I n d ep en d en t
Issue no.
S t u de nt
V o i c e
o f
B o is e
S tat e
Sin c e
1933
62
May
6
2013
Volume 25
w w w.arbiteronline.com
Boise, Idaho
First issue free
Top Stories
Fall recap
A look back at Bronco athletics last fall.
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Adults only
The Theatre Majors Association presents their spring show.
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Spring Fling
photos devin ferrell/THE ARBITER
Deancers took to the Student Union Building patio on Thursday, May 2 to celebrate Cinco De Mayo.
Mike Posner headlined this year’s Spring Fling.
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Cinco De Mayo celebration mixed culture and learning.
Cinco de Mayo celebrated
Weather Today
Zoe Colburn Staff Writer
Sunny
81º high
10%
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Sunny
76º high
20%
chance of precipitation
Wednesday
Mostly Sunny
75º high
10%
chance of precipitation
What’s Inside News Briefs
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The Arbiter
A cultural celebration took place on the SUB patio.
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The dancers on the Student Union Building (SUB) patio stopped and let out a warbling yell as they shook their waterbottle maracas. The women wore turquoise and black, the men red and black. Both wore large headdresses of peacock feathers. The steady drum-
beat continued to pound; the dancers began again. The Organización de Estudiantes Latino-Americanos (OELA) and the Bilingual Education Student Organization put together a partcelebration, part-educational experience on Thursday, May 2. The event featured Mexican food, maraca-making, facepainting, a chili-eating contest
and Aztec dancing. Although the event was meant to be a fun celebration, it was also an educational and awareness-raising event. “They try to have it to promote cultural awareness,” said OELA secretary and sophomore political science major Alejandra Mejia. Mejia went on to say she liked how students get to learn
Campus security pushes for camera surveillance Ryan Thorne Staff Writer
The recent bombings in Boston have proven how valuable security cameras can be to law enforcement. Using footage obtained from nearby cameras, local and federal police forces were able to identify the brothers allegedly responsible for planting and detonating the explosives at the finish line of the marathon. As a former FBI member, Boise State executive director of campus security Jon Uda understands how tools like video surveillance can aid law enforcement. Uda and colleagues have recently taken steps to install surveillance cameras campus wide in an attempt to prevent and prosecute crimes and prevent com-
mon illegal activity like bike theft. Forced to deal with an annually shrinking budget, Uda must rely on grants since a centralized closed circuit television (CCTV) system could cost the university thousands of dollars it doesn’t have. CCTV surveillance allows multiple camera feeds to be viewed in a single location by security personnel. It is commonly used among security professionals and law enforcement. “I am a huge proponent of CCTV,” Uda said. “If I had a million dollars, I would have installed cameras two years ago.” Boise State’s campus is unique for its lack of video cameras, compared to other state schools like Idaho State University which
has nearly 400, according to Uda. Currently, a third party group is being selected by Boise State security officials to conduct an evaluation of campus security efforts and Uda hopes their findings will indicate a need for an integrated camera network. Without a recommendation from an independent third party, Uda will not be able to obtain grant money necessary for a school wide CCTV system. Cameras conduct surveillance near cash registers and campus businesses, but most outdoor areas are are not monitored via CCTV. “We do have cameras, most are in cash collection areas, but they are inside of buildings,” said Rob Littrell, Boise State Emergen-
more about Cinco de Mayo and what it actually is. “Many people have the idea it’s Mexico’s Independence Day, but it isn’t,” Mejia said. “In Mexico it’s the Battle of Puebla. The Mexicans fought against the French. Mexico won against the odds.” This battle occurred on May 5, 1862. Sophomore criminal jus-
tice major, Mariah Leland, who attended the event both this year and last, said she enjoyed it. “I grew up in Texas and we always celebrated Cinco de Mayo,” she said. Leland went on to say the celebration was improved upon, with better and more varied activities from last year.
cy Planner and Analyst. Though cameras may aid authorities and prevent theft, ASBSU President Ryan Gregg thinks most students would not like to be monitored. “What was reported back to the (ASBSU) senate is that students on campus have sort of a certain level of privacy they expect and students weren’t comfortable having cameras everywhere,” Gregg said. Gregg said he feels the effectiveness of camera surveillance should be studied before any serious changes are made. With the population size of student residents on campus increasing each year, Gregg sees illegal activity decreasing. “I tend to think that as we have more students on campus, that it actually would deter crime,” Gregg said. “If you are a criminal, you don’t want to be caught, you want to do your crime when there are few people around.”
Lack of security cameras in high traffic areas like the Lincoln Parking Garage have created difficulty for police trying to solve the recent arson crimes involving burning trash cans and the destruction of two student vehicles. Freshman health promotions major Taylor Lance understands the need for cameras covering outdoor high traffic areas on campus but stressed that school officials should restrict additional surveillance to those areas. “I think the quad and big areas like that would be fine,” Lance said. Students like civil engineer major Randy Hamilton feel criminals will only be deterred by enhanced security measures if they are in plain sight. “If they’re visible, and they are made aware that there are new cameras then maybe,” Hamilton said. “But if people don’t know you added 20 cameras then they are going to do the same stuff.” arbiteronline.com