11.07.11 | UCSD Guardian

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in the mood for music. PAGE 7

VOLUME 45, ISSUE 15

A.S. COUNCIL

FINANCIAL AID federal law changes financial aid eligibility

A.S. Fails to impeach senator for absences

Heavy Costs for Low Grades

A.S. Council’s attempt to impeach Muir College Senator Summer Perez failed in a 17-9-1 vote. By Rebecca Horwitz

Associate News Editor

A.S. Council attempted to impeach Marshall College Senator Summer Perez at its Nov. 2 meeting because she exceeded her unexcused absence limit. Her unexcused absences revealed gaping holes in the attendance policy. The impeachment failed, with councilmembers voting 17-9-1. A.S. Council only allows three unexcused absences, and Perez had five. Three of the meetings Perez missed were all on Oct. 19. Council holds three meetings each Wednesday evening from 4 p.m. - 10 p.m. If councilmembers miss all three meetings held on Wednesdays and do not excuse their absences, they will have used their three unexcused absences in one night. Perez said she has been sick the past few months and she had her appendix removed last Thursday, Oct. 27. Similar issues with the attendance policy arose last year. The previous Arts and Humanities Senator Shunya Wade had 19.5 unexcused absences last year and A.S. Council spent an hour in closed session deciding whether or not Wade should be impeached. Her defense had been that she had class and had emailed someone from council earlier in the quarter, but she later found out she emailed the wrong person. She was not impeached. A.S. Council’s main issue with the attendance policy in the past was being able to hold members accountable for their absences. Perez said the attendance policy was a big issue discussed during the meeting. She said A.S. Council acknowledged that there were problems with the policy. “It’s a little contradictory in my eyes — you would agree that the bylaws are broken — yet we’re still going to operate under them because they’re there,” Perez said. Sixth College Senator Cody Marshall said that one of the biggest problems in the attendance policy is that there is no way to excuse absences retroactively. He used the example of a councilmember fainting due to low blood pressure on a Wednesday afternoon; the

New academic qualifications for federal financial aid students could affect over 70 percent of UCSD students. By Nicole Chan

Associate News Editor

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tudents who do not take 36 units a year and keep a minimum 2.0 GPA will lose their federally funded financial aid, such as Pell Grants and Federal Loans, due to new federal regulations from the U.S. Department of Education. Program Integrity OPINION Regulations, effective July Check out 1, 2011, are designed to an editorial on this new ensure that only eligible students receive aid, accordlaw in the ing to the U.S. Department next issue. of Education website. The new law eliminates academic probation entirely. Previously, students with a GPA lower than 2.0 but at least 1.5 were placed on academic probation, an academic term in which students could raise their GPA to minimum requirements. Muir College Senator Elizabeth Garcia brought up the new law at the A.S. Council meeting on Nov. 2. Garcia, also a house advisor, was instructed to spread the news about the law by Muir College Assistant

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Dean of Student Affairs Ann Hawthorne. “Before, to be eligible, you had to comUCSD students with plete the 36 units a year and keep a 2.0 federal financial aid. GPA,” Garcia said. “If you did below a 2.0 GPA or didn’t finish the unit requirement, you would be placed on academic probation. Now if you fall below a 2.0 GPA or do not complete 36 units a year, you get Dollar amount in millions of financial no financial aid, period.” In conjunction with the regulations, aid UCSD students starting Nov. 1, all colleges that receive received last year. federal aid are required to put a net price calculator on their websites for prospective students. The calculators are intended to provide a close estimate of what students will owe after need-based aid and Number of units a merit-based aid are given. student must take According to a document from the annually to receive campus financial aid office released on financial aid. June 28, 2011, the U.S. Department of Education requires that students must maintain “satisfactory academic progress” (SAP) standards in order to receive federGPA students must

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2.0

maintain to secure federal financial aid.

See Aid, page 3

Calm before the storm Left: Students walk a tight rope on a sunny day in between Library Walk and Price Center on Thurs. Nov. 3. Right: A surfer enjoys some waves in Oceanside on Tue. Nov. 1 just before this week’s storm. brian monroe /G uardian

See senator, page 3

sSPOKEN

WWW.UCSDGUARDIAN.ORG

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2011

FORECAST

SPOKEN It’s certainly not our intent to

push anybody somewhere where they’re uncomfortable with it.”

Monday

tuesday

wednesday

thursday

H 60 L 44

H 63 L 46

NIGHT WATCH NIGHT WATCH monday

tuesday

gert lanckriet

Assistant Professor UCSD Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

H 69 L 49

H 67 L 52

Wednesday Thursday

SURF REPORT SURF REPORT monday

javier armstrong /G uardian

GAS PER GALLON

Height: 5 ft. Wind: 3-10 mph Water Temp: 62 F

tuesday Height: 3-5 ft. Wind: 4 mph Water Temp: 62 F

wednesday Height: 3 ft. Wind: 4-7 mph Water Temp: 62 F

thursday Height: 3 ft. Wind: 2-5 mph Water Temp: 62 F

LOw

$3.66

Unbranded, Chula Vista 3733 Main St. & Mace St. HIGH

$4.25

Shell, San Diego - West 3353 India St. & Vine St.

INSIDE Birdland..................................2 Lights & Sirens.......................3 At Wit’s End............................4 Letters to the Editor................5 Mood Music...........................6 Sudoku...................................9 Sports...................................12


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