “unsafe and unsound” banking practices and ordered it to raise fresh capital, find a buyer or face a takeover by the government.

Guaranty’s failure, along with those of three small banks in Georgia and Alabama Friday, brought to 81 the number of U.S. bank failures this year amid rising loan defaults spurred by tumbling home prices and spiking unemployment.

Donelon: No new fees by the associated press

Louisiana’s state-backed insurance company avoided imposing a fee on homeowners on Friday when the firm’s board approved other ways to raise cash, Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon said.

The governing board of Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp. approved two options that Donelon said virtually assures that the company will not need a new fee to raise $95 million to post a bond while it appeals a class-action suit. The board approved offering a $6 million payment to plaintiff’s lawyers instead of the full amount during the appeal.

In case that offer is rejected, chief executive John Wortman was also given the power to negotiate with several large insurance companies that have offered to put up the $95 million in exchange for cash. For example, Donelon said Warren Buffett’s Omaha, Neb.-based Berkshire Hathaway Inc. has offered to put up the $95 million for a $6 million fee.

Without such alternate solutions, Donelon had earlier said the legal bill could force Citizens to raise the cash by imposing a new fee.

Page 6 - Tuesday, August 25, 2009

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Napolitano: Gulf Coast vow good

State drops proposed BR-NO line by the associated press

By becky bohrer associated press writer

NEW ORLEANS—Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said the Obama administration was honoring its pledge to cut red tape and speed the flow of rebuilding aid to the Gulf Coast, with nearly $1 billion in infrastructure funds set aside for Louisiana since President Barack Obama took office.

The latest pledge of money — $32 million — was announced during her second visit in five months to Southern University at New Orleans, which was virtually wiped out by Hurricane Katrina nearly four years ago. Only a few buildings have been renovated to date, and some classes and school activities are still held in trailers at a nearby campus.

The money is to replace four buildings.

The school and Federal Emergency Management Agency had previously not come to terms on the level of damage caused by the Aug. 29, 2005 storm and levee breaches.

“It’s really awesome,” Chancellor Victor Ukpolo said.

Shortly after taking her post earlier this year, Napolitano ordered a fresh look at hurricane recovery efforts that had been marred by red tape, finger-pointing and hard feelings by officials at all levels. The review

photo by bill haber/AP PHOTO

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano answers a question at a news conference at Southern University in New Orleans.

prompted, among other things, joint federalstate teams to resolve project disputes.

State hurricane recovery chief Paul Rainwater said one of the big differences has been in FEMA officials looking “through the eyes of the applicant.” He said there’s the potential for Louisiana to get an additional $2 billion in infrastructure aid as the process continues.

Some of the thorniest rebuilding issues remain unresolved, including disputes over what the federal government should pay for storm damage to a downtown New Orleans hospital and to city water and sewer lines that were leaky and aging long before Katrina.

State officials have yet to decide whether to take their case that they’re owed $492 million to a three-judge arbitration panel.

The state has dropped a plan to seek about $300 million of federal aid to launch passenger railroad service between Baton Rouge and New Orleans.

Although similar proposals have failed in recent years, state officials said earlier that a new proposal was being drafted in hopes of launching rail service by 2013.

But state Transportation Secretary William Ankner dropped the effort Friday, saying in a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood that the a study showed the line would not be financially sustainable.

The federal money is part of the federal economic stimulus program. State officials had said the line, which would use standard rail service, could be eventually linked to any high-speed rail plan along the Gulf Coast.

Ankner later said he was not pressured by Gov. Bobby Jindal’s office to drop the proposal because of any political considerations.

In a national response to a speech by Democratic President Barack Obama earlier this year, Jindal singled out for criticism plans for $8 billion in federal spending on high-speed rail projects, including a line from Las Vegas to Disneyland.

SPORTS Tuesday, August 25, 2009 - Page 7

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Lady Jags gear up AAMU, GSU to pace SWAC for ‘09 opener DIGEST NEWS SERVICE

By morris dillard digest SPORTS writer

Head volleyball coach Nathaniel Denu has dependably prepared the women’s volleyball team for another Southwestern Athletic Conference championship run. Denu will be entering his 29th season as head coach only 12 wins shy from his 500th victory.

Southern University finished fourth in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Western Division in 2008 and defeated the Mississippi Valley State University Devilettes three games to two to advance to the second round of the SWAC postseason tournament for the first time in six years. After a memorable 2008 campaign, SU has been picked to finish third in their division.

“We have set a goal at a very lofty height and we need to win

the championship this year, and that’s our goal,” said Denu.

Seniors LaToya Bean and Banaka Okuone led SU in blocks and finished the 2008 season tied for fifth in the conference.

Lorena Beathley set a career high last season with 301 digs and ended the year fifth in the conference. Candace Southall has positioned herself to have a remarkable season with the setting abilities of Sharlene Ruffin. Southall could easily top 300 kills this season.

“We’re very young in a lot of areas and inexperienced, but we have people that will step up,” said Denu.

The Jaguars begin the season Sept. in Hampton, Va., competing against the Hampton University Lady Pirates. The first home game is scheduled to take place at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 8 when the Jaguars host Southeastern Louisiana University.

SU soccer falls in opener DIGEST NEWS SERVICE

The Southern University Lady Jaguars soccer team was unable to take down The Lady Lions of Southeastern, in an 8-0 shutout in their season opener Sunday afternoon at the Southeastern Soccer Complex.

Southern’s defense held strong against a relentless Lady Lion attack but the Lady Lions would soon come to life and take control over the game.

SU had to reschedule their first game of the year for the second time last week.

“We weren’t prepared that much due to the cancellation of the game Friday,” said head coach John Knighten “As the season goes on, we’re going to get better.”

Knighten has prepared his team to reach their full potential as the season goes on.

“We practiced twice a day during pre-season training and they responded well,” said Knighten.

Kendall Smith is one of three seniors who have taken the leadership role for the younger players leading by example both on and off the field.

“Our goal is to win the Southeastern Athletic Conference championship, and we must play one game at a time,” said Knighten.

The Lady Jaguars will return to action on Friday, traveling to Thibodaux against Nicholls State University at 4 p.m.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The Southwestern Athletic Conference announced its 2009 preseason volleyball honors Thursday, with Mississippi Valley State’s Maura Moed and Alabama A&M’s Rose Corneille claiming top honors. The teams were voted on by the schools’ coaches and sports information departments.

Moed, a 5-9 junior middle blocker, has been named the 2009 Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. Moed led the conference in kills last season, averaging 2.84 per set. The San Antonio native also ranked second in the SWAC in points (3.62 per set) and fourth in blocks (0.78 per set). She was garnered with player of the week honors four times in 2008 and helped guide her MVSU team to a number one seed in the Eastern division for the Conference tournament. For her

efforts, Moed was named to the 2008 SWAC AllConference first-team at the end of the season.

For the second consecutive year, Corneille, a 5-4 junior defensive specialist, has been selected the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. In 2008, Corneille ranked first on her team and fourth in the SWAC with a 3.13 digs per set average. Corneille also recorded 33 assists and 21 service aces while helping her Lady Bulldogs squad capture a second consecutive conference tournament title.

In the predicted order of finish, Alabama A&M and Grambling State have been selected to win their respective divisions for the second year in a row. The two teams met in last year’s conference tournament championship game with the Lady Bulldogs emerging the victors.

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SWAC hoops squads get digital film exchange in 3-year deal BIRMINGHAM, Ala.— The Southwestern Athletic Conference has signed a three-year agreement with Xpressplay to provide digital internet video exchange for the Conference’s men’s and women’s basketball teams.

All 10 SWAC member-institutions will now have the capabilities to quickly, efficiently exchange basketball game video via the internet.

“Adding Xpressplay will allow our coaches and players to be more efficient in their preparation for competition,” SWAC Commissioner Duer Sharp said. “We believe their digital video solution services are the best fit for our Conference basketball teams and are excited to have Xpressplay as a partner.”

Xpressplay provides online video-based services to sports organizations. NCAA Division I sports include volleyball, field hockey, men’s basketball and women’s basketball. Teams use Xpressplay’s

internet film exchange to save time and money, get more film, and get film faster. Subscribing conferences include the Ivy League, Northeast and Great West. For the 2008-2009 season, more than 250 Division I basketball teams used Xpressplay to exchange their film online, including men’s teams at Baylor, Georgetown, Penn State and Pittsburgh and women’s teams including Auburn, Duke, LSU and Maryland.

“Xpressplay is pleased to have been selected by the SWAC as its internet film exchange provider for Men’s and Women’s Basketball,” said Beth Kane, Xpressplay Co-Founder and Vice President of Sales.

“We’re looking forward to a long and beneficial partnership with the SWAC, providing services that save time and enable teams to do more with their video online.”

3 media groups protest SEC policy NEW YORK (AP) — Three leading media organizations sent a letter to the Southeastern Conference on Wednesday protesting new restrictions on use of sideline video and audio plus photos from college football games.

Schools in the SEC include Florida, Alabama, LSU, Georgia and Tenneseee, whose football programs are usually ranked among the Top 25 teams in the country. The season starts next week.

The letter was sent to SEC commissioner Mike Slive by Associated Press Managing Editors, Associated Press Sports Editors and the American Society of News Editors.

The editors said that though the SEC revised its initial credential, “we still see significant problems with the most recent version.”

“The letter objects to the restrictive nature of the credentials, and it asks for negotiations so that ASNE members and others have the opportunity to fully inform readers and viewers about their favorite SEC team,” the editors said.

Among the restrictions the media groups object to are: — An effective ban on using video or audio clips from SEC games on a newspaper’s Web site.

— A prohibition on “real-time” description of in-game events.

SEC spokesman Charles Bloom said the conference had received the letter and was reviewing it “and we will address the issues of concern with the news organizations involved.”

David Tomlin, The Associated Press’ associate

general counsel and one of those involved in drafting the letter, said the SEC’s credential language was especially limiting to Internet coverage and that portions appeared to be “cut and pasted” from restrictions imposed by major professional leagues. Some other credentials go even further, he said. For example, the Pac10 Conference is planning to limit any Internet coverage while its games are in progress, Tomlin said. There are similar concerns about Big Ten and Big 12 credentials.

“The SEC and some other big college conferences want to become publishing and broadcasting businesses now,” he said. “It is constructed so the leagues can run their own publicity machines, make money and control their message, control their brand. What that means for the fans is less opportunity to see independent, objective exposure. The leagues will cover themselves.”

John Cherwa, chair of the APSE legal affairs committee, said: “These issues have already played out with various other sports leagues on the professional level.

“In most cases the leagues have worked with APSE and other groups to ensure more balance in the restrictions,” he said. “APSE would welcome the same opportunity with the SEC or other conferences even before the credentials are issued.”

The other two BCS leagues — the Atlantic Coast Conferences and Big East — said they aren’t planning any changes in their credential language.

v-ball from page 7 In the Western division, Grambling State collected 13 first-place votes en route to 88 voting points. Prairie View A&M (four first-place votes) was second with 75 points while Southern (one first-place vote) was third with 52 points. Texas Southern (one first-place vote) registered 43 points and Arkansas-Pine Bluff tallied 27 to round out the Western division.

In the Eastern division, Alabama A&M was chosen first with 14 first-place votes as it received 90 points.

Jackson State (one first-place vote) accumulated 65 points for second place and narrowly edged the

2008 Eastern division regular season champions Mississippi Valley State (four first-place votes), who registered 64 points. Alabama State (42 pts) and Alcorn State (24 pts) close out the Eastern divisional list.

Alabama A&M led the way with five players chosen for preseason honors, with four on first team. Jackson State had three representatives on the preseason team, while Mississippi Valley State had two selections. Alabama State, Grambling State and Prairie View A&M each had one player on the preseason squad.

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arts & entertainment Tuesday, August 25, 2009 - Page 9

Museum to highlight state’s rich film history By stacey plaisance associated press writer

NEW ORLEANS—A New Orleans movie buff is putting the spotlight on the memorabilia he has collected from some of the more than 400 major motion pictures, documentaries and television series that have been produced using Louisiana as the backdrop.

Jeffrey Pipes Guice’s Louisiana Film Museum is starting small.

When it opens Sept. 1, it will occupy a 300-square-foot room in the existing Southern Food and Beverage Museum at the Riverwalk mall in New Orleans.

“We have to start somewhere,” Guice said Friday, taking a break from hanging dozens of pictures and posters that were to be shown Saturday at the “soft” opening for media and photo by judi bottoni/AP PHOTO invited guests. Among the items This Aug. 14, 2009 photo shows Jeffrey Pipes Guice arranging his Louisiana film memorabilia collection was a “Tarzan of the Apes” exhibit at the Louisiana Film Museum inside the Southern Food and Beverage Museum in New Orleans. poster from the 1918 movie The film memorabilia exhibit will be open to the public on Sept. 1. based on the novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs. but the small display space tremendously to the history Guice said there are plans in Louisiana without food.”

The film museum will include he’s currently working in only of film,” Guice said. “I can’t to expand the film display to a more than 1,000-square-foot photos and posters from about allows room to showcase about believe somebody hasn’t done this sooner.” section of the food and beverage 50 films, along with a timeline 50, he said.

Some movies not yet The collection now includes of the movies shot in Louisiana. museum.

“I think it’s a natural fit,” said Eventually, Guice said, props posters from 1951’s “A Streetcar represented in the display were Liz Williams, president of the and costumes on loan from Named Desire” starring Marlon the 1989 romantic drama “Steel food museum, which opened private collections will be added Brando and Vivien Leigh, 1958’s Magnolias” — filmed in the last summer and in its first year to the exhibit on a rotating “King Creole” starring Elvis northwestern Louisiana town of Presley and 1969’s “Easy Rider” Natchitoches — and last year’s drew some 35,000 visitors. “In basis.

In all, Guice has pictures starring Peter Fonda, Dennis “The Curious Case of Benjamin movies, food and beverage give Button” starring Brad Pitt and you a sense of place, a sense of and posters from more than Hopper and Jack Nicholson.

“Louisiana has contributed Cate Blanchett. identity. You couldn’t do a movie 200 movies shot in Louisiana,

Pitt laughs over T-shirt NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The idea of Brad Pitt running for New Orleans mayor has generated a lot of buzz around the city even though he isn’t eligible. It also generated some laughs for the actor in a television interview.

Many residents have been sporting “Brad Pitt for Mayor” T-shirts since mid-June, when a Tulane University professor and two brothers who own a New Orleans T-shirt shop joined forces to launch a quasicampaign to convince Pitt to run. The actor founded the Make It Right organization in 2007 to build houses for low-income residents who lost their homes during Hurricane Katrina.

“He’s a family man, and you won’t have to worry about him being corrupt,” said Drew Cambre, 26, who works at a New Orleans pastry shop and has a “Brad Pitt for Mayor” sticker on his laptop computer. “Plus, he’ll help the movie industry here in New Orleans and keep a light on the city.”

Pitt said on NBC’s “Today” that he’s noticed the shirts but laughed off the idea of running.

“I don’t have a chance.”

He joked: “I’m running on the gay marriage, no religion, legalization and taxation of marijuana platform.”

Pitt is right about his chances, at least as far as the next mayoral election. He and his partner, Angelina Jolie, bought a French Quarter mansion in 2007. To be eligible, mayoral candidates must be residents of New Orleans for at least five years before the date of the election. The mayoral primary is Feb. 6, 2010.

So far more than a dozen homes have been built in the Lower 9th Ward through the Make It Right program and another eight are under construction.

Josh Harvey, 31, who sells the shirts at his Storyville T-shirt shop is donating $2 to the program for every shirt sold.

The shirts retail for $20, and so far, more than $2,000 has gone to Make It Right, Harvey said.

It’s Pitt’s charity work that has some hopeful for his candidacy, even if it’s not this time around.

“He’s already doing so much good for our city, so why not?” said Stephanie Schneller, 29, who was in the shop.

Guice said he is working to expand his collection but is using his own money to do so while pursuing grants and private donations. He said he has a board of about six advisers that includes Alan Citron, a south Louisiana native and president of the Los Angelesbased entertainment news Web site Buzz Media.

“My board members are advisers who can open doors in the entertainment world and help build the collection I’ve started,” Guice said. “What I have is the foundation.”

Beyond being a museum for film history, Guice said he would like to see the facility become a place where the public can learn about how movies are made and the variety of job opportunities available in film, from catering to costume design.

Guise is a self-described marketing executive whose resume includes such media companies as Warner Music Group, Hearst Publishing, Clear Channel Entertainment and NewsAmerica Marketing.

He said he envisions the film museum also being used for special events such as film premiere parties.

“Film is such a sense of pride for our community and the hard work that’s gone into creating this industry here,” said Jennifer Day, director of the New Orleans Office of Film and Video. “We welcome a facility like this.”

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Movie theaters cut print show times as Web gains KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP)— Filmgoers who have long turned to the local newspaper to find theaters and show times for movies may have to start looking elsewhere as theater chains rethink the value of paper and ink in a digital age.

The top two U.S. chains, Regal Entertainment Group and AMC Entertainment Inc., have begun in recent months to reduce or eliminate the smalltype listings showing the start times for movies at individual theaters. Theaters typically must pay newspapers to print that information.

Looking to cut costs, the theater chains are instead directing consumers to their Internet sites or third-party sites, like Fandango, Moviefone or Flixster, which offer those listings for free and make money from the fees they charge for selling advance tickets to movies. Many of those sites also feature film reviews and movie trailers.

The effort may be gaining some traction, as U.S. Internet traffic to AMC’s Web site rose 21 percent in July compared with a year ago, according to comScore Inc., while visits to Regal’s Web site were up 18 percent.

The Newspaper Association of America doesn’t track revenue that newspapers generate from print movie listings, but believes the amount is relatively

small. Yet every dollar counts as newspapers are forced to cut staff, reduce the frequency of print editions or even close completely amid the recession.

And readers have come to expect such listings. Seeing them curtailed or disappear could give them yet another reason to abandon their subscriptions.

“For a reader, some things that are ads are actually considered news,” said Mort Goldstrom, the NAA’s vice president of advertising. “Ads for concerts and things at clubs, for restaurants and movies - that’s a reason people read.”

He said the pullback in listings will hurt theaters by reducing their visibility among potential customers, sending those dollars to competitors that still buy listings or to other sources of entertainment like plays or clubs.

Readers formulating weekend plans “may look at something broader than Moviefone,” he said. “That’s the piece that newspaper Web sites have and niche (entertainment) publications have.”

Kansas City-based AMC helped shine a spotlight on the trend last month when it pulled its listings from The Washington Post, prompting the newspaper’s ombudsman, Andrew Alexander, to deflect readers’ ire in his blog.

“Most readers believe that it

was the newspaper’s decision,” Alexander wrote, comparing it to The Post’s recent move to cut back on the newspaper’s television listings. “In fact, movie listings in the print product are paid advertising, and it was AMC’s decision to stop paying.”

The Post declined further comment, and Alexander wrote in his column that the newspaper wouldn’t tell him either how much revenue the AMC ads provided.

AMC spokesman Justin Scott said daily movie listings are expensive and the theater chain believes that that money would be better spent promoting its value programs or other theater events.

“In an era when many moviegoers are using alternative resources to access show times, AMC has chosen to reallocate its show-time information methods,” Scott said.

Scott wouldn’t say where else AMC has cut its listings and how much it has saved. But he said “so far we’ve seen no impact on attendance.”

Regal, based in Knoxville, Tenn., said its in-theater and online surveys found 60 percent to 80 percent of respondents saying they received their movie listings online.

“So we’ve evaluated our newspaper strategy on a caseby-case basis and in a number of markets have eliminated our

newspaper ads,” spokesman Dick Westerling said, adding that in other markets Regal theaters run movie listings only on the weekends.

The company has eliminated ads in such markets as San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis and Orlando, Fla. Westerling would not disclose how much Regal spends on movie listings, but he said ticket sales haven’t significantly changed.

He said that the company has also tapped social networks, such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, to communicate listings with customers who sign up for updates.

Carmike Cinemas, a Columbus, Ga.-based chain that operates primarily in smaller towns, also has cut back on newspaper ads in some markets, in most cases just buying listings on the weekends.

“Out of the 50 markets where we’ve done drastic reductions, I’ve received one complaint,” said Dale Hurst, Carmike’s director of marketing. “I’m not trying to be a soothsayer but everyone seems to be going high-tech. They want it now.”

Some newspapers don’t charge for movie listings, considering them akin to community meeting notices or television listings. In markets where the listings are free, Regal and AMC said they’ve continued to run movie listings. The NAA’s Goldstrom said, though, that he

knew of no newspaper that has dropped fees as a result of the theaters’ pullback.

Movie studios, meanwhile, have been cutting their own newspaper advertising as well.

The newspaper trade group said national movie-related display advertising totaled $141.5 million in the first quarter of 2009, or 51 percent lower than five years ago.

Ken Doctor, a media analyst with Outsell Inc., said some newspapers have responded by teaming up with Web sites that sell movie tickets, gaining a small revenue stream on each ticket sold, or by selling movie studios sponsorships for parts of their Web sites. For example, he noted that The New York Times displays small ads for movies when a user wants to e-mail a news story to a friend.

In general, though, Internet ad rates haven’t matched what print commands.

And as social-networking sites like Twitter and Facebook become the place to learn about which movies are hot and where they’re playing, he said, newspapers and their Web sites risk losing their readers if they cannot quickly figure out how to tap in.

Andrew Lipsman, director of industry analysis for comScore, said the online sites have become more interactive than newspapers.

VIEWPOINTS Tuesday, August 25, 2009 - Page 11

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A message from the chancellor To All Southern University Students: I am pleased to welcome back all of our continuing students and to welcome our new students to Southern University and A & M College. This year promises to be a very exciting and productive year for the University and, I am sure, for each of you.

I am anxious to interact with each of you during this new academic year-in classes, at football games and at other athletic events, walking across the campus, in the dining hall and at other campus events.

The year’s Chancellor’s Lecture Series is going to be very exciting. Our confirmed speakers include Cornel West, Susan Taylor and Roland Martin. These Wednesday night programs will begin at 6 pm this year and will usually be followed by book signings or autograph sessions. You won’t want to miss any of them!

Our football season kicks off on Saturday, Sept. 5, at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. That game begins at 6 pm. Our first home game will be on Saturday, 12 September against Central State University. This game is also scheduled to start at 6 pm.

Please note that this year student seating will be in sections 10 (with the band), 11, 12 and 13. Tickets for section 9 are being sold this year to the general public. This decision was made as the seats in this section, being on the 50-yard line, are the most desirable seats in the stadium and we have already seen that our ticket sales have increased as a result of selling the tickets in this section. Considering the fact that our athletic budget is tight

KOFI LOMOTEY SUBR CHANCELL OR

every year, this decision will help, in a small way, with the budgetary situation.

Sections 10, 11, 12 and 13 provide more than enough good seating for Southern students.

The introduction of Living and Learning Centers on campus this year is a small part of our effort to provide all of the support that you need outside of the classroom--so that you can be successful in the classroom. Ultimately, each of you is responsible for your academic success. But we--faculty, staff and administrators--play a role and that role can be either positive or negative; we want to insure that we are always playing a positive role in insuring your success. You deserve nothing less.

As you move through the current academic year, I want to remind you that, as students, you have three responsibilities. The first is to study.

You must study your classwork--to be successful academically. And you must also study about yourself and about your people and about the relationship between your people and other peoples of the world. Sometimes, if you’re fortunate, this second form of study occurs in classes. More often than not, you’ll have to study about yourself

on your own. However it occurs, its important.

Your second responsibility is to be socially active. That is, as long as injustice occurs in society, we must all be of service to others. That is why Southern was the first HBCU to require to students to participate in service learning as a part of your requirements for graduation.

Finally, you have the responsibility of taking care of your body. Many students think this responsibility can wait until after graduation. You need to be concerned about diet and exercise now. You have to watch what you eat and make sure that you regularly exercise your body--now.

For our upperclass students, particularly, please make sure that you are keeping track of which courses you’ve taken and which classes you still need. It’s an awful feeling to approach commencement and find out at the l1th hour that you need one or two courses of which you were unaware. Be sure to stay in contact with your faculty advisors.

Also, first year students, each of you has been assigned to a full time advisor in the University College; be sure to stay in touch with them.

Again, I am excited about this year.

I look forward to interacting with the new student government leadership team and I remain your humble servant.

Remember, we understand that you are the most important people on the campus. We understand that if it were not for you, we would not be here. Let’s work together to make Southern the greatest institution that it can be!

New editor puts out mission statement

I would first like to start off by sending a warm welcome to all incoming and returning students to Southern University, as well as those members of the faculty and staff lucky enough to survive the still ever looming budget cuts. I must admit, I was little nervous when I sat down to write my first editorial of the year, but I feel confident that I can properly get my point across to all my readers. As everyone knows at the beginning of each semester the Chancellor and SGA President send in their statements on what they expect for the year so I figured DIGEST follow suit.

So here are a few of our expectations for the year: 1. Keep our status as no.1 National HBCU Student News Media Conference, Best Student Newspaper Twice weekly or more, 2. To see more faculty and staff

NORMAN DOTSON JR. “magically” disappear due to “budget cuts,” 3. Experience more political blunders and scandals than the previous year, 4. Campus life to continue to dwindle into non-existence, 5. To have to speak the truth even though it may hurt the University’s image, 6. To receive angry calls from those people caught in said truths, and

7. To have as much fun as possible (if possible) In order for things to run smoothly, EVERYONE — and I mean EVERYONE — has to be on the same page with one another. We can’t have anymore irresponsible, childish, and vindictive student leaders, nor can we have professors that are “scientists” rather than instructors. Also if we are hurting for students, why in the world would you turn students away based on ridiculous technicalities or not house said students.

I plan to do or say whatever is needed so that Southern can be a university that respects its faculty, staff, and most importantly its students. I love this school no matter how many mistakes it has made and will make, and as a concerned student I will say what’s best and often times what’s best to say is usually hardest.

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SPEAK OUT

How do you feel about President Obama’s proposed healthcare reforms?

BY wil norwood

Digest photo editor

david hulbert baton rouge freshman biology

hulbert

“ I feel that Obama has a great plan, but I think he should promote more seminars in each state.”

koi lomas gonzales senior political science

“While I believe President Obama has chosen a lomas solution that he deems feasible, I do not believe this proposed healthcare reform will be beneficial in the long-term.”

vione braud new orleans freshman criminal justice

“I think that this is a wonderful idea because it gives us braud the opportunity to receive any treatment we need without going through any hassles.”

sherman allen shreveport senior therapeutic recreation

“I feel that Obama is doing a good job concerning the allen heath plan. I feel that it will work out for the best for our country.”

SUBMISSIONS POLICY

The Southern DIGEST welcomes letters from readers commenting on current issues and other matters of general interest to the SU family and public. We set aside this space to publish these letters for others to enjoy. This newspaper is not responsible for individual opinions expressed on its editorial and opinion pages. The Southern DIGEST reserves the right to edit any contributions and or reject them without notification. Authors are encouraged to limit the length of submissions to 300 words. Letters should not include libelous statements. Offensive and personal attacks will not be permitted. The DIGEST will not print “open letters” addressed to someone else. All contributions must be type written, signed and must include the author’s address and phone number. Unsigned letters will not be printed.

Southern University students should include their majors, hometowns and year in school. When referring to specific DIGEST articles, please include the date and title. All materials should be directed to the editor in chief of The Southern DIGEST, P.O. Box 10180, Baton Rouge, La. 70813. Materials may be delivered by hand to the DIGEST office located in Suite 1064 Harris Hall or can be e-mail to digest@ subr.edu.

Editorial policy

Staff editorials represent the opinions of the author and the majority opinion of the Southern DIGEST Student Editorial Board, which is comprised of the student staff of editors and columnists. The Southern DIGEST provides an open forum to educate, inform and enlighten the students, faculty and staff at Southern University, Baton Rouge, La.

Page 12 -Tuesday, August 25, 2009

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World sets ocean temperature mark WASHINGTON (AP)—Steve Kramer spent an hour and a half swimming in the ocean Sunday — in Maine.

The water temperature was 72 degrees — more like Ocean City, Md., this time of year. And Ocean City’s water temp hit 88 degrees this week, toasty even by Miami Beach standards.

Kramer, 26, who lives in the seaside town of Scarborough, said it was the first time he’s ever swam so long in Maine’s coastal waters. “Usually, you’re in five minutes and you’re out,” he said.

It’s not just the ocean off the Northeast coast that is super-warm this summer.

July was the hottest the world’s oceans have been in almost 130 years of recordkeeping.

The average water temperature worldwide was 62.6 degrees, according to the National Climatic Data Center, the branch of the U.S. government that

keeps world weather records. June was only slightly cooler, while August could set another record, scientists say. The previous record was set in July 1998 during a powerful El Nino weather pattern.

Meteorologists said there’s a combination of forces at work: A natural El Nino system just getting started on top of worsening man-made global warming, and a dash of random weather variations.

The resulting ocean heat is already harming threatened coral reefs. It could also hasten the melting of Arctic sea ice and help hurricanes strengthen.

The Gulf of Mexico, where warm water fuels hurricanes, has temperatures dancing around 90. Most of the water in the Northern Hemisphere has been considerably warmer than normal.

The Mediterranean is about three degrees warmer than normal. Higher temperatures rule in the Pacific and

Indian Oceans.

The heat is most noticeable near the Arctic, where water temperatures are as much as 10 degrees above average.

The tongues of warm water could help melt sea ice from below and even cause thawing of ice sheets on Greenland, said Waleed Abdalati, director of the Earth Science and Observation Center at the University of Colorado.

Breaking heat records in water is more ominous as a sign of global warming than breaking temperature marks on land, because water takes longer to heat up and does not cool off as easily as land.

“This warm water we’re seeing doesn’t just disappear next year; it’ll be around for a long time,” said climate scientist Andrew Weaver of the University of Victoria in British Columbia. It takes five times more energy to warm water than land.

The warmer water “affects weather on

the land,” Weaver said. “This is another yet really important indicator of the change that’s occurring.”

Georgia Institute of Technology atmospheric science professor Judith Curry said water is warming in more places than usual, something that has not been seen in more than 50 years.

Add to that an unusual weather pattern this summer where the warmest temperatures seem to be just over oceans, while slightly cooler air is concentrated over land, said Deke Arndt, head of climate monitoring at the climate data center.

The pattern is so unusual that he suggested meteorologists may want to study that pattern to see what’s behind it.

The effects of that warm water are already being seen in coral reefs, said C. Mark Eakin, coordinator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s coral reef watch.